Book of mormon dictation

Absent from the lists is an author of josephs age and education who produced a book as complex and lengthy as the book of mormon by dictation in a compressed timeline. Understanding the nature of the thousands of small changes in the book of mormon may be helpful and interesting. It asks readers to understand that if there be fault in the book of mormon it be the mistake of men. We have discussions about whether there was a curtain present during the translation. Why joseph smiths dictation of the book of mormon is simply jawdropping. Book of mormon central evidences of the book of mormon. He later said of this book that, it is the most perfect book ever printed, because it had been made by the power of god using a seer stone and verbatum dictation.

Ive posted before on worlds without end about some examples of stylistic drift that occurred during book of mormon dictation. John milton, joseph smith, and the book of mormon byu. Josephs wife emma insisted that, at the time of translation, joseph could neither write nor dictate a coherent and wellworded letter, let alone dictate a book. Joseph smith at the age of 16 maybe 14,15 or 17 was led to the site of the plates by the angel moroni, joseph was instructed not to remove the items until he was given permission. This is staggering when you think about it to claim that joseph smith, who could not write a coherent letter, wrote the book of mormon, with all of its historical complexity and profound doctrinal insights, in a single dictation draft in approximately 65 working days with no notes in front of him and with only minor changes mostly. The earliest text skousen, royal, smith, joseph on. Now compare that his first book of abraham manuscript, named book of abraham manuscript and explanation to accompany facsimile 1, circa february 1842 abraham 1. And while we will never prove the book of mormon true, the evidence strongly suggests that it is exactly what it claims to be. The book of mormon is a religious record of three groups of people who migrated from the old world to the american continents. Back in the summer of 1828 when joseph had first completed over a hundred pages of dictation with martin ha.

The dictation of the manuscript that became the book of mormon as we have it today appears to have occurred during relatively few working. According to his brother david whitmer, christian assisted oliver cowdery in writing the book of mormon as js dictated the text. If this was the only sort of chiasmus to be found in the book of mormon, then it would be weak evidence, at best, of any sort of ancient origin for the text. She confirmed that smiths seer stone was used for the entire book we know today. John gilbert, the compositor for the 1830 edition, added punctuation to this portion of the manuscript prior to typesetting. Mormon apologists will immediately recognize this as the counterpart to the socalled book of mormon challenge. Book of mormon manuscript excerpt, circa june 1829 1. You can listen in under 26 minutes here key quotes below.

Brian hales has written much on joseph smiths polygamy in the past. There is no error, awkward expression, or ungrammaticality in any of the printed editions of the book that will prevent the honest reader from gaining a testimony of the book of mormon. Joseph smith could neither write nor dictate a coherent and wellworded letter. Denomination free book of mormon book of mormon christian. Mormon was the chief abridger and editor of the full book of mormon. Proposed book of mormon geographical setting wikipedia. And, though i was an active participant in the scenes that trans pired. In reality, though, the kind of stylistic accuracy achieved by these changes has little to do with what joseph meant when he called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth. When it comes to the book of mormon translation, there is what is called a tight translation and there is.

Translating and printing the book of mormon the book of mormon. Upon restarting his dictation, smith relied exclusively on the rock in his hat method for the entirety of the book of mormon we know today. In addition, the evidence indicates that the translation and dictation of the book were accomplished in roughly 63 working daysa torrid pace that, with neither rewrites nor corrections, produced nearly 8. As i then explained, joseph smith didnt restart his dictation from the beginning of the book of mormon after martin harris lost the first 116 pages. Welch discovered the presence of chiasmus on august 16, 1967 while on his mission in germany. Royal skousen is professor of linguistics and english language at brigham young university. Callister, emeritus general authority seventy and former sunday school general president in his tuesday, march 3, lds business college devotional held in the assembly hall on temple square, elder callister listed past and.

