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Consumer consciousness hardly protects the buyer of deceptive literature. Historical novels are on the fiction shelves, but some books in the same class are sold as ancient religious documents. Certain publishers keep printing these items simply because they sell. But they well deserve this label: &ldquo;Warning: This imitation history may be hazardous to your spiritual health&mdash;it may warp your sense of logic and accuracy.&rdquo;
There are many types of apocrypha. The traditional apocrypha of the Old Testament is bound in many Bibles, especially Roman Catholic translations. This could almost be called the &ldquo;canonical apocrypha&rdquo;; it is history and literature from Judaism in the intertestamental period. A second collection was discovered at Qumran, and reaches into the New Testament century. These Dead Sea Scrolls include scriptures and interpretations that show expectations of Jewish puritans contemporary with earliest Christianity. A third apocryphal group is the Nag Hammadi Library, postdating the New Testament but containing trace elements from early Christianity. These documents reveal the theology of &ldquo;off-brand&rdquo; Christians veering to mysticism and the secret tradition.
Joseph Smith inquired about the first category above and received the answer that the true and false were mingled and needed to be tested by the Spirit. The other two collections just mentioned are in similar time frames, so it is logical to extend such a rule to them. Much of the Dead Sea Scrolls plus the Nag Hammadi find are published in translation now, and they can be readily examined. Popularizers often make exaggerated claims about them, but theories must be tested by the standard of known revelations and history. After all, the Mormon view of seeking the Spirit first involves careful study of existing data. Modern revelation does not suggest that God will reward laziness, but rather that he will supplement the knowledge of the one who diligently studies and inquires.

Apocryphal Writings and the Latter-day Saints

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Imitation Gospels and Christ’s Book of Mormon Ministry

Imitation Gospels and Christ’s Book of Mormon Ministry

Title

Imitation Gospels and Christ’s Book of Mormon Ministry

Book Title

Apocryphal Writings and the Latter-day Saints

Publication Type

Book

Chapter

4

Year of Publication

1986

Authors

Richard Lloyd Anderson (Primary)

Editors

C. Wilfred Griggs (Secondary)

Pagination

53-107

Publisher

Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University

City

Provo, UT

URL

https://rsc.byu.edu/apocryphal-writings-latter-day-saints/imitation-gospels-christs-book-mormon-ministry

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