:: Being Mormon ::

To Moses, the Lord presented a pretty straightforward set of rules. “Thou shalt not…”

But does the Lord operate that way himself? Deontology, or rules-based ethics, is often coupled with religion. Many have suggested that religion is about following arbitrary rules handed down by an unresponsive God.

The Book of Mormon contains several interesting examples of the Lord reasoning with people. The book opens with the story of Nephi and his family leaving Jerusalem. Nephi is instructed to go back and get the brass plates — their history and scriptures — which are held by a powerful man named Laban. Nephi asks Laban for the plates, then offers to buy them. Both offers are rebuked, and Laban sends men to kill Nephi and his family.

Finally, Nephi heads into town a third time, to try somehow and get these plates.

7 Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine.

8 And when I came to him I found that it was Laban.

9 And I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof; and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel.

10 And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.

11 And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property.

12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands;

13 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.

14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise.

15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law.

16 And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass.

17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.

18 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword.

There are two possible conclusions from this:

1. Thou shalt not kill, unless the Lord gives you some pretty good reasons to do it.

2. The Lord may override standing directives with specific instructions in special cases that would require a system of rules too complex for us to use or understand.

Either case suggests that the Lord doesn’t reveal to us the ultimate, absolute set of laws that we must live by. That’s why the Holy Ghost and the idea of continuous revelation is so important to Mormons.