Mormonism exposed : Joseph Smith an imposter and the Book of Mormon a fraud online

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Walter & Mary Straub




University of California Berkeley



INTERNATIONAL BOOKFINDE

You name it we find it
' T08, Beverly Hills, Califo




Wa/ter . StrauA

&)ea/t of Extension ^Division

COLORADO BIBLE COLLMQE

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COPYRIGHT A?PLIED FOR

1902.
G. B. HANCOCK.




G. B. HANCOCK.



Mormon ism Exposed.



JOSEPH SMITH AN IMPOSTOR AND THE BOOK OF
MORMON A FRAUD.



(J
BY ELDER Q. B. HANCOCK.



1002
A. DOQ-GETT, F*RUTER.

-M AK ION VI I. I.E. MO.



To AU,, EVERYWHERE, WHO LOVE_THE TRUTH OF GOD,

THIS BOOK IS LOVINGLY DEDICATED

BY IT'S AUTHOR.



PREFACE.

It is truly said, custom governs practice, fashion rules the
day. This is almost invariably true. It is so common for those
who write books to open their pages with a preface that the
author's work would be considered very incomplete should he
fail to write one also. The preface is intended, as a rule, to
give the reasons for the book's appearance and an introduction
to the line of thought contained in the book.

We had no idea of writing a book in order to expose Mor-
monism till after the debate we held with them at Fayette City,
Pa. We had been challenged for such debate many times but
never could succeed in getting them to discuss such proposi-
tions as we were willing to debate. For years we had been
satisfied that those who had debated with Mormons had given
them unnecessary advantage in the way of propositions. They
invariably sought propositions that gave them opportunity to
play upon side issues and give simply a rehash of matter that
they had delivered in lectures and preached in sermons till they
had it by heart. We determined that they should not have this
opportunity in the Fayette City debate. Besides we felt that
if they were taken from their stereotyped course of presenting
their doctrines, they would be utterly at a loss, and manifest
clearly their inability to sustain their system. Our conjecture
proved to be true. The proposition as we affirmed was: Joseph
Smith, the reputed prophet and the author of the Book of Mor-
mon, was as imposter and the Book of Mormon is a fraud. It
took some time to get them to agree to discuss the difference as
stated in our affirmative. They wanted to divide the burden of
proof. Finally we notified them that we would be at Fayette City
the first of March, 1900, prepared to meet any Mormon cham-



pion in debate that might be selected by that fraternity, or in
case we had no opponent we were prepared to expose their sys-
tem in a series of lectures. This they could not allow. We
found an opponent on the ground, but he proved himself incap-
able of grappling with systems. Our line of thought was new
to all. It was readily seen that the discussion was one between
the Bible'and the Book of Mormon. All that heard and all that
have seen our arrangement of matter are unanimous in the con-
clusion that the interests of Truth demanded that we publish
what we presented in that debate. To this request we have
consented. Therefore we send this book forth, hoping that it
may do much good, and believing that it will stand as a Gibral-
tar in behalf of Truth,

G. B. HANCOCK,
Scholten, Mo.



MORMONISM VIEWED IN IT'S
TRUE LIGHT.



JOSEPH SMITH AN IMPOSTER AND THE BOOK OF MORMON
A FRAUD.



CHAPTER ONE.

The people known as Mormons, or Latter Day Saints, are
among the most aggressive religionists of the present time.
Their missionaries are to be met with in all parts, and manifest
a zeal that is certainly worthy of a better cause. We say
' 'better cause, ' ' because we feel their cause is not good, and we are
as conscious of our ability to demonstrate the truthfulness of the
propositions embodied in our caption as we are of our ability to
move the pencil with which we are now writing.

It has been said that knowledge and thought govern the
world. As to whether this is true may be a question, but the
thinking part of humanity will agree that such should be the
case. Religiously, however, the majority seem to move
without thought. It is a fact that most religionists give the
subject of religion but little thought, and as a consequence,
what ideas they have are in the main, second hand. Upon the
part of those who think, and presume to think for the people,
there is but little independence of mind, for they do not allow
themselves to think outside of certain paths marked out by
predecessors.

