Book of Mormon/Witnesses/Hypnotism

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Book of Mormon Witnesses
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Overview: Summary Three Witnesses: Character/stability Faithful? Real gold plates? Hypnosis? Strangite parallels? God told David Whitmer to leave? View of the plates: Literal? "Eye of faith"? "Spiritual eye"? Result in death? Eight Witnesses: Eight witnesses Supernatural power? Other Witnesses: Other witnesses
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Criticism

Source(s) of the criticism

• Grant H. Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2002), chapter 6.

Response

David Whitmer—like the other witnesses—had been charged with being deluded into thinking he had seen an angel and the plates. One observer remembers when David was such accused, and said:

“How well and distinctly I remember the manner in which Elder Whitmer arose and drew himself up to his full height—a little over six feet—and said, in solemn and impressive tones: ‘No sir! I was not under any hallucination, nor was I deceived! I saw with these eyes, and I heard with these ears! I know whereof I speak!’^[1]

Endnotes

1. [note]  Richard Lloyd Anderson, Investigating the Book of Mormon Witnesses (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1981), 88. ISBN 0877478465.