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Revision as of 23:47, 2 July 2009


A work by author: Richard Abanes
 Index—p. 2

Index to claims made in Becoming Gods: A Closer Look at 21st-Century Mormonism p. 1 of 2

This is an index of claims made in this work with links to corresponding responses within the FAIRwiki. An effort has been made to provide the author's original sources where possible.

Claims made in Preface: "Can't We All Just Get Along?"

Page Claim Response Author's sources

13

 Mormons exist in "two distinct groups:" Chapel Mormons and Internet Mormons.
  • Jason Gallentine (a.k.a. "Dr. Shades"), "Internet Mormonism vs. Chapel Mormonism"

15

 The Journal of Discourses was viewed on par with the Standard Works by early Church members.
  • No source provided.

16

 "Gospel Principles" is published by the Church, but contains a disclaimer that states that it is not an official publication of the Church.
  • Gospel Principles

17, 331n35

 Mormons "focus on a minor issue while dismissing the broader point that is being made by a critic of the church."
  • The author uses as an example in the endnotes the alleged LDS belief in "Celestial Sex."

Claims made in Chapter 1: God's Latter-Day Prophet

Page Claim Response Author's sources

24

 Joseph's family survived by "money digging."

24

 Joseph was adept at "occult ritual."
  • No actual reference given by the author: The note simply says "Smith was well-known as a money-digger throughout western New York and northern Pennsylvania."

24

 Joseph's neighbors thought that he was "an imposter, hypocrite and liar."

26

 During the First Vision, Joseph was told that "all Christian creeds" were an abomination and that "all Christian teachers" were corrupt.
  • No source provided.

26

 Many Mormons believe that "their salvation, to a limited degree, rests upon Smith."
  • In a note on page 332, the author says "I do not mean to say the Mormons hold Joseph Smith on an equal par with Jesus Christ. Smith holds a place just below Christ."
  • Jerald and Sandra Tanner, The Case Against Mormonism, 2 vols., (Salt Lake City, 1967), vol. 1, p. 75.
  • Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, p. 302

26

 Bruce R. McConkie said that "we must turn to Joseph Smith to gain salvation."
  • Bruce R. McConkie, Millennial Messiah: The Second Coming of the Son of Man (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1982), 334. ISBN 0877478961. GL direct link

26

 Dallin Oaks said that "I have built my life on the testimony and mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith."
  •  Misrepresentation of source: The author omits Elder Oaks' very next words:
In all of my reading and original research, I have never been dissuaded from my testimony of his prophetic calling and of the gospel and priesthood restoration the Lord initiated through him. I solemnly affirm the testimony Joseph Smith expressed in the famous Wentworth letter of 1842:
“… The standard of truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing, persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done” (Times and Seasons, 1 March 1842, 709; quoted in Daniel H. Ludlow, ed., Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 5 vols. [1992], 4:1754).
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
  • Dallin Oaks, "Joseph, the Man and the Prophet," Ensign (May 1996): 71. off-site

27

 Joseph Smith was "harsh and violent."
  • No source provided.

27

 James E. Faust said that Joseph Smith "was the greatest prophet who ever lived upon the earth."
  •  Misrepresentation of source: Note that the author removes all the surrounding text which discusses Jesus Christ (italic text is quoted by author; bold for emphasis):
As one of the special witnesses of the Lord, I desire to declare my testimony to you. I am grateful that I have always had a testimony of the gospel. I cannot remember when I did not believe. I have not always understood everything and do not claim to do so now, but through thousands and thousands of spiritual confirmations throughout my life, including my calling to the holy apostleship, I can declare my testimony to you that Jesus is the Christ. With every fiber and cell of my being, I know that He is our Savior and Redeemer. I testify that Joseph Smith was the greatest prophet who ever lived upon the earth and of great importance to the Savior in the work of God on the earth. I know this to be true.
  • James E. Faust, "The Importance of Bearing Testimony," Liahona, Mar. 1997, p.3. off-site

28

 Joseph Smith may have been a "pious fraud," who believed that he had been called of God while perpetrating fraud.
  • Dan Vogel in Waterman, p. 50

28

 Joseph Smith and other church leaders "often used deception to conceal their activities."
  • No source provided.

28

 Polygamy was practiced in secret and denied publicly.
  • Times and Seasons, Mar 15, 1843, vol. 4, no. 9, p. 143

28

 Heber C. Kimball predicted that the world would someday see Joseph Smith as "a god."

