We believe the Bible to be the word of God so far as it is translated correctly. Article of Faith 8. The Book of Mormon gives us one of the reasons that we believe that. All of these verses below are found in 1 Nephi 13: 20-29.
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| Bible circa 1873 |
. . . I, Nephi, beheld that they [the Gentiles] did prosper in the land; and I beheld a book, and it was carried forth among them. . . . [the angel said] Behold, it proceedeth out of the mouth of a Jew. And I, Nephi, beheld it; and he said unto me: The book that thou beholdest is a record of the Jews, which contains the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; and it also containeth many of the prophecies of the holy prophets; and it is a record like unto the engravings which are upon the plates of brass, . . . wherefore, they are of great worth unto the Gentiles;. ..
Many of the men and women who were led to America took very seriously what they saw as their call to take the word of God to those who didn't have it. While history testifies to the fact that not all men and women did things to help others, such as the native people, the black slaves brought against their will from Africa - even the indentured servants who lived only slightly better than the slaves, there were honorable men and women among the Gentiles who walked their talk to the best of their understanding. The angel continued:
Thou has beheld that the book proceedeth forth from the mouth of a Jew; and when it proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew it contained the fulness of the gospel of the Lord . . . these things go forth from the Jews in purity unto the Gentiles according to the truth which is in God.
But as was the case in other dispensations, men built up churches unto themselves. In choosing what to include in the canon and what to exclude, they have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many parts which are plain and most precious; and also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away.
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| First Century Christianity |
The role of councils in the loss of many plain and precious truths and in the loss of covenants of the Lord
In the 1st Century Christian Church, there were many additional books that were considered scripture to the saints. Over time, some of these were simply lost to history. Some made it into the Catholic Bible, but were excluded from the Protestant Bibles. Just as the Council at Nicaea changed core doctrine by misinterpretation of the text, so also did councils meet together to decided which books of scripture to complete the canon. Did you know that the Epistle of James was nearly excluded from the Bible? Considering the influence this book would have in 1820 on a young man just 14 years of age, I can just picture the Adversary lobbying to keep it out of the canon. Revelation was another book that was almost excluded as was Paul's letter to the Hebrews because many doubt that Paul wrote it. The canon as we know it today was closed by Pope Innocent I. in 405 A. D.
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The Apostolic Fathers (in dark orange above) were just a generation behind the Apostles.
Their writings are much closer to Christ's original gospel than writers who followed.
Many of their writings have come to light in the last century.
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The role of misinterpretation, deliberate or unplanned
As men, who had no priesthood authority and many who likely lacked the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, decided what the verses would mean. There is nothing in the New Testament nor in the writings of the early Church or the Apostolic Fathers that allude to any doctrine resembling the Trinity, yet as early as Nicaea and perhaps earlier, men created that concept out of whole cloth. Most of the world's Christians outside of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints still operate on that false doctrine.
Martin Luther called the Epistle of James and "epistle of straw" because it balances faith and work - both of whom are necessary for grace. Because of these ideas, most Protestant churches believe in grace only. While one cannot "earn" his way into heaven by good works, works are important as an expression of faith. They help us become more like our Savior, which is the goal.
Because the Protestant churches have no priesthood authority, influential leaders of the Reformation came up with the concept of "the priesthood of all believers." That is also non-Biblical.
The role of mistranslations
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| Bible circa 1500 |
The Bible has been translated hundreds of times. It is logical that mistakes could creep in. Most early translations were done by hand. Some Bible translators were honorable men before God, such as Tyndale and Wycliffe, some were not do dedicated.
The role of deliberate manipulation.
The angel told Nephi that this did, indeed, happen. The great and abominable church . . . have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many parts which are plain and most precious; and also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away. And all this have they done that they might pervert the right ways of the Lord, that they might blind the eyes and harden the hearts of the children of men. . . because of these things which are taken away out of the gospel of the Lamb, an exceeding great many do stumble, yea, insomuch that Satan hath great power over them.
The Book of Mormon is the word of God
The Book of Mormon had one translator from it's original text to the English language and it was translate by the Gift and Power of God. Joseph Smith said it is the most correct book and that a man could get closer to God by following its precepts. In a day when many people - even those who call themselves Christian - do not value the Bible, the Book of Mormon stands as another witness of Jesus Christ. It supports the truths in the Bible and clarifies much that is obscure.
I wrote a book a year ago titles Words of God: 8 Crucial Bible Themes Supported by the Book of Mormon (Cedar Fort Publishing) I love to study both books side by side until they truly become one in my hand (see Ezekiel). For any of you living in or near the East Valley, I lead a group which studies the two books thematically. We meet the second Thursday of each month at my home. If you are ever close by, I would love for you to join us.
©January 2020, Dr. Kathleen Rawlings
Buntin Danielson
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