The High Priest & High Holy Days (2024)

As a record of a Jewish remnant people, the Book of Mormon should contain Hebraisms and evidence of Old Testament religious practice. These elements are diluted by the later editing done by a Christian prophet post-fulfillment of the Law of Moses, and its English translation by an American farm boy. Nevertheless, scholars look for glimpses of this underlying religion in ways such as seeing the King Benjamin tent gathering as a possible Jewish Sukkot celebration, and Alma’s blessings on his three sons and retelling of his deliverance as a Passover event.1 Another powerful connection comes by examining the High Priest Alma’s speeches in Alma 5 and 7as High Holy Days texts.

Alma (the Younger, hereafter just Alma) served as both the Nephite Chief Judge in charge of political affairs, and the church’s High Priest, when around 83 BC he decided to step down from his day job to focus on religious duties. With a renewed emphasis on his spiritual responsibilities to the people, at the beginning of the ninth year of the reign of the judges, he embarked on a tour to various regions under his stewardship, preaching powerfully to the people of Zarahemla in Alma 5, organizing the church there in Alma 6, and then preaching to the people in Gideon in Alma 7. Alma then returned home, and at the beginning of the tenth year, repeated this effort starting with a visit to Melek (Alma 8) and then a few days later, a more difficult visit to Ammonihah (Alma 9-14).

Often we read these chapters of Alma 5 and 7 and compare the audiences, and explain why they received such different prophetic speeches based on their righteousness. What if we considered the timing and purpose of these texts as well? The occasions and dates may have been the reason that Zarahelma and Gideon received different talks, not necessarily just the needs of the audience. Looking at the content and symbols of his speeches in conjunction with their delivery timing provides helpful insights.

Scriptural calendars

Signs and seasons in the heavens were the original appointed times for humans and divinity to connect. The Law of Moses, explained in the early books of the Old Testament, details the harvest and feast and sabbath festival requirements. Jews kept this law, Nephites kept it, Jesus kept it, Jews still keep it today—Jehovah gave this law, kept it, and fulfilled it to create a holy people. Spring is the ritual religious New Year at the temple, a time of resurrection, of Passover, of sacrifice. In the fall, each Jewish royal political New Year began with a series of sacred autumn holidays: Rosh Hashanah, literally “the head of the year,” called the Feast of Trumpets, then ten days later Yom Kippur (“Day of Atonement”), followed by Sukkot (“booths”). These temple gatherings are mandated in Leviticus 232. Autumnal rituals naturally deal with the harvest cycle in an agrarian community. At this occasion of the Feast of Trumpets, the king was crowned or symbolically reinstated, and trumpets were a celebratory feature.

A preliminary issue is the Nephite calendar, and how correlated it was with the Jewish lunar cycles. Randall Spackman, in his article “Jewish/Nephite Lunar Calendar,”3 explained that the new world climate did not accord with the agricultural calendar and seasons Lehi’s family knew in Jerusalem. “While the scriptures provided an important tool for creating such a [religious] calendar, the spring and autumn harvest festivals of the land of Judah could not have been applicable to the agricultural seasons where the Nephites lived in tropical Mesoamerica.” As the Nephites modified their religious schedule to fit their new locale, they also adapted various ways of counting time: several Book of Mormon systems are documented (since Lehi left Jerusalem, the reign of the judges, and since the sign appeared of Christ’s birth). Spackman also noted that the phrase “commencement of the …year” appears 26 times… virtually all … in the books of Alma, Helaman, and 3 Nephi.”

John Sorenson discovered that the Nephite calendar correlates with the seasonality of warfare, as well as Mesoamerican cultivation and harvest cycles. In “The Nephite Calendar in Mosiah, Alma, and Helaman,”4 he concluded that the ”beginning and ending of the Nephite year frequently falls around the time of major battles.” Thus wars were primarily fought in the eleventh through second months of the year, the dry months (November-February), with no fighting in months six through ten (the wet months). He posits the New Year occurring near the December solstice.

