Has the book of mormon changes

He recently wrote this article changing critics criticisms of the book of mormon changes for the interpreter in 218. How the book of mormon design has changed over the last. 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. This 1920 copy of the book of mormon, printed by w. Some of the revelations that appear in the doctrine and covenants have had hundreds of words added to them. Royal skousen has been working on the critical text project of the book of mormon since 1988. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the son god. 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. The original text betrays its new england origin in many ways, from inconsistent spelling to incorrect use of tenses and number, as well as.

In modern editions of the book of mormon this verse has been changed to read. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. The book of mormon that joseph smith published in 1830 is not the same book that is published over 170 years later. It has never been worked over or touched up in any way, and is free of revisions and alterations. The new lds church general handbook of instructions is now available. The goal of accessibility has led to some modernization and standardization of the text itself and the addition of readers helps introductory material, versification, footnotes. 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. There are 39 changes that have been made to the book of mormon, some of which are significant doctrinal changes many mormon church members, including church leaders, stumbled across the changes them selves, and noticed the doctrinal significance.

Significant changes in lds doctrine and covenants 4mormon. 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. Changing critics criticisms of book of mormon changes. The book of mormon, the pearl of great price, and the doctrine and covenants are accepted as scripture without any qualifications whatsoever. The book of mormon has a number of original and distinctive doctrinal discussions on subjects such as the fall of adam and eve, the. Why has the church found it necessary to make changes any. Join us as we first provide a general overview of the handbook changes in part 1, and then welcome an allstar panel of natasha helfer parker, gina colvin, anthony d. By far the majority of changes between the 1830 and subsequent versions of the book of mormon are spelling or grammar corrections. How can you believe that the book of mormon is perfect. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints has stewardship over the book of mormon and will do everything in its power to put a copy of the book into your hands in your own language. Understanding the nature of the thousands of small changes in the book of mormon may be helpful and interesting. Smith is full of bluff and bluster, and is a fraud. I have a copy of the original book of mormon and all the changes in it next to it.

Starts with a message from the first presidency mentioning that, through revelation received in the upper room of the slc temple, changes have been made to the endowment. The most major changes in the book of mormon have been. Book of mormon changes almost all spelling, grammar, and. The vast majority of mormons who are even aware that the book has been changed at all believe that there has been, at most, a grammatical correction here or.

You can listen in under 26 minutes here key quotes below. Well, it turns out that the answer to the question is yes. The gospel as the mormons know it sprang full grown from the words of joseph smith. Additionally, the book changes the name of disciplinary councils to membership councils, with their purposes they may be necessary to help a person repent, the handbook says and procedures explained across 65 pages in chapter 32. In 1981 the lds church published a new edition of the book of mormon. Box 1884 salt lake city, utah 84110 or visit their website. The first printed edition compared to the manuscripts and to the subsequent major lds english printed editions and that there was to be. Former lds bishop earl erskine talks about the changes he found in the book of mormon on polygamy. Types of changes in the book of mormon text the following statistics are derived from my computerized collation of the two manuscripts of the book of mormon the original and the printers manuscripts and 20 standard page 173 editions of the book of mormon fifteen lds editions, from 1830 to 1981, the 1858 wright edition, and four rlds. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of. Only a handful of copies were distributed before the press was destroyed. The primary research for this information was taken from the book 39 changes in the book of mormon by jerald and sandra tanner. Many mormon church members, including church leaders, stumbled across the changes them selves, and noticed the doctrinal significance. 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.

Church removes racial references in book of mormon. 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. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon. The lds church has and continues to quietly make changes to its doctrinal teachings. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to. Changes to latterday scripture lds leaders have made. With the second edition of the book of mormon, published in 1837. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of the book of mormon from the university of utah library.

Since its first publication in 1830, the book of moron has undergone thousands of changes. Much like lamoni calls approach in the 1890s, jerald tanner sat down eighty years later with an 1830 edition and a 1964 edition of the book. A critical text shows all the substantive changes that a written work has undergone from its original version to its present editions. Our heavenly father wrote letters through the prophets, giving counsel, comfort, and guidance for our good and blessing us at all times. May 21, 2018 brian hales has written much on joseph smiths polygamy in the past. Racism the church made changes to the book of mormon to soften its racism. Another change affirms the teaching that the book of mormon alone contains the fullness of the gospel. This changed in the 1980s when efforts were made to reemphasize the book of mormon. Edits and changes to the book of mormon will occasionally b.

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. When we had knocked on his door, he had been down in his basement printing antimormon literature. An original first edition book of mormon has been photographed and is available for viewing at. Dingers significant textual changes in the book of mormon. 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. Also a request not to acknowledge that there were changes or what they were. Enrique serpa bustamante, a member from lima, peru, thinks of the book of mormon as letters from a loving parent. Much has been said recently about changes and modifications in this record but, unfortunately, most of it has been said by those who have been unfriendly toward both the book itself and the church which endorses it. Published on the centenary of the coming forth of the book of mormon for the alice louise reynolds library.

All of these changes in chapter breaks and the addition of. The first is that joseph smith received an englishlanguage text word for word, which he. Brian hales has written much on joseph smiths polygamy in the past. 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. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism the arch and the keystone. Mormon leaders have been hard at work to change missionary expectations, temple rituals, and curriculum to improve the latterday saint experience for millennials and generation z. 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 has undergone many revisions since the 1830 ed. A mormon, in the initiatory phase of the temple endowment, is wearing only a sheet called a shield open on the sides and an ordinance worker of the same sex touches the participant near the loins, stomach, breasts. Jerald and sandra tanners 1965 publication, 3,9 changes in the book of mormon, has probably had a greater influence. Feb 27, 2020 the church of jesus christ of latterday saints has stewardship over the book of mormon and will do everything in its power to put a copy of the book into your hands in your own language. Miller, kyle ashworth, samantha taylor, and jana johnson spangler for parts 24. How many changed has the book of mormon been changed. Yet, the book which joseph smith declared was the most correct of any book on earth history of the church, vol.

Much like lamoni calls approach in the 1890s, jerald tanner sat down eighty years later with an 1830 edition and a 1964 edition of the book of mormon and annotated all changes he could identify. As you can see, the book of mormon is a changing document. Many of the original revelations of the mormon doctrine and covenants scripture were published in the 1833 book of commandments. The lds church has made subtle but significant changes to chapter headings in its online version of the faiths signature scripture, the book of. Has the book of mormon changed since it was originally. Perceived changes in mormon doctrine polygamy new converts to the church of jesus christ of latterday saints in the early 1800s were nearly all of european descent, and it was the victorian era, when the roles of men and women were very clearly defined, and marriages were monogamous. The lds text has retained orson pratts revised system of chapters and its versification. New film with still photography that has been made to show subtle motion. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Some textual changes for a scholarly study of the book of.

The words dictated by joseph smith between april 7 and june 30, 1829, were published with few alterations. Doctrine and covenants compared with book of commandments most significant changes in lds scripture. Doctrinal changes godhead changes were made to the book of mormon after joseph smith changed his doctrine from monotheism. 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 claim is often heard that there are more than 4000 changes to the book of mormon text. Interestingly, the spelling problems in the book of mormon paralleled earlier kinds of spelling changes in the english bible. Some are mere spelling corrections, but others are significant changes. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of god. How many times has the book of mormon been changed answers. 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.

For example, consider the word sins, which had been spelled synnes and became sinnes in the 1611 king james version. The goal of textual accuracy has led later editors to earlier editions and, when available, to the original and printers manuscripts see book of mormon manuscripts. Book of mormon word change christian research institute. In one of his more regrettable statements, hugh nibley said that one of the hallmarks of mormon truth is that it has never changed over time.

There also have been many important changes in the pearl of great price. Recent changes to the book of mormon regarding race, blackness, skin color, etc thats not all. It has been accepted for inclusion in all theses and dissertations by an authorized administrator of byu scholarsarchive. The book of mormon only has, originally, to observe to keep the commandments never to observe the commandments. Hales reminds us that the tanners and others have been deceptive in their treatment of the minor changes and corrections that have been made, creating the. A valuable new analysis of the many types of changes in the text of the book of mormon is brian c. Apr 15, 2012 former lds bishop earl erskine talks about the changes he found in the book of mormon on polygamy. Can someone please point me to changes that have been made to the book mormon since 1979. In 2009, the gospel principles manual also underwent. This should not have been necessary, however, given the manner in which joseph is supposed to have produced this book. In all, the digitalonly handbook is about 800 pages long. To obtain copies of their work please write to utah lighthouse ministry p. The book of commandments, published in july 1833, was a compilation of early lds revelations.

Dec 20, 2010 the lds church has made subtle but significant changes to chapter headings in its online version of the faiths signature scripture, the book of mormon, toning down some earlier racial allusions. As the title indicates, this thesis is a consideration of selected changes that have been made in major editions of the book of mormon. An analysis of selected changes in major editions of the. According to eyewitness testimony, joseph smith gave his scribe a wordforword. The book of mormon is indeed a gift intended to bring us, gods children, to a knowledge of the true gospel of jesus christ. Some of the many changes in the book of mormon by matt slick 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. Feb 19, 2020 additionally, the book changes the name of disciplinary councils to membership councils, with their purposes they may be necessary to help a person repent, the handbook says and procedures explained across 65 pages in chapter 32. But, in the 1837 edition the words to keep were accidentally dropped out in one case. Alterable decrees the evolving doctrines of the church necessitated. Book of mormon editions 18301981 the encyclopedia of. The church has in its possession wilford woodruffs original copy, but for generations prohibited viewing. As stated earlier, the mormon church has made many changes to the book of mormon in order to correct josephs poor grammar and spelling. In comparison most scholars agree that there are about 24,000 changes between 1611 version and the 1769 version of the kjv bible.