"We seldom get into trouble when we speak softly. It is only when we raise our voices that the sparks fly and tiny molehills become great mountains of contention."
The World's Most Vital Fashion Accessory for Book of Mormon Readers
by Jeff Lindsay
To
be like the world's coolest people when it comes to dealing with the
Book of Mormon, there's an important style accessory that you need
before you even look at the text. Not only will it keep you in style,
but it will also help you in properly evaluating the text the way
leading critics do.
With
this accessory on, you will more easily recognize just how little
literary value the Book of Mormon has.
Literary value? Rich, uplifting text? Authentic ancient scripture? I just don't see any of that in the Book of Mormon.
It's
cool, it's sophisticated, it's eco-friendly and green, and it's 100%
opaque. Makes the Book of Mormon much easier on the eyes and the
cerebellum. (Helpful tips: please remove when driving.)
With
the help of high-tech fashion, critics can stay cool about the Book
of Mormon and quickly dismiss the text as wooden, unimaginative,
ridiculous, a slavish copy of the Bible and many dozens of other text
(without slavishly copying any of the literary value of those texts
it is plagiarized from) — the easily exposed work of a weak
mind.
Those
who are less conscious of the world's fashion standards face a more
difficult and complex adventure with the text.
Without
that fashion accessory, reading the book can become much more
difficult. They face complex literary issues that bring out rich
meanings and connections. They face confusing topics like chiasmus
and Hebraic poetry. They face hidden wordplays that abound in the
text, showing strong Hebraic influence.
Simple
little details, like use of the word "directors"
or the mention of Abish
in the Book of Mormon, can become fascinating detours with high
literary value.
And
then there's the task of correlating Book of Mormon settings and
culture with Old World and New World places, such as the many
"direct hits" between First Nephi and the Arabian
Peninsula, and the many "correspondences" between Mesoamerica and the
Book of Mormon in the work of John Sorenson and others. Too much
work! Keep up with the latest styles and your reading will be much
easier.
Jeff Lindsay has been defending the Church on the Internet since 1994, when he launched his
LDSFAQ website under JeffLindsay.com. He has also long been blogging about LDS matters on
the blog Mormanity (mormanity.blogspot.com). Jeff is a longtime resident of Appleton,
Wisconsin, who recently moved to Shanghai, China, with his wife, Kendra.
He works for an Asian corporation as head of intellectual property. Jeff and Kendra are the parents of 4 boys, 3 married and the the youngest on a mission.
He is a former innovation and IP consultant, a former professor, and former Corporate Patent
Strategist and Senior Research Fellow for a multinational corporation.
Jeff Lindsay, Cheryl Perkins and Mukund Karanjikar are authors of the book Conquering
Innovation Fatigue (John Wiley & Sons, 2009).
Jeff has a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Brigham Young University and is a registered US
patent agent. He has more than 100 granted US patents and is author of numerous publications.
Jeff's hobbies include photography, amateur magic, writing, and Mandarin Chinese.
