The Doctrine of God the Father in the Book of Mormon

Keywords

Book of Mormon, God the Father, God in the Book of Mormon

Abstract

No other ancient record does what the Book of Mormon does. When it comes to testifying of Jesus as Messiah, the Book of Mormon is unparalleled. It boldly proclaims to a modern world that Jesus was the Great Jehovah before He came to earth (see 3 Nephi 15:5); that as the Messiah He was born into mortality a real flesh-and-blood being (see Mosiah 3:5–7); that He was literally the Son of God and the son of a mortal woman named Mary (see Mosiah 3:8; Alma 7:9–10); and that through His suffering and sacrifice an infinite and eternal atonement was made for all humankind (see Alma 34:8–15; 3 Nephi 11:10–15). While secular scholarship ofttimes tries to allegorize or explain away these truths, the Book of Mormon restores to both Jew and Gentile descriptions of the Atonement that were lost for centuries. And it places the Atonement at the very center of our understanding of God’s plan and our religion. But the Book of Mormon also does something else in a profound and unrelenting way—it stands as a pivotal witness of God the Eternal Father.

Original Publication Citation

“The Doctrine of God the Father in the Book of Mormon,” in The Book of Mormon: The Foundation of Our Faith. The 1999 Sperry Symposium on the Book of Mormon. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1999), pp. 217-231.

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2003

Permanent URL

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/6281

Publisher

Religious Studies Center

Language

English

College

Religious Education

Department

Ancient Scripture

University Standing at Time of Publication

Full Professor

Link to Full Text

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