Item Detail
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22049
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3
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8
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English
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Joseph Smith as a Creative Interpreter of the Bible
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Dialogue : A Journal of Mormon Thought
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Summer 2010
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43
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2
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64-85
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"There is much to be learnt from Joseph Smith's implicit criticism of the Bible. He belongs to the large number of serious and sincere readers who wrestle with the problems that the Bible poses to them, since it is not exactly the kind of book it is mostly postulated to be. The parallels to mainstream conservatism of today are very interesting. Even more intriguing, perhaps, are the parallels to the apologetics of the early Church fathers. And yet it is not just the conservative camp that provides points of comparison. Champions of egalitarianism and tolerance have resorted to far-reaching "improvements" of the biblical language in modern translations that try to avoid patriarchalism and prejudice. In Smith's work one can, as with a magnifying glass, study the mechanisms operative in much apologetic interpretation of the Bible. Most important of all, his alterations point to real problems. Some are minor, problems only for those who insist on an infallible Bible. Others, however, are major issues for any interpreter, such as the continuity or discontinuity of the "salvation history." Joseph Smith asks genuine questions and perceives genuine problems. Even those who do not accept all his answers would profit from taking his questions seriously." [From author's conclusion]
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An Introduction to Mormonism
'A Plainer Translation' : Joseph Smith's Translation of the Bible : A History and Commentary
By the Hand of Mormon : The American Scripture that Launched a New World Religion
Joseph Smith : Rough Stone Rolling
Joseph Smith's New Translation of the Bible
Mormon Answer to Skepticism : Why Joseph Smith Wrote the Book of Mormon
Mormons and the Bible : The Place of the Latter-day Saints in American Religion
Reflections on Mormonism : Judaeo-Christian Parallels