{"id":67170,"date":"2018-11-08T20:34:28","date_gmt":"2018-11-09T03:34:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=67170"},"modified":"2018-11-08T20:34:28","modified_gmt":"2018-11-09T03:34:28","slug":"the-joseph-smith-papers-project-and-the-book-of-abraham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/11\/the-joseph-smith-papers-project-and-the-book-of-abraham.html","title":{"rendered":"The Joseph Smith Papers Project and the Book of Abraham"},"content":{"rendered":"<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\">\n<html><head><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><\/head><body><p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_41597\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-41597\" style=\"width: 596px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2017\/04\/1920px-Church_History_Library_in_Salt_Lake_City-1.jpg\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-41597\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2017\/04\/1920px-Church_History_Library_in_Salt_Lake_City-1.jpg\" alt=\"SLC's Church History Library\" width=\"596\" height=\"447\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-41597\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Church History Library in Salt Lake City \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\">The real question is not whether Joseph Smith knew Egyptian\u2014no one has claimed that he did; or whether the book of Abraham is translated from the Book of Breathings\u2014that, by universal admission, is impossible; or whether Joseph Smith was interested in producing an Egyptian grammar\u2014he emphatically says that he was; or that the Alphabet and Grammar came to nothing\u2014the men of Kirtland found it useless almost immediately and forgot it; or who is an Egyptologist and who is not\u2014no one challenges their translations; but the true significance of the old texts and pictures remains a mystery to the expert and layman alike. . . . It is not Joseph Smith but the book of Abraham that is on trial. \u00a0(Hugh Nibley,\u00a0\u201cJudging and Prejudging the Book of Abraham,\u201d 244)<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\"><strong>***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Stephen Smoot interviews Robin Scott Jensen,\u00a0associate managing historian and project archivist for the Joseph Smith Papers Project, regarding the\u00a0Project\u2019s newly released\u00a0<em>Revelations and Translations, Volume 4: Book of Abraham and Related Manuscripts<\/em>:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/interpreterfoundation.org\/the-book-of-abraham-with-robin-scott-jensen\/<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>You might also enjoy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JosephSmithPapers\/videos\/314272369401808\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">this thirteen-minute video<\/a>, on the \u201cJoseph Smith Papers\u201d Facebook page, with Robin Scott Jensen:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JosephSmithPapers\/videos\/314272369401808\/<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\"><strong>***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While on the subject of the Book of Abraham, I think that I\u2019ll mention three pieces with which I myself was connected:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lds.org\/ensign\/1994\/01\/news-from-antiquity?lang=eng\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cNews from Antiquity:\u00a0<span id=\"triggerShareDrawer\" class=\"lumen-icon\"><\/span>Evidence supporting the book of Abraham continues to turn up in a wide variety of sources.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/publications.mi.byu.edu\/fullscreen\/?pub=1098&amp;index=3\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cAnd I Saw the Stars \u2013 The Book of Abraham and Ancient Geocentric Astronomy\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<section class=\"author\"><\/section>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.deseretnews.com\/article\/865693479\/Introducing-An-Introduction-to-the-Book-of-Abraham.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cIntroducing \u2018An Introduction to the Book of Abraham'\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And here are several articles on the Book of Abraham and on Abraham himself that have been published in <em>Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture<\/em>:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"Permalink to Pressing Forward with the Book of Abraham\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/pressing-forward-with-the-book-of-abraham\/\" rel=\"nofollow\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cPressing Forward with the Book of Abraham\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"Permalink to Scriptures with Pictures: Methodology, Unexamined Assumptions, and the Study of the Book of Abraham\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/scriptures-with-pictures-methodology-unexamined-assumptions-and-the-study-of-the-book-of-abraham\/\" rel=\"nofollow\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cScriptures with Pictures: Methodology, Unexamined Assumptions, and the Study of the Book of Abraham\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/assessing-the-joseph-smith-papyri-an-introduction-to-the-historiography-of-their-acquisitions-translations-and-interpretations\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cAssessing the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Introduction to the Historiography of their Acquisitions, Translations, and Interpretations\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/shulem-one-of-the-kings-principal-waiters\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cShulem, One of the King\u2019s Principal Waiters\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/one-day-to-a-cubit\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cOne Day to a Cubit\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/a-note-on-chiasmus-in-abraham-322-23\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cA Note on Chiasmus in Abraham 3:22-23\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/the-scale-of-creation-in-space-and-time\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cThe Scale of Creation in Space and Time\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/isaiah-56-abraham-and-the-temple\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cIsaiah 56, Abraham, and the Temple\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormoninterpreter.com\/hagar-in-lds-scripture-and-thought\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cHagar in LDS Scripture and Thought\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\"><strong>***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t forget!<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/11\/this-saturday-the-temple-on-mount-zion.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cThis Saturday: \u2018The Temple on Mount Zion'\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #993300;\">***<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>More very good news for the Saints in Africa:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mormonnewsroom.com.gh\/article\/elder-andersen-presides-at-the-groundbreaking-of-abidjan-cote-d-ivoire-temple\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cElder Andersen Presides at the Groundbreaking of Abidjan C\u020fte d\u2019Ivoire Temple:\u00a0Sunny day of gladness\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\"><strong>***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Some may imagine that apostles and members of the First Presidency aren\u2019t subject to the same sorrows and adversities to which the rest of us are exposed. \u00a0A moment\u2019s thought should show that this isn\u2019t true. \u00a0But, if that\u2019s not enough, there\u2019s this bittersweet story:<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.deseretnews.com\/article\/900041021\/president-eyring-paints-to-capture-memories-of-his-wife-who-is-in-failing-health.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\u201cPresident Eyring paints to capture memories of his wife, who is in failing health\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 \u00a0 The real question is not whether Joseph Smith knew Egyptian\u2014no one has claimed that he did; or whether the book of Abraham is translated from the Book of Breathings\u2014that, by universal admission, is impossible; or whether Joseph Smith was interested in producing an Egyptian grammar\u2014he emphatically says that he was; or that the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Joseph Smith Papers Project and the Book of Abraham<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"&nbsp; &nbsp; The real question is not whether Joseph Smith knew Egyptian\u2014no one has claimed that he did; or whether the book of Abraham is translated\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/11\/the-joseph-smith-papers-project-and-the-book-of-abraham.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Joseph Smith Papers Project and the Book of Abraham\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&nbsp; &nbsp; The real question is not whether Joseph Smith knew Egyptian\u2014no one has claimed that he did; or whether the book of Abraham is translated\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2018\/11\/the-joseph-smith-papers-project-and-the-book-of-abraham.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sic et Non\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" 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