33o - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America. A Continuation!

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In preparing you to learn from the teachings of the resurrected Jesus Christ to the Nephites in Ancient America in today's scriptural link which is III Nephi Chapter 23, I want you to learn from the prophet, Alma the Younger who had become a very inspired teacher of the Gospel of Jesus Christ after his conversion. His conversion had been brought about by the rebuke of an angel which totally reversed his direction in life. If you read my Post 7 you would know about Alma's conversion experience.

Especially, if the important subjects of death and resurrection are ones about which you would like to learn more or thoroughly review, please read and contemplate this scripture which is:

TODAY'S THEME

Alma 40:9 Therefore, there is a time appointed unto men that they shall rise from the dead; and there is a space between the time of death and the resurrection. And now, concerning this space of time, what becometh of the souls of men is the thing which I have inquired diligently of the Lord to know; and this is the thing of which I do know.

10 And when the time cometh when all shall rise, then shall they know that God knoweth all the times which are appointed unto man.

11 Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection—Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life.

12 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

13 And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of the wicked, yea, who are evil—for behold, they have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord; for behold, they chose evil works rather than good; therefore the spirit of the devil did enter into them, and take possession of their house—and these shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, and this because of their own iniquity, being led captive by the will of the devil.

14 Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them; thus they remain in this state, as well as the righteous in paradise, until the time of their resurrection.

Please read and listen to the scripture listed below this paragraph: Among other interesting things you will learn about, will be the fulfillment of the prophecy of Samuel the Lamanite regarding the resurrection of the righteous from among the deceased Nephite-Lamanite people after our Savior's own resurrection, the first of all resurrections!

III Nephi 23: 1-14

Jesus Christ Asks for Records -by Robert T. Barrett

You will have noticed in your reading of this scripture, that once again, Jesus knows of important things without having to learn about them from others. That knowledge comes from the Spirit of Revelation and Prophecy which emanates from Him, His Father and the Holy Ghost who are one in unity.

Isn't it amazing to see His great ability to know all. It causes me and hopefully each of you also, to have total trust in what He teaches us through His prophets and causes us to want to have the personal guidance that comes from receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost which can come only after baptism in His only authorized church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Here is the scripture that tells us what Samuel the Lamanite prophesied:

Helaman 14:25 And many graves shall be opened, and shall yield up many of their dead; and many saints shall appear unto many.

Here is what our Savior said about that prophecy and its fulfillment: (which you read in the scripture from III Nephi above)

III Nephi 23: 9 Verily I say unto you, I commanded my servant Samuel, the Lamanite, that he should testify unto this people, that at the day that the Father should glorify his name in me that there were many saints who should arise from the dead, and should appear unto many, and should minister unto them. And he said unto them: Was it not so?

10 And his disciples answered him and said: Yea, Lord, Samuel did prophesy according to thy words, and they were all fulfilled.

11 And Jesus said unto them: How be it that ye have not written this thing, that many saints did arise and appear unto many and did minister unto them?

12 And it came to pass that Nephi remembered that this thing had not been written.

13 And it came to pass that Jesus commanded that it should be written; therefore it was written according as he commanded.

Feeling that the following will give you further understanding of the important subject of this post, I will now give you the opportunity to read some verses of scripture that are neither in the Bible nor in the Book of Mormon. You will find these in the Doctrine and Covenants which contains the words of the Lord given through the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation to Joseph Smith.

Several other Latter-day prophets who followed Joseph Smith wrote words which were accepted officially by the Church as the Word of God. This particular one was written by Joseph F. Smith who was the sixth prophet to lead the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was Joseph Smith's nephew (through his brother Hyrum who died with Joseph in Carthage Jail.)

In this scripture link I have highlighted, beginning with verse 1, those verses which he wrote, telling what he learned in vision, (just a very short time before his own death in 1918) regarding our Savior, Jesus Christ's visit to the world of spirits just after His death by crucifixion and just before His resurrection.

Please pray about all of this which you will have read in this post. This will lead you to a more complete understanding of the purpose of life and death and of the resurrection of all men which has been made possible by the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be His Holy name forever and ever!

