Question
Hi Gramps,
My question is who is the brother of Jared? We know that one of his sons was chosen to be king and his name was Pagag, but his name is never mentioned. Do you think that we will ever get to know what his name was?
Michael
Answer
Dear Michael,
The name of the Book of Mormon personality, the brother of Jared, was Mahonri Moriancumer. This name was revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith when he was asked to bless a son of Elder Reynolds Cahoon, and is recorded in the Juvenile Instructor vol. 27, p. 282; and in the Improvement Era, vol. 8, pp. 704-705, as follows:
“While residing in Kirtland, Elder Reynolds Cahoon had a son born to him. One day when President Joseph Smith was passing his door he called the prophet in and asked him to bless and name the baby. Joseph did so and gave the boy the name of Mahonri Moriancumer. When he had finished the blessing, he laid the child on the bed, and turning to Elder Cahoon he said, the name I have given your son is the name of the Brother of Jared. The Lord has just shown (or revealed) it to me. Elder William F. Cahoon, who was standing near, heard the Prophet make this statement to his Father; and this was the first time the name of the Brother of Jared was known in the Church in this dispensation.”
And to show that Gramps does have a sense of humor:
Gramps
