Post by BrentKoivopolo888 on Aug 9, 2021 21:32:54 GMT -6
Witnessing the Original Plates and
Sealed Portion of the Book of Mormon
A Few of Mauricio’s Experiences
Moroni has taught Mauricio many things. Every
time Mauricio sees him, Moroni extends his hands,
and the first time explained (as in DC 129:1,2 LDS)
that angels (as in resurrected personages) have a
body, and evil spirits do not, so he will not be deceived.
Moroni teaches Mauricio, and always gives
scriptures to support his teachings.
Moroni taught many things about the Lord Jesus.
He shared that Jesus was not just a man of flesh,
but that in His resurrected body His light, glory
and estate are highly exalted.
Early in the work, on December 25, 2008, Mauricio
in the company of Jader, met three men on Mount
Agudo and he thought they were Peter, James, and
John. They stopped the rain while the brethren were
praying. Mauricio did not know anything about the
three Nephites. Gary asked Mauricio about this
confusion of names. In about 2016, at their secure
apartment with locked gates, the three men knocked
on their interior apartment door. Upon letting them
in, Mauricio said, “Hello Peter” (recognizing him
from years before on the hill) and the guest said,
“I am___ [not Pedro]. Greetings in the name of
Jesus Christ.” The three of them were there.They
spoke of the importance of the Lord’s Day.
This happened on a Sunday evening and the people
of the church were there, about eight to ten of them.
Even their 9-year-old daughter testified to Gary that
the visitors had come inside the security gate and
knocked on their door, even though the front security
door was locked. They came a second time many
months later and taught of the importance of the
sacrament. The people recognized the Portuguese
as being from Portugal. It was evident the entire
family had witnessed this, as they all confirmed it
that night.
When Mauricio was young, he had an experience
and saw the Kirtland Temple. He drew it many
times. He even heard them sing “The Spirit of
God” in English. So when we sang it together, he
sang it in English by heart, just like us. He couldn’t
do that with his poor command of English without
before having had the experience.
We went to see the place where the celestial beings
appeared to Mauricio in the photo we had all seen;
it was an open field in front of the house where
they used to live. Mauricio and his wife were at
home and they saw lights in the trees across the
road. They had already called people and said they
were leaving their city because of their persecutions
and their house being broke into. Mauricio went
across the road and spoke with one of these beings.
The prophets from the ages were there to encourage
Mauricio to not give up—because he had. He was
leaving. Patricia watched from the front porch.
When the beings began to ascend, like in the bubbles
seen, she thought it interesting and took the
photo with her phone. A photo was taken from the
road, just for comparison. Since then, we have
learned of two other persons who have seen angels
in these types of “bubbles” or orbs, in which case
one was also photographed.
The Eight Witnesses Visit Brazil
In the morning of Sunday, March 4, 2018 the eight
witnesses went to church in Southern Brazil. Towards
the end of the service, Valdecí, who was in
charge of the service, asked Joseph to share. He
stood and began to speak prophetically to Wagner
(one of the three witnesses). He placed his hand on
Gary’s shoulder and asked him to interpret. Joseph
spoke of Wagner’s call to the office of elder and the
Holy Spirit was so strong that Gary began crying
under the power of the influence of God’s Spirit.
Elder Sam Gould stood to confirm the call, stating
he knew Joseph F. very well, and on that morning
he had a command of language and power of the
Spirit that was way above normal; he had spoken
like the prophet of the church. The call was presented
and the branch voted to accept Wagner’s
ministry. He was then ordained by the other three
elders there. The Spirit of Christ was at work—
none other.
After church, but before we saw the plates, we entered
into a period of prayer and song. Mauricio,
Wagner and Valdeci (two of the three who had previously
witnessed Moroni and the plates) and the
eight of us from the US began singing “Sing Alleluia
to the Lord” and other songs. When Joni
brought the plates, Mauricio wanted us to sing it
again. Joni raised his hands and, with tears streaming
down his cheeks, was praising the Lord. Along
with Mauricio, he had waited ten years for this day! We saw the plates! We compared the characters
with those of the characters of Anthon and
found several of the same on two or three plates.
