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Revision as of 07:31, 5 January 2009


Claims made in "Chapter 8: Big Trouble In Little Missouri"
A FAIR Analysis of:
Criticism of Mormonism/Books
A work by author: Richard Abanes
 Claims made in "Chapter 10: A New Beginning"

Claims made in "Chapter 9: March to Martyrdom"

[I]ntellectual reasoning and logical thought never had played more than a minor role in their belief system.
—One Nation Under Gods, p. 172

∗       ∗       ∗
Page Claim Response Author's sources

171 epigraph, 542n1 (HB) 540n1 (PB)
  • Hardback edition:

"I combat the errors of the ages;...I solve mathematical problems of universities, with truth—diamond truth; and God is my 'right hand man.'...[God] will make me be God to you in his stead,...and if you don't like it, you must lump it....I have more to boast of than ever any man had....I boast that no man ever did such a work as I."
Joseph Smith
History of the Church, 1844

  • Paperback edition:

"I combat the errors of the ages;...I solve mathematical problems of universities, with truth—diamond truth; and God is my "right hand man" [1843]. God made Aaron to be the mouth piece for the children of Israel, and He will make me be god to you in His stead [1844]. I have more to boast of than ever any man had....I boast that no man ever did such a work as I [1844]."
Joseph Smith
History of the Church

  • Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 6:78, 319-320, 408-409. 319-320, 408-409 Volume 6 link

172

 "...for Joseph, his followers were more than willing to accept any excuse he might give them...intellectual reasoning and logical thought never had played more than a minor role in their belief system."
  • N/A

173

 "[I]n lieu of Jesus Christ, who would reign supreme at his second coming, Smith installed himself as Zion's dictator."
  • N/A

174

 "[Joseph] had wealth, power, admiration, and authority."
  • N/A

174, n17

 Brigham Young said that Joseph Smith's character "was easily on par with Jesus Christ's."
  •  The author's claim is false Brigham did not say Joseph's character was "easily on par with Jesus Christ's"...he said that Joseph's character "stands as fair as that of any man's mentioned in the Bible." Brigham was comparing Joseph Smith with other prophets. (see below):

"Well, now, examine the character of the Savior, and examine the characters of those who have written the Old and New Testaments; and then compare them with the character of Joseph Smith, the founder of this work—the man whom God called and to whom he gave the keys of Priesthood, and through whom he has established his Church and kingdom for the last time, and you will find that his character stands as fair as that of any man's mentioned in the Bible. We can find no person who presents a better character to the world when the facts are known than Joseph Smith, jun., the prophet, and his brother, Hyrum Smith, who was murdered with him." (emphasis added)

175, 543n21 (HB)

 Joseph Smith is considered "as important to their spirituality as Jesus Christ." "...the 'grandeur of Joseph Smith's life' was noted as the all-important truth that the world needed to hear. Levi's prayer was that thousands would turn not to God, but to Joseph.'"
  • 21. Levi Edgar Young, letter dated April 14, 1961. Quoted in Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Mormonism—Shadow or Reality?, 5th edition, (Salt Lake City: Utah Lighthouse Ministry, 1987), 252.

175, 541n23

 Brigham Young "twisted" John 4:3 in order to apply it to Joseph.

175, 542n24

 Joseph "undoubtedly suffered from the mental pathology associated with narcissism."
  • Robert D. Anderson, Inside the Mind of Joseph Smith: Psychobiography and the Book of Mormon, xxxix, 222-242.

176

 Hezekiah McKune, Sophia Lewis and Levi Lewis stated that Joseph claimed that he was "nearly equal to" or "as good as" Jesus Christ.

 [needs work]

177, 544n29 (HB)

 Joseph Smith declared: "I am the only man that has been able to keep the whole church together....Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it."
  • History of the Church, vol. 408-409.

178, 544n34 (HB)

 Joseph claimed: "I wrestled with William Wall, the most expert wrestler in Ramus, and threw him."
  • History of the Church, vol. 5, 302.

179, 544n36 (HB)

 "Smith fought and boasted again of his strength, saying: 'I feel as strong as a giant....I pulled up with one hand the strongest man that could be found. Then two men tried, but they could not pull me up.'"
  • History of the Church, vol. 5, 466.

