This is an index of claims made in this work with links to corresponding responses within the FAIRwiki.
| Page
| Claim
| Response
| Use of sources
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| 1 | Joseph claimed to translate the Kinderhook plates | Kinderhook Plates |
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| 1 | Illustrations show Joseph Smith translating the plates directly | Church art and historical accuracy |
- Ensign, Dec. 1983, inside cover, 25; Jan. 1988, 4, 9; Nov. 1988, 35, 46; July 1993, 62; Jan. 1997, 38; Aug. 1997, 11; July 1999, 41.
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| 2 | Joseph Smith used a seer stone that he placed in his hat | Joseph Smith and seer stones |
- Van Wagoner and Walker, "Joseph Smith: 'The Gift of Seeing,'" Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 15 (Summer 1982): 50-53.
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| 2-3 | The plates were often not nearby while Joseph translated them | Book of Mormon translation method |
- Joseph Smith III, "Last Testimony of Sister Emma," Saints' Herald, 1 Oct. 1879, 290; Howe, "Affidavit of Isaac Hale", Mormonism Unvailed, 265;
- Martin Harris, interview by John A. Clark, 1828, in The Episcopal Recorder (Philadelphia), 5 Sept. 1840, 94; quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:266;
- Joseph Smith Sr., interview by Fayette Lapham quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:464.
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| 6 | Oliver attempted to translate using a divining rod | Joseph Smith and the occult—Working with the rod |
- D&C 8:6-8; Book of Commandments 7:3.
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| 6 | Oliver would ask questions of his divining rod in faith and it would move. | Oliver Cowdery and the "rod of nature" |
- "Barnes Frisbie account" quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:603-05, 619-20.
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| 7 | Alterations in a different handwriting on the 116 pages would have been readily apparent. | The lost 116 pages of The Book of Lehi |
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| 8 | Joseph was brought to court three times for stone gazing | Joseph Smith's 1826 glasslooking trial |
- Marquardt and Walters, Inventing Mormonism: Tradition and the Historical Record, 70-75, 174-78.
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| 9 | Peter Ingersoll reported that he heard Joseph acknowledge to Isaac Hale that he was never able to see anything in his seer stone. | The Hurlbut affidavits—Peter Ingersoll |
- "Affidavit of Peter Ingersoll", Howe, Mormonism Unvailed.
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| 9 | After he lost the manuscript, Joseph became more vague regarding the method of translation. | Book of Mormon translation method |
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| 9 | Joseph altered the Book of Mormon to modify the description of God and Jesus to be separate beings. | Joseph Smith's early conception of God |
- 1 Nephi 11:16, 18, 21, 32; 13:40
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| 10 | Scholars have determined that Joseph consulted an open Bible during translation | Book of Mormon plagiarized from the Bible
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| 10 | Joseph copied errors from the King James Bible | Translation Errors from the KJV
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| 11 | None of Joseph's changes to the Bible have been supported by manuscript finds | Joseph Smith Translation as a restoration of the original Bible text
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| 11 | Some of Joseph's changes to the Bible contradict LDS beliefs
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| 12 | Joseph evolved his concept of the Father and Son | Joseph Smith's early conception of God
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| 12 | The hieroglyphics next to facsimile 1 state that Hor is the deceased man lying on the altar | Book of Abraham papyri
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| 12 | Joseph used this papyrus as his source for Abraham 1 through 2:18 | Book of Abraham papyri
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| 13 | Near facsimile 3, Hor's name appears at the top and bottom | Book of Abraham papyri
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| 17 | Joseph expanded Abraham's curse to include denial of priesthood ordination to blacks | Blacks and the priesthood
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| 17 | Joseph got the story for the Book of Abraham from Josephus. | Book of Abraham/Plagiarism accusations [needs work]
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| 19 | Joseph's interpretations have been shown by Egyptologists as a mis-reading of the papyri | Book of Abraham papyri
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| 19 | A primary source for much of Abraham is Genesis. | Book of Abraham/Plagiarism accusations [needs work]
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| 21 | From 1820 to 1834 Joseph believed in one God | Joseph Smith's early conception of God
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| 21 | The astronomical concepts in Abraham were common in Joseph Smith's environment
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| 22-24 | Joseph's theology was influenced by Thomas Dick's Philosophy of a Future State | Was Joseph Smith's theology influenced by the writings of Thomas Dick?
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| 29 | It is easy to identify the Book of Joseph from the papyrus fragments | Book of Abraham papyri
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| 31 | Kinderhook plates | Kinderhook Plates
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| 34-35 | Joseph translated a Greek psalter. | Joseph Smith as a translator [needs work]
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| 36 | Joseph mistranslated a number of documents. | Joseph Smith as a translator [needs work]
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| Page
| Claim
| Response
| Use of sources
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| 39 | "...the church has encouraged a 'thorough and impartial examination' of the Book of Mormon, including questions regarding its authorship." | Book of Mormon authorship theories |
- Talmage, The Articles of Faith, 273.