D. and C. 138:1-24

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.


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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Visit To Ancient America - Post 33o. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33n - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME

Today's Theme is found in the INTRODUCTION to the Book of Mormon and is entitled: THE TESTIMONY OF THREE WITNESSES.

BE IT KNOWN unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, unto whom this work shall come: That we, through the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, have seen the plates which contain this record, which is a record of the people of Nephi, and also of the Lamanites, their brethren, and also of the people of Jared, who came from the tower of which hath been spoken. And we also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of God, for his voice hath declared it unto us; wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true. And we also testify that we have seen the engravings which are upon the plates; and they have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man. And we declare with words of soberness, that an angel of God came down from heaven, and he brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the plates, and the engravings thereon; and we know that it is by the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, that we beheld and bear record that these things are true. And it is marvelous in our eyes. Nevertheless, the voice of the Lord commanded us that we should bear record of it; wherefore, to be obedient unto the commandments of God, we bear testimony of these things. And we know that if we are faithful in Christ, we shall rid our garments of the blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat of Christ, and shall dwell with him eternally in the heavens. And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, which is one God. Amen.
OLIVER COWDERY, DAVID WHITMER, MARTIN HARRIS

Joseph Smith Has Received the Golden Plates from the Angel Moroni -by Kenneth Riley

In this painting the Angel, Moroni, has just delivered the Golden Plates, on which was recorded the Book of Mormon in Egyptian characters, to Joseph Smith.

William E. McLellin was a member of the first Quorum of the Twelve of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He joined the church in 1831 and was excommunicated in 1838. His notebook was recently found by Brent F. Ashworth who wants to publish it.

The following comes from his once long-lost notebook. In a section titled, “The Testimony of Men.” he says the three witnesses of the Book of Mormon, who said they saw an angel, “either told the truth or they willfully lied. How shall we tell which, how shall we know?”

Then McLellin recounts a story of meeting two of the witnesses, Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer, in July 1833 in Missouri. McLellin and the two were in danger of their lives from anti-Mormon mobs.

McLellin wrote:

“I said to them, 'Brethren, I never have seen an open vision in my life, but you men say you have, and therefore you positively know. Now, you know that our lives are in danger every hour, if the mob can only catch us. Tell me, in the fear of God is that Book of Mormon true?” Cowdery looked at me with solemnity depicted in his face and said: “Brother William, God sent his holy angel to declare the truth of the translation of it to us, and therefore we know. And though the mob kill us, yet we must die declaring its truth.' David said: 'Oliver has told you the solemn truth, for we could not be deceived. I most truly declare to you its truth!'

Said I: ''Boys, I believe you. I can see no object for you to tell me falsehood now, when our lives are endangered.'”

Now I suggest that each of you readers read (and listen) to this Book of Mormon passage of scripture:
III Nephi 22: 1-17 (See Isaiah 54: 1-17)

Our savior, Jesus Christ, in this beautiful, tender expression of love for this group of Nephites and their descendants who were to live in our day (We are the Gentiles of whom He speaks), using the words of His holy prophet Isaiah, who He quotes very often, our Savior reassures them in this chapter of His love for them and their descendants of our day. A special example of this is in verse 17.
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III Nephi 22:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall revile against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. (clarification added)

(Through the brass plates that Lehi's sons obtained in Jerusalem and which they brought with them to their promised land, they had access to the writings of Isaiah who lived before Lehi's day.)

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.



