It was launched in 1830 with the publication of the book of mormon, the. True book of mormon geography lands, western new york model. The lds church has spent millions of dollars over many years trying to prove through archaeological research that the book of mormon is an accurate historical record, but they have failed to produce any convincing precolumbian archeological evidence supporting the book of mormon story. For serious biblical scholars, truth is a nuanced affair. The lord covenanted with enos to bring forth the book of mormon to the lamanites, enos 1. The theory that the book of mormon is an ancient american history is not accepted as scientifically verifiable by the mainstream academic community.
The book of mormon and the bible will grow together, 2 ne. Historical accuracy of book of mormon faith in god. Book of mormon, doctrine and covenants, pearl of great price by the church of holy bible by. John turner elegantly overlooks the story in the book of mormon of the. In an effort to inform mormon youth that church history can be muddier than they. The historical significance of mormonism lies not so much in its size and. West of the late 1800s, etc, but because of what it can teach the careful reader about how history is done.
The mormon church the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The plates contained the book of mormon, the secret history of a native. The non biblical prophets in the book of mormon dont appear in historical records at all. Why is the book of mormons historical authenticity so. Hebraisms that could have been known to joseph smith may still be authentic, and may still enhance our appreciation of the text, but they are weak evidence for book of mormon antiquity. In fact, in 1831 in southampton county, virginia, another prophetic figure, nat turner. The nonbiblical prophets in the book of mormon dont appear in historical records at all. New brigham young biography difficult, worth reading neal a. But as bushman seems to suggest on the books back cover. Mormon archaeological argument that proves the historical accuracy of b of m. Excluding the bible and similar writing, can you prove to an atheist or to someone that is agnostic that god exists. Book of mormon fringe theory was inspired by geography enthusiast john e. According to it, the population of their descendants called nephites and.
Many members of the latter day saint movement claim historical authenticity of the book of mormon. In fact, the following statement by fawn brodie appears on the jacket of wallace turners. Most, but not all, mormons hold the books connection to. The book of mormon has excited very little enthusiasm outside of. This shows the consistency and accuracy of the bible as an historic. For a young religion, mormonism seems to have more history than it. Mormonism and the american mainstream, the nineteenth century. No woman, except perhaps the wife of king lamoni, in the book of mormon is portrayed as having her own independent connection with heaven.
The book of mormon was written for the intent that we may believe the bible, morm. The lords words will hiss forth unto the ends of the earth, 2 ne. One of turners goals throughout his book is the normalizing of mormonism by. Only three female characters are named in the book of mormon sariah the wife of lehi, abish the lamanite woman, isabel the harlot, compared to 188 in the bible. Adena and hopewell peoples lived in pennsylvania and western new york, but this region represented the impoverished fringe of their culture. Mormon apologists have proposed multiple theories to explain apparent inconsistencies with the archaeological, genetic, linguistic and other records. Most, but not all, mormons hold the books connection to ancient.
Historical accuracy of mormon scriptures the book of mormon relates the history of three hebrew migrations from israel to the americas, and the history of their settlement in the new world during the period of 2200 bc to about 421 ad. Some have attempted to separate the historical claims made in the book of mormon with its theology. He preached a brutal doctrine of blood atonement that turner. In truth, considering its history, mainstream christianity only holds a mere. The book is like a history textbook it contains lots of dates and political figures but not much. The book of mormon claims to be a history of ancient peoples inhabiting central america until 421 a.
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