13. Sufficient To Behold

So, I know I kinda ragged on the Book of Mormon in my last post with the mention of Alma 41:10. To make up for it I'm going to write about poetry in the Book of Mormon for this post.

In last nights study of the Book of Mormon, I was reading about the depressing end of the Nephite civilization and how their morals have degraded to the point of open rebellion against God. In describing their wickedness Mormon claims he has never seen anything this bad "since I have been sufficient to behold the ways of man" (Mormon 2:18).

I love the phrase "sufficient to behold." Some synonyms for sufficient are adequate or enough implying that his ability to view and understand human nature had to grow to a point where they were sufficient. When exactly this time came for him I do not know, but isn't it interesting to think about what that change means and when it happens for each of us.

For some reason it reminds me of J.D. Salinger's character Holden Caulfield in Catcher In The Rye. Holden was an adolescent--probably around Mormon's age--who was very aware of impending adulthood. He resisted this change tremendously viewing adults as "phonies."

From this perspective, being "sufficient to behold the ways of man" could mean leaving behind our childish naivete of the world. What exactly Mormon meant by this phrase though is not clear to me.