The truth of these things

Effective learning requires faith in the source of the knowledge. In the classroom most people trust in the knowledge of the teacher and the veracity of his/her teachings, and this goes a long way to promote effective learning. In contrast, if we are always doubting that the lesson has any value to us, we will be unlikely to benefit. In this way, the things I learn from the Book of Mormon have come because I have exercised faith in its truthfulness. As I have done so, the knowledge of its correctness has continually increased over many years of study, and my soul is filled with joy and gratitude for such a pure source of truth.

Instead of saying 'I found the truth!', I should rather say 'I have caught hold of a galloping horse called truth!' My continued effort to hold on for the ride has been a central focus of my life ever since I was introduced to the Book of Mormon more than 20 years ago. These words of the LDS poet John Jaques (1827-1900) capture my feelings:

Oh say, what is truth?

Oh say, what is truth? 'Tis the fairest gem

That the riches of worlds can produce,

And priceless the value of truth will be when

The proud monarch's costliest diadem

Is counted but dross and refuse.

Yes, say, what is truth? 'Tis the brightest prize

To which mortals or Gods can aspire.

Go search in the depths where it glittering lies,

Or ascend in pursuit to the loftiest skies:

'Tis an aim for the noblest desire.

The sceptre may fall from the despot's grasp

When with winds of stern justice he copes.

But the pillar of truth will endure to the last,

And its firm-rooted bulwarks outstand the rude blast

And the wreck of the fell tyrant's hopes.

Then say, what is truth? 'Tis the last and the first,

For the limits of time it steps o'er.

Tho the heavens depart and the earth's fountains burst,

Truth, the sum of existence, will weather the worst,

Eternal, unchanged, evermore.

#272 from the hymnal of

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

At times, the pursuit of truth can be scary, because we don’t always know ahead of time whether it will be good news or bad news. Perhaps it seems more desirable to not know and remain in ignorance. In reality, there is no reason to be afraid because the truth is good news.

The good news is that God lives, and we can absolutely know Him. But there is more good news. He is a loving God, the father of our spirits, a forgiving God, and His plan and objective is to help us be happy.

“... men are, that they might have joy.” (2 Nephi 2:27)

Not only happy but also eternal:

“For behold, this is my work and my glory—
to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” (Moses 1:39)

Coupled with the knowledge that God loves us, wants us to be happy, has infinite mercy, and has a plan for us to return to Him, the truth is actually very sweet. God is our loving Father. The purpose of our coming to earth is to gain experience, make choices, become part of families, gain physical bodies and ultimately return back to our Heavenly home. In fact God has provided us with everything we need to gain this eternal life, including a beautiful world, good people, and most importantly a Savior who loves us so much that He gave His life so that death would have no lasting effect on us nor on our families.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

All of this is wonderful news. But how do I know it is true? For me, it is because of the Book of Mormon, whose claimed origins are fantastic and almost unbelievable. Yet the purpose of the Book of Mormon is clearly stated throughout its pages. The central goal is to convince all men and women that indeed Jesus is the Christ (title page, 2 Ne 25:23, and throughout). That is to say that the good news of the gospel is true, and the Book of Mormon is available precisely for the purpose of convincing us of that truth, if we desire to know it.

A central principle, again stated within the pages of the book itself, is that a testimony of the book can only come through the witness of the Holy Spirit (Moroni 10). Elder Dallin H. Oaks, a leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints stated: “It is our position that secular evidence can neither prove nor disprove the authenticity of the Book of Mormon. Its authenticity depends, as it says, on a witness of the Holy Spirit.”

Although I have indeed obtained this witness through study and prayer, I do not always feel the loving, positive, reassuring spirit that tells me that God’s arms are around me. When I feel troubled with doubts, I have learned to press forward with faith, holding tight to the overwhelming evidence and understanding I have accumulated that these things are true. The fruits of that faith always follow.

The miracle of the Book of Mormon

The fundamental question regarding the authenticity of the Book of Mormon is: how did it come about? The spectacular account given by Joseph Smith is provided in his history (Joseph Smith History chapter 1), and involves a vision he had when he was 14 years old in which God the Father and Jesus Christ personally appeared to him in answer to a sincere prayer and a firm desire to know the truth (James 1:5). Gordon B. Hinckley (former President of the LDS church) explained: “Our whole strength rests on the validity of that vision. It either occurred or it did not occur. If it did not, then this work is a fraud. If it did, then it is the most important and wonderful work under the heavens.”

The Book of Mormon claims to have been translated by the power of God from an ancient record written on gold plates. The circumstances of this translation process; the personal witnesses of those involved in the translation/dictation/printing procedure, the written testimonies of those who actually handled the plates, and the history surrounding this singular achievement, form a compelling case for the veracity of Smith’s claims.

But accepting that the Book of Mormon is true cannot be a trivial process. On the one hand I am tempted to record all of the evidences I have accumulated over my lifetime to convince everyone I know to embrace the book and become members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. But alas it is not purely a matter of academic persuasion. As stated in the Book of Mormon itself, it takes hope, faith, study, and prayer to gain such a conviction. It takes work, and in fact Latter-day Saints know that once we have gained what we call a testimony, we must strive diligently to keep this spiritual witness in our hearts. But to begin, it only takes a bit of hope. Hope that there is a God, a forgiving God, and that He did provide a way for us to gain peace in the world, eternal happiness and life after death.

Joseph Smith claimed 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.” If this book were a fraud, would it stand the test of time, and would millions of men and women revere it as the “keystone of [their] religion”? After nearly 200 years would the religion founded upon this scripture still embrace it as the most correct book? Would every principle contained in the book remain a core part of the teachings of that church? If it were fraudulent, there would certainly be at least some principles and teachings in its 531 pages that would no longer be included in the teachings of that church. And most importantly, would adherence to the teachings and principles of that book bring people, as promised, closer to God, convince them to do good, to live peaceably, to love one another, and to believe in Jesus Christ?

To me the miracle is that the Book of Mormon has indeed withstood the test of time, and with flying colors! The fact to celebrate here is that every teaching and principle in that book remains a core part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught throughout the present-day LDS church: in worship services, Sunday school, conferences, meetings, councils, religion classes, and many other forums. The converse is also true, that every eternal teaching of the church is consistent with (if not found directly within) the teachings of the Book of Mormon, as well as the bible “as far as it is translated correctly” (8th article of faith; see also 1 Ne 13:40).

Joseph Smith dictated the Book of Mormon primarily over the course of only three months in 1829. With the release and scholarly documentation of journals and other primary source documents in the ‘Joseph Smith Papers’, the veracity of the claims about the time period and the nature of the dictation (e.g., as a single pass through the book without any reference materials) is more evident than ever. Could Joseph Smith have achieved this fraudulently? To that question I joyfully answer that no, he absolutely could not have fabricated the book. I know that his account is true, and that he did it by the power and gift of God.