Joseph used a rock in a hat for the book of mormon dictation but may have also used the 1769 kjv edition bible and possibly other sources in aiding in producing the book of mormon. Persons who choose to dismiss the book of mormon must ignore the mounting evidence for its authenticity. The sources of inspiration and content essay further discusses joseph smiths grammatic style in the book of mormon dictation. Critics have explored a number of issues, including 1. Internal book of mormon geography focuses on the relationships between lands and other geographic features, independent of where they might be physically located on todays maps. Ideas were revealed to joseph smith, and he put the ideas into his own language. Translating and printing the book of mormon the book of. But it is definitely relevant to the question of whether joseph could have authored the book of mormon, to acknowledge that it has strong markings of being a product of oral dictation. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon.

This volume is the full text of the book of mormon and is as close as possible to the original dictation by joseph smith. Did he recommence where the book of lehi had left offat mosiahthen dictate 1 nephi through words of mormon lastwhich replaced the book of lehi. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. The maxwell institute, the religious studies center, and deseret book are excited to bring this cuttingedge study edition of the book of mormon to englishspeaking latterday saints, with a recognition that much more remains to be discovered. Because of the way skousen arranged the text on the page, this is the easiesttoread book of mormon in existence. Book of mormon manuscripts archives why the lds church. Mormon is mortally wounded in the battle at a place called cumorah, and the nephites are nearly obliterated, but moroni survives another 36 years and adds material to the book of mormon before. Changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes. A marvelous new book of mormon study edition religious. The book of mormon, combined with the spirit, is the greatest witness one has of the truthfulness of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, said elder tad r.

In what circumstances was the book of mormon written. He was never known to be actively working on the book of mormon, outside of the dictation process. It envisions smith proceeding with words of mormon, mosiah, perhaps 1 nephiomni the. Book of mormon translation thoughts from don bradley. Reynolds brigham young university, the covenant concept in the book of mormon. At this rate, the 965 words in mosiah 1 would have taken about 2. Royal skousen estimates that there were 608 pages of manuscript in the dictation copy of the book of mormon and that the earliest text contained a total of 269,510 words, 30 thus there were on average 443. Much like lamoni calls approach in the 1890s, jerald tanner sat down eighty years later with an 1830 edition and a 1964 edition of the book of mormon and annotated all changes he could identify. How the book of mormon was translated let us reason.

Several other witnesses observed smith dictating the text that eventually became the book of mormon. Book of mormon translation the church of jesus christ of latter. Why should readers pay attention to the book of mormons. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72% of the book of mormon text, since only about 28% of the earlier dictation. When it comes to the book of mormon translation, there is what is called a tight translation and there is what is called a loose translation. Indian origins and the book of mormon dan vogel youtube. The book of mormon claims to have been written in reformed egyptian.

Periodically, he added editorial commentaries of his own that were skillfully woven into the texts of the primary authors in that record. Why joseph smiths dictation of the book of mormon is. In several ways, the authors and editors of the book of mormon offered commentary to help readers anticipate what will come next in its pages. Stylistic drift during book of mormon dictation worlds without end. The book of mormon was written in the circumstance of highly contentious 19thcentury american sectarian christian controversy and division, and christian re. Why is the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon.

The discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon is one of the most significant scholarly contributions to understanding and appreciating the nephite record. Organized informally in 1829 in new york and then formally on april 6, 1830, it was the first organization to implement the principles found in smiths newly published book of mormon, and thus represents the formal beginning of the latter day saint movement. A strong case can be made for the authenticity of joseph smiths account of the coming forth of the book of mormon first, the eyewitness testimony of those directly involved with the translation unanimously agree that joseph was not copying from another book or manuscript, but rather the text of the book of mormon as he peered into the sear. Byu professor royal skousen, the foremost expert on the book of mormon original manuscripts, surmises the number of words in the blocks of recited text was 20 to 30. The purpose of this video is to explore the intellectual and theological discourse about indian origins in the new world that preceded joseph smiths dictation of. Ideas were revealed to joseph smith, and he put the ideas into his own language a theory advocated by many book of mormon scholars over the years. How do you know that the book of mormon is not meant to be tied to any particular denomination, especially the mormon church which uses it exclusively as a means for winning converts. Sometimes we discuss potential anachronisms like the inclusion of ideas from the new.

