What is chiasmus and how is it used in the book of mormon. It was also seen in sanskrit, mesopotamian, chinese and egyptian texts. Dan peterson notes the use of hebrew idioms and cognate accusative structures in the book of mormon. Aug 22, 2016 the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon is one of the most significant scholarly contributions to understanding and appreciating the nephite record. They claim that such findings support claims of hebrew origins in the text on the basis that. Bishop lowth, whose lectures on hebrew poetry in 1741 first introduced the name parallelism for the hebrew poetic style, pointed out that this structure, based as it is on meaning, survives translation into the prose of any language with. Aug 29, 2017 in august 1967, fifty years ago this month, john welch was a young latterday saint on his mission in germany. Does chiasmus appear in the book of mormon by chance. This compilation of groundbreaking book of mormon articles is selected from over fifty years of lds scholarship published by byu studies. No one in america, let alone in western new york, fully understood chiasmus in 1830.
Chiasmus in the book of mormon mormonism, the mormon church. For those unfamiliar with the term, chiasmus is an ancient literary device that has been found in greek, latin, and hebrew writings. This is no doubt due to the fact that the nephites retained the hebrew language, albeit in an altered form see mormon 9. Chiasmus in the book of mormon judaicaworld archives. This writer had written an article on chiasmus and i just had to share it. In the late 1960s, a young latterday saint discovered that an ancient form of middle eastern poetry was found throughout the book of mormon, suggestive of its ancient semitic origins. The chiastic structure, according to welch, is as follows. The discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon is one of the most significant scholarly contributions to understanding and appreciating the nephite record. Aug 25, 20 they highlight many common mistakes in the english language, numerous idioms and proverbs, the infamous manglish slang malaysianenglish and occasionally littleknown things like these chiasmus. Chiasmus in the book of mormon book of mormon central. Many of these chiasms have been identified and discussed, 3 but very little research has been done on the use of chiasmus in other ancient. Definition, usage and a list of chiasmus examples in common speech and literature. This article provides an introduction to chiasmus, explaining what it is and why mormons think it is evidence for the book of mormon, giving examples from the bible, and discussing whether the book of mormon contains clear instances of chiasmus.
Welch was just a young missionary on germany at the time. His findings were truly surprising, revealing that clear, distinct, and elegant passages of. Time now for a few final evaluations of what we have learned about chiasmus in the book of mormon. Aug 18, 2017 watch book of mormon centrals new video about the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon in john w. However, a recently recognized phenomenon in the book of mormon has now made it possible for us to cite many specific examples of passages in the book of mormon which bear the distinct. A more detailed discussion will be found in the references. These verses from the book of mormon use chiasmus to build an argument for embracing god. Chiasmus is a biblical literary form, where the writer lists certain key words or ideas in one order, and then goes back and repeats them in the opposite order. Select one of the links above to view examples of chiasmus in various books of the book of mormon. Title page of the book of mormon chapter heading 1 nephi 1 an account of their sufferings 1 nephi 1 i, nephi, having been born 1 nephi 4 he promised and he also.
Chiasms appear in greek, latin, english and other languages, but it was most highly developed in hebrew. Because mormons claim that examples of chiastic writing in the book of mormon help authenticate the book. The use of chiasmus is popular in greek, latin and english languages, especially in shakespeares works, the hebrew texts of the bible, analects of confucius and the book of mormon. Yesterday i was blessed to speak about the book of mormon at the library of congress and to offer a prayer at the united states senate.
A there is an intelligent omnipotent being, who is selfexistent and infinitely b good and benevolent matter eternally existed. Chiasmus was first recognized by a handful of scholars in 1820, but not wellknown until 1942. The easiest solution to these discrepancies is that there really is no organized structure to be found. The pattern chiasmus creates here serves to reiterate and elaborate upon ideas. Some have argued chiasmus is evidence of the texts historical authenticity, suggesting it reflects the semitic background of nephi and other authors of the book of mormon. It is claimed that the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon is either coincidental, an artifact of the observer, or not impressive since examples of chiastic patterns have been found in the doctrine and covenants or other 19th century. A complex chiasmus consists of several lines that extend the parallelism beyond two pairs of parallel elements. Welch argues in favor of ancient origins for book of mormon chiasmus, demonstrating that public awareness of this style was slight in america when the book of mormon was translated. I first heard about chiasmus in the book of mormon as a student at byu. Chiasmus is both a necessary and natural way of understanding book of mormon literature.
