But it appears that some of our readers who discuss this question fail to remember what we have said on the subject. Come follow me 2020 podcasts with rod meldrum book of. According to most adherents of the latter day saint movement, the book of mormon is a 19thcentury translation of a record of ancient inhabitants of the american continent, which was written in a script which the book refers to as reformed egyptian. The prophet joseph smith never deviated from that statement nor, so far as we are aware, made any other explanation concerning it. The p rocess of translating the book of mormon j oseph fielding mcconkie prof essor of ancient scripture, byu c raig j. Latterday saints feel such a close connection to the book of mormon. Joseph smith declared that he translated the book of mormon from an ancient. What was the instrument prepared by the lord for sacred. President nelson said part of the miracle of the book of mormon is its translation. The translation process what do we really know about the translation process of the book of mormon. This claim, as well as all claims to historical authenticity of the book of mormon, are rejected by nonlatter day saint historians and scientists. Emma smith on the book of mormon translation process, quote 2. The anachronism of horses in the book of mormon as an.
Book of mormon manuscripts archives why the lds church. The translation of the book of mormon, from dan vogel, ed. Can the book of mormon be considered a genuine translation if the plates werent even used during the translation process. Again, it is the rate of translation, approximately 6. Maxwell, 1 and building on my chapter in the second edition of opening the heavens, 2 this article strives to be as precise as possible about the timing of the events and progress of the book of mormon translation. The book of mormon came into the world through a series of miraculous events. Elaborating on a paper he had presented on problems in book of mormon archeology, thomas ferguson, the man that singlehandedly launched the search for mormon archeology, writes that you cannot set book of mormon geography down anywhere because it is fictional and will never meet requirements of dirt archeology. Religious studies center, brigham young university, 1993, 6575. A number of questions, from their correspondents, have been submitted to the writer, by the editors of the era, respecting the senior manual for 19056.
Although we do not fully understand precisely how the book of mormon was translated, the. Royal skousen is professor of english at brigham young university and since 1988 has served as the editor of the book of mormon critical text project. Translating the book of mormon, which i was grateful to receive as an advanced reading copy from the publisher, happened to do both. Book of mormon translator converted the mormon urban. Matthews and benjmins translation method is particularly interesting for book of mormon translation theories, since some of the biggest issues in discussions of book of mormon translation are. It is claimed that each sentence and word in the 1830 book of mormon had supposedly come directly from god. Historical statements by witnesses of the translation process also provide valuable information about how joseph smith translated, but sometimes these statements are unreliable. Martin harris related an incident that occurred during the time that he wrote that portion of the translation of the book of. Book of mormontransmission from translator to printed text.
Seer stones and the translation of the book of mormon. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to. More insight into the book of mormon translation process might come from the original book of commandments. During the translating process itself, smith sometimes separated himself from his scribe with a blanket between them. However, this hypothesis would create more problems than it would seem to solve. Joseph smith translated an ancient text by the gift and power of god to produce the book of mormon. Joseph smith said the book of mormon was true and inspiring. In 2014 the church quietly published book of mormon and dna studies, an essay which distills an avalanche of mormon apologetics published solely in lds journals, and attempts to address population genetics. She, like the three and eight witnesses of the book of mormon, never wavered in her testimony of the books authenticity. Clearly the book of mormon revises this passage, but it retains that part of the kjv which has been questioned by modern scholarship. Accordingly, after the translation was finished, oliver cowdery copied the entire book of mormon onto a second manuscript, known today as the printers manuscript. The phrase and it came to pass occurs in the book of mormon 677 more times than in the old testament kjv a number deemed to be excessive by some. Gardner earned a masters degree in anthropology and mesoamerican ethnohistory from the state university of new york at albany.
That the book of mormon replaces the corresponding matthean passage is shown by the fact that the verses immediately before and after this section in the book of mormon correspond to the verses in the kjv before and after matthew 5. Did joseph smith describe the book of mormon translation process. The writer, josiah jones, claims as his source the first latterday saint missionaries to that te ritory elde s cowdery, pratt, whitmer, and peterson, from whom he learned that the book w translated by looking. Bushman, professor of history at columbia university, presents the details and evidence from the perspective of the original participants, including joseph and emma smith.
