On “The Spectacles, the Stone, the Hat, and the Book”

As another in its series of “Gospel Topics” essays, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has issued a brief piece on “Masonry.”

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From Book of Mormon Central:

“Video: The temple endowment has changed over time. The Book of Mormon teaches us why it’s ok.”

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In case you missed the news:

“Temple Groundbreakings Announced for Pocatello and Guam”

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This is significant:

“Julie M. Smith on Joseph Smith’s Own Use of the JST”

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“Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.”  (Matthew 13:52)

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship has published literally hundreds of articles, and those that were published in the past are still worth reading and shouldn’t be forgotten.  So I’m intending to make a regular practice of calling attention to materials that appeared earlier but with which some may be unfamiliar or may have forgotten.  Here’s a piece by Roger Nicholson that some, I think, might find of value:

“The Spectacles, the Stone, the Hat, and the Book: A Twenty-first Century Believer’s View of the Book of Mormon Translation”

Abstract: This essay seeks to examine the Book of Mormon translation method from the perspective of a regular, nonscholarly, believing member in the twenty-first century, by taking into account both what is learned in Church and what can be learned from historical records that are now easily available. What do we know? What should we know? How can a believing Latter-day Saint reconcile apparently conflicting accounts of the translation process? An examination of the historical sources is used to provide us with a fuller and more complete understanding of the complexity that exists in the early events of the Restoration. These accounts come from both believing and nonbelieving sources, and some skepticism ought to be employed in choosing to accept some of the interpretations offered by some of these sources as fact. However, an examination of these sources provides a larger picture, and the answers to these questions provide an enlightening look into Church history and the evolution of the translation story. This essay focuses primarily on the methods and instruments used in the translation process and how a faithful Latter-day Saint might view these as further evidence of truthfulness of the restored Gospel.