It being conceded that man should be governed by thought,
it should not be a difficult matter to decide as to whose thoughts
should govern him. Thought designed for the government of



man should be such as to tend wholly to the betterment of
man's estate. In order to a proper conception of the thought
necessary in order to the desired end, we need to enquire for the
purpose of religion. The word means "a binding back,"
carrying the idea of reuniting severed ties. Worship is designed
to bring the worshipper into conformity to the object worshipped.
Thought, hence, to accomplish the desired end, must lead to
and give a truer knowledge of God. Man cannot, however,
by searching, find out God. Therefore, no line of finite
thought can answer the purpose. A knowledge of God
can not come from man but must come from God.

The purpose of religion is an infinite one. The design is to
prepare man for the service of the Infinite Being, in the infinite
beyond. If thought is to govern man, in view of the end
purposed in religion, it must be infinite thought, for finite means
cannot accomplish an infinite purpose. In order to the desired
end a finite being can do nothing but lay hold of infinite
provisions. All the provisions from God in man's behalf, are
through Christ. He must, therefore, bean Infinite Being or the
claims of the Bible are not true.

God says to man, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than
your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:
8, 9. If we ask, where are the thoughts of the Almighty in
man 's behalf to be found? the answer is in the context, and
assures us that his thoughts are in the WORDS that he has
spoken to man.

Man's words give man's thoughts, andean give nothing
beyond. Therefore God's words alone can give God's thoughts.
If the glory of God is involved in the matters of religion his
thoughts alone should govern man in these matters. One to
give to man the thoughts of God must be one that knows the
mind of God. Christ affirms that he is the only teacher of the
human family that knew God. He is, hence, of these matters,
the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and
the last.

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If God is interested in the eternal welfare of the creature
man, and his thoughts are essential in order to that welfare, it
is reasonable that he should not only reveal those thoughts, but
also guard them against perversion. This we find he purposed
to do. To the Jews he said. "Ye shall not add unto the word
which I command you, neither shall ye diminish aught
from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your
God which I command you. " Deut. 4: 2. Again, "What thing
soever I command you, observe to do it; thou shalt not add
thereto, nor diminish from it." Deut. 12: 32. These
prohibitions are repeated in the New Testament, with the
assurance that the anathamas of heaven will rest upon all who
disregard them.

The thoughts of God could not be known but by revelation,
and this revelation could not be but by the inspiration of the
Almighty. Therefore, the inspiration essential in order to the
desired end was afforded and no more. As the glory of God
and the eternal interests of humanity were involved in these
matters, man could not decide as to the amount of revelation
required. The will of man, hence, never governed the acftion
of inspiration; or, in other words, no inspiration was ever
afforded at the mere suggestion of man. We are assured that
no prophecy ever came at any time by the will of man, but holy
men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
II. Peter i: 20, 21. As to the purpose or extent of his working
God never counseled man, but worketh all things after the
counsel of his own will. Eph. i: n. If w y e can ascertain the
decision of God as to the amount of inspiration and revelation
essential in order to the desired end it will be satisfactory to all
who desire simply the truth.

There are different books that claim to exist by virtue of
inspiration, and claim, hence, to be revelations from God. By
way of introduction to a proper course of inquiry, we place
certain of these books before us. First, we take the book called
the Bible. If the claims of this book to inspiration cannot be
sustained, no other book need put up such claim. The Bible is



composed of two parts, the Old and New Testaments. If we ask,
What do we have when we have the Old Testament? the answer
is, We have Moses and the prophets. In the New Testament
we have Jesus and his apostles. These two books, the Old and
New Testaments, are a unit. They were both essential in order
to the end in view, the eternal interests of man. In the first
the mind of man was directed forward, in expectation of the
second. In the first they were taught to expect perfection in the
second. The two, hence, make one book. When the disciples
accepted Jesus they could truthfully say, "We have found him
of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write. "

We have before us another book that claims to exist by
virtue of inspiration from God. It is called the Book of Mormon.
What have we in it? WHAT PURPOSE DOES IT ANSWER IN THE
ECONOMY OF HEAVEN? Inspiration, as we have seen, is not at
the option of man but governed wholly by the will of God. If
the Book of Mormon be an inspired production there must be a
purpose in the economy of grace that it was designed to
accomplish a purpose above and beyond what could be
accomplished by the inspiration afforded Christ and the apostle!

