Critics say it is a work of fiction created by smith, while some mormon apologists defend its authenticity. What if the book of mormon was not full of anachronisms but instead laid out truths. Index of articles on mormons, mormonism,the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, joseph smith, book of mormon, book of abraham, modern revelation, archeology, science, history, faith, christianity, judaism, apologetics, nature of god, council of gods, faith, dna and the book of mormon, cataclysm of 3rd nephi, signs in the sky. His statement that the book of abraham is not like the book of mormon because there is no verse in it that says, if you pray about it you can find out if it is true or not is laughable. Mormonism teaches that god the father has a father god and that that father god also had a father god. The foundation for ancient research and mormon studies functions as a research and publication center that focuses on scholarly analysis of the book of mormon, the book of abraham, the old testament, the new testament, early christian history, and ancient temples. Fairmormon is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing welldocumented answers to criticisms of the doctrine, practice, and history of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Nibley 19102005 taught at byu from 1946 until 1994 and produced an astonishing body of scholarship, mostly in defense of the book of mormon, the book of abraham, and lds theology. An immediate response from many of them is that it is a word with negative connotationsthat people are apologizing for the church. Nov 10, 2015 weak apologetics injure church doctrine. Apologetics press facsimile 1 from the book of abraham. Home book of abraham critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9 posted on july 6, 2019 july 6, 2019 by rickb leave a comment critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9. Updated 122395 includes the smithsonian letter on the book of mormon. Brief overview of the history of the book of abraham why the critics say it is problematic what workarounds apologists have created to deal with those criticisms why those workarounds are dead ends evidences apologists share why those.
Dan vogel on book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9. These pages were written while the saints lived in kirtland, ohio, and were recorded in the general time frame that joseph was translating the book of abraham. The bible and the book of mormon cannot both contain the fullness of the everlasting gospel as mormons claim, for they are contradictory. Facsimile 1 from the book of abraham apologetics press. Today we explore the book of abraham in radio free mormon style. What if the book of abraham was confirmed by egyptologists. According to joseph smiths introductory comments in the translation, abraham wrote the book himself, by his own hand, upon papyrus smith, 1842, 93. Translation and historicity of the book of abraham university of. Apologetics press the book of mormon and the ancient evidence.
Critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9 gospel. The book of abraham is part of the pearl of great price, which mormons consider scripture. The translation was published serially in the times and seasons beginning march 1, 1842, at nauvoo, illinois. This december, he and robin jensen, from the church history department, released the joseph smith papers volume dedicated to the book of abraham. Smith who had claimed to have translated the book of mormon from golden plates that had been inscribed with reformed. Unlike the book of mormon, fragments of the documents from which smith translated the book of abraham are available for inspection. With the resurfacing of the same papyri he used to do his book of abraham translation and the fact that he did not in any way do it correctly should be proof enough that joseph smith lied about his abilities from god. See my linebyline debunking of apologetics in the book of abraham section of debunking fairmormon. The false translation of the book of abraham, therefore, casts serious doubt on the book of mormon as well, forever debilitating josephs claim he was a true, inspired prophet of god. There are many proofs that joseph smith was a false prophet, but mormons typically will not accept them. This section offers an overarching narrative of book of mormon historicity debates from 1830 to the present, meant to underscore that these debates do not occur in a vacuum. Hauglid has acknowledged that most of my concerns and questions presented in the book of abraham section of the ces letter are legitimate questions and concerns. The book of abraham missing scrolls, catalyst theories, and bad apologetics part 2. The papyri which joseph smith said he translated the book of abraham from have been exposed to be nothing more than funeral texts from ancient egypt.
None of the characters on the papyrus fragments mentioned abraham s name or any of the events recorded in the book of abraham. Although not a part of the book of mormon, the book of abraham has a bearing on the translation of the book of mormon. Hauglid surprisingly cites michael rhodes, john gee, william j. Of all the sacred texts of the mormon church, one of the most fascinating is the book of abraham, a fivechapter book that purportedly records the travels of abraham in egypt. Exformer mormon shows boyd k packers ice cold answer to legit q of book of mormon s lords prayer duration. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies byuorg. Contemporary book of mormon apologetics really began with two lengthy series of articles from 1950 to 1952 by nibley on the book of mormon, published in 1952 as the book lehi in the desert and the world of the jaredites.
Sandy herter, conversation with bill mckeever, 1998. Was the book of mormon a key factor in lincolns success and the healing of a nation. What if the hill of cumorah was full of steel swords, chariots, coins and bones. In this chapter we will examine another book of the mormon scriptures called the book of abraham. This is a clear attempt to say that it doesnt matter if the book of abraham is true or not, and insinuating that it might not be.
