Ethan smith, pastor of the congregational church in poultney, vermont, argued that the native americans were scattered israelites who would soon be restored into the gospel fold. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Did joseph smith plagiarize from view of the hebrews when. He also warns the authorities that they need to look at his research because it will cause problems for the church in the future if they dont answer the questions he has posed. New evidence furnished of the divinity of the bible 169 appendix. This book, written by a minister, ethan smith, demonstrates that the book of mormon was not unique in its assertion that the native americans were descended from the house of israel within a. Book of mormon central archive view of the hebrews. Jesus ben anunus did not have stones thrown at him. Did ethan smiths view of the hebrews furnish structural material. The storyline outline for the book of mormon probably came from ethan smiths 1823 new york novel, view of the hebrews.
You can read view of the hebrews online at no charge at in addition to that theres a lot of great information at the website as well. Alleged relationships of view of the hebrews to the book of mormon have attracted interest periodically through the years. Reverend ethan smith was the author of view of the hebrews. The most common belief of adherents is that promoted by joseph smith, who said he translated ancient golden plates inscribed by prophets. For almost 200 years now, critics have been scrambling to prove that the book of mormon is nothing but a work of fiction. Numerous commentators on mormon history, from lds church general authority b.
Roberts concluded that this book, originally published in poultney, vermont in 1823 7 years prior to the book of mormon was available to joseph smith and contained enough parallel material to the book of mormon so as to furnish a virtual groundplan for it. Did ethan smiths view of the hebrews furnish structural material for joseph smiths book of mormon. He writes about those who oppose the church who may believe that joseph smith copied large portions of the book of mormon from a book called a view of the hebrews. One of the mormon evidences is to ask you to consider if joseph smith could have fabricated the book of mormon. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesview of the hebrews. Another look at book of mormon and view of the hebrews. If the view of the hebrews served as the basis for the book of mormon, one would think that the bible scriptures used by ethan smith would be mined by joseph smith for the book of mormon.
It was first published in 1823 the book of mormon was published 6 years later in 1829. Did view of the hebrews influence themes in joseph smiths. This is the chance for people to actually document the similarities and differences. Ces letter misportrays the content of the two books. It is so similar to view of the hebrews and the late war that i am shocked that people believe it. Mark twain once said after reading the book of mormon, it is chloroform in print. Why thousands of errors in the original 1830 the book of mormon. In october 20, the authors conducted a data analysis comparing the book of mormon to over 100,000 books from the pre1830s era. Ethan smiths book proposes that the american indians were the lost tribes of israel and has several. The first supposed similarity is the fact that both view of the hebrews and the book of mormon reference jerusalem being destroyed. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon. The quote above comes from the mormon periodical times and seasons which joseph smith used to post a quote from a book called view of the hebrews, authored by the minister ethan smith no relation.
The book of mormon is a compilation of several books written by ancient prophets. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon is based. Hebrew book of mormon general discussions mormon dialogue. As one example, nothing in the view of the hebrews explains the rich semitic complexity of the book of mormon.
Ive read view of the hebrews myself and i really dont see much similarity between it and the book of mormon. Exaggerated similarities between view of the hebrews and. For almost a century critics of the authenticity of the book of mormon have claimed that view of the hebrews, first published by ethan smith in 1823 2d ed. This was a relatively common view during the early nineteenth century, as most europeans and americans had a view of history as biblical. The story in scripturesa geographical, cultural, and historical system of understanding and step by step through the book of. This book, written by a minister, ethan smith, demonstrates that the book of mormon was not unique in its assertion that the native americans were descended from the house of israel within a religious history framework. If joseph smith composed this book, the act was a miracle. Roberts took the position of examining the book of mormon from a critical perspective in order to alert the general authorities to possible future avenues of attack by critics. View of the hebrews flooded the area in which joseph smith lived. There are 34 parallels between the book of mormon and the view of the hebrews, as acknowledged by former church historian b. The book view of the hebrews was published in 1823, 7 years before the book of mormon. I will now examine specific similarities that are cited most often by critics. Ethan smith, pastor of the congregational church in poultney, vermont, argued that the native americans were scattered israelites who would soon.
View of the hebrews is an 1823 book written by ethan smith, a united states congregationalist minister, who argued that native americans were descended from the ten lost tribes of israel. Roberts 18571933, a prominent lds apologist and historian, was asked to answer nonbelievers five critical questions by lds apostle james e. Book of mormon and view of the hebrews parallels life after. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon. Fairmormon likewise concedes similarities between the book of mormon and ethan smiths view of the hebrews. View of the hebrews would be just another one of those early 19thcentury 10 lost tribes theories were it not for the fact that ethan smith and oliver cowdery shared the same time and place and that there are so many parallels between view and the book of mormon. The destruction of jerusalem i will now examine specific similarities that are cited most often by critics. The book of mormon shares some thematic elements with view of the hebrews. The excommunication of the hebrews deeply affecting 154 2. Did joseph smith plagiarize from view of the hebrews when writing the book of mormon by jeff lindsay. It was distributed free of charge around the world, especially in israel and new york city. Similarities between the book of mormon and view of the.
