The Book of Abraham: NEW Research That Proves Critics Wrong

Thoughtful Faith: The Book of Abraham - Summary

Key Concepts: Book of Abraham, Joseph Smith, Papyri, Kirtland Egyptian Papers, Egyptian Alphabet, Egyptian Grammar, Cipher, Translation, Revelation, Facsimile, JSP11, Pure Language, William Phelps, Oliver Cowdry, Kobby Reddish, Jacob Hansen, Alex Okconor.

The Missing Papyri and Eyewitness Accounts

The video addresses the common criticism that the Book of Abraham is a fraudulent translation because the existing papyri fragments don't match the text. It begins by emphasizing that we do not possess all the papyri Joseph Smith had. Some were lost in the Chicago fire of 1871, and eyewitness accounts suggest the original collection was larger than what we have today.

• W.W. Phelps's Letter: Three weeks after Chandler arrived, Phelps wrote to his wife Sally mentioning "two papyrus rolls besides some other ancient Egyptian writings" containing the records of Joseph and Abraham.
• Oliver Cowdry's Letter: In December 1835, Cowdry wrote to William Fry stating there were "two rolls of papyrus with two or three other small pieces of papyrus with astronomical calculations, epitaphs, etc." and that the writings of Abraham and Joseph were written with black and red ink.
• Henry Caswell's Account: In 1842, Anglican clergyman Henry Caswell saw papyrus fragments framed in glass, including what he identified as Facsimile 1 from the Book of Abraham.
• Josiah Quincy Jr.'s Account: Two years later, Josiah Quincy Jr. visited Nauvoo and wrote, "Some parchments inscribed with hieroglyphics were then offered to us. They were preserved under glass and handled with great respect."
• Charlotte Haven's Account: In 1843, Charlotte Haven described Lucy Mack Smith opening a "long roll of papyrus" on a table, containing the writings of Abraham and Isaac (likely Joseph).

These accounts indicate the existence of two rolls of papyrus, separate from the fragments preserved in glass frames. The fragments ended up in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, while the rolls were likely destroyed in the Chicago fire. Crucially, the "Hor's document of breathing made by Isis" papyrus fragments we have today lack the red ink (rubrics) described in the eyewitness accounts, further suggesting we don't have all the original papyri.

The Kirtland Egyptian Papers: Not a Translation Tool

The video then challenges the assumption that the Kirtland Egyptian Papers (KEP) represent Joseph Smith's attempt to translate the papyri. It introduces the research of William Shrivever, who argues that these documents were created after the Book of Abraham was received, not before.

Components of the Kirtland Egyptian Papers:

• Four alphabet documents (three nearly identical, one entitled "grammar and alphabet of the Egyptian language")
• One counting document
• Two small notebooks
• Seven Abraham manuscripts
• Two documents containing copies of characters from the Joseph Smith papyri.

Shrivever's Analysis:

Shrivever's analysis focuses on the "alphabet" and "grammar" documents. He created a database of the 69 characters to which sounds were assigned, along with their explanations. He then analyzed the "substantial words" (words conveying meaning) used in these explanations and compared them to the Book of Abraham and Genesis 12 & 15 (as a control).

Key Findings:

• The substantial words are primarily proper nouns related to people, places, and things unique to the Book of Abraham.
• This suggests the alphabet documents are dependent on a pre-existing text of the Book of Abraham.
• Many of the explanations in the alphabet documents are also dependent on passages from other revelations, specifically Doctrine and Covenants sections 76 and 88 (relating to the kingdoms of glory).
• Most of the characters explained in the Egyptian alphabet documents are not Egyptian and do not appear on the papyri. Some are invented, some are composites, and some can be traced to Masonic ciphers.

Shrivever's Conclusion:

The Kirtland Egyptian Papers were not used to translate the Book of Abraham. Instead, they appear to be an attempt to create a cipher, encoding the English text of Joseph Smith's revelations into a symbolic language.

The Egyptian Counting Document and the "Pure Language" Concept

The video highlights the "Egyptian Counting Document" as further evidence against the translation theory. This document contains no Egyptian characters. Shrivever argues it was a "cipher key" designed to encode the English words for numbers into non-Egyptian symbols.

The motivation behind this cipher project was likely twofold:

1. Encryption: To protect sensitive information in the Doctrine and Covenants, similar to the use of coded names.
2. "Pure Language": A fascination with the idea of a primordial, uncorrupted language, believed by figures like William Phelps to be represented by Egyptian.

Therefore, the term "Egyptian" in the Kirtland Egyptian Papers doesn't necessarily refer to the Egyptian language itself, but rather to the concept of a pure, ancient language.

The Abraham Manuscripts as Cipher Keys

The video argues that the Abraham manuscripts themselves (written by Frederick G. Williams and Warren Parish) are also examples of these cipher keys. They contain characters from the papyri alongside paragraphs from the Book of Abraham.

The manuscripts are divided into "parts" and "degrees," with the "fifth degree" relating single characters to entire paragraphs of text. This supports the idea that the characters were being used as symbols to represent larger blocks of text, not as direct translations.

Joseph Smith's Commentary on JSP11

The video addresses the argument that the presence of papyri characters in the Abraham manuscripts proves a direct translation. It points out that Joseph Smith himself commented on the papyrus fragment JSP11 (which contains characters found in the manuscripts) and stated that the Lord had not given him a translation for those characters.

This suggests that the characters were being used for a different purpose, such as encoding or symbolizing concepts, rather than as a literal translation.

Synthesis/Conclusion

The video concludes that the critics' arguments against the Book of Abraham, based on the Kirtland Egyptian Papers, are flawed. The evidence suggests that:

• We do not have all the original papyri.
• The Kirtland Egyptian Papers were created after the Book of Abraham was received, not before.
• These documents were not a translation tool but rather an attempt to create a cipher, encoding Joseph Smith's revelations into a symbolic language.
• Joseph Smith likely translated the Book of Abraham by revelation, similar to the Book of Mormon and other scriptures.

The video encourages viewers to reconsider their understanding of the Book of Abraham and the Kirtland Egyptian Papers in light of this new research. The main takeaway is that the Book of Abraham was translated by revelation and the Kirtland Egyptian Papers were not used in the translation process.