Joseph smiths translation and publication of the book of mormon provo, ut and salt lake city, ut. With over 200 fullcolor pages and spectacular photography, this heirloomquality book has become the new. Genetic attacks on the book of mormon focus on the fact that amerindian dna seems closest to asian dna, and not dna from the middle east or jewish dna. Its narrative, teachings, and people american fork. According to smith, the book is originally written in an otherwise unknown language called reformed egyptian on golden plates and it should be of similar importance as the bible. It seems to have included no explicitly supernatural elements.
Gardner earned a masters degree in anthropology and mesoamerican ethnohistory from the state university of new york at albany. So there is also archaeological evidence that supports the truthfulness of the book of mormon. And the witnesses to the book of mormon are, in turn, some of our best. When talking to mormons, expect to hear them say, i know the book. It contains a record of gods dealings with three groups of people who migrated. Rust, richard dilworth, the book of mormon, designed for our day. Since the foundation of the church of latterday saints, mormon archaeologists and historians have tried mightily to harmonize the prehistory of the united states as given in the book of mormon with the facts on the ground, which have stubbornly refused to admit. Book of mormon nephite destruction outline narrow neck. The literary testimony of the book of mormon salt lake city. For example, a 2014 study indicates that as much as onethird of native american dna may have originated anciently in europe or west asia.
While mormon scholars admit valid challenges to mormonism from archaeology and the book of abraham, they say the evidences of mormonisms truthfulness is the book of mormon itself, gods confirmation in your spirit, and the number of changed lives. Jul 26, 2018 the book of mormon is a sacred text that was published in march 1830 by joseph smith, jr. Mar 06, 2018 book of mormon nephite destruction outline narrow neck. To avoid this, cancel and sign in to youtube on your computer. Jul 05, 2015 the book of mormon, revisited july 5, 2015 philip jenkins patheos explore the worlds faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality. The evidential basis of the book of mormon, mormonism and. That is to say there is evidence on both sides evidence that the book of mormon is true in the sense of being what it says it is. These claims have historically been taken on faith. Book of mormon evidence part 1the destructions of 3rd nephi in a new world setting. Gary so here is the mormon evidence for their supernatural story 1.
The resurrected savior, jesus christ, really did visit the book of mormon people in the americas. Deseret book, 1988, 388 miller, rube goldberg machines, 29 staker, hearken, o ye people, 108 campbell, delusions. Those who state the book of mormon lacks evidence are either ignorant or lying. Religious studies center, brigham young university, and deseret book, 2015. This started a long journey of discovery, from reading books written back in. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi, who claimed that it had been. But there is one thing that has occurred to me recently that has become the most solid logical evidence for the book of mormon. These statistical results provide striking support for the book of mormons own claims about its authorship. One of the types of hebraism in the book of mormon that is commonly cited as evidence of its authenticity of ancient israelite literature is the construct state. The book of mormon contains accounts by several different people over a thousand years, harmonized and abridged into a whole narrative by a father and son, mormon and moroni, who lived around 400 ad. Sep 20, 2014 gary so here is the mormon evidence for their supernatural story 1. The book of mormon and dna evidence jump to subtopic.
The book of mormon claims to be a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. A prophet is a spokesperson for god, whereas a seer is one who uses means divine instruments to reveal mysteries and secrets. Brodie claims that joseph smith wrote the book of ether as a sort of afterthought to cover up the scientific blunders and inaccuracies of the rest of the book of mormon which were causing him disturbing doubts and misgivings. Truth shall spring forth out of the earth, journal of book of mormon studies, vol. Genetic attacks on the book of mormon focus on the fact that amerindian dna seems closest to asian dna. Book of mormon evidence the mormon church, mormonism. In order to fabricate the book of mormon, joseph smith would have needed the ability to create distinct fictional voices, and a talent beyond some of the greatest novelists of his time charles dickens, jane austen, mark twain, and james fenimore cooper. Introductory pages of the book of mormon book of mormon. The book of mormon contains accounts by many different people, mostly prophets, over a thousand years, harmonized and abridged into a whole narrative by a father and son, mormon and moroni, who lived around 400 ad. Albright who was the founder of biblical archaelogy admitted that the book of mormon contained names that wer. Fallibility of the book of mormon lds church is true blog.