We measured the dimensions of the plates: 6 ¼
inches wide by 8 ¾ inches long by 4 ½ inches high.
We held them; they weighed some 60 pounds. The
open part of the Book of Mormon had about 22 to
23 lines of characters, with about 16 to 20 characters
in each line. There were three magnetically
functional rings, which had imperfections in them,
so we knew they were not machine made. The
holes in the plates around the rings showed some
wear, so the holes were not recently made.
The plates, with the appearance of gold, were thin
like sheet metal that allowed movement upon lifting
them. We felt the engravings. They were deep
so that a fingernail could catch them. They were
filled with a black dye or ink. The characters were
well-formed and visible. It appeared that there were
scratch marks below the characters as if a rock had
been used, and dragged below the markings. We
spent about two and a half hours examining the
plates. The Title Page was on the left-hand side of
the plates immediately before the part that had been
sealed.
Earlier this year, Mauricio translated the Title Page
of the Book of Mormon with the interpreters he
received from Moroni. Soon afterwards, the plates
of the initial part of the sealed portion (later found
to be 42 plates) seemed to separate some from each
other. They had pushed upwards against the heads
of the pins that had been smashed down to hold
together the plates of the sealed portion. We saw
these plates with space between them, when three
months earlier, Bob and Joseph saw them completely
pressed together.
When we witnessed Mauricio cut off the remains
of the heads of the pins, to be able to lift the plates
off them, we saw that many of the plates were stuck
together like a new book. The pages were very
bright. We counted the plates and noted that the
engravings were now completely different than before.
They were deep, like the imprint of a vine.We
then saw another part that was sealed together beneath
those plates, which was some three times
larger. The pins that held the first part together were
broken off, but pins were left remaining in the second
part and were bent over, sealing the bottom
part of the plates. These sealed plates were about
three inches thick.
It had a raised drawing on the top plate that had
been engraved onto the front. It showed evidence
of the celestial city, coming down, complete with
buildings, rays of light like the seven spirits unto
the seven churches and the earth with a protective
cover over it. There was a man with a staff. It was
the introduction to the rest of the sealed portion—
the cover of the sealed book— referred to in
II Nephi 11:125-131. We understood that all of
Mauricio’s words were true.
Moroni had told him to translate the first part of
the sealed portion to prepare and unify the people,
so that Jesus could read the second sealed part (the
revelation of all things given to the brother of
Jared) in His temple in Zion. Mauricio and the
three witnesses were equally astonished; it was
visible in their faces! They had not seen it before.
No one had seen this before. We were all witnesses.
The drawing was not something that a man would
have invented. The workmanship was so fine, both
on the drawing and the plates, that the value of the
labor would be astronomical. At that moment we all
received a witness of the significance of the drawing
and the importance of what was beneath it. The
Lord had borne witness.
We had classes and sharing time. At various times,
Mauricio was able to understand Sam Gould’s
English. On Monday, Sam was asking Mauricio
about the Chinese-looking sword in the photo. To
their surprise, they could understand each other.
Mauricio began to cry with joy, attested to by Brad
Gault, who was at the table with them.
Mauricio shared that the Chinese-looking sword in
the photo that had been widely distributed was not
the sword of Laban, nor was it his photo. He had
taken two photos of the real sword, one while it
was still dirty (that some have referred to as it looking
like wood) and then one after it was cleaned
and facing the opposite direction.
Joni also testified that sometimes he could understand
Sam’s English. Also Mauricio had understood
Kelvin Henson’s prayer after seeing the plates. We
were blessed with various encounters of the gift of
tongues.
The next morning, Sam shared with Gary that he
realized that he understood the Portuguese of both
of these brothers when they spoke. Gary said, “God
is with us,” and the Spirit rested upon Sam and confirmed
that.