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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America - Post 33n. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)



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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:  Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33m - Jesus Christ's Ministry to the Nephites in Ancient America

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME

The Resurrected Jesus Christ Instructing the Three Nephites. -by Gary L. Kapp

III Nephi 21:1 AND verily I say unto you, I give unto you a sign, that ye may know the time when these things shall be about to take place—that I shall gather in, from their long dispersion, my people, O house of Israel, and shall establish again among them my Zion;

2 And behold, this is the thing which I will give unto you for a sign—for verily I say unto you that when these things which I declare unto you, and which I shall declare unto you hereafter of myself, and by the power of the Holy Ghost which shall be given unto you of the Father, shall be made known unto the Gentiles that they may know concerning this people who are a remnant of the house of Jacob, and concerning this my people who shall be scattered by them;

3 Verily, verily, I say unto you, when these things shall be made known unto them of the Father, and shall come forth of the Father, from them unto you;

4 For it is wisdom in the Father that they should be established in this land, and be set up as a free people by the power of the Father, that these things might come forth from them unto a remnant of your seed, that the covenant of the Father may be fulfilled which he hath covenanted with his people, O house of Israel;

5 Therefore, when these works and the works which shall be wrought among you hereafter shall come forth from the Gentiles, unto your seed which shall dwindle in unbelief because of iniquity;

6 For thus it behooveth the Father that it (The Book of Mormon) should come forth from the Gentiles, that he may show forth his power unto the Gentiles, for this cause that the Gentiles, if they will not harden their hearts, that they may repent and come unto me and be baptized in my name and know of the true points of my doctrine, that they may be numbered among my people, O house of Israel. (emphasis and clarification added)

The United States of America, was willed by Him to be set up as a nation of free people according to the words of our Savior, Jesus Christ, that he spoke to His Nephite flock as recorded in Chapter 21, verse 4 of III Nephi which is included in Today's Theme.
On the 20th of January, 2009, just a few days ago, my wife, Melva and I viewed on television the inaugural ceremonies for the 44th president of this nation, Barack H. Obama. The fact that he is the first president of the United States of America to be of African-American descent is further affirmation of this being a nation of free people!

I quote the following from the Deseret News of Jan. 22, 2009: An article entitled: LDS leaders feel deep emotion at inauguration provides us with these keen and helpful insights of President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, the second counselor to the President of the LDS Church and Elder M. Russell Ballard of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve. They were representing the church on the invitation received by church president, Thomas S. Monson.

The Deseret News article reports that they attended the inauguration and were seated well up the steps of the U.S. Capitol and joined the new U.S. President and other new national leaders the next morning at a National Prayer Service in the National Cathedral. At that second event they were "seated just a couple of yards away from Obama and his contingent."

President Uchtdorf said, "I left with a feeling that the people of America are going to unite behind this new president and his administration and that we need to pray for him."

Elder Ballard said, "We need to exercise our prayers and help him (President Obama) accomplish the great objectives that he has set."
... At Tuesday's inauguration, the Uchtdorfs found themselves seated next to a black couple. "When the oath (of office of the president of the U.S.) was taken, this lady next to her (Sister Uchtdorf) just embraced her and gave her a kiss with tears running down," President Uchtdorf then said that the emotions he sensed over the two days were not simply the result of the massive numbers witnessing the racially historic moment but rather a sense of graciousness displayed by a free democracy." (emphasis added)

I must add for those who may not know, President Uchtdorf lived as a child with his family in East Germany during very difficult years of World War II. His parents and he and his siblings were converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Here is today's scripture. I would like you to read through it carefully and thoughtfully I suggest you use the Listen function that will be provided you on the scripture page:

III Nephi 21: 1-29

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.





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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America (A Twenty Post Series) - Post 33m. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:  Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33l - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME

III Nephi 20: 2 And he commanded them that they should arise and stand up upon their feet. And they arose up and stood upon their feet.

3 And it came to pass that he brake bread again and blessed it, and gave to the disciples to eat.

4 And when they had eaten he commanded them that they should break bread, and give unto the multitude.

5 And when they had given unto the multitude he also gave them wine to drink, and commanded them that they should give unto the multitude.

6 Now, there had been no bread, neither wine, brought by the disciples, neither by the multitude;

The Resurrected Lord Jesus Christ -by Harry Anderson

Again, the Nephite's (and all mankind's) Savior was having them partake of His holy Sacrament which is in remembrance of His atoning sacrifice. If it were so important that His followers participate in that ordinance then, it stands to reason that He would want us to do the same in our day. I have discussed that in a previous post (33j). This time the Savior performed a miracle inasmuch as there was bread and wine available even though no one had brought either one. This reminds us of the miracle of the "Loaves and the Fishes" as recorded in the New Testament (Mark 8: 1-9).

