An Insider's View of Mormon Origins Quotes

“the Mormon doctor said, “Sometimes Mr. Smith speaks as a prophet, and sometimes as a mere man. If he gave a wrong opinion respecting the book, he spoke as a mere man.” I said, “Whether he spoke as a prophet or as a mere man, he has committed himself, for he has said what is not true. If he spoke as a prophet, therefore, he is a false prophet. If he spoke as a mere man, he cannot be trusted, for he spoke positively and like an oracle respecting that of which he knew nothing.”
― Grant Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“Caswall told this incident to Dr. Willard Richards, a Mormon apostle, to which the Mormon doctor said, “Sometimes Mr. Smith speaks as a prophet, and sometimes as a mere man. If he gave a wrong opinion respecting the book, he spoke as a mere man.” I said, “Whether he spoke as a prophet or as a mere man, he has committed himself, for he has said what is not true. If he spoke as a prophet, therefore, he is a false prophet. If he spoke as a mere man, he cannot be trusted, for he spoke positively and like an oracle respecting that of which he knew nothing.”[76]”
― Grant H. Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“and especially the Methodist doctrine that sin is inherent and that all unregenerate sinners will experience hell in the after life.”
― Grant H. Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“Evangelical preaching was also characterized by the extemporaneous interlacing of biblical passages with descriptive evangelical terminology that was designed to awaken people emotionally to their sins and cause them to tremble, shed tears, and fall to the ground.”
― Grant H. Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“What is obvious about this section of the Book of Mormon is that it was borrowed from the KJV and placed in an ancient American context.”
― Grant H. Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“Reverend Ethan Smith’s 1823 View of the Hebrews”
― Grant Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“We too often confuse faith with knowledge. Faith has to do with the unknown, not about what can be proven or can be shown to be reasonably based on the evidence.”
― Grant Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins

“I will discuss four of these themes in more detail: the nature of man, the nature of God, the influence of Deism, and Universalism in the Book of Mormon.”
― Grant Palmer, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins