Mosiah 18

(March 6, 2014)
I have always noticed the out of place repetition of the word Mormon in this chapter, and in fact that Mormon as a narrator repeats Mormon so often is seen by me as an evidence of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon as a translated work.  You see the history of the development of the narrator in literature, and you realize that this sort of psychology of narration is far beyond Waverly (1816), and even beyond the writings of Flaubert (credited for establishing the ‘modern’ narrator).

But even beyond that evidence, the Gospel message is one that carries through the text.  Alma preaching, Helam being baptized (and I wonder if Helam was a relative, which might explain why Alma has a grandchild named Helaman), and the covenants that we make in baptism are all there.  The call to repentance, and the promise of the resurrection are all there.  This beautiful language and doctrine are far more convincing then any psychology of narration (even though it was decades or even a century before its time).