Latter-day Saints know the primary mission of the Book of Mormon is to bear witness of Jesus Christ and point seekers to his kingdom. The Book of Mormon also has a secondary mission: to awaken people to the danger of secret combinations.
Since many of my readers are not Latter-day Saints, let me briefly explain some terminology. The Book of Mormon is an ancient record, revealed by divine revelation, and translated by the power of God. It contains a narrative account of two ancient civilizations who came to the Americas from the Old World. One lived in the time of the Tower of Babel. The other group came prior to the sacking of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 600 B.C. Both of these groups had prophets who testified of Jesus Christ. The prophets taught the people to have faith, to repent, and to live righteously. Both civilizations ultimately rejected these teachings and were overcome by political conspiracies and civil wars.
The Book of Mormon uses the term “secret combinations” to describe these conspiracies. They are secret societies that use extortion and murder for coercion to obtain power and wealth. Elsewhere in Mormon scripture, we learn that Satan first taught Cain certain secrets and oaths to gain power over his brother Abel. Ultimately, Cain murdered Abel to gain control of his property. These secret oaths have been handed down through the ages and they exist among all people. Those bound by the oaths often form secret societies that collaborate in their wicked schemes.
One notable group in the Book of Mormon was called the “Gadianton robbers,” who were named after its founder. They engaged in political intrigues to empower a class of elites. These elites opposed the Church of Christ and persecuted it. Whenever they gained political power, they used it to persecute the Church and promote wickedness. Their rise to power was often prevented by civil war, but at the cost of great suffering. God used the tribulations of war to humble the nations and bring them unto repentance because of the destruction and loss.
Moroni, the son of the Book of Mormon’s author, translated the ancient record of the Jaredites, who came to the Americas by sea sometime after the Tower of Babel in the Bible. They followed this same pattern, where secret combinations afflicted them and kept their government in a constant state of instability. Moroni stops briefly in his account to warn us about the dangers of the the secret combinations. He said that, when his record would come to us in the future, it would help us awaken to the awful danger that secret combinations would pose in our time. He affirmed that these conspiracies would be active among us and that they would seek to overthrow the liberty of all people.
This is what the “war in heaven” was about: man’s free agency. Satan still desires to destroy it. He wants to take the Earth, Adam’s dominion, and make it his own. This is what socialists, communists, and modern American Democrats seek to do. They want to legalize sinful practices like abortion and homosexuality. They want to destroy traditional marriage and anything else that promotes godliness. It is good against evil. They are organized and they operate largely covertly through many different political action groups, foundations, and secret societies.
They are here now. Since 1830, the Book of Mormon has warned us about them. If we believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God, we should rise to the challenge of defeating the secret combinations in our day. God didn’t fight the battles of the Nephites, but he strengthened their hands in battle. We must prepare ourselves for the fight in every way we can, spiritually and physically.
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