Survey of Book of Mormon Evidence

[ChinoCoug]

This is in response to SeattleUte's claim a while back. From what I've gathered , evidence for the BoM's authenticity exhibits high variation of strength in different areas.

Biological: Non-existent to negative. There have not been any findings of semitic genes among indigenous people of the Americas, or in the Polynesian islands. All discoveries point to a Mongoloid origin. Semites are caucasoid.

Archaeological: Weak. Most evidence on the new world have been defeater-defeaters (e.g., pre-Columbian horses, barley), things that disprove things that disprove the BoM. Archaeological evidence on the new world has been considerably stronger, with examples like the Nahom transcription, and evidence from Dead Sea Scrolls.

Internal: Very strong. BoM is replete with Hebrew literary forms and Hebrew/Egyptian names. I remember Stephen E. Robinson sharing his grad school experiences. His professor, world-famous James Charlesworth read the BoM, he concluded that either 1) Joseph Smith was a reincarnated Jewish scribe, or 2) He had some freaky psychological access to people's consciences, or 3) he translated it. His other professor was wondering why in every chapter Matthew draws a parallel between Moses and Jesus, but the chapter where Jesus gets tempted had no Mosaic parallel. Many non-LDS scholars have recognized the BoM's ancient authorship.

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by ChinoCoug

Many non-LDS scholars have recognized the BoM's ancient authorship.

Cite?

[ChinoCoug]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

Cite?

http://www.jefflindsay.com/BMEvidences.shtml

James H. Charlesworth, "Messianism in the Pseudepigrapha and the Book of Mormon," in Reflections on Mormonism: Judeo-Christian Parallels, ed. Truman G. Madsen (Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1978), 99-137. Non-LDS biblical scholars Jacob Milgrom, David Noel Freedman, W.D. Davies and Krister Stendahl also contributed to this volume.

Charlesworth is the world's leading authority on the apocrypha.

Also,

"There are enigmatic splendors in the Book of Mormon, whether it was revealed to Joseph Smith or whether it emerged from his indutible religious genious."

-Harold Bloom, Yale Divinity School

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0195...53#reader-link
click on back cover

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by ChinoCoug

http://www.jefflindsay.com/BMEvidences.shtml

James H. Charlesworth, "Messianism in the Pseudepigrapha and the Book of Mormon," in Reflections on Mormonism: Judeo-Christian Parallels, ed. Truman G. Madsen (Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1978), 99-137. Non-LDS biblical scholars Jacob Milgrom, David Noel Freedman, W.D. Davies and Krister Stendahl also contributed to this volume.

Charlesworth is the world's leading authority on the apocrypha.

Also,

"There are enigmatic splendors in the Book of Mormon, whether it was revealed to Joseph Smith or whether it emerged from his indutible religious genious."

-Harold Bloom, Yale Divinity School

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0195...53#reader-link
click on back cover

Bloom and Charlesworth concluded the Book of Mormon is of "ancient authorship"? Your cite doesn't support this assertion.

[ChinoCoug]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

Bloom and Charlesworth concluded the Book of Mormon is of "ancient authorship"? Your cite doesn't support this assertion.

They recognized evidence for such. Charlesworth concluded in private to Stephen E. Robinson at Duke.

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by ChinoCoug

Charlesworth concluded in private to Stephen E. Robinson at Duke.

This is pretty lame. Not sure if it qualifies even as a mustard seed.

Bloom is a literary critic and would certainly remonstrate at the notion that he identified "evidence" to support the truth of any religious claim. He simply does not think or speak in those terms.

[All-American]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

This is pretty lame. Not sure if it qualifies even as a mustard seed.

Bloom is a literary critic and would certainly remonstrate at the notion that he identified "evidence" to support the truth of any religious claim. He simply does not think or speak in those terms.

Oh, good grief. You wouldn't take a "mustard seed" if offered one. Give it a break.

[Archaea]

Originally Posted by All-American

Oh, good grief. You wouldn't take a "mustard seed" if offered one. Give it a break.

He wouldn't accept at this point an entire tree or forest, but that's another matter.

The best part of his lower criticism is he makes the presenter examine the presentation better and more closely. Don't ever expect a convert but at least your own examination will be more thorough.

[il Padrino Ute]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

This is pretty lame. Not sure if it qualifies even as a mustard seed.

Bloom is a literary critic and would certainly remonstrate at the notion that he identified "evidence" to support the truth of any religious claim. He simply does not think or speak in those terms.

Yawn.

[MikeWaters]

I don't think Bloom very much liked or enjoyed the BoM. He was entranced with Mormon ideology, however, which he said was like a reimagining of Gnosticism.