Morley wrote: ↑Tue Nov 05, 2024 4:25 pm
MG 2.0 wrote: ↑Tue Nov 05, 2024 4:02 pm
That may work both ways.
Regards,
MG
It's at this point that you probably should hit them with the ghost committee theory of translation, MG. That explains everything.
What has never been explained is how Joseph dictated the text of the Book of Mormon without any ‘crib notes’ and yet we see the final product as being something of a miracle. Critics, of course, will disagree with that. Understood.
The witnesses to the translation verify that he was able to leave the translation room, go about other activities, come back and pick up where he left off. If that happened to be a section which included New Testament language, including words found as italics in the New Testament, he went right on with the ‘translation’.
Critics have not successfully, in my opinion, been able to get around the fact that we have a complex narrative with different ‘voices’ using Hebraic elements such as complex Chiasmus, etc. This is all occurring while Joseph Smith had his head in a hat.
Italics aren’t even an issue. IHQ earlier made a point that the translation came from Mormon’s mouth. Well, no it didn’t. It came from Joseph’s mouth and one needs to explain how in the world that happened without some kind of help. I mentioned that, yes, Mormon may have been involved in that process. And if he was involved why would we not consider that others were also involved?
Again, I have not seen any critical theory that explains the translation process from a purely ‘physical’ sense (Joseph did it) that even comes close to actually making sense.
The words came out of his mouth. His head was in a hat. The narrative is complex with various voices speaking in their own unique way. It was all done in less than three months. Etc.
And on top of that there is little if any evidence that Joseph used any exterior reference sources during the process of translation. Only conjecture on the part of disbelievers.
Were all the witnesses to the translation process lying?
Anyway, these things have been discussed over and over for many many years now. We have the Book of Mormon. We have Joseph’s testimony that it was given/translated by the power of God. I think we need to consider taking him at his word.
When taken as a whole, I don’t see the issue of italics and New Testament verses in the Book of Mormon as being a ‘smoking gun’. There’s just too much other stuff going on there.
I realize that your mileage may vary. I honor that.
Regards,
MG