Joseph smith did the exact same thing with the greek psalter that he did with the book of abraham papyri and the kinderhook plates the authors of mormonthink makes the following claim. The lds church admits on their website that the book of abraham is not a translation of the papyri joseph claimed it. This book, written by fawn brodie, president david omckays niece, is one of the first really modern books discussing the problems of the joseph smith story. Zeptah for book of abraham outline this post is part of my book of abraham outline. Bill reel and radiofreemormons podcast parts 1, 2, and 3 introduction to book of abraham manuscriptsjoseph smith papers. The truth of the book of abraham is ultimately found through careful study of its teachings, sincere prayer, and the confirmation of the spirit. Joseph smith and the lds church for over 170 years have claimed that the book of abraham is a translation of a portion of the papyri scrolls. In my opinion, the book of abraham completely deconstructs and. As people engage in speculation and debate over the translation methods of joseph smith, one very important point seems to have been missed, which has the potential to change our whole outlook. See mormonthink s thorough overview of the book of abraham. The lds church admits on their website that the book of abraham is not a translation of the papyri joseph claimed it was a translation of.
Robert ritners epic takedown of the lds churchs book of abraham essay. But what are readers to make of his actual message in that letter to the editor of the. The attempts, including nibleys, to explain away and dodge the trap into which joseph smith fell when he had the audacity to translate the chandler texts, and keep the original egyptian texts around, are absurd, in my view. Criticism of mormonismwebsitesmormonthinkthe kinderhook. Mormonthink s the lost 116 pages of the book of mormon source quotes without critical or apologetic commentary this is the no spin version of the web page. Death blow to mormonism the book of abraham is a fake. Growing up mormon part 4 finding out about the book of. See mormonthinks thorough overview of the book of abraham. Thomas edison biography from a tv manual in korean from ubwv549s site. Egyptologist robert ritner with a devastating new takedown of the book of abraham essay update to mormonthink response. In 1843, joseph smith was presented with a set of brass plates pulled from an indian burial mound, and determined that they were a record of.
Translation and historicity of the book of abraham. In the ces letter, i also argued that the translation of the kinderhook plates and the book of abraham cast doubt on the translation of the book of mormon. Translation of the book of abraham written by his own hand upon papyrus and found in the catacombs of egypt18 beginning with the first publication of the book of abraham in the march 1, 1842 edition of the 20 20. Letters, interviews, and statements about abraham lincoln. The author s of mormonthink make s the following claim. F or many mormons, an examination of the book of abraham and its true history becomes the most significant stumbling block to joseph smiths claim as a prophetic translator of ancient languages. In addition, i noted some of the facts about the translation process joseph smith using a rock in a hat, that joseph smith didnt use the. Brief overview of the history of the book of abraham why the critics say it is problematic what workarounds apologists have created to deal with those criticisms why those. The above donut chart shows percentages of the book of abraham section of letter to a ces director that fairmormon is in agreement, disagreement, and neutral on if one assumes that fairmormons undisputed silence is acceptance of the facts, fairmormon agrees with 90. Joseph smith used the papyri that he claimed related to the book of abraham to earn his family money. The book of abraham text is a source of some distinct latter day saint doctrines, which mormon author randal s.
We provide all of the complete primary and secondary source quotes without any critics comment, apologetic rebuttal or our thoughts or editor comments sections. The most recent jsp revelations and translation vol. Pauls letters, romans, galatians, corinthians, timothy, titus. The salamander letter presented a view of latterday saint founder joseph smiths life that stood sharply at odds with the commonly accepted.
Truth of the book of abraham part 3 egyptian alphabets. Letters, interviews, and statements about abraham lincoln wilson, douglas l, davis, rodney o. Mormonthink states that this wasnt really a translation, but concludes that because of the book of abraham, kinderhook plates and the joseph smith translation of the bible, that the greek psalter story further damages josephs claims to be a true seer. The best way i have found to address tbm is to direct them to mormonthink.
Mormon and nonmormon egyptologists agree that the characters on the fragments do not match the translation given in the book of abraham. Criticism of mormonismwebsitesmormonthink fairmormon. Paul whether or not one affiliates with a religious tradition that considers paul an enduring authoritative voice, the complex letters and legacies of christianitys second founder are critical to engage today. Hugh nibley, began defending the book of abraham, he wrote a letter to another member of the church in which he stated. Back in january 2015 when i had a distinct impression to do a web search on the book of abraham, i ended up at first. The recent web posting on the book of abraham by the church of jesus christ of latter day saints hereafter the lds church represents new reflection on a document whose authenticity as verifiable history is now officially acknowledged to be in serious dispute.
Did joseph smith write a love letter to his plural wife sarah ann whitney to request a secret rendezvous. Newtonian view of the universe rmormondoctrine if you follow any of the above links, please respect the rules of reddit and dont vote in the other threads. There are 3 facsimiles, one specifically that supposedly show abraham sacrificing his son on the altar. Ces letter is one latterday saints honest quest to get official answers from the lds church on its troubling origins, history, and practices. It described pharaoh and the egyptians as descendants of ham and canaan the progenitors of the negro race, and under the curse of canaan and disqualified from the priesthood abraham 1. Three meetings with a lds general authority, 2012 20 by grant palmer. Having faith in and through the book of mormon brant gardner duration. Ces letter issues and the like has really motivated me to help spread the word to others. This post discusses one of the most important documents related to the book of abraham, a may 1835 letter from w.
