In 1912, a letter about the book of abraham was published by arthur cruttenden mace, assistant curator in the department of egyptian art in new yorks metropolitan museum of art. Hes always been one of my favorite political, american figures. John gee lds egyptologist a guide to the joseph smith papyri. When napoleon invaded egypt in 1798, he brought with him a small army of scientists and artists. Abraham and osiris facsimile 3, figure 1 pearl of great. This subsection is taken from kevin mathies writings where he analyzes the facsimiles from the boa with what egyptologists say they mean. An ancient witness for the book of moses by jeffrey bradshaw duration. Kevin barney s chapter on the book of abraham understanding the egyptian facsimiles through a semitic lens kevin barney s chapter, the facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources in astronomy, papyrus, and covenant, edited by john gee and brian m. Nonlds egyptologist, robert ritner regularly shares his opinion on issues relating to the book of abraham. The above donut chart shows percentages of the book of abraham section of letter to a ces director that fairmormon is in agreement, disagreement, and neutral on if one assumes that fairmormons undisputed silence is acceptance of the facts, fairmormon agrees with 90.
The book of abraham by common consent, a mormon blog. Kevin barney posits that the book of abraham material was passed on through the generations from abraham to jews of the 2nd century b. Latterday saint descriptions of the historical background to the joseph smith papyri sometimes set the stage with an account of napoleons invasion of egypt in 1798. The book of abraham has been a source of controversy since some egyptologists called its authenticity into question in the midnineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In seeking to illuminate the background of the book of abraham from historical, geographical, cultural, scientific, and doctrinal perspectives, these studies deal with three broad themes. First the book of mormon translation, and now the book of abraham. In the most recent addition to the studies in the book of abraham series entitled astronomy, papyrus and covenant, kevin barney has contributed what in my mind amounts to an extraordinary contribution to our understanding of the joseph smith facsimiles. Oct 10, 2018 michael ash and kevin barney, the abcs of the book of abraham, fair conference, 2004. One name that hasnt had a concrete meaning attached to it, however, is elkenah. One of the great contributions of the book of abraham is the vision given of premortal life and the council in heaven. Figure 1 of facsimile 3 of the book of abraham as it first appeared in. We hope that openminded readers of this web page will judge for themselves whether there actually is a trace or two of evidence for the authenticity of the book of abraham. Mar 06, 2007 semitic adaption of egyptian concepts. Book of abrahamjoseph smith papyritextjewish redaction.
By david bokovoy, august 16, 2006 in book of abraham. Aug 15, 2019 the book of abraham tells how abrahams kinsmen worshipped idols. Today seems to be a good day for posts that really lay out the history and translation theories of sensitive points in history. It was released by the church to help explain how it can be possible that joseph smiths translation of the book of abraham does not match what we now know egyptian to mean, and how it can still be the word of god when even the church itself admits in this essay that the. The facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources kevin l. The idolatrous god of elkenah pearl of great price central. However, this discovery actually substantiated nothing about how, when, or from what source the book of abraham originated. The book of abraham is a work produced between 1835 and 1842 by joseph smith based.
When abraham preached against the worship of this god, he said that his kinsmen hearkened not unto his voice, but endeavored to take away his life by the hand of the priest of elkenah v. But overall, kevin barney has always done great work in the field of the book of abraham, and i look forward to continued work from him. What he meant to our the history of our country is very inspirational and interesting. You have read his article and so you can judge the persuasiveness of his view for yourself. Quick answers about the book of abraham in latterday saint religion, one of the most interesting but also problematic aspects of our faith is joseph smiths inspired production of the book of abraham, a text said to have been translated from ancient egyptian scrolls that joseph acquired in 1835, originally found buried with egyptian. When it was discovered that the text surrounding facsimile 1 did not match the text in the book of abraham, detractors argued that the translation by egyptologists substantiated their claims that joseph smith was a fraud. Barney, the facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing. Barney, kevin 2006, the facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources, in gee, john.
The book of abraham is a book of lds scripture that joseph smith translated from a collection of ancient egyptian papyri the church purchased. If youve got at least a little interest in the book of abraham, youll be interested in kevin barneys article in the latest journal of book of mormon and other restoration scripture 1912010. The book of abraham largely follows the biblical narrative but adds important information regarding abrahams life and teachings. Kevin barney page 2 book of abraham mormon dialogue. Many people saw the papyri, but no eyewitness account of the translation survives. I think everyone could learn from his thoughts on how this country works and what he tried to. Michael ash and kevin barney, the abcs of the book of abraham, fair conference, 2004. Nibley venne a favorire quello che fu chiamata una teoria del papiro mancante, nel. Many easily recognizable hebrew words and names can be found in the book of abraham. The facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources. When i was in law school im a lawyer and youre faced with a huge complex area of law, and especially when youre a young law student. Finally, kevin barney has proposed the idea that the facsimiles were not created by abraham, but by a jewish redactor many centuries later. Astronomy, papyrus, and covenant book of mormon central. Barney journal of the book of mormon and other restoration scripture 191 2010.