What can we learn from 10 of the best chiasms in the book of mormon. I initially made it in the forum where i found the original. For this article i am going to discuss an ancient literary form known as chiasmus. Chiasmus in the book of mormon thoughts and truth from. But o, what damned minutes tells he oer who dotes, yet doubts. The bible, old and new testaments, abound with examples and it is accepted that it is typical of one form of hebraic. In fact, many nursery rhymes have this same type of structure e. Examples of chiasmus can be found in the book of mormon. For more information, refer to the foundation for ancient. Since chiasmus occurs in many languages its use in the book of mormon does not prove either its semitic origin or that it is a style peculiar to inspired ancient scripture. However, a recently recognized phenomenon in the book of mormon has now made it possible for us to cite many specific examples of passages in the book of mormon which bear the distinct stamp of an ancient hebraic literary form. Chiasmus in the book of mormon brigham young university.
In the first place, we have demonstrated the extensive existence of chiasmus in the book of mormon beyond any possible doubt. It is claimed that the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon is either coincidental, an artifact of the observer, or not impressive since examples. In the simplest, broadest sense, a chiasmus is a literary device that uses inverted parallelism, which can be labelled as a b b a. Roberts and fawn brodie, joseph smiths, biographer noted the. Is the writing in the book of mormon characteristic of the. The phenomenon which makes that possible is the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Solomon spaulding wrote a manuscript that is now missing some critics believe it is the actual source of the book of mormon had another book, manuscript found, in which appears the following chiasmus. In 1967 chiasmus was discovered in the book of mormon, and the findings.
A chiasmus is when the order of words is reversed in parallel expressions that are found in two or more clauses. Joseph smith had been dead ten full years before john forbess book was published in scotland. Im not sure exactly what forum would be suitable for this thread. It is a parallelism in structure rather than rhyme, a parallelism of thought or idea. Some of these examples may seem to be compelling, but when closely examined, they turn out to be little more than wishful thinking.
Chiasmus in the book of mormon mormonism, the mormon. A literary structure known as chiasmus exists in the book of mormon. Aug 11, 2009 i first heard about chiasmus in the book of mormon as a student at byu. Chiasmus in mayan texts book of mormon archaeological forum. Wednesday was the fiftieth anniversary of welchs discovery. Oct 05, 2012 because mormons claim that examples of chiastic writing in the book of mormon help authenticate the book. An elegant biblical example of chiasmus is leviticus 24.
For many additional examples of chiasmus from the writings of nephi, see the article, nephis convincing of christ through chiasmus. Chapter 15 chiasmus in the book of mormon reachout trust. Book of mormonevidenceshebraismschiasmus fairmormon. Now, 50 years since welchs discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon, we see that his find is. Hebraisms in the book of mormon judaicaworld archives. This volume features articles on hebraisms and chiasmus in the book of mormon, as well as articles discussing emendation of the text, naturalistic assumptions, wordprint analyses, variations between copies of the first edition, and more.
