Solomon spaulding and the book of mormon fairmormon. The original book of mormon manuscript byu studies. Book of mormon manuscript excerpt, circa june 1829 1 nephi 2. Howe, in turn, published an antimormon book claiming that the book of mormon plagiarized spaldings. Believing mormons often state that solomon spaldings manuscript story if you are unfamiliar with the spaldingrigdon theory, click here for a brief background has absolutely nothing in common with the book of mormon. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. The lost 116 pages were the original manuscript pages of what joseph smith, founder of the latter day saint movement, said was the translation of the book of lehi, the first portion of the. Spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship wikipedia. A pdf of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon.
An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates. Discouraged, he passed the project on to another antimormon, e. Since the book of mormon was first published, many have been unwilling to accept joseph smiths account of how it was produced. These are the first couple of pages of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. In june of 1878, a tornado tore through the town of richmond, missouri. The solomon spalding manuscript 1812 by solomon spalding this unpublished manuscript was a work of fiction created by a retired minister, solomon spalding who died in 1816 before being able to publish his work. May 15, 2001 royal skousen has spent decades studying the original manuscript and the printers manuscript of the book of mormon along with the 1830 and other editions of the book that came out during joseph smiths lifetime and under his direction and those later editions from the church of jesus christ of latterday saints and the, now, community of christ, as well. Book of mormon manuscript correspondence and clippings, 18991949. Jun 26, 2017 it is possible that verses 1218 of words of mormon were not originally part of words of mormon, but were part of the book of mosiah. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon the joseph smith papers. Printed from a verbatim copy, made expressly for this edition from the original, now in the possession of president james h. His novel has become known as manuscript story or manuscript found.
The theory first appeared in print in the book mormonism unvailed sic, published in 1834 by e. The lds church purchased the manuscript from the community of christ on wednesday, sept. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, alma 36moroni 10, facsimile ed. When oliver cowdery was making the printers manuscript of the book of mormon, he copied the text of the original book of mormon manuscript faithfully, including putting down chapter iii from the original manuscript, but couldnt find chapters 1 and. The book of mormon follows two young missionaries who are sent to uganda to try to convert citizens to the mormon religion. The volume will intrigue church members, their observers, and scholars interested in processes of scripturalization, canonization, and textual reconstruction. Reconstructing the book of mormons missing stories kindle edition by bradley, don. Dec 07, 2017 in june of 1878, a tornado tore through the town of richmond, missouri. A study of the similarities between spauldings manuscript story and the book of mormon would not be complete without comparing the style. Many book of mormon research projects have implications for the continuing issues surrounding the authorship of the book of mormon.
One of the earliest theories was that the book of mormon was based on a manuscript by solomon spaulding also spelled spalding, a fictional story about. This was the firstever facsimile edition of manuscript found, which preserves the. They were instructed to build eight barges in which to sail to america. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, circa august. The book of mormon musical synopsis with cunningham now in charge of the mission it becomes clear that his lack of education results in him making things up making things up.
Sep 29, 2017 the printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a. When joseph smith translated the book of mormon into english through divine inspiration, he dictated to scribes, who recorded the words on common paper of the time period, making this. The same factors which qualify spalding as the author of the book of mormon are also evident in the manuscript story. Most latterday saints are aware of a minor industry in. David whitmer, one of the witnesses to the book of mormon was living in the town at the time, and had the printers manuscript of the book of mormon stored in a room of his house. The book of mormon musical synopsis with cunningham now in charge of the mission it becomes clear that his lack of education results in him making things up making things up again. The book of mormon contains the purported stories of three different groups which sailed to the americas. However, almost none of these people have actually read manuscript story for themselves. His stories however begin to relate to the people and gets them to listen, and he decides that bending the truth cannot hurt, as it will ultimately help them. It was first published in 1830 in palmyra, new york, and was thereafter widely reprinted and translated. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, 1 nephi 1alma 35, facsimile ed. Book of mormon manuscript correspondence and clippings. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421.
Is the book of mormon like any other nineteenth century book. Royal skousen has spent decades studying the original manuscript and the printers manuscript of the book of mormon along with the 1830 and other editions of the. The first to assert that a direct connection existed between the book of mormon and manuscript found was doctor philastus hurlbut, who was excommunicated from the church in june 1833. Earlier this week, the mormon church of jesus christ of latter day saints doled.
But beyond this, some surviving, badly weathered fragments of the original manuscript permit a consideration of the book of mormon from a paleographic standpoint. Book of mormon original manuscript 1829 church history. Video the theory requires a second manuscript that doesnt exist, with invented contents, and the invention of a means of getting the alleged manuscript to joseph smith via sidney rigdon. Pages 1 42 spalding ms pages 1 84 the following is a complete copy of the 1910 edition of solomon spaldings. In both spauldings manuscript story and the book of mormon, the story elements are the same in all of the above references different stories, but made up of the same story elements pointing to the possibility of both works having been written by the same author, or of the ideas of one author being used by another. One missionary, elder price, is an enthusiastic gogetter with a. After spauldings death, a number of individuals advocated that his work, manuscript story, was identical or similar to portions of the book of mormon. The manuscript in the new book actually belongs to the community of christ, a faith that was created by early mormons who stayed behind when most members of the. Also examined is the solomon spalding theory, common phrases, chiasmus hebrew poetic form, influence of freemasonry and folk magic, and the problems with the loss of the first 116. Because 116 pages of the book of mormon manuscript.
Because 116 pages of the book of mormon manuscript had been lost a year earlier, joseph and his associates were wary about the manuscript s safety. The spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship is the theory that the book of mormon was plagiarized in part from an unpublished manuscript written by solomon spalding. The book of mormon, the story of its discoveryits constructionthe testimony of the witnessesthe internal evidences of its truth morris, nephi lowell book. The myth of the manuscript found or the absurdities of the spaulding story. It is enclosed by folding the casing and then by sliding it into an additional case. Book of mormon manuscript an extraordinary treasure. Book of mormon printers manuscript is now online church. David whitmer emphatically stated that he heard sidney rigdon, in the pulpit and in private conversations, declare that the spaulding storythat he had used a book called the manuscript. The lost 116 pages were the original manuscript pages of what joseph smith, founder of the latter day saint movement, said was the translation of the book of lehi, the first portion of the golden plates revealed to him by an angel in 1827. The manuscript story contains so many parallels with the book of mormon and with mormon doctrine that it is impossible to believe that they are all merely the result of coincidence. The solomon spalding manuscript 1812 by solomon spalding this unpublished manuscript was a work of fiction created by a retired. Because 116 pages of the book of mormon manuscript had been lost a year earlier, joseph and his associates were wary about the manuscripts safety.
Sidney rigdon true author of the book of mormon and. Since both sariah and jerusalems walls appear early in the book of mormon, and since we know from the handwriting on the original book of mormon manuscript that emma did not scribe for 1 nephi, this means that emma assisted joseph at the beginning of lehis story in the lost 116 pages and was thus his first scribe in the work of. Book of mormon authorship theoriesspalding manuscript. Its followers hold that it is a divinely inspired work revealed to and translated by the. David whitmer, one of the witnesses to the book of mormon was living in the town at the time, and. This was the firstever facsimile edition of manuscript found, which preserves the original unedited words, spelling, and punctuation of spauldings handwritten text published.
It is possible that verses 1218 of words of mormon were not originally part of words of mormon, but were part of the book of mosiah. It has no connection with the spaulding manuscript. Book of mormon sets new record for most expensive manuscript. The website shows a sidebyside comparison of the pages. Desiring to discredit his former coreligionists, hurlbut set out in the ensuing months to refute joseph smiths claims for the origins of the book of mormon. The stain from the yarn can still be seen in those four gatherings. After the original manuscript was completed, joseph smith instructed oliver cowdery to prepare a second copy for the printers use. The theory first appeared in print in the book mormonism unvailed, published in 1834 by e. Book of mormon original manuscript 1829 this page from the original book of mormon manuscript contains the story of nephi trying to obtain the brass plates from laban, found today in 1 nephi 4.
