Item Detail
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18096
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Journal Article
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English
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Rees, Robert A.
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The Book of Mormon and Automatic Writing
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Journal of Book of Mormon Studies
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2006
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15
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1
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Provo, UT
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Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship
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2006
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4-17
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Some critics of the Book of Mormon have stated that it is a classic example of automatic writing. Automatic writing is a term used to describe a process where the author is simply a "conduit for some other intelligence." This kind of "spirit writing" may take place when the author is in a trance, sees a vision, or through the use of crystals, stones, or with some kind of device like a Oiuja board. Rees examines reasons why critics may see the Book of Mormon as an automatic text and then provides his own argument against this theory. Joseph Smith, unlike automatic writers, "never claimed that anyone was dictating to or communicating through him." He did state that he was translating a record from golden plates and this idea of a "tangible text" differs from automatic writings. In addition, the Book of Mormon contains information about Mesoamerican culture, and ancient travel and languages that was unknown at the time of its publication.
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5
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6
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Et Incarnatus Est : The Imperative for Book of Mormon Historicity
Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, and the American Renaissance : An Update
The Curious Case of Joseph Howard, Palmyra's Seventeen-Year-Old Somnium Preacher
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By the Hand of Mormon : The American Scripture that Launched a New World Religion
The Book of Mormon Reference Companion
The Book of Mormon and the American Revolution
The Prophet Puzzle : Interpretive Essays on Joseph Smith
Through the Arabian Desert to a Bountiful Land : Could Joseph Smith Have Known the Way?
What's in a Name? Book of Mormon Language, Names, and [Metonymic] Naming