Chapter 32
Alma teaches the poor
whose afflictions had humbled them—Faith is a hope in that which is not seen
which is true—Alma testifies that angels minister to men, women, and
children—Alma compares the word unto a seed—It must be planted and
nourished—Then it grows into a tree from which the fruit of eternal life is
picked. About 74 B.C.
1 And it came to pass
that they did go forth, and began to preach the word of God unto the people,
entering into their synagogues, and into their houses; yea, and even they did
preach the word in their streets.
2 And it came to pass
that after much labor among them, they began to have success among the poor
class of people; for behold, they were cast out of the synagogues because of
the coarseness of their apparel—
3 Therefore they were
not permitted to enter into their synagogues to worship God, being esteemed as
filthiness; therefore they were poor; yea, they were esteemed by their brethren
as dross; therefore they were poor as to things of the world; and also they
were poor in heart.
4 Now, as Alma was
teaching and speaking unto the people upon the hill Onidah, there came a great
multitude unto him, who were those of whom we have been speaking, of whom were
poor in heart, because of their poverty as to the things of the world.
5 And they came unto
Alma; and the one who was the foremost among them said unto him: Behold, what
shall these my brethren do, for they are despised of all men because of their
poverty, yea, and more especially by our priests; for they have cast us out of
our synagogues which we have labored abundantly to build with our own hands;
and they have cast us out because of our exceeding poverty; and we have no
place to worship our God; and behold, what shall we do? (Alma 32:1-5)
Alma’s mission to the Zoramites began. They preached in the
synagogues, streets, and in homes.
They began to have success in their efforts among the poor.
The poor had been cast out of the synagogues because of their appearance. Their
clothing did not meet the standards of those who were well off. They were
considered filthy. “The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor” (Psalm
10:2). They were considered as nothing more than trash. “Better is the poor
that walketh in his integrity, than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a
fool” (Proverbs 19:1).
“The apostate Zoramites first separated themselves
spiritually from Christ by denying his existence and then created social and
religious divisions among themselves based on riches … Exclusion and
separations among the Zoramites created a large group who were poor (see Alma
32:2). Even though these had ‘labored abundantly’ to build synagogues, they
were despised because of their poverty and were excluded from places of worship
(Alma 32:5).”[1]
While Alma was teaching the people on hill Onidah, a group
of people came to him. Mormon describes them as those who “poor in heart,
because of their poverty as to the things of the world” (Alma 32:4).
They asked him what they should do, because of their poverty.
“The poor useth entreaties; but the rich answereth roughly” (Proverbs 18:23).
They were hated by the people because of their poverty. “He
that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker” (Proverbs 14:31).
The attitude of the Zoramites to their poor would eventually
lead to the Lamanites defeating the Nephites. “And it was because of the pride
of their hearts, because of their exceeding riches, yea, it was because of
their oppression to the poor, withholding their food from the hungry,
withholding their clothing from the naked, and smiting their humble brethren
upon the cheek, making a mock of that which was sacred, denying the spirit of
prophecy and of revelation, murdering, plundering, lying, stealing, committing
adultery, [and] rising up in great contentions” (Helaman 4:12).
The priests detested them even more, casting them out of
their synagogues, synagogues which had been built through the labor of the poor.
They have no place to worship. So, they asked, what should they do? Peter was
asked this question.
“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart,
and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what
shall we do?
“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every
one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:37-38).
“[T]he poor Zoramites originally ‘labored abundantly’ (Alma
32:5) to build the synagogue, apparently anticipating their participation in
the worship of the community. After the completion of the synagogue, however,
the poor Zoramites found that their labors did not merit their inclusion in the
community’s central religious ritual. Since the form of that ritual was
uniquely designed to emphasize appearances, it became clear that the poor
Zoramites were not appropriately prepared. Given the Zoramites’ love of fine
adornments, it would have been difficult to justify their central doctrine of
superiority if those who were poorly attired were allowed to be seen in the
influential position atop the Rameumptom.”[2]
[1] “No
Poor Among Them,” Lindon J. Robison, Maxwell Institute website.
[2] The
Zoramites and Costly Apparel: Symbolism and Irony, Parrish Brady and Shon Hopkin,
Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other
Restoration Scripture, pg. 44.
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