For example, there have been 891 changes of which to who, 177 changes of exceeding. The original text betrays its new england origin in many ways, from. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to god by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book. Herewith is a copy of my recent 1975 paper on book of mormon matters. A valuable new analysis of the many types of changes in the text of the book of mormon is brian c. How many changed has the book of mormon been changed. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations. As stated earlier, the mormon church has made many changes to the book of mormon in order to correct josephs poor grammar and spelling. While the bible is written by and about the people in the land of israel and surrounding areas and takes place from the creation of the world until shortly after the death of jesus christ. The book of mormon is the word of god, like the bible. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of the book of mormon.
Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Changes in the book of mormon exposed by earl erskine isthechurchtrue. Tom ragen turn it off from the book of mormon village. White and delightsome changed to pure and delightsome. Another change affirms the teaching that the book of mormon alone contains the fullness of the gospel. Many mormon church members, including church leaders, stumbled across the changes them selves, and noticed the doctrinal significance. Jun 10, 2012 the book of mormon original broadway cast recording licensed to youtube by. The antiquity of the bible, unlike the book of mormon or the book of abraham, is beyond dispute. On the title page of the book of mormon are these words. 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 most recent history of the book of mormon critical. Changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes. Few mormons are aware of the thousands of word changes and nature of the changes that have been made in the book of mormon. Mormonism must stand or fall on the story of joseph smith. In recent years, many lds scholars have come to share butlers belief in what is known as the limited geography theory.
Few mormons are aware of the thousands of word changes and nature of the changes that have been made in the book of mormon, doctrine and covenants, and the pearl of great price since the first editions. The text has also undergone many significant revisions, which critics see as a rebuttal of its divine origins. Former lds bishop earl erskine talks about the changes he found in the book of mormon on polygamy. Im first going to describe the critical text project, some of its major findings. Some mormons claim that the witnesses of the book of mormon made up the story about it being given word for word, but david whitmer said it was joseph smith himself who taught that the book of mormon was dictated wordforword 3,9 changes in the book of mormon, p. The book of mormon videos youtube channel is a collection of videos based on accounts from the book of mormon. In fact, many of the changes, including the need to add punctuation and chapter breaks, reflect the semitic origins of the book of mormon. Smith, they will say, translated the book of mormon from golden plates he dug up. Latinautor warner chappell, amra, latinautor umpg, latinautor, walt disney. Look at the very small sample of the changes in the book of mormon. Later versions, where the words, the son of were inserted before titles of god, clearly changed the meaning of the text. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of the book of mormon from the university of utah library.
Thus the lds contends that the book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. Hales reminds us that the tanners and others have been deceptive in their treatment of the minor changes. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. Alterable decrees the evolving doctrines of the church necessitated. Inclusion within the bmc archive does not imply endorsement. Racism the church made changes to the book of mormon to soften its racism.
Jun 11, 2009 a recent word change to the introduction of the book of mormon has once again brought attention to the question regarding the historical reliability of one of mormonisms most sacred texts. The book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. The approach will be to discuss the type of change. Top 40 inspirational book of mormon scriptures the lifey app. Yesterday while reading some interesting news stories on byus online newspaper, i came across an article they posted a few years back about changes made to the introduction in the book of mormon. Prior to 1874, the rlds used an edition of the book of mormon published by james o. Changes in the lds scriptures 20 at the end of february, 20, the deseret news featured an amazing article. Book of mormon changes since 1830 book of mormon facts. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon.
A oneword change in the introduction to a 2006 edition of the book of mormon has reignited discussion among some latterday saints about the book s historicity, geography and the descendants of those. Jul 01, 2011 as stated earlier, the mormon church has made many changes to the book of mormon in order to correct josephs poor grammar and spelling. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates. The book of mormon records that the nephites constructed houses of cement, 34 as well as temples, synagogues and sanctuaries 35 throughout their territories. The only exceptions listed are for the book of mormon, the churchs sacred text, and historical names like the mormon trail, a governmentrecognized path that members of the church.
To understand why some words were altered, reference will be made to the original and the printers manuscripts. It carried a small story on a change to a single word in the introduction of the book of mormon in the recent doubleday edition. Mormon is mortally wounded in the battle at a place called cumorah, and the nephites are nearly obliterated, but moroni survives another 36 years and adds material to the book of mormon before. What could cause such a miraculous change in eric you might ask. The book of mormon makes its appearance in world history in 18291830, when joseph smith dictated its contents and published it. Both books contain gods guidance as revealed to prophets, as well as religious histories of different civilizations. He said that it is the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion. Book of mormon musical opening number hello youtube.