Jul 06, 2019 home book of abraham critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9 posted on july 6, 2019 july 6, 2019 by rickb leave a comment critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9. While their position within mormon studies is debated, mormon apologetics have a tradition dating back to parley p. This progression of gods continues to go back forever thus they believe in an infinite amount of gods. Once again, the book of mormon fails the test of truth. Robert ritners epic takedown of the lds churchs book of abraham essay. Brief overview of the history of the book of abraham why the critics say it is problematic what workarounds apologists have created to deal with those. Find out about its teachings of men becoming gods, temples, the book of mormon, and joseph smith who claimed to have seen god the father. Joseph smith claimed that an angel appeared to him and revealed the location of some golden plates on which was written the account of the ancient people of the americas. Such is the modern subtitle of the book of mormon, a book first published in 1830 but purporting to be a translation of an ancient scripture penned in the western hemisphere between 600 b. An essay on the churchs website, titled translation and historicity of the book of abraham, explains. Lds apologetics and the battle for mormon history 1.
The documentary history of the church a mormon record gives the perspective of joseph smith in the following statements. Smith once called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion smith, 1902, 4. Smith likes lists with multiple explanatory options. He claimed to be able to translate these fragments, and the book of abraham is the result. The history of the book of abraham begins in july of 1835. Farms fair shields mormon apologetics farms and fair and shields apologize for the book of mormon and the book of abraham. Unlike controversial and less respected mormon apologists, mr. Second, the critics do not deal with the issues arising from the book of abraham that latterday saints care about. Apologetics press the book of mormon and the ancient.
Theyre mormon apologists whose life mission is to defend mormonism at all costs. The book of abraham is a work produced between 1835 and 1842 by joseph smith based. The book of abraham issues translation problems mormonthink. None of the characters on the papyrus fragments mentioned abrahams name or any of the events recorded in the book of abraham. The book of mormon fails every attempt to evaluate it objectively. Disproves lds claims that joseph smith received the book of abraham through revelation and proves that joseph smiths source for his translation was a pagan egyptian text, the book of breathings.
Book of abraham learning about the book of abraham. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of abraham. Any of the awesome content or the solid opinions expressed, implied or included in mormon discussion incs awesome podcast lineup and production are solely those of mormon discussion inc. But, we have essentially, what joseph said was the entire book of abraham, the entire book of joseph. The concern we have with the lds apologists is that they do not look at the book of abraham issues objectively. How the book of abraham exposes the false nature of mormonism. The mormon church hoped the book of abraham would vindicate joseph smith as a true prophet of god. You may also be interested in this pearl of great price resource. Mormon and nonmormon egyptologists agree that the characters on the fragments do not match the translation.
Mormon scripture at brigham young university, was the churchs primary apologist for many years. Lds apologists argued that, because many of the egyptian experts had pointed out that the facsimiles were. Peterson as credible sources for supporting the authenticity of the book of abraham. A good general source of boa apologetics found here. Critical appraisal of the book of abraham wikipedia. These two books were connected by the man who said he was divinely gifted as a translator. In fact, the book of mormon even teaches there is only one god. Christian heimburger and robin scott jensen discuss the process that gave us the book of abraham, giving. Joseph smith later translated those plates into what is now known as the book of mormon. Mormons apologists now argue the papyri are later transcriptions and copies of the ancient scrolls written by abraham. It also examines mormon apologetic claims that other scrolls were possible sources for the book of abraham. Dan vogel on book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9 gospel tangents. I wonder what loyd would say if the book of mormon did line up with secular truths.
Mormonism, also known as the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, claims to be the restoration of the true gospel and a revelation of the true god. Fairmormon faithful answers to criticisms of the lds church. Three difficult questions for mormons catholic answers. Explores the joseph smith papyrus and demonstrates that joseph smiths claim that he had translated the book of abraham from it was a fabrication. You may wish to ask your mormon acquaintance to consider the following authoritative statements by their earlier and present prophets. In the last chapter, we saw some of the problems mormonism faces with the book of mormon and archaeology.
May 20, 2017 why our church no longer plays bethel or hillsong music, pastor explains false teachings duration. Additionally, the book of mormon is in opposition to current mormon theology. The above donut chart shows percentages of the book of abraham section of letter to a ces director that fairmormon is in agreement, disagreement, and neutral on if one assumes that fairmormons undisputed silence is acceptance of the facts, fairmormon agrees with 90. In the introduction of the book of mormon, smith states that it is the record of gods dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the americas, which also contains the fullness of the everlasting. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of. As well, the book of abraham i feel is used a lot especially in the. In 1835, joseph smith acquired a collection of papyrus fragments from a travelling egyptian show. Bad book of mormon apologetics lds church is true blog. As with the book of mormon and other translation projects that joseph smith worked on, the book of abraham cannot be defended in any way as the result of provable or scientific information about abraham or the ancient world. Apr 08, 2017 historical background to the book of abraham. See david persuitte, joseph smith and the origins of the book of mormon, 2nd ed. Thanks especially to the internet, several latterday saint lds, mormon apologetics groups have made it their business to actively defend the historicity of the book of mormon and the book of abraham as well as uphold the integrity of early mormon leaders. Yeah sure, just as soon as mormon apologetics admit that the book of abraham is a fraudyour getting close to doing sobut come on just come clean and admit it.
