Books which provide a fair analysis of mormonism 5. Top fifteen must have books on apologetics credo house. His attempt was to make the case that dna studies do indeed prove the validity, accuracy, and historicity of the book of mormon. See carl mosser and paul owen, mormon scholarship, apologetics and evan. Established in 1979 as a private organization, farms is a group of mormon scholars dedicated to studying and defending the mormon faith. The recent essay released on about dna issues with the book of mormon is similar to much of book of mormon apologetics. In addition, the very content of the book of mormon makes it impossible to accept it as divine revelation.
The church of jesus christ of latterday saints uses four holy books. Mormons believe that the book of mormon is actually a compilation of 15 ancient books originally written from 600 b. Last wednesday, rod meldrum visited nauvoo and gave a presentation on dna and the book of mormon. We now know from dna studies that the ancestors of these native peoples were essentially all derived from asia. Biblical inerrancy and the book of mormon rational. Animals in the book of mormon byu studies quarterly. A complete description of the book of mormon geography bomgeography, including an internal map model, external map model i. In 1997, the group became a formal part of brigham young university, which is owned and operated by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Nibley s method was essentially a comparative approach, ransacking ancient literature far and wide for parallels to the book of mormon. There are lots of books by christians and others critiquing mormonism see my list, antimormon books, but lds scholars and members have written a. Peggy fletcher stacks story, plans for an lds temple in shanghai may have hit an obstacle, reflects some decent investigation and a good understanding of how things work in china. The foundation for ancient research and mormon studies was an informal collaboration of academics devoted to latterday saint historical scholarship. He is an expert on the maya, who inhabited the same part of mexico and central american where mormon scholars say the events of the book of mormon took place. Apr 16, 2014 ive read tons of books and articles from authors like sorenson, lund, gardner, allen, and others.
Apologetics press article book of mormon notes how deep. October 28, 2005 lds church revises teaching on war in heaven the war in heaven as depicted by merrill osmond, bruce lee and jackie chan inside the cover of the osmonds the plan. In my opinion, these are some of the best apologetics works that christian and seekers need to read. A collection of short articles from the farms newsletter in the 1980. The foundation for ancient research and mormon studies also known by the acronym farms functioned as a research and publication center, focusing on scholarly analysis of ancient scriptural texts and temples, first as an independent nonprofit and later as part of brigham young university, the flagship school for the church of jesus christ of latterday saints sometimes inadvertently called. Thanks especially to the internet, several latterday saint lds, mormon apologetics groups have made it their business to actively defend the historicity of the book of mormon and the book of abraham as well as uphold the integrity of early mormon leaders. Mormon stories march 14, 2018 apologetics, mormon faith crisis, mormon transitions 25 comments i am incredibly honored and proud to release this important episode of mormon stories podcast. Lds apologetics and the battle for mormon history christian. The journal of book of mormon studies, once published under farms. Hendricks, director of mormon research group farms. Im sorry but the mormon doctrine is not of the christian faith. Please add your farms or fair story or comments in the box below. Simon southerton during my trip behind the zion curtain i became more familiar with the dominant lines of defense in response to the dna evidence challenging the book of mormon. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies wikipedia.
Farms was an important center for producing work that analyzed the book of mormon as an ancient text. In the words of latterday saints president wilford c. Sep 19, 2009 the comparison of the bom with the bible doesnt really work. He never indicated his relationship with farms, nor the fact. Why the bible needs the book of mormon greg trimble. The book of mormon only mentions one hill cumorah, as does joseph smith, said professor garloy p. The book of mormon heirloom edition leather bound january 1, 2011 3.
The videos arguing that dna disproves the book of mormon have been circulating for many years. In 2010, the foundation for ancient research was dissolved. The book of mormon is one of four books accepted and promoted by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds the mormon church as scripture. In some circles they are known as professional branch of mormon apologetics. In short, dna studies cannot be used decisively to either affirm or reject the historical authenticity of the book of mormon. This is a list for books which contribute to the study of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, or mormon church. How farms came to byu, wishes for improving church teaching, what. The book of mormon claims to be a translation of ancient writing on gold plates. If the book of mormon taught the same message as the bible than the additional scriptures would be valid, but both books teach completely different religions. The problem was that excavations at the hill in new york identified by joseph smith as cumorah failed to uncover any trace of the two million people who supposedly died there a mere 1600 years ago. Discover the basic beliefs and values of the religion of mormonism from a christian perspective, and learn how it differs from christianity. Due to the nature of its origin, that would support the. A discussion of the arabian, or old world, geography of the book of mormon enjoys many advantages over discussion of new world matters. Some of you may be interested in my responses so i have posted these below.
