Review: Robin Scott Jensen and Brian M. Hauglid, eds. The Joseph Smith Papers, Revelations and Translations, Volume 4: Book of Abraham and Related Manuscripts. Salt Lake City: The Church Historian’s Press, 2018.

Authors

Susanna Morrill

Keywords

Abraham, scripture, Joseph Smith Papers, translation

Abstract

The staff of the Joseph Smith Papers have published the Book of Abraham and related documents as volume 4 of the “Revelations and Translations” series of the project. As with the other facsimile volumes of the project, it is a physically handsome, high quality production: durable, easy to use, and easy to read. The content of the volume is fascinating, obscure, and invitingly important for scholars of religion. The introduction ends with the statement, which captures the broader anxieties concerning its contents: “This volume does not . . . seek to assist readers in understanding the Book of Abraham narrative itself ” (xxxv). Instead, within the collection of documents, we witness glimpses of the production of a scripture that is central to the Latter-day Saint community.

BYU ScholarsArchive Citation

Morrill, Susanna (2020) "Review: Robin Scott Jensen and Brian M. Hauglid, eds. The Joseph Smith Papers, Revelations and Translations, Volume 4: Book of Abraham and Related Manuscripts. Salt Lake City: The Church Historian’s Press, 2018.," Mormon Studies Review: Vol. 7: No. 1, Article 26.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/msr2/vol7/iss1/26