Moroni's Patriotism and a Tribute to Teancum

Book of Mormon Notes - Thursday, November 23, 2023, Alma 62

Mormon informs us that Pahoran’s epistle infused even more courage into Moroni’s already incredibly courageous heart. Imagine the courage of that courageous heart, when upon receiving Pahoran’s message, Moroni immediately gathered a small number of men to march with him toward the land of Gideon where Pahoran had taken refuge, raising the standard of liberty along the way. After witnessing so much bloodshed and destruction, and so much rebellion and treachery, Moroni rejoiced to discover that Pahoran was a true friend of liberty and not a traitor to the freedom and the cause of his country.

Nevertheless, Moroni also mourned exceedingly because of the iniquity of those who had driven Pahoran from the judgment-seat. Moroni mourned exceedingly because of those who had rebelled against their country and also their God. Notice the close connection between rebellion against country and rebellion against God. Remember the close connection between the spirit of liberty and the spirit of religion, as Tocqueville put it, or the Spirit of God and righteous patriotism.

Why did Moroni love God and his country so much? Why did Pahoran’s epistle infuse such courage into Moroni’s heart that he immediately began to march toward the land of Gideon, raising the title of liberty along the way? Remember Mormon’s description of Moroni’s greatness and his great heart:

And Moroni was a ^astrong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect ^bunderstanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;

Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the ^awelfare and safety of his people.

Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had ^asworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood… (Alma 48:11-13)

… and this was the faith of Moroni, and his heart did glory in it; ^bnot in the shedding of blood but in doing good, in preserving his people, yea, in keeping the commandments of God, yea, and resisting iniquity.

Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto ^aMoroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the ^bdevil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.

Behold, he was a man like unto ^aAmmon, the son of Mosiah, yea, and even the other sons of Mosiah, yea, and also Alma and his sons, for they were all men of God. (Alma 48:16-18)

One thing that stands out to me is that Moroni had labored exceedingly for the welfare and the safety of his people. He was committed. He was giving his life for the cause of Christ and the cause of freedom. Moroni loved his God and his country so much because he had ^asworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood. Moroni had made the sacrifice of which the Prophet Joseph Smith later testified:

Let us here observe, that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation; for, from the first existence of man, the faith necessary unto the enjoyment of life and salvation never could be obtained without the sacrifice of all earthly things. It was through this sacrifice, and this only, that God has ordained that men should enjoy eternal life; and it is through the medium of the sacrifice of all earthly things that men do actually know that they are doing the things that are well pleasing in the sight of God. When a man has offered in sacrifice all that he has for the truth's sake, not even withholding his life, and believing before God that he has been called to make this sacrifice because he seeks to do his will, he does know, most assuredly, that God does and will accept his sacrifice and offering, and that he has not, nor will not seek his face in vain. Under these circumstances, then, he can obtain the faith necessary for him to lay hold on eternal life.

The Prophet Joseph Smith made a similar sacrifice for the cause of Christ:

I will try to be contented with my lot, knowing that God is my friend. In him I shall find comfort. I have given my life into his hands. I am prepared to go at his call. I desire to be with Christ. I count not my life dear to me, only to do his will. (Joseph Smith to Emma Smith, 6 June 1832, reprinted in Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, comp. Dean C. Jessee (2002), 264-265; punctuation standardized).

Thus when Moroni and his men began their march toward the land of Gideon, raising the ^astandard of ^bliberty along the way, people began to flock to that standard. They were drawn by that irresistible power that flows from the love of God, the love of liberty, and the love of country that radiated from Moroni and of which the title of liberty was symbolic. Moroni left the rest of the Nephite armies in very able hands, with Lehi and Teancum, and he and his men marched and gathered momentum along the way to Gideon, the power of God assisting them in order to accomplish the thing which He had commanded them, namely, to cleanse the inward vessel of the Nephite government and punish the dissenters according to the word of God.

