In his day, Joseph Smith was viewed as a simpleton, whose Book of Mormon was a lame attempt at making a Bible.

Today, we have thousands of web pages, articles and books that discuss in depth, much of the importance of the things Joseph Smith claimed to restore from ancient times.  Serious modern scholars, who take more than just a cursory look, see a brilliant genius.  In his book, The American Religion, scholar Harold Bloom noted just that, seeing Joseph Smith to be the emblem of American faith, a person who somehow succeeded in creating a religion based on many ancient ideals.  Other scholars, like the famous archaeologist, William F. Albright, was impressed that Joseph Smith would include then unknown Egyptian names in the Book of Mormon.

In Joseph's day, almost no one believed the ancients believed in multiple heavens, deification, an anthropomorphic God, that God and Jesus are separate beings, continuing revelation, etc.

For years, Biblicists stated that we know archaeological sites in the Bible, but not from the Book of Mormon, suggesting that this, in and of itself, "proves" it false. Yet, in the last decade or so, scholars have uncovered Nahum, and probable sites for the Arabian Bountiful and Lemuel's valley.  In the Americas, we've found strong potential sites for the book of Mormon; and ancient villages with Book of Mormon names, such as Lamanai (Laman, Lamoni).

While these do not prove anything, one would think that the hundreds of evidences, both big and small, would add up to a statistical point that would capture people's interest.  But then, the gospel is only for the open minded, who are willing to believe on some physical, but mostly spiritual evidence; and not on outright proof.

Tags: Restoration Ancient Joseph Smith