Those who do not accept the book of mormon as scripture offer many theories about its origin. Book of mormon, the synopsis broadway musical the two missionaries are shown. Lost manuscript of the book of mormon in june 1828, joseph smith reluctantly allowed his scribe martin harris to borrow 116 pages of the original book of mormon manuscript. Pages 1 42 spalding ms pages 1 84 the following is a complete copy of the 1910 edition of solomon spaldings manuscript story, published at the millennial star office, liverpool, england. One of the earliest theories was that the book of mormon was based on a manuscript by solomon spaulding also spelled spalding, a fictional story about early inhabitants of america.
Lds church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon for. The book of mormon, the story of its discoveryits constructionthe testimony of. It presents an enthralling case for the contents of the missing manuscript pages of the early book of mormon, which in turn sheds light on the extant book of mormon and on the bible itself. In both spauldings manuscript story and the book of mormon, the story elements are the same in all of the above references different stories, but made up of the same story elements. This page from the original book of mormon manuscript contains the story of nephi trying to obtain the brass plates from laban, found today in 1 nephi 4.
David whitmer emphatically stated that he heard sidney rigdon, in the pulpit and in private conversations, declare that the spaulding storythat he had used a book called the manuscript found for the purpose of preparing the book of mormonwas. Spaldingrigdon theory of book of mormon authorship. For a transcript that includes the redactions, consult the facsimile images available by clicking on the book icon to the left of the images. Believing mormons often state that solomon spaldings manuscript story if you are unfamiliar with the spaldingrigdon theory, click here for a brief background has absolutely nothing in. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies, brigham young university, 2001. Volume 3 of the revelations and translations series, published in 2015, presents the most complete early text of the book of mormonthe printers manuscript. The second, though, completely devoted to his work, but is a hopeless nerd and very big liar who does not want to adhere sticky to conversational scripts. Mormon challenges could the book of mormon story have. Sidney rigdon true author of the book of mormon and founder. Sister kathleen harper, a missionary serving at the church of jesus christ of latterday saints church history library, second from left, talks to tom savoldi, left, and pia savoldi, third from. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesspalding manuscript. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades.
Aug 04, 2015 the manuscript in the new book actually belongs to the community of christ, a faith that was created by early mormons who stayed behind when most members of the religion moved out west to utah. Davids house was a large twostory, sevenroom house, and the tornado turned most of it into matchsticks. Join us now for this mormon stories podcast episode, where historian john hamer offers his theory as to how the book of mormon was created. While manuscript found will undoubtedly never become a literary classic, modern readers will enjoy the charm, spontaneity, and subtle humor of its author. Church historians press, 2015 and revelations and translations, volume 3, part 2. One of the earliest theories of book of mormon authorship was that joseph plagiarized the unpublished manuscript of a novel written by the reverend solomon spalding. One of them is the megaresponsible person, worried about the new believers and is slightly arrogant. The charming story of george harrisons vacation in smalltown america. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, circa august 1829. Harris promised to guard the pages and show them only to certain family members, but the pages soon disappeared and have never been recovered. The writers of both the book of mormon and manuscript story employed the use of many original proper names and seemed to favor those derived from names previously used in the text. One missionary, elder price, is an enthusiastic gogetter with a strong. Book of mormon, work accepted as holy scripture, in addition to the bible, in the church of jesus christ of latterday saints and other mormon churches. The story of the book of mormon printers manuscript youtube.
Spaulding manuscript the encyclopedia of mormonism. Robin scott jensen relates the story of how the whitmer family preserved the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. Book of mormon manuscript excerpt, circa june 1829 1. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The jaredites book of ether came to the new world at the time of the tower of babel. Joseph smiths plagiarism of the bible in the book of mormon. The book of mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the bible. Typographical facsimile of the extant text provo, ut. Book of mormon manuscript correspondence and clippings, 18991949, ccla. A complete transcript of the extant parts of the original manuscript of the book of mormon has been published as royal skousen, ed. Based on the earliest sources available, this corrected text represents the most accurate and readable edition of thebook of mormonever published first published in 1830, the.
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