Saturday, 12 October 2024
Why
I Still Believe
and
Why I Still Belong
and
Why I Still Belong
Are
the claims of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints true? Was Joseph
Smith really a Prophet of God? Has the
Gospel and Church of Jesus Christ really been restored? Is the Book of Mormon really the Word of God?
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
What is this?
Having examined the criticisms levelled at the Church, I
attempt to explain why, despite some reservations and misgivings, I personally still believe in, and belong to, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
This is also an attempt to help both
post Mormons, who at one time were active members of The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints and who stopped believing in the claims of the Church, and
also active members and particularly returned missionaries who may from time to
time struggle with various faith or 'truth' issues.
What follows are links to the issues, responses from LDS scholars, my thoughts on
some of these and an explanation as to why I still believe and why I still
belong. I hope they will be helpful.
What it is not
There are two things it is
not. It is not scholarly. I am not a scholar. Secondly, nothing written here is
attributable to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I do not speak for the Church. This is not a Church sponsored or supported site.
Who am I?
My name is David Eaton. I am an active member of The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. I joined the Church in 1972 at the age of 20. I served a mission for the Church in
Scotland 1975-1977. I am married with
two children and two grandchildren. When I first wrote this in 2017, I was living in the UK just south of London. We have subsequently moved to the West Midlands. I have served in various Church callings including Elders Quorum President, Bishop, High Councillor, Stake President, Counsellor in the England London South Mission Presidency. Currently I serve as a counsellor in my Ward Bishopric. I keep this bloggy thing updated occasionally.
SPOILER ALERT – CONTENT WARNING
SPOILER ALERT – CONTENT WARNING
This blog contains a link to a website that addresses specific issues
relating to concerns over Mormonism and the historicity of the Church; concerns
that have resulted in some formerly believing and active Church members to stop
believing and, in some cases, remove their names from the records of the
Church.
You should not click on that link and read those questions and criticisms
if you do not want to understand what those issues are.
Now, if you were to ask me whether I think you should want to understand the
criticisms levelled at the Church to which you belong? I would reply, 'well, actually, yes, I think you should'. Understanding the
criticisms and how each is answered will help you to be better informed and will
probably, as it has for me, bolster your testimony and move your faith, as Bruce and Marie Hafen have taught, from stage 1 simplicity, through stage 2 complexity, and into stage 3 simplicity, as they say "...a new informed, mature simplicity beyond complexity". (Faith is Not Blind - Bruce and Marie Hafen) . But
that is just my opinion and you are perfectly entitled to hold a different
view.
You could jump to more of the
reasons why I believe and why I belong if you don’t wish to click on the link and see the concerns. It is well
understood that some members of the Church do not want to examine criticisms
levelled at it. Some members, and I am one
of them, are happy for critical examination but accept that not everybody
is.
Additionally, others, again me
included, have felt little choice in the matter because close family members
have already stopped believing and left the Church and because our love for
them is so deep, so wide and so eternal that we have to do whatever it takes to
understand why they have made this decision, what are the problems that have so
challenged their erstwhile steady devotion, and try to see if there are
credible and viable answers to those problems.
For those of us deeply and personally affected, we cannot, and, in my
view, should not, simply ‘look away’.
NB. When the term ‘Post Mormon’
is used in this document, it refers specifically to those who have been
affected by the ‘issues’ and who have withdrawn from the Church.
It is recognised, as in all faiths, that some people stop attending
Church for entirely other reasons, ranging from indolence and indifference to offence-taking
and loss of desire to live up to the standards of the Church. Whilst this piece of writing may benefit
these lapsed Church attendees it is particularly aimed at those troubled by the
issues addressed on the website, which is linked-to below.
TRUTH!
TRUTH!
Members of the Church are
encouraged to read widely and search for truth wherever it is found. “We should
gather all the good and true principles in the world and treasure them up, or
we shall not come out true Mormons.” Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.
316
On another occasion Joseph Smith was heard to say, “Truth
will cut its own way.” History of the Church, 5:498–99; from a discourse given by Joseph Smith on July 9,
1843, in Nauvoo, Illinois; reported by Willard Richards.
Another quote, credited primarily
to President J Reuben Clark, is:
“If we have the truth, it cannot
be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed.”–
J. Reuben Clark and D. Michael Quinn, The Church Years
(Provo UT, 1983), p 24.
This J Reuben Clarke quotation is
popular among former Mormons who, having decided that the Church is not true, consider
it fair game to be ‘harmed’, or, in their eyes, justly and vigorously criticised. Many become zealous in wanting to rescue
those they now consider victims of what they regard as one of the biggest cons
ever perpetrated. But are they right?
And this from Elder B.H. Roberts,
then of the Presidency of the Seventy:
“We desire only to ascertain the
truth; nothing but the truth will endure; and the ascertainment of the truth
and the proclamation of the truth in any given case, or upon any subject, will
do no harm to the work of the Lord which is itself truth. Nor need we be
surprised if now and then we find our predecessors, many of whom bear honored
names and deserve our respect and gratitude for what they achieved in making
clear the truth, as they conceived it to be—we need not be surprised if we
sometimes find them mistaken in their conceptions and deductions; just as
the generations who succeed us in unfolding in a larger way some of the yet
unlearned truths of the Gospel, will find that we have had some
misconceptions and made some wrong deductions in our day and time. . . .
The generation which preceded us did not exhaust by their knowledge all the
truth, so that nothing was left for us in its unfolding; no, not even in
respect of the Book of Mormon; any more than we shall exhaust all discovery in
relation to that book and leave nothing for the generation following us to
develop. All which is submitted, especially to the membership of the Church,
that they may be prepared to find and receive new truths both in the Book of
Mormon itself and about it; and that they may also rejoice in the fact that
knowledge of truth is inexhaustible, and will forever go on developing.”
Roberts, ‘New Witnesses for God’,
3:503-4
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf declared, “The pursuit,
discovery, and application of truth are what we are on this earth to discover.”
– Church History Symposium, 10th March 2014.
I like these quotes and others that
elevate truth and its pursuit. However,
there are probably different definitions of ‘truth’ going on here. Rationalism seeks truth in accordance with
fact or reality; the fact of the matter; what actually/really happened that can
be verified by scientific evidence, empiric, and observable through
experimentation. I believe Prophets of
God live in the real world too and access rational empiricism but are not
limited to it. They also have access to
the super natural dimension – God reveals truth to them. Divine truth and
materially demonstrable facts sometimes coincide but not always.
As President Dieter F Uchtdorf
has commented:
“There will be times when it may appear that
things are going badly for the truth of God — that the evidence of the world
contradicts God’s utterances. For my part, I have learned to be patient,
knowing that in the end things will work out. God’s kingdom will continue to
grow. The truth will continue to flourish and spread throughout the earth.
Sometimes all it takes is a little faith and a little patience. Things which
may appear impossible now may become matter-of-fact in years to come.”
This paper is going to try to
stick with the rationalism definition of truth but at the same time not
jettison the idea, the belief, that divine revelation does exist and can and
does bring truth that cannot always be materially demonstrated.
THE ISSUES – MORMONISM CRITICISED
THE ISSUES – MORMONISM CRITICISED
Since the 1830s, the time Joseph Smith, and the Church he
organised, started declaring that Mormonism was the ‘true’ restored Church of
Jesus Christ, both have been accused of being fraudulent. In recent years the volume of criticism has
increased and a list of ‘problems’ or ‘issues’ has been circulated online and
featured on various websites. Although these ‘problems’ and ‘issues’, discussed
here, are not new, in fact many of them were raised in Joseph’s day, they have
nevertheless become more crystallised in these more secular, open, questioning and much more transparent times; a composite
or compendium of criticism that has come to represent a serious stumbling block
to many members of the Church.
One such compendium is referred
to as ‘Letter to a CES director’.
Copyright prevents me from displaying this document in its entirety,
which would anyway occupy too much space as it is some 90 pages long. However, below I provide a link to the categories of questions raised by its author and answers to those questions
given by FairMormon, an apologetics organisation that has for many years
addressed these and other issues.
FairMormon is made up primarily
of LDS scholars and so their answers come out of the same confirmation bias
that all members of the Church suffer from.
We are biased because we come to the arguments from a position of having
already believed the Church to be true and Joseph Smith a true Prophet; this
inevitably colours our judgments and skews our perspective. We want it to be true because we have already
invested so much into it. We are always
looking for confirmation that it is true.
Can we really see things clearly?
Can we really be objective?
You the reader must decide for
yourself whether you agree with the defence that FairMormon erects to each
question raised. Both the questions and
the answers are included on the FairMormon website so you can see the full
picture. Both FairMormon writers and the
author of ‘Letter to a CES Director’ have de-bunked each other’s responses,
resulting sometimes in some less than flattering exchanges. All of these exchanges are referenced on the
FairMormon site. Some of the answers
given are very detailed and refer to numerous third party sources. It has taken a great deal of time to read
them all, look up source references, see the de-bunked responses and try to get one’s head around not only the
issues but also the in-depth answers given.
What About the
Answers?
I said above that each must
decide for themselves, so please ignore or skip the following if you don’t want
to be coloured by what I think.
I think some of the FairMormon
responses are lame and weak, but on balance I thought the majority of them
fair, if you’ll excuse the pun, but often lacking detail. Most of the time I think their answers
credible and plausible. I don’t like it,
however, when they indulge in straw-man fallacies and appear to denigrate the
author for having the seeming temerity to either ask certain questions or for,
in their opinion, not having searched hard enough for the answers provided by
fellow scholars, which, they maintain, have been ‘out there’ for years. This is more of a tonal thing – they are
always respectful and polite and do not call him an idiot – where FairMormon
give the impression that they think the author of Letter to a CES Director is
an idiot for raising this or that issue.
It should be said that FairMormon
is staffed entirely by volunteers who give their time between work, family and
church, so I don’t want to be too critical if I think some of their responses
poor.
As mentioned earlier, the list of
‘problems’ with the Church is substantial; however each issue or question has
been addressed by FairMormon and others.
So, if you want to see what the detailed questions and criticisms are, go to the main section on FairMormon, which is called:
“Criticism of Mormonism/Online documents/Letter to a CES Director” and work
through the documents systematically here:
Well, did you follow the link and examine the questions and read FairMormon's answers? If you did, I commend you for your stamina! You will have seen there a broad cross
section of criticism, each with an answer or response. Not an exhaustive list but one that embodies
the key points of controversy and question.
You must determine whether you feel the responses given by FairMormon
are credible, plausible, acceptable, convincing etc. Despite some that in my
opinion are embarrassingly lame and are actually strawmen, for the most part I
have found that they do fall into one of those categories and I have found them
helpful.
THE BOOK OF MORMON – TRUE OR FALSE?
As you will have seen if you went through the ‘issues’ above, disaffected
Post Mormons and other critics maintain that Joseph Smith was a fraud and a conman and that all
Church members are his victims; that he did not translate the Book of Mormon
‘by the gift and power of God’ as he claimed.
Joseph, they argue, along with the help of others such as Oliver Cowdery
and even possibly Martin Harris, wrote the Book of Mormon themselves, basing it
on other extant texts to which it is thought they had relatively easy access.
Other Texts Suspected as Source
Materials for the Book of Mormon
There are four contemporary texts that overtime have been suggested
as sources that Joseph and possibly others could have used as material that
influenced the writing of the Book of Mormon:
1.
View of the Hebrews
– an 1823 book written by Ethan Smith, a United States Congregationalist minister, who argued that Native
Americans were descended
from the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.
2.
The Late War [between the United States and Great Britain] – Gilbert
J Hunt; published in 1816. The Late War, a
history of the War of 1812, was written in "biblical style" that is, emulating the style of the King
James Bible, and is published with chapter and verse notation
3.
The First Book of Napoleon – Michael Linning, (1774-1838) a Scottish
Solicitor.
4.
Manuscript Story and Manuscript Found – Solomon Spaulding
(1761-1816). These were two unfinished
and unpublished texts about the lost civilisation of mound builders on North
America. Scholars are now in agreement
that the Spaulding manuscripts were not likely to have been sources for the
Book of Mormon.
The first three of these texts
are raised as questions by the author of ‘Letter to CES Director’ and were
covered in the ‘Criticisms’ section above.
The fourth is not as it is generally accepted as a false suspect.
Elder B.H. Roberts and ‘Studies of the
Book of Mormon’
In the early part of the
Twentieth Century, around the 1920s, the then First Presidency asked Elder BH
Roberts, the senior member of the Presidency of the Seventy, to answer
questions, concerns and criticisms that had been levelled at the Book of Mormon
and sent to the First Presidency. The
essence of the concerns were that Joseph Smith and others wrote the Book of
Mormon themselves basing it on the ideas contained in the Reverend Ethan
Smith’s book ‘View of the Hebrews’ that had been published in 1823, 7 years
prior to the publication of the Book of Mormon.
Over a number of years Elder
Roberts wrote a series of long articles addressing the issues raised; these
were presented to the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve but it
appears that they were not interested in either examining them or having these
findings published. It wasn’t until 1985
that ‘Studies of the Book of Mormon’ was published by the University of Illinois Press. In this work Elder Roberts observed many similarities
between the two books and writes:
“Did Ethan Smith's View of the
Hebrews furnish structural material for Joseph Smith's Book of Mormon? It has
been pointed out in these pages that there are many things in the former book
that might well have suggested many major things in the other. Not a few things
merely, one or two, or half dozen, but many; and it is this fact of many things
of similarity and the cumulative force of them that makes them so serious a
menace to Joseph Smith's story of the Book of Mormon's origin.”
— B.H. Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, pg. 240 Roberts, Brigham
H (1985), Brigham D. Madsen, ed., Studies of the
Book of Mormon, Urbana, Illinois: University of
Illinois Press, ISBN 0252010434 .
Mormon apologists often refer to
a letter that Roberts wrote—but never sent—to the general authorities:
"In writing out this my report to you of those studies, I have written it
from the viewpoint of an open mind, investigating the facts of the Book of
Mormon origin and authorship. Let me say once and for all, so as to avoid what
might otherwise call for repeated explanation, that what is herein set forth
does not represent any conclusions of mine. The report herewith submitted is
what it purports to be, namely a 'study of Book of Mormon origins,' for the
information of those who ought to know everything about it pro et con, as well
as that which has been produced against it. I do not say my conclusions for
they are undrawn. It may be of great importance since it represents what may be
used by some opponent in criticism of the Book of Mormon. I am taking the
position that our faith is not only unshaken but unshakable in the Book of
Mormon, and therefore we can look without fear upon all that can be said
against it."
Roberts 1985, pp. 57–58 Richard N. Ostling and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise (HarperSanFrancisco, 1999), 276.
Roberts 1985, pp. 57–58 Richard N. Ostling and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise (HarperSanFrancisco, 1999), 276.
Whilst Church leaders consistently teach members to rely on
spiritual revelation for their truth, some recognise the important part
rational argument and evidence plays in the process. Some embrace and quote the
position of Austin Farrer:
"Though
argument does not create conviction, lack of it destroys belief. What seems to
be proved may not be embraced; but what no one shows the ability to defend is
quickly abandoned. Rational argument does not create belief, but it maintains a
climate in which belief may flourish."
Austin Farrer, "Grete
Clerk", in Jocelyn Gibb, comp., Light on C. S. Lewis (New York: Harcourt
and Brace, 1965), 26. Cited by Elder Neal A. Maxwell, "Discipleship and
Scholarship," BYU Studies 32.3 (summer 1992): 5; Dallin H. Oaks "The
Historicity of the Book of Mormon" (Provo, Utah: Deseret Book and
Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) 1993), 2. Austin Marsden Farrer (1 October 1904 – 29
December 1968) was an English theologian and philosopher. His activity in
philosophy, theology, and spirituality led many to consider him the outstanding
figure of 20th century Anglicanism.[1] He
served as Warden of Keble College, Oxford from 1960 to 1968.
Clearly ’View of the Hebrews’ by Ethan Smith, which
pre-dates the Book of Mormon, along with other texts, covers ground similar to
the Book of Mormon and the assertion is made that it was this book and others
like it that ‘may’ have influenced Joseph Smith in writing the Book of
Mormon. Whilst this is not an entirely
implausible argument as there are some similarities, it is for me, nevertheless,
a weak and flawed one. Not only are the
similarities not substantive, it simply does not explain the extraordinary
richness of the Book of Mormon text, redolent as it is with poetic Semitic textual
likenesses - I refer to some of these a bit further down in this text.
Archaeological Evidences or the Lack
of Them
We may need look no further for
evidence that God has a sense of Humour than the paucity of archaeological
evidence in the Americas for the Book of Mormon civilisations. Yes, it was a long time ago but you would
think there would be something! Teryl
Givens comments on this and then returns to the theme of the inexplicability of
the book’s extraordinary narrative.
“The conundrum of the Book of Mormon is
that, on the one hand, as Mormons readily admit, not one single archaeological
artifact has been found that conclusively establishes a direct connection
between the record and any actual culture or civilization of the Western
Hemisphere. On the other hand, as a researcher from FARMS, the organization
praised by Carl Mosser and Paul Owen, points out, "there is mounting up a
considerable body of analysis demonstrating that at least something of the
strangeness of the Book of Mormon is due to the presence in it of other ancient
and complex literary forms which Joseph Smith is highly unlikely to have
discovered on his own, and showing as well that its contents are rich and
subtle beyond the suspicions of even the vast majority of its most devout
readers." Or as one determined skeptic admits, it is hard to ignore the
"striking coincidences between elements in the Book of Mormon and the
ancient world and some notable matters of Book of Mormon style."