The working of inspiration and revelation was in order to
God's glory and man's eternal interest. If the Book of Mormon
answers no specific purpose in order to the glory of God and the
eternal interests of humanity the propositions, embodied in the
heading under which we write are true, incontrovertibly true.
IP THE BOOK OF MORMON ANSWERS ANY PURPOSE IN THE DIVINE
ECONOMY, IT MUST CONNECT AT SOME POINT WITH THE BlBLE,
AND AT THAT POINT THERE MUST BE AN INCOMPLETENESS, A
VACUUM, THAT COULD NOT HAVE BEEN FILLED . WITHOUT ITS
APPEARANCE. If there be such point it must be found in the
New Testament, for there is not a prophecy, an allegory or type
in the Old Testament, that directs the mind of man beyond what
we have in Christ. The purpose of the inspiration and
revelation that gave the Old Testament was reached in its
fulness, by the bringing in of the hope that is afforded in Christ
Jesus. "On the one hand, an old commandment is annulled,

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because it was weak and profitless (for the law perfected nothing)
and on the other hand, a better hope is brought in whereby we
draw near unto God." Heb. 7: 18, 19. Conybeare. When
this better hope was brought in the full purpose of the Jewish
economy was reached. Where in the New Testament economy,
the economy that has the provisions for that better hope, is

THERE A VACUUM TO BE FILLED BY A PRODUCTION THROUGH

JOSEPH SMITH? Echo answers where !

It is now, we think, at this early stage in our investigation,
perceptible to our readers, that in meeting the claims of
Mormonism our task is simply to defend the claims of the Bible.
We now and here unhesitating!}^ affirm, If the claims of
Mormonism be true, the claims of the Bible are false. The
truthfulness of this will appear as we proceed with our
investigation.



CHAPTER TWO.

A proper view of the development of the remedial system
will give us the decision of the Almighty as to the amount of
revelation essential in order to the one great purpose regarding
the human family. Time was divided into three periods called
dispensations. These are known as the Patriarchal, the Jewish,
and the Christian. These have been beautifully represented as
the starlight period, the moonlight period, and the daylight
period of Christianity. During the first period of time, a period
of darkness, because of the exceeding corruptness of the race,
a man would appear here and there, who would shine as a
bright star in the moral heavens. Of these we may mention
Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Melchisedec and Job. This period was
divided into two parts, the antediluvian and the postdiluvian.
Yet the two constituted one period. This period continued till
the giving of the law of Moses, hence, till the establishing of
the first covenant in the development of the remedial system.
With the establishing of that covenant a new and superior
period was ushered in. The patriarchs had now as it



were, surrendered their commission at the feet of
Moses, the mediator of that covenant. The theocracy that was
established with the giving of the law continued till the time
was at hand for the ushering in of the period known as "The
fulness of times," the establishing of the new, the everlasting
covenant. When this covenant was to be established Moses and
the prophets surrendered their commission at the feet of Jesus.
From that time the command from God is Hear My Son.

Revelation was progressive, never retrogressive. The inferior
surrendered to and was followed by the superior. Mormons
claim that a new development was made through Joseph Smith;
hence that with him a new period began. This being so it must
be a progressive, a superior one. This being true God's will
did not reach it's perfection in Christ. There are no retrogressive
steps in inspiration neither does it do any work of supererogation.
Can it be that God had something in reservation for man, to be
made known through Joseph Smith, that was to be superior to
what he gave through his Son? Is Mormonism superior to
Christianity, and Joseph Smith above Jesus Christ? Such are
the legitimate and blasphemous claims of this modernism! !
For a revelation that had no superior claims over a former one,
and that had no advantages over what had preceded it, no
excuse could be given. Therefore, if with the appearing of the
Book of Mormon a new period was to be ushered in, giving new
advantages, advantages superior to any through previous
revelations; then it follows, necessarily, that Jesus must
surrender his commission at the feet of Smith! Was it
for such purpose that God brought His Son to earth and
introduced him to Smith?