Book of mormon translation response to mormonthink. In this article, egyptologist robert ritner responds to that article. Whatever we do or do not know about the action translation or production process has always seemed like a rather interesting but misdirected distraction. From the printers manuscript, the 1830 edition of the book of mormon was typeset. How much of the book of mormon is joseph smiths own. I have a certified replica of the first edition of the book of mormon and have read that from cover to cover. Translation work taking book of mormon to more people in more tongues, ensign, february 2005, 7576 translation work taking book of mormon to more people in more tongues, 6 february 2005 150 million and counting. It cannot reveal nearly as much about the translation process as skousen suggests. The article is fairly brief and only superficially addresses the problem. Jun 29, 2016 it was an interesting and challenging experience. But beginning about 182728, smith and his followers began to change how they talked about the translation process, transforming it from magical treasure lore into christian epic. Joseph smith used both the nephite interpreters and his own seer stone during the translation process, yet we only hear of the urim and thummim being used.
Translating the book of mormon religious studies center. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon translation was performed by the gift and power of god the lost 116 pages of the book of mormon manuscript. It may be surprising to learn that the books from the small plates of nephi 1 nephi through words of mormon almost certainly came last in the translation process. He quoted several eyewitnesses to the books translation, including david whitmer, who testified that it was translated by the gift and power of god, and not by any power of man. In this article i discuss what the original manuscript of. Translation of the book of mormon according to his own account, joseph smith saw god the father and jesus christ in a pillar of light in spring 1820, at the age of fourteen, and they called him to a divine work. Joseph didnt share many details of the translation process other than the. Joseph smith and those around him spoke about the translation process. A depiction of the golden plates joseph smith used for the translation of the book of mormon. Joseph said an angel moroni appeared to him and said the gold plates were nearby, and contained a record of the ancient native. If the plates were not part of the translation process, this would not have been the case. In it, joseph is receiving revelation from god telling oliver he is blessed with a gift of a divining rod.
She, like the three and eight witnesses of the book of mormon, never wavered in her testimony of the book. Why did the book of mormon come forth as a miracle. The word yea in the bible and in the book of mormon. The book of mormon has traditionally been presented as a historical account of the first inhabitants of the americas the principle ancestors of the native americans. Mason allred and mark ashurstmcgee discuss the various historical accounts of the book of mormon translation process, including accounts of joseph smith using a. I have read the book of mormon from cover to cover probably a dozen times or so. Im starting here with the book of mormon translation essay. The practice of using roots and plants for medicine didnt occur until the late 1860s, the use of things like asprin. In the video seer stones and the translation of the book of mormon, mason allred interviews dr. This paper aims to stimulate specific thinking about the intense and complex events during which the book of mormon was translated in 1829. Translation of the book of mormon according to his own account, joseph smith saw god the father and jesus christ in a pillar of light in spring 1820, at the age of fourteen, and they called him to a.
Normal content editing, which involves revising and reworking parts of the text, did not occur in the original or in subsequent editions of the book of mormon. In truth, the phrase is based on the hebrew wayehi, which bible translators rendered in more ways than one. Why do new testament words and phrases show up in the book of. Royal skousen, the book of mormon critical text project, in joseph smith. The application contains the title page of the book of mormon. Aug 21, 2015 when joseph smith began the book of mormon translation, he acted in his capacity as a treasure seer and used the tools of that trade. Answering a question posed by her son joseph smith iii in 1879, emma smith indicated that the prophet joseph smith could not have been the author of the book of mormon, for he had neither the writing abilities nor adequate knowledge of ancient israel.
Keep that in mind as we study the book of mormon this year. This figure, based on the book of mormon study text, 1 is slightly higher than the figure yielded by the lds program word cruncher 7. On the title page to the book of mormon there is a literal translation of the statement concerning the plates, in which this occurs. New church video explains joseph smiths seer stones. Welchs excellent article entitled the miraculous translation of the book of mormon, from opening the heavens, accounts of divine manifestations 18201844, p. The book of mormon reaches another milestone, church news, 20110418.
