Book of Mormon textual changes/"white" changed to "pure"

From FAIRMormon

This article is a draft. FAIRwiki editors are currently editing it. We welcome your suggestions on improving the content.

FAIRwiki portal
Book of Mormon
FAIRwiki articles
All portal articles Basics•Wiki Gospel fulness Most correct book Plain doctrines Book of Mormon & Bible Plagiarized from Bible? Keeping KJV errors? Translation method Textual changes Anachronisms? "Familiar spirit"? Hebrew in New World?
FAIR web site
Topical guide
Articles
FARMS web site
Articles
Additional reading
On-line • Print
Other portals
DNA Geography Holy Bible Joseph Smith, Jr. Witnesses

Contents 1 Criticism 1.1 Source(s) of the criticism 2 Response 3 Conclusion 4 Endnotes 5 Further reading 5.1 FAIR wiki articles 5.2 FAIR web site 5.3 External links 5.4 Printed material

Criticism

Source(s) of the criticism

• Simon Southerton, Losing a Lost Tribe: Native Americans, DNA, and the Mormon Church (Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 2004) 12. ( Index of claims )
• Contender Ministries, Questions All Mormons Should Ask Themselves. Answers

Response

This change was a deliberate editorial change by Joseph Smith to clarify the meaning of the term "white" in the original:

• 2_Ne. 30:6 (1830 edition, italics added): "...they shall be a white and a delightsome people."
• 2_Ne. 30:6 (1837 edition, italics added): "...they shall be a pure and a delightsome people."

In this edition numerous corrections were made to the text of the 1830 (first) edition to bring it back to the reading in the original and printer's manuscripts. Joseph Smith also made a number of editorial changes to the text, as was his right as the translator of the text.

Joseph probably made this change because he realized that readers were seeing this as a literal issue (i.e., skin color), rather than symbolic (i.e., righteous). The change removed the ambiguity.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, this change went unnoticed in subsequent editions, until the preparation of the 1981 edition. So, the 1981 edition restored a reading that went back to 1837; the change is not (as the critics want to portray it) a "recent" change designed to remove a "racist" original.

Endnotes

None

Further reading

FAIR wiki articles

Book of Mormon wiki articles

• Archaeology
  • The Hill Cumorah
  • Smithsonian statement on Book of Mormon archaeology
• Book of Mormon basics
• Chronology
• Demographics
• Did Joseph Smith attempt to sell the Book of Mormon copyright?
• DNA evidence
• "Familiar spirit", Book of Mormon as a
• Fulness of the gospel, Book of Mormon and the
  • Why is baptism for the dead not taught in the Book of Mormon?
• Historicity
• Isaiah, multiple authors of
• Joseph Smith Translation and the Book of Mormon ^{[needs work]}
• Most correct book, Book of Mormon as the
• Plain and precious Book of Mormon doctrines
• Textual changes
  • "the Son of" added
  • "or out of the waters of baptism" added
  • "white" changed to "pure"
  • "Benjamin" changed to "Mosiah"
• Translation chronology, Book of Mormon
  • Anthon transcript
• Translation method, Book of Mormon ^{[needs work]}

See also: "Anachronisms"•Authorship•DNA issues•Geography issues•Herbaic influence•Witnesses

FAIR web site

• FAIR Topical Guide: Changes in the Book of Mormon FAIR link
  
• Royal Skousen, "Changes In the Book of Mormon," 2002 FAIR Conference proceedings. FAIR link

External links

Book of Mormon on-line articles

• Donald B. Doty, "I Have A Question: Why is the Book of Mormon the ‘most correct of any book on earth’?," Ensign (August 1988): 28–29. off-site
• Monte S. Nyman, "The Most Correct Book," Ensign (June 1984): 21. off-site
• Monte S. Nyman, "Why is the Book of Mormon the 'most correct book,' and how does it contain the fulness of the gospel?," Ensign (September 1976): 87. off-site

See also: Archaelogy•Authorship•DNA issues•Geography issues•Herbaic influence•Witnesses

Printed material

Book of Mormon Critical Text Project

Working in collaboration with FARMS, professor Royal Skousen is currently producing the definitive critical edition of the Book of Mormon, comparing the original manuscripts and all printed editions, identifying differences, and suggesting improvements to the current text. The following volumes in the series are currently available: (Key source)

Volume 1

• Royal Skousen (editor), The Original Manuscript of the Book of Mormon : typographical facsimile of the extant text [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 1] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2001), 1. ISBN 0934893047.

Volume 2

• Royal Skousen (editor), The Printer’s Manuscript of the Book of Mormon : typographical facsimile of the entire text in two parts [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 2, Part 1: 1 Nephi 1–Alma 17] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2001), 1. ISBN 0934893055.
• Royal Skousen (editor), The Printer’s Manuscript of the Book of Mormon : typographical facsimile of the entire text in two parts [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 2, Part 2: Alma 18–Moroni 10] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2001), 1. ISBN 0934893063.

Volume 3

• Forthcoming

Volume 4

• Royal Skousen (editor), Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 4, Part 1: 1 Nephi 1–2 Nephi 10] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2004), 1. ISBN 0934893071.
• Royal Skousen (editor), Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 4, Part 2: 2 Nephi 11–Mosiah 16] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2005), 1. ISBN 093489308X.
• Royal Skousen (editor), Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 4, Part 3: Mosiah 17–Alma 20] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2006), 1. ISBN 093489311X.
• Royal Skousen (editor), Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon [Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Vol. 4, Part 4: Alma 21–55] (Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University, 2007), 1. ISBN 0934893128.

See also:

• M. Gerald Bradford and Alison V.P. Coutts, "Uncovering the Original Text of the Book of Mormon,” in “Uncovering the Original Text of the Book of Mormon," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 11/0 (2002): 1–57. [No off-site] PDF link wiki ISBN 0934893683.
• M. Gerald Bradford, "Recovering the Original Text of the Book of Mormon: An Interim Review," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 30–31. off-site PDF link wiki
• Terryl L.Givens, "The Book of Mormon Critical Text Project," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 32–35. off-site PDF link wiki
• Anonymous, "English Editions of the Book of Mormon 1830–1981," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 36–37. [No off-site] PDF link wiki
• Robert J. Matthews, "Joseph Smith and the Text of the Book of Mormon," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 38–42. off-site PDF link wiki
• Grant Hardy, "Scholarship for the Ages," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 43–53. off-site PDF link wiki
• Kevin L. Barney, "Seeking Joseph Smith's Voice," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 54–59. off-site PDF link wiki
• Kerry Muhlestein, "Insights Available as We Approach the Original Text," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 15/1 (2006): 60–65. off-site PDF link wiki

Book of Mormon printed materials

• Free copy of the Book of Mormon with no obligation.

See also: Authorship•DNA issues•Geography issues•Herbaic influence•Historicity•Witnesses