This translation was done by the power of god through special means. I think i have proof that mormonism is not true youtube. Aug 28, 2017 in october 1835, mormon prophet, joseph smith, claimed to have translated the book of abraham from an ancient egyptian papyrus containing hieroglyphics which he had previously purchased a few months prior. The bible is the new frontier in mormon apologetics.
There has been a fair bit written hereabouts about the missing scroll hypothesis. The book of abraham now you know mormon life hacker. Chandler came to kirtland to exhibit some egyptian mummies. Nibley s method was essentially a comparative approach, ransacking ancient literature far and wide for parallels to the book of mormon. In the second quote, he is referring to the book by his own hand upon papyrus by charles larson, which most mormons would consider an antimormon book. The book of abraham is a book of lds scripture that joseph smith translated from a collection of ancient egyptian papyri the church purchased. The word apologist is often seen by members who are just learning about the issues found on mormonthink. A portion of the papyri used by joseph smith as the source of the book of abraham. Hauglids essay, i would like to note here that i appreciate mr. What mormon apologetics are used to mitigate the fact that. Mormonism also makes a number of historical claims. An inspired translation of the writings of abraham. Thu the abrahamic covenant in the book of mormon fri the abrahamic covenant in the new testament and today also a publication worth reading.
What mormon apologetics are used to mitigate the fact that joseph smith referenced facsimile no. He talks about lds apologetics how lds members defend the book of abraham. Mormons hoped the rediscovery and retranslation would validate the book of abraham and josephs ability to translate the book of mormon. Mormonism and many gods youth apologetics training. Brief overview of the history of the book of abraham why the critics say it is problematic what workarounds apologists have created to deal with those criticisms why those. The papyri which joseph smith said he translated the book of abraham from have been exposed to be nothing more than funeral texts from ancient egypt at least eight egyptologists and semitists have studied the papyri and. Lds apologist undermines the book of abraham mormon chronicle. Book of mormon central have done various blog posts and videos that promoted what they saw as very impressive results of this study. Contemporary book of mormon apologetics really began with two lengthy series of articles from 1950 to 1952 by nibley on the book of mormon, published in. Rather, they are shaped by social developments such as the expansion of higher education or the advent of the internet. Dec 23, 2015 the false translation of the book of abraham, therefore, casts serious doubt on the book of mormon as well, forever debilitating josephs claim he was a true, inspired prophet of god. An audio narration that briefly describes the history of the book of abraham and how it came to be in the pearl of great price. Among the early book of abraham relatedmanuscripts that have survived from the days of joseph smith are a number of papers collectively referred to as the kirtland egyptian papers kep. We have actual evidence that joseph smith was lying to mormons when he invented his new scripture the book of abraham.
Thousands of mormons left the church as the result of this discovery, while thousands more are completely unaware of this important piece of evidence. Bill reel once again joins us and we proceed to lay out the following. How the book of abraham exposes the false nature of. The amount of scholarship in mormon studies increased after world war ii. The book of abraham missing scrolls, catalyst theories, and bad apologetics part 1. But those are really the hor scroll and the book of breathing scroll. Critics point out that joseph smith also translated the book of abraham.
See mormonthinks thorough overview of the book of abraham. They are as busy as bees with this mission impossible task. He has been a prominent book of abraham apologists, publishing in farms and other byu outlets. Matt roper and paul fields did a study on book of mormon wordprint patterns, ie computer statistical analysis of word pattern to determine authorship and other attributes of the book. Imo they would have been better of just talking about what is in the book of abraham text then engaging in poor apologetics and how it was translated. Jun 11, 2009 thanks especially to the internet, several latterday saint lds, mormon apologetics groups have made it their business to actively defend the historicity of the book of mormon and the book of abraham as well as uphold the integrity of early mormon leaders. I found something which was refreshing to read from an lds member, dr. Critiquing book of abraham apologetics part 9 of 9. Like the claims of the old and new testaments, the mormon scriptures can be checked against the historical. Rather, we should raise the bar and hasten the work in mormon apologetics. Joseph smith began the translation in 1835 after obtaining some egyptian papyri. An introduction to the book of abraham, by john gee.
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