The lds church has recently published on its website, a short article titled book of mormon translation that lays out in greater detail than perhaps ever before in an official statement some of the lesserknown aspects of the book of mormon translation process, such as joseph smiths use of and even preference for a seer stone that he had found years before receiving. Interest in the manner of the translation of the book of mormon is still alive among many thoughtful students. The modern church rarely discusses the translation process. A compilation of published statements on the book of mormon translation method in both church and nonchurch publications. The deseret news has stated, in sufficient plainness, its position in regard to the translation of the book of mormon by the prophet joseph smith. Church members believe that the book of mormon is more correct than the bible because the bible was the result of a multiplegeneration translation process and the book of mormon was not. The same goes for oliver cowderys use of the terms in his description of the translation process. But this text comes as a product of whatever process of translation occurs. A pastor who lived near cowdery, ethan smith, had written view of the hebrews, another work that has been posited as a source for the book of mormon. Grandins print shop in october 1829 that oliver cowdery purchased from grandin the king james bible that joseph smith used in the translation. On this proposal, the translation of the biblical passages as they appear in the book of mormon is independent of the kjv, thus explaining why the word yea occurs so much more frequently in these passages in the book of mormon.
Isaiah in the book of mormon religious studies center. Some of the sharpest detractors of the book of mormon translation have confessed that as we stated earlier, most of the 3,9 changes which we found were related to the correction of grammatical and spelling errors and do not really change the basic meaning of the text. Peterson wrote an excellent article in which he cites witnesses to the book of mormon translation process, giving modern readers insight into what eyewitnesses saw regarding how joseph smith translated the book of mormon. Eyewitnesses to the process said smith translated the plates, not by looking directly at them.
Book of mormon translation response to an essay on the mechanical process in which the book of mormon was translated was put in the topical guide of the website on 1230. April 06, 1829 to june 16, 1829 translation of the book of mormon at this point we move to a daily analysis of the translation of the book of mormon. Joseph smith claimed that the book of mormon is his translation of an ancient book written on gold plates. The gold plates and the translation of the book of mormon.
Bushman, professor of history at columbia university, presents the details and evidence from the perspective of the original participants, including joseph and emma smith, oliver cowdery, and other scribes and family members. It seems that if nephi had copied them from the plates of brass in hebrew onto his own record and that if joseph smith had then received the english translation by the gift and power of god, the isaiah passages would read more like the 1830 book of mormon and less. The original book of mormon transcript the book of mormon. The focus for earlier discussions about the book of mormon have all focused on the text that we have. Translating and printing the book of mormon the book of. Oct 07, 2017 for a detailed description of the process by which joseph smith translated the book of mormon, read. It was while the book of mormon was being printed at e. Cowdery served as scribe during the transcription of the book of mormon, and was one of the three witnesses to the golden plates. There is no question that the isaiah passages in the book of mormon are in the language of the king james translation of the bible. According to latter day saint belief, the golden plates are the source from which joseph smith said he translated the book of mormon. While a select few did hear joseph refer to magical items, nobody ever saw a breastplate, spectacles, or ancient interpreter stones.
Answers to questions respecting the theory in the senior manual, 19056. Aug 05, 2016 the focus for earlier discussions about the book of mormon have all focused on the text that we have. While the translation of the book of mormon may come directly from god, this does not preclude the role that joseph would play in adapting the language of the book of mormon to a cultural and linguistic framework that would both establish that the text was authentic and inspired while also communicating the book s message clearly. Mark ashurstmcgee of the joseph smith papers project concerning the various historical accounts of the book of mormon translation process. Theres an article titled have the greatest year with the greatest book that includes good idea about how to improve our study. It also leaves us wondering why the lord directed the writers of the book of mormon to take a duplicate record of the plates of lehi. All three of these could be the result of a dynamically equivalent translation that, like matthews and benjamins translations, 1 aims to emphasize the relationship between the book of mormon and the bible. It describes the full background on the coming forth of the book and its translation process using insights gained from some of the earliest documents available. David whitmer, one of the book of mormon witnesses, explained the process. A commentary on the doctrine and covenants and other modern revel ations salt lake city, ut. Dynamically equivalent translation and the book of mormon.