Thousands flocked to Moroni and his standard of liberty during his march from the east toward the land of Gideon. These were like the Revolutionary soldiers who fought with Washington and who gained miraculous victories over the British. These were like the freedom loving patriots who joined Simon Bolivar and miraculously overcame their Spanish oppressors. These were like the brave soldiers who rallied around Churchill’s clarion call for freedom against the evil onslaught of Hitler and the Nazis.

Dare I say it? These were like those God-fearing and freedom loving Americans who desired to make America great again, who refused the tyranny of jabbing, masking, social distancing, censorship, and other absurd and nefarious policies that were thrust upon them by the latter-day king-men. Moroni’s march to Gideon beckons each one of us to rise up and rally around the modern standard of liberty, to flock to that standard like the Nephites of old who flocked around Moroni and followed him into battle against the dissenters in Zarahemla.

Moroni and his men joined forces with Pahoran and his men in Gideon, and they marched forth against the dissenters. They slew the king of the dissenters, a man named Pachus, and they defeated the dissenters. Pahoran was restored to his judgment seat. The men of Pachus and the imprisoned king-men who would not take up arms in the defence of their country, but would fight against it, were swiftly executed.

To our modern ears, such action sounds harsh. When I read about similar executions that leaders like George Washington and Simon Bolivar were forced to carry out, I do not envy them. But Mormon underscores why such action was both just and necessary:

And thus it became expedient that this law should be strictly observed for the safety of their country; yea, and whosoever was found denying their freedom was speedily ^aexecuted according to the law. (Alma 62:10)

Can you imagine if, under the duress of war, a similar law in the United States were observed? If the penalty of death were enforced upon all those who stubbornly rebelled against God and their country, refusing to stand up for liberty, do you think that there would be many modern king-men? What is the law against treason in the United States of America? Check out section 3 of Article III of the U.S. Constitution:

Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.

The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.

Then check out the penalty for treason in U.S. Code Title 18:

Under U.S. Code Title 18, the penalty is death,^[4] or not less than five years' imprisonment (with a minimum fine of $10,000, if not sentenced to death). Any person convicted of treason against the United States also forfeits the right to hold public office in the United States.

I confess that when I watched the Communist dictator of China 🇨🇳 , Mr. Xi Jinping, waltzing around with President Biden recently, I couldn’t help but wonder who was in charge of that meeting. I wonder what Moroni’s meeting with Pachus, and his previous meetings with Zerahemnah and other tyrants, might teach us about diplomacy and foreign relations.

Moroni and Pahoran restored order and peace in Zarahemla, among their own people, by conquering the traitors, killing Pachus, and inflicting death upon all those who were not true to the cause of freedom. The inward vessel was cleansed. The problem was solved. Then Moroni immediately sent men and provisions to Helaman in the southwest and to Lehi and Teancum in the southeast. Then Moroni and Pahoran marched toward Nephihah to recapture the city, slaying many Lamanites along the way and taking their provisions and their weapons, while compelling the survivors to take a covenant of peace. Amazingly, 4,000 of these Lamanites were sent to dwell with the people of Ammon.

If we thought that Mormon was done recounting Moroni’s exploits and highlighting his boundless courage, we were wrong. Because the Lamanites in Nephihah would not come out into the plains of Nephi to battle, Moroni took matters into his own hands. Like Teancum before him, Moroni decided to venture into enemy territory during the night:

And when the night came, Moroni went forth in the darkness of the night, and came upon the top of the wall to spy out in what part of the city the Lamanites did camp with their army. (Alma 62)

In yet another brilliant strategy, Moroni and his men stealthily scaled the walls of Nephihah with cords and ladders, and let themselves down into the city on the side of the city where there were no Lamanites. When the Lamanites awoke the next morning and discovered that Moroni and his soldiers were within the city walls, they were frightened and fled:

Thus had Moroni and Pahoran obtained the ^apossession of the city of Nephihah without the loss of one soul; and there were many of the Lamanites who were slain. (Alma 62)

More Lamanites desired to become a free people, and they were permitted to join the people of Ammon and to begin to live a more civilized and agricultural life. With less Lamanite soldiers and more Nephite soldiers, Moroni’s army gained even more strength as he and his armies marched toward the land of Lehi, while the Lamanites continued to flee before them. Moroni then met up with Lehi and Teancum near the borders by the seashore, and the land of Moroni. There they surrounded and were ready to do battle against all of the armies of the Lamanites that had gathered together in one body, with Ammoron, the king, at their head. But first they had to rest, because both the Lamanites and the Nephites were weary because of the greatness of the march.