—By Gary Metzger
Excerpts from The Coming Forth of the Sealed
Portion—The Testimony of the Work in Southern
Brazil (online Testimony Booklet)
thecauseofzion.org/the-coming-forth-ofthe-sealed-portion-gary-metzger/
Sealed Portion of the Book of Mormon
A Few of Mauricio’s Experiences
Moroni has taught Mauricio many things. Every
time Mauricio sees him, Moroni extends his hands,
and the first time explained (as in DC 129:1,2 LDS)
that angels (as in resurrected personages) have a
body, and evil spirits do not, so he will not be deceived.
Moroni teaches Mauricio, and always gives
scriptures to support his teachings.
Moroni taught many things about the Lord Jesus.
He shared that Jesus was not just a man of flesh,
but that in His resurrected body His light, glory
and estate are highly exalted.
Early in the work, on December 25, 2008, Mauricio
in the company of Jader, met three men on Mount
Agudo and he thought they were Peter, James, and
John. They stopped the rain while the brethren were
praying. Mauricio did not know anything about the
three Nephites. Gary asked Mauricio about this
confusion of names. In about 2016, at their secure
apartment with locked gates, the three men knocked
on their interior apartment door. Upon letting them
in, Mauricio said, “Hello Peter” (recognizing him
from years before on the hill) and the guest said,
“I am___ [not Pedro]. Greetings in the name of
Jesus Christ.” The three of them were there.They
spoke of the importance of the Lord’s Day.
This happened on a Sunday evening and the people
of the church were there, about eight to ten of them.
Even their 9-year-old daughter testified to Gary that
the visitors had come inside the security gate and
knocked on their door, even though the front security
door was locked. They came a second time many
months later and taught of the importance of the
sacrament. The people recognized the Portuguese
as being from Portugal. It was evident the entire
family had witnessed this, as they all confirmed it
that night.
When Mauricio was young, he had an experience
and saw the Kirtland Temple. He drew it many
times. He even heard them sing “The Spirit of
God” in English. So when we sang it together, he
sang it in English by heart, just like us. He couldn’t
do that with his poor command of English without
before having had the experience.
We went to see the place where the celestial beings
appeared to Mauricio in the photo we had all seen;
it was an open field in front of the house where
they used to live. Mauricio and his wife were at
home and they saw lights in the trees across the
road. They had already called people and said they
were leaving their city because of their persecutions
and their house being broke into. Mauricio went
across the road and spoke with one of these beings.
The prophets from the ages were there to encourage
Mauricio to not give up—because he had. He was
leaving. Patricia watched from the front porch.
When the beings began to ascend, like in the bubbles
seen, she thought it interesting and took the
photo with her phone. A photo was taken from the
road, just for comparison. Since then, we have
learned of two other persons who have seen angels
in these types of “bubbles” or orbs, in which case
one was also photographed.
The Eight Witnesses Visit Brazil
In the morning of Sunday, March 4, 2018 the eight
witnesses went to church in Southern Brazil. Towards
the end of the service, Valdecí, who was in
charge of the service, asked Joseph to share. He
stood and began to speak prophetically to Wagner
(one of the three witnesses). He placed his hand on
Gary’s shoulder and asked him to interpret. Joseph
spoke of Wagner’s call to the office of elder and the
Holy Spirit was so strong that Gary began crying
under the power of the influence of God’s Spirit.
Elder Sam Gould stood to confirm the call, stating
he knew Joseph F. very well, and on that morning
he had a command of language and power of the
Spirit that was way above normal; he had spoken
like the prophet of the church. The call was presented
and the branch voted to accept Wagner’s
ministry. He was then ordained by the other three
elders there. The Spirit of Christ was at work—
none other.
After church, but before we saw the plates, we entered
into a period of prayer and song. Mauricio,
Wagner and Valdeci (two of the three who had previously
witnessed Moroni and the plates) and the
eight of us from the US began singing “Sing Alleluia
to the Lord” and other songs. When Joni
brought the plates, Mauricio wanted us to sing it
again. Joni raised his hands and, with tears streaming
down his cheeks, was praising the Lord. Along
with Mauricio, he had waited ten years for this day! We saw the plates! We compared the characters
with those of the characters of Anthon and
found several of the same on two or three plates.
