As his personal doubts grew, palmer saw a connection between these two fictional stories and a secular explanation for the origins of book of mormon. The show focused on the 1984 salt lake city bombings by mark hoffman, a mormon missionary. Dave whittle, have been studying the book of mormon for over 45 years. Parody, satire, lampoon, history, current events and news of mormon culture. The story of the mormon forgery murders with a new. Despite the churchs natural interest in the document, this. It said joseph smith followed a white salamander to the plates. Phelps, an early convert in the latter day saint movement.
Since the book of abraham is a fraud, it there any reason. A response to criticism of the book covering up the black hole in the book of mormon. Brent called salamander letter fake part 8 of gospel. However, the salamander letter contradicted this and was passed off as a letter from smith. Mar 03, 2021 smith is said to have translated these plates into what we now know as the book of mormon after being visited by moroni multiple times over the next few years. Arguably the most important of these visions happened in 1823. The salamander letter was supposedly written by martin harris. While some have described salamander as mormon friendly i would not call it faith promoting. Unable to remove them, he instead wrote down the texts they contained, which became the book of mormon. Mormon mythology states that joseph smith was led to a book of golden plates which contained the text that would become the book of mormon in 1823 by an angel named moroni. What the contentious salamander letter from murder among. As this document appeared to provide historical evidence that the origins of the book of mormon lay in joseph smiths folk magic practices, the church presented talks and published articles to control the narrative within their congregations and spin the letter positively for.
The infamous story of mark hofmann, the salamander letter. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading salamander. Dallin oaks patron latterday saint of the salamander society todays highlights. Rather than rehash the comprehensive answers already provided, im going to look at this in a di.
Phelps which claimed that joseph actually learned of the ancient record from a white salamander who transformed. The founder of mormonism, joseph smith, claimed that he experienced a series of visions from god. Mar 16, 2009 in 1984, hofmann produced his salamander letter. It does, however raise some interesting questions with similarly interesting implications. In the case of the book of mormon smith claimed that a flaming salamander gave him 400 pound gold plates, smith sprinted home with the plates,and translated them with a magic rock. When palmer became aware of the book the golden pot, he saw parallels between the salamander letter and the fictional story. It suggested that folk magic was not an early stage that joseph smith abandoned, but was crucial in the book of mormon translation process. According to the churchs history, smith was visited by an angel who gave him gold plates, which he translated into the book of mormon. The letter also said smith was prevented at first from gaining possession of the plates by an. The orthodox history of the lds church states that their founder, joseph smith, was visited by the angel moroni and told about the buried ancient records that would go on. The salamander letter was a controversial document about the history of the latter day saint. The salamander letter from murder among the mormons, explained.
He read me the salamander letter for the first time. How two document examiners solved the case of the salamander. The salamander letter, which has since been published in books like practice to deceive. The real history and meaning of the salamander letter. Harris served for a short period of time as scribe for the translation of the golden plates, and assisted in the financing of the first printing of the book of mormon. Controversial white salamander letter is defended by. Mar 03, 2021 according to hess, who is still a member of the mormon church, and measom, who left the faith years ago, the initial title of the series was the salamander, and then later the salamander. Mar 04, 2021 to understand it first you have to understand a bit about the mormon religion. When his schemes began to unravel, he constructed bombs to murder three people in salt lake city, utah.
Controversial white salamander letter is defended by mormon scholars. Mar 02, 2021 the letter was supposedly penned by martin harris, an early disciple of smith who helped fund the first printing of the book of mormon. The boom in mormon documents continued into 1983, though camelot was gone, replaced by a grim professionalism. Church leaders and missionaries often instruct members and investigators of the religion that once they confirm through prayer that the book of mormon is true, they can then. Aug 01, 2012 both were given to the world by joseph smith. The socalled salamander letter had purportedly been written by a man named martin harris, who had financed the first printing of the book of mormon. The letter said that instead of the angel moroni, a white salamander had appeared before smith and then transformed into a spirit who struck him three times and refused to show him the. Salt lake county district attorneys investigator michael george believed that, after hofmann had successfully forged the blessing, his ultimate goal was to create the lost 116 pages of the book of mormon, which he could have filled with inconsistencies and errors, sell them to the church to be hidden away and then as he had done often with embarrassing documents make sure its contents were made public. Mar 08, 2021 the socalled salamander letter had purportedly been written by a man named martin harris, who had financed the first printing of the book of mormon. The salamander letter was said to be written by martin harris on october 23, 1830 addressed to william wines phelps, a newspaper publisher who later converted to mormonism, per the associated. The salamander letter and the mark hoffman forgeries saints. Mar 03, 2021 to understand the salamander letter and its implications for the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, lets take a quick look at the accepted history of mormonism.
