Joseph Smith Egyptian Papyri Mormon Endowment Masonic Handshake Kinderhook Plates

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32
INTRODUCTION

Welcome to my personal web page, A Close Look at Mormonism. If this is the first time you visited this page, I suggest you read my introduction. If you have visited my site before, you may want to check out the most recent updates.

You can find information at this site by using an alphabetical index of pages or scrolling down to view additional links. This web site covers many topics, including the Book of Abraham and the Eygptian papyrus, Joseph Smith's life, and the Mormon Endowment.

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TOPICS OF DISCUSSION


Book of Abraham

PAPYRI PURCHASED The Egyptian papyrus that Joseph Smith connected to the LDS Book of Abraham was purchased from a traveling mummy exhibitor in Kirtland, Ohio. At this time Joseph Smith developed the Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar so that he could translate the papyri. Only in the late 1960's was some of the Egyptian papyri re-discovered. The found papyri and the Book of Abraham facsimiles have been examined by Egyptologists. They indicate that the found papyri and facsimiles have nothing to do with Abraham. Analysis of the Book of Abraham facsimile no. 2 proves that Joseph Smith had the facsimile altered from its original. Joseph copied text and figures from the Book of the Breathings and Book of the Dead scrolls, and even had these portions numbered so that he could give an interpretation.
PAPYRI TRANSLATED
EGYPTIAN
ALPHABET AND GRAMMAR
BOOK OF ABRAHAM
FACSIMILES
BOOK OF ABRAHAM
FACSIMILE NO. 2
ALTERED
EGYPTOLOGIST'S VIEWS
COPIES OF PAPYRI

Joseph Smith

DENIES AND PRACTICES
POLYGAMY
In LDS Sunday School many Mormons will only hear a sanitized version of Joseph Smith's history. Most Mormons will not learn that Jospeh drank beer and wine on numerous occassions, or that he obtained a liquor license from the City of Nauvoo. Nor, will most Mormons be taught about his polyandrous relationships with married women, or his violation of Illinois State law and the Doctrine and Covenants in his practice of polygamy. What's surprising is that during Joseph Smith's lifetime, he never publicly taught polygamy. Joseph Smith and the other LDS Church leaders maintained a public denial of polygamy while practicing it privately.

In LDS Sunday School most will hear about the persecution of the Mormons in great detail. Yet, one will likely not learn that Joseph Smith planned agression against the state of Missouri and the United States government. In fact, Joseph Smith was charged with and indicted on the charge of treason in Missouri. However, he escaped from jail prior to his conviction on these charges. Joseph Smith also ordered the desctruction of a town newspaper, Nauvoo Expositor, which exposed his private doctrine and practice of polygamy.

MARRIES OTHER
MEN'S WIVES
VIOLATES LAW AND
DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS
ESCAPES FROM JAIL
AFTER TREASON ENDICTMENT
PLANS AGRESSION
ON GOVERNMENT
DRINKS ALCOHOL
OWNS LIQOUR LICENSE
DESTROYS NEWSPAPER

Masonry and the LDS Endowment

KIRTLAND ENDOWMENT Many Mormons are completely unaware of the Masonic similarities to the LDS Endowment. In my view, one of the reasons for this lack of knowledge is books like, The Truth About "The God Makers" by Gilbert Scharffs, that claims that there are not "the slightest resemblance" between the two rituals. What is so surprising about the development of the LDS endowment is that the Masonic similarities did not show up in the ceremony until after Joseph Smith became a Mason in March 1842. The Kirtland endowment did not contain the many Masonic similarities. Furthermore, Joseph's own temple records indicate that he received the endowment about two months after he became a Mason.
ANTI-MASONRY IN
BOOK OF MORMON
MASONIC SIMILARITIES
TO ENDOWMENT
LDS ENDOWMENT
WEB PAGE


MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS


COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS TAKE A MORMON
HISTORY QUIZ
NAUVOO CHARTER
FULL TEXT
KINDERHOOK PLATES
TITHING ARCHIVE OF POSTS
(UPDATED 9/21/97)
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A Close Look at Mormonism
Last Updated February 12, 1999
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Created by James David
URL: http://www.mindspring.com/~engineer_my_dna/mormon/


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