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. Finally, the mormon church leaders became so embarrassed about the grammar that they decided to abandon the idea that god gave joseph smith the english that is found in the book of mormon. Debate renewed with change in book of mormon introduction. The most significant kind of grammatical change though, in the book of mormon text, has been to remove king james version language. The earliest text, the definitive scholarly edition of the book of mormon.
Contains a 16page introduction by jerald and sandra tanner which shows that the changes. The earliest text, the definitive scholarly edition of the book of mormon, published in 2009 by yale university press. By far the majority of changes between the 1830 and subsequent versions of the book of mormon are spelling or grammar corrections. At the conclusion of the original article, i provide some specific numbers for the different types of changes in the history of the book of mormon text, including the number of changes introduced in the book of mormon. People reading the first edition of the book of mormon are led to believe that jesus christ is the eternal father and the everlasting god. The book of mormon, the hit musical by matt stone and trey parker, creators of south park and bobby lopez avenue q, frozen. A popular charge of antimormons is that the church is guilty of fraud because of changes in the book of mormon, or that the book of mormon cant be true and divine because corrections have been made. Featuring interviews with scholars and historians, this documentary tells the story of the coming forth of this unusual book of scripture and how it is affecting people todayeven some people you might not expect. Joseph fielding smith, the tenth president of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, proclaimed. The arguments are rather weak but need to be dealt with thats the purpose of this page. Dingers book begins with a foreword by stan larson that provides some historical background to larsons own earlier work on the book of mormon text, plus a list of significant textual changes that come, for the most part, from the current book of mormon critical text project. When attempting to reconcile things, one popular defender of the book of mormon s antiquity merely compounds the problem by suggesting. Certainly the introduction of the current book of mormon is not there by mistake or accident.
Understanding the nature of the thousands of small changes in the book of mormon may be helpful and interesting. Yet, with all of the digs and research ferguson and his team undertook, they failed to find one artifact to prove that book of mormon nephite cities, villages, or territories ever existed. The book of mormon s most spectacular recorded event was a postresurrection appearance of jesus christ himself among the nephite people 3 nephi 11. I opened up my gospel library and i had to redownload the book of mormon. Although the fact of the changes cannot be questioned, the reason for them and their significance as asserted by the tanners are certainly questionable. Changes to latterday scripture lds leaders have made. Specifically, the book of mormon was prepared for our. The book of mormon, the first broadway musical by matt stone and trey parker the creators of south park. Smith is full of bluff and bluster, and is a fraud. Yet, many changes in the text of the book of mormon. The book of mormon online lottery is currently suspended due to the ongoing covid19 situation and uk government advice. In fact when the tanners state that joseph smith tried to change the book of mormon. According to the book of mormon, jesus christ appeared and preached to the nephites in the americas after his crucifixion.
If the book of mormon and the book of abraham are not true. Changes to the book of mormon according to the mormon churchs teaching manual, gospel principles, page 53, joseph smith translated the book of mormon into english through the gift and power of god. New approaches to the book of mormon by stan larsen. As well, many modern readers dont quite know what to do with a book that is more than 500 pages long but has only six named women sariah, abish and isabel in the book of mormon s own.
Many also are unaware of some rather surprising new discoveries supporting the book of mormon. A new english edition of the book of mormon is not scheduled to be printed at present. Chapter headings and footnotes are recent additions not found in the 1830. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the son god.
Claims in recent years by lds anthropologist thomas murphy and former lds molecular biologist simon southerton regarding the lack of a. Book of mormon word change christian research institute. For example, consider the word sins, which had been spelled synnes and became sinnes in the 1611 king james version. A photo reprint of the original 1830 edition of the book of mormon with all the changes marked compared to a 1964 edition. Interestingly, in addition to the changes in the actual text of the book of mormon, there are changes that have taken place in the introductory material as well. Since then i have published updated versions of the first half of that original presentation. Benjamin was changed to mosiah in later editions of the book of mormon. Changes to the book of mormon there are 39 changes that have been made to the book of mormon, some of which are significant doctrinal changes.
I witnessed a miracle this last march as i saw a boy whom we will call eric, age 15, change from a depressed, low selfesteemed, bitter teenager into a happy, confident, grateful, and testimonyfilled young man. Nov 08, 2007 one word can speak volumes says this mornings salt lake tribune. Book of mormon editions 18301981 the encyclopedia of. Royal skousen, a professor of linguistics at byu and a recognized expert of the textual history of the book of mormon, has identified 5,280 variations in all editions of the book of mormon. Dec 18, 2014 village performing arts centre full time 2014 perform turn it off from the book of mormon. Since its first publication in 1830, the book of moron has undergone thousands of changes.