That the Book of Mormon claims to be above the Bible is
shown by the following:

"Wherefore, thou seest that after the book [that is, the
Bible] hath gone forth through the hands of the great and
abominable church [the church of Rome] that there are many
plain and precious things taken away from the book, which is
the book of the Lamb of God, and these plain and precious
things were taken away, it goeth forth unto all the nations of

10



Gentiles, yea, even across the many waters which thou hast
seen with the Gentiles which have gone forth out oi captivity
[that is, the Protestants]; thou seest because of the many plain
and precious things which have been taken out of the book,
which were plain unto the understanding of the children of men,
according to the plainness which is in the Lamb of God; because
of these things \vhich are taken away out of the Gospel of the
Lamb, an exceeding great many do stumble, yea, insomuch that
Satan hath great power over them." B. OF M. p. 22; 119.

[NOTE. All the quotations from the Book of Mormon found In this
book, are found in the Book of Mormon as published at Lamoni, Iowa.

From this we learn that the Bible is not the Book of God !
No, it's just a skeleton, minus all the essentials of life ! The
many PLAIN and PRECIOUS things of the gospel are not in the
Bible ! It is just as good a thing as the devil wants; for it being
destitute of the gospel of Christ it is minus the power of God
for salvation. Therefore, without the appearing of Joseph
Smith none could be saved. When we challenge Mormon
leaders to specif}' a single item in the gospel of Christ that is
not in the New Testament the}' are mum. We will see how
completely Mormonism breaks its own neck at this point.
Mormons admit that the new Testament is an inspired book.
It claims, however to contain the fulness of the gospel. Its
claims in this are false. Therefore, the New Testament is an
inspired falsehood ! The fact is, the statement concerning the
Bible in the quotation we gave is as base a falsehood as was ever .
uttered. This is strong language. But we have a severe case,
and strong medicine is needed. The statement concerning the
Bible as made in the quotation made from the Book of Mormon
gives, in substance, an old infidel objection to the Bible that
had been made many, very many years before Joe Smith was
born. We will now and here give it the needed attention. We
give this objection as presented in the language of Orson Pratt.
He says:

"The gathering together of the few scattered manuscripts
which compose what is termed the Bible was the work of
uninspired men, which took place centuries after John had
finished his manuscript. Among the vast number of professedly
inspired manuscripts, scattered through the world, man, poor

ii



weak, ignorant man, assumed the authority to select a few,
which, according to his frail judgment, he believed or
conjected were of God; but the balance not agreeing, perhaps,
with his peculiar notion of divine inspiration, were rejected as
spurious. The few selected from the abundance were finally
arranged into one volume, divided into chapter and verse, and
named the Bible. ' '

Again:

"How does the Protestant world know that the compilers of
the Bible, in hunting up the sacred manuscripts which were
widely scattered over the world, one in one place, and another
in another, found all that were of divine origin? How do they
know that the compilers of the Bible found even the one
hundredth part of the manuscripts that were sacred ?" "Divine
Authenticity of the Book of Mormon." p. 130.

As Orson Pratt was one of Smith's chosen apostles his
utterances show the true spirit of Mormon inspiration. Why
should Mormons make such attacks upon the Bible ? The
answer is, Unless the Bible can be brought into disrepute there
can be no room for the Book of Mormon. We will first see what
foundation there is for such infidel attacks upon the Old
Testament. In the days of Christ and the apostles that book
existed in two languages. The Hebrew and the Greek. We
have a copy of the Septuagint version. It was a translation
from the Hebrew, made in Alexandria, Egypt, about 200 years
before Christ. It contains the books of the Old Testament, from
Genesis to Malachi. This shows that the Hebrew version
contained the same. Christ and his apostles used them, and
endorsed them as the word of God. They were such, or Christ
and his apostles were false teachers. In this we have the
inspiration of Jesus, versus Mormon inspiration. They cannot
both be true.