At this point I would like you to read the scripture which helps us learn something significant that is going on among the Nephites who are being visited by Their (and our) Redeemer, Jesus Christ: III Nephi 20:1-46


You have just learned from reading Chapter 20 that the remnant of Jacob (these Nephite's descendants, shall come to the knowledge of the Lord their God and shall inherit (in the latter-days) the Americas—Jesus is the prophet like unto Moses, and the Nephites are children of the prophets—Others of the Lord’s people shall be gathered to Jerusalem. [A.D. 34]

I have been feeling for sometime now that I would like to remind you why I named my blog, "Have You Really Read The Book of Mormon?" Let me remind you that back in posts, numbers 1 and 2 I mentioned that in a PBS video production in May of 2007 entitled, The Mormons, a man who was introduced as a scholar, told us (to the effect) that everytime he reads something in the Book of Mormon he sees the personality of that young farm boy, Joseph Smith, coming through the words that are written in it.



Joseph Smith -by Alvin Gittins

 Those of you who have read even several of these posts of mine and have read the Book of Mormon scriptures I've provided for you, such as the one you have just read and listened to, don't you have to question whether that "scholar" has ever really read the Book of Mormon?

I placed quote marks around the word scholar, showing that I'm questioning the complete scholarship of an individual who would imply that the young, not very well educated, Joseph Smith could have ever made-up this complex book which matches events like the feeding of the multitude as recorded in Luke and the providing of the sacramental bread and wine among the Nephites about which you have just read. These events had similarities but the exact circumstances were quite different.

Another recent circumstance I've drawn your attention to, is how our Savior Jesus Christ praised these Nephites He was visiting in Ancient America, for their great faith, telling them their faith exceeded that of the Jewish people He taught during His lifetime ministry.

Perhaps some might guess that it was just "guess-work" on the part of young Joseph Smith as he "made up the words of the Book of Mormon." But then when you read my reasoning why these tried and true Nephites had become stronger in faith than the Savior's followers in Palestine, because they had been preceeded by ancestors who believed in Christ's future coming to their descendants and had passed on that great and true prophecy to them, these Nephites, their posterity, through a period of many centuries.

Then there were the many various evidences that Dr. Dan Peterson of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute at Brigham Young University mentions in his video I have included in Posts 4 and 8. I have shown you similar evidences in many of my posts. For instance in post 17 I listed non-biblical names that are used in the Book of Mormon. Here is about one-eighth of that list:

Abinadi, Abinadom, Abish, Ablom, Agosh, Ahah, Ahaz, Aiath, Akish, Amaleki, Amalikiah, Amaron, Amgid, Aminadab, Aminadi, Amlici, Ammaron, Ammon, Ammonihah, Ammoron, Amna, Amnigaddah, Amnah, Amnihu, Amnor, Amoron, Amulek, Amulon, Anahoth, Antiomno, Antion, Antionah, Antionum, Antiparah, Antipus, Antum, Arpad, Carchemish, Cezoram, Chemish, Cohor, Com, Comnor, Corianton, Coriantor,

(When I first put this list on my computer screen when writing post 17, the device at the top of the screen which I use to make the choice of alphabets of other languages to use than English, such as Finnish and Spanish, in my case; all of a sudden, by itself, the device added the word, Hebrew. As you have may learned, Google's language detector is very intuitive and perceives quickly various languages.)

Then in Post 18, I told about an LDS scholar and lawyer, John Welch, as a young LDS missionary in Germany, having discovered that a language device called Chiasmus besides being used in the Holy Bible, is also used extensively in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Besides that, the Chiasmus concept was not known about in America during Joseph Smith's days and most likely not known very well, if at all, even in Germany then. In those days upstate New Yorkers (especially a Western New York State farm boy like Joseph Smith and his family and friends), didn't know much about scholarly matters in far off (at that time before advanced communications systems had come about), Germany.

