The Book of Mormon records that the resurrected Savior, during his personal ministry among the Nephites, gave directions for the regular performance in the Nephite church of at least four ritual acts: baptism (3 Nephi 11:21–41; 12:1–2), the bestowal of the gift of the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 11:35–36; 12:1–2, 6; 18:36–37; 19:13–14, 20–22), formal communal prayer, or praying together as a group or congregation in a prescribed way (3 Nephi 13:5–15; 17:11–17; 18:15–25; 19:16–36), and the sacrament (3 Nephi 18:1–14, 26–34; 20:3–9). The voice of Jesus was heard by all the Nephites immediately after his crucifixion and the destruction of Nephite cities, and he gave directions concerning ritual: the Nephites were to do away with the animal sacrifices of the law of Moses and were to offer instead “a broken heart and a contrite spirit,” which would qualify them to receive the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 9:19–22). He addressed all four rituals during his first visit to the temple in Bountiful (3 Nephi 11–18), beginning with baptism, concerning which he gave specific directions. Further, a large part of the Book of Mormon record of Jesus’s ministry is occupied with these ritual matters, even though some of the description is abbreviated and only later expanded on by Moroni (Moroni 2–5). In short, it is clear that the Book of Mormon portrays the Savior as deeply involved in ritual matters.

In this study, I will explore the specifics of this portrayal of Jesus through a close reading of the texts in 3 Nephi and Moroni that quote his words regarding baptism, the bestowal of the gift of the Holy Ghost, communal prayer, and the sacrament. I will argue that Christ’s extensive focus on ritual in these chapters reveals his character—not just as one who cares about ritual but as one who delights in blessing his people through these means. Each ritual is fundamentally rooted in the narrative context of Christ’s visit to the Nephites; Christ institutes each one and expounds its meaning, and each is performed in the narrative with Christ himself playing a central role. Given this narrative context, the rituals themselves become ways of approaching the living Christ as did the Nephites. Thus, the ritual directions are among the ways in which the Book of Mormon leads its readers to an experiential witness of Christ. This study has special relevance to our modern ordinances because the baptismal words in 3 Nephi 11 and the sacramental words in Moroni 4–5 are the model for the corresponding ordinances performed in the modern church.

Christ as a Revealer of Ordinances: A Distinctive Portrayal

Jesus’s attitude toward ritual is characterized in different ways by scholars of the New Testament. James Charlesworth’s dictum represents a widespread view: “It is improbable that Jesus established the institution of the Eucharist as described in the synoptics [the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke]. The liturgies in early Judaism and in the Palestinian Jesus Movement certainly helped shape this account.”[1] According to this view, the historical Jesus was not concerned about ritual—it was his followers who would develop the rituals of the church after his departure and would insert ritual elements into the gospel narrative after the fact.[2] Gerd Thiessen and Annette Merz review various approaches to the origins of the Eucharist, some of which attribute the liturgical character of its observance to Christ. They suggest, in line with another widespread view, that baptism and the Eucharist were both originally forms of existing practices adapted to anticipate the end-time, when Jesus’s disciples would stand purified and partake of a meal in the newly established kingdom of God; but after Jesus’s crucifixion, these practices became distinct rituals charged with significance relating to his death and resurrection.[3] Bruce Chilton posits a more complex development including six different “types” of the Eucharist, the first two of which were those of Jesus during his ministry: first, meals were observed as “an enacted parable of the feast in the kingdom that was to come”; then, after Jesus’s cleansing of the temple failed to permanently change the practices of the temple authorities, Jesus reinterpreted the bread and wine as the flesh and blood that his followers should offer in place of the temple sacrifices—a polemical act intended to challenge the temple cult.[4]

Some of these approaches, particularly that of Chilton, ascribe to Jesus some measure of interest in the power of ritual as a means of supporting his message. But none of them comes close to the picture of Jesus in the Book of Mormon. In the latter, Jesus presents a fully developed liturgy, specifying the actions and the very words to be uttered by the officiator and discoursing at length on the doctrinal meaning of these rites. From the standpoint of the Nephite record, the portions of the New Testament that relate to ritual appear reserved, as if they disclose only hints of what Jesus might have said to his disciples.

