The True Author of The Book of Mormon is......

[_Jersey Girl]

Daheshist

There is still no definitive proof that Solomon Spaulding and Sidney Rigdon knew each other,

And? What requirement is there for Spalding to have known Rigdon?

This reminds me of the folks who say Joseph Smith didn't know Rigdon prior.

What possible difference does that make?

[_Jersey Girl]

Motivations:

Rigdon: Gathering of Israel
Smith: The impact of his childhood

[Guest]

Ahhh....but "who" is "Mormon" and "who" is "Moroni". For these are code names....

Code names meaning what?

There are people who believe the Book of Mormon is telling the truth, that there actually were a group of people who intermarried with the ancestors of the Native Americans, that did the things the Book of Mormon said they did, and that there actually was a Nephite civilization somewhere in the Americas in the Fifth Century that included a military general named Mormon and his son Moroni. I am one of this group of people that believes these things.

[_sethpayne]

D. Solomon Spalding & Sidney Rigdon.

Shades ... the timeline just does not add up for me. The Spaulding theory has no legs, in my opinion.

I think it is much more likely that Joseph created the Book of Mormon from elements which existed in the cultural ethos - lost tribes, indians being the lost tribes, anti-masonry etc.. I think Palmer makes a convincing case that Joseph Smith was a genius and had an incredible memory. Add to that the fact he had several years to formulate the story of the book and well, it makes a lot of sense that Joseph Smith authorized the Book of Mormon on his own.Then of course you have to recognize that about 1/2 of the Book of Mormon is simply a restatement of New England protestant theology.

Conspiracies are incredibly difficult to pull off because human beings always spill the beans. Why wouldn't Rigdon have blown the whistle after being pushed out by BY? What motive could he possibly have? The same is true of Cowdery and Whitmer.

I suppose the Spaulding theory is possible but I just don't think Joseph Smith met Rigdon early enough for this theory to work.

Just my $.02

[_sock puppet]

Then of course you have to recognize that about 1/2 of the Book of Mormon is simply a restatement of New England protestant theology.

Is that why many find the Book of Mormon more approachable and easier to accept than, say, the D&C and PoGP?

[_sethpayne]

Then of course you have to recognize that about 1/2 of the Book of Mormon is simply a restatement of New England protestant theology.

Is that why many find the Book of Mormon more approachable and easier to accept than, say, the D&C and PoGP?

Without question. Google some of the sermons of Jonathan Edwards Jr. and you will see some remarkable similarities.

The PoGP seems to be heavily influenced by the Old Testament so it is more accessible than the D&C. I've been told all my life about how the "Olive leaf" section of the D&C is so beautiful and brilliant. I've tried to find the brilliance. Perhaps I'm just stupid but to me the text is incoherent and rambling. I finish it and have no idea of its intent. There are some beautiful literary moments in that section but it simply doesn't fit together.

Again, I'm not the brightest kid on the block but to me, the D&C contains a lot of rambling and not much substance with the notable exception of section 76 and 84, for example

[_MCB]

@ Seth:
Because the Spalding theory is so "iffy" and rejected by so many is exactly the reason why I began the search for other sources. Spalding theorists concentrate on the narrative content. Those who concentrate on the theological content naturally reject Spalding. If they plagiarized from Spalding, who else did they plagiarize from? Suddenly, opposites coalesce to form a new way of looking at it.

[_ludwigm]

Your Lordship!

It wasn't me. I have eleven witnesses.
I wouldn't do such thing, so help me God (who doesn't exist, by the way).

[_MCB]

I read much of this http://books.google.com/books?id=Q8GEAA ... ge&f=false last night. It explains that Dartmouth was a hotbed for the Jewish origins theory. They attempted to formulate it as an institution for educating Natives and preparing men for missionary activity with them. This failed because of the strength of the Jesuits and Catholicism among the Natives of the area. Read the Jesuit Relations-- I am sure Dartmouth academics were familiar with it. http://puffin.creighton.edu/jesuit/relations/ Beware-- it is a library of itself. Looking for thematic parallels would be like prospecting for gold on the floor of the Pacific.

The culture of Dartmouth, and their bitterness influenced Solomon Spalding, who rejected it, and Ethan Smith and Hyrum Smith. So it all proceeded from there.