B.of.M vs the Bible


georgia
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Hello everyone! I'm an investigator, been at it for about two months now. I think I have a desire to be baptized eventually, but it's not the right time... I'm making progress but moving as fast as can be expected, I think, given that I was raised without an ounce of religion of any kind.

I read the entire Book of Mormon and in fact I just started reading it a second time. I thought it would be tedious, but I was surprised at how eagerly I read it (finished it in under a month). Its words feel suffused with Spirit and inspiration, and I truly feel a sense of peace, not to mention fascination, when I read it. Even the parts I don't understand (2 Nephi I'm looking at you), I still feel content to just take in the words. Often I feel bewildered as to why I feel this way, and I kept expecting this to all be a phase I'll get over, but I keep finding that I just like reading a few chapters every night and I like having it in my bag at work even if I don't have time to read it. I always used to think, religious scriptures as so inaccurate and contradictory, how can anyone take them seriously? But I find that I really don't care if the B.of.M is accurate historically or not, it just doesn't matter to me. It's not the point. I just love feeling the Spirit whenever I open it, and I just feel that it contains the words that God meant for us to read, and whatever God's truth really is, we'll probably never really know for certain, because we're just humans and we can't see it from God's perspective. That's where faith comes in (and a lot of humility!)

Anyway though, one issue I've had is that I don't feel this way at all about the Bible, neither the OT nor the NT. Just like I've never felt at all inspired inside Christian churches before I came to an LDS church, I don't feel inspired at all when I read the Bible .I think it's because of all the translations, that beautiful feeling of the Spirit being present in the words has been leached away over the years. When I read the Bible, I feel nothing. I haven't been able to get through it all, because it's so dry that it depresses me. (I did read Genesis & Exodus as well as Matthew & Mark) It just feels like a dry recitation of events and I start thinking about how it doesn't really make any sense even. God must have multiple personalities and change his mind constantly (which the B of M specifically says he does NOT do). And when you learn about how the OT & NT were written, historically, it gets even worse, because of the blatant inaccuracies/contradictions and the many outright fabrications on the part of the writers (like for example the NT was basically written in such a way to please the Roman authorities and the message of the real Jesus, which as mainly oriented around Jewish nationalism, was completely abandoned because it was too dangerous. source -- "Zealot" by Reza Aslan).

But the Book of Mormon feels like real scripture, it FEELS like it was divinely inspired, and when I learn about the prophet's vision I just get this strong sense that it is true. And I start thinking, how on earth could Joseph Smith just write all this stuff seemingly from memory unless he was really translating from an ancient text? It just all fits together, it feels right & true. But the Bible feels like a bunch of baloney!! I wish I felt as inspired when I read the Bible as I do when I read the B.of.M... but I can't make myself feel something I don't feel. This is why I never felt the remotest desire to be Christian until I went to an LDS church and started reading the B.of.M.

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, I'm writing this because it helps to get it off my chest and if anyone has any wise words that would be appreciated. Maybe the Bible is just too old and we have to have a renewal of scripture every couple thousand years because the old stuff just loses the Spirit. Even if its true (God's truth if not historical truth), it just loses its relevancy to us, or something. Thoughts?

 

 

 

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Well, your perception is correct on one count.  The Book of Mormon was written for this dispensation.  The Bible was written for previous dispensations.  HOWEVER, The Bible carries with it much history and background that is important to understand if you're going to read the Book of Mormon with any understanding.  But much of the Bible (specifically, many parts of the Law of Moses) don't necessarily apply to our day.  

Some parts of it are still applicable.  How are we to know what applies and what does not?  That is why we have prophets of God.  Their primary job is to interpret ancient words and apply them to our day.  It is important that we have a prophet (as you've heard in your discussions with missionaries) to do this because that has been the pattern the Lord has set through all generations.

If we believe in a divine being whose knowledge and wisdom and very nature are far beyond us, then it would be hubris to believe that we can interpret his words with man's wisdom alone.

But, yes, the Bible is still important.

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I have gone through phases where different volumes of scripture spoke to me more strongly than others.

I found that when I let go of the stereotypes regarding the Old Testament, and read it expecting to find a God of mercy, I found that - and enjoyed and understood it (whereas I hadn't particularly enjoyed or understood it well while the stereotypes of "boring", "hard to understand", and "vengeful God" were still in my head).

