User:BenBeckstromBYU/sandbox

Amalickiah

In the Book of Mormon, Amalickiah (/əˌmælɪˈkaɪ.ə/) was a Nephite dissenter. He first appears in the text as a political dissident who aspired to re-establish a monarchy. Later, after seizing the Lamanite throne, Amalickiah led a war to enslave the Nephites. After his death he was succeeded by his brother Ammoron. The story appears in the latter half of the Book of Alma.

Latter-day Saint academics frequently consider his role to be as a foil for Moroni and a narrative mirror for Ammon. In Mormon culture, including in addresses by General Authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he is often discussed as an example of an evil leader. Amalickiah is also commonly examined as a model of leadership, although again as a counterexample to Captain Moroni.

Narrative in the Book of Mormon

Intial dissension from the Nephites

Following Helaman's ascension to the station of high priest, Amalickiah led a group of Nephite elites (referred to as Amalickiahites) in a bid to install himself as king over the Nephites. This angered Moroni, the commander of the Nephite armies, who in response laid out the values of the Nephite establishment in the Title of Liberty. After Moroni raised an army to halt the attempted putsch, Amalickiah escaped to the land of Nephi, which was Lamanite territory, with a significantly reduced group of supporters.

Usurping the Lamanite throne

Upon the arrival of the Amalickiahites to Lamanite territory, they began to agitate for war against the Nephites. The king of the Lamanites sided with the Nephite dissidents, over the objections of the bulk of his subjects. The Lamanites who did not wish to invade Nephite territory fled to Onidah, where they appointed a new king and leader named Lehonti.

Amalickiah stationed his followers in a valley at the base of a mountain where Lehonti and his partisans were encamped. Lehonti spurned three of Amalickiah's attempts at diplomacy, finally acquiescing the fourth time when told to bring his guards and meet Amalickiah, who had ascended almost the entire mountain alone. As they met, Amalickiah proposed that the two armies combine, with Lehonti in charge and Amalickiah as his second. Amalickiah then arranged to quietly poison Lehonti, seizing control of the unified army. After solidifying his command of the Lamanite military, he marched to the king, who remained in the land of Nephi.

The Lamanite king left the city to greet the victorious army, and was promptly killed by Amalickiah's advance party. Before the king's guards could react, Amalickiah's men announced that the king had been murdered by his own guards, who fled under hot pursuit by the Lamanite army. Amalickiah then seduced the Lamanite queen under the pretense of being a war hero and ally of her deceased husband and crowned himself king over the Lamanites.

Invasion of Nephite lands

After an extensive propaganda campaign, Amalickiah ordered an invasion with the stated goal of subjugating the Nephites. The expeditionary force was repulsed by Moroni's innovations in fortifications and defensive tactics. Frustrated, Amalickiah made an oath to drink Moroni's blood in retaliation and assumed personal command of his army. Under his direction, Lamanite troops occupied seven coastal Nephite cities. Teancum, a Nephite commander, intercepted Amalickiah's army as it attempted a deeper penetration of Nephite territory. After a day long battle, "the two armies rested by the sea" . Teancum and an unnamed aide then infiltrated the Lamanite camp and killed Amalickiah in his sleep. This led to a Lamanite withdrawal and retrenchment, pausing the invasion.

Cultural Impact

Negative conceptions of Amalickiah abound in Mormon culture. For example, in several speeches by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Amalickiah is cited as an example of evil and negative influence. For example, Elaine S. Dalton compared Amalickiah's assassination of Lehonti to what she perceived as a pattern of worldly distraction away from virtue. [probably excise]This influence also shows in Latter-day Saint scholarship, with Christopher J. Peterson using Amalickiah as an example of "The Hitler Problem" in leadership studies.

