“Exploring complexities in the English language of the Book of Mormon”

The critics have been all over this one, demanding to know why God would do it and proclaiming the whole idea stupid and desperate.

But, of course, they haven’t actually engaged the data.

And, surely, that’s the first step.  It isn’t enough to say “This is stupid!”  One has to look at the actual facts.  And it isn’t enough to demand “Why would God do x?” as if that question somehow demonstrated that x hasn’t actually been done.

For people — many of them, anyway — who loudly proclaim their commitment to facts, it’s rather odd that, out of allegiance to their ideology or their prejudices, they seem to have little or no interest in the facts.

We can speculate later about whether God did this, and why.  (Drs. Skousen and Carmack have no firm view on those questions.)  In the meantime, though, it’s crucial, simply, to get the data right.

That’s, after all, the way science and scholarship are supposed to proceed, isn’t it?

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865623421/Exploring-complexities-in-the-English-language-of-the-Book-of-Mormon.html

Please note the conference, to be held on Saturday, 14 March, at BYU.