Book of Mormon

[Tony Mel]

Alright, someone had to do it. Have you read the Book of Mormon? What are your impressions?

[Jane]

(07-01-2011 02:48 PM)Tony Mel Wrote:  Alright, someone had to do it. Have you read the Book of Mormon? What are your impressions?

There's no way I would ever be able to get through the whole thing (nor do I have the desire to do so), but I've read portions of it. I thought it was interesting how it parrots the style of the KJV. I suppose Joseph Smith thought that people would be more likely to accept his book as Scripture if it sounded like the language of the Scripture they were used to.

[elfdream]

I'm distantly related to Joseph Smith. That has nothing to do with anything.

And I've leafed through the book. I've thought it odd how something that was supposedly a revelation from an angel from God was in pseudo KVJ English...and that an angel from God was bringing 'another gospel'. Of course they will tell you that its NOT another gospel.

They have an idea that my Cherokee ancestors were once part of the twelve lost tribes. We don't agree.

But having said that I have to state that I have many LDS friends. I'm the family historian and used to hang out at the locale family history center. They are for the most part decent people.

[Naomi]

(07-01-2011 02:48 PM)Tony Mel Wrote:  Alright, someone had to do it. Have you read the Book of Mormon? What are your impressions?

Aww, dude, I totally clicked on this thinking it was going to be a discussion of the Broadway musical.

I've read part of it. But the musical is waaaay better!!!!

[Tony Mel]

As a few of you know, I professed Mormonism for a short amount of time, a year before I embraced the Biblical faith of Jesus Christ. Now that I look back on these couple of months, I realize that what drew me to this religion was not its historical veracity but its unconventional appeal and the friendly nature of its members.

The Book of Mormon is a neat story that allegedly takes place in the American continent. Jewish believers sail overseas because of religious persecution and make the New World their home. As they're settling in the land and striving to live out their faith, they receive a series of visits from none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. As the story unfolds, the Lord announces his eternal gospel, explains the terms of its acceptance, expounds on key Christian doctrines, and reveals some details that the Bible omits.

The Book of Mormon, which is purported to be "Another Testament of Jesus Christ," is made up of 16 books, one of which is called the "Book of Mormon" (proper). It is claimed to be a direct translation (written in "Reformed Egyptian") from golden plates found in Palmyra, New York, by 14-year old Joseph Smith in 1827. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints believes the Book of Mormon to be the Word of God, along with the Bible ("as far as it is translated correctly"), the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price.

Although the story line is interesting, and its claims are fascinating, the facts appear to be completely unfounded. None of the people or places mentioned are backed by archeological or historical support. Moreover, the Book contains twenty-two passages from the book of Isaiah, directly taken from the King James Version. Numerous passages begin with the phrase, "And it came to pass that," making the narration flow strained and unnatural. A person who is lightly acquainted with the Bible will quickly point out terms, phrases, characters, deeds and parallels that, not only resemble familiar stories of the Scriptures, but also show up in interesting arrangements and juxtapositions. The provincial and regional mindset permeates the whole text. To the discerning reader this books reads nothing more than a theology dissertation (by a confused teenager) contained in a religious fiction that drew upon the colonist idea of the European settlers in the New World.

[Tony Mel]

(07-01-2011 03:34 PM)elfdream Wrote:  I'm distantly related to Joseph Smith. That has nothing to do with anything.

Are you really? You and Darrell are of questionable ancestry.
I have a friend who is not only related to him but also bears the same name.

[Tony Mel]

(07-01-2011 03:29 PM)Jane Wrote:  I thought it was interesting how it parrots the style of the KJV. I suppose Joseph Smith thought that people would be more likely to accept his book as Scripture if it sounded like the language of the Scripture they were used to.

That was 173 years before the coming of the Information Age, and this is why he could get away with it then. He also claimed that some untranslated Egyptian scrolls he found were the basis for their Pearl of Great Price, a statement that has been proven false and ridiculous. These scrolls were later found to be Egyptian funeral documents.

There is no reason for anyone to still be a Mormon today.

[drfiddledd]

In case any of you have been in a cave. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vA1IMSRN2Xk

[captain_solo]

It definitely has an L.Ron Hubbard feel to it.

If it was in the Science Fiction section it would be as popular as his stuff, or maybe some of the strange stuff popular in the 50-60s

I actually laughed out loud in a few spots it was so ridiculous. In a way that even a skeptic would not when reading the narratives in the Bible. I mean outright silly stuff that cannot have been meant to be taken seriously.

[elfdream]

I have read that the LDS church has one of the lowest convert retention rates. Missionaries will convert whole villages only to come back six months later only to find out that the natives are back to worshipping the sun or whatever it is that they were doing before.

A South Afircan friend of mine had never heard of them.