HOW THE MORMONISM HOAX SHOWS CHRISTIANITY COULD BE A HOAX TOO THE ACCIDENTAL INNUENDOS OF MORMONISM

There are several parallels between what Joseph Smith did between 1830 and 1844 and Jesus Christ. Mormonism, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, shows what could have happened with Christianity. One of the two religions if not both is a hoax. But their origins are so similar that if one is a hoax the other is a suspect of being a hoax as well.

Smith did a lot of bad things and was often in trouble with his own Church.  He flooded the countryside with fake bank notes and had criminal convictions for fortune telling fraud.  He wooed other men's wives.  He concocted an absurd theology full of contradictions and lies.  He altered his own scriptures.

That did not stop people thinking that Brigham Young, Smith's successor as President and Prophet of the Church, morphed into Smith during sermons at times.  This is close to Jesus' resurrection appearances.  Smith said the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were three separate gods.  Many Mormons close to Smith's time held that in some way Joseph Smith was the Holy Spirit. Some felt this was an incarnation or something like it if not exactly for the Holy Spirit according to Mormon doctrine has no body.   It has been noted that the context of Smith's statement that the Father has a body and the Son has a body but the Spirit does not is present tense and does not rule out Smith becoming the Holy Spirit later.  Some Mormons said that the Holy Spirit is not just a being but is a role which means John can be Holy Spirit today and Andrew the Holy Spirit tomorrow.

According to Vern G Swanson "The most widespread is the belief that Smith was the Holy Ghost; or more correctly stated, that he represented the emanating spirit of the Father and the Son. This theory arose from several sources. In a 9 March 1841 discourse Joseph Smith apparently discussed three gods who covenanted to preside over this creation: "[An] Everlasting Covenant was made between three personages before the organization of this earth, and [it] relates to their dispensation of things to men on the earth." These three gods, some argue, were Father Adam for the beginning of the mortal world, Christ for the Meridian of Time, and Joseph Smith for the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times. Others have seen Doctrine and Covenants 135:3 as evidence for Smith being the Holy Ghost: "Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world than any other man that ever lived in it." Accordingly, Christ did the most to save humanity and is the second member of the Godhead; therefore, Smith, who did second to the most, is the third member."  The doctrine was taken very seriously when it needed Pratt to vehemently oppose it.

Mormon historians assert that such doctrines were out and about as far back as the time of Smith's death.  Orson Pratt militated against such teaching but there is no reason to consider his condemnation to have any official or infallible capacity.  "Let no false doctrine proceed out of your mouth, such, for instance that the tabernacle of our martyred prophet and seer, or of any other person, was or is the especial tabernacle of the Holy Ghost, in a different sense from that considered in relation to his residence in other tabernacles. These are doctrines not revealed, and are neither believed nor sanctioned by the Twelve and should be rejected by every Saint."

Joseph Smith had twelve witnesses, including himself, to the non-existent gold plates of the Book of Mormon. David Whitmer, one of them says that his mother and an old man saw them as well. Nearly all these people risked their lives and health and marriages and got into shocking trouble for what they said they witnessed. But they were certainly gullible liars. There were even reports of visitations by angels and testimonies from God that the Book of Mormon was true. None of them retracted what they said.

This matches the testimony of the people in the New Testament that Jesus rose from the dead and was seen. The difference is that we cannot prove that these people suffered for the truth or died for it and we have no first-hand reports as we do with the Mormons. Mormonism so far is more credible and it is not Christianity. The apostles might have been stoned but we are not told that it was solely because of the faith. Perhaps it was for religious freedom? The Christian claim that the apostles of Christ suffered and died for their faith shows they were telling the truth is not believable for you can present millions of witnesses in suffering and blood for religious nonsense and they are being unfair and dishonest in using this argument. Atheism has its martyrs too – people who gave their lives to draw attention to a stance they believed would only benefit the world.

It is difficult to define who is a martyr. It is hard to see how somebody who is in danger and who takes precautions could be a true martyr for they were killed unwillingly especially if there was no point in them retracting their beliefs for it wouldn’t help.

Joseph’s Smith’s Church started off with six members and there were thousands by the time he was shot dead in 1844. Christianity could have taken off like that too despite there having been no Jesus just like Mormonism mushroomed despite the bad reputation of Joseph Smith and the errors in his new Bible and the constant tampering with revelations he changed his mind about and failed prophecies and the things his neighbours knew about him. If the Latter-day Saints could start off without real golden plates and in the midst of opposition and scandal then the Christian Church could have started off without a real resurrection or even a Jesus and be a hotbed of indignity.

The Mormon Church was led by Brigham Young after Smith’s demise. This death was a failure for Smith died before he could finish the Inspired Version of the Bible and appoint a successor which led to much trouble. God would have had it better organised if Smith had been a real prophet. Like the Christians who brought Christianity to birth, the Mormons could not see failure when it stared them in the face. Jesus’ suicidal death was a failure too. But anyway, the Church made Smith into a saint after his death and boasted about his incredibly holy life and alleged martyrdom and even started to teach that Smith was next to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus could have been whitewashed in a similar way. It would have been easier with him for communications and papers existed in Smith’s day and Mormonism was still wonderfully successful. All false prophets have their defenders who can make murder look like nursing babies.

Mormonism shows what religion can get away with and it was harder for it to do it being a product of the fairly advanced 19th century but it managed it relatively easily. For Christianity to achieve the same thing in simple backward times would have been effortless. Two equal but contrary evidences cancel each other out. That is one reason why it is the duty of the religionist, assuming we should have religion at all, that things like Jesus and Bibles should not be a part of religion which should be kept in the boundaries of reason only.

Smith had everything against him but it did not stop him being turned into a sinless god or demi-god who was able to appear after his death.  It might have been so much easier for Jesus!  Jesus had the advantage of not having much recorded about him and there was NOTHING at all written about him when he died or rose again!