Smith said he has received these plates in 1827 from an angel named. The book of mormon doesnt supersede or replace the bible, it compliments it. If you accept the book of mormon you must place your faith in one man, joseph smith, and accept that everything he says is the absolute and eternal truth. Subtitled another testament of jesus christ, it recounts the story story of an israelite family who immigrated to and fully populated the american continents. The book of mormon and the king james bible wikipedia. What archaeological evidence might be considered the minimal irrefutable proof needed to convince a nonbelieving world of the authenticity of the. Mormonism teaches to investigators and followers alike that the correct interpretation of this passage is that, the sticks are really scrolls, the stick of judah is the bible, the stick of joseph is the book of mormon, the joining of these sticks mean the joining of the two writings, the bible and the book of mormon. And whereas the bible is organically linked to the earthly ministry of jesus christ by extensive surviving manuscript evidence going back as far as a. Mormons believe that the book of mormon is an additional witness to the divinity of christ and that it helps clarify teachings and doctrines that are confusing or misinterpreted in the bible. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon.
It seems that if nephi had copied them from the plates of brass in hebrew onto his own record and that if joseph smith had then received the english translation by the gift and power of god, the isaiah passages would read more like the 1830 book of mormon and less. Oct 11, 2017 the stick of judah is obviously the bible, since the jews are through the tribe of judah. This is a response to the anti mormon video bible vs the book of mormon, produced by faithful latterday saints. Mormon beliefs are also shown to contradict both the bible and the book of mormon. Book of mormon evidence streaming faithfully exploring. Love for the book of mormon expands ones love for the. Further, there is no evidence at all that joseph smith did any scholarly research, or even that he read very much, before the book of mormon appeared. There it is againthe fullness of the everlasting gospel. Why does the mormon church still teach that joseph smith was a true prophet of god after he made a false prophecy about a temple being. 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. Proof that the book of mormon is true, excerpt from. Isaiah in the book of mormon religious studies center.
Mormon prooftexts from the bible christian research. In terms of evidence, if we compare the bible to the book of mormon, the bible wins hands down. The book of mormon claims to have been written in reformed egyptian morm. In several cases, the plagiarism is proof that joseph smith was the author of the book of mormon, since the source of. It contains 19 chapters of the kjv of isaiah in their entirety, along with parts of a few other chapters. 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. Excluding the bible and similar writing, can you prove to an atheist or to someone that is agnostic that god exists. Book of mormonarchaeologycompared to the bible fairmormon. There are many gods polytheism how many gods there are, i do not know.
Welch first pointed out the existence of chiasms in the book of mormon in his masters thesis, a study relating chiasmus in the book of mormon to chiasmus in the old testament, ugaritic epics, homer, and selected greek and latin authors, brigham young university, 1970, including alma 36 on pages 12831. Is there evidence for the book of mormon in the bible. How could there be so many witnesses of the book of mormon and the plates and not one of them deny their testimony even when some of them became bitter toward joseph smith. The stick of joseph referred to is the book of mormon. In the case of the book of mormon, it all funnels through joseph smith, so if it is simply josephs creation, then none of it is historical. Rowling masterfully created a world based on mythology and magic, her novels are not the only books to mention these mystical beastssome are also mentioned in the bible and the book of mormon. Son of man, take a stick and write on it, for judah, and the people of israel associated with him. The theory that the book of mormon is an ancient american history is not accepted. It is a record of gods dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the americas, and contains, as does the bible, the fullness of the everlasting gospel.
Nonmormon archaeologists speak on book of mormon evidence. This view finds no acceptance outside of mormonism. In the book of mormon then, it says not to forgive those who refuse to worship idols. The introduction tells you that the book of mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible.