"Suppose a merchant in San Francisco receive a large order
from a firm in Liverpool for several cargoes of wheat. He goes
to the Merchant's Intelligence Office and satisfies himself that
the Liverpool house is perfectly solvent. But he has never had
any correspondence with that house before, and so does not
certainly know that the signature is genuine. Just then one of
his neighbors whom he knows to be a true man, and who has

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recently returned from England, steps in with a strange
gentleman, and introduces him as a son of the senior partner,
and himself a member .of the firm. The San Francisco merchant
shows the letter to the young Englishman . ' Yes! ' ' he says ' 'that
is all right; that is my father's signature. " Then he proceeds to
explain the letter. There is no longer an\- doubt or delay in
filling the order. NOW T , can we authenticate the Bible in an}'
such way ? We CAN authenticate the Bible in this very way.
The Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, has visited our world as
the Word of God, ON THIS VERY BUSINESS, to declare God's
Word to us. He has read the Bible carefully, as much of it as
was then written, and he has directed the writing of the
remainder. He has given us his opinion of it repeatedly in
direct statements; has quoted many passages from it and
explained them, and exposed and reprobated the additions which
the scribes and Pharisees would have made to the Bible by their
traditions. We can trust the testimony of Jesus unhesitatingly.
All Christians acknowledge Him as the Truth, and no infidel
has dared to charge Him with falsehood." "The Testimony of
Christ to the Truth of the Old Testament, " by Robert Patterson.

Touching the authenticity of the New Testament, we give
the following:

"I was dining some time ago with a literary party at old
Mr. Abercrombie's, father of General Abercrombie, who was
slain in Egypt at the head of the British army, and spending
the evening together. A gentleman present put a question
which puzzled the whole company. It was this: Supposing all
the New Testaments in the world had been destroyed at the
end of the third century, could their contents have been
recovered from the writings of the first three centuries ? ' ' The
question was novel to all, and no one even hazarded a guess in
answer to the inquiry. About two months after this meeting, I
received a note from Lord Hailes inviting me to breakfast w r ith
him next morning. He had been one of the party. During
breakfast he asked me if I recollected the curious question
about the possibility of recovering the contents of the New
Testament from the writings of the first three centuries. 'I
remember it well, ' said I, 'and have thought of it often, without
being able to form any opinion or conjecture on the subject. '
'Well,' said Lord Hailes, 'that question quite accorded with the
turn or taste of my antiquarian mind. On returning home, as
I knew I had all the writings of those centuries, I began
immediately to collect them, that I might set to work on the

13



arduous tatk as soon as possible. ' Pointing to a table, covered
with papers, he said, 'There have I been busy for these two
months, searching for chapters, half chapters, and sentences of
the New Testament, and have marked down what I have found,
and where I have found it, so that any person may examine and
see for himself. I have actually discovered the whole New
Testament from those writings except seven (or eleven) verses,
(I forget which) which satisfied me that I could discover them
also. ' 'Now, ' said he, 'here was a way in which God concealed
or hid the treasure of His Word, that Julian, the apostate
emperor, and other enemies of Christ who tried to extirpate the
gospels from the world, never would have thought of; and
though they had they never could have effected their destruction . '
The labor of effecting this feat must have been immense; for the
Gospels and Epistles would not be divided into chapters and
verses as they are now. Much must have been effected by help
of a concordance. And having been a judge for many years, a
habit of minute investigation must have been formed in his
mind. The facilities for investigating this question are ample
and easily accessible to any intelligent student. The Ante-
Nicene Library, published by T. and T. Clark, of Edinburg,
comprises some twenty-four octavo volumes, averaging about
five hundred pages each. In these twelve thousand octavo
pages of printed matter are comprised nearly all the extant
writings of some fifteen or twenty of the most eminent Christian
authors who lived before the year A. D. 325, when the council
of Nice was convened. One of the volumes also contains such
remains of those spurious, uncanonical and ficticious gospels,
Acts, etc., as have come down to us from early ages. In these
twelve thousand pages, all of which are accessible to skeptics in
English translations, which can be compared with the originals
by those who are competent to do so, will be found an
overwhelming avalanche of evidence upon the question of the
origin of the New Testament Scriptures. These men, some of
whom were contemporary with the apostles, and others who, as
their immediate successors, were well acquainted with their
associates and contemporaries, give in these writings the most
positive and unmistakable evidence as to the New Testament
books which they received, and as to the estimation in which