Brigham Young and King Noah

 I am back on Brigham, unfortunately, and this post won't be the last of him, either.

Brigham has been nicknamed the "American Moses" in some circles.  There was a book written by the late Leonard Arrington (former Church Historian at the LDS church) which was at the time in the 1980's, and may still be (I don't know), considered the definitive biography of Young.  Its title cemented this nickname - "Brigham Young:  American Moses". 

Anyway, I started thinking that maybe Moses wouldn't want anything to do with Brigham.

So, in that spirit, I am going to cleave the connection between Brigham and Moses, and provide a substitute - a ram caught in a thicket, if you will - who can stand in as a much better comparison for Brigham.  In fact, I don't think this as merely a comparison, but in this person I think that we have an actual earlier iteration.  Meaning, this person is an earlier incarnation of the being who was also Brigham - they are the same.

So, who do we replace Moses with?

King Noah.

A downgrade, definitely, but I think much more accurate and fitting, not least because I view them as the same person, as just mentioned.  One very wicked Being playing the part of these two wicked men (and there are more parts to be named, I think).

I won't go through all of the similarities and comparisons - I believe they are there if people want to explore more.   Polygamy, becoming rich off of one's own people, building luxurious buildings for oneself, corrupt inner circle of priests... all these were present with both men.  But they also held the loyalty of most of the people they lorded over, strangely.  As if cast under a spell or deep sleep, neither Noah's people or the Brighamites, as a group, desired deliverance from their master.  

Abinadi, of course, was sent to call Noah to repentance.  The penalties enumerated for Noah and his priests almost seem heavy handed based on the scant details we have from Mormon's account regarding the sins of Noah and his people.  I think there is more to the story, specifically the knowledge among some in Heaven, at least, as to who Noah was and what he was about.  The extent of their evil is even greater to think on as one considers their willingness to put Abinadi to death, given who I think he is (I have alluded to this elsewhere, and will be more specific and expand in another other post).

No such messenger was sent to Brigham, however, and he and his people led out their lives in what I would say was pretty much the same level of wickedness as Noah and his people, at the risk of being too blunt about it.  One might say that the Spirit of the Lord has ceased to strive with them, and they were left to all sorts of influences out there in the wilderness of the American West.  

That doesn't mean that this was all done knowingly or that good wasn't among the Mormons.  On the contrary, I strongly believe that many of these Mormons were good, and that they followed Brigham because who else was there to follow in the crises that followed Joseph and Hyrum's death?   As Joseph noted while alive, many Saints put too much emphasis on following a prophet, and this became a dire situation when Joseph was dead.  They required another prophet, and for many of them, Brigham was the guy.  But they were fooled.  They were grossly deceived by Brigham and his lies, and the same was probably true of Noah's followers.

God promised, however, in words captured in D&C 50 that those who have been deceived by hypocrites and evil spirits will be reclaimed.  I think this will hold true of many Mormons, including among the living and the dead.  The Good will be shown the way again.

Wrong things will be made right, and the serpent that is Brigham will be exposed, along with others who work with him.