Translation table of references

Joseph and Oliver on their way to
meet David Whitmer to go to Fayette

People are sending me more YouTube videos than I have time to watch, consisting mostly of LDS scholars trying to promote SITH.

This includes content from Scripture Central. 

Eventually I hope to post my reviews on https://scripturecentralpeerreviews.blogspot.com/. It would be cool if the podcasters challenged the SITH promoters, or at least informed their viewers about what Joseph and Oliver taught, but that rarely, if ever, happens.

It's fascinating to observe the origin, development, and promotion of historical narratives. 

Recently I posted about Cumorahphobia--the fear of mentioning the "hill that must not be named." It's comical, really, to see how M2C has permeated LDS scholarship so deeply that people are afraid to even use the word, let alone list and discuss the authentic historical records about Cumorah.

Equally comical is the recent phobia about the term "Urim and Thummim." 

UrimandThummimphobia is an awkward term. Maybe U&T Derangement Syndrome would be better (UTDS). 

Regardless, the fear of "Urim and Thummim" is obvious in the various Come Follow Me videos and articles.

Lots of people, including historians who should know better, have found a more innocuous way of handling their UTDS. They just say that Joseph translated "by the gift and power of God" without mentioning the Urim and Thummim.

It's clever because it's technically true, as is any quotation taken out of context, but it is misleading by what it omits. 

In the ongoing pursuit of clarity, charity and understanding, I posted a table of the known references to the translation of the Book of Mormon during the lifetime of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery.

https://www.ldshistoricalnarratives.com/2025/02/translation-references-urim-and-thummim.html

Here is my introduction to the table:

The table below lists the known references to the translation of the Book of Mormon written, published or recorded during the lifetime of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, categorizing them by reference to “Urim and Thummim” only, “gift and power of God” only, and both.

It turns out that most references to the translation refer only to the Urim and Thummim. A few refer only to “gift and power of God,” while other refer to both.

Those who write or speak on this topic should consider whether it is accurate to say only that "Joseph Smith translated an ancient text “by the gift and power of God” to produce the Book of Mormon." [E.g., see the Gospel Topics Essay on Book of Mormon Translation, discussed here: https://www.ldshistoricalnarratives.com/p/gospel-topics-essay-on-translation.html] 

When discussing the translation, Joseph and Oliver Cowdery most often referred to the Urim and Thummim. To omit the Urim and Thummim when discussing the translation is a disservice to readers.

Enjoy.

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For those reading this far, I posted a short peer review of a Facebook post by Stephen Smoot, here: 

https://interpreterpeerreviews.blogspot.com/2025/02/stephen-smoot-sith-and-missionaries.html