long ago ideas

“When we are tired, we are attacked by ideas we conquered long ago." - Friedrich Nietzsche. Long ago, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery conquered false claims that the Book of Mormon was fiction or that it came through a stone in a hat. But these old claims have resurfaced in recent years. To conquer them again, we have to return to what Joseph and Oliver taught.

Monday, December 6, 2021

"Latter day Saintism" and the problem with Book of Mormon Central

Book of Mormon Central (BMC) could be an awesome organization if it was intellectually honest enough to acknowledge that there are alternative faithful interpretations of the Book of Mormon that have nothing to do with Mesoamerica.

BMC looks too much like Methodism and not like Latter day Saintism.

Joseph Smith, Jr., once observed,

I never thought it was right to call up a man and try him because he erred in doctrine, it looks too much like methodism and not like Latter day Saintism. Methodists have creeds which a man must believe or be kicked out of their church. I want the liberty of believing as I please, it feels so good not to be tramelled. 

https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/discourse-8-april-1843-as-reported-by-william-clayton-b/3

BMC spends millions of dollars annually to promote M2C and indoctrinate Latter-day Saints to think that M2C is the only permissible interpretation of the Book of Mormon. Somewhere around 85% of their internet views/interactions are with Latter-day Saints, mostly through their M2C-approved Come Follow Me presentations.

Potential donors correctly wonder what's the point of giving money to an organization whose primary activities are 

(i) asserting their academic credentials as authority to tell members of the Church what to think, 

(ii) promoting M2C as the only possible setting for the Book of Mormon, and 

(iii) supplanting individual Come Follow Me study and ward/branch Sunday School discussions by creating and presenting professional Come Follow Me videos. 

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As a subsidiary of Book of Mormon Archaeological Forum (BMAF), BMC continues to present its Mesoamerican/two-Cumorahs theory (M2C) as the only acceptable interpretation of the text. To anyone familiar with the history of BMAF this is no surprise.


BMAF is a long-time advocate of M2C, as we can all see in its logo and the content on its site. 

BMC, of course, has retained the notorious FARMS logo that tells the world the Book of Mormon is a Mayan codex.



Whenever we see BMC, we should think BMC/BMAF. An honest logo would look like this:


Now, BMC/BMAF is extending its M2C dogma beyond the the context of the Book of Mormon. They are indoctrinating Seminary students, Latter-day Saints who speak other languages, and everyone who watches their Come Follow Me podcasts.


BMC/BMAF raises millions of dollars to promote M2C. Look how its Come Follow Me lessons for the Doctrine and Covenants incorporate their M2C logo. The lessons themselves teach M2C and SITH (stone-in-the-hat), while disallowing alternative faithful interpretations.  





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