IMO, don't worry too much (at present) about your feelings about the Bible.  Clearly God intends for you to gain a strong testimony of the Book of Mormon right now.  Eventually, you'll gain appreciation for other volumes as well - you might want to work on letting go of the stereotypes.

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1 hour ago, georgia said:

Hello everyone! I'm an investigator, been at it for about two months now. I think I have a desire to be baptized eventually, but it's not the right time... I'm making progress but moving as fast as can be expected, I think, given that I was raised without an ounce of religion of any kind.

I read the entire Book of Mormon and in fact I just started reading it a second time. I thought it would be tedious, but I was surprised at how eagerly I read it (finished it in under a month). Its words feel suffused with Spirit and inspiration, and I truly feel a sense of peace, not to mention fascination, when I read it. Even the parts I don't understand (2 Nephi I'm looking at you), I still feel content to just take in the words. Often I feel bewildered as to why I feel this way, and I kept expecting this to all be a phase I'll get over, but I keep finding that I just like reading a few chapters every night and I like having it in my bag at work even if I don't have time to read it. I always used to think, religious scriptures as so inaccurate and contradictory, how can anyone take them seriously? But I find that I really don't care if the B.of.M is accurate historically or not, it just doesn't matter to me. It's not the point. I just love feeling the Spirit whenever I open it, and I just feel that it contains the words that God meant for us to read, and whatever God's truth really is, we'll probably never really know for certain, because we're just humans and we can't see it from God's perspective. That's where faith comes in (and a lot of humility!)

Anyway though, one issue I've had is that I don't feel this way at all about the Bible, neither the OT nor the NT. Just like I've never felt at all inspired inside Christian churches before I came to an LDS church, I don't feel inspired at all when I read the Bible .I think it's because of all the translations, that beautiful feeling of the Spirit being present in the words has been leached away over the years. When I read the Bible, I feel nothing. I haven't been able to get through it all, because it's so dry that it depresses me. (I did read Genesis & Exodus as well as Matthew & Mark) It just feels like a dry recitation of events and I start thinking about how it doesn't really make any sense even. God must have multiple personalities and change his mind constantly (which the B of M specifically says he does NOT do). And when you learn about how the OT & NT were written, historically, it gets even worse, because of the blatant inaccuracies/contradictions and the many outright fabrications on the part of the writers (like for example the NT was basically written in such a way to please the Roman authorities and the message of the real Jesus, which as mainly oriented around Jewish nationalism, was completely abandoned because it was too dangerous. source -- "Zealot" by Reza Aslan).

But the Book of Mormon feels like real scripture, it FEELS like it was divinely inspired, and when I learn about the prophet's vision I just get this strong sense that it is true. And I start thinking, how on earth could Joseph Smith just write all this stuff seemingly from memory unless he was really translating from an ancient text? It just all fits together, it feels right & true. But the Bible feels like a bunch of baloney!! I wish I felt as inspired when I read the Bible as I do when I read the B.of.M... but I can't make myself feel something I don't feel. This is why I never felt the remotest desire to be Christian until I went to an LDS church and started reading the B.of.M.

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, I'm writing this because it helps to get it off my chest and if anyone has any wise words that would be appreciated. Maybe the Bible is just too old and we have to have a renewal of scripture every couple thousand years because the old stuff just loses the Spirit. Even if its true (God's truth if not historical truth), it just loses its relevancy to us, or something. Thoughts?

 

 

 

I agree with the importance of reading the Book of Mormon but I do believe the New Testament is needed for this dispensation. The Book of James is one of the most important writings in the Church. My biggest worry is that if we do not fully know the Bible we will come up short as missionaries. I feel we need to reset and go back about 25 years when missionary work was successful. It concerns me that I am seeing many missionaries who spend their missions at the public library visiting. This could be good are bad but in our town the public librarian doesn't like to see the missionaries come in because the are "computer hogs" that do not share with others and are not willing to volunteer for service in the library as they would have in the past. It seems rare that a missionary sincerely is willing to do service as the would in days when the work was more successful. At times we must evaluate failures vs successes.

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Even as a lifelong believer, I had trouble in the past relating to the Old Testament as scripture.

However, I have since discovered that this was due in large part to the heavy western cultural influence on my thinking. My brain was oriented towards the literal, linear, sequential, and logical way of viewing things, whereas the Bible (particularly the Old Testament)  is decidedly eastern in its speech and thought patterns, which is more symbolic, imaginative, intuitive, and artistic in nature--poetic and storied. The difference between the two is what has been metaphorically or mythically referred to as Left and Right brain dominance.

