The Story of Korihor (Alma 30) · 3:23pm Jul 30th, 2019
At a time of relative peace among the Nephites, there came a man into the major cities and began to preach. This man was anti-Christ--not the AntiChrist, big difference--preaching that there was no God.
There were laws back then for dealing with crimes like murder, adultery, and robbery. But the Nephites understood that there was no law to believe in God. If a man served God it was his privilege, and there was no law to punish those who didn't believe. There was no law against a man's belief. Though it's the correct way to go about doing things, a side effect of this is people like Korihor, who can go about spreading lies and get away with it.
Korihor teaches: why do you yoke yourselves with such foolish things as believing Christ will come? No man can know of things before they happen! Those prophecies given by your ancient fathers? Foolish traditions. How will you know of their surety? You can't know about things you cannot see. Therefore, you cannot know that Christ will come.
Many other things he taught, like there was no saving atonement; every creature fared in his life according to his genius, and every man conquered according to his strength. Whatever you do is simply a mean to an end. Once you die, that's the end for you.
Korihor went preaching in other cities after the capital city of Zarahemla, but they had much better sense than before by then. They cast him out. It got to the point where his interference was so great he had to be brought before the chief judge over all the land, where he explains why he went about corrupting the land and denying Christ.
He says that he doesn't want to be a part of a religion that has its priest bind the people down to partake in foolish performances to usurp power and authority over them. He declares: You say this people is free? I say they are in bondage. You say the ancient prophecies are true? I say you don't know they are true. You say that Christ shall come. But you don't know there'll be a Christ. You lead this people away with foolish tradition and your own desires so that you can glut yourselves at their hands, and so they dare not look up with boldness and enjoy the rights and privileges put upon them. They don't make use of themselves in fear of offending their priests, who hold them like a puppet by their dreams, visions, whims, traditions, and pretended mysteries. They fear some unknown God who has never been seen or known, who never was and never will be.
The chief judge, after that little monologue, orders Korihor to be taken before the high priest Alma, who was also the governor over the land. Korihor makes the same spiel to Alma as he did before: the chief priests live off of the labors of the people who give them their living.
Alma, however, says that in the seventeen years since the judges started to act as the rulers instead of kings, he hasn't recieved so much as a senine for his labor, and neither had his fellow judges, except for their time in the judgement seat, and only then have they recieved pay according to their time.
Alma says: if we don't recieve pay for being priests, what profit do we have to be priests, except to declare the truth and rejoice in the joy of our bretheren? Do you seriously believe that we decieve this people by bringing joy into their hearts?
Korihor's answer: Yep.
Alma: Do you believe there is a God?
Korihor: Nope.
Alma: I know there is a God. Tell me, what evidence do you have that Christ won't come? You have nothing except your words. But I have all things as a testimony that these things are true, and so do you! That belief is inside of you. But your heart is in bondage to lead away the people!
Korihor (who's acting kinda snobby rn): If you'll show me a sign, I'll be convinced that there is a God. Only then will I be convinced of your truth.
Alma: You've already had enough signs! Will you tempt your God? You already have the testimony of all your bretheren and the holy scriptures. They say that all things denote there is a God. The earth, and everything on it, and its motion, and all the planets in the night sky witness that there is a Supreme Creator. You're really going to still deny these things?
Korihor: Yes, until you show me a sign.
Alma is actually sorry now that Korihor's heart is so hardened, but he knows that it's better for only him to be lost than for him to lead away many other souls as well.
Korihor is speaking: I don't deny the existence of God, but I don't believe there is one. And you don't know there is a God. Unless you show me a Godly sign, I won't believe.
Alma says: This shall be your sign, then. In the name of God, you shall be struck dumb.
And (finally) Korihor shuts up. He can't speak.
Writing on the ground, he says that he always knew there was a God, and that the Devil came to deceive him in the form of an angel. The Devil told him to tell the people that there was no God. He taught them those things because they were pleasing unto the carnal mind. I had so much success that I genuinely believed those things were true. Can you please give me my voice back?
Alma: No. If you do, you'll just go and teach the same things to the people all over again. When the Lord decides it's time, he'll remove it. It's not up to me.
Korihor's story ends with him becoming a beggar. One day, in a more-wicked-than-usual city, he is trampled to death.
The final verse in this chapter is: And thus we see the end of him that perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the Devil will not support his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to Hell.
Forgive me for asking, and I do hope my ignorance on the subject isn't taken as an insult:
But does Mormanism teach that humanity is on a path of Trancendance; like how it is taught that Christ himself was ascended?
Or am I thinking of something else?
I honestly don't know what to feel or say about this