We do know that the Nephites kept the Law of Moses (2 Nephi 5:10, Alma 30:3), and elements such as firstfruits (mentioned by Lehi in 2 Nephi 2:9) give us clues that the biblical feasts were important. Since the Jews used different calendars for religious and political new years that were adapted in unknown ways by the Nephites, who also used various calendars, it is hard to know if and when Alma was keeping Jewish holidays correlated with the dates and times mentioned in the Book of Mormon account. However, as the High Priest, he took his responsibilities seriously, and these included calling his people to repentance in preparation for the Day of Atonement prefiguring Christ’s coming.

The connection at the beginning of the year with Alma’s journeys is given: “And thus in the commencement of the ninth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi, Alma…confined himself wholly to the high priesthood of the holy order of God” (Alma 4:20, my emphasis). And the following year’s journey: “And it came to pass in the commencement of the tenth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi that Alma departed from thence and took his journey over into the land of Melek… and he began to teach the people in the land of Melek according to the holy order of God, by which he had been called” (Alma 8:3-4, my emphasis).

The mention of the commencement of the year often indicates a religious renewal in the Book of Mormon. Alma either started the trend or was following one that others would as well:

• Alma 45:20-22: “And now it came to pass in the commencement of the nineteenth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi, that Helaman went forth among the people to declare the word unto them…to establish the church again in all the land”

• Alma 63:1: “And it came to pass in the commencement of the thirty and sixth year of the reign of the judges… that Shiblon took possession of those sacred things which had been delivered unto Helaman by Alma.”

• 3 Nephi 6:17-20: “And thus, in the commencement of the thirtieth year… there began to be men inspired from heaven sent forth, standing among the people in all the land, preaching and testifying boldly of the sins and iniquities of the people, and testifying unto them concerning the redemption which the Lord would make for his people”

• 3 Nephi 7:23: “And Nephi did cry unto the people in the commencement of the thirty and third year, and did preach unto them repentance and remission of sins.”

Assuming that this commencement of the year coincided with religious holidays, Alma’s journeys and speeches are viewed powerfully through that lens.

Feast of Trumpets and Alma 5

The Feast of Trumpets, more commonly known now as Rosh Hashanah (that name is recent since 200 AD, not one that Jesus or the Nephites would have used), was a day of covenantal remembrance, a time when barrenness yielded to fruitfulness, a day looking forward to the future. It marks the beginning of the fall holiday sequence. The biblical command says: “In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. Ye shall do no servile work therein, but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord” (Leviticus 23:24-25). Psalm 81 gives further directions: “Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day” (v. 3).

This conceptual “birthday of the world” celebration began the civil and political year, a potent connection with Alma’s commencement of the annual journeys. It is a day of divine remembrance, a reminder of divine mercy (especially celebrating the sabbatical year, when slaves were set free and the land allowed to rest). It was also a day for the ingathering of exiles, a promise of future redemption and millennial joy: “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem” (Isaiah 27:13). New Testament imagery of the great and final trumpet being sounded for the resurrection and judgment day abounds (Matthew 24:30-31, 1 Corinthians 15:52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, and the book of Revelation).

As the final harvest is gathered for judgment, it is a time to awake and prepare. There is wedding symbolism with Israel joining her bridegroom, and for the royal coronation. Psalm 47 was read together (although discontinued when the Jerusalem temple was destroyed): “God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet… God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness” (verses 5, 8). No bitterness is allowed, so sweet foods are traditionally eaten, such as apples dipped in honey. It is an opportunity for believers to repent in preparation for the Day of Atonement ten days later. In fact, they are guided to self-introspection through purity questions. Will they be sufficiently ready for the Day of Atonement? The Lord is reaping the harvest–are we wheat or tares? On this judgment day, one’s name is written in the book of life. It is a time of preparation to meet God, as one imagines God sitting on this throne reviewing the book of life. Moses said in conversation to God: “If thou wilt forgive their sin–and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. And the Lord said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book” Exodus 32:32-33. Centuries later John saw that same concept in vision, a book in heaven detailed in Revelation 5.

