Posted in Book of Mormon Early Modern English Evidence language Scholarship Translation

Possible Benefits of the Broad Early Modern English Elements in the Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon as dictated by Joseph Smith contains a wide spectrum of Early Modern English (EModE) elements that distinguish it from the language of the King James Bible…

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Posted in Arabian Peninsula Book of Mormon Evidence Race Scripture

Recent Discoveries and Advances Published by Interpreter, Part 1

If you aren’t following the journal Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship, you may have missed some discoveries and advances in understanding our scriptures that could be…

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Posted in Ancient Near East Antiquity Book of Mormon Evidence Hebrew language Scholarship Scripture Translation

An Update in the Scholarship Regarding the Archaic Language in the Book of Mormon

One of the most interesting puzzles about the Book of Mormon is the recent discovery that much of the language is archaic in ways not easily explained by imitating the…

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Posted in Ancient Near East Antiquity Asia Book of Mormon Critics Evidence Origins Problems

Plagiarism Made Harder, or, The Book of Ether and the Genius of Joseph’s Plagiarism

Students of the Book of Mormon have long noted that the brief book of Ether is quite different in its content and style than the rest of the Book of…

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Posted in Book of Mormon history Scholarship Translation

Further Thoughts on the Nephite Interpreters and Mesoamerican Culture

An important new study on relationships between the Book of Mormon and Mesoamerican culture was just published on Friday by Mark Alan Wright: “Nephite Daykeepers: Ritual Specialists in Mesoamerica and…

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Posted in Book of Abraham Critics

Joseph Smith and Champollion: Could He Have Known of the Phonetic Nature of Egyptian Before He Began Translating the Book of Abraham?

The Rosetta Stone was discovered in 1799. While Thomas Young and other scholars studied it and made some progress in better understanding Egyptian through its clues, it was Jean François…

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Posted in Book of Mormon Translation Witnesses

“A Strange Piece of Work” Poorly Explained by a Non-LDS Witness of the Book of Mormon Translation

Critics of the Book of Mormon like to dismiss the detailed accounts of Book of Mormon witnesses by saying it’s simply impossible to know today what really went on back…

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Posted in Doctrine Doctrine and Covenants Revelation Scholarship Scripture Translation

It Depends on What the Meaning of “It” Is: Reconsidering the “Burning in the Bosom” and “Studying It Out” in Doctrine & Covenants 9

For years many of us have read about the “burning in the bosom” in Doctrine and Covenants 9:7-9 and interpreted it to mean that Oliver Cowdery, in a failed attempt…

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Posted in Uncategorized

Matthew Bowen’s New Name as Key-Word Offers a Stunning Surge in Book of Mormon Word Plays Related to Names

While attending the 2018 FairMormon Conference in Provo this summer, I was fortunate to be able to get a copy of a popular new book that sold out on its…

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Posted in Uncategorized

Exposed: Ironic Inconsistency in the Book of Mormon

Given all the complexities of preparing the Book of Mormon — multiple ancient sources combined, redacted, then translated into English that is verbally dictated and written by a scribe, then…

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