No one found the bible and claimed it to be an historical record. Farms also produces the journal of book of mormon studies. Farms and mormon apologetics how they spin damaging. The latter day saint movement includes not only the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church but. Mormon studies is the interdisciplinary academic study of the beliefs, practices, history and culture of those known by the term mormon and denominations belonging to the latter day saint movement whose members do not generally go by the term mormon. The very first line in the introduction to the mormons revered text states. In 1997, the group became a formal part of brigham young university byu, which is owned and operated by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church. It is where i attended school, where i met my wonderful wife, and where all six of our children have attended. It is also accepted as scripture by the reorganized church of jesus christ of latter day saints and dozens of other lds splinter sects note 1 the other books considered to be scripture by the lds church are. An apologetically important nonapologetic book book of. I couldnt find anything on your site to prove the book of mormon false.
If there are historical inaccuracies in the bible, they can be chalked up to translationoral traditionauthor embelleshment, etc. Maxwell institute for religious scholarship, formerly known as the institute for the study and preservation of ancient religious texts, byu. Farms functioned as its own research foundation until 2001 when it became a part of. For 175 years the leaders and general membership of the mormon church have believed american indians and polynesians are descended from israelites based on their understanding of the book of mormon. By analogy, mormon apologetics would be the defense of. How the mormon religion became a dominant force in politics, entertainment, and pop culture slightly imperfect stephen mansfield worthy publishing 2012. Finally, whereas the book of mormon has people wearing the name christian in about 73 b. Apologists must remain patient, and not become short or irritable with those who have sincere questions just because they have heard it all before. Eugene england of byu has said that nibley is the finest scholarly defender of our lds faith in our time.
The book of mormon makes several scientific claims that can be tested. Smith once called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion smith, 1902, 4. And if you cant prove false the book of mormon, how can you prove that joseph smith is a false prophet. Even the book of mormons subtitle another testament of jesus christemp.
The book of mormon and the doctrine of covenent does not support any biblical teachings. The foundation for ancient research and mormon studies farms was an informal collaboration of academics devoted to latterday saint historical scholarship. Chief among these is the fact that we know we certainty where the story beginsin old world jerusalem. Bible readers have long had this luxury with books all about ancient israel. Farms stands for the foundation for ancient research and mormon studies. All the text of the book of mormonas well as large, lined marginswill give you a large canvas to express your thoughts, document insights youve received, or create your own visual art illuminations, or calligraphy, enhancing your daily study and creating a record that will endure. Buy book of mormon hardcover or softcover book of mormon. The bible is by definition a collection of books written by various authors that were not necessarily eye witnesses to the events that took place in it.
In this interview, coe discusses the challenges facing mormon archaeologists attempting to prove the historical truth of their central scripture and his own views on joseph smith. Exploring the boundaries 9781573834490 by robert l. The elusive book of mormon lands rational faiths mormon blog. A very plausible lost and missing novel by solomon spalding manuscript found, separate and distinct from the oberlin manuscript has not been ruled out by mormon apologists. Answers to apologetic claims about dna and the book of mormon.
Below youll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as apologetics. Among the early bookofabraham relatedmanuscripts that have survived from the days of joseph smith are a number of papers collectively referred to as the kirtland egyptian papers kep. The journal of book of mormon studies, once published under farms, continues to be published by the willes center. These pages were written while the saints lived in kirtland, ohio, and were recorded in the general time frame that joseph was translating the book of abraham.
How to answer jehovahs witnesses and mormons frank chacon, jim burnham on. The book of mormon is the keystone of our religion it is good to be with you today. Apologetics press the book of mormon and the ancient. I do testify that the uncut sheets of the complete first edition of the book of mormon have been reproduced in its original unchanged condition. I dont think this necessarily diminished its value as scripture. This is a great resource to show how farms spins damaging information to keep mormons under the illusion that all is well in mormonism. This is true too of their defenses of the book of abraham and the book of mormon.
If it is true, then joseph smith is true and so is mormonism. The book of mormon was produced by living hope ministries in brigham city, utah, and was released in march of 2003. They are as busy as bees with this mission impossible task. In 2006, the group became a formal part of the neal a. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies byuorg.
Fairmormon is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing welldocumented answers to criticisms of the doctrine, practice, and history of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The book of mormon, journal editions can help with both your daily study and your journaling efforts. Fairmormon faithful answers to criticisms of the lds church. Among the early bookofabrahamrelatedmanuscripts that have survived from the days of joseph smith are a number of papers collectively referred to as the kirtland egyptian papers kep.