What prophet (besides Angel Moroni) is connected to the book of life, and to trumpets? Alma! Alma perhaps had his own powerful conversion experience at this time of year, when his father the High Priest, and the Nephite community, fasted for his recovery. An angel spoke with a voice of thunder, which he himself hoped to echo lifelong, likening it to a trumpet: “O that I were an angel…that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth… as with the voice of thunder” (Alma 29:1-2).

Assuming a Mesoamerican setting for Alma’s life, he did not have brass trumpets as we imagine in an orchestra or band today. The people of that time and place used conch shells as war implements to announce battle, so that is one possibility. The ancient Israelites used shofars made from rams’ horns. The symbolism of a ram’s horn connects this holiday with the test of Abraham, where Isaac was saved by the appearance of a ram and a heavenly voice. A father’s pleas, a voice from heaven, a son about to be sacrificed–these same elements put Alma’s story right in this symbolic Abrahamic context.5 Genesis 22, the story of Isaac’s binding, is read in Jewish synagogues at Rosh Hashanah, recalling the redemption and the covenant. Perhaps Alma’s retelling of his own deliverance in Alma 36 was at a similar holiday.6

With the Feast of Trumpets holiday symbolism in mind, take a fresh look at what Alma said to the people of Zarahemla in Alma 5. He introduced himself as the High Priest, indicating that this was a religious speech. He spoke to all: to “every one that dwelleth in the land; yea, to preach unto all, both old and young, both bond and free… the aged, and also the middle aged, and the rising generation” (v. 49). He spoke of garments being washed white, and purified, as the High Priest is dressed in white. He recalled the captivity and bondage of their people, and the Lord’s deliverance. He asked fifty introspective questions (a scriptural novelty). This personal spiritual inventory was to prepare the people “to stand before God to be judged according to the deeds which have been done in the mortal body” (5:15). He spoke of the bar of God (v.22) and imminent death (“if ye were called to die at this time” v. 27), speaking of the great division based on righteousness. Notably, for this holiday connection, he discussed the book of life and whose “names shall be blotted out… for the names of the righteous shall be written in the book of life” (5:57-58). Alma also spent many verses of this chapter talking about sheep, and good shepherds. The people would have gathered with their flocks ready for the burnt offering the feast required.7

Alma invited his Zarahemla audience to repent, and prepare for what was to come. The group established order and literally blotted some names out of the church “that their names were not numbered among those of the righteous (Alma 6:3). The group then joined “in fasting and mighty prayer” (6:6) on behalf of others–as the Feast of Trumpets is followed by fasting for Yom Kippur. Afterwards, Alma departed to continue his journey to the land of Gideon. Scholars debate these city locations, but put them in the range of ten to thirty miles apart, a journey which could easily be done within the following week.

Day of Atonement and Alma 7

Ten days after the Feast of Trumpets comes the most holy of holy days, the Day of Atonement (Hebrew Yom Kippur). (The time between, known as the Days of Awe, is for repentance and personal transformation.) On this special occasion in biblical Israel, the High Priest dressed all in white entered the temple (before it was destroyed), and it was the only day of the year in which he entered the Holy of Holies inner sanctum. This holiday is mandated in Leviticus 16:34: “And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year” and further clarified in Leviticus 23:27: “On the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be a holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord.” The term “Kippur” comes from the Hebrew caphar, to cover.8 At this time, a symbolic final divine verdict has been arrived at, as the groups of penitent righteous have their names written in the book of life, or the unrepentant wicked are cast out. Sacrifices were made on behalf of the group, and a scapegoat was sent into the wilderness for the sins of the people.

When Jesus fulfilled the Law of Moses, he played dual roles. Christ as the great High Priest was also the scapegoat: “he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:12). He entered the true Holy of Holies, heaven, as Hebrews explains: “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come…neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” (9:11-12).

The metaphor of bloodied garments symbolizing responsibility for the sins of the people is prevalent throughout the Book of Mormon. Beyond Alma’s usage in chapter 5 (verses 21, 22, 27), we see this imagery from the beginning to end of the book. Its visceral reality offends modern sensibilities: imagining the priests presiding over the butchering of the animal sacrifice, getting actual red blood stains on their white garments that are difficult to wash out, reminds us of Isaiah’s promise that is every laundress’ dream: “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (1:18).

