Show Notes
Did the Church change its story on the Book of Mormon translation—or are critics missing something important?
In this episode of Informed Saints, Jasmin Rappleye sits down with Neal Rappleye and Stephen Smoot to unpack recent online controversy over the Church’s new “Translation of the Book of Mormon” article and statements that the text came by “divine revelation.” Drawing on Doctrine and Covenants passages, early witness accounts, and Joseph Smith’s own statements, they explore how early Latter-day Saints understood the relationship between translation, revelation, seer stones, and the Urim and Thummim, and why calling the Book of Mormon both a translation and a revelation is not new language at all.
In this episode:
Why a viral ex-Mormon Reddit thread claims the Church “changed translation to revelation”
What Joseph Smith meant by translating “by the gift and power of God”
How early Saints— including the witnesses—described the Book of Mormon
Whether “revelation” implies backing away from historicity
What a “revelatory translation” tells us about God’s purposes for the Book of Mormon
Resource Guide: Official Church Resources •Book of Mormon Translation – Topics & Questions (ChurchofJesusChrist.org) Concise Q&A overview of how the Church currently explains the translation, including seer stones, plates, and eyewitnesses. https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/book-of-mormon-translation-joseph-smith-plural-marriage •Gospel Topics Essay: “Book of Mormon Translation” In-depth official essay with historical context and primary sources about the mechanics of translation and the phrase “by the gift and power of God.” https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays/book-of-mormon-translation?lang=eng •Elder Ulisses Soares – “The Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon” (April 2020 General Conference) Apostolic perspective on why the Book of Mormon’s coming forth is best understood as a miracle of revelation and translation together. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2020/04/23soares?lang=eng •Gerrit J. Dirkmaat, “The Miraculous Translation of the Book of Mormon,” Liahona, Mar. 2024 Recent Church magazine article summarizing eyewitness accounts and explaining the role of seer stones, interpreters, and the plates. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2024/03/united-states-and-canada-section/02-the-miraculous-translation-of-the-book-of-mormon?lang=eng
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