Why would it be necessary for Alma1 to establish churches throughout the greater land of Zarahemla? Wasn't there a church already in existence? After all, Mosiah2 was referred to by Ammon as "a seer" which "was greater than a prophet" (Mos 8: 13-18), so wouldn't churches already be established? Part of the answer might be found in Mosiah, chapters 25 and 26, which deals with the circumstances which Alma1 found when he arrived in the land of Zarahemla governed by king Mosiah2. There it says that: "Now this [establishing churches] was done because there were so many people that they could not all be governed by one teacher; neither could they all hear the word of God in one assembly" (Alma 25:20). According to Alma 25:2, "there were not so many of the children of Nephi, or so many of those who were descendants of Nephi, as there were of the people of Zarahemla, who was a descendant of Mulek, and those who came with him into the wilderness." And Alma 26:8 states, "king Mosiah had given Alma the authority over the [whole] church." [Alan C. Miner, Personal Notes]