History and historicity in the book of mormon fairmormon. Now, as an atheist archaeologist of jewish descent who works closely with various native american tribes and clans, i hang onto my old, beatup copy of this book just to show my indian. Yet, the book of mormon musical also contains less benign inaccuracies, like misrepresenting joseph smiths history, distorting mormon. Moroni, the last of the nephite prophethistorians, sealed up the abridged records of these people and hid them in about a. I have a large library of religious books, but the annotated edition of the book of mormon is the most technicolored, highfidelity, highdefinition, highlyresearched, testimonybuilding, multidimensional rollercoaster ride through the religious history.
The book of mormon comprises fifteen books, each named after its principal writer. Assuming the book of mormon is historically accurate, does this. Is christ god, the eternal father do we worship jesus how did the name lucifer get into the bible and, how did it end up in the book of mormon why is the definition of grace in the book of mormon so different from the definition of grace in the bible we will discover the answer to these questions today. Let alone proof, theres not even any good evidence or argument that book of mormon stories are true or historically accurate. The book of mormon bom was first published in palmyra, new york, in 1830, its title page giving the name joseph smith, jun. The book itself claims to be an ancient record of gods dealings with a remnant of the house of israel in the new world. Book of mormon, work accepted as holy scripture, in addition to the bible, in the church of jesus christ of latterday saints and other mormon churches. How does one distinguish between a document that is genuine and authentic and one that is not. Is the book of mormon an authentic ancient history of ancient american peoples, or a work of 19th century religious fiction. Many members of the latter day saint movement claim historical authenticity of the book of mormon. I could have made this number much higher by simply counting every single scene from the book of mormon as a historical inaccuracy but i kept my tally to modern history.
The book of mormon is a religious record of three groups of people who migrated from the old world to the american continents. Debunking 5 myths about the book of mormon lds living. If that were the claim of the book of mormon, any piece of historical, archaeological, or linguistic evidence to the contrary would weigh in against the book of mormon, and those who rely exclusively on scholarship would have a promising position to argue. The scientific search for nephite remains mormons in. Mormon included in his compilation the first six books as they were written. There are differing views on the origin of the book of mormon. The outline below identifies the major historical inaccuracies and problems that the church tends to ignore or obscure and that the original founders of mormonthink thought needed to be more transparent and fully disclosed by the church. Most, but not all, mormons hold the book s connection to ancient american history as an article of their faith. Some have attempted to separate the historical claims made in the book of mormon with its theology. No woman, except perhaps the wife of king lamoni, in the book of mormon is portrayed as having her own independent connection with heaven. Assuming the book of mormon is historically accurate, does this necessarily imply the great apostasy. The list of archaeological and historical claims of the.
Chou researched historical inaccuracies in the book of mormon for three years, before sending a 16page resignation letter to the church in 2010, and leaving officially, with his wife and their. However, after a fair and candid examination of the evidence, many thousands of. Unlike the book of mormon, the bible contains no historical inaccuracies. Books about mormons score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. Even though it claims to be the wordforword translation joseph smith received by revelation, there have been 3,9 changes in the book of mormon. The word of yahweh was addressed to me as follows, son of man, take a stick and write on it, judah and those israelites loyal to. The main scripture they use to support this claim is ezekiel 37. First, it utterly lacks historical or archaeological support, and there is overwhelming empirical evidence that refutes it. Mormon church publishes its first official history in nearly a century, and the result is an easytoread volume that tackles some hard facts. While the bible has a wealth of evidence supporting its historical, chronological, and geographical accuracy, the book of mormon has been heavily criticized for its inaccuracies. Only three female characters are named in the book of mormon sariah the wife of lehi, abish the lamanite woman, isabel the harlot, compared to 188 in the bible. Serious study of the book of mormon by latterday saints is flourishing today as never before. It is either of divine or human origin, and if it is of human origin that means that joseph smith concocted the book.
Published in 1930, the book of mormon acts as a modernday. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to god by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book history of the church, vol. This is important because the latterday saints make such a point about it containing the fullness of. However, a close examination of this book shows a long llist of problems, one of which is the presence of anachronisms. Nonmormon archaeologists speak on book of mormon evidence. Excluding the bible and similar writing, can you prove to an atheist or to someone that is agnostic that god exists. The accounts of these witnesses are printed in each copy of the book of mormon but the song makes no mention of them. These groups were led by prophets who recorded their religious and secular histories on metal plates. Many members of the latter day saint movement claim historical authenticity of the book of. The book of mormon records the visit of jesus christ to people in the americas following his resurrection. This site provides you with an overview of what the book of mormon claims from an archeological or historic viewpoint, and compares it to nonapologetic apologetic meaning speak to defend scientific and historical resources.
Mormonism is a religion less than two centuries old, but in this short time it has managed to accrue a long list of embarrassments which the church leaders would prefer were kept. Not only does an increase in the frequency of anachronisms increase the probability that a work is not historically accurate, but the nature in which the. Historicity of the book of mormon book of mormon evidence. The theory that the book of mormon is an ancient american history is not accepted as scientifically verifiable by the mainstream. Top 10 embarrassments of the mormon religion listverse.
