Introduction
The book of Mormon is a sacred book believed to be a record of the relationship of God with the ancient Americans. The book, believed to have been written by prophets directed by divine power was based on the words of Mormon, an early prophet. It is supposedly meant to be a record of the second evidence that Jesus Christ was here in the world and that he is the Savior of mankind. The Book of Mormon is faced with a lot of criticism due to the lack of archeological evidence supporting the authenticity of the material in it. Many people believe that it is just a mere fabrication of its alleged translator; Joseph Smith. On the other hand, the believers of the book have formed a church- Latter-day Saints (LDS) and they believe that the church is an establishment of God’s kingdom on earth preparing for the return of Jesus Christ on earth. In this essay, we look closely at the book and its validity (Carr 2004, p. 1).
History of the Book of Mormon
The words of the book of Mormon are claimed to have been found inscribed in golden plates that were bound together by wires to form a book-like structure. It is believed that after the prophet, Mormon, was done writing the book, he gave it to his son who made some minute additions and hid the written plates in a hill- Cumorah. It is believed that Moroni resurrected on September 21, 1823, in transfiguration and instructed Prophet Joseph Smith to retrieve the plates and translate them to English. Smith is said to have, under divine intervention, translated the book into English. After translation, Smith described the book as the most helpful and correct of all religious books. The book has since then been translated into many languages. It is alleged that in addition to Smith, the Lord gave the other eleven people the chance to see the plates with their original writings. The testimonies of these eleven witnesses are included in the book as “The Testimony of Three Witnesses” (LDS Church 2008, p. 3) and “The Testimony of Eight Witnesses” (LDS Church 2008, p. 3). It is thus evident that evidence of the allegations related to the origin of the Book of Mormon is all intangible (Duncan 2009, p. 3).
Contents of the Book of Mormon
Evident in the book of Mormon are two civilizations. The first one is said to have originated from Jerusalem in 600 B.C. and later divided to form the Nephites and Lamanites. The other had come much earlier from the tower of Babel but they were destroyed leaving behind the Lamanites. They are said to be the ancestors of the Indians in America. The most significant event written in the Book of Mormon is the appearance and ministry of Jesus Christ to Nephites after he was resurrected. It outlines the gospel, describes salvation, and instructs its believers on what to do in order to live peacefully and obtain eternal life in their afterlife. These believers are of the opinion that the Bible is not as correct as of the Book of Mormon because the Bible had undergone several translations before it was translated to the English language while the Book of Mormon was translated directly to English. It is divided into several books named after their respective authors and has been translated to 108 languages either in totality or partially (LDS Church 2006, p. 3).
Problems with the Book of Mormon
Nowadays, a large number of people have, once or twice, been paid a visit by the believers of the Book of Mormon. These people beseech you to accept a copy of the book and advice you to pray for divine intervention that the book is actually a true testimony of Jesus Christ. They direct that after reading the book and praying for revelation from the Holy Ghost, God will send the Holy Spirit to confirm to you that the book is a true testimony of Jesus Christ. They claim that during the revelation you will feel a burning sensation in your bosom (Carr 2004, p. 1).
With the kind of persuasion that they employ in convincing people to accept a copy of this book, it is hard for one to disregard their ideas. It is human nature to once or twice gets a conviction about something. Even after reading the manifesto of the German Nazi, one can possibly get a conviction about it. Therefore, after leaving the copy of the Book of Mormon with these people, the people become vulnerable to the confusion of conviction with divine intervention and they find themselves believing in the validity of the Book of Mormon and the LDS faith. The believers themselves believe in the divine validity of the book just because Smith said it is and believes that Smith was right to declare that the book is divine because the book says that Smith had such powers. The book copies the language and illustrative style of the King James Bible version. The Book of Mormon says that after Jesus Christ resurrects and ascends to heaven, the church becomes completely corrupt with paganism such that no man is worthy to call God’s name. Comparing the book with the bible, it borrows heavily from the bible. Is it possible that Jesus, who promised that his church would stay strong, was mistaken? I do not think so. The fact that the book contradicts Jesus’ own words and claims to be an authentic gospel of his works proves the invalidity of the Book of Mormon (Duncan 2009, p. 3).
Conclusion
As discussed above, the Book of Mormon shows its invalidity in three main ways. First, there is a lot of evidence that refutes its claims and it itself lacks physical archeological evidence to confirm these claims. Secondly, it contains none of the doctrines it purportedly contains because the LDS saying that it contains the “fullness of the everlasting gospel” (Duncan 2009, p. 34) it should have exactly that. Lastly, it contains a myriad of errors and plagiarism from the King James Bible Version, The Wonders of Nature, and View of the Hebrew etcetera. To cite one of these errors, the Book of Mormon says that Jesus Christ was born in Jerusalem but Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Christians should therefore be very careful not to be lured by Mormon missionaries into believing in the LDS which was a fabrication of one person, Joseph Smith (Lindsay 2009, p. 1). The members of the Mormon faith should also reevaluate their religion and compare it with Christianity in order to make informed decisions and avoid indulging in misguided beliefs.
References
Carr, B. (2004). Problems with the Book of Mormon, Web.
Duncan, R. (2009). The Book of Mormon, Web.
LDS, Church. (2006). The Book of Mormon, Web.
LDS, Church. (2008) The Book of Mormon, Web.
Lindsay, J. (2009). Book of Mormon Evidences, Web.