1981 changes to book of mormon editions

The following statistics are derived from my computerized collation of the two manuscripts of the book of mormon the original and the printers manuscripts and 20 standard page 173 editions of the book of mormon fifteen lds editions, from 1830 to 1981, the 1858 wright edition, and four rlds editions, from 1874 to 1953. The maxwell institute study edition will be the first edition ever to combine the churchs current official version of the text 20 with the results of royal skousens groundbreaking book of mormon critical text project. However, there are numerous other changes which affect the doctrinal teachings of the book of mormon. This computerized collation will eventually be made available as volume 5 of the. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. Book of mormon 1981 salt lake city edition internet archive.

The introduction to the book of mormon the church of. For this edition, hundreds of grammatical changes and a few. Lds officials dont want readers to focus on the kind of overt statements about race that were in mcconkies 1981 summaries, he said. The community of christ edition still uses the code names. The text was restored in the 1981 edition of the book of mormon. Joseph smith translated the book of mormon into english through the. The first printed edition compared to the manuscripts and to the subsequent major lds english printed editions and that there was to be. Book of mormon editions 18301981 book of mormon central. We have not tried to show capitalization or punctuation changes in this study.

The change is not a modification of josephs translation, but restores omitted text which joseph translated. Book of mormon changes the fall of mormonism rich kelsey. Edition of the scriptures background the current printing masters of the 1979 edition of the king james version of the bible and the 1981 edition of the book of mormon, doctrine and covenants, and pearl of great price have deteriorated because of age and long use. Chapters in the 1830 edition were longer, in part because the book of mormon was printed in narrative rather than verse formwhat we would expect from a. Olivers handwriting also presented a special challenge to the typesetter, his r which looks like a palmer r and his n are difficult to distinguish, as are his. Much has been said recently about changes and modifications in this record but, unfortunately, most of it has been said by those who have been unfriendly toward both the book itself and the church which endorses it. Following is a very small sample of the changes in the book of mormon.

Changes in the book of mormon introduction juvenile. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421. Hardy writes, one of the most exciting developments in the study of the book of mormon over the past couple of decades is royal skousens critical text project, which analyzes all the changes that have occurred from the original manuscript through the current official edition 1981, and which also offers a scholarly reconstruction of the. Introduction to 3,9 changes in the book of mormon pdf version. Two major goals of each published edition of the book of mormon have been 1 to faithfully reproduce the text. Smith is full of bluff and bluster, and is a fraud. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to. After comparing the first edition of the book of mormon with the 1964 edition we marked the changes on the photocopies of the 1830 edition.

Book of mormon introduction change may reflect new. This edition contains corrections that seem appropriate to bring the material into conformity with prepublication manuscripts and early editions edited by the prophet joseph smith. Book of mormon 1981ether wikisource, the free online. When the church of jesus christ of latterday saints issued a new edition of the book of mormon in 1981, a change was made to the text of 2 nephi 30. This change was originally made in the 1840 edition, lost, and then restored again in the 1981 edition. Book of mormontextual changeswhite changed to pure. An analysis of selected changes in major editions of the. As the title indicates, this thesis is a consideration of selected changes that have been made in major editions of the book of mormon. Original 1830 book of mormon page numbers with corresponding 1981 verses.

Church removes racial references in book of mormon. Skousen, editor of a 2009 yale edition of the book of mormon, sees the heading changes as a nod to contemporary readers. Editions 18301981 the book of mormon critical text. Behold, the virgin which thou seest is the mother of god after the manner of the flesh. The following graphic is a list of major changes in the book of mormon and was compiled by scott faulring and printed in the seventh east press, october 21, 1981, provo, utah. This type of error is common in publishing, and some translators and scribes of the bible have made similar errors. Lds leaders reinserted the omitted words into all editions since 1981. This area of mormon memorabilia provides a listing of books relating to mormonism or religion. Book of mormon 1981 wikisource, the free online library. On july 11, 20, i was surprised to get an email from a community of christ colleague informing me that the smithpettit foundation was publishing john s. It carried a small story on a change to a single word in the introduction of the book of mormon in the recent doubleday edition. Paperback published in 1979, kindle edition published in 20, kindle edition published in 2012, publ.

