Click to Listen: Episode 63: 3 Nephi 6-8
Things start out a little boring as everyone is finally living in peace. But we don’t have to wait long before Satan comes in and starts messing with everyone and turning them back to the dark side. And just when you think things can’t get any worse, Jesus goes and gets himself killed on the other side of the planet which (for some reason) causes the most horrific natural disasters you could imagine to afflict the Americas. I’m actually not really sure if anyone actually survived.
“Drink” Count – 28
Almost 5 beers
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My Book of Mormon 
January 26, 2015 at 7:26 am
The secret combination on my luggage is 1-2-3-4-5.
If nobody minds, I’m going to repost that quasi-official, non-specific map I posted before, several episodes ago, not because the geography is important, but just to point out the disclaimer at the bottom:
“No effort should be made to identify points on this map with any existing geological locations (cf. 3 Nephi 8:5-18).”
So, due to the massive destruction at the time of the Crucifixion, don’t expect any of the geographical clues heretofore given in the book to be the least bit helpful, because the whole face of the land changed, valleys made mountains, cities sunk into the sea, etc. Incidentally, I’ve heard some Mormons speculate that the area of the Gulf of Mexico was once populated land, but that it sank into the sea during this cataclysm. (There’s even a more far-out, folk doctrine explanation I’ve heard for the Gulf of Mexico, but let’s save that for the Pearl of Great Price…) Yeah, Mormons and science have a rocky relationship.
Some of the more scientifically-inclined apologist types, however, who aren’t comfortable explaining away three days of darkness as “because God”, speculate the source of this massive destruction may have been a large volcanic eruption, the ash from which could have buried entire cities, or hung thickly in the air for days and be felt like the “vapors of darkness” in the book. Such an eruption could also have caused huge earthquakes, and resulting tsunamis that could destroy coastal cities. There’s no archaeological support for the idea, that I know of, but it’s at least a valiant effort not to rely on magical thinking.
January 26, 2015 at 4:43 pm
It would be nice if there was any evidence of such a volcanic eruption in that time frame or any non-LDS anthropologist or geologist that thinks that their assertions could be even remotely possible.
January 26, 2015 at 5:41 pm
David, you get the back story on Satan when you read the Pearl of Great Price. You won’t get it in the Book of Mormon.
January 31, 2015 at 2:45 am
Hey David, Ruby and I would like to know how the vote is going??? Love the show! Keep up the good work!
January 31, 2015 at 3:20 am
Well Ms. Ashley, you would have won but you cast your vote for Ruby so now we have a tie! I think this’ll require a new song-off if we’re ever going to settle it.
February 1, 2015 at 5:09 pm
Every time you mention Satan spreading rumors and whispering in people’s ears, I always picture Satan in a really slick suit and sunglasses, strutting among the people to Curtis Mayfield’s “Pusherman”.
February 3, 2015 at 10:46 pm
This episode has another great gem of poorly written English that usually only makes sense if you were raised LDS. And even then, the logic is completely lacking.
3 Nephi 7:17 “And he did minister many things unto them; and all of them cannot be written, and a part of them would not suffice, therefore they are not written in this book.”
Translation… “He taught them many things. I wish I could write all of them in this book, but they’re just too numerous. And if I only wrote part of them, I really wouldn’t do them justice. So I’m just going to skip ’em altogether.”
Somehow that’s supposed to make perfect sense. Like we’re little kids who only caught the tail end of an adult conversation, and our parents are saying, “I really can’t explain it all to you now. So just you never mind.”
February 4, 2015 at 12:01 am
David, you really ought to visit a Mormon church on the first Sunday of a month so you can experience fast and testimony meeting. Then you’ll get what a Mormon testimony is. It’s supposed to be how a Mormon “knows” that Jesus is their savior, the BoM is true, Joseph Smith was a prophet, yadda yadda yadda. But what it turns into is a bunch of disconnected ramblings about how god cares about the most minute and insignificant details of Mormons’ lives while they ignore the fact that children in Africa are dying of AIDS and starvation and god is fine with that. Many testimonies are accompanied by tears and most speakers are actually motivated by an urge to proclaim their importance and righteousness to their congregation. Be sure to leave after that meeting is over before they try to suck you in to two more hours worth of meetings.
March 6, 2015 at 5:08 pm
I actually think that would be amazing to hear what David thought of a fast and testimony meeting. When I was a member of the church I always dreaded the fast and testimony meetings they were always SOOoooo BOOooring. For someone that wants to have an understanding of what Mormons mean when they say bear your testimony going the first Sunday of a month it a good idea.