Meticulous research on these witnesses has confirmed their good character and the veracity of their accounts. In addition to Joseph Smith, 11 official witnesses and several unofficial witnesses testified to the existence of the plates and, in some cases, to dramatic supernatural confirmation of their truth. That is among the most securely established facts in Latter-day Saint history. The Plates, the Translation, and the Witnessesįor a brief period in the late 1820s, the Prophet Joseph Smith did indeed possess the gold plates. 6 This article summarizes a few highlights of what research has taught us about the Book of Mormon and its ancient setting. As one indicator only, the publication of serious studies on or about the Book of Mormon rose 50 percent in the late 1970s and exploded another 230 percent in the early 1980s. Thankfully, a spirit of attentiveness to the Book of Mormon had already begun working upon the Church. That blessing has been and clearly continues to be fulfilled. Citing Doctrine and Covenants 84:54–57, President Benson said that the Church had neglected its charter scripture and that “now, in our day, the Lord has revealed the need to reemphasize the Book of Mormon.” He blessed the Saints with “increased understanding” of the book. The April 1986 general conference, in which President Ezra Taft Benson was sustained as President of the Church, was a turning point for studying and applying the teachings of the Book of Mormon. “To be known, the truth must be stated,” Elder Roberts said, “and the clearer and more complete the statement is, the better opportunity will the Holy Spirit have for testifying to the souls of men that the work is true.” 4 Rational argument does not create belief, but it maintains a climate in which belief may flourish.” 3įor one thing, careful scholarship helps us to understand more fully, deeply, and precisely. As one writer observed: “What no one shows the ability to defend is quickly abandoned. In 1832 the Lord said to the Prophet Joseph Smith, “Seek learning, even by study and also by faith” ( D&C 88:118). The Lord said in an 1829 revelation through the Prophet Joseph Smith to Oliver Cowdery, “Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost” ( D&C 8:2 emphasis added). Yet scholarship has a definite place even in spiritual matters. … No arrangement of evidence, however skillfully ordered no argument, however adroitly made, can ever take its place.” Roberts (1857–1933) of the Seventy said: “The power of the Holy Ghost … must ever be the chief source of evidence for the Book of Mormon. Of course, scholarship does not replace spiritual witness as a source of testimony. 1 And, with more study, the book’s sturdiness and richness and the remarkable accomplishment of its translator, the Prophet Joseph Smith, become more apparent for everyone to see. Serious study of the Book of Mormon by Latter-day Saints is flourishing today as never before.
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