28

 Brigham Young applied 1 John 4:3 to Joseph Smith.

29

 LDS claim that Joseph Smith "told but one" First Vision.
  •  The author's claim is false
  • First Vision accounts
  • Church publications have long described the multiple accounts of the First Vision:
    • Milton V. Backman, Jr., "Joseph Smith's Recitals of the First Vision," Ensign (January 1985): 8.off-site
    • Dean C. Jessee, "Early Accounts of Joseph Smith (1831–1839)," Brigham Young University Studies 9 no. 3 (1969), 275–294. PDF link
    • Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, revised edition, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 2002), 9–20.
  • Preston Nibley, Joseph Smith the Prophet (SLC: Deseret News, 1944), p. 30.

30

 The 1832 account of the First Vision states that Joseph was in his "sixteenth year," and that he "probably meant when he was 16 years old.
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:28

30

 The 1832 account does not mention two personages.
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:28

30

 The 1832 account does not mention that "all the churches in Joseph's day were false."
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:28

31

 Joseph claimed that he learned about the errors in Christendom through personal Bible study several years before the First Vision.
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:27

31

 Orson Pratt said that the two personages "declared themselves to be angels."
  • Pratt in "Biography and Journal of William I. Appleby, Elder in the Church of Latter Day Saints," 1848 reprinted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, vol. 1, pp. 146-147.

31

 Church historian Andrew Jenson said that "The angel again forbade Joseph to join any of these churches."
  • Andrew Jenson, "Joseph Smith, The Prophet," Jan. 1888, vol. 3, nos. 1-3, p. 355.

31

 Joseph dictated the 1838 account of the First Vision to counter the leadership crisis in Kirtland.
  • No source provided.

31

 The visit of Moroni was confused with the First Vision, and "was probably the real first vision."
  • No source provided.

34

 "Not a single piece" of literature published in the 1830's mentions a visit by the Father and the Son.
  • No source provided.

34

 Joseph's mother said that the First Vision was of an angel.
  • Lucy Mack Smith, letter to Solomon Mack Jr., Jan. 6, 1831, reprinted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, vol. 1, p. 216.

34

 Joseph privately began reworking the story of seeing an angel into a vision of Christ.
  • Oliver Cowdery, Messenger and Advocate, Feb. 1835, vol. 1, no. 5, pp. 77-80.

34

 Without "Mormonism's so-called" Melchizedek Priesthood, no man can see God and live.

34

 Nobody knows "when or how" the Joseph received the Melchizedek Priesthood.
  • Online reference to anti-Mormon site "lds-mormon.com"

34

 Joseph "had to backdate" the First Vision to 1820 in response to a leadership crisis.

35

 The First Vision originally stated that the personages were angels.

35

 There was no 1820 revival in Palmyra that converted "great multitudes" of people.
  • Oliver Cowdery, Messenger and Advocate, Feb. 1835, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 42.

35, 342n78, 348n130
  • Joseph Smith is claimed to have joined other churches after having been told that churches were wrong.
  • Joseph is claimed to have become a member of the Baptist Church after his First Vision.
  • Joseph is claimed to have become an "exhorter" for the Methodists after his First Vision.
  • Fayette Lapham, "Interview," pp. 305-306, reprinted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents 1:458.
  • Mitchell Bronk, "The Baptist Church at Manchester," The Chronicle: A Baptist Historical Quarterly [January 1948], vol. 11, pp. 23-24.
  • Orasmus Turner, Lockport Daily Courier, May 5, 1854.
  • Sophia Lewis, Susquehanna Register, May 1, 1834 reprinted in Eber D. Howe, Mormonism Unvailed (Painesville, OH, 1834), 269. (Affidavits examined)

35, 342n79-80

 Newspapers reported in 1829 that Joseph Smith had a dream in 1827 about a spirit visiting him three times in one night.
  • From the 'Palmyra Freeman: Golden Bible, Niagara Courier, Aug. 27, 1829, vol. 2, no. 18.
  • "The Gold Bible," Rochester Advertiser and Telegraph, Aug. 31, 1829.

35-36, 343n83

 Joseph Smiths First Vision may have been a dream of a "bloody ghost dressed as a Spaniard.
  • Hiel Lewis, letter to James T. Cobb, Amboy Journal, Apr. 30, 1879, reprinted in Wyl, pp. 79-80
  • Fayette Lapham [May 1870], in Dan Vogel (editor), Early Mormon Documents (Salt Lake City, Signature Books, 1996–2003), 5 vols, 1:459.
  •  Citation error: the reference to the dream and bloody clothes is on p. 458.

36, 343n85

 Joseph Smith was an "occultist."
  • Lance S. Owens, "Joseph Smith: America's Hermetic Prophet," Gnosis, Spring 1995, no. 35, p. 60

36

 Early Mormons believed in "witchcraft."
  • Early members believed in "witchcraft"
  • William J. Hamblin, "'Everything Is Everything': Was Joseph Smith Influenced by Kabbalah? Review of Joseph Smith and Kabbalah: The Occult Connection by Lance S. Owens," FARMS Review of Books 8/2 (1996): 251–325. off-site
  • John L. Brooke, The Refiner's Fire: The Making of Mormon Cosmology, 1644-1844, pp. 71-72.

36

 Joseph's mother talked about "magic circles" and the "faculty of Abrac."
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, vol. 1, p. 285.

37, 344n93

 Joseph's family had a "magick dagger" that was owned by Hyrum Smith.
  • Mars dagger
  • William J. Hamblin, "That Old Black Magic (Review of Early Mormonism and the Magic World View, revised and enlarged edition, by D. Michael Quinn)," FARMS Review of Books 12/2 (2000): 225–394. [{{{url}}} off-site]
  • This claim is also made in One Nation Under Gods: p. 89
  • No source given.
  • The endnote describes the dagger and its alleged importance to Joseph without acknowledging the source of the information.

37, 344n94

 Joseph's family had "three magick parchments." One of these was owned by Hyrum Smith.
  • Magick parchments
  • William J. Hamblin, "That Old Black Magic (Review of Early Mormonism and the Magic World View, revised and enlarged edition, by D. Michael Quinn)," FARMS Review of Books 12/2 (2000): 225–394. [{{{url}}} off-site]
  • This claim is also made in One Nation Under Gods: p. 89-90, 519n53-57
  • No source given.
  • The endnote mentions the ""Holiness to the Lord,"" the ""Saint Peter Bind Them,"" and the ""Jehovah, Jehovah, Jehovah"" parchments without showing how they are related to the Smith family.
  • An indirect reference is made to the book Occult Sciences."

37, 344n95

 Joseph had a "Jupiter talisman" with him the day he died.
  •  The author's claim is false: there is no contemporary evidence that the talisman was on Joseph when he died.
  • Joseph Smith and Jupiter talisman
  • This claim is also made in One Nation Under Gods: p. 89
  • No source given.
  • The endnote simply states the date of Joseph's death.

38

 "Researchers of Mormonism" now believe that Joseph was influenced by "Jewish kabbalism."
  • Joseph influenced by Kabbalah?
  • William J. Hamblin, "'Everything Is Everything': Was Joseph Smith Influenced by Kabbalah? Review of Joseph Smith and Kabbalah: The Occult Connection by Lance S. Owens," FARMS Review of Books 8/2 (1996): 251–325. off-site
  • William J. Hamblin, Daniel C. Peterson, and George L. Mitton, "Mormon in the Fiery Furnace Or, Loftes Tryk Goes to Cambridge] (Review of The Refiner's Fire: The Making of Mormon Cosmology, 1644-1844 by John L. Brooke)," FARMS Review of Books 6/2 (1994): 3–58. off-site
  • No source provided.

38

 Joseph considered the date April 6th to have "astrological significance."
  • The author provides no evidence for what Joseph believed about April 6.
  • He fails to mention the one bit of evidence that we do have for what Joseph may have thought: DC 20꞉1 suggests that April 6 was seen as the date of Christ's birth.[1] The author fails to cite D&C 20.

38-39, 346 n. 104-109

 Joseph was arrested in 1826 for being a "disorderly person and an imposter."
  • Dan Vogel, "Rethinking the 1826 Judicial Decision," Mormon Scripture Studies: An E-Journal of Critical Thought.

39

 No "statements of repentance by Smith" for money digging have ever been found.
  •  The author's claim is false
  •  Misrepresentation of source: in the quoted article, Martin Harris reported that Joseph had told him that the angel Moroni instructed him "...he must quit the company of the money-diggers. That there were wicked men among them. He must have no more to do with them."[2]
  • In Joseph's time and place, there was nothing shameful or disgraceful about money digging per se—it was the fact that some were wicked that was the problem.
  • Joseph Smith and money digging

40, 348n123

 Gordon B. Hinckley cited false documentation to support the story of an 1820 revival.
  • Gordon B. Hinckley, Truth Restored, pp. 1-2.

