According to the title page, what are the purposes of the book of mormon. The introduction was written by mormon apostle brucer. This easytoprint pdf contains 531 page titles that each summarize what is happening on each page in the book of mormon. I wish also to mention here, that the title page of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated. There are differing views on the origin of the book of mormon. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Mormon was the primary author, editor, and compiler of the book of mormon. By this stage, patience had dispensed with the ouija board, and transmitted her thoughts directly to mrs currans pen. It was included in the very leftmost end of the book, which for us, would look like the beginning, but the book was formatted in the hebrew style, which is read from right to left. Grant hardy wrote, the book of mormon began as 588 densely printed pages in 1830, and the current official edition reformatted with substantial grammatical editing still runs to 531 pages. According to president benson, in what ways is the book of. I buy, sell and appraise free of charge rare mormon books, documents, photographs and artifacts.
A readers guide, have attempted to move the discussion away from. I\ve read both sides many times over, and i can argue the pro mormon side just as easily as the no mormon side, with the prime diference being. These references are different in other book of mormons such as those published by. Introductory pages of the book of mormon book of mormon. Howe suggested, basing himself on witnesses collected by doctor hurlbut, that the book of. Just write them at the top of each page and you can know, at a glance, what is happening. Its obvious that it isnt an accurate historical record. Who really wrote the book of mormon the spalding enigma by. Book of mormon, 1830, page i the joseph smith papers. Of course, it could also be that josephs plagiarism lifting content from multiple authors, each with their differing writing style fingerprint, would also show differing wordprints in byus analysis. The brief fourword title the book of mormon is the same title that has appeared on the cover and title page of all editions and appears first on the title page of the current edition. On this board, ive put together an assortment of pictures that show the bindings, title pages, and text of the first edition book of mormon and other related books. Having read tens of thousands of pages of material, pro and con, here in a nutshell is my current \best guess\, included with a preface that i don\t care what anyone has to \refute\ my position. To convince both gentiles and jews that jesus is the christ, the eternal god.
He had access to the many records written by various other prophets from the time that lehi and his family left jerusalem around 600 bc. Who really wrote the book of mormon the spalding enigma. Dec 16, 2007 2 an abridgment taken from the book of ether also, which is a record of the people of jared, who were scattered at the time the lord confounded the language of the people, when they were building. Why is the book of mormon another testament of jesus christ. Feb 15, 2010 its obvious that it isnt an accurate historical record. This photocopy of the title page of the original 1830 edition of the book of mormon gives modern readers an idea of how the book first appeared when it was published in palmyra, new york. There are several theories as to the origin of the book of mormon. More light on who wrote the title page byu scholarsarchive. According to the prophet joseph smith, the titlepage of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated, the language of the whole running the same as all hebrew writing in general. Subsequent editions changed the term author and proprietor to translator.
The book of mormon joseph smith explained, the titlepage of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates. To emphasize this point, in the 1840 edition of the book of mormon, moronis name was appended to the title page. Who most likely wrote the title page of the book of mormon. This short study advances evidence that moroni wrote the entire title page of the book of mormon, based on the idea the redundancies were a way to further illuminate the divine destiny of this important record. I wish to mention here that the titlepage of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates, which contained the record which has been translated, the language of the whole running the same as all hebrew writing in general that is, from right to left. The book of mormon, an account, written by the hand of mormon upon plates, taken from the plates of nephi. It is quite likely that at this point moroni wrote the first paragraph as we now have it of the title page of the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a musical comedy with music, lyrics and book by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone first staged in 2011, the play is a satirical examination of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints beliefs and practices that ultimately endorses the positive power of love and service.
The title page states that the purpose of the book of mormon is to. It should be noted that the first edition of the book of mormon has listed on its title page that joseph smith is the author and proprietor of the book, but the preface of the same edition states that joseph translated it. Could the statement written and sealed up, and hid up unto the lord. The work in question is who really wrote the book of mormon. The ancient american prophet mormon, for whom the book was named, wrote that its purpose is to remind people what god has done for his people anciently and, most importantly, to convince all people that jesus is the christ, the eternal god book of mormon title page. This book attempted to revive the moribund spalding manuscript theory for the book of mormon. Popular mormon fiction books meet your next favorite book. The title page of the book of mormon was translated directly from the plates along with the rest of the translation. Oct 19, 2009 authorship who really wrote the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. As a coauthor of the 1977 work who really wrote the book of mormon. More light on who wrote the title page book of mormon. Variations of this theory only include that the text is a divinely inspired narrative, regardless of its. I\ve read both sides many times over, and i can argue the promormon side just as easily as the nomormon side, with the prime diference being.