Joseph also originally published the book of abraham in the times and seasons newspaper which he owned in different parts. Criticism of mormonismwebsitesmormonthinkthe greek. Joseph smith did the exact same thing with the greek psalter that he did with the book of abraham papyri and the kinderhook plates. The book of abraham is a work produced between 1835 and 1842 by joseph smith based. Abraham, the first patriarch in the book of genesis, is a figure of memory, legend, and faith. Examples include the nature of the priesthood, an understanding of the cosmos. Lucy mack smith, josephs mother, charged tourists a quarter to view the egyptian antiquities. Responses to claims made on the critical website mormonthink. My jwha paper on the egyptian alphabet page 4 book of.
After reading jeremys letter, the director promised him a response. The book of abraham issues translation problems mormonthink. The ces letter, and what could have been indie mormon. An essay concerning the book of abraham was added on 07082014 in the. Book of abraham manuscript mormonthink book of abraham issues. Ces letter my search for answers to my mormon doubts. Brother miller said ancient evidences of iron and steel are rare, since they rust. Jeremy runnells was offered an opportunity to discuss his own doubts with a director of the church educational system ces and was assured that his doubts could be resolved. We attended a former mormon conference in 20 in salt lake city where kay burningham did a very interesting presentation entitled are mormon leaders above the law. A real egyptologist robert ritner takes down the church. T the book contains a narrative about some of abrahams life as well as visions he had concerning the premortal life and the creation.
Egyptologists study the three facsimiles included in the book of abraham as. Book of abraham, which included letters from eight egyptologists and semitists who had responded to his inquiry concerning the interpretations of the three facsimiles published with the book of abraham text. Except for those willfully blind, the case is closed jeremys rebuttal to brian m. Spalding published his own independent study of the book of abraham, which included letters from eight egyptologists and semitists who had responded to his inquiry concerning the interpretations of the three facsimiles published with the book of abraham text. The book of abraham narrative clearly demonstrates the manner in which the lds church works diligently to massage or reinterpret inconvenient facts to continue to defend its most extraordinary truth. For many mormons, an examination of the book of abraham and its true history. The lds church believes that the book of abraham was written by the hand of abraham about his life. Evidence suggests that elements of the book of abraham fit comfortably in the ancient world and supports the claim that the book of abraham is an authentic record.
The book of abraham is a book of lds scripture that joseph smith translated from a collection of ancient egyptian papyri the church purchased. Newtonian view of the universe rmormondoctrine rmormonscholar book of abraham issues. Bill reel once again joins us and we proceed to lay out the following. Brent metcalfe early years, mark hofmann, the salamander letter, the bombings, the book of abraham, and life after mormonism. See my linebyline debunking of apologetics in the book of abraham section of debunking fairmormon. I left the church years before i read the ces letter and found out about the book of abraham, and up to that point i had been a bit wavy on my exact spiritual belief. Aggregating resources on the book of abraham and my. The book of abraham the book of abraham is a book of lds scripture that joseph smith translated from a collection of ancient egyptian papyri the church purchased. Egyptologist robert ritner with a devastating new take. Hauglids jeremy runnells and the book of abraham essay. A careful study of the book of abraham provides a better measure of the books merits than any hypothesis that treats the text as a conventional translation.
In 1912, a letter about the book of abraham was published by arthur cruttenden mace, assistant curator in the department of egyptian art in new. Mormon stories admin august 20, 2014 church history, general authorities, top 10 church history, top 10 exmormon, top 10 truth claims, top 100, top mormon faith crisis stories 79 comments. This article nicely demonstrates how spot on the smithsonian letter was before mormon apologists and politicians intimidated them into not mailing it out to gullible mormons anymore. Book of abraham i mention this as evidence against the truthfulness of the book of mormon as an example of the modus operandi of joseph smith. Phelps, where he shows that he is working on understanding the pure language as in the adamic language or something, and gives a list of 6. Do the book of abraham and the book of mormon link a. Resources on the book of abraham from ubwv549s site. Excellent documentation for the egyptian scholars and book of abraham can be found at. Hey guys, i left the church awhile ago, but recently started doing a little more research into it. Mormonthink s page on the book of abraham book of abraham analogy. A couple of years ago i heard rumors of each mormon apostle. Today we explore the book of abraham in radio free mormon style.
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies. The salamander letter was a controversial document about the history of the latterday saint movement that later proved to be a forgery the letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of lds movement that surfaced in the early 1980s. A careful study of the book of abraham provides a better measure of the book s merits than any hypothesis that treats the text as a conventional translation. The book of abraham from the introduction to the book of abraham as published in the pearl of great price. The 1835 book of abraham manuscript ms 2 begins with a onesentence introduction. Accompanying the manuscripts was a letter dated may 26, 1856, signed by both emma smith bidamon, widow of the prophet joseph smith, and their son, joseph.
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