CFM: Prophetic mistakes in 3 Nephi and now
This week’s “Come Follow Me” reading contains an astonishing rebuke from Jesus to a prophet — begging the question, “If prophets in the scriptures make mistakes, why not prophets today? And when they do, what should we do about it?” But let’s back up.
The rebuke from Jesus to Nephi was because Nephi omitted the words of Samuel the Lamanite (see 3 Nephi 23:6-14). Much could be said about the “othering” that choice represented — but for the moment, let’s stick with the idea that Nephi blew it, making an error with the holy text itself. That’s a big mistake, Nephi.
But do we — or did they — scold Nephi and hold it against him? Hardly — Nephi fixed the mistake, added Samuel’s prophecies to the record, and taught the people the missing holy text (vs. 14).
Today, would it be easier for prophets to admit to making mistakes if we didn’t hold them to an unrealistic standard of perfection? Rev. Dr. Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olson Hemming, coauthors of The Book of Mormon for the Least of These, made this point:
Every book of scripture makes clear that prophets are human and sometimes make terrible errors. From God reminding Job of who made the earth, to Jesus chiding Peter for doubting, to God punishing Joseph Smith for losing 116 pages of translated text of the Book of Mormon, scripture is full of God telling the prophets to repent and fix their mistakes. Scripture acts as a way of holding prophets accountable to God but also to the people, a way for us to realize that failure is part of a journey with God.
While Joseph Smith was open about God’s chidings, modern day prophets rarely seem to speak of them. This is a loss. . . . Nephi made a significant mistake in not including Samuel’s words. Jesus corrected him, and Nephi chose to include that correction rather than to hide it. Readers benefit from Nephi’s vulnerability in this moment, learning that prophets have bias, make mistakes, have to repent, and try again to follow God.
At the same time, accepting and even expecting prophetic fallibility doesn’t mean that we gloss over the very real damage that results from church leader mistakes. It can mean being merciful to leaders who are tasked with a hard job, and praying that God is merciful to us in our hard tasks too.
-Marci
Image from https://teachldschildren.com/tag/samuel-the-lamanite/
Quote by Salleh and Hemming is from Vol. 3, the commentary on 3 Ne 23:6-14, emphasis added.