Cobalt-70 Posted August 26, 2012 Posted August 26, 2012 If the BOM account is fictional, its claims are fictional (though by happenstance a handful may actually be true). Why is that so difficult for some people to grasp?Why would you say that? The Book of Mormon claims, for example, that God will prepare a way for you to accomplish his commandments, and it gives a fictional story to support that. It claims that pride and a focus on riches leads to the fall of society, and supports that with fictional illustrations. It claims that it is possible to be born again and change one's fallen nature, and provides fictional examples. The claims are true, and the fictional stories are just there for illustration and to help us internalize the lessons being taught.
moonlight12 Posted August 26, 2012 Posted August 26, 2012 Why would you say that? The Book of Mormon claims, for example, that God will prepare a way for you to accomplish his commandments, and it gives a fictional story to support that. It claims that pride and a focus on riches leads to the fall of society, and supports that with fictional illustrations. It claims that it is possible to be born again and change one's fallen nature, and provides fictional examples. The claims are true, and the fictional stories are just there for illustration and to help us internalize the lessons being taught.True, you can cite inspirational motifs that are present in dozens of works of fiction, both prose and poetry (C.S. Lewis comes immediately to mind as does some of the poetry of Emily ****inson, and, of course, Gerard Manley Hopkins, among many others). You cannot find, however, works of fiction that even begin to approach the spiritual breadth and depth of the Book of Mormon. You may disagree; if so, perhaps you can provide an example of a fictional work that reveals what the BOM reveals about the nature and designs of God and His Son, complete with names (people and places), epistles, governments, and genealogies.
mfbukowski Posted August 26, 2012 Posted August 26, 2012 True, you can cite inspirational motifs that are present in dozens of works of fiction, both prose and poetry (C.S. Lewis comes immediately to mind as does some of the poetry of Emily ****inson, and, of course, Gerard Manley Hopkins, among many others). You cannot find, however, works of fiction that even begin to approach the spiritual breadth and depth of the Book of Mormon. You may disagree; if so, perhaps you can provide an example of a fictional work that reveals what the BOM reveals about the nature and designs of God and His Son, complete with names (people and places), epistles, governments, and genealogies.One could argue that there are many many works of philosophy which do just as well, but I suppose it is a semantic issue as to whether or not one wants to call them "fiction"On the other hand, they are not scripture and the BOM is. It's function is quite different than a work of philosophy, and you can't pray about philosophy and get an answer from God. 1
Bill Hamblin Posted August 27, 2012 Author Posted August 27, 2012 I think everyone has had their say, and we are beginning to repeat ourselves, so I'm closing this topic. 1
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