Major changes in the book of mormon

While early critics noticed changes between various editions of the book of mormon, the first book to focus strictly upon those changes was lamoni calls 1898, 2000 changes in the book of mormon. However, mormons esteem the book of mormon to be the pinnacle of gods holy. The book of mormon is a musical comedy with music, lyrics, and book by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone. Behold, the virgin which thou seest is the mother of god after the manner of the. Mormon church, lds, changes media name to the church of. Introductory pages of the book of mormon book of mormon. Major changes to the lds general handbook of instructions 2020 edition. Eventually they changed their name to the people of ammon, or ammonites. Aug 14, 2010 major changes in the format of the text included division of the long chapters in the original text, a true versification system which has been followed in all subsequent lds editions, and footnotes mostly scriptural references. Holland brigham young university provo follow this and additional works at. Although this section is only partially complete, it will eventually show every change made to the book of mormon since it was first published in 1830. Changes in the book of mormon the interpreter foundation. Changes to latterday scripture lds leaders have made. Since the 1837 version, the church has published five additional major editions of the book of mormon, all of which included slight changes to improve the clarity of the text.

Before many copies of the book could be printed, the printing press and most of the printed copies were destroyed by a mob in missouri. The first printed edition compared to the manuscripts and to the subsequent major lds english printed editions and that there was to be. It was translated and produced by joseph smith who founded the church in 1830. In order to understand the major claims of the book of mormon, we need to understand some of the background and experiences of the four major writers associated with this book.

Its major writersnephi, jacob, mormon, moroniand its translator, joseph smith, were all eyewitnesses of the lord. The book of mormon itself suffers the same fate when it comes to its own historical support. It was carried out in a complex mixture of religious ritual and ideology. The work of comparing the page 51 books was a long, tedious job for a working man. An original first edition book of mormon has been photographed and is available for viewing at. Major changes between 1920 and 1981 editions of the book of mormon reference 1920 edition 1981 edition 1 nephi 3. Significant changes to the endowment have occurred as recently as 1990. If it came from god, why wasnt it done right the first time. The book of mormon has quite a few lessons on gratitude and even feasting. A book of mistakes, error, and fraud by jon gary williams introduction the mormon church promotes the book of mormon as an inspired writing. The original text betrays its new england origin in many ways, from inconsistent spelling to incorrect use of tenses and number, as well as. Mormon, the compiler and abridger of the book of mormon, was himself a. Book of mormon, history of warfare in the encyclopedia. The 1830 book of mormon summary of changes this gives an intriguing explanation of the origin of the words cumorah and moroni.

By far the majority of changes between the 1830 and subsequent versions of the book of mormon are spelling or grammar corrections. Significant changes in the book of mormon this also summarizes many of the major changes in meaning made to the book of mormon, and points out some of the errors which still remain in the book. Then i would like to turn to the issue of changes in. However, after a fair and candid examination of the evidence, many thousands of honest mormons have discovered that this claim simply is not true. All of those items were added by the publisher, thus the changes in chapterization or punctuation cannot be ascribed to a faulty translation process. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Book of mormon editions 18301981 the encyclopedia of. Book of mormontextual changeswhy were these changes made. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon. Original 1830 book of mormon page numbers with corresponding 1981 verses. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. Changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes.

Smith claimed that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and martin harris said that the words which appeared on the seer stone would not disappear until they were correctly written. On the eve of a climatic battle with the lamanites, mormon turns over the core of what will become known as the book of mormon, transcribed on gold plates, to his son moroni. Both the old testament and the new testament have undergone changes over. There is no mention of temple endowments in ancient scripture resembling what is done today in the mormon church. I went from being absolutely believing to nonbelieving overnight. An analysis of selected changes in major editions of the book. Hales reminds us that the tanners and others have been deceptive in their treatment of the minor changes and corrections that have been. The bible the bible was originally written languages of the people composing it.

Understanding the process of publishing the book of mormon. Understanding the nature of the thousands of small changes in the book of mormon may be helpful and interesting. The book of mormon is a religious record, and for the people of the book of mormon, as in nearly all ancient cultures, warfare was fundamentally sacral. None of this meant that joseph smith was infallible or even that the book of mormon was infallible. The methodology employed by call was unsophisticated. Therefore, although consideration has been given to every change, this study has been limited to selected changes, defined as major modifications in format and the addition, deletion, or change of words within the text which could alter the meaning of the passage. Godhead changes were made to the book of mormon after joseph smith changed his doctrine from monotheism to polytheism. Jan 04, 2016 critics of the book of mormon have assailed the book s authenticity on the grounds that it has undergone many changes since its 1830 publication. The book of mormon explains that death is not simply the transition from mortality to the eternal heavenhell. While there have been some changes from the first edition of the book of mormon, most of the edits were corrections to spelling and other single word changes. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of errors. A variety of other changes have been made that also alter the meaning of the text. Enrique serpa bustamante, a member from lima, peru, thinks of the book of mormon as letters from a loving parent. Jerald and sandra tanner of the utah lighthouse ministry have identified nearly 4,000 changes when comparing the original 1830 edition to the 1964 edition.