178, 542n39

 Jedediah Grant said that "Smith hit the [Baptist] preacher and threw him to the ground so violently that the minister 'whirled round a few times, like a duck shot in the head'" (emphasis added)
  • Note that Joseph challenged the preacher to a wrestling match, which was accepted—the author omits this detail. Instead, he says that Joseph hit him. Let's look at what Jedediah Grant actually said (the portion extracted by the author is highlighted in bold):

Before the Baptist priest, I have referred to, came to Nauvoo, he had heard brother William O. Clark, who could preach a bible and a half at a sermon, and could use the fashionable old tone, the blessed old tone. This Baptist imbibed a notion that we were as much ahead of his ideas of piety, and that our tone was as much longer than his, as the strength of the arguments produced by Clark were stronger than his; and supposed that our sanctimoniousness was co-equal with what he considered the merits of our doctrine.

Under these impressions he came to Nauvoo, and was introduced to the Prophet. In the meantime some person came up that brother Joseph would have a talk with, but while doing this he kept his eye upon the stranger, on this priest. After he got through chatting, the Baptist stood before him, and folding his arms said, "Is it possible that I now flash my optics upon a Prophet, upon a man who has conversed with my Savior?" "Yes," says the Prophet, "I don't know but you do; would not you like to wrestle with me?" That, you see, brought the priest right on to the thrashing floor, and he turned a summerset right straight. After he had whirled round a few times, like a duck shot in the head, he concluded that his piety had been awfully shocked, even to the centre, and went to the Prophet to learn why he had so shocked his piety. The Prophet commenced and showed him the follies of the world, and the absurdity of the long tone, and that he had a super-abundant stock of sanctimoniousness.

181-182

 The commissioned officers in the Nauvoo Legion were "given law-making powers."
  • No source provided.

182, 542n46

 "In some ways the militia was a resurrection of the Missouri Danites."
  • Hosea Stout, On the Mormon Frontier: The Diary of Hosea Stout, Juanita Brooks, ed., vol. 1, 140-141, 197, 259.

183

 "Where were all those rights enumerated in the Declaration of Independence?"
  • One would assume that the author probably meant to say the "Constitution" or the "Bill of Rights."
  • None

186-187, 544n70

 Joseph set up a "shadow-government" called the "Council of Fifty" for the purpose of organizing the "political kingdom of God in preparation for the second coming of Christ."
  • Woodruff, in Kenny, under March 11, 1844, vol. 2, 366.

188, 544n78

 The Council of Fifty made Joseph "King and Ruler over Israel."
  • John Taylor, "A Revelation on the Kingdom of God in the Last Days given through President John Taylor at Salt Lake City," June 27, 1882, reprinted in Fred C. Coliier, ed., Unpublished Revelations, vol. 1, 133.

188

 "Smith no longer had to wait for the result of any kind of earthly presidential election. Mormon leaders already considered him the legitimate, God-ordained rule over humanity.
  • It this is true, then why did he bother to continue to run for President?
  • Author's opinion.

189, 545n83

 Latter-day Saints believed that "the only acceptable government would be a global theocracy." Joseph said "It has been the design of Jehovah, from the commencement of the world, and is his purpose now, to regulate the affairs of the world...to stand as head of the universe, and take the reigns of government into his own hands."
  • Joseph Smith, "The Government of God," Times and Seasons, July 15, 1842, vol. 3, no. 18, 856-857.

189

 Joseph's "coronation as king of the world."

191

 Joseph "may have commissioned one of his Danites—Orrin Porter Rockwell—to kill Missouri's ex-governor..."
  • Joseph denied this
  • Writs trying to extradite him in conjunction with Bogg's attempted assassination were quashed by non-LDS courts.[2]
  • This is the fallacy of probability
  • No source provided.

191

 D&C 98:31 justified the murder of personal enemies.

192, 546n98

 Porter Rockwell admitted that he had tried to kill Boggs.
  • Orrin Porter Rockwell. Quoted in Harold Schindler, Orrin Porter Rockwell, Man of God, Son of Thunder, 80.
  • Richard S. Van Wagoner and Steven C. Walker, A Book of Mormons, 250.

192, 546n99

 Joseph Smith was arrested twice for his alleged role in Boggs' assasination attempt, but "excaped on both occasions."
  • Hallwas and Launius, Cultures in Conflict, 88-89.

Endnotes

  1. [note] Hugh W. Nibley, Tinkling Cymbals and Sounding Brass: The Art of Telling Tales About Joseph Smith and Brigham Young (Vol. 11 of the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley), edited by David J. Whittaker, (Salt Lake City, Utah : Deseret Book Company ; Provo, Utah : Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1991), 128. ISBN 0875795161. GL direct link
  2. [note]  Richard L. Bushman, Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling (New York: Knopf, 2005), NEED CITE. [citation needed]

Further reading

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{{To learn more box:responses to: Benjamin Park}} To learn more about responses to: Benjamin Park edit
{{To learn more box:responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith}} To learn more about responses to: Bible versus Joseph Smith edit
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