The Called and the Sending: Parley P. Pratt, Ziba Peterson, and the First Lamanite Mission in D&C 32

I own a block plane that belonged to my grandfather. It is not the best plane I have. The sole has a nick in it and the adjustment lever sticks when the weather changes, but I reach for it anyway because it was his. There is something about an old tool that has carried honest work, something that carries a kind of authority no new tool can fabricate.

Section 32 is a short chapter but it has that same quality. Five verses, but the men involved carried authority you cannot manufacture.

Why Were Early Missionaries Sent to the Lamanites

The Church was four months old in October 1830 when the Lord called Parley P. Pratt, Ziba Peterson, Oliver Cowdery, and Peter Whitmer Jr. to go to the Lamanites. Parley had been a member for less than a month at that point.

The Book of Mormon had just come off the press. The early Saints read the promises made to the remnant of Lehi's family and they believed those promises were real. They wanted to be part of fulfilling them. So the Lord sent them.

And now, behold, I say unto you that you shall go unto the Lamanites and preach my gospel unto them.

D&C 32:2

The Lord is not asking for volunteers when He calls these men. He names them directly. Parley. Ziba. Oliver. Peter. He knows who they are and He knows what He is sending them into.

Meaning of Meek and Lowly of Heart in D&C 32

The first requirement the Lord gave Parley P. Pratt was not about speaking ability or persuasive writing. It was about the state of his heart. Go forth and preach my gospel to the Lamanites, the Lord told him, but start with yourself. Be meek. Be lowly.

That makes sense to me. You cannot bring people peace if you are carrying a weapon, and pride is a weapon that bruises people before you even open your mouth.

A few years back I was building a dining table and I tried to rush through the joinery. I used too much force on the chisel and split the tenon, which meant I had to cut a new piece and start over. Force does not speed things up. It breaks things.

Being meek and lowly of heart is the opposite of force. It means approaching someone as a witness who is still learning, not as an expert with all the answers. It is the difference between hammering a joint and fitting it by hand.

How to Pray for Understanding of the Scriptures

The Lord gave the missionaries a specific instruction about revelation. Stick to the scriptures and the established revelations of the Church, He told them. Do not pretend to new revelations that contradict what has already been given.

Then He told them to pray that the scriptures would be unfolded to their understanding. The goal was not to receive new revelation nobody else had. The goal was to see more deeply into what was already written, to let the existing words open up.

I think about this when I read the same chapters again. There is a temptation to want something new. A new insight, a new angle, a piece of doctrine nobody has noticed before. But the Lord seems more interested in us understanding what we already have than in giving us more.

In woodworking, you can read a grain reading book and watch videos, but the real learning happens when you hold a board in your hands. You run your thumb across its edge and start to feel which way the grain runs. The information is already in the wood. You just need the patience to let it show itself.

The missionaries were told to bring that same patience to the scriptures.

The Idea of the Lord as an Advocate in D&C 32

Verse 3 contains one of the most direct promises in the Doctrine and Covenants. The Lord says, I myself will go with them and be their advocate with the Father.

This is not an angel being sent, and it is not just a feeling. It is Christ Himself stepping into the middle of the work.

The Lord is saying He will stand between the missionaries and anything that comes against them. That does not mean hardship would not come. The Lamanite mission was brutal, with Pratt and his companions walking a thousand miles through winter, facing rejection, hunger, and hostility. But the Lord went with them and nothing prevailed against them in the sense that mattered. They were preserved and the work continued.

I think about the D&C 31 article about Thomas B. Marsh and the promise that the field was white already to harvest. That same promise shows up here in a different form. Not the field is ready, but I myself will go with you.

Significance of Parley P. Pratt's First Mission

Parley P. Pratt was thirty-three years old when he received this call. He had been a member of the Church for less than two months. The Lord called him anyway, before he was ready, before he had proven himself.

Pratt went on to become one of the most important figures in early Church history. He wrote hymns, served multiple missions, and was killed by a mob in Arkansas fifteen years later. But it all started here, in a short chapter with five verses, on a mission to a people the early Saints had only read about.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did the Lord warn the missionaries not to pretend to other revelation?

To protect the message. The gospel was new and the missionaries were inexperienced. Sticking to the scriptures and the established revelations kept them from adding their own opinions or getting carried away. The truth was already there. They just needed to understand it.

What does it mean that the Lord would be their advocate with the Father?

An advocate speaks for a person in a proceeding. Christ promised to stand between the missionaries and any opposition. He would defend their cause because they were sent by Him.

How does Section 32 define the relationship between a missionary and the people they serve?

The relationship is defined by humility. The missionaries are told to be meek and lowly of heart, which changes how you approach someone. You come as a fellow learner rather than as a superior.

What is the significance of the phrase "unfold the same to their understanding"?

The scriptures contain layers. The information is already in the text, but it takes time and prayer for the Spirit to open it up. The goal is deeper understanding of what is already given, not the discovery of new information.

Closing

My grandfather's block plane has a nick in the sole that makes a faint line on the wood if I am not careful. I could have it ground flat again, but I do not. The nick reminds me that the tool was used. It was kept on a shelf.

These men were not kept on a shelf either. They were sent while they were still green. They went anyway. And the Lord went with them.

— D.