A there is an intelligent omnipotent being, who is selfexistent and infinitely b good and benevolent matter eternally existed. It is also found throughout the quran and the book of mormon. Chiasmus is both a necessary and natural way of understanding book of mormon literature. Chiasmus in the book of mormon or the book of mormon does it again new era, 1972 february. Many latterday saints point out that the use of chiasmus in the book of mormon is proof that joseph smith translated a script that was hebrew in origin, since the chiasmus had not yet been discovered when the book of mormon was translated in 1829. Robertss study which was published posthumously in 1985 as studies of the book of mormon. Chiasmus in the book of mormon may, therefore, help readers more deeply appreciate the literary brilliance of the book while simultaneously increasing confidence in its authenticity as an ancient text and elevating faith in its concerted testimony of jesus christ, who is. Following enoss death the record of the nephites was kept by enos son, jarom. Book of mormonanthropologylanguagehebraismschiasmus. The phenomenon which makes that possible is the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Elder holland speaks at book of mormon chiasmus conference.
This video gives a brief description of a writing style called chiasmus, and tells the story of how one 20yearold latterday saint missionary first discovered its existence in the book of mormon. Should we consider it contrived that ishmael is mentioned only twice in the entire book of mormon and that these two occurrences just happen to fall symmetrically around 1 nephi 11. This article is brought to you for free and open access by the all journals at byu scholarsarchive. Nevertheless, we would expect it to be present in central america if writings of the book of mormon peoples endured and influenced ancient groups of american peoples. Chiasmus and book of mormon textual studies kindle edition by various authors. In the simplest, broadest sense, a chiasmus is a literary device that uses inverted parallelism, which can be labelled as a b b a. Furthermore, while it is common in the bible, old and new testaments, as well as the book of mormon, it is by no means restricted to these. The book of mormon the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The historical record has yielded no direct evidence that joseph smith actually knew about chiasmus when he translated the book of mormon in 1829, although some other people at that time did. Chiasmus in the book of mormon book of mormon central. They claim that such findings support claims of hebrew origins in the text on the basis that chiasmus is often found in hebrew texts such as the bible. Thirty years in the making, it is the most exhaustive work of its kind ever completed.
This repetition emphasizes important ideas and words, in addition. A literary structure known as chiasmus exists in the book of mormon. In the last fifty years, hundreds of chiasms have been potentially identified in the book of mormon. It is claimed that the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon is either coincidental, an artifact of the observer, or not impressive since examples of chiastic patterns have been found in the doctrine and covenants or other 19th century writing. Chiasmus in the book of mormon religious studies center. Of the 478 verses in the book of mormon quoted from the book of isaiah, 201 agree with the king james reading while 207 show variations. Book of mormon commentary alma 36 page 2 of 12 chiasmus sometimes called an inverted parallelism, is a hebrew literary form where words or ideas are arranged in a certain order and then repeated in reverse order. Some have argued chiasmus is evidence of the texts historical authenticity, suggesting it reflects the semitic background of nephi and other authors of the book of mormon. Jubilee marks 50 years from book of mormon chiasmus. Jan 01, 2012 if you engage lds apologists long enough, eventually youre bound to come across the topic of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Welch discovered the presence of chiasmus on august 16, 1967 while on his mission in germany.
Time now for a few final evaluations of what we have learned about chiasmus in the book of mormon. The book of mormon, the first broadway musical by matt stone and trey parker the creators of south park. Does chiasmus appear in the book of mormon by chance. In 1967 chiasmus was discovered in the book of mormon, and the findings were published in byu studies. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading chiasmus and book of mormon textual studies. Welch practically since the day the book of mormon rolled off the press in 1830, those who believed in the book asserted that it obviously read like a hebrew text. Mormon scholars and apologists argue that there are impressive examples of chiasmus in the book of mormon that joseph smith could not have composed and certainly could not have dictated off the cuff. Serving in the lds south german mission at the time, in the city. Includes six copies as well as letters to the editor and handwritten notes. Book of mormon the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Some of these examples may seem to be compelling, but when closely examined, they turn out to be little more than wishful thinking.
