Alma wrote down Abinadi's words and taught them to whomever would listen. Many did. When it became known in the court what Alma was doing, he and those who followed him were forced to flee for their lives into the wilderness. Fortunately, he had been warned of the Lord before Noah's soldiers came after them so that they were able to gather their flocks and possessions before they left.
They were an industrious people and they quickly began to build permanent shelters and to till the land.
The people asked Alma to be their king, for they loved him, but he refused. I love what he said, as it should be true of all leaders:
Behold, it is not expedient that we should have a king; for thus saith the Lord: Ye shall not esteem one flesh above another, or one man shall not think himself above another; therefore I say unto you it is not expedient that ye should have a king. Nevertheless, if it were possible that ye could always have just men to be your kings it would be well for you to have a king. But remember the iniquity of king Noah and his priests; and I myself was caught in a snare, and did many things which were abominable in the sight of the Lord, which caused me sore repentance; Nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear my cries, and did answer my prayers, and has made me an instrument in his hands in bringing so many of you to a knowledge of his truth. Nevertheless, in this I do not glory, for I am unworthy to glory of myself . . . And also trust no one to be your teacher nor your minister, except he be a man of God, walking in his ways and keeping his commandments (Mosiah 23: 7-11, 14)
The people began to prosper in the land. They built a city that they called Helam. They later expanded northward into what they called the Valley of Alma.
There are two sites that fit the Book of Mormon description of Helam. They are in the Rio Blanco Valley and the Valley of Huehuetenango. Both have the correct geographical "marking" such as rivers or pure waters described by the Book of Mormon.
The first site is Malacatancito, near where the modern city of Malacatancito sits today. It is northwest of Lake Atitalan, the proposed Waters of Mormon. According to Sorensen, there is an archaeological site of Nephite age [which] lies adjacent to the origin of the Rio San Juan as it gushes out of an opening in the base of the Cuchumatanes Mountains. This might the pure water that impressed Alma. (An Ancient Setting for the Book of Mormon, p. 182)
The second is in the Rio Blanco Valley directly north from Lake Atitlan. Says Sorensen of this site: The ups and downs, the waters, the well-traveled routs, and even the presence - or absence- of archaeological remain in the right spots at the correct time all fit. The geographical arrangement that seems the most logical puts Helam in the well-watered Rio Blanco Valley, and the Valley of Alma around Huehuetenango. Beyond that point, travelers bound northward and westward . . . clearly pass a threshold - a literal watershed - separating the highlands that look toward the Valley of Guatemala/Nephi from terrain that starts to drop toward the Grijalva River drainage of Chiapas/Zarahemla. (Ibid., pg. 180)
The people began to prosper in the land. They built a city that they called Helam. They later expanded northward into what they called the Valley of Alma.
Where are Helam and the Valley of Alma?
The first site is Malacatancito, near where the modern city of Malacatancito sits today. It is northwest of Lake Atitalan, the proposed Waters of Mormon. According to Sorensen, there is an archaeological site of Nephite age [which] lies adjacent to the origin of the Rio San Juan as it gushes out of an opening in the base of the Cuchumatanes Mountains. This might the pure water that impressed Alma. (An Ancient Setting for the Book of Mormon, p. 182)
 |
| Pre-Colombian Archaeological site in the Valley of Huehuetenango/Valley of Alma; not far from the proposed site for Helam. |
Text copyright August 2013, Gebara Education
Quotes from An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon by John L. Sorensen
Pictures from:
No comments:
Post a Comment