View of the hebrews1823 book of mormon1829 very very. The author ethan smith was the pastor of the religious congregation in which. For example, they misquote the book of mormon s account of samuel the lamanite to make it sound like the view of the hebrews account of jesus ben ananias many of the parallels are unique to the second. Despite the churchs claims, the roots of mormonism, rather than being ancient and old world, are often instead nineteenth century and very american. This is described in the first chapter of voth and lehi is warned of. The two books, view of the hebrews and the book of mormon have been undergoing comparisons for decades. The book of mormon, as it was called, purported to tell the story of the first americans by giving them a hebrew ancestry. Ethan smith was a minister of a congregational church in poultney, vermont from 1821 to 1826 when he wrote view of the hebrews. This video goes over the many similarities between the two books. A potent representation of how the book of mormon follows popular but ultimately falsified early 19th century beliefs about the native americans and a possible direct source of influence for some specific book of mormon content in 1922 lds leader bh roberts stated the following. Is the book of mormon really inspired like the bible. But the differences between these books are very significant. In fact, this would have been much more likely, since joseph smith and. Similarities between view of the hebrews, the late.
Oliver cowdery was a thirdcousin of lucy mack smith, joseph smiths mother. 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. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of mormon. Several commentators on mormon history and the book of mormon, including lds church general authority b.
Interestingly, oliver cowdery, scribe, and later witness of the book of mormon, lived in poultney for 22 years until 1825. First of all, the style of the book of mormon is very different from the embellished rhetoric sidney. Exaggerated similarities between the book of mormon and. Native americans as hebrew descendants, ancient records of natives preserved, scattering and gathering of israel, hebrew origin of native american language, etc. View of the hebrews and the book of mormon book of. The author ethan smith was the pastor of the religious congregation in which the oliver cowdrey family attended.
But persuittes parallels certainly fall short of proving his contention that the resultant preponderance of evidence demonstrates conclusively that the book of mormon had its conceptual origins in view of the hebrews. View of the hebrews 1825 edition introduction mormons. A few years later it was withdrew from public distribution and the remaining copies were kept by the lds archives. Lets face it, they say, joseph smith was an uneducated young man living in poverty with almost no access to books, and he dictated the entire text of the book of mormon in 63 days. 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. Posted in book of mormon, tagged bh roberts, book of mormon, ethan smith, false gospel, joseph smith, parallels between book of mormon and view of the hebrews, view of the hebrews on 04242014 1 comment. The quote above comes from the mormon periodical times and seasons which joseph smith used to post a quote from a book called view of the hebrews. Parallels between view of the hebrews and the book of mormon it has been argued that there are significant parallels between view of the hebrews and the book of mormon. The messiah did not visit the americas in view of the hebrews. So the evidence indicates that the book of mormon is not a true historical record, nor is its message compatible with gods word, the bible. A reader and commentator here suggested that there were parallels between view of the hebrews, the late war, and the book of mormon. Roberts conducted an exhaustive comparison and analysis of these two books and concluded there is merit to this criticism. Is view of the hebrews a source for the book of mormon.
In the 20th century, mormon scholars noted the parallels between view of the hebrews and the book of mormon and suggested that joseph smith had used view of the hebrews as a source in composing the book of mormon, or that he was at least influenced by the popular 19thcentury ideas expounded in. Did ethan smiths view of the hebrews furnish structural. Did view of the hebrews influence themes in joseph smith. Joseph smith quoted view of the hebrews as supporting the book of mormon. Ethan smiths book was published in the adjoining county west of windsor county, where joseph smith was born and lived from 1805 to 1811. If ethan smith suspected or even wished to charge that the book of mormon plagiarized or purloined from his work, it is strange that he proceeded as if there was no relationship between the two books. Out of the top matches, we discovered a book called the late war between the united states and great britain, a scriptural style account of the war of 1812 published in new york in 1816. Lds revelations view of the hebrews book of mormon 1. In addition, fawn brodies book, no man knows my history, and g.
Ethan smith republished view of the hebrews, revised and enlarged, in 1835. View of the hebrews, or, the tribes of isreal in america and millions of other books are available for amazon kindle. In the book the view of the hebrews, what counterarguments h. The view of the hebrews theory was examined in detail by b.