If this was the only sort of chiasmus to be found in the book of mormon, then it would be weak evidence, at best, of any sort of ancient origin for the text. Finally, the clip covers a little about why this was an important discovery and what chiasmus in the book of mormon could mean. Lost civilizations of north america documentary4, deborah bolnick on haplogroup x. Some lds writers are trying to establish the historicity of the book of mormon by maintaining that it contains a poetic style, sometimes used in the bible, called chiasmus see. While there, on preparation day, he attended a lecture given by a german bible scholar.
This book contains over 325 examples of chiasmus in the book of mormon probably the largest collection on chiasmus in a hardcopy book. Practically since the day the book of mormon rolled off the press in 1830, those who believed in the book asserted that it obviously read like a hebrew text. In the first place, we have demonstrated the extensive existence of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Enoss contribution to the record, the book of enos, consists of a single chapter, told in the first person, describing his own conversion and subsequent ministry. The dude has affirmed that book of mormon hebraisms were derivable, by joseph smith, from the english bible daninator, dudes theory also assumes the idea that joseph could recognize the hebraisimslike chiasmus, in the bible.
Should we consider it contrived that ishmael is mentioned only twice in the entire book of mormon and that these two occurrences just happen to fall symmetrically around 1 nephi 11 1 ne. Apr 21, 2016 one of the main types of evidence to which mormons appeal in support of the authenticity of the book of mormon as ancient israelite literature is the rhetorical feature called chiasmus. Chiasmus in the book of mormon while on a mission in germany in 1967 john welch attended a catholictaught class on the new testament. Chiasmus and the book of mormon utah lighthouse ministry. Welch noted in 1995, there are varying degrees of chiasticity, and while many proposed chiasms are impressive and interesting. The book of mormon is a musical comedy with music, lyrics and book by trey parker, robert lopez, and matt stone. The discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon would have a profound impact on academic efforts to study of the book of mormon as an authentic ancient hebrew text. The most commonly referenced pattern is a type of parallelism, called a chiasm. Old testament, new testament, book of mormon, and other literature. Aug 11, 2009 i first heard about chiasmus in the book of mormon as a student at byu. Published in the new era, february 1972, pages 611. It no longer contains current data and will be sunset by april 30, 2020.
The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the. Chiasmus is an invertedparallel literary form that was employed by ancient hebrew biblical writers, among others. For readers of the book of mormon, king benjamins speech is a treasure trove of inspiration, wisdom, eloquence, and spiritual insight. For those unfamiliar with the term, chiasmus is an ancient literary device that has been found in greek, latin, and hebrew writings. His research into literary forms in ancient scriptures led him to the original discovery in 1967 of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Oct 05, 2012 the book of mormon has many examples and, at first sight, this seems impressive.
It is claimed by many within the lds church that special literary patterns found in hebrew writing are also found in the book of mormon, which they feel helps prove that book comes from ancient jewish origins and not from joseph smiths mind. Welch discovered the presence of chiasmus on august 16, 1967 while on his mission in germany, and since that time, chiasmus has served as a profound witness for the beauty and complexity of the book of mormon. The book of mormon, the hit musical by matt stone and trey parker, creators of south park and bobby lopez avenue q, frozen. It lists about 900 works on chiasmus by author and title and includes full publication information. Chiasmus in the book of mormon mormonism, the mormon. Indeed, the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon may be evidence of joseph smiths own literary style and genius. Title page of the book of mormon chapter heading 1 nephi 1 an account of their sufferings 1 nephi 1 i, nephi, having been born 1 nephi 4 he promised and he also made an oath 1 nephi 14 angel tells nephi of blessings and curses. Chiasmus in mayan texts book of mormon archaeological forum. The book of mormon musical australia the book of mormon, the. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. To celebrate this 50th anniversary, throughout july and august book of mormon central will publish one knowhy each week that discusses chiasmus and its significance and value to understanding the bible, the book of. This year marks 50 years since the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon on august 16, 1967.