But there was one man whose courage and desire for liberty were so much greater than even his fatigue that he could not rest. That man, one of my favorite characters in the Book of Mormon, was none other than Teancum. Remember Teancum, the man who slew Morianton (Alma 50:35) and defeated the rebels, defied the entire Lamanite army and slew Amalickiah in his own tent (Alma 51:33–34), did battle against the Lamanites (Alma 52:1–6), the man who wisely refrained from attacking the city of Mulek (Alma 52:17–20), decoyed Lamanites and scattered them (Alma 52:22–28), set prisoners to work (Alma 53:3), and performed many other heroic and noble deeds in defense of his country and his people? This same Teancum was so filled with righteous anger that his courage carried him forward toward the camp of the Lamanites.

Teancum was exceedingly angry with Ammoron because he considered that Ammoron, and Amalickiah his brother, had been the ^acause of this great and lasting war between the Nephites and the Lamanites. Teancum considered that Ammoron and Amalickiah had been the cause of so much war, bloodshed, and famine. And he wasn’t wrong. Teancum went to the heart of the matter, first with a javelin into Amalickiah’s wicked heart, and then with a javelin that he launched at Ammoron’s wicked heart.

When I think of this strategy and these acts of courage, I believe that Teancum is the great Nephite hero who won the war for the Nephites almost single-handedly. Teancum probably slew many Lamanites who were only fighting because they had been deceived by Amalickiah and by Ammoron, and Teancum was not bloodthirsty. Teancum was as intelligent as he was courageous, noble, and wise, and his strategy was to seek out and eliminate the cause of war. Of course, the cause went deeper than Amalickiah or Ammoron, back to the original rebellions of Laman and Lemuel. But Teancum got as close as possible to eliminating the original cause of the war between the Nephites and the Lamanites. The sons of Mosiah had also come as close as possible to eliminating the cause of conflict between the Lamanites and the Nephites by preaching the word of God by the power of the Spirit, which changed many Lamanite hearts. But Teancum knew that there were at least two Lamanite hearts that were so grossly hardened and impenitent that the only thing that could soften them was the point of a javelin. His first assassination was swift and successful. His second assassination was also swift and successful, but he paid for it with his own life:

And it came to pass that Teancum in his anger did go forth into the camp of the Lamanites, and did let himself down over the walls of the city. And he went forth with a cord, from place to place, insomuch that he did find the king; and he did ^acast a javelin at him, which did pierce him near the heart. But behold, the king did awaken his servants before he died, insomuch that they did pursue Teancum, and slew him. (Alma 62:36)

Teancum! Brave Teancum. Even as I read, I mourn your loss. Like your beloved brothers Lehi and Moroni, my tears pour forth like rain:

Now it came to pass that when Lehi and Moroni knew that Teancum was dead they were exceedingly sorrowful; for behold, he had been a man who had ^afought valiantly for his country, yea, a true friend to liberty; and he had suffered very many exceedingly sore afflictions. But behold, he was dead, and had gone the way of all the earth. (Alma 62:37)

Lehi and Moroni and their men didn’t have much time to mourn, because they had to finish the job that Teancum started. They drove the Lamanites out of the land.

When you read of Teancum’s courage, does he not inspire you to fight valiantly for your country? Does he not inspire you to be a true friend to liberty, even if it means suffering very many exceedingly sore afflictions? Because of Mormon’s record, Teancum is already a legend among serious students of the Book of Mormon and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But I would like for his name to remembered and honored throughout all time and by all peoples. Mormon notes with sorrow that Teancum was slain, that he died and went the way of all the earth. But as long as I live and write, his courage and spirit will live in my memory, and if God wills, let the name of Teancum be remembered and honored by all God-fearing and freedom loving people from here to eternity.

