June 17-23: Alma 8-12
Jesus Christ Will Come to Redeem His People
Dennis Applebee (American, born 1973)
Templo de Debod (2006), solarplate, 8 x 6 inches
Used with permission of the artist
The chapters of Alma 8-12 are replete with contrasting opposites: persistence and patience, light and darkness, freedom and imprisonment, wickedness and righteousness. Amulek is a powerful presence in the work because he represented neither good nor evil until he found his true calling. Although he was a descendent of Lehi and Nephi, he admitted, “I never have known much of the ways of the Lord, and his mysteries and marvelous power. I said I never had known much of these things; but behold, I mistake, for I have seen much his mysteries and his marvelous power; yea, in the preservation of the lives of this people"" (Alma 10:5). In a General Conference talk in October 2016, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said, “Perhaps, like Amulek, you know in your heart that the Lord has ‘called [you] many times,’ but you ‘would not hear.’ Nevertheless, the Lord sees in you what He saw in Amulek—the potential of a valiant servant with an important work to do and with a testimony to share.”
The image by artist Dennis Applebee contains contrasting relationships, as well: light and dark, old and new, photography and abstraction. We asked the artist about the image, and he writes, "This image is part of a larger body of work juxtaposing Platonic solids and landscapes. The piece is a photogravure that in part uses a photo I took while in Spain. In Madrid they have an actual Egyptian temple that was donated to Spain by the Egyptian government. The temple was in danger of being lost during the construction of the Aswan Dam. I had to do bit of Photoshop to remove the people, and other contemporary elements from the image. The sky, clouds, and lighting are additional images that were collaged together to create the sense of dramatic lighting. The complex geometry in the top are cropped section of the Platonic solids overlapping one another. The series in part explores relationships between music, language and mathematics. I was using Platonic solids for their general reference to mathematics and celestial navigation.”
Discussion Questions:
When Alma arrives in Ammonihah, the people reject his message, telling him, in current vernacular, "You're not the boss of me" (Alma 8:11-12). Contrast this with his father Alma who left his position under a wicked leader, also effectively saying, "King Noah, you're not the boss of me." When is it important to accept or reject counsel from others?
Alma assures us that "the Lord will be merciful unto all who call on his name" (Alma 9:17), that He is "full of grace, equity, and truth, full of patience, mercy, and long-suffering, quick to hear the cries of his people and to answer their prayers" (Alma 9:26). How does this make you feel about your relationship with Jesus?
In describing agency ("knowing good from evil, placing themselves in a state to act, or being placed in a state to act according to their wills and pleasures"), Alma characterizes this ability as "becoming as Gods" (Alma 12:31). How does an understanding that exercising agency is a godlike characteristic influence your reverence for this gift?
Questions for Youth & Children:
Alma preached to the people in Ammonihah, but they did not listen to him and threw him out of their city (Alma 8:13). Alma was discouraged and wanted to move on to another city, but an angel came to him and told him to go back to the people in Ammonihah (Alma 8:14-17). Alma obeyed and went back to the people of Ammonihah, but this time, "he entered the city by another way" (Alma 8:18) and then he met Amulek who became his missionary companion (Alma 8:30). Have you ever tried something and you couldn't do it, but then tried again "another way" and something wonderful happened? What does this help us to understand about how God works with us?
Amulek told the people that even after he had seen the power of the Lord (Alma 10:5), he had a hard heart and he "knew concerning these things, yet I would not know" (Alma 10:6). What do you think this means about what he knew in his heart about Jesus, but how he treated what he knew?
Alma explains that we will be judged by God for our hearts, our words, our thoughts and our actions (Alma 12:12-14). Which of these do you think is the hardest to control - your heart, your words, your thoughts or your actions? What can you do to exercise greater self control over each of these to follow Jesus?
