Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Unsubstantiated Claims and Arguments The Annotated Edition of the Book of Mormon (AEBOM) makes a number of unsubstantiated claims and arguments that are meant to either preclude a Mesoamerican setting for the Book of Mormon or reinforce a North American setting for … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Parallelomania At its most basic definition, “parallelomania refers to a phenomenon (mania) where authors perceive apparent similarities and construct parallels and analogies allegedly without historical basis.” In literary criticism, including biblical criticism, parallelomania has been described as “that extravagance among scholars which … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Misrepresentations of Historical Sources Zion’s Camp and Zelph It would be no exaggeration to say that Zelph—or, more properly, the incident involving the recovery and identification of his remains—is an important tentpole in arguments attempting to situate the Book of Mormon in the … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Misrepresentations of Historical Sources Orson Pratt’s Footnotes, Manti, and Zarahemla The Annotated Edition of the Book of Mormon (AEBOM) appeals to the geographical footnotes added by Orson Pratt in the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon as evidence for the Heartland … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Misrepresentations of Historical Sources Lamanites and American Indians In addition to restricting the location of the Book of Mormon’s “choice land” to the United States, the Annotated Edition of the Book of Mormon (AEBOM) attempts to erase or diminish the Lamanite identity … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Misrepresentations of Historical Sources Zion, America, and the “Choice Land” On April 8, 1844 during a Church conference the Prophet Joseph Smith announced a revelation that all America was Zion. The Manuscript History of Joseph Smith records the following: You know very … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Misrepresentations of Historical Sources “This land,” “this country,” and “this continent” of America The Annotated Edition of the Book of Mormon (AEBOM) quotes nineteenth century Latter-day Saint sources speaking of “this land,” “this country,” or “this continent” of America being the location … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Forgeries, Unprovenanced Artifacts, and Pseudo-Archaeology Latter-day Saints who accept the historicity of the Book of Mormon have long sought external archaeological verification for ancient Nephites and Lamanites. Whether out of a desire to “prove” the Book of Mormon is true or bolster … Read more

Part 1 ⎜Part 2⎜Part 3A⎜Part 3b⎜Part 3C⎜Part 3D ⎜Part 3E ⎜Part 4⎜Part 5⎜Part 6⎜Part 7⎜Part 8⎜Postscript Introduction Review of David R. Hocking and Rodney L. Meldrum, eds., Annotated Edition of the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, Utah: Digital Legend Publishing, 2018). 583 pp. $69.95 (hardcover). Preface Readers of this blog know that I have not made my disapproval of … Read more

On March 19, 2018, the website MormonLeaks published an audio recording of a conversation between Joseph L. Bishop and a then-unidentified woman. Bishop was the former president of the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, Utah. The woman in the audio recording confronted Bishop with claims that he attempted to rape her while she attended … Read more