Book of Mormon witnesses

The Book of Mormon witnesses are a group of contemporaries of Joseph Smith, Jr. who said they saw the golden plates from which Smith said he translated the "Book of Mormon". The most significant witnesses are the Three Witnesses and the Eight Witnesses, who each signed statements in 1830 included with the "Book of Mormon". In addition, there are several other people who said they saw the plates, whose statements are recorded elsewhere.

Three Witnesses

The Three Witnesses were a group of three early leaders of the Latter Day Saint movement who signed a statement that an angel had shown them the golden plates, and that they heard God's voice testifying that the book had been translated by the power of God.

The Three Witnesses were Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, and David Whitmer, whose joint testimony, in conjunction with a separate statement by Eight Witnesses, has been printed with nearly every edition of the "Book of Mormon" since its first publication in 1830. All three witnesses eventually broke with Smith and were excommunicated from the church he founded, [In 1838, Joseph Smith called Cowdery, Harris, and Whitmer "too mean to mention; and we had liked to have forgotten them." B.H. Roberts, ed. "History of the Church" (Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1905), 3: 232.] and there are reports that at least Harris may have once denied having seen the plates.Fact|date=March 2008 However, by the end of their lives, each of them denied ever having ever recanted their witness of the plates, and each of them also rejoined Latter Day Saint movement denominations: Harris and Cowdery joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints soon before their deaths (prior to that, Harris had also been associated with several other Latter Day Saint denominations), while Whitmer founded the Church of Christ (Whitmerite) and remained a member at his death in 1888.

Eight Witnesses

The Eight Witnesses were the second of the two groups of "special witnesses" to the Book of Mormon's golden plates. They were all members of the Whitmer or Smith families: Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, Jr., John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sr., Hyrum Smith, and Samuel Harrison Smith. Joseph Smith Sr. was Joseph's father, and Hyrum and Samuel H. Smith were his brothers. Christian, Jacob, Peter Jr. and John were David Whitmer's brothers, and Hiram Page was his brother-in-law. [Richard Lyman Bushman, "" (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005), 79: "Critics pointed out how many of the witnesses were members of the Smith and Whitmer families, implying that they signed out of loyalty or from a self-serving motive....The witnesses were no substitute for making the plates accessible to anyone for examination, but the testimonies showed Joseph—and God—answering doubters with concrete evidence, a concession to the needs of post-Enlightenment Christians."]

Other Witness

In addition to the Three Witnesses and the Eight Witnesses, one other claimed to have seen the plates.

Mary Whitmer, who took care of the house where much of the translation took place, said that the Angel Moroni showed her the plates during the time Joseph Smith was translating them in her home in Fayette, New York. ["John C. Whitmer Interview with Andrew Jenson and Edward Stevenson, 11 October 1888," in Dan Vogel, "Early Mormon Documents" (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2003), V: 262.]

