★ Mormons & Latter-Day Saints (V): Plagiarisms, Oddisms & Anachronisms
Who cursed the land, who announced the curse and what were the conditions of the curse?
- Mormon 2:14 And they did not come unto Jesus with broken hearts and contrite spirits, but they did curse God, and wish to die. Nevertheless they would struggle with the sword for their lives.
As close as Joseph Smith comes to humour!
- Mormon 5 summary: Mormon again leads the Nephite armies in battles of blood and carnage – The Book of Mormon shall come forth to convince all Israel that Jesus is the Christ – The Lamanites shall be a dark, filthy, and loathsome people – They shall receive the gospel from the Gentiles in latter days.
This racist summary changed in 2010!
- Mormon 5:15 And also that the seed of this people may more fully believe his gospel, which shall go forth unto them from the Gentiles; for this people shall be scattered, and shall become a dark, a filthy, and a loathsome people, beyond the description of that which ever hath been amongst us, yea, even that which hath been among the Lamanites, and this because of their unbelief and idolatry.
Here we go with the racist stuff again!
- Mormon 6:2 And I, Mormon, wrote an epistle unto the king of the Lamanites, and desired of him that he would grant unto us that we might gather together our people unto the land of Cumorah, by a hill which was called Cumorah, and there we could give them battle.
War by letter and appointment!
- Mormon 6:15 And it came to pass that there were ten more who did fall by the sword, with their ten thousand each; yea, even all my people, save it were those twenty and four who were with me, and also a few who had escaped into the south countries, and a few who had deserted over unto the Lamanites, had fallen; and their flesh, and bones, and blood lay upon the face of the earth, being left by the hands of those who slew them to molder upon the land, and to crumble and to return to their mother earth.
No evidence found for these bones or of the war!
- Mormon 9:6 O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day.
More white racist nonsense!
- Mormon 9:32 And now, behold, we have written this record according to our knowledge, in the characters which are called among us the reformed Egyptian, being handed down and altered by us, according to our manner of speech.
Reformed Egyptian: viz various academic criticisms!
- Ether 1:34 And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of the Lord, Jared, his brother, said unto him: Cry unto the Lord, that he will not confound us that we may not understand our words.
The Brother of Jared is not worthy of a name! How bad was it … Shirley, perhaps? … Bastard-chops, Jared’s bro, nobody’s ho!
- Ether 2:7 And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands, which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people.
America is God’s favourite country! (And always on the side of the biggest battalions!) ibid.
- Ether 2:20 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt make a hole in the top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer for air thou shalt unstop the hole and receive air. And if it be so that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the hole, that ye may not perish in the flood.
God builds an impossible submarine! Was it yellow?
- Ether 4:12 And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me - that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world.
Jesus is the Father! Does he know?
- Ether 8:10 And now, therefore, let my father send for Akish, the son of Kimnor; and behold, I am fair, and I will dance before him, and I will please him, that he will desire me to wife; wherefore if he shall desire of thee that ye shall give unto him me to wife, then shall ye say: I will give her if ye will bring unto me the head of my father, the king.
ANACHRONISMS:
- Ether 9:19 And they also had horses, and asses, and there were elephants, and cureloms, and cumoms; all of which were useful unto man, and more especially the elephants, and cureloms, and cumoms.
No horses, elephants, cureloms and cumoms found!
- Ether 15:2 He saw that there had been slain by the sword already nearly two millions of his people, and he began to sorrow in his heart; yea, there had been slain two millions of mighty men, and also their wives and their children.
No sign yet discovered of this battle or these people!
- Horses & Asses: Although horses originated in North America they went extinct many thousands of years before civilization evolved in Central or South America. No remains found
cf.
Example of Apologism: ‘All horses are animals; and all animals are also animals; therefore, all animals are, or can be considered, horses.’ Sorenson, At Last, I Have Made the Shoes Fit
- Elephants: Various species of elephant went extinct many thousands of years before civilization evolved in Central or South America.
- Cows: At no time were cows present before the advent of Hispanic culture. ibid.
If Sorenson is correct in his suggestion that the cows and horses referred to in the Book of Mormon aren’t really cows and horses – even though the book not only was translated with the aid of Urim and Thummim, but interpreted ‘by the gift and power of God’ – Mormons are on the horns of a terrible dilemma. If God told Joseph Smith to translate deer or llama as cow, he is either incompetent or a liar. If God lies about llamas, why wouldn’t he fib about faith? Of course, the Thummim may have blown a transistor, or the angel Moroni may have forgotten to provide the batteries for the Urim. On the other hand, it might all be the fault of the typesetter! Anonymous, board post 16th September 2005, ‘Mormon Archaeology – an Atheist Perspective’
- Chariots: No animal-drawn wheeled vehicles found. esias
- Oxen: no remains of oxen found. esias
- Steel: ‘And it came to pass that Shule was angry with his brother ... Wherefore, he came to the hill Ephraim, and he did molten out of the hill, and made swords out of steel for those whom he had drawn away with him; and after he had armed them with swords he returned to the city Nehor, and gave battle unto his brother Corihor.’ Ether 7:8-9
According to Mormon apologist David A. Palmer, this steel-making occurred around the year 2500 B.C.E.! This precedes by more than a millennium the time at which iron-working (let alone steel-making!) came to Mesopotamia, the inhabited region of the Jaredites. ibid. esias
- The Hill Cumorah: Either the hill in New York or the hill in Mexico should be one enormous pile of rusted iron (from swords and other steel objects) and phosphate (from bones of people slain). The hill would be a valuable source of scrap iron and phosphate fertilizer! author unknown
- More Dead Bodies and Steel: How did they count the men? ‘And it came to pass when Coriantumr had recovered of his wounds ... He saw that there had been slain by the sword already nearly two millions of his people, and he began to sorrow in his heart; yea, there had been slain two millions of mighty men, and also their wives and their children.’ Ether 15:1-2
- Wheat: No ancient remains found of domesticated wheat. esias
- Barley: No ancient remains found of domesticated barley. ibid.
- Flax: No ancient remains found of flax. ibid.
- Silk: No knowledge of silk-making had escaped from China during the period of Lehi and his followers, and no evidence found of ancient silk. ibid.