Oct 31, 2012 some mormon scholars, like grant hardy, who wrote understanding the book of mormon. In addition, the references to the number of chapters, the length of the book, the number of words per page, etc. Pattersons printing office in pittsburgh, though, kept a copy of the manuscript awaiting a preface, and title page. Could joseph smith have written the book of mormon. Book of mormon word change christian research institute. Criticism of mormonismbookswho really wrote the book of mormon. The few who buy into the thesis that the ultimate source of the book of mormon was a historical romance written by solomon spalding love it. A comprehensive commentary of the title page of the book of mormon, by paul nolan hyde this volume provides extensive commentary on the title page of the book of mormon, written by the hand of mormon. Most adherents to the latter day saint movement view the book as a work of inspired scripture.
The first title page differs from the title page of the current 1981 edition, the most obvious difference being that joseph smith is listed as the author. Native americans did not come from jerusalem, they came from siberia. Jun 16, 2018 pattersons printing office in pittsburgh, though, kept a copy of the manuscript awaiting a preface, and title page. These page titles and reading charts are already included in our book of mormon study squares, so if you already. The title page of the book of mormon, written by its final author, moroni, near 400 a. The most common belief of adherents is that promoted by joseph smith, who said he translated ancient golden plates inscribed by prophets. The title page of the book of mormon states the following. Lds scholars should be terrified of this thorough, exhaustive, and downright exhausting examination of the circumstances surrounding joseph smiths discovery and translation of the golden plates that yielded the book of mormon. Because the text was found on the very last page of the plates, it seems likely that the final author, moroni, wrote it.
We know from josephs words that the title page is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates. These titles can help in comprehension and make it easy to. Book of mormon mormonism, the mormon church, beliefs. Apr 26, 2020 my name is reid moon, owner of moons rare books in provo, utah. Joseph smith, 2011, 5768 the title page of the book of mormon was written by moroni, the concluding author of the book. More light on who wrote the title page book of mormon central. Joseph smith declared, the titlepage of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or book of plates. Mcconkie, at the time considered to be one of the churchs most prominent theologians. Miraculous origins theories generally accept joseph smiths own account, that he translated an ancient record compiled and abridged by mormon, a precolumbian resident of the western hemisphere. Criticism of mormonismbookswho really wrote the book of.
An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. The title page of the book of mormon was most likely written by moroni, but in recent years schol ars have suggested that mormon, moronis. The spalding enigma by wayne cowdery, howard davis, and donald scales summary. So the book of mormon has nothing to do with ancient native americans. Opponents of the book have claimed that joseph smith wrote it himself, or that an accomplice such as solomon spaulding or sidney rigdon penned it and somehow transferred it to joseph smith. Howard davis and arthur vanick, recently published by concordia, the highly respected publishing arm of the lutheran church missouri synod. This book critically examines key historical documents, personal testimonies, and records of 19thcentury mormon history concluding that the book of mormon is an adaptation of an obscure historical novel written by revolutionary war veteran solomon spalding during the war of 1812. When you find the article helpful, feel free to share it with your friends or colleagues.
It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. It is useful to compare the purposes of the book of mormon as stated on the title page with the purposes for writing given in the text by nephi, jacob, mormon, and moroni who between them wrote 98. Oct 06, 20 the title page of the book of mormon states the following. Sealed by the hand of moroni according to clyde williams, it seems clear that joseph smith understood moroni to be the author of the title page. The information here is sourced well and enriched with great visual photo and video illustrations. Just write the titles on the top of each page in your personal scriptures. Joseph smith explained this as follows, i wish also to mention here, that the title page of the book of mormon is a literal translation, taken from the very last leaf, on the left hand side of the collection or.
