The Earth Is 7,000 Years Old
The Book of Mormon was created and completed by Joseph Smith in 1829. With the help of a friend, Martin Harris, he claimed to have deciphered and dictated a set of gold plates bestowed upon him by the mysterious angel Moroni. With these golden plates, he founded the Church of Latter Day Saints and preached his prophetic vision through the Book of Mormon.
Since its inception, the Mormon religion has caused controversy and birthed many skeptics. We’ve compiled a list of the Book’s biggest secrets and unknown doctrines for the public to pass their own judgment on the world’s most talked about religion.
The Book of Mormon teaches its followers that the Earth was created by Jesus, not God. However, Mormons also believe that God presented his son with already existing elements and that our solar system wasn’t simply created out of nothing. So when was the Earth created according to the Book of Mormon?
The Power Of Underwear
7,000 years ago. The Church of Latter Day Saints insists that the Earth was created in 4004 BC, as opposed to billions of years ago proved by science.
In a house of worship, Mormons wear customized temple garments that provide with them with protection against sin and temptation. Mormons who attend their church for the first are time are instructed on how to properly wear the garments, which is next to the skin and under all clothing items possible. The garments are meant to serve as a symbolic reminder for fidelity and a covenant with God.
Native Americans Descended From Ancient Israelites
Devout Mormons wear these garments as everyday underwear and only remove them to go swimming, share intimacy with their married partner, and showering or using the bathroom. Protecting modesty in this modern age is a value taking seriously by the Mormon religion.
According to the Book of Mormon, Native Americans were direct descendants of Ancient Israelites that migrated to the Americas after the Ten Lost Tribes were exiled from the Jewish homeland. Joseph Smith claimed that the Indians were descendants of the group of Lehi. Mormons believe that these Indian descendants spoke a dialect of “reformed Egyptian” and arrived by boat to Meso-America.
There is no cultural, anthropological, or physical evidence to support this belief and Native Americans have been genetically linked to the Southeastern Asia population. But hey, to each his own.
Jesus Visited The Americas
Mormonism supports the belief that Jesus visited the Americas after he had been crucified. The Book of Mormon tells the story of Jesus’ descent as an angel to the Native Americans and taught them the ways of the Church; how they should pray, how they should baptize one another, and how to enter his heavenly kingdom upon their death. Jesus also blessed the Indian children and bestowed the power of priesthood upon a select few.
Christ’s trip to the Americas ends with worship and the promise of a new Jerusalem in the United States, according to Joseph Smith.
Who Is God?
In the Mormon religion, God isn’t an entity with no physical form. The Book of the Mormon claims that God is in fact, a resurrected, extra-terrestrial human male and currently resides on a planet located near a star called Kolob.
In the Book of Abraham – Chapter 3, Kolob is stated as the star closest to the “Throne of God” where one day is the equivalent of a thousand years. Mormon scholars continue to search for Kolob’s precise location in modern astronomy but they haven’t managed to find it yet…
Jesus Wasn’t Born To A Virgin
Apparently, Jesus wasn’t born to a virgin. The Book of Mormon claims that while Mary was a virgin before she became pregnant with Christ, the Holy Father knocked boots with her in the form of human flesh. Mormons believe Jesus was born the same way mortal children are birthed and that Mary basically lost her virginity to God.
This is a belief that has recently been denied by the Church’s current leaders and assumed prophet’s, but it doesn’t change Joseph Smith’s and his First Council’s original teachings.
The Ancient Egyptian Erection
In 1838, Joseph Smith purchased a set of papyri scrolls that he used to translate into the Book of Abraham. Back then, the self-proclaimed prophet had translated the scroll’s hieroglyphics to create his Holy scripture and then burned in the 1871 Chicago Fire. The scrolls were recovered in the 1920’s at the Smithsonian Museum and were eventually returned back to the Church of Latter Day Saints. Before these scrolls made their triumphant return to their religious sanctuary, they were studied by scholars both Mormon and non.
They were authenticated as ordinary text with no connection to Abraham and included the Egyptian God Min with a rather large erection, front and center. Min was the Ancient God of fertility… which might explain his surprising image.
The Book Of Abraham
The Book of Abraham is one of Mormonism’s most sacred, central texts and has been proven to be an inaccurate translation of Egyptian papyri. Abraham lived 2,000 years prior to these hieratic texts and the actual translations provided by modern Egyptologists are not even slightly similar to Smith’s version of content. The papyri are remnants of the Ancient Egyptian’s “Book of the Dead,” and other funerary texts.
Smith’s Book of Abraham preaches the prophet’s vision of the cosmos and Earth’s early creation.