Mormon’s year by year account and abridgment continues. He laments the horrors of war and destruction among the Nephites while acknowledging the hand of God and the influence of the prayers of the righteous in preserving the Nephites. Mormon also makes a very interesting observation concerning these conflicts, an observation that draws spiritual lessons from the more secular and war-focused large plates of Nephi:

But behold, because of the exceedingly great length of the war between the Nephites and the Lamanites many had become hardened, because of the exceedingly great length of the war; and many were softened because of their ^aafflictions, insomuch that they did humble themselves before God, even in the depth of humility. (Alma 62:41)

The first strange thing about this verse is that Mormon repeats himself in a way that seems redundant to me, unless there was some kind of a mistake in the punctuation, which is possible. But Mormon’s lesson also seems clear: there may be trials and hardships and wars that, by mortal measurement, last a very long time. But we choose whether those afflictions will harden us, or whether they will refine us, soften us, and cause us to turn to God and humble ourselves before God in the depths of humility.

When I consider the trials in my own life that seem to be protracted, and that seem to last not just for months or years, but for decades, I learn from the humble Nephites who were softened by the afflictions of war. Even though I sometimes try, Teancum-like, to put an end to those problems by casting my proverbial javelins toward what I consider to be the heart of the problem, I want to put off the natural man, become a saint through the Atonement of Christ, and become as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord sees fit to inflict upon me, even as a child submits to his father. (Mosiah 3:19)

Again, just as the reader begins to think that Moroni couldn’t be any greater, Mormon recounts that after he had fortified the Nephites against the Lamanites, and after all of his heroic leadership and courageous deeds, Moroni, like Cincinnatus and like George Washington, retired to his own house that he might spend the remainder of his days in peace. Moroni did not seek for office or praise or power among the Nephites. He had simply done his duty and fulfilled his oath. Moroni yielded up the ^acommand of his armies into the hands of his son, whose name was ^bMoronihah. Moroni died shortly thereafter. Thus ended the life of one of the greatest heroes of all time, whose name, like that of Teancum and all of the other Nephite heroes, ought to be held in reverence by all God-fearing and freedom loving men and women throughout all time.

Meanwhile, Pahoran returned to his duties as the chief judge of the Nephites, and Helaman returned to his duties as the prophet by preaching the word of God and making regulations in the Church, which regulations had become even more necessary because of the chaos of war. Fortunately, Helaman and his brethren were successful, because the Lord endowed them with power and enabled them to lead many souls unto repentance and to establish and strengthen the Church once again. Helaman died soon thereafter.

But Mormon notes that there was at least a temporary halt to the pride cycle among the Nephites, perhaps because this particular war had truly humbled them:

And the people of Nephi began to ^aprosper again in the land, and began to multiply and to wax exceedingly strong again in the land. And they began to grow exceedingly rich.

But notwithstanding their riches, or their strength, or their prosperity, they were not lifted up in the pride of their eyes; neither were they ^aslow to remember the Lord their God; but they did humble themselves exceedingly before him.

Yea, they did remember how great things the Lord had done for them, that he had ^adelivered them from death, and from bonds, and from prisons, and from all manner of ^bafflictions, and he had ^cdelivered them out of the hands of their enemies.

And they did pray unto the Lord their God continually, insomuch that the Lord did bless them, according to his word, so that they did wax strong and ^aprosper in the land. (Alma 62:48-51)

These verses remind me somewhat of what has been called the “greatest generation” - a generation of Americans who lived through the Great Depression, two World Wars, and many other afflictions. This great generation of Nephites prospered and grew strong and rich while retaining the memory of the source of all of their blessings and prosperity. In other words, they were not like many of us who suppose that our strength, our prosperity, our riches, our success, our liberty, and our blessings are a result of our own wisdom and our own efforts.