What changed it for me was taking an Old Testament course from an LDS Jew (Abraham Gileadi), who took great pains to explain the symbolism and the layered meanings thereof., as well as, oddly enough, my learning to draw.

But, even more so of late, I have grown  to greatly appreciate the Old Testament as scripture from a very unlikely and unexpected source: a non-LDS psychologist by the name of Dr. Jordan B. Peterson, and his lecture series on the Psychological Significance of the Biblical Stories. Peterson manages to indirectly blend western thought (which he refers to as "articulated knowledge") with eastern thought (which he refers to as a kind of "dream state").

What I have come to understand from this is that we need both forms of instruction to make a whole--neither the west without the east, nor the masculine without the feminine, nor the mind without the heart , nor the body without the spirit, etc. Worship of God necessitates the whole soul. 

I recommend Peterson's lecture series. See if it doesn't help.

Thanks, -Wade Englund-

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9 hours ago, zil said:

 Eventually, you'll gain appreciation for other volumes as well - you might want to work on letting go of the stereotypes.

Thank you for the response! Can you identify what stereotypes you mean though?  this was written from my direct experience reading the scriptures so I can't really identify what stereotypes I might be falling prey to.

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11 hours ago, georgia said:

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, I'm writing this because it helps to get it off my chest and if anyone has any wise words that would be appreciated. Maybe the Bible is just too old and we have to have a renewal of scripture every couple thousand years because the old stuff just loses the Spirit. Even if its true (God's truth if not historical truth), it just loses its relevancy to us, or something. Thoughts?

Hold to the direction the Holy Spirit is taking you. The Bible was a key source of light for Joseph Smith in deciding to seek wisdom. The Book of Mormon is the first fruit of that (following the First Vision), and so has a key place in the fulfillment of biblical prophecy for the latter days. The Bible continues to be a key source of light for most of the world, as are the holy books of other faith traditions, and that light is greatly amplified as people are given opportunities to read the Book of Mormon. Some light can be found in all scripture and good books, but as you've experienced,  the Book of Mormon has a "fulness." This takes nothing away from the Bible and other holy books, and with the Book of Mormon their light can be better discerned and appreciated, and we can see how the Lord prepared all things from the beginning for what is rolling forth in these latter days.

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8 hours ago, georgia said:

Thank you for the response! Can you identify what stereotypes you mean though?  this was written from my direct experience reading the scriptures so I can't really identify what stereotypes I might be falling prey to.

As I described in my post, many think of the Old Testament as being about a vengeful God, or as being a boring list of who begat whom, or as being impossible to understand, or whatever.  Bag all that.  I read a Hugh Nibley book wherein he repeatedly described the OT as demonstrating the generosity and mercy of God.  I wondered what OT he had been reading, so I started reading it myself, looking for what he described - and I found it.  And I found the OT pulled me in almost as much as a novel would.

As for other stereotypes - perhaps that's not the right word, but it seems there are personal and cultural expectations of some volumes of scripture.  These will vary from person to person.  An atheist (as @Sunday21 describes) might see them as a bunch of bull, hokey, old fashioned, irrelevant, or whatever.

Perhaps my intent would be better expressed as "let go of your preconceived notions and go into it looking for the God described in the Book of Mormon".  Or the God the Spirit has testified of to you.

Perhaps your experiences in other churches have "primed" you to not feel inspired by the scriptures used in said other churches (the Bible).  Those experiences may have made you overly skeptical about all the translation / transcription issues of the Bible (yes, one of our Articles of Faith mentions this problem, and yet we study the Bible anyway - and use the JST - Joseph Smith Translation - and other volumes of scripture to help us understand despite these issues).  You describe the Bible as "dry" and say that "depresses" you.  Etc. Etc.:

18 hours ago, georgia said:

Anyway though, one issue I've had is that I don't feel this way at all about the Bible, neither the OT nor the NT. Just like I've never felt at all inspired inside Christian churches before I came to an LDS church, I don't feel inspired at all when I read the Bible .I think it's because of all the translations, that beautiful feeling of the Spirit being present in the words has been leached away over the years. When I read the Bible, I feel nothing. I haven't been able to get through it all, because it's so dry that it depresses me. (I did read Genesis & Exodus as well as Matthew & Mark) It just feels like a dry recitation of events and I start thinking about how it doesn't really make any sense even. God must have multiple personalities and change his mind constantly (which the B of M specifically says he does NOT do). And when you learn about how the OT & NT were written, historically, it gets even worse, because of the blatant inaccuracies/contradictions and the many outright fabrications on the part of the writers (like for example the NT was basically written in such a way to please the Roman authorities and the message of the real Jesus, which as mainly oriented around Jewish nationalism, was completely abandoned because it was too dangerous. source -- "Zealot" by Reza Aslan).

