Written by John Carson
A person's faith should always be grounded in truth, and truth has no fear of examination. The claims that the LDS church (Mormons call "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints") make about the Book of Mormon is very strong.
Joseph Smith claimed to have received a revelation from God about the Book of Mormon. Doctrine and Covenants 20:14-15 reads:
“And those who receive it in faith, and work righteousness, shall receive a crown of eternal life; But those who harden their hearts in unbelief, and reject it, it shall turn to their own condemnation.”
If it is the word of God, the Book of Mormon should be able to pass any test of examination. If it does not, and errors are found, then it would not be a revelation from God and must be rejected as scripture.
In the Book of Mormon, a character named Moroni, referred to the denial of revelations, prophecies, gifts, healings, and speaking in tongues as either not understanding, or not having read scripture that was supposed to have been available to the people he was speaking to. He then quoted Hebrews 13:8 and James 1:17 (see Mormon 9:9). This was before the New Testament ever reached America. So an obvious question is, "How can Moroni read Hebrews 13:8 and James 1:17, when the New Testament had not even reached America? And, how can they read and understand scripture they don't have access to?"
Also in the Book of Mormon, it is recorded that God told the brother of Jared to build barges that were so airtight, that the inhabitants were not able to breathe. The solution? God supposedly told him to make a hole in the top and the bottom of the boat. Then it records that God wasn't sure if the flood waters will enter into the boat, and so God instructed him that if the water should come in, he should plug the hole back up so they do not perish in the flood. This is found in Ether 2:19-20.
Joseph Smith said that the Book of Mormon was "the most correct of any book on earth." (Book of Mormon Introduction) Bruce R. McConkie wrote that the Book of Mormon "is true and was translated correctly." (See Mormon Doctrine, page 99). If they were right, then the Book of Mormon would not have these errors in it.
You should not fear condemnation for rejecting error.
For questions or comments (please include title of this article), email me at:
John@DoorwayChristianOutreach.info
Send prayer requests to:
PrayerRequests@DoorwayChristianOutreach.info
All our correspondences are treated respectfully and confidentially.
Blessings to you,
John
Latest comments
14.09 | 00:17
Is it your intent to share your faith with me? I'm a devout Latter-day Saint.
30.06 | 17:21
Let's add, the keys to Death and Hades (Revelation 1:18) the key of David (Rev. 3:7) the key of knowledge (Luke 11:52) and the keys of the kingdom of heaven (Matt.16:19) only given to Simon/Peter.
24.05 | 06:04
Intuitive
10.02 | 23:31
Checked out the great video. 👍 Thumbs up!
The Mormon Religion was officially founded by Joseph Smith Jr. on April 6. 1830 after the Book of Mormon (BOM) was published in that same year.
Joseph Smith Jr. was born in Vermont on December 23, 1805. He claimed that when he was 14, he received a vision from God the Father and Jesus Christ in a grove of trees near his home where he received instructions not to join any of the Christian churches because they were all wrong.
Three years later, Smith claimed that an angel named Moroni (a character found in the BOM) appeared to him in his bedroom whom he said revealed to him that he was selected to translate "Reformed Egyptian" (a language that does not exist) from gold plates into old English. These plates were supposedly hidden near Palmyra, New York and are said to be written around the 4th century. The BOM was named after Moroni’s father, Mormon. Mormons view the BOM as sacred. No one is able to study the original plates because Joseph Smith claimed the angel took them back on May 2, 1838 (History of the Church 1:60).
Smith had a scribe named Cowdery. Smith did not actually translate directly from any plates. Rather, in his writings, he said he placed a "seer stone" in a hat and covered any light from entering it as he placed his face in the hat. According to Martin Harris, “By aid of the seer stone, sentences would appear and were read by the Prophet . . . , and when finished he would say, ‘Written,’ and if correctly written, that sentence would disappear and another appear in its place, but if not written correctly it remained until corrected,” Smith said, “By the power of God I translated the Book of Mormon from hieroglyphics".
Despite such methods of translation, there have been at least 3,913 changes made in the BOM from the time it was first published. Joseph Smith stated, “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” Smith also claimed that John the Baptist appeared to him on May 15, 1829 while he was translating the BOM, and instructed him to restore the church by preaching the only true gospel.
Mormons regard the BOM as sacred writings, and view it in higher standing than that of the Holy Bible. Mormon Missionaries will ask you to pray that it is true. (See our page Pray to Know)