“There Are Disputations Among the People Concerning This Matter”

Brant Gardner

It might strike a modern reader as odd that, when the Savior of all humankind appears and asks the open-ended question, “What will ye that I shall give unto you?,” they ask about the church’s name. However, in the context of calling on his name and with the ancient mindset, the question was critical, going straight to the essential identity of the thing named. Up to this point, there is no indication that the Nephite church even had a name. It is always called only “the church.” In Joseph Smith’s day, a church would need a name because there were numerous Christian churches that had to be distinguished from one another. But in Nephite society, “the church” was unambiguous because it was the only one. Naming this new covenant was equivalent to defining its nature. They are not seeking a name to distinguish the church from other churches, but a clarification of its essence.

Second Witness: Analytical & Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon, Vol. 5

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