Moroni, Joseph Smith, and Present-day Utah

Do you believe God give signs to the people of the world? Do you believe He gives signs to His people? Even today?

If you believe in the scriptures, you should believe this too. They are riddled through with examples of God doing just that.

Considering that, should these signs mean something to us?

If you identify as a Utahn and/or LDS, there are three occurrences you need to consider (I'm sure there are others, but I will specifically be addressing these three).

You can read about the first one from June 15, 2009 here:

• Deseret News: Lightning Hits Oquirrh Temple

You can read about the second one from May 22, 2016 (nearly 7 years after the first one mentioned) here:

• Deseret News: Lightning damages Angel Moroni statue atop Bountiful Temple 

and here:

• To the Remnant: Why did God kill Moroni?

The last one was the most recent, occurring an exact 4 months after the previous. You can read about it here:

• Utah weather on September 22, 2016

and see more here:

• Tornado Pictures

• (Edited on March 20, 2020 to include this one about the Nauvoo temple Moroni last year: To the Remnant: The End, Part 2: Commemoration)

• (Edited on March 20, 2020 to include the 5.7 earthquake that shook the SLC temple Moroni’s trumpet loose on March 18, 2020: Bare Record: Warning Earthquake and Symbolism)

It almost appears as though someone is trying to get our attention.

Concerning the first two

I've already directed you to the blog, To the Remnant, where the author does a great job of describing why the particular occurrence on May 22, 2016 is significant, so I'll try not to repeat what has been said there, here.

I'll just say this, lightening and thunderings in the scriptures are used in description of the power of God.

Moroni is a symbol that sits atop temples with the words "Holiness to the Lord" and "the House of the Lord" inscribed on them. To dismiss these things as just happenstance is to rob yourself of the opportunity to ask wisdom of God, and to receive an answer, because it is those that ask, that get the answers. And no, the verse in James does not say that those that lack wisdom should ask of another person, or should counsel with an expert. It says you should ask of God... for yourself.

You will get answers from the sources that you seek answers from. So if you want an answer from God, He's the one that you need to be seeking an answer from directly.

I was made aware of the significance of the first occurrence from something I was shown in the Spirit seven days after my baptism of fire. I have yet to discuss that information here. I will not be going into it in full detail, but just the parts that are important for this post.

I was drawn to the significance of where the lightning struck and disfigured the statue from 2009. As you can see, the first one was struck in the face, its right arm, and the trumpet which is pointed East, where Jesus Christ is expected to come from when He returns in glory. Likewise, the second was struck in the face with such force that it appears to have burst through the statue's back as well.

Let's talk about the face

There are a few things that are significant about the face. The feature that was pointed out to me was the eyes. With the eyes we see. Unfortunately, these statues seem to have been struck blind.

If this is a sign, what is the significance of that for us?

Other features housed on the face are the mouth (one cannot blow a trumpet triumphantly without one), and the ears (one cannot hear without those).

It's almost as though these poor graven images of Moroni are left like the individuals that Isaiah and Jesus addressed: 

"Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them." Matthew 13:13-15

The significance of September 22, 2016

Some other things have occurred historically in the church on the day Utah was overtaken by the storm this year.

On the evening of September 21 continuing on into the morning of the 22nd in 1823 (precisely 193 years ago), an angel identified in the Joseph Smith History as "Moroni" appeared to Joseph Smith, Jr after he prayed to know of his "state and standing" before God.

"In consequence of these things, I often felt condemned for my weakness and imperfections; when, on the evening of the above-mentioned twenty-first of September, after I had retired to my bed for the night, I betook myself to prayer and supplication to Almighty God for forgiveness of all my sins and follies, and also for a manifestation to me, that I might know of my state and standing before him; for I had full confidence in obtaining a divine manifestation, as I previously had one." Pearl of Great Price, Joseph Smith--History 1:29

On September 22, 1827, 4 years after the angel's appearance to Joseph Smith in his room, this same angel delivered the the Book of Mormon plates into Joseph Smith's care. Joseph Smith History 1:59. You can read a little bit more about the significance of that date in this article by John Pratt.

That makes the last occurrence on September 22, 2016 the anniversary for two events involving an angel identified in our scriptures as Moroni, making three events in our time that tie in with that same angel.

Is it just a coincidence?

September 22, 2016 was also the first day of Autumn.

I'm not going to pretend to know all the significance that the first day of Autumn (or Fall) has. The little I do understand is that the solstices and equinoxes form the 4 corners of the earth. The autumnal equinox in particular is when light and dark take up equal parts of that day. To say it another way, light and dark are equally balanced on the equinox, this balance also signalling the darkness that increases every night thereafter.

On this day of balance in Utah however, there was more darkness than light. We were met this day with tempest instead. The kind of which we almost NEVER encounter in Utah.

Is that significant?

What does it mean?

It's your turn

I am not answering the questions asked here. I think any answers to what is posed here is best offered by God through seeking and prayer.

"How oft have I called upon you by the mouth of my servants, and by the ministering of angels, and by mine own voice, and by the voice of thunderings, and by the voice of lightnings, and by the voice of tempests, and by the voice of earthquakes, and great hailstorms, and by the voice of famines and pestilences of every kind, and by the great sound of a trump, and by the voice of judgment, and by the voice of mercy all the day long, and by the voice of glory and honor and the riches of eternal life, and would have saved you with an everlasting salvation, but ye would not!" D&C 43:25

Is all well in Zion (2 Nephi 28:21)?

Or do we have a responsibility to ourselves to look into what these signs mean, despite what we are being told elsewhere?

The conclusion you come to is going depend on the state of your heart: do you want to know the truth no matter what that reveals about you? Or do you want a pat on the back and to be told you are right?

(Edited March 20, 2020 to add this video below for context on what this could all be about)

I highly suspect that if this is God signalling something of importance to us, the indications of that will not end with these three occurrences. There will be more. For instance, there are more in the verse above that were not answered in my three examples.

A confession

I feel the need to confess a weakness of stupidity. It should have been written weeks ago. There are times when I fear people's opinions and the repercussions of their displeasure more than I fear God. It's so much easier to say nothing, but it isn't always right to do so. Sometimes I am very slow to act when the Spirit directs me. Actually...it's worse than that. Most of the time I am slow to respond. So slow. I'm grateful that God is longsuffering, because He definitely suffers long waiting on me to follow His will.

I'm sorry I took so long to address this.

Finishing thoughts

In finishing this out, I'll direct you to study the words of the angel to Joseph Smith and the scriptures he quoted in the Joseph Smith History. See if they have significance to our current day. Study the words that Moroni left for us.

I highly suspect Moroni is not pleased with how his name and his golden image are used to adorn the temples today.

Yes, as stated in the latest General Conference, Moroni truly did see us, and these were the words he used to describe us:

"Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you. Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing. And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities; and your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts. For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted. O, ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies--because of the praise of the world? Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?" Mormon 8:34-38

If you find after some honest study and prayer on the matter that you are indeed in need of recommitment to The Lord, I suggest you consider and pray about baptism according to the Doctrine of Christ as your way to witness of this. The way Jesus gave us to correctly administer and receive it can be found in 3 Nephi 11. You can click on this Born of Water link to learn more.

A final word from Moroni:

"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost." Moroni 10:4