If you didn't read those posts of mine as you got to each of the links I gave you while you were reading this post, please feel free to go back to them and read them when you have the time. I have mentioned other evidences too, but at the Neal Maxwell Institute at BYU in Provo, Utah, they have a list of other evidences that is very extensive.

In the next post I will have you read chapter 21 of III Nephi in the Book of Mormon. I suggest you read it (and listen to it) now to prepare yourself. It is an important chapter. 

III Nephi 21: 1-29

I'll be with you again in about three or four days.

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.






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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America -Post 33j. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)


____________



"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.


_____________




I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.


If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.


I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.


Neil Birch

33k - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America. A Continuation.

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

The Resurrected Jesus Christ Ministers Among the Nephite Nation in A.D. 34 -by John Scott

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TODAY'S THEME

Book of Mormon: Moroni 7:45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.



Please read the following scripture to learn more of our Savior's dealings with His Nephite flock. Listening may  enhance your reading experience.

III Nephi 19:1-36

Please remember and think about all the Savior taught the Nephites as recorded in the chapter you just read. I believe you will easily find an example of the pure love of Christ both on His part and on the part of His disciples as He continues to teach and bless the Nephites.


I'm sure you took note of the following: I must emphasize the following verses by copying them here because they are so unique and inspiring: Please take special note of what the Savior said about the quality of faith these Nephites possessed in the last two verses of this chapter:

III Nephi 19:35 And it came to pass that when Jesus had made an end of praying he came again to the disciples, and said unto them: So great faith have I never seen among all the Jews; wherefore I could not show unto them so great miracles, because of their unbelief.

36 Verily I say unto you, there are none of them that have seen so great things as ye have seen; neither have they heard so great things as ye have heard.

We must give credit where credit is due. If you were able to ask the prophet, Nephi, the leader and record keeper among this blessed people why they were worthy of such blessings, I think he would give much credit to his and his people's own parents and ancestors because of their faithfulness and also because of the tradition of righteousness that had been established by them over the many centuries.

I'm sure this Nephi could come up with a more complete list than I did, of his believing ancestors (one of them was his own father, also named Nephi, see Helaman Chapters 8-11.)

However, here is the list of prophets (Nephite and one Lamanite) that I listed in my post 33g:


1. Lehi (between 588 and 570 B.C.) See II Nephi 1-3.

2. Nephi (between 559 and 545 B.C.) There are many of his writings in I Nephi. See particularly I Nephi 11. Also see much of II Nephi.

3. Jacob, (about 544 to 421 B.C.) See Book of Jacob. See II Nephi 11:3.

4. Enos (544 and 421 B.C., See Book of Enos.

5. Omni (279 to 130 B.C.) See Book of Omni.

6. Abinadi (148 B.C.) See Book of Mosiah, Chapters 11-17.

7. Benjamin (about 124 B.C.) See Book of Mosiah 1-6.

8. Alma the Elder (147 B.C. See Book of Mosiah, 12-26.

9. Alma the Younger (about 92 B.C. and 76 B.C.) Book of Alma.

10. Amulek (92 B.C. to 76 B.C.) See Alma, 16 and 34.

11. Samuel the Lamanite (6 B.C.) See Helaman, 13-15.

There were possibly many less known prophets who I perhaps have missed because they may not have been mentioned in the Book of Mormon. Mormon, in his remarks about his compilation of that book mentions that he could only cover not even a one hundredth part of his people's history.

Then there were all of the faithful and believing Nephite parents who were present when Jesus Christ arrived to teach them and who had taught their children to believe in Christ and thus helped their posterity to be prepared for the coming of Jesus Christ during their life times.

There were also many Lamanite parents too, who after having being converted to believing in the coming of Jesus Christ, through the instrumentality of the three sons of King Mosiah, taught their children to believe in Him and serve Him even long before He was to be born.

These three sons of the king were those who were converted from their sinful lives, along with their close friend Alma the younger by the rebuke of an angel.

Then there were the Lamanite kings and their queens who were converted to Jesus Christ through the instrumentality of those three sons of King Mosiah and their missionary companions. These queens played great roles in helping to convert their people to Jesus Christ who was to come.

I believe all of those mentioned above helped prepare the way so that the resurrected Jesus Christ could meet with a people who were very prepared to be praised by Him for their exceptional faith and righteousness.

Then too, we must give great personal credit to these Nephites that Jesus met soon after His resurrection (and there were those among them whose ancestors had been Lamanites) who had been spared destruction from the cataclysmic seismic event because of their righteousness, which was earned in the face of bitter persecution.

It goes without saying that each of us have learned greatly from this marvelous group of people! No wonder the Lord teaches us later in this sacred book that we will have the responsibility of bringing the Gospel to their descendants of our day who inherited a many centuries-long apostasy! We will do that because we feel a debt of gratitude to our Savior and to them for what we have learned from their book, The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

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III Nephi 19:8 And when they had ministered those same words which Jesus had spoken—nothing varying from the words which Jesus had spoken—behold, they knelt again and prayed to the Father in the name of Jesus.

From this we know that these Nephite disciples really understood that their calling was to represent their Lord and Master. They taught exactly as Jesus had taught them and then were baptized and the Gift of the Holy Ghost was conferred upon each of these disciples. From what is written in this chapter it is clear that receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost was not just a functional matter for these Nephites, but a very prized possession.

III Nephi 19: 30 And when Jesus had spoken these words he came again unto his disciples; and behold they did pray steadfastly, without ceasing, unto him; and he did smile upon them again; and behold they were white, even as Jesus.

31 And it came to pass that he went again a little way off and prayed unto the Father;

32 And tongue cannot speak the words which he prayed, neither can be written by man the words which he prayed.

33 And the multitude did hear and do bear record; and their hearts were open and they did understand in their hearts the words which he prayed.

34 Nevertheless, so great and marvelous were the words which he prayed that they cannot be written, neither can they be uttered by man.

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.


____________


TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America -Post 33k. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)

____________


"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

_____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33j - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

***

In the Garden of Gethsemane -by Harry Anderson

On the Cross at Calgary -by Harry Anderson

To read TODAY'S THEME I want you to read the scripture  just below this paragraph. It gives an account of the time when our Savior, Jesus Christ instituted His sacred ordinance of the Sacrament among His Nephite followers. He taught them the meaning of the Sacrament. These two paintings remind of us of that sacred meaning. (For maximum effect I suggest you use the Listen feature of LDS Scriptures.)

III Nephi 18:1-39

In that which you just read (and most likely listened to) you learned that the Lord Jesus Christ attached the utmost importance to His followers taking the Sacrament and doing so as worthy, baptized members of His church.

You are welcome to read and listen to that again right now if you feel you haven't really yet felt the strong impact of what was taught by our Savior to one of His "flocks", the Nephites of ancient America.

In those verses the Savior was speaking to the people of the Nephite Nation who were blessed so greatly that their righteousness extended through their posterity for about 200 years. Taking the Sacrament (of the Lord's Supper) worthily was certainly one of necessary factors in bringing that great history about.

The Lord, Jesus Christ in our day (in 1830) had His first latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, translate the Book of Mormon for our use which includes the use of those descendants of Father Lehi in our day who have been baptized as members of the Lord's re-established church, whose ancestors had fallen away from the truth after those blessed (approximate) 200 years. Leaders and other authorized members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which was organized in the same year the Book of Mormon was published, learned from the Book of Mormon these sacramental prayers and used them regularly (They were the same sacramental prayers that were offered by His Nephite disciples and others authorized by them.)

Here is the prayer Jesus taught them (and us through the Book of Mormon) in blessing the bread:

Moroni 4: 3 O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.

And in administering the wine:

Moroni 5:2 O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this wine to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them. Amen.

Later, the Lord revealed to His latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, these identical words of the Sacrament prayers as He did to the Nephites as described above. However, the Prophet Joseph Smith was later instructed, by the Lord for wise purposes, to use water instead of wine.

