In this category I strive to provide factual responses to the arguments used that challenge doctrines and teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints made in the letters. I look at the claims being made, explain the motive behind them, where those arguments fall short, and provides context that helps remove confusion for me. The purpose of this category is to support honest seekers looking to rebuild faith by working through doubts with a different perspective of what is really going on.
The Kinderhook plates are a small un-noteworthy blip in the story of Joseph Smith’s very complex and full life. Because they have nothing to do with revelation, there is no doctrine that comes from them and no real benefit to studying them. There is simply no reason for them to ever come up in normal … Read more
As another supposed source for the Book of Mormon, modern anti-Mormons make a claim that Joseph Smith plagiarized from the Book of Mad Dog or Madoc. The first thing we need to figure out is, what is the Book of Madoc are they are actually referring to? Book of Madoc 1805 Epic Poem In 1805, … Read more
There are few outward practices in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints more noticeable in our world today than the Word of Wisdom. The Word of Wisdom is one of the things that sets us apart as a peculiar people. People unfamiliar with the Church usually know of the health code; that we … Read more
In the early days of the Book of Mormon people who knew Joseph Smith did not believe he had the education, literary training, or writing ability to produce the Book of Mormon on his own. Joseph was not known as a polished writer. He had very little formal education, and the surviving examples of his … Read more
Modern anti-Mormons have to find some way to explain how a book with so many ancient connections, that has influenced the lives of millions of people, could have come from Joseph Smith by any way other than revelation from God. One of their newer rationalizations is that Joseph Smith may have used The Late War … Read more
One aspect of the Book of Mormon that caused me doubts about its authenticity was how the quoted biblical passages almost exactly matched the King James Version of the Bible. It was never a major issue for me, because I knew the overall power and spirit of the book, but it was slightly unsettling. I … Read more
Facsimile 3 is the least discussed of the three Book of Abraham facsimiles, but it may be one of the most important for understanding the full Book of Abraham story. We have no copy of the papyrus or even a hand drawn copy. The only thing we have is the lead plate made by Reuben … Read more
Facsimile 2 of the Book of Abraham is one of the most debated images in Latter-day Saint scripture. Modern Egyptologists identify it as a hypocephalus, a small circular object placed under the head of a mummy. Ancient Egyptians believed hypocephali provided light, warmth, protection, divine power, and rebirth in the afterlife. But Facsimile 2 is … Read more
For years, LDS Egyptologists have assumed that the hieroglyphics to the right of Facsimile 1 were not related to the Book of Abraham. This is primarily because modern Egyptian scholars, utilizing standard translations, have interpreted these characters as a common “funerary permit” belonging to an Egyptian priest named Hor. They claim that they have NOTHING … Read more
There are not many modern anti-Mormon arguments. Almost all anti-Mormon claims recycle from earlier generations, but one newer claim the anti’s on X like to use is that Joseph Smith copied the names Moroni and Cumorah from a small island group off the coast of Mozambique. The reason this claim even exists is because of … Read more