Is the book of mormon plagiarized from view of the hebrews. Learn more view of the hebrews, or, the tribes of isreal in america 2nd edition. View of the hebrews was published in 1823 and a second edition was published in 1825. Consider the similarities between the book of mormon and view of the hebrews as. Everything that is common or even vaguely similar between the book of mormon and the view of the hebrews could have been borrowed more easily from the bible or from prevailing beliefs at that time. The intent in publishing it has been to make it available to all. The book of mormon states in a rather late passage that lehi was a descendant of manasseh, the son of joseph alma 10. Therefore, an apologist answer that both joseph smith and ethan. Could joseph smith have used ethan smiths view of the hebrews as a guideline for creating the book of mormon. Roberts conducted an exhaustive comparison and analysis of these two books and. Well, if joseph smith used ethan smiths view of the hebrews as the main source for the book of mormon, as many critics claim, it is a miracle for the same. Nov 05, 2011 view of the hebrews 1823 book of mormon 1829 very very similar stories. Harrisons fictitious book, mormons are peculiar people, raised public awareness about some similarities between the two books.
The bible the bible teaches that all men have sinned and fallen short of the glory of god. While this does not prove that the book of mormon was plagiarized from the view of the hebrews, it does demonstrate that key elements of the story of the book of mormon i. A pastor who lived near cowdery, ethan smith, had written view of the hebrews, another work that has been posited as a source for the book of mormon. It was not long, however, before a number of people realised that the view of the hebrews and the book of mormon had some. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. Scripture use in view of the hebrews and the book of mormon. Critics often ignore the many dissimilarities between the view of the hebrews and the book of mormon. For the meantime, i will assume that the reader has a basic understanding of what is contained in both the view of the hebrews voth and the book of mormon bom.
Since the book of mormon was first published in 1830, its critics have endeavored to find explanations for it other than the one given by joseph smith. Joseph smith was born in vermont, but the book of mormon was first published in palmyra new york, a good distance away. View of the hebrews is an 1823 book written by ethan smith, a congregationalist minister in vermont, who argued that native americans were descended from the ten lost tribes of israel, a relatively common view during the early nineteenth century. Nevertheless, there is no evidence that joseph smith ever knew anything about this book. The book is basically a list of evidences that the native americans are descendants of the lost 10 tribes which includes biblical or apocryphal texts that are cited to prove his point. The book and the man, joseph smith, kindled a religion that today numbers over nine million members. Some have suggested that the source for much of the history and theology in the book of mormon was an early nineteenthcentury book entitled view of the hebrews, by ethan smith.
But these ideas and similar stories are found in the fictional book called the view of the hebrews published by ethan smith in 1825. The origin of the hill comora wildly racial statements in mormon. Ethan smiths view of the hebrews, published seven years before the book of mormon is thought to be source material for joseph smiths book of mormon. Ethan smith was a pastor in poultney, vermont when he wrote and published the book. Recent imputations against joseph smith contain the charge that the isaiah chapters of the book of mormon were purloined by the prophet from a popular book first published in 1823 by a protestant clergyman named ethan smith, under the title view of the hebrews. Some critics claim that joseph smith copied much of the structure and content of the book of mormon from the 1823 book view of the hebrews by ethan smith no relation to joseph smith. In fact, olivers stepmother was a member of ethan smiths congregation. The book of mormon view of the hebrews the king james bible the book of mormon tells the story of inspired seers and prophets. Most adherents to the latter day saint movement view the book as a work of inspired scripture. The book of mormon is changing the lives of people all. One of the conspiracy theories that gained traction after the solomon.
View of the hebrews and the book of mormon book of mormon. The book of mormon, published in 1830, and ethan smiths 1823 book view of the hebrews parallel each other in some two dozen general themes. Jul 24, 2019 for almost 200 years now, critics have been scrambling to prove that the book of mormon is nothing but a work of fiction. Roberts did his work on the two in 1922, interest in the parallels grew. Exaggerated similarities between the book of mormon and view. Alleged relationships of view of the hebrews to the book of mormon have.
Roberts and fawn brodie, joseph smiths, biographer noted the considerable similarities in the content of view of the hebrews and the book of mormon, which was published seven years after ethan smiths book. Jul 06, 2011 the contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible constitute a most serious obstacle to accepting the book of mormon as latterday scripture supplemental to the bible. Contradictions between the book of mormon and the bible. View of the hebrewsethan smithoriginal book of mormon. View of the hebrews talks of indian traditions that state that their fathers were able to foretell the future and control nature. This book is a faithful and accurate reproduction of the 1825 second edition of view of the hebrews. The book of mormon testifies of jesuss ministry in the americas following his resurrection. Book of mormon and view of the hebrews parallels life. I will set out to prove that the similarities between the two works are exaggerated and details are often contradictory. These dissimilarities, which far outnumber any alleged similarities, are too many to list here. Would you respond to the theories that the book of mormon is based on the spaulding manuscript or on ethan smiths view of the hebrews.
665 966 1443 559 1040 1191 627 1257 1055 672 992 1221 1509 680 457 659 1032 453 177 643 615 306 37 1339 157 1172 268 578 1299 796 312 309 949