Having grown up in an active LDS family(See my Post 28) taking the Sacrament has been an important weekly event for me all my life. At just less than one month from my Seventy Seventh birthday I can tell you that my determination to do what the Lord expects of me has been regularly reinforced by the effect the regular partaking of the Sacrament, has had on me. I know why the Lord emphasized the importance of this ordinance from my own personal experience.

While my wife, Melva and I served as senior missionaries for the LDS Church in Finland from 2004 to 2006 we learned to appreciate much more the crucial importance of the sacrament from our experiences we had with Brother Kale Kokkonen, a faithful church member. Because of age-related physical problems,Veli (Finnish for the word, Brother) Kokkonen couldn't attend church at all. We arranged to meet with him in his apartment in Iisalmi, Finland (which is about 70 miles North of Kuopio where we were living and where the nearest branch of the Church to him was located) monthly, whenever it was possible because of our schedule.

Because Veli Kokkonen held the Priesthood as I do, he was able to offer one of the sacramental prayers while I offered the other. There were always tears of gratitude trickling down from his eyes after we had finished the sacrament.

All active members of the LDS Church would tell you the same thing that Veli Kokkonen would, "taking the Sacrament of the Lord's supper is such a privilege." He may not be living now, but I'll always remember blessing and partaking of the Sacrament with him during those special occasions. And I look forward to getting together with him again after I too have passed through the "veil" after dying.

If you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ask a member of this Church, inactive or active presently, how important a blessing it is to partake of the Sacrament. I can't fully predict what the inactive members will say, but I think most of them will reflect to you the feeling that it is an important blessing to those who are worthy of it.

Blessing the Sacrament -photo by lds.org



Passing the Sacrament -photo by lds.org

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.


____________


TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America -Post 33j. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)

____________



"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.


_____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33i - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America. A Continuation!

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

****

TODAY'S THEME

Jesus the Christ -by Del Parson

TODAY'S THEME

III Nephi 17:14 And it came to pass that when they had knelt upon the ground, Jesus groaned within himself, and said: Father, I am troubled because of the wickedness of the people of the house of Israel.

15 And when he had said these words, he himself also knelt upon the earth; and behold he prayed unto the Father, and the things which he prayed cannot be written, and the multitude did bear record who heard him.

16 And after this manner do they bear record: The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father;

17 And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.

In total amazement at the greatness of that sacred description of that prayer uttered by our Savior Jesus Christ we fully and prayerfully think about those words above which were written by the prophet Nephi who was right there and recorded all of that which was happening during our Savior's ministry among them, and then about 350 years later were incorporated into the Book of Mormon by the prophet, Mormon, how can we feel anything but deep-soul-gratitude for Him who is our Savior. I feel very incapable of expressing what I ought to express after reading those words in blue above.

Our Savior, Jesus Christ is no respecter of persons and if any of us were to have the broken hearts and contrite spirits of those Nephites, we could fully share in what they felt and desire to be like them inasmuch as they firmly decided to live their lives as Jesus desired and not to be numbered among those of the house of Israel whose wickedness troubled Him to the extent that he "groaned within Himself." See verse fourteen of the scripture above.

Is this He who was born in the Bethlehem manger without having an earthly father? He who was found by Mary and Joseph teaching and asking questions in the temple as a twelve year old boy? He who in the garden of Gethsemane not long before He died on the cross, was suffering for the sins of all mankind, including yours and mine, to the extent that He sweat drops of blood?

Luke 22: 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Yes, it was Him, Jesus Christ our Savior and Redeemer.

I would like you to now review Chapter 17 from the Book of III Nephi from the Book of Mormon which I had requested you read and listen to at the end of the previous post. The "Today's Theme" above is a part of that scripture. I'd like you to prayerfully read and listen to all of that again now:  III Nephi 17:1-25

Jesus With Nephite Children with Angels Descending from Heaven Above -by Robert T. Barrett

The event pictured just above is described in the last two verses of that scripture I just asked you to read.