Most nonlds egyptologists, in contrast, dont weigh into this debate. If youve got at least a little interest in the book of abraham, youll be interested in kevin barneys article in the latest journal of book of mormon and other restoration. When we come to the facsimiles, there are two major issues. Nibley inizialmente fu incuriosito da questa osservazione, ma poi. Though an initial firestorm brewed after egyptologists labeled joseph smiths interpretation of the facsimiles fraudulent, the furor soon settled. In this article, barney addresses whether elkenah is a person, place, or name. Kevin barney in rome, discussing the book of abraham. That is the connection between the facsimiles and the book of abraham. The first issue is whether the facsimiles were correctly restored. I havent read it yet, but i plan to read it carefully tomorrow. A portion of the papyri used by joseph smith as the source of the book of abraham. The book originated with egyptian papyri that joseph smith translated beginning in 1835.
The god of elkenah in hieroglyphs and in the book of abraham i. He has been a prominent book of abraham apologists, publishing in farms and other byu outlets. The book of abraham is consistent with various details found in nonbiblical stories about abraham that circulated in the ancient world around the time the papyri were likely created in other words, not from the time of abraham at all as proclaimed in the history. The book of abraham was first published in 1842 and was canonized as part of the pearl of great price in 1880. Abraham and osiris facsimile 3, figure 1 pearl of great price. This book, a record of the biblical prophet and patriarch abraham.
Jan 24, 2020 3 rhodes, the hor book of breathings, 24. The book of abraham, it is hardly necessary to say, is a pure fabrication. The book of abraham introduces the surprised reader to a hitherto unknown god, the god of elkenah, and to his priest, who meets abraham at an altar of sacrifice. Barney, the facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources, neal a. The book is broken up into a well written explanation of abrahams significance and importance to three of the worlds major religions and though different, explains how much they have in common in abraham. The god of elkenah in hieroglyphs and in the book of abraham. The book of abraham tells how abrahams kinsmen worshipped idols. Ancient texts that correlate with the book of abraham. Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of abraham.
Sometime in the ptolemaic period, a hypothetical jewish redactor editor, whom barney labels jred attached the book of abraham to the egyptian papyri. More recently, kevin barney has drawn up a thorough brief for elkenah. If you could have dinner with anyone, living or not, who would it be. And to that question in my view the answer is clearly no. Jan 20, 2020 this was the first attempt to put forward an actual scholars edition of the text of the book of mormon. The following essay is the official lds released essay entitled translation and historicity of the book of abraham. An examination and comparative study of facsimile no. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints embraces the book of abraham as scripture. We do, however, have the book of abraham with its facsimiles.
I was recently rereading a post by kevin barney on this topic. The book of abraham issues translation problems mormonthink. The book of abraham gospel topics essays lds scripture. Michael ash and kevin barney abcs of the book of abraham 6 part youtube series. Jan 24, 2017 for many, the book of abraham is problematic, a real shelfbreaker. The explanationdefying book of abraham religious studies. Egyptian papyri and the book of abraham religious studies center. Discussing gender and mormon apologetics with nancy. Jul 24, 2015 michael ash and kevin barney abcs of the book of abraham 6 part youtube series. Wonderful book for individual reading or your small adult study group. In july 1835, joseph smith, with the kirtland saints, purchased mummies and papyri from michael chandler, from which the book of abraham subsequently came forth. Concerning strengths and weaknesses, consider these comments from kevin barneys 20 article, the book of abraham. In regards to the connection between the sensen text and the kirtland egyptian papers, some argue that a relationship exists only because the latter is a product of.
This december, he and robin jensen, from the church history department, released the joseph smith papers volume dedicated to the book of abraham. Sometime in the ptolemaic period, a hypothetical jewish redactor editor, whom barney labels jred attached. Critical appraisal of the book of abraham wikipedia. Join facebook to connect with kevin abraham and others you may know. The papyrus from which the book of abraham was taken was an original autograph of abraham and was penned by the great patriarch himself that is, abrahams own hand had touched the very papyrus that came into josephs possession, as opposed to the papyrus being a later copy of a text written by abraham. Other ancient documents and the book of abraham text. The god of elkenah in hieroglyphs and in the book of abraham i we are not coming to terms with the pearl of great price as we might, unless by its study we also magnify our view of the ancients and, thereby, open astonishing paths of discovery see hugh nibley and michael rhodes, one eternal round, 2. Reading abraham while god winks doctrinal evidences as to why the book of abraham is true part one and the times of this ignorance god winked at. Jul 29, 2010 if youve got at least a little interest in the book of abraham, youll be interested in kevin barney s article in the latest journal of book of mormon and other restoration scripture 1912010. When napoleon invaded egypt in 1798, he brought with him a small army of scientists and artists, whose published reports of the wonders of egypt in the many volumes of the french series description of egypt published between 1809 and 18 soon fueled a wave of egyptomania among europeans. The facsimiles and semitic adaptation of existing sources lds. The more i came to understand the messages of the book of abraham, the greater. Kevin barney, the book of abraham, by common consent blog, 27 june 20 brian hauglid suggests this for someone looking for an excellent overview of book of abraham issues. Concerning strengths and weaknesses, consider these comments from kevin barney s 20 article, the book of abraham.