All that is now your expectation.  Unless you can alter your expectation, you will continue to find "all that".

I would suggest (doesn't have to be right away) letting go of these things.  Recognizing that they may well have been informed by experiences which were not accompanied by the Spirit, and that once accompanied by the Spirit, the Bible too can be of great worth and interest to you.  Rather than looking for flaws in the Bible, look for the gospel of Jesus Christ in the Bible.  Mormons are perhaps unique in believing Adam and Eve knew the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that Jehovah is Jesus Christ - that throughout the OT, Jehovah is representing God the Father in his dealings with Israel.  Looking at the Bible from the perspective that Jesus Christ's Atonement has been the plan from before Adam and Eve, and that this knowledge has been lost and restored many times, gives you a new approach and insight into what you can learn from the Bible.

Look not for historical facts, but for gospel truth.  It's in there.

(And, as I mentioned before, it's OK if you need to set the Bible aside for a while and focus on the Book of Mormon first.  Later, it, the D&C, and the Pearl of Great Price can help you to recognize the truths found in the Bible.  Just start now to build the intent and expectation that when you're ready, the Bible will be a valuable part of your gospel learning.)

Edited by zil
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Returning to this thread, I've realized that it's obvious that my feelings about the Bible stem from previous experiences with Christianity, being in Christian churches that felt spiritually inert, and in fact the whole concept of Jesus starting to feel stale and inert because of the way people misuse it in the world. I associate the Bible with all that... whereas I never knew anything about the Book of Mormon until after I walked into a LDS church and felt the light that was there and inside all the people that I met and felt so inspired by it. So I was reading the book knowing it was the thing that held that community together and the people feel so spiritually alive. But since I already (obviously) knew about the Bible before coming to an LDS church... I can't separate those stale church experiences from it.

On 6/4/2018 at 9:20 AM, zil said:

@Sunday21

 

Perhaps your experiences in other churches have "primed" you to not feel inspired by the scriptures used in said other churches (the Bible).  Those experiences may have made you overly skeptical about all the translation / transcription issues of the Bible (yes, one of our Articles of Faith mentions this problem, and yet we study the Bible anyway - and use the JST - Joseph Smith Translation - and other volumes of scripture to help us understand despite these issues).  You describe the Bible as "dry" and say that "depresses" you.  Etc. Etc.:

Yeah, you hit the nail on the head :)

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49 minutes ago, askandanswer said:

I think that the Bible has more information than spirit, and the Book of Mormon has more spirit than information. 

That's an interesting idea.  I'll ponder further when I can (am at work - not a good place for pondering - even when there's no work to be done).

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Don't fret too much about feeling nothing when reading the Bible. The Bible has gone through so many revisions that it makes it difficult to fully grasp the truth. One thing that the church hasn't done is change scriptures, ignoring correction of errors and the JST of the Bible. I feel I should ask what are you expecting when you read the Bible? Are you hoping to feel the same thing about the Bible that you feel when reading the Book of Mormon? Developing feelings will take time, and please don't try to rush them. You'll know.

When I was inactive, I started reading the Bible, but it was different version. I'm not going to say which version, but I felt something when reading it, especially after reading something in the introduction. Now, there are things I feel from the Bible when I read it. I'm not reading it from cover to cover, especially when writing trivia questions, but I feel something. I pray that you will get those feelings in time, which will take work. (For those that are curious as to which version of the Bible, I don't want to say, because I feel it may get people to start reading that version instead. I don't have the version anymore, but I bring it up, because it's nice to feel something when reading. I feel a sense of fascination. Remembering it, however, is a different story [smiling].)

I'm going to take a sidestep here. I've gone to two other churches. Once again, I won't say which ones, because I don't think that's important. What's important is that I felt nothing when going to them. There was a third, but it was on TV; however, I felt something. It was nice to actually feel something, even though it wasn't complete. It still felt like something was missing. I bring this up in the hope to get you to continue studying, whether it's the Bible, Book of Mormon, or even the D&C. You will feel something, and it will be glorious when you do. Don't give up.