Pre-Existence Inequality
Unfortunately, equality is still lacking in the spiritual world as it is in the physical world. In the Mormon religion, dark skin is considered a curse of God and white skin is a blessing. According to the Book of Moses, people with dark skin are descendants of Cain, the “wicked man who fathered an inferior race.” In the pre-existence, those who were disobedient and unfaithful in the war between God and Satan had their skin turned to black.
We didn’t realize spirits were capable of skin pigmentation, did you? Being born into the physical world with white skin is considered a reward for “heavenly” behavior.
Dark Skin Can Turn White
In the physical world, if you have dark skin and convert to Mormonism you’ll become lighter, or even white. There’s been a lot of controversy surrounding the supremacist agenda that seemed to present in the earliest days of Mormonism, as it was strictly prohibited to marry or engage physically with a dark skin person.
African Africans weren’t allowed to achieve priesthood until 1978 and the Church recently announced the reverse of Cain’s curse and cited their reference to Alma 23:18.
Where Was The Garden Of Eden, Really?
The Garden of Eden’s location has been a mystery that time has practically forgotten, or just stopped caring about, but those who follow the Mormon religion believe the biblical place can be found in Jackson County, Missouri. The Book of Mormon claims that Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden for eating forbidden fruit but didn’t suffer the consequence other religions think they did. If you want to visit the place where man was allegedly created by Jesus, you can travel to Independence and walk the trails of Adam-ondi-Ahman.
Mormonism supports the belief that when the 2nd coming does it occur, it’ll be within the grounds Adam-ondi-Ahman and turn to “Zion” with the help of God’s first son.
Dinosaur Fossils Are Tests Of Faith
At this point, one question usually presents itself. If the Earth is only 7,000 years old and the first people were created in a small Missouri town, how does Mormonism explain dinosaur fossils and bones? Joseph taught the widespread belief that dinosaur remains not only originated from another planet, but they were placed here as a test of true faith.
Apparently, these creatures lived on other world’s and were destroyed during the creation of Earth. The Church has also teaches that dinosaur fossils do not provide concrete proof as to the existence of life before 6,000 BC and that all scientific evidence is fragile.
Tithes To Enter Heaven
Paying dues to your temple is a “sacred” privilege in the Mormon religion. Mormons are required to pay 10% of their gross incomes to the Church in order to enter heaven. The law of tithing doesn’t just guarantee you easy access into the heavenly kingdom, it blesses your life and all that you’ve earned.
Tithing is symbolic of showing God gratitude and contributes to holy missions and temple construction.
The Mystery Of The Book’s 1st Translation
When Joseph Smith translated the first golden plates in 1827, he trusted his confidante Martin Harris with the transcript of the scripture. Harris lost the original transcript and Joseph Smith claimed that the angel Moroni had revoked his translation ability and took back the golden plates out of anger. Smith then announced in 1828 that the plates had been returned and he translated them again (as a new book of revelations) without the help of Martin Harris.
The last time the 116 page manuscript was seen it was locked away by Martin Harris’ wife and then they disappeared without a trace. The golden plates were never seen either, as the angel had taken them once again after Smith’s second translation.
Satan Controls The Seas
The Book of Mormon claims that Satan rules the world’s waters. Mormon missionaries and those who reserve Sundays are forbidden to go swimming when they’re spreading the Lord’s word. A missionary is expected to remain focused on the teachings of the Book and the heavenly kingdom, therefore, being tempted by Satan in leisurely waters could distract them from their purpose.
Baths are also considered to be a disobedience when on a mission, as opposed to the straightforward point of taking a shower. That’s one less reason to worry about undergarment removal.
The Three Kingdoms
The three kingdoms of the afterlife include the Celestial Kingdom, the Terrestrial Kingdom, and the Telestial Kingdom. The Celestial Kingdom is the highest kingdom where God lives, and only those who obeyed his lawfully will enter it. The Terrestrial Kingdom is reserved for those who followed the laws of Moses but not Joseph Smith, and the Telestial Kingdom is the lowest level of the afterlife for those who followed “carnal” law.
Only spirits who enter the Celestial level will have a gender and can engage in afterlife intercourse.
Multiple Worlds And Their Multiple Gods
According to Mormonism, there are multiple worlds in the universe and multiple Gods that rule. We have our planet and our solar system, complete with three holy beings that rule over us. The same applies to planets and other worlds that we have no physical knowledge of.
If you enter the Celestial Kingdom in the afterlife and have proved yourself worthy in the mortal world, you’ll be rewarded with a planet of your own to rule.
The 2nd Coming
One of the most interesting, yet far-fetched, doctrines of the LDS Church is their prophecy of the 2nd coming. Just before Jesus returns and allows all righteous souls into Adam-ondi-Ahman, the US Constitution will be in grave danger and ultimately saved by the Latter Day Saints Elders. There will also be a surge of natural and man-made disasters, including war, that will precede the 2nd coming.
The Book of Mormon doesn’t exactly give us a precise time or date for us to wait for.