Oct 18, 2014 the validity of the book of mormon cannot be established by such evidence as assembled above. Claims about the michigan relics as evidence for the book of mormon have been used by meldrum as well. Id like to take credit for discovering this groundbreaking evidencebut millions before me had already discovered it long before i did as they read the book of mormon. This is another in my series of article on challenging questions that missionaries will likely face. In a nutshell, i regard the matter of the evidential nature of the book of mormon bom as a microcosm of the nature of mormonism, which is itself a microcosm of christianity. It is a continuation of book of mormon evidences, part one. The american scripture that launched a new world religion new york. Eugene england, a second witness for the logos, in by study and also by faith.
The list includes items such as steel swords, barley, cement, thrones, and literacy. If playback doesnt begin shortly, try restarting your device. Joseph smith didnt write the book as i am sure you know. Naturalistic explanations of the origin of the book of mormon. Archaeological evidence of the book of mormon latterday. Analytical and contextual commentary on the book of mormon and the gift and power. Arguments for and against the authenticity of the book of. Translating the book of mormon religious studies center. Joseph smith, a man living in the nineteenth century in new york state, claims that an angel from god named moroni appeared to him and showed him golden plates which told the story of ancient, seafaring hebrews who came to the shores of north america prior to the time of christ an established great walled cities and a. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. Brian stubbs lehite language evidence in native american languages. A somewhat perplexing reference to gazelem, the name of an individual using a stone prepared by god, is found in alma 37.
Attributing the book of mormons origin to supernatural forces has worked well for joseph. In a particularly pronounced way, the meaning and value of the book of mormon as a religious text are tied to a specific set of historical claims. Evidence for nephis bountiful, journal of book of mormon studies, 71 1998. For over 100 years, bible scholars have analyzed the bible text and historical sources to understand more about things like. Watch book of mormon centrals new video on one of the best examples of archaeological evidence we have for the book of mormon. Archaeological and historical evidence where did the. Recent literary appreciations of the book of mormon include marilyn arnold, sweet is the word. Smith used to translate the the book of mormon has been described in church history and literature, some. John clark of the new world archaeological foundation has compiled a list of sixty items mentioned in the book of mormon.
Book of mormon evidence streaming faithfully exploring. Talmage author of jesus the christ, articles of faith, and more they have been shown to be forgeries. Dean sessions how practical scientific applications of the um help us learn truth. The book of mormon, revisited july 5, 2015 philip jenkins patheos explore the worlds faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality. The book of mormon purports to give an account of two civilizations formed by families who migrated to the americas. Boyd tuttle out of darkness into light a decade of discovery in book of mormon research. Both the bible and the book of mormon declare themselves to be ancient, historical, and reliable rules of faiththe very word of god. Reading the book of mormon again for the first time. The practice of using stones or glass to receive divine revelation is found in many cultures, including among the ancient. Jun 12, 2014 thursday, june 12, 2014 literary detection. The book of mormon is a sacred text that was published in march 1830 by joseph smith, jr. Joseph smith and his followers declared the book of mormons supernatural.
While not directly explaining the title page of the book of mormon, rust nevertheless uses it as a prompt to discuss other topics. Since the foundation of the church of latterday saints, mormon archaeologists and historians have tried mightily to harmonize the prehistory of the united states as given in the book of mormon with the facts on the ground, which have stubbornly refused to admit a continentwide hebraic civilization in the early centuries ce. Smith said he has received these plates in 1827 from an angel named moroni, who identified himself to smith as a native. Reading the book of mormon again for the first time by. An analysis of the book of mormon with an examination of its internal and. Jan 11, 2017 book of mormon evidence compiled from video interviews done in 2014, 2016 and 2017.
This is the way the nonreligious world sees the religious. There is an abundance of historical and archaeological evidence that supports the scriptural historical events as recorded in the book of mormon. May 23, 2014 this is another in my series of article on challenging questions that missionaries will likely face. Mormon traditions that would have us believe the book of mormon took place in the heartland and at new york truly conflict with the book of mormon, believed to be the word of god, so the heartland model is not valid. The book is used by nearly thirteen million individuals who read it along with the holy bible, believing that both were written by prophets and contain the words of god. Jul 18, 2016 a somewhat perplexing reference to gazelem, the name of an individual using a stone prepared by god, is found in alma 37.