Apologetics press article book of mormon notes how. This site can be used as a study guide to help understand the book of mormon. The bible has stood alone for many yearsbut in the last daysits becoming evident why the bible needs the book of mormon. So it seems that the book of mormon isnt loanshifting. Birch argues that it should be a part of mormon studies, as long as apologetic authors concede that their arguments are objective and subject to academic debate.
This post is an excerpt from the apologetics study bible by holman bible publishers. This elders question really goes to the heart of the matter with mormon apologetics. In the introduction of the book of mormon, smith states that it is the record of gods dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the americas, which also contains the. A mormon explanation of the i believe book of mormon musical number from the tonys. Animals in the book of mormon v 5 book of mormon lands one important topic bearing upon the issue of animals in the book of mormon is the location of the lands described in the text. Well, its been a couple weeks, and jeff has not responded jeff posted comments below. The book of mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. In the name of the foundation for ancient research and mormon studies farms, the institute for the study and preservation of ancient religious texts institute supports study and research on the book of mormon, the book of abraham, the old testament and the new testament, studies of the early formative period of the christian tradition, ancient. Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon. Each of these books defends the christian faith in different ways, from different perspectives, from different people, dealing with a variety. Praying about the book of mormon mormons believe that if you read the book of mormon and then pray and ask god whether or not it is true, you will receive a testimony from the holy spirit verifying its truth.
If you are having trouble with your belief, apologetics is the defense of the christian faith. These plates were supposedly written 1,400 years ago and detailed the history of the jewish nephites from 600 b. Includes every geographical place mentioned in the book of mormon. Because of these departures from standard christian teachings, mormonism falls outside orthodox christianity.
Maxwell institute for religious scholarship when ispart changed names. Fair points, but as i mentioned in my comments, the big list post was actually inspired by a recent conversation with a struggling member and is actually a continuation of a post going back several yearsthe if only 10% of these charges are true post at mormanity. The novel mormon doctrines can be found in the last two books in particular. I invited him to explain his position further as such im going to reiterate my basic point original post is heres. Contemporary book of mormon apologetics really began with two lengthy series of articles from 1950 to 1952 by nibley on the book of mormon, published in 1952 as the book lehi in the desert and the world of the jaredites.
In our view, an ancient mesoamerican setting is best supported by the information given in the book of mormon. What was farms foundation for apologetics and mormon studies was dissolved. Farms fair shields mormon apologetics farms and fair and shields apologize for the book of mormon and the book of abraham. Apologetics press article, book of mormon, contradictions between the bible and the book of mormon, critique of the bible versus the book of mormon by er, darkness at the crucifixion of jesus, evidence that the book of mormon is fiction, grego, my critique of the bible versus the book of mormon. It is no wonder that mormon apologetics obliterates itself. Jul 01, 2011 for 175 years the leaders and general membership of the mormon church have believed american indians and polynesians are descended from israelites based on their understanding of the book of mormon. Unfortunate news just reported in the salt lake tribune indicates that plans for a shanghai temple may have hit a bump in the road. The chief claim, and the premise of the entire book, is that hebrews carried the message of the coming messiah on a voyage across the atlantic. Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon by rich deem introduction. Apologetics press the bible versus the book of mormon. In understanding the book of mormon, grant hardy applies his unusual background in the history of historiography to the book of mormon, using the same techniques of literary analysis that are fruitfully employed in the study of classical chinese, classical greek, and other historical writing. So i watched the tony awards last night, where the book of mormon musical cleaned up.
These facts establish how plausible it is that the book of mormon really is an artifact of the ancient world. Mormon scholars are divided on whether or not apologetics should be considered part of mormon studies. It is a 49minute documentary that addresses what recent scientific research in dna research says regarding fundamental claims of the book of mormon. Farms is the main distributor of the lds apologetic writings of dr. Obviously, the mormons have attempted to give credence to. Nov 01, 2016 the book of mormon is the keystone of our religion it is good to be with you today.
Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies farms. Mormanity a blog for those interested in the church of. It can be frustrating to see a new crop of antimormon books, films, pamphlets, and websites trot out the same tired claims, without even attempting to address the lds responses. It seems the mi hasnt had its heart in it for years. Having a historical setting for the book of mormon can add even more to reading it. An unapologetic apology for apologetics, the farms. Charting the book of mormon, 1999 welch, welch, farms chart 17 nephi 3 30 b. When the original books were written, there wasnt a word for whales, but when the angel moroni translated, he used the nowexistant word. It is an interview with brooke bonham miller brookes aunt, robin bonham, is on the. A mormon explanation of the i believe book of mormon. Find thousands of lds books, movies, music and more. Replica of the original gold plates of the book of mormon. It is now available in spanish as well as english, and on dvd.
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