An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Textual evidences for the book of mormon religious studies. Centuries later, according to the scripture, jesus appeared to the nephites in the same region after his resurrection. How much archaeological evidence would we really expect to have survived the intervening centuries. This book is an outgrowth of those articles and the public reaction which the articles engendered. Today the bible and book of mormon are companion books in the hands and before the eyes of people today. Proof the book of mormon isnt true the book of mormon contradicts the bible and was actually a work of fiction written by joseph smith in the 1800s, who copied much of it from the king james version, trying to make it. Jan 23, 2016 the book of mormon describes a ditch being dug around the protected area.
The book of mormon contains many linguistic similarities to the king james bible kjv. The bible vs the book of mormon basic mormon beliefs. In some cases, entire passages are duplicated in the book of mormon. Bible ties to the book of mormon bible reference for lds beliefs.
The book of mormon for more than 170 years, the church of jesus christ of latterday saints has declared the book of mormon to be a scriptural and literal history. Nov 30, 20 these facts establish how plausible it is that the book of mormon really is an artifact of the ancient world. As a companion to the bible, the book of mormon is a witness of jesus christs divinity and his role as the savior of the world. 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. Due to the nature of its origin, that would support the existence of god. 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. Non mormon archaeologists speak on book of mormon evidence. The book of mormon claims to be a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible.
Jul 01, 2007 yes, we believe the bible is proof of christ, but we also believe that the book of mormon is a testament of christ. The only bible that joseph smith relied on was the king james version. The prophet joseph smith said, i told the brethren 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 joseph smith, history of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, 7 vols. Most who have studied the subject conclude that this signifies writing the hebrew language in modified egyptian characters. To the ardent follower of joseph smith, the book of mormon is the surest proof of his prophetic office. Why is there no archaeological evidence for the book of mormon. And, with more study, the books sturdiness and richness and the remarkable accomplishment of its translator, the prophet joseph smith, become more apparent. Barley comes up in the book of mormon four different times mosiah 7. In fact there are more lost, altered and changed sections in the book of mormon when you compare the original 1830 book of mormon to the current edition, than the few variant readings in the new testament. Supporters of the book of mormon claim it uses chiasmusa figure of speech utilizing inverted parallelismand claim it is evidence to support the book s ancient origin. Mormon prooftexts from the bible christian research institute. 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. The book of mormon is really there so one can have book of mormon studies, and archaeology is really there so one can study archaeology, but the two are not wed.
The book of mormon is a book of scripture similar to the bible. Proof the book of mormon isnt true the book of mormon contradicts the bible and was actually a work of fiction written by joseph smith in the 1800s, who copied much of it from the king james version, trying to make it look like an ancient manuscript. Critics note that there is no physical proof of the existence of golden plates. After all, the book of mormon also claims to be revelation from god, and that leads naturally into your other question. That type of argument is usually called fideism or blind faith. The claim that there is no archaeological evidence supporting the book of mormon is incorrect. More on joseph smiths plagiarism in the book of mormon. But there never was a time when there were not gods and worlds.
A twohundredyear era of peace followed that visit of christ. The book of mormon records the visit of jesus christ to people in the americas following his resurrection. For the archaeologist, the strongest contextual clues come. If one is to study book of mormon archaeology, then one must have a corpus of data with which to deal. The book of mormon explicitly quotes the prophet isaiah. They ignore, of course, the context itself in which god actually gives the interpretation v.
Oct 05, 2019 evidences in proof of the book of mormon by charles thompson, minister of the gospel. Atop it a fence of timbers was planted and bound together with vines. Roberts wrote a letter in 1932 citing a few sources for cement work that predated the book of mormons publication, but this information was highly obscure until the middle of the 20 th century. He cares about more then just the people he was with.
Both sufficient and necessary evidences are highly subjective in quantity and quality. These claims have historically been taken on faith. Ive presented this information in a summarized way before, but felt that seeing the full text side by side would give the reader a much greater appreciation of the extent that joseph smith plagiarized from the king james bible. The subtitle of the book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. Problems with the book of mormon catholic answers catholic. 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. Lost civilizations of north america documentary4, deborah bolnick on haplogroup x. In total, approximately 30 percent of the book of isaiah is quoted in the book of mormon one source counts 478 verses in the book of mormon which are quoted from isaiah. Below is a list of fundamental doctrines taught in the bible for which the book of mormon adds an additional witness. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints believes the book of mormon is a. Members of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints otherwise known as mormons. It is part of a collection that includes book of mormon evidences, part two, book of mormon evidences, part three, and book of mormon nuggets.