“The naked implausibility of gold plates,
seer stones, and warrior-angels finds little by way of scientific
corroboration, but attributing to a young farm boy the 90-day dictated and
unrevised production of a 500-page narrative that incorporates sophisticated
literary structures, remarkable Old World parallels, and some 300 references to
chronology and 700 to geography with virtually perfect self-consistency is
problematic as well.”
(By the Hand of Mormon, Teryl Givens, P156)
Some in the LDS Scholar community
feel very much more bullish about Archaeology and the Book of Mormon than
others. It may be that there is more to
this than has so far received credit. Below
is LDS scholar and LDS apologetics Michael Ash speaking in 2005. Firstly Ash comments about the notable Old
World Book of Mormon discovery of NHM in Yemen; then he goes on to talk about
some New World archaeological updates:
“Given the inherent
advantages (cultural continuity, toponyms, etc.) of Old World studies compared
to New World studies, it’s interesting to note some recently discovered
correlations between the early chapters of the Book of Mormon and the
archaeological record of the Old World in ways that would have been unknown at
the time the book was translated. In other words, it is impossible that Joseph
Smith could have known any of the Old World archaeological finds that have come
to light since his death–finds that do not contradict the Book of Mormon and,
in many instances, are consistent with its stories.
Consider, for
instance, a recently discovered altar in Yemen that is consistent with a story
related in the Book of Mormon. This altar, discovered by non-LDS
archaeologists, has the tribal name of NHM carved into it. The altar is located
in the same vicinity in which the Book of Mormon describes the Lehites stopping
in Nahom to bury Ishmael, and dates from the same time period.18 Remember that the Hebrew language
doesn’t use vowels, and thus NHM could very likely be “Nahom.”19 The name NHM does not just appear out of
thin air either, but rather the location of an ancient NHM exists not only
within the specific time of the Lehite journey, but also within a plausible
location through which LDS scholars believe the Lehites traveled in Arabia
before embarking on their voyage to the New World.
It is also worth
noting that there is a growing body of evidence from New World archaeology that
supports the Book of Mormon. Dr. John Clark of the New World Archaeological
Foundation has compiled a list of sixty items mentioned in the Book of Mormon.
The list includes items such as “steel swords,” “barley,” “cement,” “thrones,”
and literacy. In 1842, only eight (or 13.3%) of those sixty items were
confirmed by archaeological evidence. Thus, in the mid-nineteenth century,
archaeology did not support the
claims made by the Book of Mormon.
As the efforts of
archaeology have shed light on the ancient New World, we find in 2005 that
forty-five of those sixty items (75%) have been confirmed. Thirty-five of the
items (58%) have been definitively confirmed by archaeological evidence and ten
items (17%) have received possible–tentative, yet not fully
verified–confirmation. Therefore, as things stand at the moment, current New
World archaeological evidence tends to verify the claims made by the Book of
Mormon.”
Michael Ash -- http://www.fairmormon.org/perspectives/publications/archaeological-evidence-and-the-book-of-mormon
Wordprinting
Computational stylistics is based
on the premise that all authors exhibit subtle, quantifiable, stylistic traits
that are equivalent to a literary fingerprint, or wordprint. The method has
been used to investigate other instances of disputed authorship, from Plato to
Shakespeare to the Federalist Papers.
Analyzing blocks of words from 24 of the Book of Mormon’s ostensible
authors, along with nine nineteenth-century writers including Joseph Smith,
three statisticians used three statistical techniques (multivariate analysis of
variance, cluster analysis, and discriminant analysis) to establish the
probability that the various parts of the Book of Mormon were composed by the
range of authors suggested by the narrative itself. They found that all of the sample word blocks
exhibit their own “discernible authorship styles (wordprints),” even though those
blocks are not clearly demarcated in the text, but are “shuffled and
intermixed” throughout the Book of Mormon’s editorially complex narrative
structure (wherein alleged authorship shifts some 2,000 times). Emphasising the demonstrated resistance of
these methods to even deliberate stylistic imitation, they further conclude
that “it does not seem possible that Joseph Smith or any other writer could
have fabricated a work with 24 or more discernible authorship styles.” The evidence, they write, is “overwhelming”
that the Book of Mormon was not written by Joseph Smith or any of his
contemporaries or alleged collaborators they tested for (including Sidney
Rigdon and Solomon Spaulding).
(By the Hand of
Mormon, Teryl Givens, P156 – Wayne A Larsen, Alvin C Rencher and Tim Layton,
“Who wrote the Book of Mormon? An analysis of Wordprints” BYU Studies 20.3
(Spring 1980) 225, 244-45)
A subsequent, even more sophisticated analysis by a Berkeley group
concluded that it is:
“statistically indefensible to
propose Joseph Smith or Oliver Cowdrey or Solomon Spaulding as the author of
the 30,000 words …. attributed to Nephi and Alma. The Book of Mormon measures multiauthored,
with authorship consistent with its own internal claims. These results are obtained even though the
writings of Nephi and Alma were ‘translated’ by Joseph Smith.”
(By the Hand of Mormon, Teryl Givens, P156 – John L Hilton “On Verifying Wordprint Studies: Book of
Mormon Authorship,” in Reynolds, Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited, 225-53.)
The witnesses to the Book of Mormon
never revoked their testimonies
Over the years, significant research has focused on the credibility of the various 'witnesses' of the gold plates. What follows is a summary by Daniel Peterson, in which he comments on both 'official' and 'unofficial' witnesses, which he posted on Facebook on 14 Feb 2021. I don't always agree with everything Dan Peterson says and I am aware that for many Post Mormons he is not regarded highly. However, for me, his summary below is a useful contribution.
"The witnesses of the Book of Mormon pose a real obstacle to any honest person who wishes to dismiss the claims of the Restoration.
Let me first briefly summarize who the official witnesses were and what they claimed to have seen, and then explain why I believe them to represent a significant challenge to disbelief:
The Eight Witnesses—Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, Jr., John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sr., Hyrum Smith, and Samuel Harrison Smith—not only saw but “hefted” the golden plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated and turned their leaves. They did so under quite ordinary and mundane circumstances, in broad daylight.
The Three Witnesses—Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, and David Whitmer—not only saw the plates but were shown them by an angel in a blaze of light, as well as hearing the voice of God declare them to have been “translated by the gift and power of God.” Moreover, in addition to the plates themselves, they saw a variety of other exotic objects, such as the Urim and Thummim, the Liahona, and the Sword of Laban.
Taken together, they are eleven witnesses. And, with Joseph Smith himself reckoned among them—he was present on all of the relevant occasions—they are twelve. But they aren’t merely two sets of roughly interchangeable witnesses, because their experiences are quite distinct.
First of all, though, let me dispose of the most obvious and easy objection that a critic might raise to their testimony: There is simply no serious evidence that they were either dishonest, delusional, or insane. Whether examined individually or collectively, they emerge as reputable, respected, well-adjusted, and rational men, thoroughly grounded in the world of everyday reality. (The indispensable starting point for any serious consideration of them is Richard Lloyd Anderson’s classic 1989 book Investigating the Book of Mormon Witnesses, which he followed up thereafter with a number of other substantial and very helpful studies.) There is no credible evidence that any of them, let alone all of them, were engaged in a conspiracy to commit fraud. There simply isn’t. Period.
Accordingly, anybody who seeks grounds upon which to justify rejecting their testimony will need to look elsewhere. Simply dismissing them as crazy or branding them liars will not work. Not, anyway, for any honest person who seeks to be faithful to the historical evidence.
The testimony of the Eight Witnesses seems to establish beyond any reasonable doubt that Joseph Smith possessed a tangible set of plates in the late 1820s that had the appearance of gold. In and of itself, of course, this doesn’t prove that they were ancient or of divine provenance. Nevertheless, it’s an important part of a larger cumulative case: If the plates existed objectively in the real world, they take Joseph’s account of the Book of Mormon out of the realm of the purely subjective. And they make it much harder to dismiss than it would otherwise have been.
The fact that other witnesses claimed that they, too, had seen and “hefted” the plates means that, whatever else it may be, Joseph’s account necessarily reflects more than just internal imagination or private personal dishonesty.
In contrast to Joseph Smith, for instance, the seventh-century A.D. Muslim prophet Muhammad experienced all of his revelations privately and personally, and no material objects were involved. As a result, according to the standard early Arabic sources, he was left to wonder whether he might be mad or possessed—until his wife Khadija and her uncle Waraqa b. Nawfal persuaded him that he was not.
If Joseph could be regarded as merely delusional or as a subjective fantasist, he would be relatively easy for sympathetic skeptics and neutral historians of religion to assimilate or to domesticate. But he cannot be so regarded; publicly and objectively real plates force a stark choice between truth and forgery. After all, somebody deliberately made them, whether in antiquity or in modern times. And, if they weren’t ancient, their creator (however “pious” he or she may have been) was a conscious and deliberate modern fraud.
However, there is no evidence that Joseph Smith created fake plates, no evidence that he or anybody in his circle had the skill to have done so, and no evidence that he had access to the metallic resources that he would have needed to create believable plates with the appearance (and the unusually heavy weight) of gold. Hypothesizing that Joseph somehow fooled the yokels with a manufactured artifact is definitely not driven by the evidence.
Besides which, when we introduce the testimony of the Three Witnesses (whose experience actually occurred prior to that of the Eight), we realize that the creator of the plates—whether ancient or modern—also needed to create a number of other highly unusual metallic objects that were seen by the Three.
And, anyway, as noted above, the Three Witnesses experienced considerably more than simply seeing and “hefting” the plates, and more than simply seeing a few strange additional objects. They also saw an angel descend from heaven in a glory that illuminated the forest around them for a considerable distance. He addressed them, and, beyond that, they heard the voice of God testify to the authenticity of the Book of Mormon translation. (In fact, if we find the testimony of the Three Witnesses convincing, the truth of the Book of Mormon is established. Game over.)
The encounter of the Eight Witnesses with the plates was prosaic, mundane. By contrast, if a Hollywood film studio were attempting to imitate that of the Three it might well be required to seek out the services of George Lucas’s special effects company, Industrial Light and Magic.
Since no such special effects were readily available to the young frontier farmer Joseph Smith in the early 1800s, skeptics have been obliged to suggest hallucination in order to explain the experience of the Three Witnesses. (Remember our note above, that conspiracy or fraud on the part of the witnesses must be ruled out, because there is simply no evidence for it and, indeed, because there is considerable evidence against it.). But the very tangible and matter-of-fact account of the Eight clearly tells us that hallucination alone will not suffice as an explanation for both encounters. (Any counter-explanation for the witness accounts will need to be quite complex, as we shall see.)
However, hallucination does not offer a very promising explanation for the experience of the Three Witnesses, specifically. For one thing, there is no evidence that either David Whitmer or Martin Harris or Oliver Cowdery was prone to hallucination. And, on top of that, the notion of a “shared” hallucination is unsupported in the relevant scientific or medical literature. People in groups can certainly hallucinate at the same time—say, as the result of an indoor gas leak or a shared psychedelic drug—but they hallucinate different things. No known naturalistic mechanism exists for transferring the subjective hallucinatory experiences of one mind into another distinct mind.
And group hallucination is even more difficult to invoke in the case of the Three Witnesses, because their combined testimony is actually the result of two distinct experiences. Martin Harris withdrew from the group as they were seeking a divine manifestation, feeling that the weakness of his faith was the reason that their prayers had not yet been answered. It was only after he left that the angel Moroni appeared, showing the plates and the other objects to Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Joseph Smith. Afterwards, Joseph sought Martin out in the woods, and, within a relatively short while, together, they experienced the same manifestation that Oliver, David, and Joseph had received.
Thus, if we insist on the hypothesis of hallucination, Joseph Smith would have needed to induce the same vision—by an unknown mechanism or means—in three separate minds on two distinct occasions. (It is doubtful, incidentally, that “mesmerism” or hypnotism, which was still a relatively recent idea in Europe, had reached the United States—let alone the unlettered frontier farmer Joseph Smith—by the late 1820s. So those who might wish to invoke it as an explanation for witness testimonies of having seen the plates have their work cut out for them.)
The testimonies of the two sets of witnesses, the Three and the Eight, don’t merely extend each other by adding redundant numbers. Because of their radically different character, they reinforce each other by requiring that those who would explain them away provide two distinct explanations rather than just one.
And here, perhaps, is a good place to mention the fact that, as many Latter-day Saints are well aware, the official witnesses of the Book of Mormon never denied their testimonies.
• Hiram Page, to choose one example, was severely beaten by a group of anti-Mormon vigilantes on the last day of October 1833, in Missouri. They demanded that he deny his testimony as one of the Eight Witnesses, but he refused. Finally, when it became apparent that he would allow himself to be beaten to death rather than deny what he had seen and “hefted,” they left him alone. It is said to have taken months for him to recover.
• Around the same time, David Whitmer, one of the Three Witnesses, was hauled “at the point of a bayonet” into the city square of Independence, Missouri, where, surrounded by a mob with guns aimed at him, he too was told to deny the Book of Mormon. He refused and, evidently shaken by the firmness of his testimony, they let him go.
• Hyrum Smith spent the time from November 1838 through April 1839 in the dark, cold, and miserable jail at Liberty, Missouri, faithful to his testimony, and he ultimately died for that testimony in Carthage Jail, Illinois, on 27 June 1844. On the morning of his arrest, he read from the Book of Mormon. (See Doctrine and Covenants 135:4-5; Jeffrey R. Holland, “Safety for the Soul” https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/.../safety-for-the...)
However, not only did they never deny their testimonies, they reaffirmed them on numerous occasions. All of the Three Witnesses left the Church. Two of them, Oliver Cowdery and Martin Harris, ultimately returned. Martin, the only Book of Mormon witness who made it to Utah, recounted his testimony on dozens of occasions between his arrival in the Territory in 1870 and his death in 1875. (See the 2018 biography by Susan Easton Black and Larry C. Porter, Martin Harris: Uncompromising Witness of the Book of Mormon.)
David Whitmer never returned. But, as documented in the now-almost-unobtainable 1991 compilation by Lyndon W. Cook of David Whitmer Interviews: A Restoration Witness, he bore his testimony on literally scores of occasions before his death in 1888, very nearly sixty years after his experience with the angel and the plates and fully five decades after his separation from the Saints, by which time he was the last surviving witness.[1]
In fact, David Whitmer had his testimony inscribed on his tombstone in the Richmond Missouri Cemetery, so that he could continue to testify after his death: “The record of the Jews and the record of the Nephites are one,” reads the pillar at his grave, which is topped with two carved books. “Truth is eternal.”
But let’s now proceed on to some of the people whom I call the informal or unofficial witnesses to the Book of Mormon, who have something distinctive to offer as a supplement and expansion to the contribution of the Three and the Eight.
Joseph Smith’s father-in-law, Isaac Hale, was anything but a fan. Mistrustful of Joseph and skeptical of his claims, Hale confronted Joseph on the subject, and demanded to see the plates. Joseph responded that he could not see them, but permitted Hale to lift the heavy wooden box that, he said, contained the plates. Hale remained unsatisfied, but his experience is not without value: Joseph was no innocent, chuckle-headed dreamer. There was something in the box. It was either authentic or fraudulent; it wasn’t imaginary.
Joseph Smith’s sister Katharine held and even carried the covered plates on several different occasions, and, in her various recollections of her experience, she often stressed their physical character. They were, she said, “very heavy.”
On one occasion, William Smith, the Prophet’s younger brother was present when the plates were brought into the family home. He later reported that he handled them through a cloth, that he could tell that their shape was square, that they were in the form of pages or leaves that could be raised separately from one another, that these leaves were fastened together by rings on one side.
William made particular mention of their great weight, which, much later, he estimated at roughly sixty pounds; they were too heavy, he said, to be merely wood or stone.
This is reminiscent of a comment from Martin Harris regarding the time, before his encounter with the angel, when he was permitted to hold the plates in a box on his lap. I’ve always found it quite funny, whether or not he intended it as a joke. Martin was struck by the dense weight of the plates: “I knew from the heft,” he said, “that they were lead or gold, and I knew that Joseph had not credit enough to buy so much lead.”
During Joseph Smith’s 30 June 1830 trial for an alleged “breach of the peace” in Broome County, New York, Josiah Stowell, for whom the very young Joseph sometimes worked as a hired hand, testified under oath that he had seen the plates on the day Joseph first brought them home. As Joseph passed them through the window, Stowell caught a glimpse of the plates as a portion of the linen was pulled back. He gave the dimensions of the plates to the court and explained that they consisted of gold leaves with characters written on each sheet.
Lucy Harris is typically remembered among Latter-day Saints very negatively for her opposition to her husband Martin’s involvement with the Book of Mormon and, most dramatically, as the leading suspect in the case of the lost manuscript pages.
But there’s more to the story.
According to Lucy Mack Smith, a “personage” appeared to Lucy Harris one night, rebuking her for her opposition to Joseph and displaying the plates before her such that she could describe them “very minutely.” And the historical record seems indirectly to support this: Lucy Harris gave Joseph $28—worth nearly $770 in 2021—which appears to make her the very first donor toward the publication of the Book of Mormon.
Lucy Mack Smith herself, the Prophet’s mother, claimed to have “examined” both the Urim and Thummim and, through a cloth that didn’t completely block its metallic glint, the breastplate. She gave detailed descriptions of both.
Emma Smith, too, must be considered a corroborating witness to the plates. While doing her housework, sweeping and dusting, she was obliged to move the covered plates around. She was familiar with their outline and shape. Moreover, she said, “They seemed to be pliable like thick paper, and would rustle with a metallic sound when the edges were moved by the thumb, as one does sometimes thumb the edges of a book.”
Mary Musselman Whitmer, mother to five of the witnesses and, sooner or later, mother-in-law to two more of them, encountered a mysterious stranger in her barn who showed the plates to her, allowing her time to examine them.
So what special significance, if any, do the experiences of the “informal” or “unofficial” witnesses hold? Interestingly, they reported a mixture of the same kinds of experiences, more or less, that the Three and the Eight had. In B. H. Roberts’s language, they received both “ordinary testimony” and “miraculous testimony”:
• Isaac Hale, William Smith, Josiah Stowell, the early Martin Harris, Lucy Mack Smith, Emma Smith, and Katharine Smith had quite mundane encounters with tangible physical objects, much like the Eight Witnesses.
• Lucy Harris and Mary Musselman Whitmer saw the plates but also an angel or messenger, rather like the Three Witnesses.
So they provide additional, corroborating testimony.
But I think that they offer more than just that. Again, the informal or unofficial witnesses are not interchangeable—not with each other as individuals nor, collectively, with the Three Witnesses and the Eight Witnesses.
Several arguments that have been deployed against the Three and the Eight, however ineffectually, just can’t be used against the informal witnesses.
A few skeptics have suggested, for instance, that some sort of social dynamic or collective group hysteria explains the experience of the Three and the Eight. But the informal witnesses had their experiences separately. For the most part, Joseph Smith wasn’t even nearby. So collective emotional pressure can’t seem to account for them.
Others have suggested that the Three and the Eight went out expecting to have a “spiritual experience.” And so, being effectively “programmed” for something extraordinary to happen, they did have remarkable experiences—but experiences that were real only in a subjective sense. But this can’t explain the unofficial witnesses. Mary Whitmer was working in the barn, and perhaps feeling a bit resentful. She wasn’t expecting an encounter with the plates and the messenger, so religious fervor can’t explain her report in any obvious or straightforward way. Josiah Stowell and Katharine Smith suddenly had a heavy object thrust at them, under rather tense conditions. Lucy Mack Smith and Martin Harris and Emma Hale Smith and William Smith were just handling and examining tangible objects under very mundane circumstances.
These accounts are difficult to dismiss. “No testimony of direct revelation in the world’s history,” Richard Anderson quite correctly observed, “is better documented than the testimony of the Book of Mormon witnesses.”
Daniel Carl Peterson (born January 15, 1953) is the professor of Islamic Studies and Arabic in the Department of Asian and Near Eastern Languages at Brigham Young University (BYU).
More From Emma
Relating to Joseph and The Book of Mormon, additional comments made by Emma Smith are also interesting to consider. This first one is very well known: “Joseph Smith . . . could neither write nor dictate a coherent and well-worded letter; let alone dictating a book like the Book of Mormon,” Emma said. She went on to explain that even though she was an active participant in the translation of the plates, she could describe the coming forth of the Book of Mormon only by using the language of miracles. “It is marvelous to me,” she said, “‘a marvel and a wonder,’ as much so as to anyone else.”
Joseph Smith III, “Last Testimony of Sister Emma,” Saints’ Herald, Oct. 1, 1879, 289–90.
This next comment is also quite well known: “Your father would dictate to me hour after hour; and when returning after meals, or after interruptions, he would at once begin where he had left off, without either seeing the manuscript or having any portion of it read to him. . . . It would have been improbable for a learned man to do this; and, for one so ignorant and unlearned as he was, it was simply impossible.”
Joseph Smith III, “Last Testimony of Sister Emma,” Saints’ Herald, Oct. 1, 1879, 290.
Finally, from Emma: “My belief is that the Book of Mormon is of divine authenticity—I have not the slightest doubt about it."
Joseph Smith III, “Last Testimony of Sister Emma,” Saints’ Herald, Oct. 1, 1879, 290.
Others who were disaffected with Joseph
and the Church still held to the Book of Mormon
William McLellin was one of the
original twelve LDS apostles. He grew disillusioned with Joseph Smith's
leadership and was cut off from the church not once but twice, the second time
permanently. In 1880, one James T Cobb, hoping to discredit the Book of Mormon,
wrote letters to those he thought might provide telling testimony. He had good reason to believe McLellin would
lend his support to his project, and must have been surprised by the response:
"I have set to my seal that the Book of
Mormon is a true, divine record and it will require more evidence than I have
ever seen to ever shake me relative to its purity. I have read many exposes. I have seen all
their arguments. But my evidences are above them all! I have no faith in Mormonism, no confidence
that the church organized by J Smith and O Cowdery was set up or established as
it ought to have been.... But when a man goes at the Book of Mormon he touches
the apple of my eye."
William E McLellin to James T Cobb, 14 August 1880, in Larry C Porter,
"William E McLellan's Testimony of the Book of Mormon", BYU Studies
10.4 (summer 1970): 486.
The Nauvoo Expositor Affirms the Book of
Mormon
How telling is it that in its
first and only ever printing, the Nauvoo Expositor, written by Joseph Smith's
enemies, the publication of which precipitated the Smiths brothers' mob
assassinations, nevertheless contained, in testifying terms, strong endorsement
and advocacy of the Book of Mormon:
"We all verily believe, and many of us
know of a surety, that the religion of the Latter Day Saints, as originally
taught by Joseph Smith, which is contained in the Old and New Testaments, Book
of Covenants and Book of Mormon, is verily true; and that the pure principles
set forth in those books are the immutable and eternal principles of Heaven,
and speaks a language, which when spoken in truth and virtue sinks deep into
the heart of every honest man. Its precepts are invigorating, and in every
sense of the word, tend to dignify and ennoble man's conceptions of God and His
attributes. It speaks a language which is heard amidst the roar of artillery,
as well as in the silence of midnight."
Nauvoo Expositor June 7, 1844. The publishers were William Law, Wilson
Law, Charles Ivins, Francis M Higbee, Chauncey L Higbee, Robert D Foster and
Charles A Foster.
Some Textual ‘Evidences’ or ‘Pointers’
to the Truth of the Book of Mormon
Let me set out some textual references, thoughts and ideas that are
definite pointers to, or even possible evidences of, the Book of Mormon being
exactly what it claims to be; an inspired translation rendered by the power of
God through His chosen Prophet, Joseph Smith.
Nephite Weights
and Measures
In Alma chapter 11
there is a rather random description of the Nephite monetary system that
assigns values to various weights of gold and silver. If the Book of Mormon were a fraudulent
production and Joseph or whoever wrote it were a fraud, he would have to have had
an understanding of money systems in the ancient world, because it turns out
there are strong similarities with systems from other ancient lands.
“King Mosiah’s statute contains
similarities to other ancient law codes antecedent to the Nephite system. For example, similarities appear almost
effortlessly in the law code of Eshnunna, which was compiled about 1800 b.c. in
a Babylonian city by that name that lay approximately 50 miles northeast of
Baghdad in modern Iraq. In fact the similarities are rather striking. First of
all, the opening lines in the law code of Eshnunna set out an important
equivalency that becomes the basis for commerce: “one kor of barley is equal to one shekel of silver.”
A similar conversion between silver and
barley was also used among the Hittites.
Perhaps it is coincidental, but the law of Mosiah begins with a
comparable ratio of value stated in similar phraseology: “a senum of silver, which is equal to a senine of gold, . . . and
either for a measure of barley” (Alma 11:3, 7).”
The above is an extract from a longer article by John Welch. His conclusion includes the following:
“ … even though the Nephites “altered
their reckoning and their measure” as they saw fit (Alma 11:4), we can detect
links between Nephite measures and grains and similar systems of metrology
known from the ancient Near East, including names, relative amounts, and
official functions.”
Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8/2 (1999): 36–45,
86. You can read the full article here:
Same Character Name Peculiarities as
the Bible
Donald W Parry,
professor of Hebrew at Brigham Young University writes:
“Of all the names of
persons mentioned in the Old Testament, none are surnames. Biblical characters, whether notable or not,
were known by one name only. And those
names, as translated into the English language, neither use the letters q, x,
or w nor begin with F. The Book of
Mormon shares those same peculiarities: not one surname is mentioned among its
337 proper names, which, as transcribed into English, do not use the letters q,
x, or w and do not begin with F.”
Donald
W. Parry, "Hebraisms and Other Ancient Peculiarities in the Book of
Mormon," in Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon, edited
by Donald W. Parry, Daniel C. Peterson, and John W. Welch (Provo, Utah: FARMS,
2002), Chapter 7
The Long Retrograde King List in the
Book of Ether
At the beginning of his
record of the Jaredites, Moroni included a genealogy that descends in reverse
chronological order from Ether, the last record-keeper, to Jared, one of the
founders of Jaredite civilization (Ether
1:6–32). Such a
genealogy seems unusually long for the Book of Mormon, compared to the much
shorter genealogies typically found elsewhere in the Nephite text. The sudden
appearance of such a lengthy genealogy, in reverse order, may be important to understanding
the book of Ether.
Grant Hardy has
proposed that “the genealogical list in the first chapter provides the
framework” for the rest of the book of Ether. From Ether
1:33 to Ether
11:23 each king is discussed in exact reverse order to
the way they appear in the list. For
example, Jared is the last person to appear in the list (v.
32), and the first one discussed in the narrative (v.
33), as one might expect. This pattern continues
throughout the entire book of Ether, never missing a name or getting them out
of order, despite all the additional names of people and places in-between.
The list in Ether 1 is similar to the
king lists attested in the ancient Near East and similar dynastic histories in
pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Comparable to the lengthy list in Ether 1, the Hittite king
list is 30 names long. A Mayan example has 33 names. Genealogies in the Bible
usually start at the beginning and document descendants until arriving in the present.
However, king lists in reverse chronological order, called retrograde king
lists, are often found in the ancient Near East and may have been the style of
king list adopted by the Jaredites. Mesoamerican dynastic histories also
usually start with the most recent ruler and then trace the lineage backward
through their ancestors. In both the Old and New Worlds, the purpose of these
lineage lists was to establish authority.
As Grant Hardy has noted, “If [Joseph Smith] were composing as he went
along,” repurposing this king list in its opposite order would have been “quite
the feat of memory.”
Poetic Parallelisms in the Book of
Mormon
The Book of Mormon contains a wide array of language styles
that are described as or categorised as literary poetic parallelisms. The argument is that these have ancient
origins and to ascribe their presence in the Book of Mormon to the work of
Joseph Smith or any other nineteenth century author stretches credulity.
In 1992 Donald W. Parry reformatted the Book of Mormon
making it easier for people to see these parallelisms. He revised and updated this publication in
2007 to make it more approachable for readers. It is very interesting to read the Book of
Mormon in this way because it does make recognising these literary styles much
easier.
Following are the types of literary styles included. In the foreword of the book, Parry provides
examples from the Bible followed by examples from The Book of Mormon:
Antithetical Parallelism or
Opposites—A
parallelism that is characterized by an opposition of words, expressions, or
ideas, or an antithesis between two lines. The disjunction but commonly introduces the second
line.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 6:5; 1 Nephi 17:45; Alma 36:4
Chiasmus and Inverted Parallelism—An inverted parallelism, a
presentation of a series of words or thoughts followed by a second presentation
of a series of words or thoughts, but in reverse order. A simple chiasmus may consist
of four lines only, i.e., ABBA; a complex chiasmus may comprise several lines,
i.e., ABCDEEDCBA. More than 300 examples of chiasmus exist in the Book of
Mormon.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 1:1-3; 1 Nephi 1:15-18; 2 Nephi
9:20; Mosiah 2:5-6
Contrasting Ideas—A literary structure that
compares one subject or idea against another, for the purpose of creating a
contrast between the two ideas.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 4:3; 2 Nephi 9:39
Detailing—This form features an
introductory phrase or sentence, followed by one or more subsequent lines that “detail”
what was said in line one. Often, the first line of the verse is complete in
itself, but additional lines are presented for the purpose of adding details to
the first line.
Examples include: Alma 13:23; Mosiah 21:9
Duplication—A figure of speech that
features a word or expression that is twice repeated in an immediate sequence.
Examples include: Alma 5:32; 2 Nephi 31:11; Helaman 5:9
Extended Alternate—A parallelism that belongs to
the same family as simple and repeated alternate, but differs from the other
two, however, in that additional alternating lines are present in extended
alternate, as in ABC/ABC or ABCD/ABCD. Again, the A lines correspond to one
another, as do the Bs, the Cs, and so on.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 5:12-13; 1 Nephi 9:3-5; 1 Nephi
10:4-5; Alma 5:19
Extended Synonymous—A parallelism that consists of
three or more lines that have corresponding or parallel elements. Whereas
simple synonymous parallelism consists of two parallel lines, extended
synonymous extends beyond two lines and consists of more than two parallel
lines.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 18:18; 2 Nephi 15:15; 3 Nephi 8:13
Extended Synthetic Parallelism—Consists of two or more simple
synthetic parallelisms, connected together within a passage or collection of
verses. Each of the parallelisms are bound together by a common theme.
Examples include: 2 Nephi 9:31-38
Gradation Parallelism—Occurs when the same word or
words are found in successive clauses or sentences. This duplication of words
creates a continuation of thought from one sentence to the next, which adds
power through repetition to the discourse, while at the same time connecting
the lines into an inseparable body.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 7:20-22; Moroni 8:25-26; Mormon
9:12-13
Like Paragraph Endings—A figure of speech that
features a recurring phrase or sentence found at intervals, always at the end
of a paragraph.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 10:12-13; 3 Nephi 9:3-11; 3 Nephi
8:5-7
Like Sentence Beginnings—A figure of speech that
pertains to an identical word or set of words that begin two or more
consecutive clauses.
Examples include: Alma 11:44; Mormon 9:26; Mosiah 4:9-10;
Helaman 7:10; 2 Nephi 9:31-36
Like Sentence Endings—A figure of speech that
features the repetition of an identical word or expression at the end of
successive clauses or sentences.
Examples include: Alma 11:42; Alma 21:4; Ether 2:17
Many Ands—A figure of speech used to
describe the repetition of the conjunction “and” that is located at the
beginning of successive phrases or sentences.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 11:12-15; Alma 1:29; Enos 1:20-23
“Nor” and “Or”—The repetition of the
disjunctives “either” and “or” or “neither” and “nor” at the beginning of
successive expressions.
Examples include: 3 Nephi 17:7; 2 Nephi 2:11; Alma 17:20;
Helaman 1:31
Parallelism of Numbers—A two-line parallelism that
features a numeral in line one and a corresponding or parallel numeral in line
two.
Examples include: 1 Nephi: 3:31; Alma 3:26; Alma 60:22
Progression Parallelism—A poetical devise where there
is an apparent moving forward from one sense or idea to another, until at the
pinnacle is a culmination of thought.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 8:24; 1 Nephi 12:18; 2 Nephi
29:12; Helaman 11:36-37
Random Repetition—A figure of speech that
pertains to the irregular recurrence of the same word or words within a phrase
or successive phrases.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 4:2-3; 1 Nephi 5:5-6, 20-21; 1
Nephi 7:12-13; 2 Nephi 29:8
Regular Repetition—A figure of speech that
features an identical phrase, expression, or sentence repeated regularly throughout
the paragraph.
Examples include: Mosiah 3:25-26; Mosiah 11:3; Alma 5:6;
Alma 60:20
Repeated Alternate—A parallelism that is similar
to the AB/AB simple alternate structures but has two lines that repeat three or
more times, as in AB/AB/AB. Like the simple alternate, the As correspond to one
another, as do the Bs.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 19:10; Alma 30:10
Repetition of Words—A figure of speech that
features the frequent appearance of the same word within a passage of
scripture. This repeated word may be found at irregular intervals, i.e., at the
beginning, middle, or end of the sentence.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 9:2; 3 Nephi 11:3; 1 Nephi
15:33-34
Simple Alternate—A parallelism that consists of
four lines, placed in an AB/AB pattern. In this formation, the As have
corresponding elements, as do the Bs. The parallel lines may consist of
synonymous or antithetical words, identical expressions, complements, or other
corresponding elements.
Examples include: Mosiah 4:8; 1 Nephi 17:39; 1 Nephi 20:
18-19; 2 Nephi 4:28
Simple Synonymous—A parallelism that consists of
two lines, line two being a synonymous repetition, an echo, or a symmetrical
counterpart of line one.
Examples include: 2 Nephi 9:52, 2 Nephi 25:2, 3 Nephi 29:5
Synonymous Words—A figure of speech that
features a group of three or more words, similar in sense but not identical in
meaning, that come together in a verse or passage with characteristics that
parallel one another.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 22:24; 2 Nephi 27:2; Enos 1:21;
Mosiah 3:5,7-8
Synthetic Parallelism—Composed of two lines; line one
presents a declaration and line two gives the explanation or adds something new
or instructive to the first line. It is called synthetic because a synthesis or
coordination between the two elements takes place. First the idea or event of
line one is introduced, then follows the realization, the completion, or finish
of the thought.
