The Book of Mormon

You've probably heard of the Book of Mormon. No, not the Broadway show. It's the scriptural work that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Hereafter to be mercifully abbreviated LDS) use as the foundation of the church's claim to be the True Church.
You may have heard a bunch of things about the Book of Mormon, some of them true, some of them false, some of them maybe a little of both, probably a lot misleading. So, I hope I can clarify a little and help foster some understanding. Again, I speak only for myself: These are not the official opinions of the church, nor are they necessarily endorsed by the church. However, if you should happen to continue to investigate the faith (please do), you will find that most, if not all, are compatible with church teachings.

Anyway, here's are a few things that the Book of Mormon is NOT:

• It's not a replacement for the Bible.
• It's not the only scripture that Mormons hold sacred.
• It's not complete.
• It's not very long.
• It's not hard to read (so please do!)

Many people call the Book of Mormon the "Mormon Bible;" This is not true. The writings themselves concern a group of people that you might call Biblical people, emigrants from Israel just prior to the Babylonian Captivity. They travel around for a while, eventually ending up somewhere in the Americas. Over time, their faith waxes and wanes, just as does that of the Israelites, and eventually, the tale climaxes with a visit from Jesus Christ, post-resurrection. There's a bit more to it than that, but that's for later...

Anyway, the claim that their were Caucasians in America before the Vikings and Columbus kind of stirs up a hornet's nest of people who say that there were no such people and that renders the Book of Mormon false.

I'll deal with that some other time. Suffice to say I believe the Book, rather than the naysayers. I have my reasons and I will share them in a later post.

Anyway, the Mormons do NOT regard regard the Book of Mormon as the only Holy Scripture. Besides one called the Pearl of Great Price, which is a small collection of various pieces that didn't quite fit elsewhere, there is the Doctrine and Covenants, which is revelation given to Joseph Smith and a few others that is written in scriptural form that helps form a large part of the way the church operates.

There is also this thing the Mormons read a lot called the Holy Bible. Usually the King James Version. The only caveat here is that the belief in the Bible is only "so far as it is translated correctly," per the Articles of Faith. There are numerous examples of things in the Bible that were not translated quite correctly, or where the meaning has been lost over the years, That's not opinion, that's documented fact. I'll deal with some of that in a later post, as well.

As for not being complete, that's written in the Book itself, as well as stated in the Mormon Articles of Faith. We believe that revelation is not yet complete, that there are still amazing and wondrous things yet to be revealed to the world. Which is a pretty cool thought, if you think about it.

The Book of Mormon is also not very long: a quick reader would make short work of it. But, like the Bible, repeated readings will render new perspectives to the reader and continued study is encouraged. It's also written in King James style writing. Why? I think God wanted it to be compatible with most available contemporary text at the time it was revealed. It's not hard to read, though, and the stories are interesting.

You can get a copy for free from any Mormon missionary, or at Amazon.com. They are also available free for download from LDS.org. If you want to shell out the big bucks, (like 2 or 3 dollars), look for the Complete LDS Scriptures at Amazon. That link will take you right there.

So, I will try next time to talk a little about what the Book of Mormon means, and its significance to the church.