The bible and book of mormon teach that god is our heavenly father. Provides concrete evidence disproving the book of abraham, demonstrating that joseph smith was a false prophet. It is the one undeniable sign of his divinely given gifts of translation. And whereas the bible is organically linked to the earthly ministry of jesus christ by extensive surviving manuscript evidence going back as far as. The theory that the book of mormon is an ancient american history is not accepted as scientifically verifiable by the mainstream academic community. Both the bible and the book of mormon declare themselves to be ancient. Most, but not all, mormons hold the book s connection to ancient american history as an article of their faith. Sometimes the quotation is explicit, as in the second book of nephi, which contains 18 quoted chapters of the book of isaiah. Each book stands as evidence that god lives and speaks to his children by revelation to his prophets. In recent years, we have learned that several ancient documents were written in precisely that fashion.
The book of mormon has excited very little enthusiasm outside of mormonism, but it is a uniquely american piece of writing that merits wider. Jul 06, 2011 the bible came first, not the book of mormon. Top 10 embarrassments of the mormon religion listverse. The book of mormon is a sacred text that was published in march 1830 by joseph smith, jr. Smith plagiarized 478 verses from the book of isaiah, and 201 are identical to the king james bible. Proof that the book of mormon is true book of mormon facts. Its couched in king james english, and it features color renderings of mormon scenes made to look like bible illustrations. Many a learned person has asked the same thing about the bible or even the existence of god. Mormons, do you believe the bible is proof that jesus. Palmer 16 scholars reject smiths explanation of the origin of the book of mormon. But is there any evidence to support them one way or the other. A logical proof that mormonism is false by matt slick mormonism teaches that god used to be a man on another world, mormon doctrine by bruce mcconkie, p. The bible is full of proof that it came by the inspiration of god.
President benson said that the church had neglected its charter scripture and that now, in our day, the lord has. First published in 1830, the book of mormon tells of the transoceanic migrations of two ancient near eastern peoples to the americas. The mormon beliefs are clearly shown and easily contradicted by both the bible and the book of mormon. If there are differences between the bible and the book of mormon, they reject the bible. In this chapter we will examine the book of mormon to see how it holds up to the. For instance, because chiasms abound in the king james bible, chiasms in the book of mormon provide necessary evidence, by the definition used above. That very arrangement is now well documented archaeologically an ancient american setting for the book of mormon, provo, utah. Think joseph smith could have gotten that right by sheer chance. Admittedly, evidence surrounding the book of mormon is not our greatest strength, while the bible itself contains hundreds of verifiable events, wars, cities. Thus, more fodder for book of mormon criticism and ridicule.
The book of mormon teaches that god has flesh and bones and that he has a wife with whom they produce spirit offspring in heaven that will inhabit human bodies on earth. Beyond this, the same issues are shared between the book of mormon and the bible. Evidences in proof of the book of mormon book of mormon. Book of mormon evidences, part one discusses some of the many factors supporting the plausibility of the book of mormon as an ancient document. For example, critics of mormonism have shown convincing proof that the book of mormon is a synthesis of earlier works written by other men, of the vivid imaginings of joseph smith, and of plagiarisms from the king james bible. There is no question that the isaiah passages in the book of mormon are in the language of the king james translation of the bible. Therefore, the mormon can have confidence that the bible is the word of god and that it can be accurately translated. Of course, outside of the mormon s own writings, there are no records, no evidence whatsoever of any such visit by jesus to the americas.
The purpose of this article is to shed some light on not only the subject of archaeology, but also. The book of mormon restores plain and precious truths that have been lost from the bible. Archaeological evidence and the book of mormon fairmormon. Joseph smith must have been confused by that line, so he changed it.
So much for the book of mormon being a different gospel than the bible the record of this visit is found in the book of 3rd nephi, in the book of mormon. The king james bible critics of the book of mormon claim that major portions of it are copied, without attribution, from the bible. Employing the word cement was cited as anachronistic proof of the book of mormons fabrication. According to verse 8, what did the lord say was his purpose for revealing scripture in addition to the bible. Lehi, the first prophet of book of mormon, was a descendant of the tribe of joseph. Order the dvd at the book of mormon claims to be a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. Five compelling archeological evidences for the book of mormon. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was originally an ancient nativeamerican record written on golden plates, and that god gave him the power to translate it into english. Mormon apologists have proposed multiple theories to explain apparent inconsistencies with the archaeological, genetic, linguistic and other records. The book of mormon contains the writings of several groups who came to the americas, including a family who left.
Each of the anachronisms is a word, phrase, artifact, or other concept that critics, historians, archaeologists, or linguists believe did not exist in the americas during the time period in which the book of mormon claims to have been written. Ronald gudnason universal model science taught in iceland. This, they say, is a clear prophecy that the bible the stick of judah is to be joined with the book of mormon the stick of joseph to comprise the full revelation of god. At first glance the book of mormon appears to be biblical in heft and style. The 1st rule of book of mormon evidence there is no. By comparing the differences with other versions of the old testament, we can see evidence that the book of mormon is an authentic record that adds to a correct. Sectarian critics who accept the bible, but not the book of mormon, sometimes claim that the bible has been proven or confirmed by archaeology, and insist that the same cannot be said for the book of mormon. The bible the bible teaches that all men have sinned and fallen short of the glory of god. Scholars reject smiths explanation of the origin of the book of mormon. Many a learned person has asked the same thing about the bible or. Moroni, the last of the nephite prophethistorians, sealed up the abridged records of these people and hid them in about a.
Jul 26, 2018 the book of mormon is a sacred text that was published in march 1830 by joseph smith, jr. Nov 06, 2006 order the dvd at the book of mormon claims to be a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. For example, critics of mormonism have shown convincing proof that the. They present this as evidence that joseph smith wrote the book of mormon by plagiarizing the authorized king james version of the bible. The book of mormon discusses in places the process by which it was compiled. And for those of you who want proof outside the bofm, there is archaeological. In the last chapter we saw that the bible is reliable, being textually pure and verifiably accurate in many places. For 26 consecutive weeks beginning on january 2, 1997, there appeared an accurate and informative series of newspaper articles in the wetumpka herald circulation 4,400 entitled the bible and the book of mormon connecting links. Both the bible and the book of mormon declare themselves to be ancient, historical, and reliable rules of faiththe very word of god. The evidence indicates that the book of mormon is in fact an amalgamation of ideas that were inspired by josephs own environment new and themes from the bible old. In fact, many pieces of necessary evidence are more compelling than material deemed sufficient. 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.
This common query often expresses the questioners incorrect assumptions about archaeological methodologyassumptions usually based the questioners lack of knowledge about a very specialized academic area. Admittedly, evidence surrounding the book of mormon is not our greatest strength, while the bible itself contains hundreds of verifiable events, wars, cities, historical figures, and factual. The book of mormon is the only explanation for this scripture. Allan part 1 the book of mormon tells usofa who and where we are, and what is coming. When we study the book of mormon, our understanding of the doctrines in the bible is clarified. The book of mormon is completely devoid of such proof. The book of mormon the book of mormon claims to be a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. These facts establish how plausible it is that the book of mormon really is an artifact of the ancient world. There are some serios problems with the book of mormon that the lds church cannot adequately explain. Textual evidences for the book of mormon religious. Many members of the latter day saint movement claim historical authenticity of the book of mormon.
1197 21 1156 481 1325 721 1349 798 1495 994 1117 1376 1119 1103 752 197 1278 1478 49 738 1021 984 530 180 196 1385 1303 1329 829 205 1210 1336 595 168 72 103 858 1341