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On ‎6‎/‎3‎/‎2018 at 7:08 PM, georgia said:

....

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, I'm writing this because it helps to get it off my chest and if anyone has any wise words that would be appreciated. Maybe the Bible is just too old and we have to have a renewal of scripture every couple thousand years because the old stuff just loses the Spirit. Even if its true (God's truth if not historical truth), it just loses its relevancy to us, or something. Thoughts?

 

If I were to introduce religious notions to someone that has no religious experience – I would begin or suggest beginning with the Book of Mormon.  Not to the exclusion of other scripture just as a place to start.  Scripture is a help in becoming converted to “The Gospel of Christ”.  The word Gospel means “good news” so many religious teachers think of coming to know G-d as the accumulation of data and information.  Perhaps this initially is a first step.  But it is not the means of acquiring knowledge.

There is an old saying that we should not judge others until we have walked a mile in their shoes.  To be honest there are some that walk in ways that are of no interest what-so-ever to me.  But for those that we wish to understand – we need walk the walk and not just talk the talk.  Isaiah warned that man becomes foreign to G-d by: (1) Transgressing the law. (2) changing the ordinances and (3) breaking the Covenant.  Jesus taught that if we “do” (meaning keep the law, embrace the ordinances and keep the covenants) we will know the doctrine – if it is of G-d or man.  I believe we learn to enjoy good things by doing good things.  It is worthless to learn of music if one does not want or intend for music to be in their life.

One last thought – scripture is not the goal of life – neither is going to church.  These are means and not a destination.  In addition, scripture is not a read and done thing but a life time method and means of constant learning.  You may want to write down some of your impressions and thought in the journal to reference later.

 

The Traveler

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Welcome Brother. I will make this short as from what I read your conversion is assured and that will open many doors for your understanding one of which includes the gift of the Holy Ghost which will undoubtedly give more meaning and interest to "all scripture" as you study and grow closer to Christ.

Let me suggest this. Don't be concerned or feel you are not fully Christian because you have a less enthusiastic desire to read and study the Bible at this time as opposed to the BOM. Start by using the bible only as a reference to strengthen your BOM studies. Read and study the  cross references to the bible that support the doctrines and truths you have come to love in the BOM. In this way, you will come to know that the Bible also supports these truths. As you learn that you may find that Bible study becomes a less tedious part of your overall efforts at examining the totality of the scriptures.

One last bit of advice. Don't let your feelings about Bible study be a part of your reasoning for delaying or taking a longer time in making your Baptism decision. Be Baptized! Become a member of the Lord's Church. Receive the Holy Ghost. Keep the commandments so that you may strengthen yourself in the Lord and open your understanding in your scripture studies. Pray always. Give service to your fellow man! Love them and your Heavenly Father. Utilize the atonement of Christ when necessary and expect to make mistakes. Study Christ's examples of how to live.  Love yourself too and know that your Heavenly Parents love you as well. Brother I don't even know you, and I love you. I can't begin to explain what treasures you will find and what joy awaits you in the Gospel. Get here as soon as you can manage it...

All my Best!

Edited by SBLACKMD
Mostly punctuation, grammer, capitalizations etc...
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13 hours ago, john4truth said:

General authorities use Bible many things we know come from the Bible we need it and should respect it.

 

Yes, but many misuse and misinterpret the Bible.  Part of translating the Bible into English is so each individual can use the Bible scriptures as one of many witnesses.

 

The Traveler 

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The Book of Mormon was written and compiled under the direction of God.  The Bible is a collection of books written for various reasons, some under the guidance of God, others maybe not so much, and then it was all put together by committee.  of course it won't have the same flow and feel as the Book of Mormon.  But the Doctrine and Covenants also has a disjointed and kind of randomness too.  Some parts are pure poetry.  Others feel like a secretarial notebook.  Just the nature of the scriptures.

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I'm not a member of the LDS church and I have only just started reading The Book of Mormon, I'm only on 1 Nephi still, but I agree with you, you FEEL spiritually connected to something wonderful when you read The Book of Mormon.  I'm just reading a chapter or two a day, every day in the morning.  I'm really enjoying it so far

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@VelvetShadow Welcome! 

Here is a link to a useful manual https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32506_eng.pdf?lang=eng#page418

On page 413 of this manual you will find a timeline  for some of the flashbacks that occur in the book

Let us know how it is going, there is lots of helpful videos and interesting backup info we can send.

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1 hour ago, Sunday21 said:

@VelvetShadow Welcome! 

