Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited

Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited PDF Author: Noel B. Reynolds
Publisher: Maxwell Institute
ISBN: 9780934893251
Category : Book of Mormon
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints view the Book of Mormon as scripture written by ancient prophets, while critics believe that it is a 19th-century fraud. The 15 essays in Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited present the latest research by LDS scholars on the question in an effort to demonstrate that the weight of scholarly evidence is on the side of authenticity. Part 1 contains essays dealing with accounts of how the book was produced in 1829 and 1830, with emphasis on the translation process and the witnesses who saw the plates. Part 2 takes a look at the logical structure of the authorship debate and reviews the history of alternative theories and criticisms of the Book of Mormon. Part 3 presents textual studies that demonstrate the plausibility of the Book of Mormon as an ancient book, and part 4 updates scholars' attempts to understand the ancient cultural and geographic setting of the book in both the Old and New Worlds.

Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited

Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited PDF Author: Noel B. Reynolds
Publisher: Maxwell Institute
ISBN: 9780934893251
Category : Book of Mormon
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints view the Book of Mormon as scripture written by ancient prophets, while critics believe that it is a 19th-century fraud. The 15 essays in Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited present the latest research by LDS scholars on the question in an effort to demonstrate that the weight of scholarly evidence is on the side of authenticity. Part 1 contains essays dealing with accounts of how the book was produced in 1829 and 1830, with emphasis on the translation process and the witnesses who saw the plates. Part 2 takes a look at the logical structure of the authorship debate and reviews the history of alternative theories and criticisms of the Book of Mormon. Part 3 presents textual studies that demonstrate the plausibility of the Book of Mormon as an ancient book, and part 4 updates scholars' attempts to understand the ancient cultural and geographic setting of the book in both the Old and New Worlds.

Book of Mormon Authorship

Book of Mormon Authorship PDF Author: Charles D. Tate
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780934893183
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
Since 1830, millions of people have read the Book of Mormon and become convinced that Joseph Smith's account of its ancient origins is correct. Others, however, assume that the book must be a fraud. The Book of Mormon describes peoples, cultures, history, and lands largely unknown to the 19th-century world. But today we enjoy a relative wealth of information about those times and peoples, providing a background against which the Book of Mormon's claims of ancient origin can be tested. This volume brings together a collection of initial efforts to mount such tests. Although first published in 1982, these nine essays have not been outdated or refuted by subsequent studies. The evidence and conclusions they put forward are just as persuasive today as when they were first published.

A Documentary History of the Book of Mormon

A Documentary History of the Book of Mormon PDF Author:
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190699116
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 552

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Book Description
The story of the creation of the Book of Mormon has been told many times, and often ridiculed. A Documentary History of the Book of Mormon presents and examines the primary sources surrounding the origin of the foundational text of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the most successful new religion of modern times. The scores of documents transcribed and annotated in this book include family histories, journal entries, letters, affidavits, reminiscences, interviews, newspaper articles, and book extracts, as well as revelations dictated in the name of God. From these texts emerges the captivating story of what happened (and what was believed or rumored to have happened) between September 1823-when the seventeen-year-old farm boy Joseph Smith announced that an angel of God had directed him to an ancient book inscribed on gold plates-and March 1830, when the Book of Mormon was first published. By compiling for the first time a substantial collection of both first- and secondhand accounts relevant to the inception of the divine revelation-or clever fraud-that launched a new world religion, A Documentary History makes a significant contribution to the rapidly growing field of Mormon Studies.

Visions in a Seer Stone

Visions in a Seer Stone PDF Author: William L. Davis
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469655675
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 265

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Book Description
In this interdisciplinary work, William L. Davis examines Joseph Smith's 1829 creation of the Book of Mormon, the foundational text of the Latter Day Saint movement. Positioning the text in the history of early American oratorical techniques, sermon culture, educational practices, and the passion for self-improvement, Davis elucidates both the fascinating cultural context for the creation of the Book of Mormon and the central role of oral culture in early nineteenth-century America. Drawing on performance studies, religious studies, literary culture, and the history of early American education, Davis analyzes Smith's process of oral composition. How did he produce a history spanning a period of 1,000 years, filled with hundreds of distinct characters and episodes, all cohesively tied together in an overarching narrative? Eyewitnesses claimed that Smith never looked at notes, manuscripts, or books—he simply spoke the words of this American religious epic into existence. Judging the truth of this process is not Davis's interest. Rather, he reveals a kaleidoscope of practices and styles that converged around Smith's creation, with an emphasis on the evangelical preaching styles popularized by the renowned George Whitefield and John Wesley.

Americanist Approaches to The Book of Mormon

Americanist Approaches to The Book of Mormon PDF Author: Elizabeth Fenton
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190221941
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 457

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Book Description
As the sacred text of a modern religious movement of global reach, The Book of Mormon has undeniable historical significance. That significance, this volume shows, is inextricable from the intricacy of its literary form and the audacity of its historical vision. This landmark collection brings together a diverse range of scholars in American literary studies and related fields to definitively establish The Book of Mormon as an indispensable object of Americanist inquiry not least because it is, among other things, a form of Americanist inquiry in its own right--a creative, critical reading of "America." Drawing on formalist criticism, literary and cultural theory, book history, religious studies, and even anthropological field work, Americanist Approaches to The Book of Mormon captures as never before the full dimensions and resonances of this "American Bible."

Understanding the Book of Mormon

Understanding the Book of Mormon PDF Author: Grant Hardy
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199889759
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 627

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Book Description
Mark Twain once derided the Book of Mormon as "chloroform in print." Long and complicated, written in the language of the King James version of the Bible, it boggles the minds of many. Yet it is unquestionably one of the most influential books ever written. With over 140 million copies in print, it is a central text of one of the largest and fastest-growing faiths in the world. And, Grant Hardy shows, it's far from the coma-inducing doorstop caricatured by Twain. In Understanding the Book of Mormon, Hardy offers the first comprehensive analysis of the work's narrative structure in its 180 year history. Unlike virtually all other recent world scriptures, the Book of Mormon presents itself as an integrated narrative rather than a series of doctrinal expositions, moral injunctions, or devotional hymns. Hardy takes readers through its characters, events, and ideas, as he explores the story and its messages. He identifies the book's literary techniques, such as characterization, embedded documents, allusions, and parallel narratives. Whether Joseph Smith is regarded as author or translator, it's noteworthy that he never speaks in his own voice; rather, he mediates nearly everything through the narrators Nephi, Mormon, and Moroni. Hardy shows how each has a distinctive voice, and all are woven into an integral whole. As with any scripture, the contending views of the Book of Mormon can seem irreconcilable. For believers, it is an actual historical document, transmitted from ancient America. For nonbelievers, it is the work of a nineteenth-century farmer from upstate New York. Hardy transcends this intractable conflict by offering a literary approach, one appropriate to both history and fiction. Regardless of whether readers are interested in American history, literature, comparative religion, or even salvation, he writes, the book can best be read if we examine the text on its own terms.

The Annotated Book of Mormon

The Annotated Book of Mormon PDF Author:
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190082208
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 907

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Book Description
This is the first fully annotated, academic edition of the Book of Mormon in its 200-year history. Modelled after the Oxford line of annotated Bibles, it provides readers with the information they need to understand this classic text of American religious history. This edition reformats the complete scriptural text in the manner of modern Bible translations with paragraphs, quotation marks, poetic stanzas, and section headings, all of which clarify the book's complicated narrative structure. As a result, readers experience a more accessible and readable presentation than the standard version. Annotations explain the meaning and context of specific passages, delineate extended arguments, identify rhetorical patterns, explore theological implications, highlight ancient and modern parallels, and point out intertextual connections, particularly with the Bible. The Book of Mormon is subdivided into internal books; in this edition, each book is preceded by an introduction that discusses its key themes and literary features, at the same time offering a quick overview of major figures, events, and sermons. The three primary narrators--Nephi, Mormon, and Moroni--receive special attention. In addition to the annotations, which focus on the text itself, there are twelve general essays that introduce readers to various ongoing conversations about the text. There are also several maps and charts, as well as a comprehensive list of biblical quotations and allusions. The editorial material is informed by contemporary biblical and historical scholarship; while it deals forthrightly with both the strengths and weaknesses of the narrative, it nevertheless treats the Book of Mormon as a sacred text, worthy of careful study and respect.

Pre-Columbian Trans-Oceanic Contact

Pre-Columbian Trans-Oceanic Contact PDF Author: Jerald Fritzinger
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1329972163
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
Pre-Columbian Trans-Oceanic Contact examines the discovery and settlement of The New World hundreds and even thousands of years before Christopher Columbus was born.

By the Hand of Mormon

By the Hand of Mormon PDF Author: Terryl Givens
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0195168887
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 333

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Book Description
Finally, in exploring what Martin Marty refers to as the Book of Mormon's "revelatory appeal," Givens highlights the Book's role as the engine behind what may become the next world religion."--BOOK JACKET.

American Sociology of Religion

American Sociology of Religion PDF Author: Anthony J. Blasi
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004161155
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 326

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Book Description
First ever collection of histories of American sociology of religion, including accounts of early dissertations changes in theory, and studies of denominations, globalization, feminism, new religions and Latino/a American religion.