The Fall into Night

We see patterns in the lifestyle of mankind: nations rise and fall, crops grow and whither, we prosper and fail.

The same applies in spiritual matters. In the post “patterns”, we learn that prophets were called and people would prosper. Prophet is rejected [either slain, stoned or casted out], the people would be without the watchful and protecting aid God can provide directly.

Christ was, in essence, the greatest prophet ever to walk the earth [He had authority and communicated with God on a constant basis]. When He established His church, He left His earthly authority to His apostles.

With Christ ascended into heaven, now the great work He had set up rested upon the shoulders of His chosen followers.

However, as forewarned by prophets of old, the pure church was altered. These changes lead  came about because of external and internal causes.

The External Bludgeon

All throughout Christ ministry, The Sanhedrin [composed of the Sadducee, Pharisees and other Jewish parties] saw Jesus as a threat to their well-being. After killing the savior, the Sanhedrin continued their persecution against Christ followers in order to stamp it out.

Aside from the Sanhedrin, the roman empire later became the greatest outside threat to the rising religion. Although they did not see Christ as a threat, the later Emperor Nero used Christians as a scapegoat. Anyone publicly calling themselves Christian were killed or used in entertainment in arenas. Apostles were killed, and anyone else baring the priesthood with it. Those who were not killed lost the authority because of internal reasons.

The Internal Virus

The latter end of the New Testament attest to this, as the apostles struggled to maintain a vastly growing and hated church in an age of slow messengers and greed.

Although not new, these doctrines were introduced to a different array of people who considered it fantastic, and even beneficial.

They embraced the ideas, but small practices of their past lives lead to small changes of the doctrines in their minds.

Either through evil designs or simple misunderstanding, the pure gospel was distorted among its believers, and when the last Apostle disappeared it was left in man's hands.

The Dreary Night.

With no authority running Christ church, the Gospel in records were left to be destroyed or interpreted by unauthorized men. Members of this church were forced into hiding. Nothing could be practiced in the open. For centuries later, man fell into bondage of kings and corrupt priest.

A Fire Reigniting...

Indeed, many gospel principles were distorted.

However, the light of the gospel was not extinguished.

Although long persecuted, the remnant members of Christ church were saved by Constantine, one of Rome's last emperors.

Christianity became the center of interest during the dark ages; scholars, philosophers and monks came together to compile and translate the ancient Hebrew scrolls and put them together into a codex format [or book] that would be the first bibles.

But more needed to be done.

The age of Reformation* came about when men such as Martin Luther, John Calvin and others saw further need to bring back the gospel.

With the new invention of the printing press, the bible was able to be mass produced, and translation work from people like William Tyndale sacrificed* much to allow the common farmer to read its sacred text.

The burning desire to come closer to God burst* throughout Europe, but more still had to be done.

Due to increasing pressures in Europe and the discovery of the Americas, pilgrims left where they could practice religious freedom without persecution.

The Enlightenment [the age after the Renaissance and Reformation] lead to new ideas that promoted freedom of thought and religion in several countries, including England, the United States, France, and eventually to the continuing push for religious freedom around the world.

But through these powerful centuries of trial and fire, simple but important Gospel principles were still missing.

Like days of old, God through great men pushed the world in a time of great struggle and opened up a new Dawn.

Coming in Dawn....

When the time was right, God prepared a prophet to seal and restore the lost pieces. The prophet's name is both a word of reverence and disgust among all nations, a name that belonged to a boy who only wanted to know the truth.

This prophet's name is Joseph Smith.

* These links are not officially endorsed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The links from BYU are part of a documentary on the creation and translation of the KJV Bible.