Alma 63:5–9—Who Was Hagoth?

Hagoth built large ships and sailed north. His destination was never known by the Nephites. Latter-day prophets have declared that Hagoth’s ships reached the islands of the Pacific, where they became part of the Polynesian culture. In 1913, responding to a telegram that he had received earlier that “perhaps” they were some of Hagoth’s people, President Joseph F. Smith told a group of Polynesian Saints, “I would like to say to you brethren and sisters from New Zealand, you are some of Hagoth’s people, and there is NO PERHAPS about it!” He explained that when he was a missionary in Hawaii the Spirit had testified to him that the Polynesians were descended from Lehi (in William A. Cole and Elwin W. Jensen, Israel in the Pacific [1961], 388). Later, in the dedicatory prayer of the Laie Hawaii Temple, President Heber J. Grant thanked Heavenly Father that “thousands and tens of thousands of the descendants of Lehi, in this favored land, have come to a knowledge of the gospel” (“The Dedicatory Prayer in the Hawaiian Temple,” Improvement Era, Feb. 1920, 283).

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Write about What You Have Learned

You have now read the book of Alma. Write about a scripture, story, or some part of the book that you feel has influenced your life for good. Tell how it has helped you become a better person.