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“More
Than One Witness”
Alma 8–12
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Lesson
23
Summary |
Scripture
Summary: |
Alma preaches and baptizes in Melek—He
is rejected in Ammonihah and leaves—An angel commands him to return and
cry repentance unto the people—He is received by Amulek, and the two of
them preach in Ammonihah. [About 82 B.C.]
Alma commands the people of Ammonihah to repent—The Lord will be merciful
to the Lamanites in the last days—If the Nephites forsake the light, they
shall be destroyed by the Lamanites—The Son of God soon cometh—He shall
redeem those who repent and are baptized and have faith in his name. |
Lehi
descended from Manasseh—Amulek recounts the angelic command that he care
for Alma—The prayers of the righteous cause the people to be spared—Unrighteous
lawyers and judges lay the foundation of the destruction of the people.
Nephite coinage set forth—Amulek contends with Zeezrom—Christ will not
save people in their sins—Only those who inherit the kingdom of heaven
are saved—All men shall rise in immortality—There is no death after
the resurrection.
Alma contends with Zeezrom—The mysteries of God can be given only to the
faithful—Men are judged by their thoughts, beliefs, words, and works—The
wicked shall suffer a spiritual death—This mortal life is a probationary
state—The plan of redemption brings to pass the resurrection and,
through faith, a remission of sins—The repentant have a claim on mercy
through the Only Begotten Son. [About 82 B.C.] |
Supplemental
Holy Land
and Jewish
insights:
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Order in the Court! Alma refers to the
"order of the Church." The Lord always had an order of governing the
dealings with his children. Modern Judaism struggles with a lack of religious
order evident by disputations about interpretations of Jewish law, yet the State
of Israel provides a framework for religious freedom. "Israel's Declaration
of Independence guarantees religious freedom and the safeguarding of holy places
for all peoples ‘without distinction of creed, race or sex’ .
. .
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each
religious community has its own courts with jurisdiction over
personal matters, and their own community schools, should parents
opt for a religious education." ("Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Is There a Balance of Religion
and State?
". . . Maintaining a
balance between the religious and the secular has caused problems
in Israel . . . the Orthodox wing believes that all traffic and
public works should stop on the Sabbath . . . non-religious,
however, feel that this is tantamount to forcing religious
observance on others. This results in(an) inconsistency . .
." "In Jerusalem, no buses run on Sabbath while in Haifa
there is public transport on that day." ". . . some
cafes and places of entertainment . . . are open on the Sabbath.
Yet, there are certain Orthodox neighborhoods completely blocked
off to all vehicles, both public and private." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Does Biblical Law Affect Modern Jewish Law? The
State of Israel has established a legal system based on Biblical law
yet it is greatly influenced by the British system of Law
established during the Mandate period prior to Israel becoming a
state. Some modern/biblical considerations of legal terms follow.
The first includes information about witnesses. That is followed by
some insight about lawyers and "pleaders."
Witnesses:
"The laws involving witness
are many. Not all people are qualified to testify before the
court. Among those not admissible are slaves, minors (before bar
mitzvah), lunatics, the deaf and dumb, the blind, criminals who
have not repented their crime, relatives of any party involved in
the case or the judges, one who stands to gain from his testimony
. . ." "Any person who has seen the event but does not
testify is liable to punishment which will be meted out to him by
God. In criminal cases the witness is under obligation to testify
of his own accord; in civil cases the duty to testify arises only
when the man is summoned to do so." ". . . The Bible
declares that in order to convict, the evidence must be given by
at least two witnesses . . ." "Halakhic
requirements of the marriage ceremony include: the huppah (canopy);
the giving of the ring by the groom to the bride in the presence
of two valid witnesses;" (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Lawyers and Judges: The
term "Rabbi" used to mean one trained in the law, or in
other words, a lawyer. The higher degrees of Rabbi would have been
the judges and court leaders. "During the 19th century, the
functions of the rabbi began to change and many communities demanded
that their leaders be versed not only in Talmud and Jewish law but
also in secular studies. To meet these new conditions, rabbinical
seminaries were organized, issuing a variety of ‘rabbinical
degrees.’"
"The Hebrew word for court
is bet din (plural: battei din), which literally
means ‘house of judgment’; in rabbinic literature it is the
term for a Jewish court of law. We find battei din which
handle the legal problems of the Israelites from the times of
Moses. The rule of the law is an important principle of Judaism.
The Torah stresses that justice must not be meted out by the
parties themselves but must be administered by impartial
judges."
(Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)
Religious and Secular Courts:
". . . In the modern period
. . . the function of the bet din has been limited to
purely religious matters. Nevertheless, throughout the ages Jews
have been encouraged to bring their disputes before a bet din rather
than a secular court, and in the Middle Ages any Jew turning to a
secular court to decide a dispute with another Jew was considered
a traitor to the Jewish people." "In Israel today, where
an elaborate network of battei din has been established
under the Supreme Rabbinical Court of Israel, the term bet din has
come to mean the rabbinic court which has, by act of the Knesset,
jurisdiction in matters of personal status in addition to its
normal religious function." "In a bet din there
were no lawyers either for the defense or the prosecution. The
judges themselves questioned the witnesses and the parties
involved and arrived at their own conclusions. In the State of
Israel, however, there are men who are known as ‘pleaders’ who
represent people appearing before the bet din." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Jewish "Disputations:"
The history of disputations or polemics is common in Judaism, both
biblically and in more recent times. The arguments, proving and
disproving, appeared both positively and negatively, for and
against, the Jews. It is human nature, yet more so, a characteristic
of Jewish culture to have two-sided debates.
"Throughout history Jews
have often been called on to defend their faith against
non-believers in public debates known as disputations or polemics.
Often these disputations were conducted in friendly atmospheres of
mutual respect, but all too often these debates took on aspects of
bitterness." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Jewish/Christian Disputations:
"The developing rift
between Christianity and Judaism and the animosity after their
final split in the second century C.E. produced many great
disputations. A crucial one occurred about the time of the Bar
Kokhba revolt (c. 135 C.E.) between the Christian Justin Martyr
and the Jew Tryphon. While the two adversaries expressed
friendship toward each other, the argument became bitter."
"Christian-Jewish disputation continued and Muslim-Jewish
debates, which began in the 10th century, developed as well.
Questions concerning the text of the Bible and Jewish way of life
were discussed. The Jews questioned the Koran's value and attacked
Muhammad in the process." "Nahmanides defended Judaism
at the famous Disputation of Barcelona in 1263. Fearlessly
questioning the nature of Christian authority and teaching,
Nahmanides asked why, if the Messiah had come, the world was still
torn by war. He was declared the victor and given a monetary prize
for his efforts." "Disputations still occurred in the
20th century." (Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)
Learning the Other’s
Point of View: These kinds of disputations have drawn Jews away
from dialogues with believers in Jesus, the Messiah. Disputations
require some learning of the other’s point of view. Jews know very
little about Jesus’ restoration of the original order that Father
in Heaven gave Adam and his children. However, in the last days,
more and more Jews are becoming aware that religious order was
restored from time to time throughout history and that there may
need for a final restoration that has to happen in these
latter-days. These restorations consistently review the
"beginning to the end," the plan of salvation, the true
order of God.
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