42, 349n126

 There is no evidence that Joseph Smith was "persecuted" for telling the story of his vision between 1820 and 1824.
  • Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, vol. 1, p. 29, 46-47.

42, 43 (sidebar)

 Contradictions in the stories of Paul's vision were "long ago resolved by scholars analyzing the Greek texts. The discrepancies in Paul's account involve modern ignorance of the Greek wording used."
  • W.E. Vine, Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, p. 544.

42

 Brodie's idea that the First Vision may have been "the elaboration of some half-remembered dream stimulated by the early revival excitement" is a satisfactory way to "explain things."

44

 Brodie's idea that the First Vision may have been "created some time after 1830 when the need arose for a magnificent tradition to cancel out the stories of his fortune-telling and money-digging" "further weakens" Mormon claims.

45, 351 n. 144

 Joseph "continued practicing magick, divination, astrology, and soothsaying long after the LDS Church was founded in 1830."
  •  History unclear or in error: The note simply mentions that seer stones continued to be used after the Church was organized in 1830—a fact that could be easily deduced from reading the Doctrine and Covenants.
  • Joseph Smith and seer stones
  • No specific reference is provided.

46

 Brigham Young used Oliver Cowdery's divining rod to point out the location where the temple would be built in Salt Lake City.

46

 Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball were given divining rods by Joseph Smith.

46

 Joseph received a revelation praising Oliver's gift of using his divining talents.
  •  [ATTENTION!]

48

 Joseph continued to discover and use new seer stones.

48

 Joseph "never stopped being" an occultist.
  • Author's conclusion.

49

 The activities of Joseph's family may have been "satanic."
  • Author's conclusion.

Claims made in Chapter 2: And it Came to Pass

Page Claim Response Use of sources

51, 353n2, 354n3

 Some Book of Mormon stories are simply reworked from the Bible or the Apocrypha.

55, 355n28

 The 1839 history of the Church identified the angel who delivered the plates to Joseph as Nephi rather than Moroni.
  • Joseph Smith 1839 History
  • Millennial Star, vol. 3, no 12, pp. 53, 71.
  • 1851 Pearl of Great Price, "Joseph Smith History," p. 41
  • Lucy Mack Smith, Biographical Sketches of Joseph Smith the Prophet, and His Progenitors for many Generations, p. 79.
  • John C. Whitmer, "The Eight Witnesses," published in Andrew Jenson, HR, Oct. 1888, vol. 7, p. 621."

56

 The name "Nephi" is related to "generic terms used by nineteenth-century occultists for spirit messengers."
  •  Quotes another author's opinion as if it were fact

56, 357n34

 Joseph used his seer stone to locate the plates.
  • Martin Harris, Tiffany's Monthly interview, 1859.
  • Hosea Stout, On the Mormon Frontier: The Diary of Hosea Stout, Juanita Brooks, ed., vol. 2. p. 593.

56, 357n33

 Joseph Smith's vision of Moroni may have taken place through his seer stone.
  • Steven C. Walker, "Joseph Smith: 'The Gift of Seeing,'" in Bryan Waterman ed., The Prophet Puzzle, p. 97.

56, 357n35-36

 The "golden book" was originally supposed to be about "hidden treasure" — the "religious twist" was added later.
  • Parley Chase, letter to James T. Cobb, Apr. 3, 1879, in Wilhelm Wyl, Mormon Portraits Volume First: Joseph Smith the Prophet, His Family and Friends (Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publishing Co., 1886), 276. , reprinted in Dan Vogel (editor), Early Mormon Documents (Salt Lake City, Signature Books, 1996–2003), 5 vols, 3:135.
  • Hiel Lewis, The Amboy Journal, Apr. 30, 1879, quoted in Wesley P. Walters, "The Mormon Prophet Attempts to Join the Methodists"

56

 Joseph translated the plates by looking at his seer stone in his hat. The plates were not nearby.
  • Isaac Hale, "Mormonism," Susquehanna Register, and Northern Pennsylvanian, May 1, 1834, p. 1.

57, 358-9n47

 Each sentence and word in the 1830 Book of Mormon "had supposedly come directly from God."
  • Joseph F. Smith, quoted by Oliver B. Huntington, Journal of Oliver Huntington, p. 168.