Chiasmus in alma 36 handouts for alpine north stake book. Chiasmus is a type of parallelism in which the second half of the text parallels in reverse order the first half. This is the landmark true story of how a young missionary serving in germany, 50 years ago, discovered chiasmus in the book of mormon. Joseph smith building auditorium brigham young university provo, ut 84604 the wednesday evening chiasmus jubilee will feature guest speakers, musical numbers, and special presentations on chiasmus in the book of mormon. An instance of this form, called a chiasm, presents two or more literary elements, and then restates them in reverse order. This compilation of groundbreaking book of mormon articles is selected from over fifty years of lds scholarship published by byu studies. Chiasmus conference speakers book of mormon central. One way of identifyingachiastic quote is to mark the repeated words or phrases with the letters abba. Mark twain noted that the book was chloroform in print. It is to the variants that we will give our attention here. One such proof for manycelebrated this week with a jubilee and twoday conference sponsored by byu studies and book of mormon centralis the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon 50 years ago. This poetical form, chiasmus, a type of inverted parallelism, reaches highly artistic heights in the book of mormon and is difficult to ascribe to chance. Some 58 are paraphrased and 11 others are variants and or paraphrases. An anonymous author similarly suggests that chiasms in the book of mormon are the result of the incredible amount of repetition contained therein, and are well within the bounds of probability.
The inverse parallelism that is the defining characteristic of chiasmus is thought to be difficult if not impossible to explain if joseph smith was the author. One of the main types of evidence to which mormons appeal in support of the authenticity of the book of mormon as ancient israelite literature is the rhetorical feature called chiasmus. In the late 1960s, a young latterday saint discovered that an ancient form of middle eastern poetry was found throughout the book of mormon, suggestive of its ancient semitic origins. No one in america, let alone in western new york, fully understood chiasmus in 1830.
Chiasmus, the book of mormon, and the aquarian gospel. The book of mormon, the hit broadway musical by matt stone and trey parker the creators of south park, and bobby lopez avenue q, frozen is now playing. Perhaps welch could have strengthened his premise by demonstrating that the parallel members in the book of mormon consist of semitic word pairs, the basis of ancient hebrew poetry. This article provides an introduction to chiasmus, explaining what it is and why mormons think it is evidence for the book of mormon, giving examples from the bible, and discussing whether the book of mormon contains clear instances of chiasmus. Chiasmus is one of the most frequently cited evidences for the authenticity of the book of mormon. This book contains the complete text of the speech along with detailed notes, crossreferences, textual commentary, and a select bibliography. The complete text reformatted takes the entire text of the book of mormon and reformats it so that readers can clearly identify its poetic forms. Chiasmus, mesoamerican evidences, cement, olives, ancient names like alma, and other evidences for the authenticity of the book of mormon a divine ancient record from the new world that testifies of jesus christ.
The first thing that we note is that there is an awful lot of repetition in this passage. Chiasmus in the book of mormon the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon is one of the most significant scholarly contributions to understanding and appreciating the nephite record. Title page title page of the book of mormon introduction testimony of three witnesses testimony of eight. What is chiasmus and why is it so important in the book of. The discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon part 2.
What can we learn from 10 of the best chiasms in the book of mormon. The professor discussed the work of father paul gaechter, a catholic priest who had written a book titled, the literary art in the gospel of matthew. It is a record of gods dealings with ancient inhabitants of the. Select one of the links above to view examples of chiasmus in various books of the book of mormon. It has been accepted for inclusion in byu studies quarterly by an authorized editor of byu scholarsarchive. Chiasmus and book of mormon textual studies deseret book. This outrageous musical comedy from creators of south park, trey. Why is the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon.