Examples include: 2 Nephi 2:25; 2 Nephi 3:15; Jacob 5:2;
Mosiah 23:21
Working Out—A figure where two or more
lines deliberate or explain what was first said in line one.
Examples include: 1 Nephi 8:1; Helaman 1:31
Parry, Donald W.
Poetic parallelisms in the Book of Mormon: the complete text
reformatted© 2007 The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. All
rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America
Of course the presence of these
poetic parallelisms in the Book of Mormon is not proof of its authenticity as a
book of Divine Scripture. Nevertheless,
they add to the growing accumulation of annoyingly-difficult-to-explain-away
evidences that this is so much more than the mere writings of Joseph Smith.
JOSEPH SMITH, PROPHET OF GOD OR A LIAR, CHEAT AND
FRAUD?
JOSEPH SMITH, PROPHET OF GOD OR A LIAR, CHEAT AND FRAUD?
The question of
whether Joseph Smith was a true prophet or a liar, cheat and fraud is really at
the heart of the matter. It is of course
the Book of Mormon that is the litmus test for whether Joseph Smith’s claims
are true or not. As I have attempted to
point out above, despite its many critics and despite its not inconsiderable
‘problems’, I find that the extraordinary textual components that make up the
Book of Mormon place it firmly in the category of other worldly or
supernatural. I do not believe Joseph or
others wrote this book. I believe it is
from God.
Speaking at a Church
Educational System Religious Educators’ Symposium at Brigham Young University
on August 9, 1994, Jeffrey R Holland invokes Ezra Taft Benson’s assertion that
the whole Church stands or falls on the Book of Mormon and comments on the
starkness of the dichotomy.
‘Everything in the
Church—everything—rises or falls on the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.‘
“A good deal has been said about the authorship—and, therefore, the
divine origins—of the Book
of Mormon. But then there has always been a lot
said about it ever since it first rolled off the old E. B. Grandin press in
downtown Palmyra, New York, on the 26th of March, 1830.
Let me quote a very powerful comment from President Ezra Taft Benson,
who said, “The Book of Mormon is the keystone of [our] testimony. Just as the
arch crumbles if the keystone is removed, so does all the Church stand or fall
with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. The enemies of the Church
understand this clearly. This is why they go to such great lengths to try to
disprove the Book of Mormon, for if it can be discredited, the Prophet Joseph
Smith goes with it. So does our claim to
priesthood keys, and revelation, and the restored Church. But in like manner,
if the Book of Mormon be true—and millions have now testified that they have
the witness of the Spirit that it is indeed true—then one must accept the
claims of the Restoration and all that accompanies it.
“Yes, the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion—the keystone
of our testimony, the keystone of our doctrine, and the keystone in the witness
of our Lord and Savior” (A Witness and
a Warning, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1988, p. 19).
To hear someone so remarkable say something so tremendously bold, so
overwhelming in its implications, that everything
in the Church—everything—rises
or falls on the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and, by implication, the
Prophet Joseph Smith’s account of how it came forth, can be a little
breathtaking. It sounds like a “sudden death” proposition to me. Either the
Book of Mormon is what the Prophet Joseph said it is or this Church and its
founder are false, fraudulent, a deception from the first instance onward.
Not everything in life is so black and white, but it seems the
authenticity of the Book of Mormon and its keystone role in our belief is
exactly that. Either Joseph Smith was the prophet he said he was, who, after
seeing the Father and the Son, later beheld the angel Moroni, repeatedly heard
counsel from his lips, eventually receiving at his hands a set of ancient gold
plates which he then translated according to the gift and power of God—or else
he did not. And if he did not, in the spirit of President Benson’s comment, he
is not entitled to retain even the reputation of New England folk hero or
well-meaning young man or writer of remarkable fiction. No, and he is not
entitled to be considered a great teacher or a quintessential American prophet
or the creator of great wisdom literature. If he lied about the coming forth of
the Book of Mormon, he is certainly none of those.
I feel about this as C. S. Lewis once said about the divinity of
Christ: “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing
that people often say about Him: [that is,] ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a
great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.’ That is the one
thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things
Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on
the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the
Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the son
of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool,
you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and
call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about
His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend
to” (Mere Christianity, New
York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1952, pp. 40–41).
I am suggesting that we make exactly that same kind of do-or-die,
bold assertion about the restoration of the gospel of Jesus
Christ and the divine origins of the Book of
Mormon. We have to. Reason and
rightness require it. Accept Joseph Smith as a prophet and the book as the
miraculously revealed and revered word of the Lord it is or else consign both
man and book to Hades for the devastating deception of it all, but let’s not
have any bizarre middle ground about the wonderful contours of a young boy’s
imagination or his remarkable facility for turning a literary phrase. That is
an unacceptable position to take—morally, literarily, historically, or
theologically.
As the word of God has always been—and I testify again that is purely
and simply and precisely what the Book of Mormon is—this record is “quick and
powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both
joints and marrow” (D&C 6:2). The Book of
Mormon is that quick and it is that powerful for us. And it certainly is that
sharp. Nothing in our history and nothing in our message cuts to the chase
faster than our uncompromising declaration that the Book of Mormon is the word
of God. On this issue we draw a line in the sand.
May I make it very clear where I stand regarding Joseph Smith, a
stance taken because of the Book of Mormon. I testify out of the certainty of
my soul that Joseph Smith entertained an angel and received at his hand an
ancient set of gold plates. I testify of that as surely as if I had, with the
three witnesses, seen the angel Moroni or, with the three and the eight
witnesses, seen and handled the plates.
It was the Book of Mormon that changed my life, told me the gospel of
Jesus Christ has been restored, and immersed me in the Church, heart and soul.
I hold it in a category sacred to me among all the world’s literature. It
stands preeminent in my intellectual and spiritual life, the classic of all
classics, a reaffirmation of the Holy Bible, a voice from the dust, a witness for Christ, the word of the Lord
unto salvation.”
Elder Jeffrey R Holland, Church Educational System Religious
Educators’ Symposium at Brigham Young University on August 9, 1994
Like Jeffrey
Holland, the Book of Mormon changed my life too. But does that mean it is true? No, of itself that doesn’t mean it is true
but like Elder Holland says, it is part of the tapestry or accumulation of all
the evidentiary elements, astonishing textual similarities in the Book of
Mormon to other ancient Semitic writings, plus many other elements of Mormonism,
plus the spiritual witnesses that spark directly on the soul -- these all go to form the whole or complete roundness
of the testimony of truth. It is really diametrically
opposite to the position expressed by some post-Mormons who have said that it
was the accumulation of many criticisms that tipped them over the edge and out
of the Church. For me it is the
accumulation of the evidence on the other side of the scale that makes me
believe and makes me belong.
Divine Enlightenment
What I love about
Joseph Smith’s contribution to our better understanding of who we are in
relation to whom God and Christ are is the breath taking scope and scale of
eternal thinking that he introduced. Teryl
Givens probably says it best in enumerating four core truths Joseph Smith
restored to a bereft world about man himself:
“We are, he declared, eternally existent, inherently innocent,
boundlessly free, and infinitely perfectible.”
What Joseph and Hyrum looked at on the
day they left Nauvoo for Carthage
I do wonder
about the turned-down page in the Book of Mormon that Hyrum and Joseph were
looking at before leaving for Carthage and their deaths. If it was a scam would they really have
privately done that? Really?
Elder Jeffrey R
Holland addressed this in the October 2009 General Conference:
“May I refer to a modern “last
days” testimony? When Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum started for Carthage
to face what they knew would be an imminent martyrdom, Hyrum read these words
to comfort the heart of his brother:
“Thou hast been faithful; wherefore … thou shalt be made strong, even
unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my
Father.
“And now I, Moroni, bid farewell … until we shall meet before the
judgment-seat of Christ.”
A few short verses from the 12th chapter of Ether in the Book of
Mormon. Before closing the book, Hyrum turned down the corner of the page from
which he had read, marking it as part of the everlasting testimony for which
these two brothers were about to die. I hold in my hand that book, the very
copy from which Hyrum read, the same corner of the page turned down, still
visible. Later, when actually incarcerated in the jail, Joseph the Prophet
turned to the guards who held him captive and bore a powerful testimony of the
divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon.
Shortly thereafter pistol and ball would take the lives of these two
testators.
As one of a thousand elements of my own testimony of the divinity of
the Book of Mormon, I submit this as yet one more evidence of its truthfulness.
In this their greatest—and last—hour of need, I ask you: would these men
blaspheme before God by continuing to fix their lives, their honor, and their
own search for eternal salvation on a book (and by implication a church and a
ministry) they had fictitiously created out of whole cloth?
Never mind that their wives are about to be widows and their children
fatherless. Never mind that their little band of followers will yet be
“houseless, friendless and homeless” and that their children will leave
footprints of blood across frozen rivers and an untamed prairie floor.9 Never mind that legions will die and
other legions live declaring in the four quarters of this earth that they know
the Book of Mormon and the Church which espouses it to be true. Disregard all
of that, and tell me whether in this hour of death these two men would enter
the presence of their Eternal Judge quoting from and finding solace in a book
which, if not the very word of God, would brand them as imposters and
charlatans until the end of time? They would not do that! They were willing to
die rather than deny the divine origin and the eternal truthfulness of the Book
of Mormon.”
Elder Jeffrey R Holland, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, General
Conference, October 2009
First written revelation; a
chastisement!
Is that what a liar,
cheat and fraud would do? Really?
"This revelation," ... printed as section 3 in the current
D&C and as section 2 in the first printed edition, ... "gave the first
inkling of how Joseph would speak in his prophetic voice. The speaker stands
above and outside Joseph, sharply separated emotionally and intellectually. The
rebuke of Joseph is as forthright as the denunciation of Martin Harris. There
is no effort to conceal or rationalize, no sign of Joseph justifying himself to
prospective followers. The words flow directly from the messenger to Joseph and
have the single purpose of setting Joseph straight. ... At 22 Joseph was
speaking prophetically."
'Joseph Smith, Rough Stone Rolling.' P69. Richard Lyman Bushman
Joseph’s First Journal
If
Joseph was the genius who wrote the Book of Mormon from his own imagination shaped
by various outside textual influences then one might expect other things he
wrote to reflect a high functioning writing ability. However, if you take a look at the first
journal he personally wrote in, acquired on the 29th November 1832,
two and a half years after the Book of Mormon was published and some three
years and four months since the Book of Mormon text had been completed, you see
on the first page (see picture below) somewhat clumsily constructed sentences
that are crossed out and revised below.
Now, yes of course, if Joseph was a cunning fraud, he would cleverly
conceal his genius writing ability and make his entries look more like the work
of a largely uneducated farm boy.
Perhaps that is what he did, but I don’t think so. I think we are seeing his natural raw
abilities when not moved upon by the hand of the Lord in his prophetic
position. Remember what Emma said of his
writing skills:
“Joseph could
neither write nor dictate a coherent and well-worded letter, let alone
dictat[e] a book like the Book of Mormon.”
Near
the end of his life Martin Harris told Simon Smith:
“Joseph Smith’s education was
so limited that he could not draw up a note of hand.”
Martin Harris interview with
Simon Smith, 5 July 1875, in Early Mormon Documents, ed. Dan Vogel, 5 vols.
(Salt Lake City: Signature Books. 1996-2003) 2:381
Joseph Smith Jrs Book for Record Baught on the
27th of November
1832 for the purpose to keep a minute acount of all things
that come under my obsevation &c— —
oh may God
grant that I may be directed in all
my thaughts O bless thy Servent
You
can see and read this first journal at the Joseph Smith Papers website:
Joseph Smith, a Voice from Heaven?
One of the things I find very
striking about Joseph is the ‘voice’ he writes in when it comes to ‘scripture’
– The Book of Mormon and the Book of Commandments – now the Doctrine and
Covenants. It’s a unique voice. It isn’t his.
I find it an amazing ‘voice’ and it feels as though it comes to me
having not originated on this world. Let me share here some passages, quite
long ones actually but stay with them, they’re worth it, from Richard Bushman
who writes about this in his seminal work ‘Joseph Smith, Rough Stone
Rolling’. They are inserted here below:
I think it is simply too easy to dismiss Joseph’s
revelations as his own concoctions possibly with the help of his friends. There is so much more to them than that.
Many years ago, a friend of mine was struggling with his faith in Joseph Smith and trying to be helpful, I sent him the findings from a PHD student's thesis documenting all of the visitations he had. After reading it, my friend said that it hadn't helped him at all. There were so many that he found it unbelievable.
Nevertheless, for me, the number of visits, associations and connections Joseph claimed with personages beyond the veil forms part of the mosaic of bricks that goes to make up my belief wall.
Brian L. Smith, “‘Taught From On High’: The Ministry Of Angelic Messengers To The Prophet Joseph Smith,” in Joseph Smith and the Doctrinal Restoration (Provo: Brigham Young University, Religious Studies Center, 2005), 332–45.
The following is a list of many of the personages who appeared to Joseph Smith and restored keys or delivered divine instructions.
God the Father - JS-H 1:17; HC 1:5; D&C 76:2 Opened this dispensation introduced the Son.
Jesus Christ - JS-H 1:17; HC 1:5–6; D&C 76:20–24; 110:2–10 Called Joseph as a prophet; accepted the temple.
Moroni - JS-H 1:30–49, 59; JD 17:374 Tutored Joseph; gave him keys of stick of Ephraim
John the Baptist - D&C 13:1; HC 1:39–42 Restored Aaronic Priesthood and its keys.
Peter, James, John - D&C 27:12; 128:20; JD 18:326; HC 1:40–42; Restored Melchizedek Priesthood and apostleship and keys.
Moses - D&C 110:11; JD 21:65; 23:48; Restored keys of gathering and leading the ten tribes.
Elias - D&C 27:6; 110:12; JD 23:48; Committed the “gospel of Abraham”
Elijah - D&C 110:13–16; Conferred the sealing power.
Adam (Michael) - HC 2:380; 3:388; D&C 128:21; JD 18:326; 21:94; 23:48; Restored keys (perhaps of the presidency over the earth).
Noah (Gabriel) - D&C 128:21; JD 21:94; 23:48; Restored keys (perhaps of the power to preach the gospel).
Raphael - D&C 128:21; Restored keys (perhaps of the dispensation of Enoch’s day).
Various angels - D&C 128:21; Restored keys (all declaring their individual dispensation).
Lehi - JD 16:265–66; Ministered to him.
Nephi - JD 21:161; 16:266; 17:374; Tutored Joseph; gave him keys.
Mormon - JD 17:374; Tutored Joseph; gave him keys.
Unnamed angel - D&C 27; HC 1:106; Taught concerning use of wine in the sacrament.
Unnamed angel - Life of Heber C. Kimball; Temples of the Most High; Sent to accept dedication of the Kirtland temple.
Unnamed angel - Biography and Family Records of Lorenzo Snow [30]; Visited Joseph three times; commanded him to practice plural marriage, as previously revealed by the Lord.
Although keys, instructions, or information may have been given by some of the personages in the following list, they are generally noted as simply having been seen by Joseph:
Abel - JD 18:325; HC 3:388
Seth JD 21:94; D&C 107:53–57; HC 3:388
Enos - HC 3:388; D&C 107:53–57; HC 3:388
Cainan - HC 3:388; D&C 107:53–57
Mahalaleel - JD 18:325; D&C 107:53–57; HC 3:388
Jared (Bible) - HC 3:388; D&C 107:53–57
Enoch - HC 3:388; D&C 107:53–57; JD 21:65
Methuselah - JD 18:325; D&C 107:53–57; HC 3:388
Lamech - JD 18:325
Eve - Oliver B. Huntington diary [31]
Abraham - D&C 27:10; JD 21:94; 23:48
Isaac - D&C 27:10; JD 21:94
Jacob - D&C 27:10; JD 21:94
Joseph, son of Jacob - D&C 27:10
Twelve Jewish Apostles (Peter, James, and John already counted above) - JD 21:94 (Names in Matthew 10:1–4, Luke 6:13–16)
Twelve Nephite Apostles (Includes the Three Nephites) - JD 21:94 (Names recorded in 3 Nephi 19:4)
Zelph the Lamanite - Times & Seasons, 6:788
Alvin Smith (Joseph’s deceased brother) - HC 2:380
Paul - TPJS 180
Alma - JD 13:47
“I saw many angels” - Warren Cowdery’s account of the First Vision [32]
Satan and his associates - JSH 1:15–16; D&C 128:20; JD 3:299–3
Bruce and Marie Hafen were struck by something Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes once said:
THE CONDUIT TO CHRIST
THE CONDUIT TO CHRIST
Through the Church and its
teachings Jesus Christ has become the bedrock and core of my life. The Book of Mormon particularly has opened my
eyes to the atonement of the Saviour. In
its various forms the word ‘atone’ appears 36 times in the Book of Mormon
compared to the New Testament’s one reference.
The Book of Mormon has been
organized into 6,607 verses, of which 3,925 refer to Jesus Christ, employing
more than 100 titles. Thus, some form of Christ's name is used on an average of
one reference for every 1.7 verses.
(see Susan Easton Black, Finding Christ through the Book of Mormon 1987, 16-18)
(see Susan Easton Black, Finding Christ through the Book of Mormon 1987, 16-18)
In his book “What the Book of
Mormon tells us about Jesus Christ”, Robert Matthews says there are more
references to the Saviour in The Book of Mormon than in the New Testament.