57-58, 359n49

 A voice from heaven proclaimed that the translation was correct, therefore no further editing should have been required.
  •  Author(s) impose(s) own fundamentalism on the Saints: a translation may be correct, and yet another way of expressing the idea may be equally (or more) correct. There is no such thing as a perfect or "one true" translation.
  • Book of Mormon textual changes
  • History of the Church, vol. 1, pp. 54-55.

58, 359n50-51

 The use of the word "synagogue" in the Book of Mormon is an anachronism.
  • Book of Mormon, 1830 edition, p. 268
  • Alma 16꞉13
  • The New International Dictionary of the Bible, p. 972

58, 359n52-53

 There are references to cows, oxen, horses, and goats in the New World hundreds of years before Christ.
  • 1 Nephi 18꞉25
  • Thomas D.S. Key, ""A Biologist Looks at the Book of Mormon,"" Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation, June 1985, XXX-VIII, p. 3."

58, 359n53

 "LDS apologist John Sorenson has suggested that Smith mistranslated numerous words" from the gold plates and that "cattle and oxen should have been rendered deer and bison," and that "horses should also have been translated deer."
  •  The author's claim is false: Sorenson does not say they are a mistranslation. He says that linguistic patterns of naming new animals show us that the name of a familiar animal is often used to name a new animal that has only passing resemblance to the familiar creature.
  • Book of Mormon anachronisms/Animals
  • John L. Sorenson, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, pp. 191-276, 299.

58, 359n54

 The Book of Mormon "is simply a rehashing" of the speculation in the 19th century regarding Indian origins due to the presence of burial mounds "dotting the land."

60, 360n58

 Joseph Smith incorporated text from Josiah Priest's The Wonders of Nature into the Book of Mormon.
  • Josiah Priest, The Wonders of Nature, 1825
  • Abanes, p. 69
  • The Tanners are the source of this comparison, although it is not explicitly stated by the author. The author does mention that the Tanners demonstrate that a copy of the book was available in the Manchester library."

60-61, 360n59-63

 Joseph Smith plagiarized Ethan Smith's View of the Hebrews.
  • Ethan Smith, View of the Hebrews, 1825
  • David Persuitte, p. 107, 122
  • Sandra Tanner, "Where Did Joseph Smith Get His Ideas for the Book of Mormon?"

61

 Anyone who looked on the gold plates would die.
  • Martin Harris, Tiffany's Monthly interview, 1859.

62, 361n69-72

 The witnesses never actually physically saw the plates - they only saw them in visions.

64

 Martin Harris said that he never saw the plates with his "natural eyes."
  • LDS apostle Stephen Burnett, letter to Lyman E. Johnson, April 15, 1838 reprinted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents 2:291

64, 362n81-82

 Cowdery, Whitmer and Harris's statements that they actually saw the plates only refer to times that the plates were either covered with a cloth or in a wooden box.

64, 362n83-84

 Martin Harris said that none of the eight witnesses had seen or handled the plates.

65

 The Book of Mormon "can hardly be considered unique" since James Strang produced a set of plates that were seen by witnesses.

65, 362n87

 LDS defenders (apologists) have redefined many of the terms that Joseph Smith used in the Book of Mormon text: steel means iron, horses are deer, tents are huts, etc.
  •  Quotes another author's opinion as if it were fact: the author quotes no "apologists," but only two critics.
  •  The author's claim is false: LDS defenders argue that such terms have more than one meaning, and that ancient linguistic conventions sometimes apply old terms to new concepts. This version is a straw man and caricature of the argument, which the author has either not understood or misrepresented.
  • Book of Mormon anachronisms
  • Dan Vogel, Brent Metcalfe, American Apocrypha, p. xiii.

66, 362n88

 LDS scholars such as Dee F. Green have stated that Book of Mormon archaeology is a "myth."
  •  Misrepresentation of source: Green argued—in 1969—that the requisite work had not been done.
  • Dee F. Green on Book of Mormon archaeology
  • It is telling that the author must resort to a source that is at least 35 years old. A more current assessment is available:
    • John E. Clark, "'Archaeology, Relics, and Book of Mormon Belief'," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 14/2 (2005). [38–49] link
  • Book of Mormon archaeology
  • Dee F. Green, "Book of Mormon Archaeology: The Myths and the Alternatives," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 4 no. 3 (Summer 1969), 72-80.