- Widtsoe, In Search of Truth: Comments on the Gospel and Modern Thought, 80.
- Quinn, J. Reuben Clark: The Church Years, 24.
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| 40 | Joseph Smith was intellectually capable of writing the Book of Mormon himself. | Book of Mormon authorship theories |
- B. H. Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, 10, 243, 247.
6. Ibid., 262-63.
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| 40 | B.H. Roberts wondered if the Book of Mormon stories were just inspirational tales, and questioned whether it was history or the product of a "pious but immature" mind. | B.H. Roberts' testimony of the Book of Mormon |
- B. H. Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, 272-273.
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| 41-42 | The story of Zelph | Zelph |
- History of the Church, ed. B. H. Roberts, 2:79-80.
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| 42 | Joseph reported that the Kinderhook Plates contained a genealogy back to Ham. | Kinderhook Plates |
- Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, 243-50.
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| 42 | Joseph gave many descriptions of heroes and their treasures hidden in the New York hills. | Joseph Smith and money digging |
- Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, 243-50.
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| 42 | B.H. Roberts concluded that Joseph Smith was capable of writing the Book of Mormon. | B.H. Roberts' testimony of the Book of Mormon |
- Roberts, Studies of the Book of Mormon, 243-50.
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| 46 | The Book of Mormon reflects evangelical Protestantism. | Book of Mormon authorship theories |
- Alexander Campbell, Delusions: An Analysis of the Book of Mormon, 19.
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| 48 | The story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead is the source of Alma 19. | Book of Mormon plagiarized from the Bible |
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| 48 | Alma 19 is derived from evangelical conversion experiences common in the 19th century. | Book of Mormon authorship theories
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| 49 | Alma 32 is derived from Jesus's parable of the sower | Book of Mormon plagiarized from the Bible
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| 49 | The Book of Mormon was an amalgamation of ideas from Joseph Smith's own environment. | Book of Mormon authorship theories
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| 50-53 | Many Book of Mormon stories are derived from the New Testament | Book of Mormon plagiarized from the Bible
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| 55 | The decapitation of Laban parallels the story of Judith in the Apocrypha | Book of Mormon plagiarism accusations—Apocrypha
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| 57 | LDS position is that the Lamanites are the principal ancestors of the American Indians | Search for the Truth DVD:DNA
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| 57 | No Hebrew or Egyptian writing has been discovered in the New World. | Book of Mormon anachronisms—Reformed Egyptian
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| 57 | The Book of Mormon provides too short a time for the disappearance of the Nephite/Lamanite language. | Hebrew and Native American languages
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| 57 | No indigenous American language has a Hebraic or Egyptian origin | Hebrew and Native American languages
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| 58 | B.H. Roberts thought that View of the Hebrews could be a basis for the Book of Mormon | Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews
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| 58 | Roberts investigated the possible connection between the two books because he recognized the utility of having a ground plan to work from to contextualize theological issues | Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews
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| 58 | Roberts concluded that there was a great probability that the Smith family read View of the Hebrews | Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews
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| 60 | Roberts concluded that a copy of View of the Hebrews could have been supplied by Oliver Cowdery | Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews
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| 60-64 | B.H. Roberts' parallels between View of the Hebrews and the Book of Mormon | Book of Mormon and View of the Hebrews
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| 65-66 | Joseph Smith received a revelation to send people to Canada to sell the Book of Mormon copyright for $8000. After expenses, the money was to go to the Smith family | Did Joseph Smith attempt to sell the Book of Mormon copyright? |
- Hiram Page to William E. McLellin, 2 Feb. 1848, in RLDS Library Archives.
- Whitmer, An Address to All Believers in Christ, 30-31.
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| 66 | The writing of the 116 pages served as an "apprenticeship" to learning to write the Book of Mormon. | The lost 116 pages of The Book of Lehi |
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| Page
| Claim
| Response
| Use of sources
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| 175 | The witnesses had a "magical mindset" and believed in "second sight" | Book of Mormon witnesses—Character |
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| 175-176 | The witnesses believed in the ability to see spirits and their dwelling places within the local hills | Book of Mormon witnesses—Character |
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| 178 | Martin Harris participated in his own "treasure adventures" after meeting Joseph Smith | Book of Mormon witnesses—Character |
- Lucy Mack Smith, History of Joseph Smith by His Mother, Lucy Mack Smith (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1958),92, 104.
- Ezra Booth to Presiding Elder, 8 Nov. 1831, in E. D. Howe, Mormonism Unvailed (Painesville, OH: by the Author, 1834), 186; D&C 110:1.
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| 178 | Martin Harris said that he could "see things" in the Hill Cumorah. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Character |
- Martin Harris, interview by Joel Tiffany, Jan. 1859, in "Mormonism," Tiffany's Monthly (New York City) 5 (Aug. 1859): 166; quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:306.