Furthermore, those Book of Mormon references that Robert Matthews refers to shed so much more light on, and understanding of, the Saviour’s breath-taking atoning sacrifice. Since coming to the church at the age of 20, and having had scant prior regard for this subject, I feel as though I have been extraordinarily well tutored on the atonements’ significance and impact on the human family. My mind and heart have been stretched (more like exploded) as I have sought to grasp the all-encompassing complexity that is the Atonement of Christ.
At the start of the Saviour’s ministry in Luke chapter 4, Jesus goes to Nazareth and, reaching back to Isaiah 61, issues his mission statement:
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
For me, the Church has been the conduit to Christ. For me, Jesus is the Christ. For me, this mission statement is what being ‘The Christ’ is all about.
Again, with reference back to the original, longer statement in Isaiah, Robert Millet writes:
"Jesus Christ came to bring beauty for ashes — to replace distress with comfort, worry with peace, turmoil with rest. The Good Shepherd came to earth on a search and rescue mission — to identify and gather in those who have strayed, to welcome the wanderer back home and adorn the tattered son or daughter of God with a robe, a ring, and a fatted calf.
Our Precious Saviour condescended — left His throne divine — to come down and be with His people, the sheep of His fold. Jesus Christ came to right all the terrible wrongs of this life, to fix the unfixable, to repair the irreparable. He came to heal us by His tender touch, to still the storms of our startled hearts. In short, he came to replace ashes with beauty."
Robert L. Millet was the Richard L. Evans Professor of Religious Understanding at BYU. Church News, Dec 29th 2001
The Church has revealed Christ and He has become clear to
me and as CS Lewis said:
“I believe in Christ as I believe that the sun
has risen. Not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”
"Is Theology
Poetry?" (1945)
THE TEMPLE
THE TEMPLE
My membership in the Church, of
course, has introduced me to the Temple and to the sublimity of the sacred –
it’s a place I go to do work on behalf of others that in the process shows me
how God works on me to bring me to Him.
I very much like the idea that the Temple is a place
designed to briefly take me out of the world to make me a better person so that
I can go back into the world to try, in my little way, to make it a better
place. Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said that:
“Temple
work is not an escape from the world but a reinforcing of our need to better
the world while preparing ourselves for another and far better world. Thus,
being in the Lord’s house can help us to be different from the world in order
to make more difference in the world.”
Neal A. Maxwell, Not My Will, But Thine, 135.
Aside from doing the work for
others, I don’t know how literally I am supposed to take the temple ordinances,
some of which feel faintly odd at times, less so now perhaps, than in times past, nevertheless I recognise the schooling that
is taking place as God allows the temple experience to scrape the world off my
battered, barnacled-boat and exposes me to a different world, one redolent in
fascinating imagery and symbolism.
It may sound paradoxical but
there does seem to be constancy amidst change, particularly in the London Temple. I don’t know how many Temple Presidents I’ve
been through – quick calculation makes it 14 – and with each, something or
other changes in or associated with the administration of the temple. Most of which seem to the patient patron
faintly daft and unnecessary. Not to mention the Temple Department changes. Well, as I did mention them, I should clarify
that I find their little changes often dafter and more frustrating. However,
despite all of that, the core contribution embodied in the endowment remains
constant, endlessly elevating my attention to the Master and to my mission, which is clearly to
endlessly attempt to master His manners.
Trying to become more like the Saviour is, of course, the essence of
Mormonism and I think it the most beautiful thing and I think it beautifully
encapsulated in the ordinances of the temple.
For me, post-Mormon critics have
not made the case that Temple ordinances are nothing more than modified masonic
rituals. I think Joseph was clearly
influenced by Masonry but in being so was led by the Lord to so much more; more
depth, more interconnectedness across the eons of time; connectedness with the
cosmos, the curling time and space continuums of sacred sanctuaries and the
ever-linking family of endless man.
There are folds within folds going on here and we won’t work out all the
warps and wefts for some time to come.
The Temple is definitely part of why I believe and why I still belong.
SOUL STRETCHING
SOUL STRETCHING
My selfishness is challenged; my
soul stretched in service; I am immensely grateful for these extra-telestial
dimensional expansion experiences.
I like the way comfort zones are
breached in all directions by church membership. I do not claim that this is unique to
Mormonism but my guess is that its' particular style could very well be. I cannot prove that though; but I totally
love what it has done and is doing for and to me.
I love the way the Church helps
children to grow; a church-induced children-stretching environment; they learn
to love, give, serve, treat others with kindness and they learn to withhold
judgment and to respect others. They
learn to be unconditionally loving; other Churches do this, of course, but I particularly
love the way the Mormon Church does it.
It was in fact, the Prophet
Joseph Smith, more than any other, who elevates our attention to the Saviour’s
teaching of our infinite perfectibility.
What I love about the Church is that it wants me to be a champion in the
‘Son of God’ stakes and helps me to develop champion-like traits and
characteristics. When I fail miserably
at this task, which I do fairly regularly, the Church is there to help me at
every turn.
External out-of-mind or ‘mind-independent’
experiences confirm the truthfulness of doctrines. This is a controversial area as dissidents
argue that these are not ‘mind independent’ spiritual experiences but the
operation of imagination, wishful thinking and uncontrollable brain impulses.
This view doesn’t make complete sense to me because of my own experiences and
those of others who were hostile to Mormonism and set out to de-bunk it.
LOVE AND KINDNESS
LOVE AND KINDNESS
Love is spoken here; there is much of kindness to bathe in:
“What greater gift dost thou bestow. What greater goodness can we know
than Christ-like friends whose gentle ways strengthen our faith, enrich our
days”
Church Hymns
no. 293 ‘Each Life That Touches Ours for Good’ Text: Karen Lynn Davidson.
Mormonism does not, cannot and
should not claim any exclusivity in relation to the kindness of friends with
gentle ways, and I do not suggest for a moment that Mormons are any better at
being kind and friendly than members of any other Church are, or those of no
Church, at all, but I definitely count this as one of the reasons why I belong.
And, I think that there is something
within Mormonism, which seems to inform its membership and makes them more
susceptible to being bonded and united in the common cause of Mormonism; a
cause that often challenges followers as they attempt to carve out their place
as a ‘peculiar people’. A peculiar people may be peculiarly bonded and united.
For about ten years I served on the Church’s UK Public
Affairs Council and one of my assignments was to collect and compile data for an annual report on community service. The report was entitled
‘Service in the UK’ and, amongst other things such as blood donation sessions and poppy-appeal, also tracked the extent to which the
44 Stakes in the UK engaged in service projects.
Service rendered in the community is kindness personified and it has been
extraordinary to see just how much energy is exerted and how many hours are
contributed by Church members in selfless service in their local communities.
I love the way the Church
provides opportunities for me to forget myself and go to work for others. I love the way it teaches me to love other
people unconditionally, expecting nothing in return and having only their
happiness as my interest. I am not
saying I am good at this. I am not. In fact I suck at it. But I love the way I am constantly challenged
and stretched in that direction. This is very much a work in progress and I expect to work on my
progress forever.
In the film ‘Joseph Smith,
Prophet of the Restoration’ the brethren are seen working on a non-member
widow’s home. She approaches Joseph and says, “Mr Smith, I don’t hold
with your religion but I thank you for your kindness.” There is a pause
and then the Prophet Joseph looks at her and says, “You might say, that is our
religion.”
I am not saying that this
dialogue is historically accurate. It
probably isn’t. It is more likely to be
poetic license on the part of the Church Media Department. Furthermore, I'm not saying that Church teachings and policies have always been kind and haven't harmed people. I think they clearly have. Nevertheless, in general principle, I think this movie snippet exemplifies what the Church
has grown to become, an institution that stands for helping others and for
providing constant opportunities to its members to do so.
Genuine kindness is the essence
of service in the Kingdom and in the Community, and this has been exemplified
by Church members in the UK. They have, amidst
very busy lives, not only excelled in the three areas of emphasis – Blood
Donations, RBL Poppy-day appeal and Helping Hands – but have also exhibited
extraordinary kindness in delivering hundreds and hundreds of other service
initiatives.
This is Christianity in action. Now, to be clear, I am not saying this is
unique to Mormonism nor am I citing it as evidence of truth. It is nevertheless a ‘fruit’ of ‘the gospel’
and is certainly evidence, if any were needed, that much good is being done
within the Mormon Church. Furthermore,
it is for me, part of the reason why I believe and why I belong.
As Elder Ezra Taft Benson
expressed, I too love the real spirit of brotherhood and fellowship in the
Church:
“It is a very powerful thing, somewhat
intangible but very real. It is one of
the sweet things in connection with membership in the Church and kingdom of
God.”
Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson
SEER STONES
SEER STONES
The
furore accompanying recent information releases about the stone-in-the-hat
method of ‘translation’, which caused shock and concern amongst some members,
is worthy of comment. My initial
reaction was one of surprise because the stone-in-the-hat method was not the
one that the Church had portrayed in its missionary materials since I joined
the Church in 1972. Yes, it had been
featured in one or two articles in Church magazines over the years but it never
disturbed the traditional presentation of the Urim and Thummim spectacles
approach. Given the position that then
Church Historian, Joseph Fielding Smith, took on the subject, it is hardly
surprising:
“While
the statement has been made by some writers that the Prophet Joseph Smith used
a seer stone part of the time in his translating of the record, and information
points to the fact that he did have in his possession such a stone, yet there
is no authentic statement in the history of the Church which states that the
use of such a stone was made in that translation. The information is all
hearsay, and personally, I do not believe that this stone was used for this
purpose. The reason I give for this conclusion is found in the statement of the
Lord to the Brother of Jared as recorded in Ether 3:22-24”
(Doctrines of Salvation 3:225)
On
reflection, Joseph Fielding Smith was clearly wrong in generally ‘burying’ the
seer stone story and the position now adopted by the Church is the one
reflected in the Church’s gospel topic article, which accepts the use of the
seer stone:
In
reality, using one seer stone in a hat or two in a bespectacled breastplate
doesn’t make a lot of difference. The
issue is the apparent lack of transparency in why missionary materials over the
years only showed the latter. For me,
however, this is explained by the position Joseph Fielding Smith took and which
other leaders went along with until further stone-in-the-hat supporting
materials became evident in recent years.
For me it is basically a non-issue.
On
the subject of seer stones generally, any seer stones, President Dieter F
Uchtdorf has commented:
“Not
long ago, the Church published photos and background information on seer
stones. People have asked me, “Do you really believe that Joseph Smith
translated with seer stones? How would something like this be possible?” And I
answer, “Yes! That is exactly what I believe.” This was done as Joseph said: by
the gift and power of God.
In
reality, most of us use a kind of “seer stone” every day. My mobile phone is
like a “seer stone.” I can get the collected knowledge of the world through a
few little inputs. I can take a photo or a video with my phone and share it
with family on the other side of our planet. I can even translate anything into
or from many different languages!
If
I can do this with my phone, if human beings can do this with their phones or
other devices, who are we to say that God could not help Joseph Smith, the
Prophet of the Restoration, with his translation work? If it is possible for me
to access the knowledge of the world through my phone, who can question that
seer stones are impossible for God?
Many
religions have objects, places, and events that are sacred to them. We respect
the sacred beliefs of other religions and hope to be respected for our own
beliefs and what is sacred to us. We should never be arrogant, but rather
polite and humble. We still should have a natural confidence, because this is
the Church of Jesus Christ.”
https://www.facebook.com/lds.dieter.f.uchtdorf/posts/400421293461887:0
President Dieter F Uchtdorf
SUPERNATURAL WITNESSES
SUPERNATURAL WITNESSES
The accounts that follow, starting with how Lorenzo Snow
received a witness from the Holy Ghost regarding Mormonism, are not untypical
of the experiences of millions of other people.
Post Mormon dissenters, eager to dismantle every sign of the spirit and
remove every trace memory of the hand of God in their lives, claim that these
experiences are no different from those experienced by members of other faiths
and because of the contradictory nature of counter confirmations cannot
therefore be from God, unless He is purposefully giving misleading and
confusing signals. Although I have no
empirical evidence to the contrary I don’t think that this claim is true. Whilst I agree that God witnesses of any
truth to anyone of any faith and to people of none, I believe that where
Mormonism is concerned these spiritual experiences are significantly
heightened.
“THE SPIRIT OF GOD DESCENDED UPON ME”
Eliza R Snow describes what happened to her brother and later
quotes directly from President Snow:
“As a young man living in Kirtland, Ohio, Lorenzo Snow, fifth president
of the Church, was converted and baptized in 1836. He had studiously and
conscientiously compared the teachings of the missionaries with the teachings
of the Savior. Becoming convinced of the truths of the gospel, he had sought
baptism by immersion.
Following confirmation, he constantly anticipated an assurance that he
had received the Holy Ghost. Two or three weeks following his baptism, he
reflected that he had not yet received a testimony of the truth. Being uneasy,
and laying aside his books, he left the house and wandered through the fields.
A gloomy spirit and indescribable cloud of darkness seemed to envelop him. It
was his custom, near the close of day, to retire to a nearby secluded grove and
engage in secret prayer. This night he had no inclination to do so. The spirit
of prayer had departed, and the heavens seemed like brass over his head. But,
determined not to forgo his evening practice, he sought his accustomed place
and knelt in solemn prayer.
“I had no sooner opened my lips in an effort to pray,” recalled
President Snow, “than I heard a sound, just above my head, like the rustling of
silken robes, and immediately the Spirit of God descended upon me, completely
enveloping my whole person, filling me, from the crown of my head to the soles
of my feet, and O, the joy and happiness I felt! No language can describe the
almost instantaneous transition from a dense cloud of mental and spiritual
darkness into a refulgence of light and knowledge. … I then received a perfect
knowledge that God lives, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and of the
restoration of the holy Priesthood, and the fulness of the Gospel. It was a
complete baptism--a tangible immersion in the heavenly principle or element,
the Holy Ghost; and even more real and physical in its effects upon every part
of my system than the immersion by water.”
(Eliza
R. Snow, Biography and Family Record of Lorenzo Snow, p. 8.)
MY OWN EXPERIENCE
I was not visited by an Angel as Alma in the Book of Mormon or Paul
in the New Testament was. I didn’t see
one or any of the Three Nephites as Benjamin Brown, "Testimonies for the
Truth", autobiography (1853), claims he did. But like Lorenzo Snow something extraordinary
happened to me.
Starting in March 1972, never-before-experienced feelings began to
occur within me. It is difficult to
describe these feelings better than that.
I had never before felt them. They were physical. My heart felt it was
warm, more pliable and it felt pleasant, good.
I had been reading the Book of Mormon for a few weeks, invited to do so
by the Missionaries. I did not find it an easy read. Unfamiliar language structures, unfamiliar
names and geographies, complicated shifts in timings and chronology and, I have
to say, a bit on the boring side – all contributed to a somewhat laboured
process. However, as pages were turned
there were pockets of delight and moments of clarity and I persisted with both
the reading and the praying. The praying
was a new thing for me and I wasn’t much good at it. I felt self-conscious, awkward and again this
was unfamiliar ground for me. Then, one
Saturday afternoon as I sat on my bed in a billet on the RAF Benson base in
Oxfordshire, something strange happened.
I was in Mosiah or possibly even Alma by this point and I had, as I say,
been asking God if a) there was a God and b) if this book I was reading was
what it claimed to be, the word of God.
Up to that point nothing had happened and I was close to abandoning
the attempt and moving on and away from so called Mormonism. But, as I lay on the bed that drissly
afternoon doing a bit more reading, I started to cry, inexplicably. I have never been much of a crier. The last time I remember doing so was on my
first day of school and then it was out of sheer terror. Now I was crying and
it wasn’t induced by terror but by something going on in my heart and in my
head. I sobbed! I did not know what was
happening, but I was feeling waves of peace and light and love and joy falling
over me and a feeling in my head that felt like pure insight. I was enveloped
by an extraordinary feeling that I had never felt before and I knew at that
moment that what I was reading was true!
It was indeed the word of God. The
book did actually originate with God. And that God was real. That He knew me. And that He communicates to people. I knew this because He was communicating with
me. I didn’t hear a voice telling me it
was true but despite no voice these externally induced feelings were telling me
it was true. I didn’t know much back
then and still don’t now, but in that moment of time I knew that the Book of
Mormon came from God.
Since March 1972, these never-before experiences have occurred
repeatedly. I have subsequently come to
know them as the workings of the Holy Ghost or the Spirit of God, an
extra-terrestrial reaching down or out from God to man on Earth; moments when
humans are touched by the finger of a power and presence beyond the normal
human sphere of experience; a comforting and reassuring pat on the head from a
Father to a son or daughter of God.
“SHIVERS UP AND DOWN MY SPINE”
An even more extraordinary example of one person’s
first-time encounter with the Book of Mormon and the out-of-this-world spiritual
experience he had was recounted recently by a convert to Mormonism, David C.
Dollahite, now a professor of family life at BYU, who delivered a devotional
address on 27 September 2016. You should
read the whole talk here: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/david-c-dollahite_receiving-the-eternal/
…but essentially he was raised in the Episcopal Church and served as
an altar boy from nine to twelve years old.