Not only does the Book of Mormon give us a quantitative sense of Jesus’s concern about ritual matters, but also the specifics of his teachings reveal a distinctive portrayal of Christ as a revealer of ordinances. His ritual teachings are not particularly eschatological, nor are they polemically oriented with respect to the sacrificial cult.[5] Instead, they focus explicitly on the blessing of his people. This is apparent in his repeated use of the phrase “blessed are ye” and variations of this phrase in reference to the performance of ordinances. At the beginning of 3 Nephi 12, Jesus uses this phrase to refer to those who are baptized, providing a ritual-focused context for the Beatitudes that follow (compare Matthew 5:3–12):

Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you to minister unto you, and to be your servants; and unto them I have given power that they may baptize you with water; and after that ye are baptized with water, behold, I will baptize you with fire and with the Holy Ghost; therefore blessed are ye if ye shall believe in me and be baptized, after that ye have seen me and know that I am.

And again, more blessed are they who shall believe in your words because that ye shall testify that ye have seen me, and that ye know that I am. Yea, blessed are they who shall believe in your words, and come down into the depths of humility and be baptized, for they shall be visited with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and shall receive a remission of their sins.

Yea, blessed are the poor in spirit who come unto me, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (3 Nephi 12:1–3; emphasis added)

The connector yea implies that the declaration “blessed are the poor in spirit who come unto me” is a restatement of the preceding declaration, which refers to those who “come down into the depths of humility” and are baptized. The blessedness which Jesus pronounces on those who are baptized is framed here in terms of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, remission of sins, and ultimately salvation.[6] The rest of the Beatitudes follow, continuing with “blessed are all they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.” In the Nephite context, the comfort of which Jesus speaks would take on added meaning from Alma’s teachings that those who are baptized into the covenant community are expected “to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort” (Mosiah 18:9). As the subsequent narrative of Alma’s people shows, God himself participates in giving comfort and lifting the burdens of those who enter into the covenant (Mosiah 24:13–15).[7] The Book of Mormon reading of the fourth beatitude, “for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost” confirms that these verses point to a promised state of blessedness predicated on baptism and the reception of the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 12:6; compare the shorter reading in Matthew 5:6).

Jesus also repeatedly uses the phrase “blessed are ye” when he prays among the people and when he introduces the sacrament:

And they arose from the earth, and he said unto them: Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full. (3 Nephi 17:20; emphasis added)

And when the disciples had done this [i.e., had drunk of the sacramental wine], Jesus said unto them: Blessed are ye for this thing which ye have done, for this is fulfilling my commandments, and this doth witness unto the Father that ye are willing to do that which I have commanded you.

And this shall ye always do to those who repent and are baptized in my name; and ye shall do it in remembrance of my blood, which I have shed for you, that ye may witness unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you.

And I give unto you a commandment that ye shall do these things. And if ye shall always do these things blessed are ye, for ye are built upon my rock. . . . Therefore blessed are ye if ye shall keep my commandments, which the Father hath commanded me that I should give unto you. (3 Nephi 18:10–12, 14; emphasis added)

Here, as with baptism in 3 Nephi 12, the blessing is linked to the reception of the Holy Ghost (here called “my Spirit”) through the performance of the ordinance. In both cases, too, there is emphasis on the importance of performing the ordinance in a right state of mind: humility in the case of baptism and remembrance of Christ in the case of the sacrament.

Christ’s words as reported in 3 Nephi lay out clear doctrinal explanations of the meanings of the ordinances. In each case the ritual is fundamentally situated in the context of Christ’s visits. It is as if the ritual extends his personal ministry at the Bountiful temple across time and space. It allows people to participate vicariously, to be like those who were actually there. In the following sections, I will show how this is the case, addressing each ritual in turn.

Baptism

In the Savior’s first visit to the Nephites in 3 Nephi 11, one of the first things he addressed was regulation of the ordinance of baptism, which had apparently been a topic of controversy before his visit (see 3 Nephi 11:28). He began by giving Nephi and others authority to baptize; this was done in front of the multitude so there would be no doubt about where the authority lay (3 Nephi 11:18–22). Then he described the physical procedure and the spoken words of the ordinance (3 Nephi 11:22–27). After this, he turned to the topic of his doctrine. He stated that his doctrine is not to generate contention; then he said, “I will declare unto you my doctrine” (3 Nephi 11:28–31). In 3 Nephi 11:32–38, Jesus’s words transition seamlessly from a description of the role of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost in bearing record of his doctrine to the declaration of what constitutes his doctrine. It is difficult to tell where one leaves off and the other begins; indeed, it seems that the divine record-bearing process is an integral part of his doctrine. The core of his doctrine is repentance, belief in Christ, and baptism: “And I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me. And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God. And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned” (3 Nephi 11:32–34).

Christ then reiterates the divine record-bearing process, in which the believer is visited “with fire and with the Holy Ghost” (3 Nephi 11:35–36). Finally, Christ restates the process of repentance, belief, and baptism, possibly here referring to two different baptismal events: “And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things. And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God” (3 Nephi 11:37–38).

