Today's video focuses on the authorship of the Book of Mormon, examining the evidence and arguments surrounding Joseph Smith's claims of divine inspiration and the method of its production. Mike presents evidence of Smith's familiarity with various sources, including 19th century Methodist preaching, that influenced the content and style of the Book of Mormon. The speaker argues that Smith's methods, including the use of a seer stone and corrections made to the text, suggest that the Book of Mormon was not divinely inspired, but rather the product of Smith's own imagination and borrowings from various sources. The conclusion of the video summarizes the argument and reiterates the position that the Book of Mormon was not written by a prophet, but rather composed by Joseph Smith.
LDS Discussions Essay: http:/ldsdiscussions.com/authorship
LDS Disc Full Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxq5opj6GqOB7J1n6pMmdUSezxcLfsced
Chapter
00:00:00 - Introduction
00:06:30 - Putting the pieces all together
00:08:04 - How the Mormon church imbalances the equation
00:13:10 - Starting with the Conclusion and working backwards
00:18:45 - Revisiting the Book of Mormon production timeline
00:22:00 - Lucy Mack Smith on Joseph’s development on BOM stories
00:24:45 - Book of Mormon production timeline
00:30:30 - No one could produce the Book of Mormon in 90 days
00:35:48 - Setting the equation while ignoring the evidence
00:39:30 - How Joseph Smith could produce the Book of Mormon
00:43:40 - The parable of the olive tree
00:46:50 - What Jacob 5 tells us about Joseph Smith’s bricolage methods
00:48:30 - Joseph Smith was familiar with these sources
00:55:45 - Joseph’s confusion leaves fingerprints on the Book of Mormon
00:59:30 - Revisiting Daniel C. Peterson’s quotes on Jacob 5
01:01:50 - Malachi in the Book of Mormon
01:03:30 - Yet Malachi comes into the Book of Mormon before Jesus gives it
01:11:00 - The 116 Pages problem strakes again, and apologists know it
01:19:00 - Corrected mistakes from an orally dictated text
01:24:25 - Clumsy mistakes from an orally dictated text
01:26:55 - Unique names in the Book of Mormon
01:27:50 - How unique and complex are the names in the Book of Mormon?
01:32:30 - Charles Anthon’s dictionary of ancient names
01:35:50 - Mormon connections to Book of Mormon names
01:38:00 - Names were all around Joseph Smith…Nephi
01:42:00 - 19th century methodist sermons in the Book of Mormon
01:47:31 - Visions on a seer stone slide
01:50:50 - Joseph Smith and Methodist preaching methods
01:54:20 - How could Joseph Smith write the Book of Mormon
01:58:30 - The Production process of the Book of Mormon
02:06:30 - Alexander Campbell summarized the Book of Mormon
02:10:30 - Conclusion to the Book of Mormon authorship
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