Culture: Alma2’s conversion experience makes a connection important in Mesoamerican belief between the shaking ground, the voice of thunder, and the act of a god. “And as I said unto you, as they were going about rebelling against God, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto them; and he descended as it were in a cloud; and he spake as it were with a voice of thunder, which caused the earth to shake upon which they stood” (Mosiah 27:11; see also accompanying commentary). Mormon echoes these images by referring to the shaking earth and the powerful voice. In doing so, he is invoking cultural elements that the people will interpret as proofs of Yahweh’s presence.