The story of the mormon forgery murders kindle edition by sillitoe, linda, roberts, allen. But despite hofmanns success in the forgery business, by 1985 hed racked up over a million dollars in debt. Mark william hofmann born december 7, 1954 is an american counterfeiter, forger, and convicted murderer. But in the salamander letter, the author claimed joseph. Controversial white salamander letter is defended by mormon. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The correspondence describes how joseph smith found golden plates, which later resulted in the book of mormon, with the. Mar 04, 2021 why was the salamander letter so controversial. The book is well written and the story captivating. When mark hofmann brought a lost mormon document to church elders in 1980, he was. When they hear the word salamander, most will only think of the amphibiousbiological definition, but this creature of lore has many different names and abilities in occult lore. Mar 04, 2021 the salamander letter was said to be written by martin harris on october 23, 1830 addressed to william wines phelps, a newspaper publisher who later converted to mormonism, per the associated. Then the flaming salamander disappeared with the golden plates.
Mar 04, 2021 as you may already know from the series, the salamander letter involves the origins of the mormon aka latterday saints or lds church. The salamander letter from murder among the mormons. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the latter day saint movement. Dave explains what hofmann forged the white salamander letter, amongst. Murder among the mormons filmmakers on how forgeries, faith. Reported find of letter by book of mormon witness a salamander. Mar 04, 2021 according to the letter, smith, the founder of the mormon religion, followed a white salamander to the golden plates that he would translate into the book of mormon. What are the hofmann forgeries and the salamander letter. Mark hofmanns white salamander letter scheme led to 2. What the contentious salamander letter from murder among the. A being that is able to live in fire is a good approximation of the description joseph smith gave of the angel moroni. What is the story of a talking salamander in the church of jesus.
Nor does the spirit, which testifies of the book of mormon, confirm the historical reality of the book. But in the salamander letter, the author claimed joseph smith had told him he was led to the gold plates, not by an angel, but by a white salamander. Alive in the flames from kurt seligmanns the history of magic for a month or two there have been rumors circulating that an extremely important letter written by book of mormon witness martin harris has been discovered. Jerald and sandra tanner, the changing world of mormonism moody press, 1979, 337. Mar 05, 2021 one of his creations was the salamander letter, a document supposedly showing that in joseph smiths first iteration of the mormon origin story, in which an angel led him to a set of. Mar 03, 2021 basically the salamander letter rewrote mormonisms origins from a fairly traditional christian story that involved angels to one that revolved around magic lizards. Smith translated, or pretended to translate, the alleged plates by scrying crystal gazing, an occult technique he had already employed in the folk practice. According to smith, an angel named moroni appeared to him and directed him to buried book of golden plates. As you may already know from the series, the salamander letter involves the origins of the mormon aka latterday saints or lds church. Mar 04, 2021 mormon mythology states that joseph smith was led to a book of golden plates which contained the text that would become the book of mormon in 1823 by an angel named moroni.
The salamander letter implied that the history of joseph smith and the church had some magical aspects to it. Read salamander online by linda sillitoe and allen roberts books. The salamander letter mentioned the golden plates from which the book of mormon is said to be translated from. Feb 27, 2006 in 1983 a person by the name of mark hoffman produced a letter which he claimed had been written by martin harris in 1830 in which he says that joseph smith told him that the spirit guarding the gold in the hill cumorah was transformed from a white salamander that joseph saw in the hole in which he was digging. The salamander letter is a letter from martin harris to william w. The significance of the salamander in mormon and occult. Grant palmer aptly writes, when a person experiences the spirit at a protestant revival meeting or when reading the book of mormon, it is not my belief that the powerful feelings prove the truthfulness of the doctrines heard, taught, or read. Book of mormonauthorship theoriesgolden pot fairmormon. The salamander society a being that is able to live in fire is a good approximation of the description joseph smith gave of the angel moroni. What is the story of a talking salamander in the church of. Joseph smith claimed the angel moroni appeared to him and told him about the buried ancient record that would later become the book of mormon.