Doctrinal changes godhead changes were made to the book of mormon after joseph smith changed his doctrine from monotheism to. The authenticity of the book of mormon is not affected by the modifications that have been made to its text because the vast majority of those modifications are minor corrections in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Book of mormontextual changeswhy were these changes made fair. The endowment has undergone major changes to become more friendly to women couples can now get married in the temple immediately after a civil wedding ceremony, without the previous. From chronology found in the book of mormon, it appears that king benjamin should have been dead by this time. Book of mormon alterations firsthand descriptions of the book of mormon translation process suggest that textual accuracy, as a single character would purportedly appear to smith who would recite it to a scribe and confirm before proceeding. In this study we will show that there have been at least 3,9 changes made in the book of mormon from the time it was first published in 1830. Although there have been thousands of changes made in the book of mormon, the changes made in some of the other mormon books are of a more serious nature. The endowment has even changed repeatedly in modern times. See natural born seer, 3868 for an extensive list of book of mormon changes. It goes into amazingly specific detail describing the civilizations erected by the nephites. The book of mormon has no claim to validity due to its lack of incorporation into the biblical cannon.

Except for the few pages in the books of enos, jarom, and omni, all the remainder of the book of mormon comes to us from the literary efforts of four persons. But the most common changes have not been in spelling, but in grammar. Interestingly, the spelling problems in the book of mormon paralleled earlier kinds of spelling changes in the english bible. The book of mormon was translated and published in 1830. There are over 100,000 insignificant changes that have been made to the book of mormon. After thousands of years, all were destroyed except the lamanites, and they are the principal ancestors of the american indians. For example, the endowment given in the kirtland temple lacked the masonic elements later added at the nauvoo temple. We can offer a broken heart and a contrite spirit in gratitude gratitude for god in times of great trial is a major theme of the book of mormon. The few significant modifications were made by the prophet joseph smith to clarify the meaning of the text, not to change it. An analysis of selected changes in major editions of the book of mormon 18301920 jeffrey r. Even more important, if he read their book, hed know that theyre not kidding about there being 39 changes in the allegedly godinspired book by author joe. The first printed edition compared to the manuscripts and to the subsequent major lds english printed editions.

Joseph smiths inspired revisions to the king james. How can a book of such divine origin and the most correct of any book on earth, get its people so confused. My introduction to the book of mormon or the book of mormon evidences page could also be consulted. Three thanksgiving lessons from the book of mormon. Changing world, the book of mormon chapter 5 changing world, the witnesses. Royal skousen has looked carefully at the transmission history of the book of mormon and has highlighted many interesting things about the text that inspire confidence in its reliability and josephs ability as a translator. As stated earlier, the mormon church has made many changes to the book of mormon in order to correct josephs poor grammar and spelling.

Doctrinal changes a selection of doctrinal changes in the book of mormon. Changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes the. Before anybody says it was ones persons opinion its something that the church has been teaching for decades. In my computerized collation of the two manuscripts and 20 significant editions of. It took smith less than 3 months to translate the writings and publish it into a 588 volume. Twelve beliefs the mormon church might not want you to know. For example, there have been 891 changes of which to who, 177 changes of exceeding.

Dingers significant textual changes in the book of mormon. According to the book of mormon, the antinephilehies. For example, consider the word sins, which had been spelled synnes and became sinnes in the 1611 king james version. Critics assert that some of these changes were systematic attempts to hide the book s flaws. The substantive changes in the history of the text are discussed in volume 4 of the critical text, analysis of textual variants of the book of mormon, published from 2004 to 2009 in six parts by the foundation for ancient research and mormon studies, now a part of the neal a. The book of mormon and the origin of native americans from a. Thanks for exploring this supersummary plot summary of the book of mormon by transl. They research corrections brought to their attention and then make recommendations. Smith claimed to have received a revelation from god who told him the truth about jesus, the americas, and god. Mar 14, 2018 god is increasing in knowledge, joseph smith, journal of discourses, vol. In fact, the book itself apologizes for the deficiencies of the people writing it. Major changes between the 1920 and 1981 editions of the book of mormon. The churchs scripture committee is responsible for overseeing the editing process.

One work in progress on the site is a new study edition of the book of mormon, based on the first printed edition of 1830, with textual notes. The book of mormon describes a vast precolumbian culture that supposedly existed for centuries in north and south america. On july 11, 20, i was surprised to get an email from a community of christ colleague informing me that the smithpettit foundation was publishing john s. I dont know for sure, and ill tell you why its hard to count them. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421.

Hales, changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes, interpreter. The book of mormon is not a volume about the history and origins of all american indians. A journal of latterday saint faith and scholarship 28 2018. Mormon church, lds, changes media name to the church of jesus. Stake high councilmen are no longer required at stakelevel disciplinary membership councils, and are now optional. Facts the mormon church doesnt want you to know 4mormon. The original text betrays its new england origin in many ways, from inconsistent spelling to incorrect use of tenses and number, as well as incorrect usage of jacobean english. Our heavenly father wrote letters through the prophets, giving counsel, comfort, and guidance for our good and blessing us at all times. The challenge of the book of mormon religious studies center. There also have been many important changes in the pearl of great price.