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| 179 | The Whitmers all believed that they could see things with stones and dowsing sticks | Book of Mormon witnesses—Character |
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| 179 | Oliver Cowdery was a treasure hunter and "rodsman" before he met Joseph Smith. | Joseph Smith and the occult—Working with the rod |
- Vogel, "Barnes Frisbie Account," Early Mormon Documents, 1:599-621.
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| 179 | William Cowdery (Oliver's father) was associated with a treasure seeking group in Vermont. | Joseph Smith and the occult—Working with the rod |
- Vogel, "Barnes Frisbie Account," Early Mormon Documents, 1:599-621.
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| 186 | The Smith's often told neighbors stories about treasures Joseph found in the earth | Joseph Smith and money digging |
- Jesse Smith to Hyrum Smith, 17 June 1829, Joseph Smith Letterbook, 2:59-61, LDS archives; quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 1:552.
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| 188 | Joseph claimed to know the location of Captain Kidd's treasure. | The Hurlbut affidavits |
- Statement of W. R. Hine in Deming, Naked Truths 1 Jan. 1888): 2.
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| 191 | A number of witnesses saw a cave in the Hill Cumorah when the plates were returned to the angel | Archaeology and the Hill Cumorah—Is there a cave in the Hill Cumorah containing the Nephite records? |
- Brigham Young, 17 June 1877, Journal of Discourses 19:38.
- Wilford Woodruff's journal, 1833-98, typescript, ed. Scott G. Kenny, 9 vols. (Midvale, UT: Signature Books, 1984), 11 Dec. 1869, 6:508-9.
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| 194 | Martin Harris said that marvelous things appeared to Hyrum, Joseph Sr. and Joseph Jr. while they were treasure hunting. | Joseph Smith and money digging |
- Martin Harris, Tiffany's Monthly 5 (Aug. 1859): 165; quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:305.
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| 194-195 | The gold plates that the witnesses saw disappeared when placed on the ground at the hill Cumorah | The Hurlbut affidavits—Willard Chase |
- Howe, "Affidavit of Willard Chase," Mormonism Unvailed, 242.
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| 195 | The witnesses believed that there was a toad the turned into something else hiding in the box that held the plates. | The Hurlbut affidavits—Willard Chase |
- Howe, "Affidavit of Willard Chase," Mormonism Unvailed.
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| 197 | The testimony of the Three Witnesses was a vision rather than an actual visit by an angel | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal |
- Jessee, Papers of Joseph Smith 1:296.
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| 197 | David Whitmer indicated that the visit of the angel was spiritual rather than real. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal
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| 198 | Martin Harris claimed to see the plates with "the eye of faith." | "Eye of Faith"/"Spiritual Eye" statements by Martin Harris
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| 200 | David Whitmer claimed that he handled the plates in vision, but not physically | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal
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| 204 | The testimony of the Eight Witnesses does not describe a physical incident | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal
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| 204-205 | Martin Harris claimed that none of the witnesses saw or handled the plates. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Recant
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| 205 | Martin Harris claimed that he never saw or handled the plates. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Recant—Martin Harris
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| 206 | The Eight Witnesses hesitated to sign their testimony because their experience was not physical. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal
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| 206 | The gold plates belong to another world rather than this one. | Book of Mormon anachronisms—Gold plates
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| 206 | The plates were able to sink and glide through the ground and made noise as they were "rumbling" through the hill. | The Hurlbut affidavits—Willard Chase |
- Martin Harris, quoted in John A. Clark, "Modern Superstition-The Mormonites," 63; quoted in Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, 2:265.
- Affidavit of Willard Chase, 11 Dec. 1833, in Howe, Mormonism Unvailed.
- Lucy Smith, History of Joseph Smith, 83-84.
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| 206-207 | Viewing the gold plates "too soon" would cause physical death. | The Hurlbut affidavits—Sophia Lewis |
- Joseph Smith-History 1:42.
- Affidavit of Sophia Lewis, 20 Mar. 1834, Susquehanna Register, 1 May 1834, 1.
- Charles Anthon to E. D. Howe, 17 Feb. 1834, in Howe, Mormonism Unvailed, 272.
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| 207 | The declarations of the witnesses "sounded more physical than was intended." | Book of Mormon witnesses—Spiritual or literal |
- Moses 6:36.
- D&C 67:10; 131:7.
- Lucy Smith, History of Joseph Smith, 92.
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| 207 | Joseph may have fabricated a "plate-like" object to sustain belief in the plates. | Book of Mormon anachronisms—Gold plates—Descriptions of the plates |
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| 208 | James Strang also produced witnesses to metal plates. | Book of Mormon witnesses—Strangite parallels
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| 211 | Joseph appointed James Strang as his successor | James Strang |
- James J. Strang, "Letter from Joseph Smith to James J. Strang," 18 June 1844, in Voree [WI] Herald 1 (Jan. 1846).
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| 213 | All the living witnesses except Oliver Cowdery accepted James Strang's leadership. | James Strang
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