It is claimed by many within the lds church that special literary patterns found in hebrew writing are also found in the book of mormon, which they feel helps prove that book comes from ancient jewish origins and not from joseph smiths mind the most commonly referenced pattern is a type of parallelism, called a chiasm. Parallels can be found in the old and new testaments, especially. The bible, old and new testaments, abound with examples. Several commentators on mormon history and the book of mormon, including lds church general authority b. Why is the presence of chiasmus in the book of mormon significant. This article provides an introduction to chiasmus, explaining what it is and why mormons think it is evidence for the book of mormon, giving examples. Oct 03, 2017 the crew talks about chiasmus in book of mormon. Some have argued chiasmus is evidence of the texts historical authenticity, suggesting it reflects the semitic. Chiasmus is one of the most frequently cited evidences for the authenticity of the book of mormon. They highlight many common mistakes in the english language, numerous idioms and proverbs, the infamous manglish slang malaysianenglish and occasionally littleknown. If you engage lds apologists long enough, eventually youre bound to come across the topic of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Chiasmus is a sophisticated literary device that ranges from the most simple, as illustrated above, to complex examples. The book of mormon includes many more hebraisms, such as extrapositional pronouns and idioms such as by the hand of and by the mouth of to denote instrumentality.
The book of mormon, testifying of its past, 34, 12344321 and 123456654321. A number of details from the book of mormon text appear to support a view of the. This paper will examine a number of hebraisms that are found in the book of mormon. For those unfamiliar with the term, chiasmus is an ancient literary device that has been found in greek. Jan 01, 2004 in 1967 chiasmus was discovered in the book of mormon, and the findings were published in byu studies.
Welch discovered the presence of chiasmus on august 16, 1967 while on his mission in germany, and since that time, chiasmus has served as a profound witness for the beauty and complexity of the book of mormon. So it is, in my opinion, with the issue of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Chiasmus in the book of mormon religious studies center. Chiasmus and book of mormon textual studies deseret book. It is claimed by many within the lds church that special literary patterns found in hebrew writing are also found in the book of mormon. In this passage, every single phrase is mirrored by a related phrase. The book of mormon is a highly repetitive book that runs on, with few identifiable pericopes. Kwaku has a moment during this episode and ian questions whether or not ubiquitous is actually a word. It is basically inverted parallelism where words, phrases, or concepts are introduced in ascending order and then repeated in descending order.
Some of these examples may seem to be compelling, but when closely examined, they turn out to be little. More impressive are words that have a different range of meaning in hebrew than in english. Video on the discovery of chiasmus in the book of mormon. Chiasmus in the book of mormon lds scriptural studies. If chiasmus can be convincingly identified in the book of mormon, it will testify of the book s ancient origin. Sloan, journal of book of mormon studies, volume 6, issue 2, 1997. Chiasmus in the book of mormon 73 name he used for chiasmus in 1854 however john forbesforbes4forbess completed a much more extensive study the symmetrical structures of. Jan 01, 2012 mormons seem to unanimously agree that 1 nephi is a chiasmus, even though none of them can agree on what precisely that chiasmus is. It is derived from the greek word chiazo, which denotes the letter x. Some lds writers are trying to establish the historicity of the book of mormon by maintaining that it contains a poetic style, sometimes used in the bible, called chiasmus see.
Thomasson sees center of this overarching chiasm as the atonement at alma 34. Chiasmus balances words or phrases with similar, though not identical, meanings. Oct 26, 2012 for many additional examples of chiasmus from the writings of nephi, see the article, nephis convincing of christ through chiasmus. In the late 1960s, a young latterday saint discovered that an ancient form of middle eastern poetry was. Chiasmus is a rhetorical device in which two or more clauses are balanced against each other by the reversal of their structures in order to produce an artistic effect. In fact, chiasmus was not searched for and discovered in the book of mormon until the late 1960s, when lds scholar john welch learned of scholarly work on chiasmus in antiquity and hypothesized that the book of mormon might contain examples as well. Chiasmus is a poetic form that is common in ancient hebrew texts. Chiasmus in the book of mormon thoughts and truth from the. Since then, two organizations farms and fraa have published extensive literature to show that the book of mormon translated by joseph smith jr. Roberts and fawn brodie, joseph smiths, biographer noted the considerable similarities in the content of view of the hebrews and the book of mormon, which was published seven years after ethan smiths book. Nibleys writings on the ancient near eastern background of book of mormon names and idioms are too numerous to cite here. One of the most compelling evidences for the authenticity of the book of mormon is the extensive use of ancient hebraisms, especially chiasmus, which is an unusual parallelistic literary.