66, 362n89

 Dr. Michael Coe stated that there was no Book of Mormon archaeology.
  • Michael Coe, "Mormons and Archaeology: An Outside View," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought (Winter 1973), vol. 8, p. 44.

66, 363n92

 LDS scholar Terryl L. Givens "admitted" that no connection has been made between the Book of Mormon and cultures or civilizations in the Western hemisphere.
  • The author acknowledges in his endnote that Givens "however, also quoted BYU professor Daniel Peterson, who made a statement in support of the BOM's unique character."
  • See Daniel C. Peterson, "Editor's Introduction: By What Measure Shall We Mete? (Review of Hodgson's Test)," FARMS Review of Books 2/1 (1990): vii–vii. off-site
  • Amerindians as Lamanites/Maya and Olmec
  • Terryl L. Givens, By the Hand of Mormon, p. 155.

67, 363n95-96

 The limited geography theory "cannot bear rigorous scrutiny" and "does violence" to the text of the Book of Mormon.
  •  Double standard: On p. 66, the author cited Green's opinion from 1969. Green argues that a limited geography should be given serious consideration, and that seeing all Amerindians as only Lamanites is a mistake not supported by the text. But, the author will not accept Green's view of this matter.
  • Book of Mormon geography/New World/Limited Geography Theory
  • Vogel and Metcalfe, American Apocrypha, pp. viii-ix.
  • Deanne G. Matheny, "Does the Shoe Fit? A critique of the Limited tehuantepec Geography," in New Approaches to the Book of Mormon: Explorations in Critical Methodology.

67, 363n99

 Apologists have suggested that "not a single early Mormon, including Joseph Smith, ever bothered reading the Book of Mormon 'closely enough to grasp the fact' " that the plates were not buried in the hill where the final Nephite battle occurred.
  • The author omits the line preceding the quoted phrase, where Sorenson and Roper indicate that "there is no evidence that in the early years any detailed thought was given to geography. Actually, the Book of Mormon was little referred to or used among church members in the first decades except as a confirming witness of the Bible. The writings or preaching of some of the best-informed church leaders of that day show that they did not read the text carefully on matters other than doctrine."
  • Early members' preoccupations and interests were almost entirely doctrinal and theological. Since geography is incidental to the Book of Mormon's message, this is to be expected.
  • If Joseph Smith was the author of the Book of Mormon, his ignorance on such points would be astonishing. Since he was only a translator, however, the fact that he was unaware of some of the book's nuances is unsurprising.
  • John L. Sorenson and Matthew Roper, "Before DNA," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 12/1 (2003). [6–23] link, p. 10.

70, 365n115

 Joseph Smith said that the angel told him that all American Indians were "literal descendants of Abraham," but DNA has disproved this.
  •  Double standard: On p. 66, the author cited Green's opinion from 1969. Green argues that seeing all Amerindians as only Lamanites is a mistake not supported by the text. But, the author will not accept Green's view of this matter. Further, this is evidence for the position (which the author mocks on p. 67) that Joseph did not know his own book's contents.
  •  Misrepresentation of source: all Amerindians are descendants of Lehi; they are not just descendants of Lehi:
  • Amerindians as Lamanites
  • All Amerindians are descended from Lehi
  • Book_of_Mormon_and_DNA_evidence
  • Joseph Smith's 1835 account of the First Vision found in the Ohio Journal—1835-1836, Nov. 9, 1835, reprinted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, vol. 1, p. 44.
  • Joseph Smith, Mar. 1, 1842, letter to John Wentworth, History of the Church, Vol. 4, p. 537.
  • Meldrum, "Children of Lehi"

71, 365n120

 Joseph Smith founded the "Restored Church" on the belief that all Native Americans were descendants of the Israelites.
  • Oliver Cowdery's Speech to the Delawares. Parley P. Pratt, Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt.

72, 366 n.127

 All modern Mormons believed that all inhabitants of the New World were descendants of the Lamanites until "science showed it to be erroneous."
  • DC 54꞉8—"And thus you shall take your journey into the regions westward, unto the land of Missouri, unto the borders of the Lamanites"

72, 366n128

 The "updated LDS paradigm" claims that Nephites intermarried with non-Israelite natives, thus diluting their DNA.

72, 366n130

 The LDS view has always been that Israelites were the first people to populate the Americas, since the land was "kept from the knowledge of other nations."
  • 2 Nephi 1꞉6
  • J. Reuben Clark, "Prophecies, Penalties, and Blessings," Improvement Era, July 1940, vol. xliii., no. 7 quoted in Bill McKeever, "DNA and the Book of Mormon Record," Mormonism Research Ministry.