We measured the dimensions of the plates: 6 ¼
inches wide by 8 ¾ inches long by 4 ½ inches high.
We held them; they weighed some 60 pounds. The
open part of the Book of Mormon had about 22 to
23 lines of characters, with about 16 to 20 characters
in each line. There were three magnetically
functional rings, which had imperfections in them,
so we knew they were not machine made. The
holes in the plates around the rings showed some
wear, so the holes were not recently made.
The plates, with the appearance of gold, were thin
like sheet metal that allowed movement upon lifting
them. We felt the engravings. They were deep
so that a fingernail could catch them. They were
filled with a black dye or ink. The characters were
well-formed and visible. It appeared that there were
scratch marks below the characters as if a rock had
been used, and dragged below the markings. We
spent about two and a half hours examining the
plates. The Title Page was on the left-hand side of
the plates immediately before the part that had been
sealed.
Earlier this year, Mauricio translated the Title Page
of the Book of Mormon with the interpreters he
received from Moroni. Soon afterwards, the plates
of the initial part of the sealed portion (later found
to be 42 plates) seemed to separate some from each
other. They had pushed upwards against the heads
of the pins that had been smashed down to hold
together the plates of the sealed portion. We saw
these plates with space between them, when three
months earlier, Bob and Joseph saw them completely
pressed together.
When we witnessed Mauricio cut off the remains
of the heads of the pins, to be able to lift the plates
off them, we saw that many of the plates were stuck
together like a new book. The pages were very
bright. We counted the plates and noted that the
engravings were now completely different than before.
They were deep, like the imprint of a vine.We
then saw another part that was sealed together beneath
those plates, which was some three times
larger. The pins that held the first part together were
broken off, but pins were left remaining in the second
part and were bent over, sealing the bottom
part of the plates. These sealed plates were about
three inches thick.
It had a raised drawing on the top plate that had
been engraved onto the front. It showed evidence
of the celestial city, coming down, complete with
buildings, rays of light like the seven spirits unto
the seven churches and the earth with a protective
cover over it. There was a man with a staff. It was
the introduction to the rest of the sealed portion—
the cover of the sealed book— referred to in
II Nephi 11:125-131. We understood that all of
Mauricio’s words were true.
Moroni had told him to translate the first part of
the sealed portion to prepare and unify the people,
so that Jesus could read the second sealed part (the
revelation of all things given to the brother of
Jared) in His temple in Zion. Mauricio and the
three witnesses were equally astonished; it was
visible in their faces! They had not seen it before.
No one had seen this before. We were all witnesses.
The drawing was not something that a man would
have invented. The workmanship was so fine, both
on the drawing and the plates, that the value of the
labor would be astronomical. At that moment we all
received a witness of the significance of the drawing
and the importance of what was beneath it. The
Lord had borne witness.
We had classes and sharing time. At various times,
Mauricio was able to understand Sam Gould’s
English. On Monday, Sam was asking Mauricio
about the Chinese-looking sword in the photo. To
their surprise, they could understand each other.
Mauricio began to cry with joy, attested to by Brad
Gault, who was at the table with them.
Mauricio shared that the Chinese-looking sword in
the photo that had been widely distributed was not
the sword of Laban, nor was it his photo. He had
taken two photos of the real sword, one while it
was still dirty (that some have referred to as it looking
like wood) and then one after it was cleaned
and facing the opposite direction.
Joni also testified that sometimes he could understand
Sam’s English. Also Mauricio had understood
Kelvin Henson’s prayer after seeing the plates. We
were blessed with various encounters of the gift of
tongues.
The next morning, Sam shared with Gary that he
realized that he understood the Portuguese of both
of these brothers when they spoke. Gary said, “God
is with us,” and the Spirit rested upon Sam and confirmed
that.
—By Gary Metzger
Excerpts from The Coming Forth of the Sealed
Portion—The Testimony of the Work in Southern
Brazil (online Testimony Booklet)
thecauseofzion.org/the-coming-forth-ofthe-sealed-portion-gary-metzger/