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Claim
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Response
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Author's sources
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38
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- According to the authors, "Mormon writers" have "admitted" that revelations have been modified after they have been received.
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- History of the Church, vol. 1, p.173
- John William Fitzgerald, "A Study of the Doctrine and Covenants," Master's thesis, BYU, 1940, p.329
- Melvin J. Petersen, "A Study of the Nature of and Significance of the Changes in the Revelations as Found in a Comparison of the Book of Commandments and Subsequent Editions of the Doctrine and Covenants," Master's thesis, BYU, 1955, typed copy, p.147
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39
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- Joseph Fielding Smith said that there was no need for "eliminating, changing or adjusting" the revelations.
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- Doctrines of Salvation 1:170.
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41-42
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David Whitmer said that the revelations in the Book of Commandments were printed correctly and didn't need to be modified later. |
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- An Address to All Believers in Christ p. 56.
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42
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David Whitmer objected to changing the revelations. |
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- Saints' Herald, Feb. 5, 1887
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43
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D&C 68 was changed from its original printing in the Evening and Morning Star.
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- Author(s) impose(s) own fundamentalism on the Saints
- Anyone interested in all the textual variants for all sections of the Doctrine and Covenants can see a BYU PhD thesis: Robert J. Woodford, The Historical Development of the Doctrine and Covenants, Ph.D. dissertation (3 volumes), Brigham Young University, 1974. (CD-ROM version from BYU Studies.) (Hard copy available from UMI Dissertation Express; order number 8027231.)
- Note that BYU Studies allows the purchase of a digital version. The Tanners wish to make this appear to be something hidden. The thesis was written half a decade before their volume.
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45
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- Critics claim that Joseph Smith was not supposed to do any translating beyond the Book of Mormon, as shown in Book of Commandments 4:2, which was changed in D&C 5:4.
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- Book of Commandments 4:2; DC 5꞉4
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47
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- Joseph Smith claimed to have translated a parchment written by the Apostle John. According to the authors, LDS writers cannot explain why this revelation was changed.
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- Book of Commandments 6; DC 7
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52
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- The name "Urim and Thummim" was added to the revelations later.
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- "Urim and Thummim" was a biblical term which members adopted for seeing or revelatory instruments. When the revelations were republished, its use had become common among the Saints.
- The authors impose their own fundamentalist expectations on the Saints—Joseph and others made no secret that the revelations were edited, expanded, and clarified with reprintings.
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59
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- The United Order was simply a form of Communism.
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- Prejudicial or loaded language
- The authors' source says nothing about the United Order being "communism." Since Marx and Engel's Communist Manifesto would not be published until 1848, this would be impossible.
- Some of the many differences between the United Order and Marxist Communism include:
- voluntary versus involuntary
- focused on God and Christ versus atheistic
- private ownership versus no private ownership
- Communism and the United Order
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59
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- The United Order was claimed to have actually been Sidney Rigdon's idea.
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- The authors need to produce actual evidence. Did Sidney ever claim it was his idea, even when estranged from Joseph?
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62
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- A section on marriage was removed from the D&C.
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62
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- The Lectures on Faith were removed from the D&C.
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62
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- It is claimed that few LDS writers will "admit" to changes made in the D&C.
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63
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The name "Michael" was deleted from Joseph Smith's vision of the Celestial Kingdom because Adam is Michael.
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