73, 367n131-135

 Not many Christians actually believe that the world was created around 4000 B.C., or that the flood occurred around 2000 B.C. In fact, "[T]he majority of traditional Christians understand that the world is older than 6000 years," therefore the claim that the DNA argument is fundamentalist "suicide bombing" is false.
  • The author ignores that many critics who use DNA evidence against the Book of Mormon do belong to denominations that advocate a Young Earth and/or a universal Noachian flood. The criticism is therefore valid as it applies to them.
  • Fundamentalist "suicide bombing"
  • No source is provided by the author for his claim that the "majority of Christians" understand that the world is older than 6000 years.
  • Daniel C. Peterson, FAIR Conference, untitled lecture, Aug. 8, 2003, author's private notes.
  • David Stewart, "DNA and the Book of Mormon"

73, 367n136

 The Lamanites were supposed to become "white" once they converted en masse to Mormonism. This was to be accomplished by having LDS men take Indian wives.
  • W.W. Phelps, "Revelation Received West of Jackson County, Missouri, July 17, 1831," reprinted in H. Michael Marquardt, The Joseph Smith Revelations: Text & Commentary, p. 375.

73, 367n137

 The phrase "white and delightsome" was changed to "pure and delightsome" in the Book of Mormon.

73, 367n138

 LDS leaders claimed that the alteration to the Book of Mormon had nothing to do with the Indians physically turning white. LDS leaders taught that the curse would one day be removed.
  • No source provided.

74

 LDS apologists dismiss Church teachings in order to make Mormonism compatible with scientific findings.
  •  The author's claim is false: as shown above, leaders and members have not been of one mind on this issue about which there is no official Church position.
  •  Misrepresentation of source: The author has failed to account for material in the sources he cites which disprove his claim.
  • Mormonism and science
  • Author's opinion

75, 368n142

 LDS apologist B.H. Roberts "reached a shocking conclusion" that that Book of Mormon wasn't authentic.
  • B.H. Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, p. 271, 243.

76, 368n143

 B.H. Roberts "had come to realize that the Book of Mormon was a nonhistorical document."
  • Wesley P. Lloyd statement at www.lds-mormon.com/bhrlettr.shtml

76

 FARMS claims that Roberts was playing "devils advocate," but have never provided documentation to support this assertion. They only focus on his declarations that he made before he reached his "final conclusion."
  • Truman G. Madsen, "B.H. Roberts and the Book of Mormon," BYU Studies (Summer 1979), volume 19, pp. 427-445.

77 368n145-147

 Thomas Stuart Ferguson lost his testimony of the Book of Mormon after failing to find archaeological evidence.
  • Thomas Stuart Ferguson, One fold and One Shepherd.
  • Jerald and Sandra Tanner, "Ferguson's Two Faces," Salt Lake City Messenger #69, Sept. 1988, p. 3
  • Ferguson letter dated Feb. 9, 1976.
  • Ferguson letter dated Feb. 9, 1976.

77 369n150-153

 LDS scholars believe that Quetzalcoatl was Jesus Christ. However, Quetzalcoatl's association with a "feathered serpent" constitutes "snake worship," and is therefore inconsistent with worship of Jesus Christ.
  •  The author's claim is false: At best, some LDS scholars see Quetzalcoatl as a cultural memory or corruption of Christ's visit and teachings.
  • Other LDS scholars, however, strongly disagree. For example:
    • Brant Gardner, "Where Much Is Promised, Less Is Given, A review of Decoding Ancient America: A Guide to the Archaeology of the Book of Mormon by Diane E. Wirth," FARMS Review 20/1 (2008): 15–32. off-site wiki
    • Brant Gardner, "A New Chronicler in the Old Style," FARMS Review 19/1 (2007): 13–22. off-site wiki
    • Brant Gardner, "The Other Stuff: Reading the Book of Mormon for Cultural Information (Review of: Nephite Culture and Society: Selected Papers)," FARMS Review of Books 13/2 (2001): 21–52. off-site
    • Brant A. Gardner, Second Witness: Analytical and Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon, 6 Vols. (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2007), 4:1–.
  • John L. Sorenson, "The Decline of the God Quetzalcoatl, " in Pressing Forward with the Book of Mormon, p. 234.
  • Joseph Allen, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon.
  • Joseph Allen, "The White god Quetzalcoatl," Meridian Magazine, 2003.
  • Adela Fernandez, Pre-Hispanic Gods of Mexico, p. 68
  • Quetzalcoatl the Myth, www.weber.ucsd.edu.