Early Nephite priest Jacob said that he and his brother Joseph took “upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads… wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day” (Jacob 1:19). Hundreds of years later, King Benjamin “caused that ye should assemble yourselves together that I might rid my garments of your blood, at this period of time when I am about to go down to my grave, that I might go down in peace” (Mosiah 2:27-28). And final author Moroni wrote, “And these things are written that we may rid our garments of the blood of our brethren, who have dwindled in unbelief” (Mormon 9:35, also Ether 12:38). Christ himself promises to arrive in red garments, showing that he has taken upon him the sins of the world (D&C 133:48).

Assuming that Alma had finished his Feast of Trumpets call to repentance in Zarahemla and arrived in Gideon to celebrate the Day of Atonement the following week, what does the High Priest preach on that holiest of days? Alma 7 is the answer. His prophecies about Christ here are a treasure. His blessings on the people profound. It is a gift of holiness to those who have repented, purified their lives, and chosen the Good Shepherd. This audience was beyond “the awful dilemma” of their brethren in Zarahemla. Alma did suggest that the people in Gideon were not in such a state of unbelief and pride as the others he just left (7:5-6), but that could also be in part due to their timely preparation for the holy day at hand.

Alma offered a holy of holies of a speech, sharing insights about the mortal Messiah, giving us Christ’s mother’s name Mary, and his birthplace in verse 10. Fittingly for the Day of Atonement, Alma told of Christ’s sacrifice, and how he will be the scapegoat “that he might take upon him the sins of the people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance” (7:13). The Lamb will “cleanse from all unrighteousness” (v. 14). The covenant with this audience was renewed, they were baptized, and there was no “unholy temple” but instead a “holy order of God, after which ye have been received” (v, 21, 22). He concluded with a special apostolic benediction, suitable for an appropriately robed High Priest entering a holy temple–asking the Lord to bless this people “and keep your garments spotless, that ye may at last be brought to sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the holy prophets who have been ever since the world began, having your garments spotless even as their garments are spotless, in the kingdom of heaven to go no more out” (7:22).

Further connections to explore

There are undoubtedly additional insights to be gained from studying more of Alma’s words in connection with biblical symbols, particularly when he spoke along with Amulek a few chapters later. Alma explained in Ammonihah about the “space granted unto man in which he might repent” (Alma 12:24), which probationary time sounds like the Days of Awe liminality between the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement, and then in Alma 13 he preached as the High Priest, about the high priesthood, at length.

A blogger named “Rameumpton” posited that the anti-Christs, Sherem, Nehor, and Korihor, were scapegoats for the people, symbolically carrying all their sins, and sent to the wilderness to die.9

As for calendar connections, there are intriguing variations to consider. If we return to the biblical seventh month timing for the High Holy Days, in Alma 10:4 when Alma met Amulek, it was the fourth day of the seventh month when he had been fasting for several days. This is a similar timeframe to fasting for the Day of Atonement on the Levitical schedule. John Fowles and John Welch have also theorized that the battle in which the two thousand stripling warriors were saved with their leader, Helaman the High Priest, had a Feast of Trumpets connection, occurring on the seventh day of the fourth month (Alma 56:42).10

We await further understanding about how the Nephite and Jewish holiday calendar synchronicities worked, but I rejoice in glimpses of Book of Mormon worship practices common to both groups of people. Alma’s heartfelt, poignant pleas to his people are more profound to me in their context as High Holy Day speeches. Perhaps the people of Zarahemla had more cause to repent, and the people of Gideon had more cause to be given holy instruction and blessings, which gives us such contrasting chapters in Alma 5 and 7. Yet if both Nephite audiences were preparing for and celebrating the Jewish High Holy Days with Alma, their High Priest, and looking forward to the arrival of the great High Priest, Christ, to come and fulfill that law, their understanding, words, and behavior are all the more significant.