Oliver cowdery was a thirdcousin of lucy mack smith, joseph smiths mother. Translating the book of mormon by the gift and power of god, smith dictated to his scribe the english text that appeared beneath the reformed egyptian signs. Some had waited all of their lifetimes to read the book of mormon in afrikaans. The anachronism of horses in the book of mormon as an indication of its historicity contents of all bmaf publications are the sole responsibility of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of bmaf, book of mormon central, or the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Examples of deliberate deception regarding the book of. Many readers of the book of mormon naturally assume that joseph smith translated its books in the order that we find them today, that is, beginning with the title page, and then translating 1 nephi 1. For a detailed description of the process by which joseph smith translated the book of mormon, read. President nelson speaks to 2016 mission presidents about. He moved in with the smiths in the winter of 1828 to act as scribe for joseph smith. In fact, the book of mormon translation process was performed entirely without looking at the plates, which were either out of the room or said to have been covered with a cloth. Firsthand witness accounts of the translation process religious. The text of the book of mormon, and its relationship to the bible and to other ancient scriptural texts, is complex in many ways. While the church has pinned its hopes on the work of limited geography apologetics, the essay makes no mention of geography at all.
And the original manuscript itself is, historically speaking, the closest we can get to that original translation, the process that joseph smith said transpired by the gift and power of god. Book of mormon translation lds church is true blog. In the book of mormon, though, the word yea occurs 1,254 times. The lds church issued a new article on the book of abraham on its official website in 2014, arguing that it does not matter that the text of the book of abraham does not match the text of the papyri joseph smith said he had translated. Is the book of mormon like any other nineteenth century book. As a firsthand witness of the translation process when she acted as his scribe, emma could testify that her husband had no notes, drafts, or books with him while he translated that ancient record. Ostler as sistant professor of church history and doctrine, byu from revelations of the restoration. The book of mormon is a phenomenal gift from god and can be a great way to draw closer to the lord. Translation and historicity of the book of abraham a. Much can be known about the coming forth of the english text of the book of mormon through a careful study of statements made by joseph smith, his scribes, and others closely associated with the translation of the book of mormon.
Divining rods were believed to have power to help farmers locate where to dig to find water. Jul 19, 2019 in sum, there may be many reasons why biblical words and phrases show up in the book of mormon. How the book of mormon translation story changed over time. The book of mormon and the growth of printing in america. Translation of the book of mormon book of mormon central.
The book opens with a 32page introduction, the most comprehensive of any edition of the book of mormon. Original book of mormon manuscript fragments could provide. The book of mormon critical text project religious studies. This applies, for instance, to the concept of god trinitarian in the book of mormon, monolatric in modern mormonism, the afterlife heaven and hell in the book of mormon, multiple kingdoms.
Almost immediately after we had made this discovery, it occurred to oliver. His early work on the translation, with emma smith and martin harris serving as the main scribes, was lost in 1828. One tagline reads decide now to make 2020 the year you and your family immerse yourselves in the book of mormon. An essay on the mechanical process in which the book of mormon was translated was published 30 december 20 and is now in the topical guide of the website. Many naturalists consider joseph smith to have been a firsttime novelist in 1829 as he created the book of mormon, so the lack of revisions is. This interpretation, still dominant among members of the lds church, remained in the introduction to the book of mormon until recently. Upon completion, the translated document became known as the book of mormon. Many elements which are typical to mormon theology and liturgy do not occur in the book of mormon, or are contradicted even.
Joseph smith only stated that he translated the book of mormon by the. Is it just coincidental that the churchwide study of the book of mormon always happens on presidential election years in the united states. Emma smith on the book of mormon translation process, quote 1. Joseph smith translating the book of mormon by looking at a seer stone in a hat. Analytical and contextual commentary on the book of mormon and the gift and power. Interesting correspondence on the subject of the manual theory. However, this hypothesis would create more problems than it. Book of mormon translation joseph smith claimed that the book of mormon is his translation of an ancient book written on gold plates. The gold plates and the translation of the book of mormon the gold plates and the translation of the book of mormon according to joseph smiths later accounts, three years after he experienced his first vision of deity, an angel appeared to him in 1823 and told him of an ancient record written on gold plates. Most readers of the book of mormon naturally assume that joseph. How does the mosiahfirst translation sequence strengthen faith. The following letters on the subject are, therefore, both timely and engagingeditors. In his recent study of the book of mormon translation process, richard l.