He stopped attending church at age twelve and spent the rest of his
youth playing sports. He said that he
cared nothing for books. Unbeknownst to him his mother’s Mormon friend, Mrs Leininger,
had, many years earlier, given his mother a copy of the Book of Mormon. His mother had never looked at it and had put
it on the top shelf of her bookcase. In his own words:
“One day, at the end of November 1977, when I was nearly nineteen and
was a freshman at the local junior college, I was at home relaxing and watching
TV. Then I had what was—for me—a most unusual thought: since I was now a
college student, I should perhaps try to become an “educated person” and
actually read a book not assigned by a teacher. I went over to Mom’s bookcase.
My eyes were drawn to a blue paperback book in the left-hand corner of the top
shelf. I had a strong feeling that I should read that book.
So I reached up and took the Book of Mormon down and began to read.
From the first verse I experienced a strange, powerful, and wonderful feeling,
kind of like shivers up and down my spine. I thought a window must be open, so
I checked the windows for a draft. After about twenty minutes of reading, I had
to leave for work.
When I got home that night, I had that same strong feeling to read
the Book of Mormon. So I brought it up to my room, sat at my desk, and read. I
read through the night until about six in the morning, repeatedly experiencing
this strange, strong feeling. The next day I read for a few more hours.
That evening when I came home from work, I was very tired and
looking forward to sleep. But again I had the strong feeling that I should read
the Book of Mormon. So I sat at my desk and again read through the night. I had
many questions: Could these things really be true? Could God really exist? I
came to 3 Nephi 11 and was deeply impressed with all that Jesus said and did.
At about 5 a.m. I was out of energy, sore all over, and nodding off
to sleep. At about twenty pages from the end of the book, I decided that
I would get some sleep and finish the book later. Then I had an
overwhelming feeling and a very clear thought to finish the book now.
At the same time, I felt renewed energy, and the soreness
disappeared. So I stayed in the chair and continued reading. I came to some
verses that Mrs. Leininger had marked. She had underlined the verses in red
pen, highlighted them with a yellow highlighter, and written in the margin in
all caps, “Very important verses. Read these carefully!”
So I carefully read these marked verses—yes, they were Moroni
10:3–5—that included the invitation “And when ye shall receive these things, I
would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of
Christ, if these things are not true.” I had never prayed from my heart before,
although as a kid in church I had knelt and recited written prayers from the
Episcopal Book of Common Prayer. So I knelt at the side of my bed and, with
faith in the Jesus Christ I had read about in the Book of Mormon, I asked God
to forgive my sins and asked if the Book of Mormon was true.
It is not possible for me to adequately express what then happened,
but I will try. I felt the same type of wonderful spiritual feelings I had felt
since I first began reading the Book of Mormon but at an incredibly intensified
level of power and depth. It was as if a river of pure water rushed through me,
washing away all my sins. It was also like a raging fire purged away my old
self. I felt completely clean and like an entirely new person.
Not only was there great power, but the depth of love I felt
surpasses my ability to express it. I felt that although I did not know God,
God knew me perfectly. And although God knew me perfectly—with all my
sinfulness, pride, vanity, and selfishness—He still loved me perfectly.
Likewise, the sure knowledge that the Book of Mormon was the word of God was
seared into my soul.
I was changed in a profound way. I no longer wanted to be what I was
and do what I was doing. I wanted only to do what God wanted me to do. I wanted
only to love and serve others and tell them about Jesus Christ and the Book of
Mormon. In my mind’s eye I saw glimpses of myself teaching various people and
groups about Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon. I somehow knew that this
would be my future.”
What interests me about Dr Dollahite’s story is
the apparent complete absence of any initial or preemptory interest in, or desires
to know anything about, Mormonism or the Book of Mormon prior to randomly
selecting the book from among the many on his mother’s book shelf. This spiritual manifestation was so NOT
self-induced and I believe it is an example of many thousands, perhaps millions
of similar stories that could be cited by converts all across the world.
SET OUT TO PROVE IT FALSE – FOUND IT
WASN’T!
Some former members of the Church and members
who are struggling with serious doubts put forward the argument that their and
our ‘spiritual’ experiences are not real, external, other worldly phenomena, or
super natural events, but rather, they say, the operation of their and our own
imaginings brought on by the emotion of the moment or by the subconscious
desires we have for either a ‘sign’ or because we want something to be
‘right’. Our passion for it to be so
makes it so in our minds and hearts.
Latter-day Saints like to believe that the
spiritual experiences they have had reading scripture, or praying, or attending
Church, or during testimony bearing, for example, are unique to them. Post Mormons argue that they are common to
others in other Churches. Again, these
are very difficult areas to argue over as firstly what we feel is so subjective
and secondly, how can we judge what others are or are not experiencing or try
to second guess the provenance of those feelings?
These are not arguments easily countered
without recourse to a rehearsal of our own spiritual experiences, which of
course were entirely independent of anything from within, or at least in our
own minds and hearts. Therein lies the
problem, the dissenters say!
I don’t agree with the dissenting position on
this issue. I regard my first spiritual
experience, as I was reading the Book of Mormon for the first time, very much
as an external, super natural, heaven-induced event. I genuinely wasn’t looking for it, hoping for
it or wanting it, or self-inducing it etc.
But it happened.
I think of even more interest are the
experiences of some of those who deliberately set out to prove it wrong and
tear it down. Wives let the missionaries
in and hostile husbands set out to prove the religion false. It’s happened many, many times. Here are a few examples.
‘I would tear the Missionaries down’
“My wife had told them to come back in a week’s time when I would be
there. I was an atheist and very hostile
to all religion and prepared myself to tear the missionaries down when they
showed up next week. It was 1978 in
South London and I was ready for them.
My wife let them in to our first floor flat and I heard them coming up
the stairs. As the two missionaries
entered the room I was taken aback to see a strange aura enter the room with
the two young men. It was in the form of
a man but indistinct. I was completely
dumbfounded. I was seeing something with
what appeared to be my spiritual eyes.
Was it God? Was it the Holy
Ghost?
They sat down and started to talk to us.
I felt impotent in terms of raising the points I had prepared. All I could do was to sit and listen. One of them was from Norway and I could not
understand him. The other was American
and I was similarly struggling to understand what he was saying. In fact, they were with us for more than
forty minutes and I can honestly say I did not understand one word of what they
were said. However, at that moment, I
knew that they were from God, that God was real and that what they were saying
was true.”
By
Victor Jackson, 14/02/2016, High Priests
Meeting, Selsdon Ward, Maidstone Stake, UK
‘I would
prove to her that it was false.’
“While
serving in the U.S. Air Force, Eula and I were stationed in Guam in August of
1965. We were not religious at all, although we identified as Christian. I was
a really heavy smoker and did quite a bit of drinking because the water on Guam
was pretty bad (good excuse). My wife, Eula, smoked but not as much, and she
drank more socially.
Our neighbor Harold Thompson had been a semi active member of the Church
until his father died in the U.S., and he brought his mother, Rosie, to Guam to
live with them. She was a strong member, and the family became really active.
One day Eula noticed that Rosie had left her car lights on and called to tell
her. In the conversation, Eula said, “I understand you are Mormon. What do
Mormons believe?” Eula has always been an avid reader, and Rosie proceeded to
loan Eula books about the Church. The branch (about ninety members) had placed
their books in the Thompson home because of termites in the Church building,
which consisted of a Quonset hut. The book that made the most impression was A
Marvelous Work and a Wonder, by LeGrand Richards. As she read, she became
convinced that the Church was true. This posed a great problem because I had
always been anti-religion, and she knew it would create problems in our
marriage. At the same time Rosie began taking our children to Primary. I became
aware of her interest and decided that I would read about the Church and find
things to prove to her that it was false. As I read, these things started to
make sense. I read an old Sunday School manual by Lowell Bennion that helped me
develop a knowledge of God. I also read a little book by Max Skousen entitled
How to Pray and Stay Awake. I soon decided to attempt prayer for the first time
in my life and had a very positive experience. We started to attend Church
meetings and came to believe that the Church was indeed true.”
By David Ebbert http://devanjensen.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/mormon-missionaries-and-members-in.html#!/2016/02/mormon-missionaries-and-members-in.html
“I felt
sure that I’d easily spot the falsehood in its words”
The following account appeared in the October 2016 Ensign under the
heading “Converted for Life”. The author
is Joshua Oram who lives in Arizona, USA:
“I was serving as a full-time missionary in
the Nicaragua Managua Mission, when one day my companion and I passed a
well-kept property with a garden. “Someday I want to contact that house,” he
said. Then suddenly he stopped. “Wait a second. Today might be that day, Elder
Oram. Look, there’s a man in the garden. Let’s talk to him.”
With some trepidation, I followed my
companion to the garden gate, where a large, intimidating man greeted us
reluctantly. He agreed to let us sit on his porch but made it clear that he was
merely being polite and that we could speak with him only, not his family. We sat down, and as was customary, this man went inside his home to
get a drink of water for my companion and me. We took advantage of his absence
to form a plan.
“Doesn’t look good,” I said.
“Yeah,” my companion agreed. “He seems
polite but not receptive, and we really should be looking for whole families to
teach.”
“Let’s make it quick,” I suggested. “We’ll
just give him a pamphlet rather than teach a whole discussion. Five minutes and
we’re out.”
“Sounds good.”
A Change of Plan
The man returned with drinks and told us his
name was Camilo. As we sipped our drinks and made small talk, I received a
sudden and distinct impression that we should stay to teach Camilo a full
discussion about the Restoration of the gospel.
“Okay,” I thought, “I’ll give it a try, but
how to let my companion know the change of plan?” I looked to my companion, and
to my surprise, he nodded his head knowingly, as if to say, “Yeah, we should
stay. Let’s teach a full discussion.”
Forty-five minutes later I was more anxious
than ever to abandon ship! Camilo was combative, challenging us on every
particular. At one point we used a poor choice of wording that offended him,
and he nearly shouted at us in anger. It was clear at that point that we needed
to go, and quickly. We offered to leave a Book of Mormon, and Camilo accepted with the disclaimer
that he was only interested in searching it for errors, which he would be sure
to highlight in case missionaries ever called on him again.
Confusion and frustration lingered in my
mind for the rest of the day. Why had the Spirit prompted us to stay, when the
result had been so disastrous? I comforted myself with the thought that our job
was only to plant the seed and that something might come of it years later. I’d
simply have to trust the Spirit, because I’d never find out why we had been
prompted to teach that lesson.
But I did find out, the very next morning!
Ready for another day of contacting under the hot tropical sun, we stepped out
of our house and were surprised when the door nearly struck someone waiting on
our porch. There stood Camilo, red-faced and out of breath. I felt a flash of
fear at the thought that this big man might still be angry and had come to
fight us!
“I apologize, Elders,” Camilo explained.
“I’m out of breath because I just ran all the way here from my house. I left as
soon as the sun came up.”
We were speechless, so he continued: “Last
night I sat down to read the book you left me, and I was still so upset. I felt
sure that I’d easily spot the falsehood in its words.” He shook his head. “But
within five minutes of reading, I felt something unlike anything I’ve ever
felt. I read the chapter you left me, then started from the beginning and read
all through 1 Nephi. I know this Book of Mormon has the truth. I came here
to ask you to please return to my home and teach me everything. I want to be
baptized into your church.”
Two weeks later, Camilo and his
eight-year-old son received a humble baptism in a large drum behind our house.
Courage and Determination
For the next seven months I spent in the
area, Camilo’s testimony continued to grow stronger, despite considerable
opposition from family and friends. At one point a family member even attacked him
with a knife to keep him from paying tithing! Camilo defended himself by grabbing the
blade with his bare hands, then showed up at church to deliver the tithing
envelope with bandaged fingers.
I marveled at his courage and determination.
What accounted for his commitment to the gospel? Clearly he had not been
baptized simply to be polite or because he liked the missionaries or because he
was too afraid to say no. The only conclusion left was that he had truly felt
something amazing as he read the Book of Mormon. His heart had changed, literally
overnight. By the time I left the area, Camilo was serving as first counselor
in the branch presidency and had never missed a Sunday at church.
“What Ever Happened to Camilo?”
Some 15 years later, after I recounted
Camilo’s story in an elders quorum lesson, a brother raised his hand and asked,
“What ever happened to Camilo? Is he still active?” I had to admit I had no
idea how Camilo was doing because I had not tried to contact him since
completing my missionary service. But that brother’s question awoke a resolve
in me to reach out to Camilo, even though I knew it might be difficult—there
were no phones where he lived, and I didn’t know his address. That same night I
prayed to Heavenly Father to help me know how I might get in touch with Camilo.
Once again, I only had to wait until the
very next morning. To my amazement, I woke up to find a message on my computer
from none other than Camilo. He explained how the night before he had finally
decided to try out an online social media site, and the first person he had
thought to contact was me.
I wrote back to Camilo and asked if he was
still active in the Church. After a day of nervous waiting, I finally received
his reply. Yes, he said, of course he was still active in the Church. In fact,
he was happy to report that he had recently been set apart as the branch
president, his wife was the Primary president, and they had more children who
were now being raised in the gospel. “Thank you, thank you,” he said, “for
changing my life all those years ago.”
I didn’t change Camilo’s life. But his life
had changed; his heart had changed deeply, profoundly. For life. That’s the
power of the Book of Mormon. Two set-apart missionaries spent the better part
of an hour with him, doing our best to teach him about the Restoration of the
gospel. With only five minutes spent reading the Book of Mormon, however,
Camilo’s anger and pride melted away. He was converted, truly converted in
every sense of the word. It makes me wonder how many other Camilos are out
there, waiting for us to show up at their garden gate, perhaps with trembling
heart but bearing in our hands a book with all the power needed to do the
Lord’s work.”
https://www.lds.org/ensign/2016/10/young-adults/converted-for-life?lang=eng
https://www.lds.org/ensign/2016/10/young-adults/converted-for-life?lang=eng
What is interesting in the story of Camilo, and in hundreds and
thousands of other stories like his, is that he came to the task of proving the
Book of Mormon false with a negative mind-set that it was false. He didn’t want it to be true he wanted it to
be false but then something happened, out of nowhere; not induced by him from
within but brought to him from without.
As Camilo in the above story puts it:
“Last night I sat down to read the book you
left me, and I was still so upset. I felt sure that I’d easily spot the
falsehood in its words.” He shook his head. “But within five minutes of
reading, I felt something unlike anything I’ve ever felt. I read the chapter
you left me, then started from the beginning and read all through 1 Nephi.
I know this Book of Mormon has the truth. I came here to ask you to please
return to my home and teach me everything. I want to be baptized into your
church.”
SO, … IS
THE HOLY GHOST REAL?
SO, … IS THE HOLY GHOST REAL?
This is a core question that goes to the heart of
Mormonism. The reason millions of people
have joined the Church is because they claim the Holy Ghost has borne witness
to them that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true Church
of Jesus Christ; that the Book of Mormon is the word of God; that Joseph Smith
is a real Prophet of God and that living Prophets and Apostles walk the Earth
today.
Post Mormons contend that none of that is real. Their
position, rather like Korihor’s in Alma 30, is that it is “the effect of a
frenzied mind”; the self-induced imaginings with attendant physical and
biological effects that create the impression or the illusion of a super
natural, other worldly intervention. Members of other faiths, they contend,
experience exactly the same ‘spiritual’ witnesses that LDS Church members
do. They are moved to tears in just the
same way. The problem, post Mormons
argue, is why God would send the Holy Ghost to witness of contradictory things
to adherents of contra-believing Churches.
It is a difficult square to circle.
However, based on my own personal experiences, the
experiences of other Church members and a myriad other experiences both
historical and current, I am persuaded that this premise is false. It cannot be proved empirically but I believe
the Holy Ghost is real and does administer to members of the Church uniquely
differently than to those of other faiths.
Let’s go through some of those reasons and try to analyse
them carefully. There are many stories
told by Church leaders and regular members of how they have been inspired or
prompted by the Holy Ghost to say or do something that came from nowhere and
resulted in a heart being touched and a soul reached. Let me share a few
examples.
Optician in France Responds to Prompting
Elder Bennesar’s friend goes into an optician’s shop on a
busy Saturday afternoon in a French city. He's been coming each year to get his
eyes tested and obtain new glasses. As the same Optician who has served him in
the past approaches him he receives a strong prompting 'tell this man about the
Church'. He argues with the prompting 'no, it's too busy, too awkward'. Again
the prompting comes 'tell this man about the Church' and this time a specific
phrase to say comes into his mind. As the Optician arrives in front of the man,
the man says to the Optician "No other success in life can compensate for
failure in the home." The Optician is stopped in his tracks, his jaw
drops; he stares at the man and starts to cry.
"How did you know?" the Optician asked. The Optician explained
that he had been having problems at home with his wife and kids and that his
eye had been wandering toward another woman.
They had a good conversation about the Church, how families can be
together forever and the peace of the Spirit.
The Optician agreed to meet with the missionaries.
As told by Elder Matthieu Bennasar, Area Seventy, 14/05/2016, Maidstone
Stake Conference
Future Area Seventy protects Girl
Clifford moved from Scotland to Chelmsford in Essex as a
young man. There were about 20 youth in the Ward. At the first activity night there was a
diffident little Beehive girl who was being harried by two older young men;
Clifford went across and in his strongest Glaswegian accent asked them to
desist. He asked the girl if she was alright and needed anything. She said she was ok. A few weeks later he was at
another youth activity and saw the same two boys being unpleasant to the same
little girl. He intervened again and this time was more forceful. The two boys
backed away. Clifford asked the young
lady if she needed any help but she replied that she was fine. He then lost track of her; she stopped
attending.