One group of families came from jerusalem in 600 bc and afterward separated into two nations, known as the nephites and the lamanites. Why was a stone used as an aid in translating the book of. Alexander campbells delusions and the mormon response. Scholars argue that no evidence of a reformed egyptian language has ever. These are just a few clips about interesting stories and archaeological findings etc. Similarly, joseph smith used both the nephite interpreters and his individual seer stone in the translation of the book of mormon. Welch, the miraculous translation of the book of mormon, in opening the heavens. Mormons embrace america unearthed while scott wolter.
Book of mormon evidences, part 2 presents more of the factors that suggest the book of mormon may be an ancient document. These pages are written by jeff lindsay, a book of mormon aficionado, who takes full responsibility for the statements and opinions offered on this page. But is there any evidence to support them one way or the other. Book of mormon evidence compiled from video interviews done in 2014, 2016 and 2017. The validity of the book of mormon cannot be established by such evidence as assembled above. Dean sessions latter day saint creationism the doctrine and science. The book of mormon rolled off the grandin press in palmyra, new york, with joseph smith listed as author and proprietor on the title page. If we assume the book of mormon published 1830 is not. A few years after the above experience i started reading the book of mormon. Naturalistic explanations of the origin of the book of. Jensen, and mark ashurstmcgee, joseph the seer, ensign, october 2015, 4954. First published in 1830, the book of mormon tells of the transoceanic migrations of two ancient near eastern peoples to the americas. The book of mormon explains how a seer is greater than a prophet, and how joseph smith can be called the choice seer of the latter days. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which adherents.
All opinions, speakers and presenters represent and express their own individual opinions, and not necessarily the opinions of firm foundation, book of mormon evidence, or its employees, and no information or opinions represent the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. As always, i invite you to study the issues, evaluate what we know and what we dont know, and pray for the guidance. Recently, they were reevaluated, and again, shown to be forgeries. The first book, which will be published this week in print and kindle versions, is michael austins buried treasures. Book of mormon and dna studies the church of jesus christ of latterday saints affirms that the book of mormon is a volume of sacred scripture comparable to the bible. Occult, supernatural, magical thinking mormonthink. There is quite an impressive amount of evidence in favour. A few years ago i was given some videos to watch about book of mormon evidences.
I duly agreed that if you found such a thing, according to those specifications, then. Comparing the mormon evidence with the conservative. For religions that are open to progressrevelation, the information learned by scholars in this process has. Another group came much earlier, when god confounded the tongues at the tower of babel. The first of these peoples, called jaredites, are supposed to have come to. Archaeological evidence and the book of mormon fairmormon.
In early 1830, an unknown farmer in upstate new york burst upon the worlds bookpublishing scene. Jan 01, 2009 claims about the michigan relics as evidence for the book of mormon have been used by meldrum as well. Videos you watch may be added to the tvs watch history and influence tv recommendations. Further, the weakness of uncertain horses in the book of mormon is an area with a hint of a familiar trend. This short study advances evidence that moroni wrote the entire title page of the book of mormon, based on the idea the redundancies were a way to further illuminate the divine destiny of this important record.
If we had a mesoamerican inscription which mentioned a book of mormon king, with a date and historical context that matched the date and context for the book of mormon, would that be objective evidence in favor of the historicity of the book of mormon. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. It is the first type of the biblical hebrew features found in the book of mormon listed by john tvedtnes in his entry on the subject in a mainstream academic reference work. Serious study of the book of mormon by latterday saints is flourishing today as. Responding to critical claims regarding the book of mormon and dna evidence. What id like my kids to know about love june 19, 2018 10. For many years, critics have challenged the veracity of a religious text called the book of mormon. Today we will talk about some common criticisms of the book of mormon around archaeological evidence that some say proves or disproves the truthfulness of the book of mormon. According to the church of jesus christ of latterday saints mormon church, the book of mormon is a divinely inspired revelation that is complimentary to the bible.
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