Discovernet what is the salamander letter from netflixs. The salamander letter was supposedly written by martin harris to w. The significance of the salamander in mormon and occult lore. The salamander letter and the mark hofmann forgeries youtube. Moroni explained that the book was inscribed on golden plates in new york state and instructed smith on how to find them. What is the salamander letter from netflixs murder among the. The whole translation of the book of mormon is steeped in mysticism and fraud. The following year, 1823, smith claimed moroni revealed the existence of a new gospel called the book of mormon, engraved on gold plates that were hidden in a hill near palmyra, new york. Murder among the mormons filmmakers on how forgeries. Mar 02, 2021 this letter was believed to be an authentic historical document by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints.
The real history and meaning of the salamander letter refinery29. Harris wrote in the letter that smith had been led to the golden plates by a spirit in the form of a white salamander. The true story of the salamander letter from murder among. Salamander letter and mark hoffman by jeff lindsay. Smith is said to have translated the engravings on the golden plates into what became the book of mormon. The white salamander letter his most notorious latterday saint forgery is the salamander letter. What is the salamander letter from netflixs murder among.
In the letter, he told a friend something about the religions founder, joseph smith, that was at odds with the churchs orthodox teachings. Analysis of general conference general nonsense and mosense. It provides some insights into utah culture, politics and religion which in fact overlap quite a bit. The salamander letter contradicted the history of the mormon church.
The salamander letter was a controversial document about the history of the latter day saint movement that later proved to be a forgery the letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of the latter day saint movement that surfaced in the early 1980s. Hofmann may have been inspired by the early anti mormon book, mormonism unvailed 1834, which claimed that a toadlike animal was rumored. For a very well written book on this topic i recommend early mormonism and the magic world view by d. The lds church teaches members from childhood to rely upon feeling the spirit to confirm truth, promoting a personal connection to god which stems from its uniquely powerful priesthoodconferred gift of the spirit. Allegedly written in 1830, the letter depicts a view of smiths life that was sharply at odds with the accepted narrative of how the early mormon church was. It talked about a magical salamander spirit guarding the golden plates who demanded that joseph bring his dead brother alvin to get the plates. Mar 04, 2021 the salamander letter threatened to shake the foundations of the mormon church. Read unlimited books and audiobooks on the web, ipad, iphone and android. Knowing this, mark hofmann dreamed up a letter that played perfectly off of those claims. Aug 20, 2014 few people had more of a frontrow seat than brent metcalfe to the goingson surrounding mark hofmann, the salamander letter, and the tragic events of october 1985 what would be dubbed as the mormon murders. The book of mormon, in my opinion, is a hodgepodge of influences from a variety of early america sources, including the writings of historians warren and ramsey, as well as the sermons of edwards and whitefield, not to mention the storytellings of ethan smiths view of the hebrews and a lot of borrowed language from the old and new testaments. He transcribed what was on the golden plates, the text of which became the book of mormon. It purported to be a letter from martin harris about joseph smiths magical practices.
The true story of the salamander letter from murder among the. What is the connection between mark hofmann and martin. But then, in 1984, he produced what was later termed the salamander letter. Criticisms related to president hinckleys inability to detect the mark hofmann forgeries are raised in the following publications. Joseph smith said he was led to the plates by an angel.
The letter appeared to be written by martin harris, one of the witnesses of the book of mormon. Mar 04, 2021 hofmanns salamander letter, however, presented an altered version of the origin story which, if true, had the potential to shake the mormon faith to its core. The salamander letter is a forgery, but the significance of the mystical salamander in folklore, legend, and occult lore including mormon lore is not steeped in deception. What is the salamander letter from murder among the mormons. Mar 04, 2021 according to the churchs history, smith was visited by an angel who gave him gold plates, which he translated into the book of mormon. Netflix series murder among the mormons documents mark.
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