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Some aspects of the Book of Mormon record make little sense if it is read as a 19th century creation. If its underlying source is an ancient text, however, then these elements enrich our understanding of the volume and its message. | Some aspects of the Book of Mormon record make little sense if it is read as a 19th century creation. If its underlying source is an ancient text, however, then these elements enrich our understanding of the volume and its message. | ||
(This page is, at present, a resource of reading around this topic. It is constantly in development, and should not be considered as final or complete.) | (This page is, at present, a resource of reading around this topic. It is constantly in development, and should not be considered as final or complete.) | ||
− | + | ==King Benjamin's speech== | |
*Terrence L. Szink and John W. Welch, "King Benjamin’s Speech in the Context of Ancient Israelite Festivals," in King Benjamin's Speech: That Ye May Learn Wisdom, ed. John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 147-223. | *Terrence L. Szink and John W. Welch, "King Benjamin’s Speech in the Context of Ancient Israelite Festivals," in King Benjamin's Speech: That Ye May Learn Wisdom, ed. John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 147-223. | ||
*John S. Thompson, "Isaiah 50‑51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6‑10," in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, edited by Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1998), 123-150. | *John S. Thompson, "Isaiah 50‑51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6‑10," in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, edited by Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1998), 123-150. | ||
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*John W. Welch and Darryl R. Hague, "Benjamin's Sermon as a Traditional Ancient Farewell Address," in King Benjamin's Speech: That Ye May Learn Wisdom, ed. John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), ???. | *John W. Welch and Darryl R. Hague, "Benjamin's Sermon as a Traditional Ancient Farewell Address," in King Benjamin's Speech: That Ye May Learn Wisdom, ed. John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), ???. | ||
− | + | ==Temples== | |
*Mark Alan Wright, "Axes Mundi: A Comparative Analysis of Nephite and Mesoamerican Temple and Ritual Complexes," The Temple on Mount Zion Conference, Interpreter, 22 September 2012. | *Mark Alan Wright, "Axes Mundi: A Comparative Analysis of Nephite and Mesoamerican Temple and Ritual Complexes," The Temple on Mount Zion Conference, Interpreter, 22 September 2012. | ||
*Mark Alan Wright, "According to Their Language, Unto Their Understanding: Hierophanies and Theophanies in the Old Testament and the Book of Mormon," Studies in the Bible and Antiquity 3 (2011). | *Mark Alan Wright, "According to Their Language, Unto Their Understanding: Hierophanies and Theophanies in the Old Testament and the Book of Mormon," Studies in the Bible and Antiquity 3 (2011). | ||
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+ | {{:Question: Why is the French word "adieu" in the Book of Mormon?}} |
Some aspects of the Book of Mormon record make little sense if it is read as a 19th century creation. If its underlying source is an ancient text, however, then these elements enrich our understanding of the volume and its message.
(This page is, at present, a resource of reading around this topic. It is constantly in development, and should not be considered as final or complete.)
Jacob 7꞉27 ends with the phrase, "Brethren, adieu." Some claim that because adieu is French, it shows that Joseph Smith composed the Book of Mormon, and not an ancient author.[1]
Adieu is simply one English word among many in the Book of Mormon translation. It was in common use among Latter-day Saints and others in Joseph's era. The word's French associations are simply more familiar to the modern reader. Joseph was inspired to select the most appropriate word to use in this situation, and the word "adieu" (like the Spanish equivalent "adios" or "a Dios") means "to God". In the final analysis, the presence of the word "adieu" in the English translation of the Book of Mormon cannot be construed to indicate anything beyond the fact that Jacob intended to communicate "farewell forever, or until we meet God."
The English Book of Mormon is a translation. This means that it is no more likely that the word adieu appeared on the plates than did the words yea, beginning, or sword. Except for proper nouns and a few other possibly transliterated nouns, no word that appears in the English version of the Book of Mormon can be said to have been on the ancient Nephite plates. Similarly, the phrase "and it came to pass" never appeared anywhere on the Nephite plates. Whatever character, word, or phrase that had been engraved on the plates was translated by Joseph Smith into what he felt was an approximate equivalent in English.
Despite the fact that the word adieu appears in the English translation of the Book of Mormon, the word adieu was certainly not known to any Book of Mormon writer, the word adieu was never used by any Book of Mormon writer, and the word adieu did not appear anywhere on the Nephite plates.
The goal of a translation is to take a text written in one language and to make it understandable to someone who does not understand that language. Anyone who has had the need to translate knows that frequently there is no way to convey all of the meanings, nuances, and subtleties of the original text in the new language. Translators are free to select words and phrases that they feel best convey the original meaning and will best be understood by the readers of the translation.
For example, it would be perfectly acceptable for a translation from Japanese to English to include the non-English phrases ad hoc, hoi polloi, or savoir faire if those phrases seem to properly convey the original meaning and if the translator believes that readers will understand them.
Adieu is Joseph's translation of a concept expressed by Jacob. Adieu implies "farewell until we meet with God," a fitting finale to Jacob's testimony and writing.
The appearance of non-English words (if there are any) in the Book of Mormon has absolutely no bearing on whether the Book of Mormon is authentic or whether the translation was properly done, and the presence of non-English words in the translated text would not imply that those non-English words appeared in the original text on the Nephite plates.
There is a common misunderstanding among some critics of the Book of Mormon that the word adieu is not an English word. This is not true. The problem stems from the fact that adieu is both an English word and a French word, and most English speakers are more familiar with its use in a French context.
