by D E Evans
When I served as a Mormon missionary, the focus of the missionary program was to convince people that the Book of Mormon was translated by Joseph Smith as a prophet of God. Once this is established (see Moroni 10.2-5 1), one is then led to accept all of the prophecies of Joseph Smith, and finally the church that he established. Joseph Smith himself clarified this process:
But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it is right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right, (Doctrine and Covenants 9.8).
It is difficult to comprehend that this burning in the bosom,
or warm, comfortable feeling
(GospelPrinciples, Ch. 8), can be
misconstrued as a confirmation of truth. This testimony is from subjective
experience, and therefore has no clear anchoring to legitimacy. (As David
Hume once stated, No testimony is sufficient to establish a miracle,
unless the testimony be of such a kind that its falseness would be more
miraculous than the fact which it endeavors to establish.
) The
reasoning that associative experience, coupled with emotional response,
is a precursor to truth is difficult to accept. Such instincts are
inconsistent, and it is wrong as often as it is right in the pursuit
of cold, hard facts. Faith, for all its hope, must still ground itself
in reason.
In 1967, Dr Aziz of the University of Utah discovered the original papyrus
scrolls for the clearly identified, translated Book of Abraham,
and
the untranslated Book of Joseph.
These scrolls when translated by
scholars, however, were found to be common funerary scrolls (the Book
of the Dead and Book of Breathings, respectively) of the first
and second century. A good book on this subject is By His Own Hand
Upon Papyrus 2 by Charles Larson.
Even Hugh Nibley of F.A.R.M.S.3 came
to the same conclusion. I find Nibley's attempted apologetic to these
findings unconvincing. We have a copy of Joseph Smith's Egyptian
Alphabet & Grammar,4 a document by
Joseph Smith clarifying what was translated from the scrolls, as well as
his alphabet of Reformed Egyptian.
These data seem to suggest that
this canonized work of scripture, which includes fundamental doctrines,
is a work of deliberate fiction.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1838), originally The Church of Christ (1830), and later The Church of the Latter-day Saints (1834), has fabricated its claims, scriptures, and history. This is difficult to accept at first, until one begins reviewing the numerous historical data available. A good start is to compare the History of the Church (originally published in 1902, including the canonized First Vision) with the original publications that comprise the main body of the work: The Millenial Star, The Times and Seasons, Evening and Morning Star, Messenger and Advocate5, early releases of The Deseret News, other church periodicals from the 19th century, and finally Smith's diary. An excellent index6 to changes to Joseph Smith's History (published as History of the Church) can be found at the Utah Lighthouse Ministry website. Another good reference is D. Michael Quinn's Origins of Power, and Extensions of Power, as well as other works by both Quinn and Leonard J. Arrington.7 Another important comparison is between the current Doctrine and Convenants and the early 1835 edition (and Book of Commandments).
It seems clear that from its early inception the church has been self-conscious about its image, wanting to remain consistent in its claims on the one hand, and to look good to possible converts on the other (especially to Christians). It has done this by sacrificing its historical integrity, and as Fawn Brodie commented in her book, No Man Knows My History, Joseph Smith dared to found a new religion in the age of the printing press.
Significant changes have been made to the Book of Mormon since its original 1830 publication. See 3913 Changes in the Book of Mormon, by Jerald and Sandra Tanner, as well as the F.A.R.M.S. publication, Book of Mormon Critical Text: A Tool for Scholarly Reference (3 vols).
There are also scientific difficulties with the Book of Mormon, as well as parallels with printed works (i.e. View of the Hebrews8, etc.), ideas, and superstitions of the time. Some of these difficulties include conflicts with scientific conclusions on Native American origins (the Book of Mormon assumes the Hebrew origins hypothesis, where as science now follows the Bering Land Bridge emigration theory as one of several methods for emigration to the Americas over 30-50 thousand years); Native American language relationships required thousands of years of development, yet the Book of Mormon indicates a common language up to 400 A.D. (see B.H. Roberts's Studies of the Book of Mormon); a seeming lack of relationship of Native American languages with Hebrew (or Egyptian) languages; a contradiction with iron, horses, silk, wheat, oxen, cows, sheep, and pigs mentioned in the Book of Mormon that were not present in the Americas at the time of the Book of Mormon; DNA studies that point to an East Indian origin for Native Americans, not Hebrew, consistent with the Bering Land Bridge theory; and finally a lack of archaeological evidence that can be tied directly to the Book of Mormon (see, as an example, the studies of Thomas Stuart Ferguson).
B. H. Roberts's studies (A Book of Mormon Study, and Parallels),
as well as Joseph Smith and the Origins of The Book of Mormon
(by David Persuitte), point out such significant parallels in the
ideas of the book View of the Hebrews, plus its availability,
etc. to Joseph Smith, that it seems clear that Joseph Smith used
this book to get some of his ideas on The Book of Mormon.
Also, affidavits from Mormonism Unvailed,9 and the testimonies of Emma Smith, Oliver
Cowdery, Martin Harris, and David Whitmer as to his methods of
translation (see
Translation or
Divination?
from the Institute for Religious Research as
regards this idea, as well as documents and photo reprints from the
Utah Lighthouse Ministry), seem
to make it clear that Joseph Smith wrote The Book of Mormon,
instead of translating it with the power of God. Finally, another
book of important research showing further the hand of Joseph Smith
in the writing of the Book of Mormon is Joseph Smith's
Plagiarism of the Bible 10 by
Jerald and Sandra Tanner.
And I seal up these records after that I have spoken a few words by way of exhoration unto you. Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam, even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, and he will manifest the truth in you, by the power of the Holy Ghost; and by the power of the Holy Ghost, ye may know the truth of all things.
Photo reprints of historical Mormon publications: