called it ‘being in vision’. The first edition of the Book of Mormon featured two testimonials: one written by a group of three witnesses and another by a group of eight. The Three Witnesses proactively sought their experience, similar to Joseph Smith, Nephi, and Abraham (. Or was this some sort of mystical experience that involved “seeing” an object that was not really there? Anderson points out that nowhere else in the accounts of John Whitmer’s experience does this supernatural claim appear in his description. As a result, he obtained a revelation from the Lord that can be found in The Doctrine and Covenants 17. An account by Joseph’s mother (Joseph Smith, The Prophet And His Progenitors For Many Generations, by Lucy Smith, 1853, pp. The Eight Witnesses saw and handled the plates but did not see an angel. (Journal of Discourses, Vol 7, page 164, 1859, Brigham Young.) Change ). The testimony of the eight witnesses is often trumpeted by apologists as distinctively different from the testimony of the three on the grounds that there was no supernatural or “visionary” aspect to their experience. Yes the Book of Mormon may be inspired scripture, but the witness accounts constitute bad evidence. He—No. He—Yes, and you know gold is a heavy metal, they were very heavy. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! In his hands he held the plates which we had been praying for these to have a view of. That affidavit is remarkable in its paucity of detail, as you know. the last pedestal gave way, in my view our foundations.’”. Mormons might find this conclusion troubling since it tends to take away some of the mysterious sensation associated with the accepted folklore, but it is a consistent conclusion when it comes to comparing the experiences of those involved. The Book of Mormon witnesses are a group of contemporaries of Joseph Smith who claimed to have seen the golden plates from which Smith translated the Book of Mormon. If that is true, then it is certain that the plates were not made of gold since soft metal pages made of gold would not make such a sound. Joseph Smith claimed that in 1823 he was visited by an angel named Moroni and that this angel told him that “there was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang” (Joseph Smith History 1:34). Well, we have no reason to think that Smith had direct experience of working with metal, that’s true … but then again, no reason to discount the possibility either. Martin Harris publicly denied that the eight witnesses ever saw the plates. The original testimony of these eight men in the Book of Mormon reads somewhat ambiguously, not making clear whether they handled the plates or the ‘leaves’ of the translated manuscript. Indeed, his prohibition against visual inspection seems contrived to the skeptic who might explain that the would-be prophet constructed a set of plates to be felt through a cloth. She was feeling overburdened by the guests who were staying in her home—Joseph Smith, his wife Emma, and Oliver Cowdery. Of the eleven men, three were directly related to Smith (his father and two brothers). Testimony of Eight Witnesses, Testimony of Three Witnesses. Joseph said that they “became…very solicitous, and teazed [sic.] The Eight Witnesses 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 H. Smith. Harris’ behavior also seems strange if the plates actually existed. The particulars may not have seemed as important as the ultimate truth of the work” (Dialogue, Vol.7, No.4, pp.84-85). Christian, Jacob, Peter Jr. and John were David Whitmer's brothers, and Hiram Page was his brother-in-law. Each of the witnesses never denied what they saw. ( Log Out /  Despite the rather lucid description given by these men, it appears that their familiarity with the plates is not as it first appears. me so much, that at length I complied” (Documentary History of the Church, 23 on josephsmithpapers.org). Mary’s grandson, John C. Whitmer provided a similar account of his grandmother’s experience. Hill records that William Smith said his father “never saw the plates except under a frock” (“Brodie Revisited,” Dialogue, Vol.7, No.4, p.84). Anderson is quick to reject the reference to a “supernatural power” as an interpolation on the part of Turley, reflecting Turley’s own belief that the experience of the eight must surely have mirrored the spiritual/supernatural experience of the three but which was not something, according to Anderson, claimed by John himself. However, whatever it was he had was kept from view, usually covered up with a cloth or placed in a box. . God works with each of us individually to give us the knowledge we need in order to progress spiritually and accomplish our unique missions. . The problem is that elements of Whitmer’s account conflict with Lucy Mack Smith’s account (an account which Anderson claims ought to be given primacy over Poulson’s interview with Whitmer). 2. Noting the familiar relationship among the witnesses, satirist Mark Twainwrote, "I …

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