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In the
Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, first published in 1830 by Joseph Smith as ''The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi''. The book is one of ...
, Alma, the son of Alma () is a
Nephite In the Book of Mormon, the Nephites () are one of four groups (along with the Lamanites, Jaredites, and Mulekites) said to have settled in the ancient Americas. The term is used throughout the Book of Mormon to describe the religious, poli ...
prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...
often referred to as Alma the Younger to distinguish him from his father, who is often referred to as
Alma the Elder Alma () is a Nephite prophet in the Book of Mormon. Initially a priest who serves in the court of King Noah, when a prophet named Abinadi preaches to the court Alma concurs with Abinadi and affirms that what the prophet said is true. For this, ...
. These appellations, "the Younger" and "the Elder," are not used in the Book of Mormon; they are distinctions made by scholars, useful because both individuals were prominent during the same portion of the Book of Mormon's narrative and filled a similar cultural and religious role. Alma is the namesake of the
Book of Alma The Book of Alma: The Son of Alma (), usually referred to as the Book of Alma, is one of the books that make up the Book of Mormon. The title refers to Alma the Younger, a prophet and "chief judge" of the Nephites. Alma is the longest book in the ...
.


Conversion

Alma the Younger lived in
Zarahemla Zarahemla () is a land in the Book of Mormon that for much of the narrative functions as the capital of the Nephites, their political and religious center. Zarahemla has been the namesake of multiple communities in the United States, has been a ...
during the end of the reign of the
Nephite In the Book of Mormon, the Nephites () are one of four groups (along with the Lamanites, Jaredites, and Mulekites) said to have settled in the ancient Americas. The term is used throughout the Book of Mormon to describe the religious, poli ...
King Mosiah. As a young man, he, the four sons of Mosiah, and others wanted to destroy the church and actively persecuted its members. After they were visited personally by an angel and rebuked for their actions, Alma fell into an unconscious state where, for three days and three nights, he lay unable to move until he felt within that he had been forgiven of his sins. He later recounted that he had experienced a vision during unconsciousness, in which he renounced his behavior against the church and subsequently received a glimpse of God sitting on his throne (). He and those who persecuted church members with him abdicated their role as persecutors and became followers of Jesus.


Chief judge and high priest

Alma the Younger subsequently became the first elected chief judge of the
Nephites In the Book of Mormon, the Nephites () are one of four groups (along with the Lamanites, Jaredites, and Mulekites) said to have settled in the ancient Americas. The term is used throughout the Book of Mormon to describe the religious, politi ...
as well as their religious leader. When Amlici leads his followers in an insurrection against Nephite government, Alma as chief judge serves also as military commander and suppresses the
Amlicites According to the Book of Mormon, the Amlicites () were a break-off group of Nephites in the Book of Alma, around 87 B.C. Their leader, Amlici, is not chosen by the people as king, so he and the Amlicites leave the Nephites and join the Lamanite ...
in the Amlicite Civil War.


