The purpose of this video is to explore the intellectual and theological discourse about indian origins in the new world that preceded joseph smiths dictation of the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. Book of mormon, history of warfare in the encyclopedia. Adherents of latter day saint movement generally believe the book of mormon has a miraculous origin. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations.
Have you ever wondered how mormonsproperly referred to as members of the church of jesus christ of latterday saintsgot their. The mormon religion was officially founded in 1830 when the book of mormon was published. Religious solutions from columbus to columbus to joseph smith vogel, dan on. Its been a few years since i talked about dna and the book of mormon. Mormonism is the first world religion in which the origins were. The hill cumorah in october 1841, joseph placed the original manuscript in. His account of the origin of the book of mormon is, to understate the obvious, outrageously incredible. Joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon 8580000988529. Back in the 1830s and 40s, during joseph smiths time, there was nothing that was ever said that we are aware of that would tie the polynesians with the book of mormon people. The book of mormon resembles the bible in its length and complexity and in its division into books named for individual prophets. These are some of the few official church statements with regard to such historical issues. The book of the mormon, 1830, supposedly translated from golden plates found buried in the earth by joseph smith cannot in any way be from a distant and lost indian civilization because it is in absolute and perfect continuity with the various theories developed from the end of the 16th century onwards by the europeans settling in northern america and especially the english colonists to mostly justify the extermination of the indians as barbarous savages and to take their land in the name of.
Top 10 embarrassments of the mormon religion listverse. A documentary history of the book of mormon larry e. Naturalistic explanations of the origin of the book of mormon. Smith claimed the angel moroni, a prophet in the book of mormon, directed him in the 1820s to a hill near his home in palmyra, new york where the plates were buried. The book of mormon describes the final battle place between the nephites and lamanites as the land and hill cumorah. A challenge to origins of the book of mormon and joseph smith. Not long after the book of mormon was published, latterday saints began speculating about the location of this hill.
The most common belief of adherents is that promoted by joseph smith, who said he translated ancient golden plates inscribed by prophets. These groups were led by prophets who recorded their religious and secular histories on metal plates. Most adherents to the latter day saint movement view the book as a work of inspired scripture. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi.
Since 2014which was the last time i discussed lehis missing dnatheres been a few articles of interest that i thought i would mention and comment on. Naturalistic explanations of the origin of the book of. Book of mormon, government and legal history in the the. Research on the historical origins of the declaration of independence and the constitution is quite extensive, and none of it beyond endowed by their creator leads back to any religious scripture or custom pagan greece and rome, the scottish enlightment, john locke, montesquieu.
The book of mormon records the visit of jesus christ to people in the americas following his resurrection. While joseph smith described the book of mormon as a translation of text written on golden plates, smith had not studied ancient languages and did not translate in the traditional sense of the word. The objective is not to find the most correct meaning for each passage of the book of mormon, but to find the most likely sources which joseph smith remixed to create the book of mormon. The book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. Joseph smith had been dead ten full years before john forbess book. One of these civilizations immigrated to the americas from jerusalem in 600 bc, and the other emigrated from the near east at a much earlier time see what is the book of mormon.
A challenge to origins of the book of mormon a group of researchers contend that joseph smiths 1830 translation is based less on writings he found on gold plates than on the king. It relates the history of a group of hebrews who migrated from jerusalem to america about 600 bce, led by a prophet, lehi. While it has been commonly believed that the hill in new york where joseph smith received the gold plates is the same hill cumorah described in the book. To the lds faithful, the book of mormon is the true historical account of a group of ancient israelites who fled jerusalem prior to the babylonian captivity 600 b. Mormons believe that the book of mormon confirms information found in the holy bible. Book of mormon history provides easy access to current research for personal study. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. If chiasmus can be convincingly identified in the book of mormon, it will testify of the book s ancient origin. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon.
There are specific quotes in the book of mormon that are found in the king james bible and other modern works that joseph smith had access to. Joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon, 2d ed. Champions on both sides see the book of mormon as the key to joseph smiths claim to be a prophet. They multiplied and eventually split into two groups. As the bible is a record of gods dealings with the inhabitants of the eastern hemisphere, the book of mormon tells of a people. In the final analysis, the presence of the word adieu in the english translation of the book of mormon cannot be construed to indicate anything beyond the fact that jacob intended to communicate farewell forever, or until we meet god. According to the book of mormon, an israelite family came to new york in the 6th century b. If the book of mormon is a fiction novel, then the mormon. No one in america, let alone in western new york, fully understood chiasmus in 1830. According to smiths account and the books narrative, the book of mormon was originally written in otherwise unknown characte. As was the case in all premodern situations, warfare in the book of mormon was. Why new testament words and phrases are in the book of mormon part 9. A list of books available in joseph smiths time written about topics present in the book of mormon. Welcome to our project to crowd source the origins of the book of mormon, a controversial text published in 1830.