Ten years later Clifford was married and recently called
as the Bishop of the Slough Ward. He was unfamiliar with both the area and the
members when called. One hot sunny day he was going to visit a member’s home whom he had not visited before. He remembered the name of the street, but unusually for him, he had forgotten the number of the house. He drove to the street and parked in order to look up the number of the house on the ward list. As it was really hot, he got out of the car and put the list on the roof and was looking through it for less than a minute when a small voice said
"Clifford, is that you?" He
looked up and standing on the street beside him was this little Beehive girl now in her early
twenties. Recognising her, Clifford
called her by name and asked her with surprise what she was doing here, because
neither her name nor this address was on the Ward list. The girl replied that
she lived here with her boyfriend. They got reacquainted and Clifford learned
that she had drifted from Church and had always felt something big missing in
her life.
Now, so far this is a somewhat familiar story of two
people randomly meeting up again perhaps against all the odds; I don’t know
what the odds are of this happening and of course it could all be plain old
coincidence. Well, I believe that what
the girl told Clifford had happened to her that morning moves it from the
realms of coincidence to something else.
An example of how the Holy Ghost is directed to minister to our Heavenly
Father’s children.
She was studying at home for an exam. It was a hot day and she was lying in the
back garden with her books, working on her tan at the same time, as one does.
Suddenly and from out of nowhere she hears or senses a voice saying 'get up, go
inside and look out your front window'.
She does this and sees a man looking at something on the roof of his
car. She recognises him as the young
man, Clifford, who was kind to her all those years ago. She goes outside and
says "Clifford, is that you?"
Clifford invites the girl to return to Church. She does.
She and her boyfriend get married and he joins the Church; a year later
Clifford is invited to be a witness in the Temple as they are sealed together.
As told by Elder Clifford Herbertson, Area Seventy, 14/05/2016,
Maidstone Stake Conference
Elder Hales Responds to the Prompting of
the Spirit
“Many years ago, Sister Hales and I planned to host some of my work
associates at a special dinner in our home. On my way home from the office, I
had an impression to stop at the house of a widow whom I home taught. When I
knocked on the sister’s door, she said, “I have been praying for you to come.”
Where did that impression come from? The Holy Ghost.
Once, following a serious illness, I presided at a stake conference. To
conserve my energy, I planned to leave the chapel immediately after the
priesthood leadership session. However, following the benediction, the Holy
Ghost said to me, “Where are you going?” I was inspired to shake hands with
everyone as they left the room. As one young elder stepped forward, I was
prompted to give him a special message. He was looking down, and I waited for
his eyes to come up and meet mine, and I was able to say, “Pray to Heavenly
Father, listen to the Holy Ghost, follow the promptings you are given, and all
will be well in your life.” Later the stake president told me that the young
man had just returned early from his mission. The stake president, acting on a
clear impression, had promised the young man’s father that if he brought his
son to the priesthood meeting, Elder Hales would speak with him. Why did I stop
to shake everyone’s hand? Why did I pause to talk to this special young man?
What was the source of my counsel? It’s simple: the Holy Ghost.”
"Another example of the operation of the Spirit in our lives comes from a talk given at BYU in 2020 by Elder Jack Gerrard of the Seventy:
"I would like to share a recent personal experience that illustrates the principles shared today. It occurred just a few months ago while I was on a stake conference assignment in Spokane, Washington. Prior to our Saturday afternoon meetings, the stake president and I made a ministering visit to the Pulver family. The Pulvers were identified from a long list of names submitted by the bishops and high councilors. The stake president did not know them well but felt a strong spiritual impression that we should visit.
We arrived at the home and sat down with Brother Pulver, who considered himself less active and had not been to the temple since his mission nineteen years earlier. Sister Pulver was working, and he was tending the children. Brother Pulver was gracious but wondered why we had decided to call on his family. As we started to visit, I asked where they had grown up. Brother Pulver indicated that his wife was from the small town of Ferron, Utah. I responded that I had been in Ferron just ten months earlier on assignment, and I started to recount a sacred experience I had had with a faithful sister during a home visit.
Brother Pulver blurted out, “You were the one.”
It turned out that the faithful sister I visited in Ferron was Sister Pulver’s mother—Brother Pulver’s mother-in-law. Brother Pulver gave me permission to share excerpts from his journal, in which he recorded the details of our visit that day: "After I mentioned Ferron, Elder Gerard lit up, saying that he had been to Ferron. It was at that moment everything connected for me, and I knew why he was at my home. When Genevieve [Sister Pulver’s mother] was hours from passing away, Elder Gerard visited her. . . . As he explained his story, the Holy Spirit entered my home to a degree I have never encountered before. The feeling was nearly palpable, and it testified of the Lord’s hand in our meeting.
It turns out that I was one of the last to visit with Sister Pulver’s mother, Genevieve, before her passing. When we had arrived at her home in Ferron, she was lying on the sofa in a semiconscious state. Sister Pulver’s father, a very faithful man, indicated that she had very little time to live. We sat at the small kitchen table and quietly visited, as we could hear her strained breathing in the adjoining room. As we prepared to leave, Sister Pulver’s father asked if we would give his wife a blessing. As we placed hands on her head, the Spirit of the Lord filled the room. It was a very sacred moment for us, as the veil of eternity was parted for a brief moment. She passed a few hours later.
As I shared the details of the final hours of his mother-in-law’s life, it became clear there was more to the story. Let me again read from Brother Pulver’s journal: About a year earlier, Genevieve [Sister Pulver’s mother] was spending the holidays with us. She came into my bedroom and had a conversation with only me at that time. She asked my opinion on what to do with the continuation of her cancer treatment. I asked her what she wanted to do, and she told me she wanted to be done. She asked me then to take care of her daughter and grandkids. Then she did not ask, she told me, “You take this family to the temple.”
As we concluded the visit to their home, the Pulvers agreed to attend the Saturday evening session of stake conference for the first time in many years. Furthermore, they committed to fulfill the request of Sister Pulver’s mother to take the family to the temple. I am pleased to report that when I visited with the Pulvers just last week—when they authorized me to share parts of the journal—they indicated that Brother Pulver had recently attended the temple and that Sister Pulver is finishing the temple preparation lessons to receive her own endowment in the next few weeks.
Let me quote once again from Brother Pulver’s journal: The Lord had the foresight to first assign Elder Gerard to the stake conference in the Ferron area. Then he was sent to the Spokane Valley East Stake just a little over a year after I had had a conversation with Genevieve. I have no doubt Genevieve had influence in this event. I do not believe this was a chance coincidence. This would not have happened if the Lord had not intervened. The Lord’s faithful disciples followed His promptings exactly as He wanted. It wasn’t just the events of this meeting that make it miraculous. The feeling of extreme power and extreme peace is what made this encounter life changing and something I will never forget. The gospel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true, it’s real, and it is wonderful.
My dear brothers and sisters, I would have never supposed that my time with Grandma Genevieve just prior to her passing was in preparation to meet her daughter and family a few months later in fulfillment of her final request to make sure they received the blessings of the temple. I knew not what the Lord had planned, but as I exercised faith, put my trust in the Lord, and heeded His counsel—even when I could not suppose—I became once again a witness to the great blessings He grants to His children."
REACH-OUT
TO THOSE WHO ARE STRUGGLING
REACH-OUT TO THOSE WHO ARE STRUGGLING
One thing of genuine concern to me is the
‘faith-drain’ that the Church has been experiencing over recent years. This unwanted loss that the Church can ill
afford is caused by members struggling to make sense of the very issues, and
the sheer accumulation of them, examined in this document. These are members who have fallen as hurdle
after hurdle, as they perceive it, get placed in their path and derail them
from the faith and truths accepted over, in some cases, their lifetime.
Despite admonitions not to from multiple
General Conference speakers, we are seeing some very bright and erstwhile faithful
people ‘get out of the boat’ and not ‘stay by the tree’. This loss is significant and I would like to
see much more being done to reach-out to those who have gone.
Those of us who continue to believe and
continue to belong should not underestimate the gut-wrenching awfulness, soul-destroying
sadness and sense of bereavement felt by these members who genuinely feel
compelled to vote with their feet and leave the Church. Their sense of loss is profound. It isn’t just a loss of faith; family, friends
and a whole social structure is seriously affected as well.
I do not share their rationale or the
conclusions they have drawn. I think
they are wrong. But I know that for them
it was a matter of integrity. In many
cases their doubts led to frustration, a sense of betrayal by Church leaders
who they feel have ‘managed’ the truth, withheld information and have
perpetuated a sanitized version of Mormonism that has obscured the
reality. In all good consciousness, for
them, they felt they had no other alternative but to go. I think they are utterly mistaken in this
action but I understand how they found themselves in the position they did.
Church leaders, in my view, from the top down,
should be very much more open about past obscurities and should actively reach
out to those who feel so disappointed and so let down. Mistakes have been made in Mormonism; it
isn’t perfect, nor is the Church neither anybody in it. This fact of life should be celebrated not
ignored or submerged.
As the Prophet Joseph said:
“Our Heavenly Father is more liberal in His views, and boundless in
his mercies and blessings, than we are ready to believe or receive.“
Joseph Fielding Smith, ed., Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 257.
Joseph Fielding Smith, ed., Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 257.
The Decriminalisation of the Doubter
The Church tent must become big enough to
include those who doubt, question and criticise. Critical examination has always been a part
of religiosity and those who question critically should not be made to feel
unwelcome or some sort of doubt-criminal.
We need an environment that
gives air and a license to doubt without censure from Church authorities. We
should not look down on or dismiss those that struggle with the issues set out
above and whose testimony is subsequently affected. It’s up to each of us to choose how we
interpret the evidence whether we are going to reject it as insufficient or if we
are going to embrace it and build a life on faith.
Furthermore, we as regular members of the Church need to be much more thoughtful and sensitive towards those who question, lose trust, doubt their faith and challenge the traditional narrative.
One LDS author and blogger, Greg Trimble, wrote in his book “The Cultural Evolution Inside of Mormonism”, about 3 types of Church members, and suggests that only the third type will be able to endure the trials of faith that are here now and are coming soon. I quote from Greg Trimble here:
"1. The Stalwart But Stubborn Mormon...
These Mormons are full of faith and are used to the standard narrative. They cling to what they’ve learned in primary and cringe at anything that might contradict the things they’ve learned for so long. Change is tough for this group of Mormons. They might quote the scripture that says “God is the same yesterday, today, and forever” and assume that the church will also be the same yesterday, today, and forever. They still think that Joseph Smith sat at a table with a sheet between he and Oliver Cowdrey as he traced the engravings on the gold plates and translated for hours on end. They like how Abraham sought for further light and knowledge but have trouble applying that same principle to themselves . What they know…is what they know, and nothing else seems to matter.
This type of Mormon doesn’t think much of church scholars. They have their old library of books at home that consist of Mormon Doctrine, Doctrines of Salvation, and a host of other similar titles that were published between the 1970’s and 1985. They have the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley on their shelf but had a hard time getting through them. Critics of the church would call these people…sheeple. They would sarcastically call them “TBM’s” or “True Believing Mormons.”
I love this group of Mormons. They are faithful and obedient. They always seem to be there to help and are generally service oriented. Their only issue is how they might react to people that have questions about their faith. If the questions or statements they hear from others contradict or disrupt their long held understanding of something…they can sometimes get defensive and exhibit a condemning attitude toward the questioner. This behavior might make the questioner feel stupid…and can really turn off a struggling member that may have not had the same testimony building experiences that they have had. As Paul said…this stalwart but stubborn Mormon may have a “zeal but not according to knowledge” wherein they are immoveable in their position on a portion of church history or doctrine, while being genuinely wrong all at the same time. Lots of zeal…but lacking correct knowledge causes the same situation Alma was witnessing in the church. They “began to be scornful, one towards another, and they began to persecute those that did not believe according to their own will and pleasure.” These people have a major problem with just saying “I don’t know…but let’s discuss” which leads to innocently but ignorantly misleading others who might be honestly seeking.
2. The Curious But Furious Mormon...
This group of Mormons is small…but growing very fast because of the transparency of the internet and social media. They are good hearted and sensitive people that have taken seriously the admonition of Joseph Smith to “go on to perfection, and search deeper and deeper into the mysteries of Godliness.”
But as they’re searching, they are finding things that contradict the things they may have learned in Primary and Sunday School. Some of those things as Elder Ballard has recently mentioned are “less known or controversial, such as polygamy, seer stones, different accounts of the First Vision, the process of translation of the Book of Mormon or the Book of Abraham, gender issues, race and the priesthood, or a Heavenly Mother.”
[I read the most amazing book on these topics recently called “A Reason For Faith” that gives clear and honest background on each of these topics. The “controversial topic” essays Elder Ballard is referring to can also be found here at LDS.org ]
Where the stalwart but stubborn Mormon might shun or ignore these topics and go about his or her business, the curious but furious Mormon might jump to wrong conclusions on incomplete information from less than reputable sources and make rash decisions regarding their faith. Once a person has made a rash decision, human nature and inherent pride makes it very difficult to reverse that decision for fear of seeming “wishy-washy.” Most of the time, when someone makes a rash decision, they end up getting behind their decision 100% regardless of whether they know if it was right or wrong.
This type of Mormon is the one that approaches the other type of Mormon (The Stalwart But Stubborn Mormon) discussed above and asks them why the Sunday School manual has a picture of Joseph and Oliver sitting at the table with a sheet in front of them when in reality, Joseph used a seer stone in a hat to translate while the plates remained covered. If the stalwart but close-minded Mormon reacts defensively or arrogantly…a battle of truth vs. tradition ensues and no one is the winner. In many cases, this type of Mormon is right about various aspects of church history but many times doesn’t stick around long enough to see the issue rectified in the upcoming manual. The curious Mormon now becomes a furious Mormon and believes they’ve been lied to maliciously for all these years…while the stalwart but close-minded Mormon has lost a brother or sister to help them run the ward council.
Both types of Mormons contribute to the attrition.
3. The Stalwart But Curious Mormon...
Ahhhh. Finally…a group of Mormons that are exciting to discuss. This group of Mormons consist of a marriage between the two previous groups of Mormons. Interestingly enough…the two above groups of Mormons, put together, makes the sort of Mormon that has the intellectual and spiritual ability to pull down the powers of heaven on a regular basis and work modern miracles. This is the sort of Mormon Joseph Smith was. This is the sort of Mormon that is firm in their faith but always open to discuss different points of view. They’re looking for truth and willing to accept it even if it contradicts their current views. These are the Mormons that are truly learning and growing as they combine their faith and intellect to navigate through tough times.
These Mormons are more interested in helping people than they are at “being right.” They are better at listening and understanding than they are at speaking and postulating. This type of Mormon has no illusions of the church being perfect, the people or leaders being perfect, or the history being 100% accurate as it’s recorded in a 1980’s Sunday School manual. This Mormon is ready and willing to listen when Elder Ballard says you should learn about these controversial essays and topics and know them “like you know the back of your hand.” This Mormon knows that the narrative in the church can change over time, but that the doctrine can still remain pure and true and unlike any other theology this world has ever seen.
This is the true disciple of Christ. This is the peacemaker and knowledge seeker. This is the type of Mormon that will usher in the Second Coming of Christ. This is the type of Mormon I want to be…"
Looking at Greg Trimble's three member categories above, I think I am somewhere between 2 and 3. I am definitely 'curious', I was 'furious' and I am trying to be more 'stalwart'.
On the subject of how best to help those who are in the 'curious but furious' category, Bruce Hafen, an emeritus General Authority, with his wife, Marie, writes: “Church leaders will help most if they put themselves in the shoes of the person with the questions and listen carefully to understand the concern and why it’s so hard. If the person we’re helping feels listened to rather than lectured to, our testimony to him or her will be far more reassuring.
“It also helps if leaders can avoid being dismissive toward people with questions. Rather, good leaders work to understand each person’s life context. For example, why can two people see the same new information and one is disturbed by it while the other learns from it? Probably because we each have a unique background. As one friend said, those who react in a negative way to something they didn’t know before or feel distrustful toward a Church leader might be reflecting some prior unhealed wound—harmful family dynamics, hard missionary experiences, clashes with authority, naïve views of Church history, past personal mistakes, lack of recent spiritual experience, or shame or anger about the Church’s position on social issues.”
“I would not give a fig for the simplicity this side of complexity, but I would give my life for the simplicity on the other side of complexity.”
This comment became the kernel of the main idea that features in their book “Faith is Not Blind”. Faith, according to the Hafens, interacts with humans in three phases or stages:
“Stage one is, the simplicity before complexity. That’s Adam and Eve in the garden. Its young people coming wide-eyed to BYU. Stage two is that when they encounter complexities of all kinds, it may be questions, issues or troubles about the church, or something they’ve heard on Joseph Smith— It could be their family situation. Stage two is the complexity. And stage three is the simplicity on the other side of complexity. Simplicity, complexity, and then this new informed, mature simplicity beyond complexity.
Too many people get stuck in stage one, or stage two, and don’t see that Adam and Eve don’t figure it all out until they have gone all the way to stage three and have seen the full experience then they’re really ready to return to the presence of Lord. They aren’t going back to Eden, they’re going home.
One of the survivors of the Martin and Willie Handcart disaster, said, “We came to know God in our extremities, and the price we paid to know Him was a privilege to pay.”