By the way I am deeply grateful for these artistic renditions of events both in the Book of Mormon as well as in the New Testament that we are given have free access to. I think they help us visualize these very significant events so very well. I have obtained them from lds.org.

____________

DISCLAIMER

This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

____________

TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America -Post 33i. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)

____________

"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

_____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:  Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch

33h - The Resurrected Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From The End of This Post

****

Jesus Healing Nephite-Lamanite Children -byTed Henninger

TODAY'S THEME

III Nephi 16: 7 Behold, because of their belief in me, saith the Father, and because of the unbelief of you, O house of Israel, in the latter day shall the truth come unto the Gentiles, that the fullness of these things shall be made known unto them.

In this picture Jesus is demonstrating His great love for the children of His flock, the Nephites, by healing their sick children.

We have learned that the believing among the Nephites were part of Jesus' flock because of the long history their people had in following Him by believing in the words of His prophets who were among them. More than that, they were the survivors of a great seismic cataclysm which was brought about personally by the Resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. Please read: Please read and listen to III Nephi 9:1-5


That cataclysm destroyed the more unrighteous among those who were saved from destruction because they believed in the words of Jesus' prophets, Samuel the Lamanite and Nephi (among others).

My question of you blog readers at the end of the last post was: "Are you and I part of His flock?" A partial answer to that question is given in TODAY'S THEME above. In that scripture the Lord, while speaking to His Nephite flock refers to the Gentiles (us) in the Latter-days. He tells them that in the Latter-days (in our time) He will bless the Gentiles because of their faith and that He is blessing them (us) because they believe in Him while their (the Nephites') future descendants would no longer do so.

Jesus by the power of the Spirit of Prophecy and Revelation that emanates from Him knows that although the Nephites He is visiting with then will have great success in strengthening their posterity in living His Gospel for about 200 years, there will be a total falling away.

He also knew by His holy and perfect knowledge that the Gospel would be brought back in our day and that their record, The Book of Mormon Another Testament of Jesus Christ, would be one of the main instruments He would use in bringing that about.

Please now read again carefully and thoughtfully the scripture I asked you to read and listen to at the end of the last post (Listening will work well because this begins with verse 1)

III Nephi 16:1-20

This prophecy of the Savior really answers the question I asked you at the end of the last post: Can you and I count on being included by the Lord Jesus Christ as a part of His flock. The answer is a very strong, YES. But as He warned, we must remain as strong believers, doing what He asks of us. That clearly, according to His words in the Book of Mormon, is that He expects us to become members of His Church, through baptism into His church which He re-established through His latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Lord established His church during His mortal life and assigned His apostles to see to it that it remained strong. After the apostles and other strong believers were killed or died, men changed His church so it was not what it was when He established it.

The Lord then waited until after the Great Reformation for a time when many people had become open and prepared for the re-establishment of His church. That church came into being on April 6, 1830 in Fayette, New York, in the U.S.A.

It was through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that the Book of Mormon was added, by the Lord, to His other scriptures, the Old and New Testaments.

One other matter from the scripture that you reviewed again while reading this post. The Savior Jesus Christ mentioned other sheep which were not of their fold. He told the Nephites that the day would come when these other sheep's records would be available to us. That day has not come yet. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, expect some day we will know about those other sheep and read the records they made. That, however, is for a future day.

I look forward personally to that day and so, I believe, you will too as each most likely will become other Testaments of Jesus Christ along with the New Testament and the Book of Mormon.

To allow you to prepare your minds for the next post please read this next scripture. You will be deeply touched by the feelings expressed and shown by our Savior as you read and listen to this record written by the prophet, Mormon.

III Nephi 17:1-25

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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

____________




DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

____________


TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX, To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or An Item Which Refers To Any Other Blog Post You May Desire To Access), After Reading All of This Paragraph Please Click on the Following: (The Resurrected) Jesus Christ's Ministry in Ancient America -Post 33g. When You See the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To a Little Boy, Please, Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use The Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed.)




____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and very much hope you you will find that which was presented to you in this blog post, very beneficial.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:  Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch