The news is full of absurdity and irony today:
Turns out ol' Joe actually did not (and could not) translate the Book of Abraham. For those unclear on this sordid tale,
Back in 1835, Smith supposedly translated some Egyptian papyri, purporting to be writings of Abraham, written in Abe's very own hand! Wow. What a find! Wisdom for the Ages! Keep in mind, translation of hieroglyphics was in its infancy back in the early 1800s and no one could really dispute Smith's alleged translation.
The book was canonized by the LDS in 1880 and is a doctrinal foundation book for the LDS Church. Then, the original source papyri were thought destroyed in the 1871 Great Chicago fire. Too bad for the Mormons they weren't.
In 1966, several fragments were rediscovered and were subsequently translated by Egyptologists; by now having quite a good handle on translating such documents. Turns out the fragments bear no resemblance whatsoever to Smith's translation. The papyri are ordinary Egyptian funerary documents. This means....he pulled this shit outta his ass, I mean he was inspired by an Angel of the Lord to write down. Yeah, that's it.
Oops.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Abraham
Meanwhile, the Church of LDS has issued a 3000 word article discussing the controversy and essentially admitting Ol' Joe could not have done any such translation. And yet, while making this admission, plenty of back pedaling ensues. The book contains Eternal Trooths you see. In the same manner as Harry Potter novels do I suppose. Except the writings of Joe are very, very, VERY bad. And dull, dull, dull, OMG dull. If the BoA contains Eternal Trooths, I'll pass, thank you very much.
Too funny.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/m...n-24543013
Oh and by the way, you don't get to have your own planet any more. "Book of Mormon" be damned.
Sawry!
Turns out ol' Joe actually did not (and could not) translate the Book of Abraham. For those unclear on this sordid tale,
Back in 1835, Smith supposedly translated some Egyptian papyri, purporting to be writings of Abraham, written in Abe's very own hand! Wow. What a find! Wisdom for the Ages! Keep in mind, translation of hieroglyphics was in its infancy back in the early 1800s and no one could really dispute Smith's alleged translation.
The book was canonized by the LDS in 1880 and is a doctrinal foundation book for the LDS Church. Then, the original source papyri were thought destroyed in the 1871 Great Chicago fire. Too bad for the Mormons they weren't.
In 1966, several fragments were rediscovered and were subsequently translated by Egyptologists; by now having quite a good handle on translating such documents. Turns out the fragments bear no resemblance whatsoever to Smith's translation. The papyri are ordinary Egyptian funerary documents. This means....he pulled this shit outta his ass, I mean he was inspired by an Angel of the Lord to write down. Yeah, that's it.
Oops.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Abraham
Meanwhile, the Church of LDS has issued a 3000 word article discussing the controversy and essentially admitting Ol' Joe could not have done any such translation. And yet, while making this admission, plenty of back pedaling ensues. The book contains Eternal Trooths you see. In the same manner as Harry Potter novels do I suppose. Except the writings of Joe are very, very, VERY bad. And dull, dull, dull, OMG dull. If the BoA contains Eternal Trooths, I'll pass, thank you very much.
Too funny.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/m...n-24543013
Quote:"It is an official recognition — even a concession — that Joseph Smith could not, and did not, 'translate' any scriptures in the literal, scholarly sense that is usually implied by the term 'translate,'" Mauss said.
The article, posted on the church's website, recognizes that it's impossible to know how exactly Smith used the papyri to write the Book of Abraham. There were no eyewitnesses to the translation process, and only fragments of the scrolls exist today, the article says. It notes that Smith never claimed to know the language it was in.
The church still encourages members to look to the scripture for the "eternal truths it teaches and the powerful spirit it conveys."
Oh and by the way, you don't get to have your own planet any more. "Book of Mormon" be damned.
Sawry!