Textual variations in the supplemental text of the book of. Joseph smith declared that the book of mormon was the most correct of any. To hardy, skousen has created a corpus of textual analysis that will last for many generations to come. Some minor errors in the text have been perpetuated in past editions of the book of mormon. Items are arranged in alphabetical title sequence images not scaled. Book of mormon editions 18301981 from the encyclopedia of mormonism. Crossreferencing footnotes to the bible, the book of mormon, the doctrine and covenants, and the pearl of great price are included, as is an ldsoriented 600page topical index and the churchs bible dictionary. The differences in the chapter divisions between the first edition of the book of mormon and the 1981 edition are listed in this fourpage chart. The man responsible for punctuating the first edition of the book of mormon. Edited by a committee headed by members of the quorum of the twelve. One expert says these additions to mormon scripture show. The original 1830 edition, book of mormon had s of. The prophet joseph smith said, i told the brethren that the book of mormon was. The text of this version is of the lds 1981 edition.

I think it would be better having the chapters each split onto a separate page, just as you split it into the separate books book of 1 nephi, etc. In 1981 the lds church published a new edition of the book of mormon, making a number of additional. An account written by the hand of mormon, upon plates taken from the plates of nephi. A oneword change was made to the introduction in the latest edition of the book of mormon published by doubleday. And he said unto me, behold, the virgin which thou seest, is the mother of. Most modern editions of the book have been divided into chapters and verses. The quality of the typeface is no longer as clear and sharp as it should be. Many of his observations were included as improvements in the 1981 lds edition of the book of mormon. That change takes into account details of book of mormon demography which are not.

Four editions were published during joseph smiths lifetime. Until 1981, editions of the book used code names for certain people and places in those sections that dealt with the united order. The 1981 edition is also the edition which has been most read by mormons and nonmormons, especially since president bensons push to flood the earth or at least, thrift store bookshelves with the book of mormon. For this edition, hundreds of grammatical changes and a few emendations were made in the text. Presenting the maxwell institute study edition of the book. Debate renewed with change in book of mormon introduction. Understanding textual changes in the book of mormon. The 1981 lds edition replaced these with the real names, relegating the code names to footnotes. And, most recently, the 1981 edition was prepared under the supervision of the. To see a listing of our latest lds book acquisitions, please click here. Over the last 178 years, seven major editions of the book of mormon have been published by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Each chapter includes a paragraphlong heading that summarizes the contents of the chapter from a mormon perspective. The book 3,9 changes in the book of mormon is a reproduction of an original book of mormon with the changes marked, and is available through us.

A good overview of the various editions of the book of mormon that have been published since 1830 is found in an article by royal skousen in the encyclopedia of mormonism, vol. In reality, though, the kind of stylistic accuracy achieved by these changes has little to do with what joseph meant when he called the book of mormon the most correct of any book on earth. Joseph originally taught that jesus and the father were the same. Key passages on deity in the original 1830 text of the book of mormon were changed in the 1837 edition to reflect joseph smiths changing doctrine of deity. Church has the handwritten printers copy, which was given to. Dingers significant textual changes in the book of mormon. Continuing with the textual changes of these early book of mormon editions and why such changes were necessary in a work joseph smith claimed was the most perfect book written. They also reset the type thus changing the page numbers from the previous editions. The change in the 1981 edition seems to be an attempt to bring the book of mormon up to speed with the 1978 revelation that allowed black members of the church to hold the priesthood. One word can speak volumes says this mornings salt lake tribune.

A oneword change in the introduction to a 2006 edition of the book of. Mcconkie wrote the introduction in 1981 for the then new edition of the book of mormon and it contained this statement. This change was originally made in the 1840 edition but because subsequent editions were based off the european editions which followed the 1837 edition, the change did not get perpetuated until the preparation of the 1981 edition. This edition contains corrections that seem appropriate to bring the material into conformity with prepublication manuscripts and early editions. This computerized collation will eventually be made available as volume 5 of the critical text of the book of mormon. Therefore, the text is an exact photographic reproduction of the first edition of the book of mormon, and the handwriting shows the changes that would have to be made in the text to bring it into conformity. In 1981 the lds church published a new edition of the book of mormon, making a number of additional changes in the text. Changes in the book of mormon joseph smith said that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to god by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book history of the church, vol. The text appears again in double columns, but new introductory material, chapter summaries, and footnotes are provided. Book of mormontextual changeswords missing in alma 32. This edition is a major reworking of the 1920 edition. One important framework for understanding the book is to examine its publishing history. It introduces the book of mormon to the modern reader by providing background information and a description of the book.

Editions of book of mormon student manual by the church of. Book of mormon editions 18301981 brigham young university. Changes in the book of mormon is mormonism christian. The 1837 edition was used for the european editions, which were in turn used as the basis for the 1879 and 1920 editions, so the change was lost until the 1981. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon.