Translating the Book of Mormon
The Official Essay about the translation of the Book of Mormon from the Gold Plates (document)
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/book-of-mormon-translation
The official statement by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, addressing the history and process of Joseph Smith and his scribes as they translated the gold plates in the Book of Mormon.
A Rabbi's Take on the Book of Mormon | Joe Charnes (32 min)
Discover compelling evidence for the divinity of the Book of Mormon in this extended cut of Rabbi Joe Charnes interview for “A Marvelous Work”. What does a Jewish scholar think about the Book of Mormon that claims to be written by Jews transplanted from Jerusalem to the Americas and written in a reformed Egyptian with roots in Hebrew? Does the Book of Mormon seem to have Hebrew beginnings?
The Innovative and Revolutionary Book of Mormon Critical Text Project (2hr 11 min)
Royal Skousen and Stanford Carmack spoke at a celebration for the completion of the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project. This project is an incredibly extensive review and examination of the original manuscript of the Book of Mormon translation. Many, many clues are revealed that show that Joseph Smith was translating the Gold Plates directly under the direction of God. Their work completely dismantles any claims that Joseph Smith copied someone else’s work or fabricated the book. This is an incredibly detailed look at the original works of Joseph Smith and his scribes.
Tight & loose translation theories & naturalistic explanations with Royal Skousen (1 hr 3 min)
In part 2 of my interview with Royal Skousen we discuss more questions with the Book of Mormon from: changes in the Book of Mormon text, did early modern English exist in rural communities? Revivalist language in the text, thoughts on loose translation and naturalistic theories? Exploring deeply the fact that everything found in the Book of Mormon has a reasonable and understandable explanation. In the end, the conclusion is always the same, that Joseph Smith clearly translated a book that he was simply incapable of creating. A book that has inspired millions.
Joseph Smith's Seer Stones (1 hr)
An in-depth look at the spiritual tools Joseph Smith used to translate the Book of Mormon and other holy scriptures. Urim and Thummim, seer stones, peep stones etc are all explored and explained.
The Translation of the Book of Mormon - Interview with Royal Skousen (52 min)
No one has done more research on the original documents of the translation of the Book of Mormon. Royal’s research has truly demonstrated that Joseph Smith was a tool of translation of the Book of Mormon not the author, making the book an authentic ancient scripture from prophets of God from the American continent. Since this interview was filmed, Royal Skousen has done much more research that corrects some mischaracterizations of the Book of Mormon witnesses. Consult his recent publications in the Book of Mormon Critical Text volumes for his latest scholarship.
Reformed Egyptian, the Language of the Book of Mormon (document)
William J. Hamblin FARMS Review 19/1 (2007): 31–35. 1550-3194 (print), 2156-8049 (online) This article discusses the term reformed Egyptian as used in the Book of Mormon. Many critics claim that reformed Egyptian does not exist; however, languages and writing systems inevitably change over time, making the Nephites’ language a reformed version of Egyptian. Various instances of this kind of change in language and usage of Egyptian are documented.
