Corianton

Of the people I read about in the scriptures, one of the few I'd really enjoy meeting is Corianton, the son of Alma the Younger. We know quite a bit about the mission of Jesus Christ, the atonment, God's mercy and the purpose of life on Earth through the messages Alma sends to his son, but beneath it all we know that Corianton is getting these messages because, well, he's human. He has weaknesses any of us could have. He has his spectrum of sins and doubts spread over several chapters of Alma for all of us to read -- I can't say I'd want a part of my life to be in canon scripture.

But he's humble. Teachable. He repents of what he did wrong and goes on with his brothers preaching the gospel, bringing people to Christ. And that's a good thing. More fundamentally, he realizes that it's through his own choices that he's able to find permanent happiness, not the intemperate happiness that comes through the "pleasures" life on Earth offers.

I'd like to meet him, to talk with him about how he felt as we was beign instructed, and how he handled himself afterward. I believe he's a good man. I believe he's a man like me who has done things wrong, and has found forgiveness through repentance.

I also believe that Alma's lessons to his son are proof of what we're admonished to do in 1 Corinthains 13 -- Alma epitomizes charity, rebuking with love, and showing that as he speaks with the tongue of men and of angels, he has charity and is not as sounding brass nor a tinkling cymbal.

Anyway, that's my soapbox for today. Thanks for shopping with us.