asbestosman wrote: Reminds me of Alma chapter 30 where Korihor comes.
27 And thus ye lead away this people after the foolish traditions of your fathers, and according to your own desires; and ye keep them down, even as it were in bondage, that ye may glut yourselves with the labors of their hands, that they durst not look up with boldness, and that they durst not enjoy their rights and privileges.
28 Yea, they durst not make use of that which is their own lest they should offend their priests, who do yoke them according to their desires, and have brought them to believe, by their traditions and their dreams and their whims and their visions and their pretended mysteries, that they should, if they did not do according to their words, offend some unknown being, who they say is God—a being who never has been seen or known, who never was nor ever will be.
If you are trying to con someone it is best to anticipate any reasonable thoughts they may have and try to disarm them before hand. Korihor's character is inserted as an innoculation.
Of course, Korihor recants (I personally think Korihor was a moron--sees angels and yet is an atheist? Brainless as a strawman).
Even if Korihor were a real historical person (which he is not), it would still be the case that he is not telling his own story. If he were here he might say one of the following
1. No I did not see any angels. Those religious nuts made that one up too and put it in their book.
or
2. I did see some stuff but only after having eaten some funny mushrooms. I had enough sense to realize that visions prove something about me not about the world or gods.
The Korihor character is one that makes me suspect Joseph Smith even more. It's like he agreed with Korihor on some level but then on second though, he saw no opportunities in it. He decided he wanted a piece of the priesltly pie--and boy did he get it-what with all those "wives" and all. Of course, it all caught up with him.
when believers want to give their claims more weight, they dress these claims up in scientific terms. When believers want to belittle atheism or secular humanism, they call it a "religion". -Beastie
yesterday's Mormon doctrine is today's Mormon folklore.-Buffalo