Featuring interviews with scholars and historians, this documentary tells the story of the coming forth of this unusual book of scripture and how it is affecting people todayeven some people you might not. Many latterday saints have not had access to sources which communicate how recent research has changed our understanding of the book of mormon as an ancient document. Items do not represent the official views of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints or of book of mormon central. Joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to god by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book, history of the church, vol. Reasons for textual changes made to the book of mormon over the years after it was first published. Help about wikipedia community portal recent changes contact page. Joseph smith translated the book of mormon into english through the gift. Today, mormons use the book of mormon in much the same way that christians use and study the bible. If youre anything like me, even though you know how the book of mormon stories turn out, you probably felt a little bit like season 2 of the book of mormon videos ended with a cliffhanger as you wondered. This should not have been necessary, however, given the manner in which joseph is supposed to have produced this book.
The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which adherents. What now seems bad grammar was once entirely acceptable english editing out the bad grammar in the book of mormon, dan peterson. Items in the bmc archive are made publicly available for noncommercial, private use. The most prominent is changing which to who, our father which art in heaven was the original reading for the lords prayer in 3 nephi edited to our father who art in heaven. It is the word of god and, like the bible, gives us guidance and inspiration in our daily lives.
Changes in the book of mormon exposed by earl erskine. 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. We will be monitoring the situation and will keep audiences updated in regards to. In several cases, sentences that showed classic hebraic constructions and phrases made very poor english, and these needed modification to ensure readability. Martin harris acted as joseph smiths scribe from 12 april to 14 june 1828, and at the end of this period they had. It should be noted that the grammatical errors and spelling corrections are not. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of god. The claim is often heard that there are more than 4000 changes to the book of mormon text. 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. Then i would like to turn to the issue of changes in the text to the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. In the following track changes depiction, the original text was matthew chapters 57 in the king james version of the new.
The book of mormon, the pearl of great price, and the doctrine and covenants are accepted as scripture without any qualifications whatsoever. I have a copy of the original book of mormon and all the changes in it next to it. Critical texts have previously been prepared for important historical and literary works but until fairly. However, after a fair and candid examination of the evidence, many thousands of honest mormons have discovered that this claim simply is not true. The book is divided into smaller books that read as narratives. Jul 06, 20 book of mormon wikipedia, the free encyclopedia the church of jesus christ of latterday saints salt lake city the book of mormon.
When these types of changes are made, they are rolled out to various online and print editions as they become available, purdy said in a statement. Claiming it was scripture like the bible, in 1841 he declared it to be the most correct of any book on earth and the keystone of our religion. The book of mormon may have undergone some minor changes but these. Interestingly, the spelling problems in the book of mormon paralleled earlier kinds of spelling changes in the english bible. Hales, changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes, interpreter. Lead vocals by tom ragen, logan dunstan, sam malseed and aj nerona. The purpose of this article is to analyse some of the word changes made in the book of mormon during the three major editions printed during the lifetime of the prophet joseph smith. There are no gold plates to examine, no manuscripts to view, of the supposed ancient text joseph said he translated. The book of mormon spooky mormon hell dream lyrics by azmad202. Changes in the book of mormon introduction juvenile. Changes in the book of mormon book of mormon central. But the most common changes have not been in spelling, but in grammar.
Have there been any recent changes to the book of mormon. When mormon missionaries properly called latter day saints or simply lds come to your door, they will often offer a free copy of the book of mormon and tell you about its author, joseph smith. Excellent book for the basic use of demonstrating changes in the book of mormon. Third and most importantly, changes in the text from the 1830 book of mormon show only that there was human error, and in no way influences the fact that the book of mormon was brought forth through the gift of god. Doctrinal changes godhead changes were made to the book of mormon after joseph smith changed his doctrine from monotheism.
Church removes racial references in book of mormon. Wright 1858, new york, basically a reprinting of the 1840 nauvoo edition. Dingers book begins with a foreword by stan larson that provides some historical background to larsons own earlier work on the book of mormon text, plus a list of significant textual changes that come, for the most part, from the current book of mormon. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. In early 1830 joseph smith published the book of mormon, a 269,938word volume that discusses religious themes intermingled with a history of ancient american peoples. The book of mormon teaches that god has flesh and bones and that he has a wife with whom they produce spirit offspring in heaven that will inhabit human bodies on earth. Martin harris acted as joseph smiths scribe from 12 april to 14 june 1828, and at the end of this period they had written out 116 pages. Single word change in book of mormon speaks volumes the salt. 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.