There are only two options when it comes to the book of mormon. An account written by the hand of mormon upon the plates taken from the plates of nephi. To show the remnants of the house of israel the great things that the lord had done for their ancestors. Why is the book of mormon named after mormon, who is he. The sorry tale, a 325,000 word book 50,000 words longer than the book of mormon of the life of a parallel christ was written in 108 days, a rate of 3,000 words per evening. Response to claims made in who really wrote the book of mormon. An american, james adair, wrote a book a history of the american indians in 1775. There is another issue in considering whether mormon wrote the first portion of the title page. Title page of the book of mormon submitted to the library of congress for registration. The culture and beliefs of the book of mormon arent anything like the traditions of ancient native americans maya, aztec, etc. The title page of the book of mormon was most likely written by moroni, but in recent years scholars have suggested that mormon, moronis father, may have written the first six lines of the title page, with moroni writing the rest. I am curious as to who wrote the introduction the page after the title page in the book of mormon. Book of mormon reading charts and page titles pink and. Virtually all other scholars and students of the book of mormon who have written commentary about the title page have reached exactly the same two conclusions.
When a distant cousin of one of the three founders of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints lds coauthors a book with two other prominent scholars proving beyond the shadow of a doubt that. This book critically examines key historical documents, personal testimonies, and records of 19thcentury mormon history concluding that the book of mormon is an adaptation of an obscure historical novel written by revolutionary. Davis has made numerous public lecture and media appearances on the subject. The book of mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. The book then shows that sidney rigdon, though he didnt live in pittsburgh at this time, often frequented the city to obtain books, and befriended a kid by the name of lambdin that worked for pattersons printing office. First staged in 2011, the play is a satirical examination of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints beliefs and practices that ultimately endorses the positive power of love and service. It was written to show what great things the lord does for his children, to explain his covenants, and to. 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. The title page of the book of mormon was most likely written. I was going through my notes when i found this paper that my trainer from my mission gave me. Wherefore, it is an abridgment of the record of the. There were no christians in america before columbus. The onepage introduction to the book of mormon, which gives a brief overview of its contents, was added in 1981 when the lds church released a revised text of the book of mormon.
The book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. It is the most correct of any book on earth, that a man would get nearer to god by abiding by its precepts than by any other book. I have done some seraching on the internet and the best answer i have found, is church leaders, but i am looking more specifically which church leaders if it was in fact church leaders, which i do tend to believe. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which is believed to contain writings of ancient prophets who lived on american continent from approx. It attempted to prove that natives had descended from the ancient israelites. Book of mormon reading charts and page titles pink and blue. He is also titular head of the spalding research associates. A brief analysis and discussion of the geography of 1 nephi 16 and 17 in the book of mormon and the discoveries of plausible locations for nahom and bountiful in the ababian peninsula that, on its own, disprove that theory that joseph smith or anyone else from 1830 authored the book of mormon. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path. The book of mormon is the true word of god, another testiment of jesus christ our beloved saviour who was given as a sacrifice by god the eternal father to ultimately atone for and pay the price of the sin of the whole world, ye the whole of mankind from the time of adam to the present day and beyond. The spalding enigma, our authors set out to accomplish a monumental task.
There is a power in the book of mormon which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of it. Lest anyone be misled, this is a scholarly undertaking, not a religious work. The scriptures are called the words of life, and nowhere is that more true than it is of the book of. Hello, we provide concise yet detailed articles on title choices. The title page states, the book of mormon, an account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Our book of mormon page titles are some of our most requested items.
Was the book of mormon given to joseph smith by an angel or created from a work of fiction who was solomon spalding and did he have a connection with joseph smith. Mormons believe the following about the book of mormon. The bom is very likely a fraud, perpetrated on a gullible nation at a time of religious experimentation viz. Wherefore, it is an abridgment of the record of the people of nephi, and also of the lamaniteswritten to the lamanites, who are a remnant of the house of israel. Posts about the title page book of mormon study notes. Book of mormon page titles these titles are summaries of what is happening on each page in the book of mormon. The problem of book of mormon authorship has challenged historians and theologians since the book was published in 1830. The book of mormon is a musical comedy with music, lyrics and book by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone. Parker and stone were best known for creating the animated comedy south park. Scholars suggest that the title page was written by both mormon and moroni, but analysis provides evidence that moroni was the sole author.