Defending the Faith: The Book of Mormon Witnesses and the ‘Problems’ of Eyewitness Testimony

Photo Credit: Deseret News

Some skeptics, responding (rather defensively, I think) to the accounts given by the witnesses to the Book of Mormon, attempt to dismiss them by citing the fallibility of eyewitnesses and the unreliability of human memory. Not wishing to attack the honesty or the sanity of the witnesses — approaches not easily reconciled with the historical evidence — they still hope to neutralize the witnesses’ claims.

Both eyewitness errors and false memories are legitimate issues, of course, and scientific and scholarly data exist on each.

I do not believe, though, that either concern applies to the Book of Mormon witnesses. (I’m thinking aloud here, and would welcome thoughtful, serious responses).

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Jesse is a twenty-something student of Arabic and the Middle East at Brigham Young University. He enjoys writing, hiking, fantasizing about world travel, and deep discussions. He is a proud member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and served a mission for the Church in South Korea. Jesse speaks Spanish, Korean and (some) Arabic. He can be reached at [email protected].