Challengers of the Witnesses Testimony

Several well known critics of the Latter Day Saint movement, including Jerald and Sandra Tanner, and the Institute for Religious Research, allege that the testimonies of the witnesses cannot be taken at face value. They note that several pieces of evidence exist that call into question the impartiality and credibility of the witnesses, which casts doubt upon the authenticity of their experience. Frequently cited criticisms include the following:
* The three witnesses (Martin Harris, Oliver Cowdery, and David Whitmer), all left the church during Joseph Smith's lifetime, [
*George Q. Cannon,Juvenile Instructor, 1885, p. 360
*Charles A. Shook, "The True Origin of the Book of Mormon" Standard. Cincinnati, 1914 pp. 58-9 [http://www.solomonspalding.com/docs2/1914Shk1.htm]
* [http://www.josephsmith.com/content/Joseph_Smith_Book_of_Mormon/David'sdenial.htm JosephSmith.com: David calls Joseph "a fallen prophet"]
* [http://www.josephsmith.com/content/Joseph_Smith_Book_of_Mormon/Martin'sdenial.htm JosephSmith.com: "I never did leave the Church; the Church left me."] ] and considered Smith to have transgressed. [David Whitmer, "An Address to All Believers in Christ", 1887, pp. 1-2 [http://www.utlm.org/onlinebooks/address1.htm] ] Although all three of them later rejoined Latter Day Saint denominations—and all reiterated their testimonies, on their respective deathbeds—some scholars dispute the sincerity of their conversion. [ [http://www.irr.org/mit/bom-wit-pt1.html Facts on the Book of Mormon Witnesses - Part 1: credibility and relevancy of witnesses to the Book of Mormon ] ]
* All of the witnesses were close to Joseph Smith, being family, close friends, or had a large investment in the movement [Martin Harris bankrolled the publication of the Book of Mormon (See Martin Harris), and Oliver Cowdery was considered the "Second Elder in the Church" behind Joseph Smith (See Oliver Cowdery). Of the Eight Witnesses, IRR notes, "All eight had close personal ties to Joseph Smith's family — four were David Whitmer's brothers, a fifth was married to a Whitmer sister, and Joseph's father and two brothers made up the remaining three." - as quoted in Facts On The Book Of Mormon Witnesses, Institute for Religious Research, retrieved from the Internet on 2/16/08 [http://www.irr.org/mit/bom-wit-pt1.html] ]
* Martin Harris later stated, "I never saw the golden plates, only in a visionary or entranced state." [Anthony Metcalf, Ten Years Before the Mast, n.d., microfilm copy, p. 70-71. - as quoted in Facts On The Book Of Mormon Witnesses, Institute for Religious Research, retrieved from the Internet on 2/16/08 [http://www.irr.org/mit/bom-wit-pt1.html] ]
* After Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer became dissidents, Joseph Smith alleged they both had abused the saints by being thieves and counterfeiters [Letter quoted in Senate Document 189, February 15, 1841, pp.6-9 - as quoted in Changing World of Mormonism, pg. 97-98 - retrieved from online version on 2/16/08 [http://www.utlm.org/onlinebooks/changech5a.htm] ]
* Martin Harris was heard saying that the Eight Witnesses never saw the plates, and "hesitated to sign that instrument for that reason, but were persuaded to do it" [Stephen Burnett letter to Lyman E. Johnson dated April 15, 1838. Typed transcript from Joseph Smith Papers, Letter book, April 20, 1837 - February 9, 1843, microfilm reel 2, pp. 64-66, LDS archives - as quoted in Facts On The Book Of Mormon Witnesses, Institute for Religious Research, retrieved from the Internet on 2/16/08 [http://www.irr.org/mit/bom-wit-pt2.html] ]
* Years later, Brigham Young noted that "Some of the witnesses of the Book of Mormon, who handled the plates and conversed with the angels of God, were afterwards left to doubt and to disbelieve that they had ever seen an angel." [Journal of Discourses 1860, 7:164 - as quoted in Facts On The Book Of Mormon Witnesses, Institute for Religious Research, retrieved from the Internet on 2/16/08 [http://www.irr.org/mit/bom-wit-pt1.html] ]

Apologists note that Harris and Cowdery later returned to the fellowship of the church. [A list of articles is available in the FAIR Topical Guide, under [http://www.fairlds.org/apol/ai109.html "Book of Mormon Witnesses"] . See also:
*FARMS search results: [http://farms.byu.edu/search/?q=three+witnesses Three Witnesses]
*Richard Lloyd Anderson, [http://farms.byu.edu/publications/transcripts/?id=21 "Book of Mormon Witnesses"] ] Additionally, it is widely cited by LDS church leaders and student manuals that none of the witnesses ever denied their testimony as it was written in the Book of Mormon, nor denied that Smith was a true prophet when he translated the book. [See, for example:
*Dallin H. Oaks, [http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=2aaf84d4a0a0c010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1 "The Witness: Martin Harris"] , "Ensign" 29:5
*James E. Faust, [http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=1e31a1615ac0c010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1 "A Growing Testimony"] , "Ensign" 30:11
*Henry B. Eyring, [http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=715274536cf0c010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1 "An Enduring Testimony of the Witness of the Prophet Joseph"] , "Ensign" 33:11:90
*Doctrine and Covenants and Church History (Sunday School teacher’s manual), Lesson 4: [http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=32c41b08f338c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=a0119207f7c20110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1 "Remember the New Covenant, Even the Book of Mormon"] .]

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