Jul 30, 2019 like the bible, the book of mormon is a collection of sacred writings by ancient prophets, except these prophets lived upon the american continent. The most significant type of grammatical change in the book of mormon has been to remove the early modern english that is characteristic of. Im first going to describe the critical text project, some of its major findings. In comparison most scholars agree that there are about 24,000 changes between 1611 version and the 1769 version of the kjv bible. In reality, though, the kind of stylistic accuracy achieved by these changes has little to do with what joseph meant when he called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth. The critical issue is not the number of changes that have been made to the text, but the nature of the changes. Jun 24, 2015 a detailed analysis of every change that has been made in the book of mormon since its initial publication in 1830 would be neither feasible nor rewarding as a masters thesis. Book of mormon mormonism, the mormon church, beliefs. You cannot be a college graduate, in fact, you can have only three years of schooling. Oct 25, 2016 we recently completed a major reorganization of the book of mormon part of our website, adding a lot of brandnew content and organizing the materials into six major categories.

Apostasy is no longer included in the list of behaviors requiring a disciplinary membership council. The doctrine and covenants was first published in 1835 as a later version of the book of commandments, which had been partially printed in 1833. In keeping with the major claim of the book of mormon that it is a witness of the divinity of jesus christ, it is entirely appropriate that a subtitle has now been added to the book. Major changes between 1920 and 1981 editions of the book of. Mar 17, 20 the church of jesus christ of latterday saints released this week the most significant changes to its scripture since 1981. Textual changes to the book of mormon in 1837 and 1840 by stan larson, sunstone, fall 1976, pp. However, that has not stopped the mormon church from trying to appear christian by changing their media names. Maxwell institute for religious scholarship at brigham young university. What are some major differences between the 1830 book of. Mormon leaders delete some of the most sacred parts of ceremony. I was living in australia when i heard of the decision by the brethren to include the subtitle. A careful reading of the text clearly indicates that the people described in the book of mormon were limited in the recording of their history to events that had religious relevance and that occurred in relatively close proximity to the keepers of the annals.

Part of the history commons, mormon studies commons, and the religious thought, theology and philosophy of religion commons. A selection of doctrinal changes in the book of mormon. From the 1830 book of mormon behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of god, after the manner of the flesh behold the lamb of god, even the eternal father the lamb of god. The book of mormon drills the point home that the fall of mankind was an essential part of gods plan. The following graphic is a list of major changes in the book of mormon and was compiled by scott faulring and printed in the seventh east press, october 21, 1981, provo, utah. The origins, authenticity, and historicity of the book of mormon have been subject to considerable criticism from scholars and skeptics since it was first published in 1830. You must write a book with 239 chapters, 54 of them about wars, 21 about history, 55 about prophecy, 71 about doctrine, 17 about missionaries, and 21 about the mission of jesus. Joseph smiths dictated text with hundreds of corrections from royal skousens study of the original and printers manuscripts. What follows are examples of some of the most significant revisions made to the book of mormon, the doctrine and covenants, and the pearl of. Yet, later edits of the book of mormon include numerous wording changes. First staged in 2011, the play is a satirical examination of the beliefs and practices of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. An analysis of selected changes in major editions of the. Book of mormon, history of warfare in the encyclopedia of.

God commanded these prophets to keep a record of their teachings, prophecies, missionary labors, and wars so that we could know concerning the doings of the lord in other lands, among people of old 1 nephi 19. A modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, supersummary offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Twelve beliefs the mormon church might not want you to. If one counts every difference in every punctuation mark in every edition of the book of mormon, the result is well over 100,000 changes. The olive leaf foundation 2017 a new approach to studying the book of mormon. But the miracle of its existence remains the keystone of our religion even today. A valuable new analysis of the many types of changes in the text of the book of mormon is brian c. The mormon story is that the nephite military commander and prophet moroni buried a history of his people, written on gold plates, in the hill cumorah in ad 421. Some of the revelations that appear in the doctrine and covenants have had hundreds of words added to them. Soon after the book of mormon was published in 1830, the prophet and his followers organized the church of christ, an ecclesiastical institution that differed from all other christian churches at. A biblical scholar looks at the book of mormon mormons in.

Mormon, the compiler and abridger of the book of mormon, was himself a military commander. This earlier book contained 65 early revelations to church leaders, including joseph smith and oliver cowdery. Oct 05, 2012 joseph smith translated the book of mormon from gold plates. An account written by the hand of mormon, upon plates taken from the plates of nephi is a sacred text of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds. The book of mormon and the origin of native americans from. They made a covenant that they would not participate in war, and buried their weapons. The nature of the changes in the book of mormon the book of mormon was dictated and transcribed without any chapter breaks, paragraph breaks, sentence breaks, or punctuation. Bishops must get approval from stake presidents to hold a disciplinary membership council. What important mormon doctrines are taught in the book of. The book of mormon is indeed a gift intended to bring us, gods children, to a knowledge of the true gospel of jesus christ.