Claims made in Chapter 3: Thus Saith Joseph

Page Claim Response Author's sources

84, 370n9-11

 The revelations in the Book of Commandments were modified because they were "showing their age," "contained outdated information," "included erroneous statements" and "abandoned doctrines." Some of the revelations "revealed too much information about LDS beliefs."
  • Karl F. Best, "Changes in the Revelations, 1833-1835," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought (Spring 1992), vol. 25, no. 1, p. 90.
  • H. Michael Marquardt, The Joseph Smith Revelations: Text & Commentary, p. 17.

85, 371n14

 Mormons view divine truth as "not absolute or fixed; it is changeable, flexible."
  •  The author's claim is false: Latter-day Saints realize that their understanding of divine truth may grow and be enhanced, but this does not mean that the truth is changeable or flexible.
  •  Quotes another author's opinion as if it were fact: once again, only a hostile author is cited; there are no quotes from LDS sources used to explore their supposed view.
  • Changing doctrine

87, 370n23

 Joseph received a "false revelation" through his seer stone to go to Toronto, Canada to sell the Book of Mormon copyright.
  • David Whitmer, An Address to All Believers in Christ.

87, 371n25

 Some of the modified revelations had their meanings "reversed."

89, 372n28

 Joseph modified the revelation now found in D&C 5:4 to add additional gifts. After translating the Book of Mormon he was not supposed to become a prophet or organize a Church.
  • Karl F. Best, "Changes in the Revelations, 1833-1835," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought (Spring 1992), vol. 25, no.1, p. 98.

89, 372n29-30

 Joseph modified what is now D&C 8:6-9 to hide Oliver Cowdery's use of a divining rod.

90, 372n34, 375n35

 Apostle William E. McLellin left the Church because he was "shaken by the changes made in the revelations."
  • This explanation (as shown by the dates of the material cited) came long after the fact. The author does not tell us that McLellin said at his excommunication hearing that:
he said he had no confidence in the presidency of the Church; consequently, he had quit praying and keeping the commandments of the Lord, and indulged himself in his sinful lusts. It was from what he had heard that he believed the presidency had got out of the way, and not from anything that he had seen himself.[3]
  • "The Early History of the Saints and Their Enemies," Sept. 28, 1875, Salt Lake Daily Tribune, Dec. 5, 1878
  • William McLellin, Saint's Herald, vol. 17, pp. 556-557.

90

 Mormons claim that Biblical writers modified revelations, but cannot provide data to support this. This is an "argument from silence."
  • Stephen W. Gibson, One-Minute Answers to Anti-Mormon Question, p. 82

94

 Joseph Smith turned the "Book of Breathings" into the "Book of Abraham." Joseph claimed that the "Book of the Dead" had been written by Joseph of Egypt.
  • No source provided.

94-98

 The restoration of the missing portions of Facsimile 1 were "terribly wrong."
  • Charles M. Larson, By His Own Hand Upon Papyrus: A New Look at the Joseph Smith Papyri, 2nd ed., (Grand Rapids, MI: Institute for Religious Research, 1992), .

99

 LDS apologists' main purpose is to explain away "any and all criticisms that might damage the validity of Smith's writings."
  • Author's opinion.

100

 Documents show how the hieroglyphs from the papyri were matched to the Book of Abraham text. One or two words in Egyptian were expanded to entire paragraphs in English.
  • Richard L. Bushman, "Joseph Smith as Translator, in Waterman, p. 81.


Endnotes

  1. [note]  John Franklin Hall, "April 6," in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 4 vols., edited by Daniel H. Ludlow, (New York, Macmillan Publishing, 1992), 1:61–62.
  2. [note]  Katich cites Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism (Urbana and Chicago, Illinois: University of Illinois Press; Reprint edition, 1987), 74. ISBN 0252060121.
  3. [note]  "History of William E. McLellin," Millennial Star 26 (1864), 808.; see also Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 3:31. Volume 3 link
  4. [note]  D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power (Signature Books, 1994), 44.
  5. [note]  "History of William E. McLellin," Millennial Star 26 (1864), 808.; see also Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 3:31. Volume 3 link

Further reading

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