Plundering, Prayers, and Paradigms

Giddianhi talked a good game. His swaggering letter to the governor of the Nephites must have been popular within his band of robbers. (See 3 Nephi 3:2-10.) But he and they were in a fundamentally weak position. They had built their lives on a foundation of parasitic behavior. “There was no way that they could subsist save it were to plunder and rob and murder” (3 Nephi 4:5). This must have seemed exciting at the time, but it was inherently unsustainable.

When the people of Nephi gathered into “one body,” the robbers faced a united front, and they had no choice but to attack the Nephites directly. As they approached the Nephite army, dressed in armor and looking as intimidating as possible, they witnessed a scene which made them giddy with joy: The entire army had fallen to the earth and were praying for deliverance. (See 3 Nephi 4:7-9.)

To a Gadianton robber, this was the ultimate manifestation of weakness. I don’t know if they were familiar with the history of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, who a hundred years earlier had fallen to the earth and refused to defend themselves. Regardless of whether they knew that story, this looked like the perfect opportunity: to attack a vulnerable army, apparently too weak and timid to defend themselves.

But what the robbers saw wasn’t weakness. If they had been capable of seeing the world through the eyes of the people of Nephi, they might have recognized that those prayers were filling their enemy with power and determination. When they actually met in battle, the Nephites fought “in the strength of the Lord,” and ultimately, “notwithstanding the threatenings and the oaths which Giddianhi had made, behold, the Nephites did beat them” (3 Nephi 4:10, 12).

Empathy is important not only because it enables us to show compassion, but also because it helps us navigate interpersonal relationships more intelligently. If I can see the world through your eyes, I can understand better why you make the decisions you do and how you are likely to react to my words and actions. If I don’t really understand you, I’m likely to make a lot of missteps and miscalculations.

Today, I will strive to increase my ability to empathize with others. Particularly when people say or do things that are confusing to me, I’ll try to better understand their motivations, so that I can interact with them more effectively.