This passage has clear thematic links with John 3:1–6, where Jesus speaks of being “born again” to “see the kingdom of God” and to “enter into the kingdom of God” (again, possibly referring to two different events).[8] However, in the Nephite context, Jesus’s words would resonate with the words of the angel quoted by King Benjamin, in which the putting off of the natural man is equated with becoming “as little children” or “as a child” (Mosiah 3:18–19).[9]

Noel Reynolds has discussed the significance of Christ’s doctrine as laid out in 3 Nephi 11:32–39 in a broader Book of Mormon context by putting it in comparison with “the doctrine of Christ” as expounded by Nephi in 2 Nephi 31–32 and with Christ’s “gospel” in 3 Nephi 27:13–21. Reynolds shows how these three expositions “all say essentially the same things”; he points to the presence of six elements in all three passages: repentance, baptism, the reception of the Holy Ghost, faith in Christ, endurance to the end, and eternal life.[10] While all three passages are consistent in setting forth these elements, it is important to note how these passages function differently in the Nephite record. Nephi’s exposition is longer than the other two; it unfolds gradually as Nephi reveals words spoken to him by the Father and the Son and then reflects on them. At some points, Nephi enters into dialogue with the reader, even expressing sorrow at the reader’s lack of understanding (2 Nephi 32:1–2, 4, 7–8).[11] Nephi anticipates the future revelation of “more doctrine” at the time “when [Christ] shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh,” and he exhorts the reader to do what Christ reveals at that time, implying that that doctrine will be different in some way (2 Nephi 32:6). Indeed, Christ’s concise declaration of his “doctrine” in 3 Nephi 11 includes new elements, such as the record-bearing roles of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost and the requirement of becoming like little children. Christ’s “gospel” in 3 Nephi 27 is unlike both these passages in that it is framed as an announcement of two key events: the crucifixion in which Christ was “lifted up by men” and the final judgment in which men will be “lifted up by the Father” (3 Nephi 27:14). The “gospel” in 3 Nephi 27 may have been a paraphrase of Christ’s teachings, including his “doctrine” in 3 Nephi 11. Believers are to “build upon” both of them (3 Nephi 11:39; 27:8), but only in the case of his “doctrine” is there a specific commandment regarding how the words are to be used (see below).

One way to interpret Jesus’s declaration of his doctrine in 3 Nephi 11:32–39 is to understand these words as part of the baptismal liturgy as laid down by Jesus. Immediately following these words, Jesus stated, “Whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock” (3 Nephi 11:40). Just as he had introduced his words with the statement, “I will declare unto you my doctrine” (3 Nephi 11:31; emphasis added), he commanded the twelve disciples to “go forth unto this people, and declare the words which I have spoken, unto the ends of the earth” (3 Nephi 11:41; emphasis added). Jesus next turned to the multitude and exhorted them to heed the words that the twelve would teach them, after which they should be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost, precisely as outlined in Christ’s doctrine (3 Nephi 12:1).[12] That the twelve interpreted literally the injunction to declare nothing more or less than “the words which I have spoken” is possible in light of their teaching of the multitude on the following day, when they “ministered those same words which Jesus had spoken—nothing varying from the words which Jesus had spoken” (3 Nephi 19:8).[13] The disciples then prayed for “that which they most desired,” which was the Holy Ghost, and went down to the water’s edge to baptize each other (3 Nephi 19:8–12).

If Christ’s doctrine in 3 Nephi 11:32–39 is indeed intended as a liturgy to be recited word for word, it might imply that the liturgy had the character of a ritual drama. Nearly every sentence of the passage uses first-person pronouns referring to Christ, who is speaking the words; thus, if a disciple spoke the words without alteration, he would be taking on the role of Christ as if in a dramatic performance. For instance, he would say, “And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved.” This would be an especially poignant way of reinvoking Christ’s personal ministry whenever baptism was administered to those who were not there at the temple in Bountiful (for such instances, see 3 Nephi 26:17; 27:1).

Jesus’s sermon in 3 Nephi 12–14, which parallels the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5–7, may constitute a second set of teachings that were to be imparted to candidates for baptism. Here, unlike Jesus’s words to the twelve disciples in 3 Nephi 11:22–41, his words are addressed to the entire multitude gathered at the temple. John Welch has argued extensively for the sacred, temple-related nature of this sermon; according to him, this sermon was used to instruct baptismal candidates to prepare them to enter into a covenant with Christ.[14] This larger sermon ends with the metaphor of building on a rock rather than on the sand, very much like the metaphor at the end of Christ’s doctrine in 3 Nephi 11. The same metaphor also appears at the end of Christ’s teachings about the sacrament (3 Nephi 18:12–13). This could mean that all three sets of teachings are related to one another as sacred teachings accompanying the administration of ordinances in the temple.

The ordinance of baptism stands out from the other ordinances introduced by Christ at the temple in Bountiful, since Christ does not model the performance of the ordinance itself.[15] Like the other ordinances, Christ gives instructions for the performance of baptism, and the ordinance is to be performed in his name (3 Nephi 11:23, 25, 27, 37–38); however, he does not actually perform the ordinance in these chapters of 3 Nephi. This contrasts with his role in the bestowal of the Holy Ghost, which I will now discuss.

Bestowal of the Gift of the Holy Ghost

Many of Christ’s teachings to the Nephites relate to the gift of the Holy Ghost, which he typically refers to as baptism by fire and the Holy Ghost, using language similar to Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:16 (3 Nephi 9:19–22; 11:35–36; 12:1–2, 6; 27:20).[16] The accounts attributed in the Book of Mormon to the multitude and to the disciples describe Christ’s institution of a ritual that would perpetuate the effects of his personal ministry. He presented this ritual as a complement to baptism by water, promising that he would play a direct role in performing the baptism by fire and the Holy Ghost.

In his words heard by the Nephites immediately after his crucifixion, Christ promised those who would come unto him “with a broken heart and a contrite spirit” that he would baptize them “with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not” (3 Nephi 9:20). The event referred to here is described in Helaman 5:43–48. According to this account, a group of Lamanites, having imprisoned the prophets Nephi and Lehi, were led to repent. They were encircled by fire and filled with the Holy Ghost, and they heard the voice of the Father testifying of Christ. After this, “angels came down out of heaven and ministered unto them.”

Very similar to the account in Helaman 5 is the description of what happened on the morning after Christ’s first visit to the Nephites. As the multitude looked on, the disciples who had just baptized each other “were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire” and “were encircled about as if it were by fire” (3 Nephi 19:13–14). Here too, “angels did come down out of heaven and did minister unto them,” although in this instance the Savior himself also came and stood amid the disciples (3 Nephi 19:14–15).

Since it was only the twelve disciples who were filled with the Holy Ghost in 3 Nephi 19, this event can be regarded only as a partial fulfillment of Christ’s promise in 3 Nephi 9:20. The twelve on this occasion experienced for themselves the doctrine of Christ they had heard on the previous day (3 Nephi 11:32–39). From the perspective of the multitude at the temple, who witnessed the miraculous baptism of the disciples and bore record of it (3 Nephi 19:14), the event provided a personal experience corresponding to the verbal promise they had heard months previously (3 Nephi 9:20) as well as the promise Christ had given them as he stood in their midst on the previous day (3 Nephi 12:1).[17] Those in the multitude who would eventually receive the Holy Ghost could regard that gift as a likeness of what they had witnessed at the temple in Bountiful. Further, those who would receive the multitude’s witness (3 Nephi 12:2) could likewise view their own experience in the context of the Savior’s words and their partial fulfillment at the Bountiful temple.

According to Mormon’s account, the twelve disciples bore record of the Savior’s instructions concerning the ritual by which the Holy Ghost was to be bestowed (3 Nephi 18:36–37). These instructions, which were not heard by the multitude, are conveyed by Moroni near the end of the Book of Mormon: Christ laid his hands on the disciples and charged them to give others the Holy Ghost “in my name” (Moroni 2:1–2). Just as Christ laid his hands on the disciples to give them this charge (an aspect also witnessed by the multitude), the disciples were to lay their hands on those to whom they would give the Holy Ghost. Thus, whenever the ordinance would be performed, even the gesture of the officiator would invoke Christ’s actions as he instituted the ordinance at the temple in Bountiful.

Jesus’s teachings consistently portray the gift of the Holy Ghost in a complementary relationship to baptism. Once Jesus introduces baptism in 3 Nephi 11, the ordinance of bestowing the gift of the Holy Ghost is always described in conjunction with baptism. For instance, speaking of the twelve, Jesus says to the multitude, “And unto them I have given power that they may baptize you with water; and after that ye are baptized with water, behold, I will baptize you with fire and with the Holy Ghost” (3 Nephi 12:1). The same pattern is evident in the baptism of the twelve: after they baptized each other, the Holy Ghost immediately “did fall upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire” (3 Nephi 19:11–13).

In terms of participant format, Jesus’s role in the bestowal of the Holy Ghost was to be more direct than his role in baptism. The baptism with water was to be performed by his disciples in his name (3 Nephi 11:23, 27, 37–38).[18] The giving of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands was also performed in Jesus’s name (Moroni 2:2); however, he himself promised to carry out the actual baptism with fire and the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 9:20; 12:1).[19]

Christ’s institution of the bestowal of the Holy Ghost in 3 Nephi points to his character as one who cares deeply for his people. Throughout the pericopes describing Christ’s institution of this ordinance, the focus is on what Christ and his Father will do for their people, who are conceived of both as individuals (3 Nephi 11:35–36) and as a group (3 Nephi 12:1–2; 19:13–14). These people will be born record to (3 Nephi 11:35–36), visited (3 Nephi 11:35; 12:2), “baptized” (with fire, 3 Nephi 12:1), comforted (3 Nephi 12:4), filled (3 Nephi 12:6; 19:13), and encircled about (3 Nephi 19:14). The emphasis is consistently on the recipients of these blessings; there is no indication of a worldly agenda in the ordinance. We can conclude from this that Christ’s character is generous—in his institution of ordinances, he is preoccupied with blessing his people.

Formal Communal Prayer

Like the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’s sermon at the Bountiful temple includes the Lord’s Prayer with accompanying instructions (3 Nephi 13:5–15). The Book of Mormon account also includes two additional prayers (3 Nephi 17:11–17; 19:15–36) and further instruction on prayer (3 Nephi 18:15–25).

The two additional prayers recorded in 3 Nephi are mutually similar. In the first instance, Jesus commanded the multitude to bring their little children and then to kneel, and he stood “in the midst” of the children and prayed, using words that could not be repeated (3 Nephi 17:11–17). In the second instance, he came and stood “in the midst” of the disciples, who had just been baptized and received the Holy Ghost, and commanded the surrounding multitude to kneel while he prayed three times, ending with words that could not be repeated (3 Nephi 19:15–36).[20] Both instances are alike except for the people immediately surrounding Jesus: the children in one instance and the recently baptized disciples in the other. As Jesus had just taught that those who are baptized become “as a little child” (3 Nephi 11:37–38), it seems likely that the two instances are complementary in some way.

There are at least two things to note regarding Jesus’s role in these two prayers. First, his position in the event was central: he was “in the midst” of the praying multitude; even though he departs “out of the midst of them” in 3 Nephi 19:19, he is still the one to whom they are praying as he prays to the Father. In both prayers, there is a smaller group that is closer to Christ than the general multitude, giving the impression of concentric groups with Christ as the focal point. Second, Jesus gives attention to the postures of prayer. He commands the multitude and the disciples to kneel (3 Nephi 17:13–14; 19:16–17), and he models three postures for them: standing (3 Nephi 17:13), kneeling (3 Nephi 17:15), and finally “bow[ing] himself to the earth” (3 Nephi 19:19, 27). Jesus’s directions and example may have served a didactic purpose. According to Donald Parry, on these occasions “Jesus provided instructions regarding the posture of prayer, and then showed the Nephite Saints at Bountiful how to pray.”[21]

As with the other ritual actions which he introduced to the Nephites, Christ instituted prayer as a permanent practice for the church: “And as I have prayed among you even so shall ye pray in my church, among my people who do repent and are baptized in my name. Behold I am the light; I have set an example for you” (3 Nephi 18:16).

It is possible that this ritual was regularly performed with converts as part of a sequence including baptism, the bestowal of the Holy Ghost, and the sacrament. This combination of rites would be modeled on Christ’s personal ministry among the Nephites. During both his first and his second visit, his prayer amid the children or his recently baptized disciples occurred just before an administration of the sacrament. Similarly, the apocryphal book known as the Acts of John mentions that Christ led the Apostles in a prayer as they gathered in a circle in the upper room on the night of his arrest—the same occasion on which he administered the sacrament, although the text does not mention the sacrament.[22] One can therefore imagine a ritual in which recently baptized converts, who had become “as a little child,” participated in a communal prayer and partook of the sacrament, all of this being modeled after Christ’s personal ministry at the temple in Bountiful.

As with the bestowal of the Holy Ghost, Jesus’s teachings about prayer point overwhelmingly to his concern for his people. He prays for the people using words too “great and marvelous” to be written, after which he blesses the children, they are encircled about with fire, and angels minister to them (3 Nephi 17:17, 21, 24). Later, Jesus prays for people to be one with him and with his Father and to be purified, and he again uses words too “great and marvelous” to be written (3 Nephi 19:23, 28–29, 34). He exhorts his people to pray in their families for the blessing of their wives and children and to pray in their congregations for others (3 Nephi 18:21–23). The picture of a generous Christ who delights in blessing others is consistent with what we have seen in the case of the bestowal of the Holy Ghost.

Administration of the Sacrament

The sacrament is perhaps the clearest example of an ordinance designed to recall Christ’s visit at the temple in Bountiful, thus allowing those who receive the ordinance to relive the experience of that event. Christ administered the sacrament to the Nephites on two occasions: once in his first visit and again in his second visit (3 Nephi 18:1–14; 20:3–9). On the second occasion, he miraculously provided the bread and wine, recalling the miraculous feeding of multitudes in his mortal ministry (3 Nephi 20:6–7; Matthew 14:15–21; 15:32–38). In both instances in 3 Nephi, Christ gave the bread and wine first to the disciples and then commanded the disciples to distribute them to the multitude; Christ thus plays a central role in both events, providing bread and wine symbolic of his own body and blood to a widening circle of recipients.

Moroni records the words of the sacrament prayers used by the Nephites (Moroni 4; 5); the words echo the language Christ uses in his explanation of the ordinance in 3 Nephi 18, which means that the Nephites would “commemorate this extraordinary day [when Christ first administered the sacrament] by ceremoniously remembering and religiously repeating the words they heard Jesus speak on that occasion.”[23] Both Christ’s explanation and the prayers themselves emphasize the ritual’s commemorative character:

As John Welch has noted, the words of the prayers and of Jesus’s explanations echo the covenantal language of king Benjamin’s sermon in Mosiah 5, so the words would resonate deeply for Nephite believers, like the words associated with baptism as noted above.[24]

The connection to Christ’s personal ministry is clearest in his explanation of the sacramental bread: “in remembrance of my body, which I have shown unto you.” The relative clause is absent from the prayer on the bread, perhaps because it would not necessarily apply to those who would use the prayer in the generations following Christ’s visit to Bountiful. Even so, this explanation shows that the ordinance as presented to the Nephites is ultimately rooted in his personal ministry among them. The corresponding relative clause “which I have shed for you” is preserved (with a shift to the passive) in the prayer on the wine because this would apply universally to those who would carry out the ordinance. But in the Nephite context, these words would recall the multitude’s one-by-one encounter with Jesus, in which they witnessed by sight and touch that he had been “slain for the sins of the world” (3 Nephi 11:13–15).

Once again, we get a clear picture of Christ as one who seeks to provide for his people through the ordinances of the church. The providing of bread and wine is both a concrete indicator of his generosity and a symbol of the spiritual blessings he wishes to give. Christ’s explanations of the sacrament emblems end with the promise “Ye shall have my Spirit to be with you,” which points to the purpose of this ordinance (3 Nephi 18:7, 11). After partaking of the bread and wine, the people were “filled”—the text leaves ambiguity as to whether this was physical, spiritual, or both (3 Nephi 18:5, 9). Jesus’s promise in 3 Nephi 20 more clearly portrays being filled as a spiritual blessing of the sacrament: “And he said unto them: He that eateth this bread eateth of my body to his soul; and he that drinketh of this wine drinketh of my blood to his soul; and his soul shall never hunger nor thirst, but shall be filled” (3 Nephi 20:8).

The imagery of not hungering or thirsting and of being filled echoes Jesus’s language in the Beatitudes referring to the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 12:6). The teachings on the sacrament also include a warning not to allow people to partake of it unworthily; this warning reflects Christ’s concern for the spiritual welfare of his people (3 Nephi 18:27–29).

Conclusion

On a basic level, the preoccupation of Christ’s ministry in 3 Nephi with matters of ritual suggests that Christ places importance on the physical, formal acts of the gospel as means of discipleship. But in contrast to many modern approaches to Christ’s involvement with ritual, the Book of Mormon portrays Christ as a revealer of ordinances with the primary purpose of blessing his people through the reception of the Holy Ghost (compare 3 Nephi 27:20–22). The record of how these ordinances were instituted gives us extensive insight into Christ’s character as a generous giver of blessings. Each of the practices he prescribed in 3 Nephi is rooted in the context of his personal ministry among the Nephites so that one may participate vicariously in the events of his ministry through the ritual. To receive Christ’s teachings concerning baptism, delivered without alteration as he commanded, would be like receiving them from Christ himself. After being baptized like the twelve disciples on the morning of Christ’s second visit, a person would receive the baptism of fire by Christ himself as the twelve disciples did. The ritual action by which the gift of the Holy Ghost was administered was the laying on of hands, the same gesture by which Jesus gave his twelve disciples authority to bestow the gift. By participating in communal prayer as Jesus directed, people could imagine themselves in place of the disciples as Jesus offered prayer in their midst. Finally, as people partook of the sacrament, they would remember Christ showing his body to the Nephites and allowing them to witness for themselves, one by one, that his blood had been shed for them.

We can see glimpses of the impact of these ordinances among the Nephites. After Christ’s second visit, the disciples “began from that time forth to baptize and to teach as many as did come unto them.” Those who were baptized “were filled with the Holy Ghost” and “saw and heard unspeakable things, which are not lawful to be written” (3 Nephi 26:17–18). This last description recalls the prayers Jesus had uttered among the Nephites at Bountiful, which included words that could not be repeated. Moroni also describes some of the ordinances performed in the church in his day (Moroni 2–6).

The ordinances of baptism and the sacrament as performed in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are also modeled on those described in the Book of Mormon, using the same procedures and prayers (Doctrine and Covenants 20:37, 72–79).[25] Thus, members of the church today may vicariously experience Christ’s personal ministry, as did the Nephites, through the ordinances he revealed. In doing so, we gain a more intimate understanding of our Savior, who is eager to bless us.

Notes

[1] James Charlesworth, “The Historical Jesus: How to Ask Questions and Remain Inquisitive,” in Handbook for the Study of the Historical Jesus, ed. Tom Holmén and Stanley E. Porter (Leiden: Brill, 2011), 1:114. Charlesworth clarifies in his further remarks on pages 121–22 that the original Last Supper stressed “the dawning of God’s Rule and the importance of the Twelve within it” and included a plea to remember Jesus (not the crucified figure of Christ, which did not yet exist).

[2] Thus, Paul’s description in 1 Corinthians 11:23–29 would be “important as the earliest attestation of the way Jesus instituted the Eucharist”; yet even this description, which includes some ritual elements, is understood as “a formulation composed some time after the event and dependent on a liturgical tradition.” See Joseph A. Fitzmyer, First Corinthians: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, The Anchor Yale Bible (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008), 431. A similar explanation would apply to the institution of the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9–13. New Testament references to Jesus participating in baptism and individual prayer are frequent, but he is not portrayed as instituting these practices, and the New Testament is silent on the degree of formality involved in them.

[3] Gerd Thiessen and Annette Merz, The Historical Jesus: A Comprehensive Guide (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998), 405–39.

[4] Bruce D. Chilton, “Method in a Critical Study of Jesus,” in Handbook for the Study of the Historical Jesus, 132–42. The other four types are associated with Peter and his circle, James, Paul and the Synoptic Gospels, and finally John.

[5] The abolishment of blood sacrifice in favor of the offering of “a broken heart and a contrite spirit” in 3 Nephi 9:19–22 may at first seem like a move similar to what Chilton suggests happened in Jerusalem in the latter part of Jesus’s ministry. However, it is not framed here in polemical terms. Jesus claims both the old practice and the new one as his: “And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; . . . for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit” (3 Nephi 9:19–20; emphasis added). It is thus framed as a mandated change from the top down. Note that the cessation of animal sacrifice was new, but the requirement to offer “a broken heart and a contrite spirit” was a renewal of an expectation that had existed previously (Psalms 34:18; 51:16–17; 2 Nephi 2:7; 4:32). See Dana M. Pike, “3 Nephi 9:19–20: The Offering of a Broken Heart,” in Third Nephi, An Incomparable Scripture, ed. Andrew C. Skinner and Gaye Strathearn (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2012), 35–56. Christ later reiterated this latter requirement during his personal appearance to the Nephites (3 Nephi 12:19).

[6] Based on 3 Nephi 11:33, it seems that the inheriting of the kingdom is understood as equivalent to receiving personal salvation: “And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

[7] One can accordingly understand “they shall be comforted” (Greek paraklēthēsontai) in Matthew 5:4 to imply divine aid, just as Jesus promised to send the Holy Ghost as a “Comforter” (paraklētos) in John 14:26.

[8] Interpretation of this passage in John is varied; according to Jerome H. Neyrey, Jesus refers in verse 3 to being born “from above,” which Nicodemus misinterprets as being born “again” (the Greek word anōthen has both meanings); see The New Oxford Annotated Bible, Fully Revised Fourth Edition, ed. Michael D. Coogan (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010), 1886. Since the births mentioned in verses 3 and 5 lead to different results (“seeing” and “entering” the kingdom of God), it is reasonable to suppose that Jesus is referring to different events or types of rebirth, possibly aligning with those in 3 Nephi 11:37–38.

[9] Compare John W. Welch, Illuminating the Sermon at the Temple and the Sermon on the Mount (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999), 29–30.

[10] Noel B. Reynolds, “The Gospel of Jesus Christ as Taught by the Nephite Prophets,” BYU Studies 31, no. 3 (1991): 31–50.

[11] The fact that Nephi’s expressions of sorrow are in written form poses an interesting paradox, for any reader, no matter how spiritually prepared, receives the same sorrowful judgment. This implies that Nephi knows his words are difficult, despite his statement that they are “as plain as word can be” (2 Nephi 32:7).

[12] In 3 Nephi 12:1–2, Jesus seems to make a distinction between “the words of these twelve” and “your words.” Jesus’s doctrine in 3 Nephi 11:32–39 was addressed to the twelve and not the multitude, so “your words” must refer to something other than that passage.

[13] It is not certain that this refers exclusively to the words in 3 Nephi 11:32–39, but this seems a reasonable possibility. Joseph Fielding McConkie, Robert L. Millet, and Brent L. Top likewise connect 3 Nephi 19:8 with Jesus’s injunction in 3 Nephi 11:39–40 in Doctrinal Commentary on the Book of Mormon, vol. 4 (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1992), 132.

[14] Welch, Illuminating the Sermon, 11, 28–30.

[15] By contrast, the Synoptic Gospels describe the baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3:13–17; Mark 1:9–11; Luke 3:21–22), and the Gospel of John indicates that Jesus performed some baptisms during his mortal ministry (John 3:22; Joseph Smith Translation, John 4:1–2). The baptism of Jesus does feature prominently in Nephi’s exposition of the doctrine of Christ (2 Nephi 31:4–7, 17).

[16] Compare also Mark 1:8; John 1:33; Acts 1:5; 11:16, which mention baptism by the Holy Ghost without adding the word fire. In John 1:33, some early manuscript witnesses (including a third-century papyrus, a fifth-century Greek majuscule codex, and the Sahidic Coptic version) include the word fire, but otherwise the reading without fire in these latter passages is constant. See Barbara and Kurt Aland, Johannes Karavidopoulos, Carlo M. Martini, and Bruce M. Metzger, eds., Novum Testamentum Graece, 28th revised edition (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2012), 294. In 3 Nephi 27:20, Christ uses different language in his words to the twelve Nephite disciples, referring to the gift of the Holy Ghost as being “sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost.”

[17] For the space of time between these two promises, see 3 Nephi 8:5; 9:1; 10:18.

[18] I understand the phrase “in my name” to be equivalent to “having authority given me of Jesus Christ” in the baptismal prayer (3 Nephi 11:25).

[19] Although Jesus claims the role of baptizing with fire and the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 12:1), it is the Father who is said to “visit [the baptized person] with fire and with the Holy Ghost” (3 Nephi 11:35). Thus, all three members of the Godhead, in whose name the baptism with water is explicitly performed (3 Nephi 11:25), are more closely involved in the second stage of the ritual.

[20] In the second prayer, there are clear resonances with Jesus’s intercessory prayer in John 17 and with his prayer in the garden of Gethsemane in Matthew 26:36–46; Mark 14:32–42; Luke 22:39–46. See Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2006), 265–67. Whereas Jesus prays three times in Gethsemane and each time finds the apostles asleep rather than watching and praying, in 3 Nephi 19 he prays three times and finds the multitude praying “steadfastly, without ceasing” (3 Nephi 19:30). The contrast may be what causes Jesus to remark in verses 35–36 that because of the Nephites’ great faith, they were able to see and hear more than those in Jerusalem.

[21] Donald W. Parry, “‘Pray Always’: Learning to Pray as Jesus Prayed,” in The Book of Mormon: 3 Nephi 9–30, This Is My Gospel, ed. Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, 1993), 139.

[22] Acts of John, 94–95; See J. K. Elliott, The Apocryphal New Testament (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993), 318.

[23] John W. Welch, “From Presence to Practice: Jesus, the Sacrament Prayers, the Priesthood, and Church Discipline in 3 Nephi 18 and Moroni 2–6,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 5, no. 1 (1996): 122. On the relationship between 3 Nephi 18 and the sacrament prayers recorded in Moroni 4–5, and the temple-related nature of these texts on the sacrament, see Welch, Illuminating the Sermon, 99–100; Welch, “From Presence to Practice,” 123–26.

[24] John W. Welch, “Our Nephite Sacrament Prayers,” in Reexploring the Book of Mormon, ed. John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1992), 286–89.

[25] Welch, “From Presence to Practice,” 120–21.