Here is a link to a useful manual https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32506_eng.pdf?lang=eng#page418

On page 413 of this manual you will find a timeline  for some of the flashbacks that occur in the book

Let us know how it is going, there is lots of helpful videos and interesting backup info we can send.

That's awesome, thank you so much

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On 6/4/2018 at 2:08 AM, georgia said:

Hello everyone! I'm an investigator, been at it for about two months now. I think I have a desire to be baptized eventually, but it's not the right time... I'm making progress but moving as fast as can be expected, I think, given that I was raised without an ounce of religion of any kind.

I read the entire Book of Mormon and in fact I just started reading it a second time. I thought it would be tedious, but I was surprised at how eagerly I read it (finished it in under a month). Its words feel suffused with Spirit and inspiration, and I truly feel a sense of peace, not to mention fascination, when I read it. Even the parts I don't understand (2 Nephi I'm looking at you), I still feel content to just take in the words. Often I feel bewildered as to why I feel this way, and I kept expecting this to all be a phase I'll get over, but I keep finding that I just like reading a few chapters every night and I like having it in my bag at work even if I don't have time to read it. I always used to think, religious scriptures as so inaccurate and contradictory, how can anyone take them seriously? But I find that I really don't care if the B.of.M is accurate historically or not, it just doesn't matter to me. It's not the point. I just love feeling the Spirit whenever I open it, and I just feel that it contains the words that God meant for us to read, and whatever God's truth really is, we'll probably never really know for certain, because we're just humans and we can't see it from God's perspective. That's where faith comes in (and a lot of humility!)

Anyway though, one issue I've had is that I don't feel this way at all about the Bible, neither the OT nor the NT. Just like I've never felt at all inspired inside Christian churches before I came to an LDS church, I don't feel inspired at all when I read the Bible .I think it's because of all the translations, that beautiful feeling of the Spirit being present in the words has been leached away over the years. When I read the Bible, I feel nothing. I haven't been able to get through it all, because it's so dry that it depresses me. (I did read Genesis & Exodus as well as Matthew & Mark) It just feels like a dry recitation of events and I start thinking about how it doesn't really make any sense even. God must have multiple personalities and change his mind constantly (which the B of M specifically says he does NOT do). And when you learn about how the OT & NT were written, historically, it gets even worse, because of the blatant inaccuracies/contradictions and the many outright fabrications on the part of the writers (like for example the NT was basically written in such a way to please the Roman authorities and the message of the real Jesus, which as mainly oriented around Jewish nationalism, was completely abandoned because it was too dangerous. source -- "Zealot" by Reza Aslan).

But the Book of Mormon feels like real scripture, it FEELS like it was divinely inspired, and when I learn about the prophet's vision I just get this strong sense that it is true. And I start thinking, how on earth could Joseph Smith just write all this stuff seemingly from memory unless he was really translating from an ancient text? It just all fits together, it feels right & true. But the Bible feels like a bunch of baloney!! I wish I felt as inspired when I read the Bible as I do when I read the B.of.M... but I can't make myself feel something I don't feel. This is why I never felt the remotest desire to be Christian until I went to an LDS church and started reading the B.of.M.

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, I'm writing this because it helps to get it off my chest and if anyone has any wise words that would be appreciated. Maybe the Bible is just too old and we have to have a renewal of scripture every couple thousand years because the old stuff just loses the Spirit. Even if its true (God's truth if not historical truth), it just loses its relevancy to us, or something. Thoughts?

 

 

 

Hi Georgia!
 

It was great to hear this and I love understanding your journey. You should be proud you think about these things ,rather than worry you're offending someone by asking. You are wonderful and brilliant.

Couple of points:

 

1) The bible is a collection of  various books. Luke was a Doctor who gave historical fact - John was more poet who argued for the Greeks. Different people wrote different parts, just like different people wrote the Book of Mormon.  Luke wrote to convince the Jews(Who cared more about Jewish history) And John wrote to convince the Greeks(Who were obsessed with art, culture and philosophy) .

 

The Book of Mormon speaks more to you. No shame in that. That's why more than one Gospel is included - So different people with different needs are catered to.

 

2) The bible is complicated, with an ocean of time's worth of ideas and events separating the first word from the last. It's hard - The Old Testament is beautiful and wonderful, but it takes a good teacher to really understand it. Don't worry if it's hard. You'll get there. :)

 

Thanks for the comments. You can see a really strong spirit in how you write.

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