The Book of Mormon (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Reviewing a religious scripture feels somewhat strange and awkward. Would you review the Bible or the Koran? At the same time, it's difficult to escape the Book of Mormon, just as you can't seem to get rid of those LDS missonaries roaming up and down the country on their bicycles, with their "Elder Johnson" nametags and short haircuts. They speak pretty good Swedish too, albeit with a terrible accent. By the way, here in Sweden, the LDS Church wants to look vaguely "politically correct", so they even use young women as missionaries. "Sister Johnson", I believe?

Many Swedes have seen the Book of Mormon. But how many have actually read it? Very few, I think. I might be the only one. By the way, did I mention that I have "Lamanite" ancestry? Might impress the sisters.

So what can I say about the Book of Mormon? First, it's important to realize that this book isn't the whole of Mormonism. In fact, the more peculiar and exotic doctrines of the Mormons are not to be found in this book. In order to get a real feel for Mormonism, you must also read "Doctrine and Covenants" and "Pearl of Great Price". Another good idea might be to read a book about Mormons, written by an outsider. To take just one example, the Book of Mormon condemns polygamy. Later, Joseph Smith got other ideas on the subject...

As for the Book of Mormon itself, it's easy to see how it might have inspired settlers in the Wild West during the 19th century. Indeed, it comes across as something of a settler Bible, being a story about migrations from the Old World to America, wars between Whites ("Nephites") and Indians ("Lamanites"), and above all, the conviction that America is God's chosen nation. For it's quite obvious that the "Nephites" and their semi-democratic republic is really a symbol for 19th century frontier America, whatever else it might be besides. And while many non-Mormons find the book tedious and repetitive, I can imagine that it might have looked very different for those who really "lived their faith" in Jackson County, Nauvoo or Utah.

But is it true? I guess that's the $10,000 question. I for one don't believe it. The Book of Mormon is purported to be a translation of a real document found by the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith inside Hill Cumorah. However, modern archeology has completely failed to verify any of its claims. Besides, the original document was supposedly taken to heaven by an angel, making it impossible for historians to examine it! The Book of Mormon is essentially a hyper-diffusionist work, claiming that civilization was brought to the Americas by large-scale migrations of Old World peoples. And while these peoples were presumably Semitic, the Book of Mormon portrays them as lily White. Indeed, the darker skin-color of the American Indians ("Lamanites") is said to be a divine curse. Of course, these notions of racial superiority over the natives, might also have appealed to the White settlers at the frontier. Even Whites who for pragmatic reasons wanted to reach some kind of accommodation with the Indians - the Mormons surely wanted this - nevertheless felt superior to them. In the Book of Mormon, "good" Indians are sometimes converted to Christianity and hence become peaceful, and in some cases, even get their White skin-color back.

The Book of Mormon is thus best analyzed and understood in its 19th century historical context. It's indeed "another testament of Jesus Christ", but it's a testament ghost-written by Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet.

And it came to pass that, as a resident of Salt Lake City, I received a free copy of this book from a neighbor. It came to pass, yeah verily, that I did open its contents and peruse within. Yeah, I fell asleep exceedingly quick. When I came to awake, though, yeah, I did read many of its chapters, which attempt to rewrite accepted anthropological conclusions about the origins of Native Americans. They are transplanted Jews, not Asians? They are cursed with dark skin, not whitesome and delightsome as the Nephites were? It came to pass that I became troubled that so many people could believe such bunk. Yeah, for there is greater wisdom to be found in the writings of Darwin. But lo, he did not write his words on plates of gold that disappeared into the heavens. And, yeah, as I pondered these matters my heart grew sad indeed. Yeah, exceedingly heavy did it grow. But, as I wished to be kind to my neighbors who gave me this book, I began again to search for wisdoms it might contain. But, yeah, the language was so stiff--nay, exceedingly so--that it came to pass that I did fall asleep once more.

I read this book (actually the version available from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) just after my sophomore year in college. My parent had joined the church when I was younger, but I didn't have much truck with their new religion. I returned home from college that summer determined to get my parents out of this "Mormon cult" or get in with both feet. In the novel "Exodus", advice is given about how to understand the Jewish faith. Read the first five books of the bible, it says. Well, I resolved to read the Book of Mormon. As you can guess, that did it for me. It took some doing, and I was older than the usual age, but I served a wonderful mission for the church in Europe, and have been an enthusiastic "Mormon" ever since.

I know of the charges made against the book - indeed, I investigated most of them before committing myself to the faith. One is that it's had 4,000 changes. Well, that's true if you count dividing it into numbered verses - which was done long after the Bible was first published, too. That has nothing to do with the truthfulness of either volume. In 1977, the LDS church carefully reviewed the early manuscripts, corrected proofreading errors and other mistakes that had slipped in over the 147 years, and produced the most accurate edition ever. Not long after that edition came out, my family and I read the Book of Mormon again, aloud to each other. I followed along with my old treasure, the early edition I'd read in college. The few changes I spotted are a tribute to the good editing the book's received over the years.

Another charge quotes Mark Twain, that it's "chloroform in print." Actually, the place most readers get bogged down is after the first fifty pages, where the author quotes, almost verbatim, several chapters from Isaiah. Yep, the hard stuff's the part that's from the Bible. No one I know of claims the Bible isn't true 'cause it's a bit hard to understand at times!

However, the test of any book of this type lies in what it says. I return to it almost daily, and inevitably find myself renewed by the message of Christ and its marvelous telling in the Book of Mormon.