Changes to the book of mormon white and delightsome

Many latterday saints are intrigued to learn that the book of mormon has changed over time. The arguments are rather weak but need to be dealt with thats the purpose of this page. Box 1884 salt lake city, utah 84110 or visit their website. Five vignettes an article by douglas campbell in dialogue about the history of the verse 2 nephi 30. When you compare the 1830 version of the book of mormon with todays version, you will see a small editing change in 2 nephi 30. Mormon president, questioned on mormon teaching of the curse of cain black skin.

For much of its history, the salt lake citybased lds church edition of the book of mormon taught that darkskinned lamanites indians would eventually. The change was made despite the fact that the latterday church claims that joseph smiths rendering into english of the book of mormon was divinely inspired. See book of mormon central article on ancient context of white and delightsome regarding 2 nephi 30. Church removes racial references in book of mormon.

What does it mean to be a white and delightsome people. Book of mormon introduction change may reflect new thinking about an ancient people. Sep 23, 2008 hawk, i wonder about your point 2, in the sense that the church included in the missionary editions of the book of mormon, presumably in an attempt to increase clarity, illustrations of book of mormon scenes by arnold friberg, and pictures of relics of ancient mesoamerica in some editions as well. Consequently, latterday saints did not reap the benefit of the prophets clarification until it was restored in the 1981 edition of the book of mormon. Church removes racial references in book of mormon headings. Mormon president, questioned on mormon teaching of the. Another change affirms the teaching that the book of mormon alone contains the fullness of the gospel. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Jul 01, 2011 as stated earlier, the mormon church has made many changes to the book of mormon in order to correct josephs poor grammar and spelling. That dark skin as a curse from god upon bad, people. Book of mormontextual changeswhite changed to pure. A new english edition of the book of mormon is not scheduled to be printed at present.

The bible is accepted as the word of god as far as it is translated correctly. I have a copy of the book of mormon the earliest text by royal skousen. Sep 09, 2017 mormon president, questioned on mormon teaching of the curse of cain black skin. Understanding the nature of the thousands of small changes in the book of mormon may be helpful and interesting. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon. Mormons altering indian prophecy the new york times. Jerald and sandra tanner of the utah lighthouse ministry have identified nearly 4,000 changes when comparing the original 1830 edition to the 1964 edition. Lds changes in the book of mormon, the most corrected book. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of. Changes to latterday scripture lds leaders have made.

It has also been taught in mormonism that opposite repercussions could result when a white person abandons their mormon. Joseph smith clarified the word, white, to mean pure for the 1840 edition of the book. The mormon church has four books of scripture referred to as the standard works. The mormon church has altered the wording of a prophecy about indians so that it no longer says native americans will develop white skin if. The introduction was written by mormon apostle brucer. Lds changes in the book of mormon, the most corrected. Changes in the book of mormon, the most corrected book in the world. How we got the book of mormon kindle edition by slaughter. Jun 11, 2009 a recent word change to the introduction of the book of mormon has once again brought attention to the question regarding the historical reliability of one of mormonisms most sacred texts. The primary research for this information was taken from the book 39 changes in the book of mormon by jerald and sandra tanner. If he translated it the door is open to view it as a work of nonfiction, and possibly even an. How we got the book of mormon recounts the fascinating history of this work of scripture, from the golden plates to the present edition, explaining the changes that occurred with each major version.

Why was the phrase white and delightsome changed to pure and delightsome in the 1840 edition of the book of mormon. Mormonism must stand or fall on the story of joseph smith. At first glance from our culture, it may appear to some that god prefers only those with white skin or that the gates to the new jerusalem are labeled with whites only. The reading of pure has been retained in the 20 lds edition of the text. Dec 01, 2014 the church appears to be struggling with its early statements about people with dark skin. The earliest text, the definitive scholarly edition of the book of mormon, published in 2009 by yale university press. Now, changes to the book of mormon that are not doctrinally significant, this is a very key point, and this was at the 2006 sidney sperry symposium, daniel judd and allen stoddard said, while there have been a number of editorial changes in the book of mormon over the years, even those who criticize its authenticity acknowledge that the. Determined to read the book of mormon in purely naturalistic nineteenth century terms, rather than as an ancient text, recent criticisms of that volume of scripture are offended by some descriptions of lamanites in the text. Those indians, at least as many as i have observed, were white and delightsome, as white and fair as any group of citizens of our country. The onepage introduction to the book of mormon, which gives a brief overview of its contents, was added in 1981 when the lds church released a revised text of the book of mormon. Dec 20, 2010 when these types of changes are made, they are rolled out to various online and print editions as they become available, purdy said in a statement.

In reality, though, the kind of stylistic accuracy achieved by these changes has little to do with what joseph meant when he called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth. Mormon doctrines changed in my lifetime jonathan ellis medium. At the conclusion of the original article, i provide some specific numbers for the different types of changes in the history of the book of mormon text, including the number of changes introduced in the book of mormon. The word white in the phrase they shall be a white and a delightsome people has been changed to pure. The 1830 edition of the book of mormon had nephi prophesy that his descendants would become a white and a delightsome people through the gospel of jesus christ. How we got the book of mormon kindle edition by slaughter, william w. The change in the 1981 edition seems to be an attempt to bring the book of mormon up to speed with the 1978 revelation that allowed black members of the church to hold the priesthood. The most significant type of grammatical change in the book of mormon has been to remove the early modern english that is characteristic of the king james bible. Until a few decades ago, the church of jesus christ of latterday saints taught that they shall be a white and a delightsome people, a phrase taken from the book of mormon. Joseph fielding smith, the tenth president of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, proclaimed. Book of mormon word change christian research institute. He went through the original manuscripts, the printers manuscript and the original 1830 first edition and studied the changes. Until 1981 the darkskinned, filthy, and loathsome lamanites had held out to them the promise that their repentance would make them white and delightsome.

As you can see, the book of mormon is a changing document. The history of racism and white supremacy in the mormon church. However, when we look beneath the veneer, we see truth. This was changed by joseph smith in 1840 to read that nephis descendants would become a pure and a delightsome people. The original reading of white and delightsome was retained in the lds textual tradition until the 1981 edition of the book of mormon, where it substituted white with the pure for the 1840 edition. Book of mormon introduction change may reflect new thinking. This time the book of mormon is trying to fall in line with what is socially and politically acceptable regarding the race issue. The appropriate sense of correct as used by joseph smith in this statement would be, set right, or made straight. Regarding a verse in the book of mormon stating lamanite descendants would become white and delightsome, joseph smith changed the text to read pure and. Certainly the introduction of the current book of mormon is not there by mistake or accident. Jan 08, 2018 he stated that the god of the book of mormon was racist and that the book of mormon was racist because it clearly states that god only favored white people.

Then the government and culture objected to the racism of mormonism, so they relented, and allowed blacks the priesthood, and suddenly the book of mormon was changed to pure and delightsome. This should not have been necessary, however, given the manner in which joseph is supposed to have produced this book. Jan 21, 2020 now, changes to the book of mormon that are not doctrinally significant, this is a very key point, and this was at the 2006 sidney sperry symposium, daniel judd and allen stoddard said, while there have been a number of editorial changes in the book of mormon over the years, even those who criticize its authenticity acknowledge that the. The original reading of white and delightsome was retained in the lds textual tradition until the 1981 edition of the book of mormon, where it substituted white with the pure of the 1840 edition. For much of its history, the salt lake citybased lds church edition of the book of mormon taught that darkskinned lamanites indians would eventually experience a change in the color of their skin should they embrace the book of mormon. The lamanites are one of the four ancient peoples described as having settled in the ancient americas in the book of mormon, a sacred text of the latter day. White and delightsome changed to pure and delightsome jump to subtopic. Originally wrote white 1830 and then it was changed it to pure 1840 and then back to white after 1840 and then finally to pure 1981.

It is not a commentary or a traditional history book. This textual emendation has understandably raised questions about the book of mormons racial. Mormonism has taught that the american indians were descendants of the lamanites to try to justify the fiction of the bom. Mar 18, 2016 the 1830 edition of the book of mormon had nephi prophesy that his descendants would become a white and a delightsome people through the gospel of jesus christ.

Types of changes in the book of mormon text the following statistics are derived from my computerized collation of the two manuscripts of the book of mormon the original and the printers manuscripts and 20 standard page 173 editions of the book of mormon fifteen lds editions, from 1830 to 1981, the 1858 wright edition, and four rlds. White and delightsome was changed to pure and delightsome, removing the racial overtones. Changes in the book of mormon, changes in the bible. In making this study we obtained photocopies of an original 1830 edition of the book of mormon from the university of utah library. A historian looks at the legacy of racism in the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Since its first publication in 1830, the book of moron has undergone thousands of changes.

Royal skousen, a professor of linguistics at byu and a recognized expert of the textual history of the book of mormon, has identified 5,280 variations in all editions of the book of mormon. Critics argued the change was made to address allegations of racism, since the utahbased faith had a racial policy that, until 1978, barred blacks from being ordained to the. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading how we got the book of mormon. Dec 23, 2012 significant changes some book of mormon changes were corrections of transcription or printing errors. First gabon baptisms, photo by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints.

Perhaps, this is why the phrase has been changed in the 1981 edition of the book of mormon to read a pure and delightsome people. What does white and delightsome people mean in the. While the mormon church leaders taught that indians were cursed with a dark skin they went a step further with regard to blacks. Joseph smith declared that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth. That same year, a verse that used white and delightsome to describe what will happen to darkskinned peoples when they repent was changed to pure and delightsome. The charge of racism in the book of mormon book of mormon. Why all the changes in the different book of mormon printings. Mormons, why were the words white and delightsome in 2. Changes that would affect the authenticity of the book of mormon are limited to. Actually, of all 3,612 changes made to the book of mormon text.

This change was originally made in the 1840 edition but because subsequent editions were based off the european editions which followed the 1837 edition, the. Royal skousen, changes in the book of mormon royal skousen, restoring the original text of the book of mormon. As of this week you can add two more to that total in a roundabout way. Interpreting this passage as meaning that conversion leads to a change of skin color echo a misinterpretation of the book of mormon text rather than an anachronism in the text itself. Mcconkie, at the time considered to be one of the churchs most prominent theologians. The book of mormon has had 3,9 grammatical changes made to it since its inception. While the book of mormon only discusses the lamanites, early church leaders believed that this applied to all races, and. In this study we will show that there have been at least 3,9 changes made in the book of mormon from the time it was first published in 1830. The mormon curtain firmly believes that the word lamanite is a racist term for those who are not fully. Jan 28, 2019 changes in the book of mormon, the most corrected book in the world. How can one justify the change of the wording white and delightsome in 2 nephi 30. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the son god.

The prophet joseph smith made an important textual emendation to this passage in the 1840 edition of the book of mormon, where the phrase a white and a delightsome people was changed to a pure and a book of mormon use of black and white read. He then quoted the often debated phrase, they shall be a pure white and delightsome people. This is not the first time changes were made to disguise the racist foundation of the book of mormon. Mormon president, questioned on mormon teaching of the curse.

Apr 16, 2016 mormon doctrines changed in my lifetime. Apr 27, 2019 initially, when i was requested to answer this question i hit the pass link and ignored it. To obtain copies of their work please write to utah lighthouse ministry p. When reading the book of mormon, it must be determined whether joseph smith authored or translated it.

Doctrinal changes a selection of doctrinal changes in the book of mormon. The expression white and delightsome is an hebrew expression referring to any persons condition. We have always taught a limited geography model of the book of mormon. Book of mormon manuscripts why the lds church is true. This textual emendation has understandably raised questions about the book of mormon s racial views, with some. There are many positions on which century the book of mormon originated in, but most seem to fall into two general camps. Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of god. Did joseph smiths doctrine of god change over time. Reasons for textual changes made to the book of mormon over the years after it was first published god changed to son of god in the book of mormon white and delightsome changed to pure and delightsome benjamin was changed to mosiah in later editions of the book of mormon. Significant changes some book of mormon changes were corrections of transcription or printing errors. I know of no prophecy, ancient or modern, that has had a more literal fulfillment. Since these changes are so minor, it is not necessary to include them until it is printed. Rather than allow the book of mormon to speak for itself, they have altered it to minimize the impact of early church doctrine.

Few mormons are aware of the thousands of word changes and nature of the changes that have been made in the book of mormon, doctrine and covenants, and the pearl of great price since the first editions. Many generations shall not pass away among them, save they. A popular charge of antimormons is that the church is guilty of fraud because of changes in the book of mormon, or that the book of mormon cant be true and divine because corrections have been made. The history of racism and white supremacy in the mormon. The question was flawed from the outset because the book of mormon has absolutely zero to do either with the civil rights movemen. Evolution of the mormon temple ceremony 18421990 i understand there are arguments from the church against the tanners, but their work stands the scrutiny of serious seekers. Lds scripture church drops dark and skin of blackness from lamanite descriptions. If he was the author then the book is purely fiction, it takes place long before smiths life. Book of mormon introduction change may reflect new. The book of mormon, the pearl of great price, and the doctrine and covenants are accepted as scripture without any qualifications whatsoever. In the 1830 edition of the book of mormon nephi, speaking of the latterday restoration, discusses the future conversion of lehis descendants, and then shall they rejoice. Interestingly, in addition to the changes in the actual text of the book of mormon, there are changes that have taken place in the introductory material as well. The most troubling changes at the very least, the book of mormon is untrustworthy as an historical document. Jan 18, 2011 also because of lds leaders and prophets, that have stated the the curse was the black skin, flat nose, on some people.