Academic Analysis

Death at New Year

There appears to be a consensus among Latter-day Saint apologists that the timing of Amalickiah's assassination was religiously significant. This idea begins with apologist John L. Sorenson's essay on "Seasonality of Warfare in the Book of Mormon and in Mesoamerica," where he concluded that the first and last months of the Nephite calendar were the primary season for battles and wars in the Book of Mormon. A. Brent Merrill further developed the concept by quoting Sorenson's work on the ritual significance of the New Year while asserting that Teancum's actions were more significant than previously thought in a paper entitled "Nephite Captains and Armies." In a 1991 address to the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Allen J. Christenson pointed out that the book of Alma describes the Lamanites' "terror" at the death of their king at the beginning of the New Year. He claimed that this was evidence that, like the Maya, "the Lamanites... recognized the importance of the New Year in the renewal of kingship." Christenson, a specialist on the Maya culture, compared this further to Maya preferences to commence combat operations in either the beginning of the New Year or the end of the old one.

Leadership Studies

Several Latter-day Saint scholars have examined Amalickiah as a model of leadership. In a master's thesis, Christopher J. Peterson refers to Amalickiah as a "pseudo-transformational leader" and a case study of "the 'Hitler Problem.'" David L. Rockwood and J. Gordon Daines III, in an article for the academic journal Religious Educator, use Amalickiah and Captain Moroni to develop this theme. Rockwood and Daines conclude that both were presented as highly effective leaders, although they express concern about Amalickiah's predisposition to violence and selfishness Political scientist Ryan W. Davis, in the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, concludes that Amalickiah's reign demonstrates that "short conflicts... favor the Lamanite autocracy, but extended conflicts are ultimately won by the Nephite democracy," which fits with the expectations of democratic peace theory. Davis further notes that Amalickiah's apparent disregard for the safety of the Lamanite citizenry matches with the Book of Mormon's negative portrayal of wars of ambition.

Literary Role

Latter-day Saint theologian and philosopher Joseph M. Spencer found that the structure of the Book of Alma sets Amalickiah up as a narrative mirror to Ammon. These "broad parallels" include that Amalickiah and Ammoron "wished that they were heirs to the throne," whereas Ammon and Aaron "are Nephite heirs to the throne who walk away from power." Spencer also finds evidence for this in that both stories have their turning point in "encounters with a dead (or apparently dead) king," and points out several similar details throughout the Book of Alma.

Amalickiah is also heavily analyzed in The Book of Mormon For the Least of These, a Book of Mormon commentary by Rev. Dr. Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olsen Hemmings published by By Common Consent Press. Salleh and Olsen Hemmings suggest that an early reference to "Amalickiah's physique" sets him apart as narratively opposed to similarly described heroes (e.g. Nephi, son of Lehi). They further comment on how "his oath to drink the blood of Moroni offers an inversion of covenant-making"; Amalickiah's oath is predicated on violence and is a perversion of the gospel of Jesus Christ as presented in the Book of Mormon. Furtherm Salleh and Olsen Hemmings consistently find that Amalickiah acts contrary to the interests of his people for personal gain.

Proposed Etymology

recycle old section?

Amalickiah--Teichert art? Analysis of role and political information. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43041317 potential source describing Amalickiah's transformation and political role. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43041213?searchText=Amalickiah%27s+role+in+Book+of+Mormon&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3DAmalickiah%2527s%2Brole%2Bin%2BBook%2Bof%2BMormon&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3A00f221030b576158909db8f98c6efe3b

https://interpreterfoundation.org/?s=Amalickiah&submit=Search possible analysis--Interpreter itself tends to be biased so either find somewhere that cites them, find what they cite, or, even better, check out the reviews.

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1609&context=jbms-Joseph Spencer work

https://rsc.byu.edu/vol-21-no-2-2020/contrasting-leadership-styles-moroni-amalickiah Contrast to Moroni thematically.

Salleh and Olsen Hemmings--BoM for the Least of These. Spec. consider analysis in subsec Alma 46:3-7 (large and flattering) and blood drinking in Alma 51.

https://bookofmormonartcatalog.org/catalog/treachery-of-amalickiah/

Heber C. Kimball (Alma 51:9)-drinking blood

Elain Dalton A Return to Virtue

Battle by the sea? (Encyclopedia of Book of Mormon (Bingman))

Harvest Ritual Annual F.A.R.M.S. Lecture

27 February 1991
Allen J. Christenson

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8581&context=etd Christopher Johnson compares him to Hitler on page 59.

Community of Christ resources would be good; might need to wait until I can do a bigger page on those.