Ministry

He observed that the Nephites of the church were becoming increasingly wicked, proud, disdainful of outsiders and neglectful toward the poor and needy (). When the "unbelievers" began to follow their example, Alma feared the entire people were on the path to self-destruction (Alma 4:11). He resigned his post as chief judge and began traveling from city to city to preach to the Nephites. He began in Zarahemla, where his efforts were successful. A thorough purge of the church leadership and membership took place, with those former insiders and leaders who refused to relinquish their pride being "rejected, and their names blotted out" (). Alma moved on to the cities of Gideon and Melek, where his call to humility was also well received. From Melek he traveled three days journey north to
Ammonihah Ammonihah () is a city mentioned in the Book of Mormon described as governed by lawyers and judges. When the Book of Mormon prophet Alma the Younger, Alma visits Ammonihah as part of a preaching tour, the city becomes the setting of "one of the ...
, whose inhabitants proved much more hardened than those of the previous three cities. In Ammonihah the people were very wicked. They considered themselves superior to outsiders, especially the
Lamanites In the Book of Mormon, the Lamanites () are one of the four peoples (along with the Jaredites, the Mulekites, and the Nephites) described as having settled in the ancient Americas. The Lamanites also play a role in the prophecies and reve ...
, and gloried in the strength of their city, which they considered indestructible. According to Alma chapter 9, Satan held such control over them that they would not listen to Alma. While trying to speak to them he was abused and thrown out of the city. Commanded by an angel to return, Alma slipped back into the city through a different route from the south. There he met
Amulek Amulek () is a man referred to in the Book of Alma, a section of the Book of Mormon. After being visited by an angel, he gives food to the prophet Alma, listens to his preaching, and becomes his missionary companion. Alma and Amulek preach in A ...
, a lapsed believer (Alma 10:5-6) of some social prominence who fed Alma and housed him for a time. In the city streets, the two of them joined up and preached to the people, where they were challenged by a lawyer named
Zeezrom In the Book of Mormon, Zeezrom () is a Nephite lawyer who, through deceit and money, seeks to gain power among the Nephites through his vocation. Alma the Younger and his missionary companion Amulek teach Zeezrom in Ammonihah. At first he resist ...
. After Amulek had silenced Zeezrom through his teaching and aroused his conscience, Alma took his turn, preaching to the people with similar results. When finished, Alma and Amulek were cast into prison and delivered by a miracle. A repentant Zeezrom eventually joined Alma in his missionary work. Several years later, Alma met up with a man named Korihor, whom the Book of Mormon describes as an
anti-Christ In Christian eschatology, Antichrist (or in broader eschatology, Anti-Messiah) refers to a kind of entity prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ and falsely substitute themselves as a savior in Christ's place before ...
. This Korihor tried to lead the Nephites astray. Alma confronted him, confounding his arguments and miraculously removing Korihor's power of speech. The stricken Korihor signaled acknowledgement that he had acted maliciously, knowing all along that he was wrong and bringing destruction upon others. He was reduced to begging and was eventually run down and killed in a city of Nephite dissenters called
Zoramites In the Book of Mormon, the Zoramites () were one of three major Nephite sects, existing during the administration of Alma the Younger as the High Priest over the Church of God (). Zoram, the leader of this group, is first mentioned in as bei ...
. These same Zoramites were found to practice things that perverted the ways of the Lord. This led Alma to extend his missionary work to these people. While among them, he was most successful with the poor. Alma's final instruction was to his sons,
Helaman The Book of Mormon mentions three men named Helaman ( ). The first was the son of King Benjamin, king of the united Nephite-Zarahemla kingdom who lived in the 2nd century BC. Besides his genealogy, information about the first Helaman is limit ...
, Shiblon, and Corianton. He gave each separate lessons, and finally gave the records of the church to Helaman. He then departed, in the 19th year of the reign of the judges (or 73 BC) as if to go to Melek, but was never heard from again. Both
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
and Helaman believed that he was taken up like Moses of old, and buried by the Lord.


Descendants

The Book of Mormon narrative describes several of Alma's notable descendants as shown in the following family tree:


Intertextuality

Alma's conversion is reminiscent of that of Saul of Tarsus, or
Paul the Apostle Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Apostles in the New Testament, Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the Ministry of Jesus, teachings of Jesus in the Christianity in the 1st century, first ...
, in the
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
. Both persecute the Christian church, abruptly encounter divine figures (
Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
appears to Saul; an angel confronts Alma) that physically incapacitate them, and upon physically recovering, subsequently convert and commit to Christianity. Literary critic Michael Austin explains that by coexisting, these stories "encourage eadersto universalize the possibility of conversion" and focus on the role of grace in Christian life..


Citations


Sources

* * * *


Further reading

* * * * * * J. Christopher Conkling
"Alma's Enemies: The Case of the Lamanites, Amlicites, and Mysterious Amalekites"
''Journal of Book of Mormon Studies'' 14/1 (2005) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alma, Son Of Alma Book of Mormon prophets Angelic visionaries