"Faith is Not Blind" - Bruce and Marie Hafen
Between Greg Trimble's three categories of church members and the Hafen's three faith stages, I am sure I fit somewhere and I definitely relate to something else the Hafens talk about in their book, which is that faith is a process not an event. Let's suspend judgment and reach out to all with an authentic listening ear and unconditional love, wherever they may be on that faith-process spectrum.
Another metaphor, better than the rope one, is the seats at the table one. On a podcast in 2020, Dan Ellsworth discussed eight seats at the epistemological table of our faith/belief/knowledge. There could be more and I would want to at least add the Book of Mormon as a separate ninth seat. Each seat on its' own may not be sufficiently convincing or powerful, but all of them together add up to an extraordinarily compelling repository of knowledge.
"I don't care if you smoke, drink, abuse substances, are unchaste,
wear pants to church, hate relief society, don't sustain church leaders, don't
have a testimony, have a weak testimony, wear tank tops, don't know if you
believe Joseph Smith was a prophet, have had an abortion, don't love your
husband, don't like being a mother, think women should have the priesthood, are
gay or lesbian or transgender, don't know if you believe in God, don't relate
to Jesus Christ, don't want to go to the temple, wonder about polygamy--you
belong here. You belong here. We need you and you need us."
My Advice ... Don't Jump Ship
DOES MORMONISM WORK?
DOES MORMONISM WORK?
I have always thought that trying to apply
gospel principles and seeking to follow the teachings of the Saviour, as taught
by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was a good way to live
resulting in greater happiness and well-being. I had a dream one night, the
details of which were fuzzy but I awoke with a phrase embedded in my
consciousness “Mormonism optimises all human endeavours”. Yes,
I get it, I’ve been thoroughly brain-washed and of course Mormonism doesn’t
optimize all human endeavours;
but it is an amazing way to live.
In essence I believe Mormonism is the best way
to live. I don’t adopt this perspective
in a pharisaic way. Live and let live is
my motto. People can live their lives in
any way they want and I’m happy to let them get on with it. But in my opinion there is no better way to
live than in the way of Mormonism. I
think it is the optimal option.
Danielle Wagner’s piece on research into which
State in the USA is considered the ‘happiest’ was interesting as it turns out
it is the one with the highest population of Mormons.
Utah Just Got Ranked the Happiest State in
America—Here's Why
“A recent study by WalletHub set out to find which state has the
happiest people, and Utah took the cake, ranking nearly two points above the
nearest contender, Minnesota.
In order
to discover the happiest state, researchers based their conclusions on 28
metrics, measuring everything from emotional and physical health to income and
volunteering. In their research,
WalletHub discovered that Utah is doing well in quite a few areas:
- Utah ranked No. 1 for highest
volunteerism rate (45.2%)
- Utah ranked the lowest in heart
attacks rates (2.7%)
- Utah ranked No. 1 in lowest number
of work hours
- Utah ranked the lowest in divorce
rates (15.97%)
- Utah ranked as the fifth-lowest
state in obesity rates
- Utah ranked as the third highest
state in sports participation rates
Overall,
Utah ranked No. 1 for having the best work environments, No. 2 for having the
best community and environment, and No. 4 for having the best emotional and
physical well-being.
While Utah
is made up of a diverse mix of religions, the influence of many LDS values can
be seen in the categories the researchers chose to measure as well as the areas
Utah performed the best in.
For
instance, the Word of Wisdom encourages Saints to remain active, healthy, and
well-balanced, not to mention organized Church sports help members to fulfil
those goals. Mormons also place family as a high priority, even over work. In
addition, the Church places a large focus on serving others,
spending $40 million on welfare and other Church-sponsored humanitarian projects for more
than 30 years and volunteering over 25 million hours of service in 2015 alone.
Though
this study focuses on happiness based on state, it's easy to see how gospel
principles lead to a life of greater happiness if we choose to follow them.”
By Danielle
B. Wagner | Sep. 16, 2016 http://www.ldsliving.com/Utah-Just-Got-Ranked-the-Happiest-State-in-America-Here-s-Why/s/83222
Of course, Danielle’s article and the research it
references is a cipher in the snow. It
doesn’t mean squat in the bigger scheme of things, but it may be an indicator
of what I have often felt, that Mormonism is a key, perhaps a really big one,
to finding the holy grail of true joy and happiness. And if it is, I think it is likely to be
because the Church effectively teaches its members to have Christ-like
unconditional love.
IS MORMONISM A CULT?
IS MORMONISM A CULT?
Well, that depends on your
perspective. To some outside the Church,
looking in, the cult word comes quite easily to their lips. They look at the Church and see some of the
classic traits: a charismatic leader in the figures of Joseph Smith and Brigham
Young; brainwashing and indoctrination; authoritarian mind control; limitation
of information or deception etc.
To those within the Church the
cult word makes heckles rise. There is
no way we could be in a cult. That could not happen to us. Besides, the Church is
amazing; it does so much good. It is so not a cult.
I absolutely don’t think the
Church is a cult, but the problem is, sometimes I think it looks a bit like one:
prophets in the past have advocated the practice of, and used the word,
‘indoctrination’ in relation to teaching the youth’; the daily early morning
seminary programmes can be misinterpreted; a heavy dependency on what ‘The
Brethren’ say; the fact that all the men dress exactly alike; in testimony
meetings it sometimes sounds as though everyone is reading off the same
tele-prompter; every youth feels they ‘must’ serve a mission; missionaries can
sometimes come across as robotic and wooden.
Additionally, when Church leaders say things like:
“Some things
that are true are not very useful.”
Elder Boyd K Packer https://si.lds.org/bc/seminary/content/library/talks/ces-symposium-addresses/the-mantle-is-far-far-greater-than-the-intellect_eng.pdf
And…
“I know that
the history of the church is not to seek apologies or to give them.”
(The Salt
Lake Tribune) LDS Apostle Dallin H. Oaks makes a public statement for religious
freedom and nondiscrimination in Salt Lake City Tuesday Jan. 27, 2015.
These pronouncements create the
impression of control and arrogance and play into the hands of those looking
for reasons to apply the cult label at Mormonism’s door.
For more on this subject from an
active Mormon’s perspective go to:
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
I have been most grateful for the fascinating journey I have made into
some of the more arcane and obscure elements of the history of the Church. The devil is of course in the detail, and
detail and accuracy are ever important in unpicking what actually
happened.
My journey has taken me through the gamut of emotions from anger, resentment and hurt as a lack of transparancy and honesty has dented my trust, through to a calmer, more peaceful, and better informed understanding of how 'things really are'. And for me, as part of this transition, I too, like Hugh Nibley, have conciously separated in my mind Church from Gospel. “I have written too much and said too little. This is no religious philosophy at all. It is a situation in which I find myself: I am stuck with the gospel. I know perfectly well that it is true; there may be things about the Church that I find perfectly appalling—but that has nothing to do with it. I know the gospel is true.”
Hugh Nibley, “Dear Sterling,” in Eloquent Witness, 146–47.>
Ultimately, as with yours, my faith, my belief, the epistemology of me, what I believe, what I know, is made up of many strands. It is the combination of all of these interwoven strands that defines the nature and strength of the rope of my belief. [Epistemology is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. How we know things.]
Dan Ellsworth's 8 SEATS AT THE TABLE OF EPISTEMOLOGY:
Logic - has limitations if your assumptions are wrong, but can be helpful
Witness testimony - not just contemporary witnesses of the event, those that saw and handled, but also church leaders and members
Intuition - sometimes stuff you know, snap judgments can be correct, sometimes they’re not
Ecclesiastical authorities - teach about gospel living, policies etc.
Personal revelation - critical, top seat at the table, not always reliable but can be if you follow the rules; if you deny that seat at the table you deny personal knowledge
Beauty – you experience something beautiful and then you had a realisation
Scholarship - you consult authorities when you or others don’t have expertise
Experience - things that you have experienced yourself shape what you know
Mormon History
I don’t know about you but I like my history to be real. I like it to be ‘Goldilocks’ history. Not too sanitised and not too overblown. I want it just right. Just as it is; as it really is. I worry that
the Mormon history I learnt as a new member of the Church back in the 1970s is
not as ‘real’ as it could be, and I don’t like that. I must be able to trust
what I am told. I believe the Church is obligated to present itself
authentically.
I like Todd Compton’s comments in responding to criticisms he
received from Jerald and Sandra Tanner, long-term opponents of Mormonism
regarded by some as ‘Career Apostates’, who reviewed Todd Compton’s book ‘In
Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith’…
“While the Tanners constantly accuse the LDS church of dishonesty,
coverups, and hypocrisy, they themselves may be open to some of the same
charges. I dislike Mormon history that systematically censors out anything
problematic, tragic, or reflecting human fallibility (i.e., real humanity) in
church members or culture. This kind of history is, to me, dishonest, and the
opposite of "faith-promoting." (Authentic faith is never dependent on
dishonesty or covering up the balanced truth.) Furthermore, this kind of
history is often insipid and sentimental.
But on the other hand, I also dislike Mormon history that
systematically censors out anything "positive." Mormon history is filled
with wonderful people who have performed authentically Christ like actions.
There are many stories of heroism and sacrifice. While some church leaders have
been authoritarian and controlling, others have been warm and inclusive. Anyone
who continually hammers on only the negative is guilty of censorship and cover-up,
just as is the person who censors out the negative. Both write unrealistic and
unbelievable history. Furthermore, the person who includes only the negative
can be guilty of sensationalism and the low moral atmosphere of yellow
journalism. I sympathize with the Tanners in wanting to redress an
oversimplified "positive" history, but their oversimplified
"negative" history is just as bad.
In my view, the most honest Mormon history is a history that attempts
to have balance that is not afraid of negative or positive. When
"negative" is found, balanced history will try to understand it, put
it into historical and psychological context, instead of oversimplifying and
sensationalizing it. On the other hand, positive events should not be turned
into hagiography (one should not lose sight of the limited human dimensions of
even very good people). Human beings, human social groups, and historical
events are, of course, very complex. I remember my first reading of the
Tanner's Shadow and Reality -- you come away from it believing that
there has been no good Mormon at any time in all of Mormon history. The true
story, of course, is that there are good Mormons, bad Mormons, and everything
in between. The Tanners, in their thirst for negative judgment, radically
oversimplify human history.”
Todd Compton, www.toddmcompton.com. Todd Merlin Compton (born 1952) is an American historian in the
fields of Mormon history and Classics. Compton is an expert on the plural wives of the LDS Church
founder, Joseph Smith.
Shaken but Not Stirred
I do not claim that I have looked into every single criticism that
has ever been levelled at the Church. Nevertheless,
having examined the 185 linked-to in this document, a substantial amount, I
find myself, to misquote James Bond, shaken but not stirred.
Over the past two years of a more intense examination, I have now
learnt more about the Church I joined in 1972 and some of it has shaken me up
and slapped me in the face. And it
wasn’t that I was not a student of the Gospel.
I was and I am. I was never a
scholar as such, but I have read widely on Church history over the years and I
think that there was a bit of a cover up going on.
For example, in all the reading I did I was not exposed to or taught
about Joseph’s prominent role in initiating polygamy and polyandry. In hindsight it now seems that the Church was
content to submerge that; they were happy that the idea that Brigham Young was seen
as the main protagonist was the idea that was conveyed to church members. The
Joseph Smith of the missionary discussions has been sanitised to create the
most positive image possible. I prefer
Richard Bushman’s version, warts and all, a rough stone rolling.
Now, it is quite possible that I could be justly accused of naivety
or even denseness because I didn’t know the full story about Joseph. Certainly the stalwart volunteers at Fair
Mormon would criticise me for not being a better student and digging deeper to
find the snippets on Joseph’s polygamy/polyandry that made it into the Ensign
across the decades. But should I really have needed to do that?
I was a little shaken to discover that the priesthood ban did not
actually come as a revelation from God but because of a combination of
Brigham’s burgeoning racist views and the growing need he felt to distance the
Church from its label as non-white. On
the one hand the priesthood ban was a disgraceful sign of its times and on the
other somewhat understandable as the early Church desperately struggled for its
own whiteness. All early members of the
Church endured ethnic slurs on non-whiteness as they fought, incredibly, to be
recognised as white, even though they were white, particularly with so many of
them coming from Great Britain and Europe.
[see ‘Religion
of a Different Color – Race and the Mormon Struggle for Whiteness’ by Paul
Reeve, for an excellent treatment of this little known part of Mormon history.]
I was shaken by the leaked policy change in November 2015
with regard to the children living in the home of a parent in a same sex
relationship not being able to be baptised or receive other ordinances until
they are 18 and only then if they disavow their parent’s conduct and leave the
home. It felt so wrong. Was the tender, merciful, loving hand of God in
that policy? Particularly, when this
policy is juxtaposed against the Church’s excellent media presentations they
show at Christmas and Easter times. In
the Church's wonderful 2015 Easter video 'Because He Lives' the inclusive
message rings out inviting 'all' to come unto Him -- it says 'all' on screen --
then it says 'no exceptions', then it says 'no lost causes'. I love the idea
that the Church is a big tent but what about these children – I thought there
were ‘no exceptions’, ‘no lost causes’!
Carol Lynn Pearson is an author and poet, and on the 14th
August, 2014, Sister Pearson posted the following on her Facebook page:
"GREAT MESSAGE ON WOMEN SUPPORTING ONE ANOTHER FROM A RELIEF
SOCIETY PRESIDENT IN OREM, UTAH. I received from a friend an inspiring
statement made by Sue Bergin, who has just been called as Relief Society
President in her ward in Orem. I contacted Sue and received permission to share
what she said at the end of her first lesson. Sue further wrote to me: “I said
this in the context of women supporting one another as we try to receive Christ
in our lives and let Him heal us. We talked about building a ward Relief
Society that is a ‘No Judgment Zone’ and a ‘Safe Zone.’"
I love the inclusivity that oozes out of this Relief
Society President’s heart – the big tent, we welcome all approach.
And, when the aforementioned November 2015 policy was reversed a few years later and the reversal proclaimed a revelation, I felt very uncomfortable about that. Obviously pleased for the u-turn, but uncomfortable with its association to God's revelation. Such associations, in my view, suggest a changeability and transience entirely out of character with the divine nature of God.
So yes, a little shaken, but not stirred. None of the criticisms I’ve seen persuade me
that Mormonism is not true. It persuades
me that Church leaders have not always acted wisely and they have made mistakes
and will no doubt continue to do so. If
you want your prophets and apostles to be perfect then I can understand why you
might want to jump ship. However, they
are not, you are not and I am not, and I for one am happy to celebrate their
flaws and mine and yours, and marvel that God can still work through them
and us.
It is arrogant of me to presume to know why some people have left the Church or to say that they are wrong or premature in doing so. I understand that they feel hurt, let down and deceived by the Church. All I can say is what I think and believe having examined the issues. Whilst I believe that some Church leaders have let us and themselves down by covering up inconvenient and unfortunate truths and by not being more open and transparent I do not regard this as institutional deception. My advice is don't jump ship. I have tried to set out in this document why I still believe and why I still
belong and why I think no one should jump and those that have should re-enlist
and come back on-board.
I believe the Book of Mormon is indeed the word of God; flawed
certainly, but not the work of men but of God through men. Not written or created by Joseph Smith but
translated by Joseph by the power of God.
Yes, translated partly using two seer stones and then finished using one
in a hat. It is a remarkable book and
for me there is simply too much of the Semitic old world going on within its
pages for it to have been the product of a nineteenth century semi-literate
farm boy.
I believe Joseph Smith was like every Prophet there ever was, flawed,
prone to mistakes but just humble enough to actually be an instrument in the
hands of God. I believe he was a prophet
of God, the Prophet of the Restoration.
I even believe, would you believe, that even when he was lying to the
people in Nauvoo telling them he was not a polygamist, even then, that he was
acting as a Prophet of God and was operating, as he claimed, under a divine
code of silence. Of course critics will
laugh at that and say that is exactly what a conman would say he was doing;
that’s how the con works. And I get that. Nevertheless, I believe Joseph when he said
he had to deny it; we don’t have the full picture and each of us has to make a
judgment as best we can from the all the evidence available. However, I think he had been shown something
of the extraordinary eternal interconnectedness of families and was working in
some way to bring that about, and was doing so under divine imperatives.
I cannot prove any of that and certainly the polygamy period – the
way Emma was deceived, Joseph’s repeated denials and how his actions seemed to
be in direct contravention of the procedures set out in the revelation, now
D&C 132, which he himself had received – constitutes one of the most
challenging trials of any member’s faith and testimony. I understand that some find his conduct
inexcusable and do not see the hand of God in it. I struggle a bit to see it myself but am
prepared to give Joseph the same benefit of the doubt that I hope God will give
me.
I am unpersuaded by the arguments put forward by post Mormons that
spiritual experiences are not what the Church, and those who have them, claim
them to be. I wish I had the words to
describe them better and to explain more scientifically how they are happening and also explain to everyone's satisfaction how those in other faiths describe having similar experiences;
nevertheless I am simply unable to jettison them, discount them or deny
them. For me they are starkly dissimilar
to everyday emotional occurrences, they remain independent and other worldly.
However, whether they are distinct from those of other faiths is impossible to say. For me though, this really is the operation of the
Holy Ghost as Heavenly Father speaks directly to His children.
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this piece. You deserve a medal. I hope it is of some help. Let me know what you think in the comments.
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