Third, the book of mormon abounds in textual errors, factual errors, and outright plagiarisms from other works. It was first published in 1830 in palmyra, new york, and was thereafter widely reprinted and translated. A wellknown instance is the reference to a clock in shakespeares julius caesar. Second, the book of mormon contains none of the key mormon doctrines. Even at 14 years old and in the early 80s, i recognized most of the historical and scientific inaccuracies. They encourage potential converts to follow suit so that they, too, may know the book of mormon is from god. In entertainment, they call these plotholes, tropes, plotarmor, etc. I guess my real question is, could i affirm the historical accuracy of the book of mormon as a catholic. Mormon archaeological argument that proves the historical accuracy of b of m. This view finds no acceptance outside of mormonism. As a result, the prophet joseph smith provided more accurate. Why is the book of mormons historical authenticity so. Why you shouldnt ask god if the book of mormon is true.
Mormon missionaries regularly quote this verse and accompany it with heartfelt personal testimony about how the holy ghost bore witness to them of the truth of the book of mormon. Joseph smith claimed that the book of mormon, published in 1830, had been translated from golden plates that contained the accounts of the ancient inhabitants of the american continent. According to joseph smith and subsequent presidents and apostles of the lds church, the geographical extent of book of mormon lands included virtually all of north and south america. Joseph smith consistently claimed that he translated the book of mormon from a set of ancient golden plates which were delivered to him by an angel. The book is divided into smaller books that read as narratives. My wife kept a count of victories for satan uses of. The book of mormon claims to be a history of ancient peoples inhabiting central. Variations of this theory only include that the text is a divinely inspired narrative, regardless of its. Mormon is allegedly a prophethistorian who was the native american believed by mormons to have written the book of mormon the main religious text of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints mormonism. The book of mormon is rife with narrative issues, which are problems from the actual story, context, history, etc. Below is the modern map of the area of smiths youth. Contrary to the musicals portrayal, historical records indicate that at least 11 people signed testimonies indicating that smith had shown them the golden plates. Apologetics press the book of mormon and the ancient.
Two of the most prevalent claims for the book of mormon are, there is much archaeological proof to the book of mormon, and the american indians are descendants of israelites who came to america as described in the book of mormon. A book of mistakes, error, and fraud by jon gary williams introduction the mormon church promotes the book of mormon as an inspired writing. For the first 150 years of mormonisms existence, everyone thought it was a story about a people who left the middle east and came to south or central america, and who fought wars clear up into new york state where. The book of mormon is supposed to be a history of real people living in a real place. There are two possible explanations for the origin of the book of mormon.
First, you should be aware that not all of mormon doctrine, or even of the things that are generally considered the stuff that makes mormons. Historical errors in the book of mormon catholic apologetics. The mormon church the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Note i am asking this question as someone who has not actually read the book of mormon. This is what drove the content for the original site. The latest in signature bookss essays on mormonism series, american apocrypha combines the insights of nine different authors in a comprehensive study of the book of mormon, its role in history, and the way religious communities use sacred texts create meaning and culture. An anachronism is defined as an event that appears out of time. It tells of the jaredites, people from the tower of babel who came to central america but perished because of their own immorality. What do mormons believe about the bible and the book of. If this is true, then the book of mormon should be full of errors. The sole issue in this discussion is whether the book of mormon bom is an actual, ancient historical document or a work of more modern fictionor perhaps even a fraud or hoax. A twohundredyear era of peace followed that visit of christ. Hebraisms that could have been known to joseph smith may still be authentic, and may still enhance our appreciation of the text, but they are weak evidence for book of mormon antiquity. In fact, several mormon organizations have been founded in order to prove.
In the old world, documents have been able to assist some of this task, but in the new world we are left with the problem of reconstructing a. According to the book of mormon, jesus christ appeared and preached to the nephites in the americas after his crucifixion. An example would be a reference to an event that had not yet occurred, or mention of objects or materials which did not yet exist. Mormon church publishes its first official history in. The dominant and widely accepted view among latter day saints is that the book of mormon is a true and accurate account of these ancient. The book of mormon is supposed to be the account of people who came from the middleeast to the americas. The list of archeological and historical claims of the book of mormon compared to nonapologetic evidence. Church admits book of mormon not history and to go to lengths to translate the words he wants so that he can be redundant as if saying that it is a miraculous miracle somehow makes it even better than anyone might have thought otherwise. The book of mormon claims to be a history of ancient peoples inhabiting central america until 421 a. When lehi et al come to america, they bring horses and grains from the old world, including corn. Historical linguistics looks at what the putative indoeuropean language might have been like to lead to the many languages now assigned to that family. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations. This is important because the latterday saints make such a point about it containing the fullness of the everlasting gospel. The book of mormon does indeed have authentic semitic constructions in it, but lds need to tread cautiously in establishing them.
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