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Book of Abraham
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Book of Abraham
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The Book of Abraham. An inspired translation of the writings of Abraham. Joseph Smith began the translation in 1835 after obtaining some Egyptian papyri. The translation was published serially in the Times and Seasons beginning March 1, 1842, at Nauvoo, Illinois.
—Introduction, Pearl of Great Price (2013 edition). off-site
Topics
Production of the Book of Abraham
How was the Book of Abraham produced?
Summary: How did Joseph Smith produce the Book of Abraham?Timeline
Summary: A timeline of events related to the Book of Abraham and Kirtland Egyptian Papers"By his own hand"
Summary: It is claimed that the Book of Abraham's claim to have been written by Abraham's "own hand upon papyrus" is falsified since the papyrus dates to after the Abrahamic period.The Joseph Smith Papyri
The Joseph Smith Papyri
Summary: Joseph Smith had in his possession three or four long scrolls, plus a hypocephalus (Facsimile 2). Of these original materials, only a handful of fragments were recovered at the Metropolitan Museum. The majority of the papyri remains lost, and has likely been destroyed. There are a number of criticisms related to the recovered fragments of the Joseph Smith papyri. These criticisms are addressed below. [1]
Video published by the Church History Department.
Jump to Subtopic:
- Online source documents
- The Joseph Smith Papyri: Source Quotes
- Identity and nature of the papyrus in the Church's possession
- When did the Church disclose that the Joseph Smith Papyri were an Egyptian funerary text?
- Why is the Book of Abraham text not on the papyri?
- The facsimiles in the Book of Abraham
- Antiquity of the Book of Abraham
The Kirtland Egyptian Papers
The Kirtland Egyptian Papers
Summary: Among the early Book-of-Abraham-related-manuscripts that have survived from the days of Joseph Smith are a number of papers collectively referred to as the "Kirtland Egyptian Papers" (KEP). 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. They are in the same handwriting of several of Joseph's scribes.
Jump to Subtopic:
Book of Abraham plagiarism accusations
Summary: It is claimed that contemporary sources were used by Joseph Smith as sources for the Book of Abraham.
Jump to Subtopic:
- Understanding accusations of plagiarism
- Thomas Dick’s The Philosophy of a Future State
- Oliver Cowdery and Abraham 1:2
- Did Joseph Smith plagiarize Genesis?
- Thomas Taylor’s The Six Books of Proclus on the Theology of Plato
- The Book of Abraham and the New Testament
Text of the Book of Abraham
Why is the Book of Abraham text not on the papyri?
Summary: We do not claim to know why the text of the Book of Abraham (or the missing Book of Joseph) is not in evidence on the fragments of papyrus that were recovered. Critics, of course, simply assume this to be conclusive evidence that Joseph was a fraud. From a believer's perspective, however, there are several possible theories to account for this: 1) The text was revealed much in the same manner as that of the Book of Mormon, without the need for the actual papyri, 2) The text was present on portions of the papyri that are missing, and 3) The Book of Abraham manuscript was attached to the Book of Breathings manuscript and was lost. 4) Perhaps there was a way of understanding the Egyptian ideograms anciently that is unknown to Egyptology in our day, yet to be discovered, deciphered or acknowledged, that could yield an interpretation of a text that is different than the standard Egyptological reading.
Jump to Subtopic:
- Question: Was the text of the Book of Abraham received through revelation?
- Question: What is the Book of Abraham "Missing Papyrus theory"?
- Historical Sources on Translation of Book of Abraham
- Gospel Topics on LDS.org, "Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham"
The Facsimiles of the Book of Abraham
The facsimiles in the Book of Abraham
Summary: In the Book of Abraham, Joseph included three facsimiles of illustrations from the papyri, along with commentary about what the images and their individual parts represented. Some of Joseph's interpretations are similar to those of trained Egyptologists, but most are not. A number of criticisms relate to the three facsimiles associated with the Book of Abraham. It is noted that Joseph Smith's translation of the facsimiles does not agree with that provided by Egyptologists, and that some missing portions of the facsimiles were incorrectly restored before they were published.
Jump to details:
- Book of Abraham Facsimile 1: The "lion couch" scene
- An analysis of the Charles M. Larson restoration of Facsimile 1 compared against the original papyrus
- Book of Abraham Facsimile 2: The hypocephalus
- Book of Abraham Facsimile 3: The throne scene
- Restoration of missing portions of the facsimiles
Astronomy and the Book of Abraham
Astronomy and the Book of Abraham
Summary: The Book of Abraham makes several references to astronomy which draw criticism. These articles address specific issues related to Book of Abraham astronomical concepts.
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Why would Abraham lie?
Summary: Some ask, "Why God would encourage Abraham & Sarah to lie in Abraham 2:24? Isn't lying a sin according to the 10 commandments? Why did God tell Abraham and Sarah to lie when 2 Nephi condemns liars to hell?"Evidences of the Book of Abraham
Antiquity of the Book of Abraham
Jump to details:
Video
The Book of Abraham: Dealing with the Critics, Michael Rhodes, 2003 FAIR Conference |
- Part 1: The Book of Abraham: Dealing with the Critics
- Part 2: The Book of Abraham: Dealing with the Critics
- Part 3: The Book of Abraham: Dealing with the Critics
ABCs of the Book of Abraham, Michael Ash, Kevin Barney, 2004 FAIR Conference |
- Part 1: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
- Part 2: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
- Part 3: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
- Part 4: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
- Part 5: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
- Part 6: ABCs of the Book of Abraham
Authentic Ancient Names & Words in the Book of Abraham & Related Kirtland Egyptian Papers, John Tvedtnes, 2005 FAIR Conference |
- Part 1: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
- Part 2: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
- Part 3: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
- Part 4: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
- Part 5: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
- Part 6: Authentic ancient names in the book of Abraham
Book of Abraham 201: Papyri, Revelation, and Modern Egyptology, Mike Ash, 2006 FAIR Conference |
- Part 1:Book of Abraham 201: Papyri, Revelation, and Modern Egyptology
- Part 2:Book of Abraham 201: Papyri, Revelation, and Modern Egyptology
- Part 3:Book of Abraham 201: Papyri, Revelation, and Modern Egyptology
- Part 4:Book of Abraham 201: Papyri, Revelation, and Modern Egyptology