Book of mormon origins the internet annotated book of mormon. The history of racism and white supremacy in the mormon. It relates the history of a group of hebrews who migrated. Mormonism officially the church of jesus christ of latterday saints or lds church began within the context of christian restorationism in the early 19th century under. The book of mormon is about the history of two great civilizations of people who lived in the ancient americas. It was written in an ancient language on gold plates by prophets in ancient america. Notibly the first part of the book of mormon, the koran 1822 edition, and the life of muhammad the 1822 edition of the koran was available in jospeh smiths area. The book of mormon is a compilation of several books written by ancient prophets.
Joseph claimed he translated by the power of god an ancient record inscribed on golden plates entrusted to him by an american angel. There are a significant amount of similarities between the charactersstories in the bible vs. Archaeological trends and the book of mormon origins byu. Hagoth and the polynesians religious studies center. There was neither english nor french on the plates. Translated into english in 1652, this book is about the scattering of the 12 tribes of israel to the americas, among other places. The book of mormon teaches about god and jesus christ. Although it is never explicitly stated in the book of mormon, there has been a persistent belief among mormons that some of lehis descendants peopled the pacific islands. Lost civilizations of north america documentary4, deborah bolnick on haplogroup x. The two main populations there are the lightskinned population called the. Divergent views on the origin of the book lead to different.
Over the past thirty years, an enormous amount of research has been conducted into mormon originsjoseph smiths early life, the book of mormon, the. Learn more about the incredible historicity of the book of mormon through our podcast, articles, and videos. Mormon origins is created to make available historical information andor documents relating to the beginnings of mormonism in america. Indian origins and the book of mormon dan vogel youtube. Lds church members are taught that the book of mormon bom is scripture, as well as a true record of the inhabitants of the americas from about 2200 bc to 420 ad. Nonmormon critics disagree in their opinions as to the origin of the book. The book of mormon records the visit of jesus christ. A purity code for warriors may be seen in the account of the stripling warriors of helaman alma 5658. Joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon. According to the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds, the garden of eden in which god placed adam and eve is located in jackson county, missouri, near the town of. The book of mormon is a religious record of three groups of people who migrated from the old world to the american continents. His account of the origin of the book of mormon is, to. A documentary history of the book of mormon presents and examines the primary sources surrounding the origin. The story of the creation of the book of mormon has been told many times, and often ridiculed.
Why did lehi and jeremiah find themselves in a dark and dreary wilderness. Persuitte also demonstrates that joseph smiths plan for the book of mormon evolved from a nonreligious history of the precolumbians to a sacred text. The other churches origins are concealed by the mist of history, givens said. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of the book of mormon. The text gives an account of ancient prophets who lived in the americas. The book of mormon and the king james bible wikipedia. Chiasmus in the book of mormon religious studies center. They had a temple as their religious center and were careful to maintain venerable symbols of divinely appointed kingship in the sword of laban, the liahona, and ancient records 2 ne. Here are several examples listed in grant palmers book an insiders view of mormon origins. The history of various editions although joseph smith was the translator of the book of mormon, the spelling in the first edition was oliver cowderys, and the punctuation was john h. Five of the scribesoliver cowdery, martin harris, john whitmer, christian whitmer, and samuel smithalso gave their testimonies as witnesses of the book of mormon. Only the first nephite king nephi 1 and the last three kings mosiah 1, benjamin, and mosiah 2 are named in the book of mormon.
What sacrifices did lehi offer to god in the wilderness. We have read the previous version of this book and consider this to be the single most important book on the origin of the book of mormon, which is the foundation of the mormon religion. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon. Archaeological trends and the book of mormon origins byu studies. Anachronisms in the book of mormon origin of the book. In this study we will show that there have been at least 3,9 changes made in the book of mormon from the time it was first published in 1830. Some critics believe that it was written solely by joseph smith. The book of mormon testifies of jesuss ministry in the americas following his resurrection.
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