"A man among the Gentiles": Trying to make sense of Nephi's vision of the Gentiles

 So, I definitely felt a bit out over my skis with some of these more recent thoughts around Eressea #1 and #2, and implications for groups and gatherings.  Even by my standards.   I half expected to have some thought come that would negate the whole line of thinking, but so far it is surviving intact.  This is one of those thought paths that you keep creating the story and you know you'll have to at some point pull up and make sure the evidence or other important story elements catch up and still hold together.  For now, its just about riding the wave.

In full transparency, I have found one major story element that I don't have a good answer for in this new framework, and I don't have a good path forward yet in how I would approach it.  This has to do with Nephi's statements regarding the 'mother Gentiles' and what they do after the other Gentiles depart.  This point is fairly straightforward (for the most part) if we leave the Promised Land in America.  In this case the 'mother Gentiles' are England, and the struggle envisioned is the Revolutionary War.  Not all the details match up with that answer, but it is fairly easy to see or work into that interpretation.

However, in taking these Gentiles to another planet, we have to start from scratch, maybe, with these mother Gentiles and what they do.   If we leave the 'mother Gentiles' as those here on Earth, I am not sure I see them doing a whole lot on the interplanetary scale unless Musk and Bezos really get their act together in a bigger way (or the events of Nephi's vision are very far in the future, I suppose).   Again, I don't have a good answer, and it is an important enough part of Nephi's vision that if it can't be resolved it could be fatal to this framework and story.

The strength of the rest of the story is strong enough, though, that I am OK putting that point in a parking lot for now while going through some other details.  There are probably other things too that will need to be resolved, and perhaps you have noted some as well.  Again, we will see.   I am just taking this one piece at a time - I am not aware of any other teaching or individual that has put forward a story that has the Lehites and Jaredites as extra-terrestrial travelers, so we are breaking some new ground here.  Not all of the answers would be obvious at the start even if this is true, and that remains a big "if".

Anyways, I left off my last post with a framework of 3 different groups arriving at 3 different destinations, each of these destinations ultimately being associated with people and lands that will be reunited with each other in some fashion, and which will ultimately comprise what Mormons call the "Celestial Kingdom".

Among these groups we have "Israel" (the Family of Light, perhaps), and everybody else ("Gentiles").  All are invited to come to one of these 3 places, but their current and past circumstances, family relationships, etc., will dictate, in some way, which destination they gather to initially.  

Quite a lot to work through still even in that general statement, but the whole story around the Gentiles remains probably the foggiest - who they are, what their purposes is in going to Eressea #2, etc.  I have some thoughts, so might as well dive right in and see where they go.  This is highly speculative - I just want to get this down, see how it looks, and go from there.

For reference, in crafting the story, I am prioritizing keeping things consistent or at least not totally at odds with commentary I take as referring to these Gentiles as found in the Book of Mormon.  There are 3 major sections of writings that I can think of that are relevant here, and so that is what I am harmonizing with (it may be that I missed something, so feel free to let me know).  Those writings are found in:

1. Nephi's Vision.  1 Nephi 11-15, though really only chapters 13-15 bring these Gentiles in to play
2. Nephi's closing prophecies.  2 Nephi 26 - 33 , with 26-30 emphasis
3. Jesus' teachings at Bountiful.  3 Nephi 16 & 20 - 23.

There are other scattered references throughout the Book of Mormon, but I think these 3 are the big sources.

Based on those references, here is the story so far as I can piece together using Book of Mormon references:

• Words of the Book of the Lamb (written by the '12 apostles' about Jesus) are first spoken "by the mouth of a Jew" which are then written down
• These writings go to a sub-group of Gentiles (it may be a fairly small group of Gentiles)
• While with these Gentiles, Secret Combinations (the Great and Abominable Church, "GAC") changes the words and writings.  Things are altered.
• After being altered while in the possession of these Gentiles, the writings are then sent out to many other Gentiles in the form of a Book which is missing many important, simple things.
• A "man among the Gentiles" crosses the Many Waters and reaches the Promised Land, and many other Gentiles follow him - there will ultimately be a large multitude of Gentiles that make this journey
• This Book goes with the Gentiles
• Once in the Promised Land, the Gentiles do two things:  they are delivered out of captivity (through some struggle with mother Gentiles that they win) and they scatter the current inhabitants of the land (the Lamanites).
• Despite the Faith of these Gentiles in the Book that likely allows them to reach the Promised Land in the first place, they begin to stumble thanks to the the changes the GAC has made (perhaps through the efforts of that first group of Gentiles). In fact, their efforts to scatter and smite the Lamanites may be a result of the incorrect teachings in that Book.
• However, the Book also goes to the Lamanites, who now begin to believe in certain things, including that they are of Israel.
• God has mercy on the Gentiles, and allows more books to come forth while there on the Promised Land. 
• These additional books restore what the GAC took out or changed in the original Book of the Lamb, and now both the Lamanites and the Gentiles have a complete knowledge.
• At this point, the Lamanites will realize they are Israel and repent.  The Gentiles will now know they are Gentiles and that they were fooled about some things, but that they have the opportunity to also repent and join with the Lamanites and the House of Israel.
• Some Gentiles will refuse to repent (perhaps including that original small group that made the changes in the first place) and things don't go well for them.  They will fall under captivity again to Satan, and it seems this state of affairs is more or less permanent for them (in this story at least).

So, having got that loose framework in place, here are a few observations or call-outs.  I will just briefly write them here in this post, and then maybe go into more detail in follow-up posts... I am going to run out of energy soon!

• I equate the Book of the Lamb as Deseret's Book (the book that Ilmare-Eowyn has been assembling).
• In this story then, Eowyn will 'speak' this book through the Stone connection, it will be written on this end by Faramir.
• Faramir is the servant identified by Jesus in 3 Nephi 21, and will then deliver these words to a group of Gentiles.
• I currently view this group of Gentiles to include Omar-Brigham Young (I've mentioned before I think he is once again among us) as well as many of his followers.
• Once in his possession, Omar-Brigham Young will do what he has one before - he will change the story, as part of his overall influence under the GAC.  In changing things, he will likely think that he has permission to do this (i.e., he will not view himself as evil, but rather having corrected evil).
• It is known by Faramir, God, and other Good Guys that this is going to happen, but they do it anyway because that is part of the plan.
• Brigham Young will then (surprisingly!) become the Man among the Gentiles who first uses these altered words to cross space and land in Eressea #2.  It is important to note that this voyage happens without Stones, and just with the words... I am not sure how that all works, though.  
• BY and his supporters will eventually be exposed for who they are while on Eressea #2.  Other words will come forth that will demonstrate convincingly that the story was altered.  Many Gentiles, once realizing this, will repent and join with the now repentant Lamanites.
• BY will have stepped into a trap from which there is no escape.  On the Promised Land things matter, and Jesus has laid a trap which will not end well for him (read latter part of 3 Nephi 21 to get an idea).
• Similar to the story surrounding King Noah's people (remember that King Noah is also Brigham), once rid of this evil man and his followers, many Gentiles repent and can be numbered among the Family.
• In a very real sense, BY will fulfil prophecy by falling into the pit that he dug for others.  He will be going to a land where his lies will be fully exposed, and where God has covenanted that all of the enemies of his Family will be cut off for good.

So, as you can see as I kind of ticked through those bullets, we are back to Brigham Young playing a role here (if this story is correct).  You should also know that I have an alternative story where the "Man among the Gentiles" is a good guy, but as I started writing this, the glass-half-empty version came spilling out, and Brigham Young is our guy.

The overall implication in this story is that God is completing multiple objectives at once.  He is using the GAC as a means to bring people to Eressea #2.  From this, the Lamanites will ultimately repent, many Gentiles will want to be part of his family, a divided house will be reunited, and the evil doers (Brigham Young) will be exposed and cut off permanently from his people and lands.

I will stop there and mull some of this over.  I like it for a few reasons, and it definitely helps resolve a few things in my mind, but I am not sure on it yet, and probably a few other details to explore or include in this very rough and incomplete draft.