Much can be known about the coming forth of the english text of the book of mormon through a careful. He recently wrote this article changing critics criticisms of the book of mormon changes for the interpreter in 218. When we arrange the text according to this mosiahfirst dictation sequence, we observe that at the beginning of book of mormon dictation smith. Could joseph have hidden material in his hat to draw upon during. One of the miracles of the restoration of the gospel includes the mechanical process that generated 269,528 words of the text of the book of mormon. This sequence allows for three possibilities in the dictation chronology. In the years 1823 to 1829, joseph might have spent some time working over the over reaching arc to the story, and making and. Stylistic drift during book of mormon dictation worlds. These common grammar peculiarities, however, do not indicate a simpleton farm boy, only someone who wrote as he spoke in the dialect of his geographical location. The dictation process is understood by some to be a full time effort with no possibility of downtime study time. This same translation narrative is attested to by emma smith, a direct participant and onetime scribe as well as wife. Joseph smith translates the book of mormon, dictating the text to his scribe oliver cowdery.

The words dictated by joseph smith between april 7 and june 30, 1829, were published with few alterations. Mormon also wrote two books within the book of mormon that bear his name the words of mormon and the book of mormon. According to his wife, at the time he dictated the book of mormon, he could neither write nor dictate a coherent and wellworded letter. Based on the earliest sources available, this corrected text represents the most accurate and readable edition of the book of mormon ever published first published in. The manuscript joseph smith dictated to oliver cowdery and others. The church of christ was the original name of the latter day saint church founded by joseph smith. Peterson wrote an excellent article in which he cites witnesses to the book of mormon translation process, giving modern readers insight into what eyewitnesses saw regarding how joseph smith translated the book of mormon. Since that time, a steady stream of publications has greatly illuminated this profound and ancient literary feature. Book of mormon changes almost all spelling, grammar, and. These findings establish a dictation chronology and suggest the p. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. The book of mormon records the visit of jesus christ to people in the americas following his resurrection. 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.

Byu professor royal skousen, the foremost expert on the book of mormon original manuscripts, surmises the number of words in the blocks of. Tvedtnes, has responded by theorizing that the shift from therefore to wherefore can be linked to the shift in the book of mormon between mormons style and that of other book of mormon contributors. Emma smith recounted that during no part of it did joseph smith have any mss. Why joseph smiths dictation of the book of mormon is simply jaw. Using the seer stone in ways he never explained, joseph smith spoke the. Joseph and the book of mormon mormon open blog medium. These groups were led by prophets who recorded their religious and secular histories on metal plates. The last of the plates of mormon was the title page. Book of mormonevidenceshebraismschiasmus fairmormon. December 23, 1805 june 27, 1844 was an american religious leader and founder of mormonism and the latter day saint movement. This book is a facsimile reproduction of the original printing of the book of mormon in 1830, written by joseph smith.

Could joseph smith have written the book of mormon. Download powerpoint presentation pdf overview many of our discussions about the translation of the book of mormon mention the nephite interpreters, and the seer stone in the hat. By its own terms, the book of mormon is a translation of an ancient book. In essence, the challenge states that the critic should produce a text of like character to the book of mormon, before he assumes that smith could have been the sole author. The book of mormon itself is the best source for understanding the geographical locations contained therein. So read the title page in the june 1829 application, the printers manuscript, and the 1830 edition of. For some observers, the fact that any changes have been made in the original book of mormon text is evidence of the falseness of the book. Claiming that the book of mormon dictation must be flawless. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a cornerstone in nauvoo, illinois. What are 1769 kjv edition errors doing in book of mormon.

Its writers informed readers about the content and structure of what would follow, testified to the truthfulness of impending narratives, and occasionally explained that further information would be provided about topics that had only been briefly. The original book of mormon transcript the book of. John christopher thomas pentecostal theological seminary and bangor university, implied readers, the book of mormon, and the bible grant hardy university of north carolina, asheville, reading the book of mormon as a bible commentary room 2. Jerald and sandra tanners 1965 publication, 3,9 changes in the book of mormon, has probably had a greater influence. In spite of these disadvantages, smith dictated most of the book of mormon over a period of less than three months, whereas miltons dictation of paradise lost took place over more than a decade. The dictation of the manuscript that became the book of mormon as we.