Chiasmus and book of mormon textual studies kindle. Hebraisms in the book of mormon book of mormon mormon. Chiasmus in the book of mormon philosophies of men. Joseph smith had been dead ten full years before john forbess book was published in scotland. In fact, this is a feature of the book of mormon in general. Chiasmus in the book of mormon judaicaworld archives. Its the book of mormon, the ninetime tony award and fourtime olivier winning best musical. Chiasmus in the book of mormon thoughts and truth from the. This volume features articles on hebraisms and chiasmus in the book of mormon, as well as articles discussing emendation of the text, naturalistic assumptions, wordprint analyses, variations between copies of the first edition, and more. Poetic structures and textual criticism of the book of mormon. Examples of chiasmus can be found in the book of mormon. So it is, in my opinion, with the issue of chiasmus in the book of mormon. The chiastic structure, according to welch, is as follows.
Welch, now recognized as an international expert on chiasmus, was first introduced to this form of poetic parallelism in 1967. Royal skousen is professor of linguistics and english language at brigham young university. Chiasmus is an ancient near eastern writing style found in the bible and other ancient texts in which a list of ideas is presented in a. Chapter 15 chiasmus in the book of mormon reachout trust. The most famous example of this is chapter 36 of the book of alma. Chiasmus in the book of mormon is both a necessary and a natural way of explaining some things in the book of mormon that go unaccounted for otherwise. Chiasmus, or inverted parallelism, is a twopart literary structure or system in which the second half is a mirror image of the first, i.
He was then serving as a missionary in the predominantly catholic town of regansburg, germany. The presence of chiasmus in mayan texts may only disclose that the rhetorical device can emerge independently in the writings of an isolated ancient culture. Chiasmus is a figure of speech by which the order of the words in the first of two parallel clauses is reversed in the second oxford companion to english literature, 1985 ed. However, a recently recognized phenomenon in the book of mormon has now made it possible for us to cite many specific examples of passages in the book of mormon which bear the distinct stamp of an ancient hebraic literary form. In this class welch discovered that new testament scholars had recently become aware of an hebrew literary form called chiasmus. Book of mormonevidenceshebraismschiasmus fairmormon. The amazing true story of how chiasmus was discovered in. Since that time, a steady stream of publications has greatly illuminated this profound and ancient literary feature.
Smith actually knew about chiasmus when he translated the book of mormon in, although some other people at that time did if he did not know about chiasmus, then its presence in the book might be considered as evidence for the authenticity of the book as a modern translation of. Chiasmus in the book of mormon is evidence of an ancient origin, not conclusive proof. Some claim that the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon is either coincidental, an artifact of the observer, or not impressive since examples of chiastic patterns have been found in the doctrine and covenants or other 19th century writing. Such simple examples of chiasmus are well known in english speech. This discovery has had a profound impact on book of mormon. Chiasmus in the book of abraham pearl of great price central.
At remarks given at brigham young university wednesday, john welch, who first identified the ancient writing style chiasmus in the book of mormon, said, the. This process, termed conceptual chiasmus, uses a crisscrossing rhetorical structure to cause an overlapping of intellectual space. Isaiah variants in the book of mormon religious studies. The discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon brother john w. It is basically inverted parallelism where words, phrases, or concepts are introduced in ascending order and then repeated in descending order. Fairmormon is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing welldocumented answers to criticisms of the doctrine, practice, and history of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Chiasmus, a rhetorical device used prevalently in the bible and in other ancient literatures, was relegated to the intellectual subconsciousness of modern western civilization until the midnineteenth century. A number of other commentators have alluded to the large amount of repetition in the book. Chiasmus in the book of mormon this site is in the process of being replaced. Chiasmus in the book of mormon mormonism, the mormon church. It is just one of several complex forms of literary parallelism that are common to other ancient semitic writings. Those who were not so credulous insisted that it obviously read like anything but a hebrew text. If chiasmus can be convincingly identified in the book of mormon, it will testify of the book s ancient origin.
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