It really was my fault for not reading the article as close as I should have.
I did call the editor for more facts he is not in and I hope get more satisfaction for this was inexcusable to print this as is.
My faith is secure in the Book of Mormon but when one print an article like this and with out names or footnotes it would have been best if he did not get carried away and make sure all the is’ are dotted and t’s crossed.
Sorry!
This is just a report about a "missionary fireside" held by Griggs. It is only an update to let Mormons know how missionary dollars are being spent and to get prospective investigators and missionaries interested. It was never meant to be fact filled presentation, but instead gives Mormons a general idea of what is going on. It will be years before anything is published giving the minute details.
It is not your fault, but instead the Deseret New's fault for presenting this as a news article and not just a report on a missionary fireside.
The article is interesting. It is a good thing for adherents of any belief set to investigate the reasons for their beliefs. Personally, I do not subscribe to Mormon theology. That doesn’t mean I despise Mormons. It simply means that when I used the same investigative techniques for Mormonism that I used for orthodox Christianity, I found Mormonism to be lacking.
When you say, “My faith is secure in the Book of Mormon”, that doesn’t make the Book of Mormon true (just as my saying, “My faith is secure in the New Testament”, doesn’t make the New Testament true). Indeed, there are Muslims who have faith that the Koran is true.
Either a thing is true OR it is not. Personal faith has no bearing on the truthfulness of something. Either Jesus died and rose again on the third day OR He did not.
The Book of Mormon was EITHER inspired by God OR it was not. Joseph Smith was EITHER a prophet OR he was not. There is no gray area when we speak of absolute truth.
Based on a complete lack of archaeological evidence, a disproving of Joseph Smith’s abilities to translate alleged ancient texts (as previous posts in this thread have shown) and a host of other counter arguments I choose not to believe that Mr. Smith was a messenger of God.
"The record is now published in many languages as a new and additional witness that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that all who will come unto him and obey the laws and ordinances of his gospel may be saved.Concerning this record the Prophet Joseph Smith said: "I told the brethern that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book."
About this edition: Some minor errors in the text have been perpetrated in past editions of the Book of Mormon. This edition contains corrections that seem appropriate to bring the material into conformity with prepublication manuscripts and early editions edited by the Prophet Joseph Smith.