mentalgymnast wrote:That's it? Whatever.
I'd be interested in how others do a work around in regards to my two questions. How does The Late War influence theory dovetail with the rock in the hat and the limited time window for translation? Something other than a one paragraph 'shrug it off' answer.
Regards,
MG
Consider the possibility that Joseph Smith knew the LW very well indeed. When it came time to translate the Book of Mormon, the influence was there waiting to be tapped. I don't see any necessity to look at this as an either/or situation. It seems to me that you are asking whether the story of the translation as we have it squares with Joseph Smith sitting down and writing the story in advance. Well, I can imagine ways in which it could, but I can also imagine him tapping the influence in the translation process.
In short, I don't think that someone who believes that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God has to be threatened in any way by the discovery of the LW's influence on the book. In the end, it is little different from the observation that a certain translation of the Bible influenced the Book of Mormon. I agree with the comment above that, had this come anywhere but from an ex-Mormon, this would probably not be all that controversial.
But, the fact that it came out the way it came out is the way it is, and apologists are seeking to discredit the claim for that reason. I thought it was telling that Grant Hardy did not dismiss the possibility out of hand. It seems that he is smart enough to know why this is not a problem.