Adieu is a perfectly good English word that has appeared in English dictionaries, English literature, and in common English usage from long before Joseph Smith to the present. Adieu entered the English language in the 14th century. It entered from Middle French, not modern French, and it has been part of English for approximately 800 years. Adieu has been part of the English language longer than the word banquet, which is also a word in modern French, but banquet entered the English language only in the 15th century. Adieu is no less English than commence, nation, psychology, Bible, vision, or any other word that can be traced back to Latin, Greek, German, French, Spanish, or any other language.
The presence of adieu is no more a challenge to the historicity and authenticity of the Book of Mormon than the 36 uses of banquet in the NIV is a challenge to the historicity and authenticity of the Bible.
We should also remember that "adieu" was a translation of a reformed Egyptian (Mormon 9:32) equivalent to a Hebrew word used circa 544 B.C. Daniel H. Ludlow has pointed out that the Hebrew word "Lehitra'ot" has essentially the same meaning as the word "adieu."[2] Angela Crowell pointed out the same for the Hebrew "barak."[3] She also showed that "adieu" is a fitting ending for the chiasm in the last verse of the Book of Jacob.[4]
Those who criticize Joseph Smith for using a French word must, in fairness, also criticize King James translators for using French words such as tache (Ex 26:6, 11), laver (Ex 30:18,28), and bruit (Jer 10:22; Nah 3:19) which were derived from French words meaning "mark," "wash," and "noise." Should we delete them because they are no longer in current use in the English language today?
In 1737, William Whiston (1667-1752) produced a translation of The Life of Flavius Josephus, written by a Jew born in Jerusalem in A.D. 37. Whiston's translation reads, in part:
Thus have I set down the genealogy of my family as I have found it described in the public records, and so bid adieu to those who calumniate me...off-site
Presumably, the critics would have us believe that Whiston is claiming that Josephus, a first century Jew, spoke French (a language not yet invented) because he uses the term adieu?
Consider the following letter written by Mark Twain on Nov. 20, 1905. Samuel Clemens was certainly not French!
J. H. Todd 1212 Webster Street San Francisco, Cal.
Dear Sir,
Your letter is an insoluble puzzle to me. The handwriting is good & exhibits considerable character, & there are even traces of intelligence in what you say, yet the letter and the accompanying advertisements profess to be the work of the same hand. The person who wrote the advertisements is without doubt the most ignorant person now alive on the planet; also without doubt he is an idiot, an idiot of the 33rd degree, & scion of an ancestral procession of idiots stretching back to the Missing Link. It puzzles me to make out how the same hand could have constructed your letter & your advertisements. Puzzles fret me, puzzles annoy me, puzzles exasperate me; & always, for a moment, they arouse in me an unkind state of mind toward the person who has puzzled me. A few moments from now my resentment will have faded & passed & I shall probably even be praying for you; but while there is yet time I hasten to wish that you may take a dose of your own poison by mistake, & enter swiftly into the damnation which you & all other patent medicine assassins have so remorselessly earned & do so richly deserve.
Adieu, adieu, adieu !
Mark Twain
Geoffrey Chaucer, often regarded as the father of English literature, used adieu around 1374:
And said, he wold in trouthe alwey hym holde, And his adew [adieu] made (Troilus and Criseyde 2:1084).
William Shakespeare is nothing if not an English writer. He uses adieu frequently in his plays:
There are over a hundred other examples.off-site
Thomas Jefferson's original draft of the Declaration of Independence read, in part (beginning shown in image by blue underline):
...be it so, since they will have it: the road to glory & happiness is open to us too; we will climb it in a separate state, and acquiesce in the necessity which pronounces our everlasting Adieu![5]
Jefferson later crossed out "everlasting Adieu," and replaced it with "eternal separation."[6]
Noah Webster's 1828 American dictionary demonstrates that adieu was perfectly good English the year prior to the Book of Mormon's translation:
ADIEU', Adu'.
- Farewell; an expression of kind wishes at the parting of friends.
ADIEU', n. A farewell, or commendation to the care of God; as an everlasting adieu.
It should be noted that the word adieu appears in nearly every modern English dictionary, and that although its etymology may be listed as being from Middle French, the word itself is not indicated as being a non-English word.
The Wesley brothers, founders of Methodism, used adieu in some of their hymns:
Furthermore, John Wesley was fond of adieu, using it many times in his personal letters. A few examples follow; more are availableoff-site
Speaking after quoting Deuteronomy 33:9, the early Christian author Irenaeus (A.D. 115–202) had his ancient writings translated as follows:
Is this a legitimate translation, or was Irenaeus non-existent and the translator a fraud for using "adieu"?
The Oxford English Dictionary lists a variety of English authors who have used "adieu" in its various senses:
Closer to home, hymn #52 (penned by a non-LDS author) was collected by Emma Smith for the use of the Church. In this hymn, adieu is used twice in the first line:
Clearly, this was a word familiar to Joseph and his contemporaries. The Church's Times and Seasons periodical used the word 19 times.
Emma Smith's second husband, Lewis Bidamon, was certainly not LDS. His letters reveal that his spelling is not terribly sophisticated. Yet, even he was very comfortable using the phrase "adieu," as in this letter to Emma:
Adeau, dear Emma, for the present. Give my warmest affections to the children and all inquireing friends, and curses to my enmeys![10]
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