An Approach to the Book of Abraham

The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley #18

by Hugh Nibley, John Gee (Editor)

The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley contains Nibley s early work on the Book of Abraham and the Joseph Smith Papyri. The volume contains diverse essays, including his three-year series of lengthy articles from the Improvement Era, "A New Look at the Pearl of Great Price." According to Nibley, "Until now, no one has done much more than play around with the bedizening treasury of the Pearl of Great Price. They would not, we could not make of the Book of Abraham an object of serious study. The time has come to change all that."

Produced at a breathtaking pace and originally published in a wide variety of places, Nibley s work remains basic reading for anyone interested in the Book of Abraham.

Genres: Religion, Lds, Nonfiction, History, Reference, Theology

632 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Hugh Winder Nibley was one of Mormonism's most celebrated scholars. Nibley is notable for his extensive research and publication on ancient languages and culture, his vigorous defense of doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for frankly discussing what he saw as the shortcomings of the LDS people and culture.

A prolific author and professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University, he was fluent in over ten languages, including Classical Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Egyptian, Coptic, Arabic, German, French, English, and Spanish languages. He also studied Dutch and Russian during World War II.

In addition to his efforts as a scholar, Nibley was well known for writings and lectures on LDS scripture and doctrinal topics, many of which were published in LDS Church magazines. His book “An Approach to the Book of Mormon” was used as a lesson manual for the LDS Church in 1957.

Reviews

[Thomas Blasucci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nibley is a great apologist and linguist, no question, but his general approach to BofA etymology and history is untenable. There have been significant advances in understanding The Kirtland Egyptian Papers, The Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar Book, and the papyri in the last 24 months through Brian Hauglid, The Maxwell Institute, and The Joseph Smith Papers Project, that part ways with Hugh’s primary conclusions.

The catalyst argument outlined in TRANSLATION AND HISTORICITY OF THE BOOK OF ABRAHAM on LDS.org has become the new focal point of BofA discussion, finally pointing out that "Joseph's translations of the [Egyptian in the] papyri and the facsimiles do not match what's in the Book of Abraham" [Footnote #2]. In many ways, Nibley spent the latter part of his professional life arguing the opposite.

While I understand that many will disagree with my thoughts on this book, there are two really, really important things that we can agree on: (1) The Book of Abraham is an invaluable, inspired revelation regardless of where it came from and (2) Hugh is a super cool dude.

[Steven H · Rating 2 out of 5]

A FINE, ARGUMENTATIVE, AND CHALLENGING COLLECTION OF NIBLEY'S WRITINGS

Hugh W. Nibley (1910-2005) was a professor of Biblical and Mormon scripture at Brigham Young University, and a well-known defender of the LDS Church. This collection contains most of his writings defending the Book of Abraham/Pearl of Great Price (but also see his "The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri--an Egyptian Endowment" and "Abraham In Egypt"). Here are some quotations from the book:

"Whereas the editing of the standard works has ever been an object of meticulous care, even a cursory examination of successive reproductions of the plates of the Book of Abraham shows the work to be amazingly slapdash and slipshod..." (Pg. 7)
"But how do you know what Joseph Smith 'thought' and what he 'considered'? This of course is the crux of the whole matter, but you do not discuss it..." (Pg. 36)
"Joseph Smith's work, here mentioned, on the Egyptian alphabet was never accepted or ever presented to the Church as revelation, and no one is bound by it." (Pg. 73)
"Like the Book of Mormon, the Book of Abraham must be judged on its own merits, and not on the way men choose to re-create and interpret the baffling and fragmentary episodes of its creation." (Pg. 156)
"Were the originals of these three facsimiles ever used anciently to explain or illustrate historic events or teachings going back to Abraham? If that can be answered in the affirmative the Book of Abraham is in the clear; if it can be answered in the negative---an emphatic negative---then it is discredited. Either solution depends upon an affirmative answer to an appalling preliminary question: Do you know ALL THERE IS TO KNOW about these three documents?" (Pg. 157)
"Everyone, it would seem, has taken for granted that if we know what the papyri really say, we are in a position to pass judgment on the authenticity of the Book of Abraham ... Such a case might stand up if Joseph Smith had specifically designated particular papyri as the source of his information, but he never did so." (Pg. 375)
"Joseph Smith never produced an alphabet or grammar of the Egyptian language. What was repeatedly and falsely put forth as 'Joseph Smith's Original Alphabet and Grammar' was an enterprise in which a number of men engaged." (Pg. 471)
"Just look at those documents (Kirtland Egyptian Papers/KEP; Nibley's term for the "Alphabet and Grammar")---could anyone possibly use them for anything? Just try it... there isn't nearly enough alphabet or grammar to be of use to anyone; they didn't really get started on them before they gave up." (Pg. 473)
"As it is, the juxtaposition (of Egyptian characters with the Book of Abraham in the KEP) effectively refutes the thesis. First there is that absurd disproportion between, for example, three short strokes of a scribe's brush and a whole paragraph of Egyptian text... We do not have here the process of deriving one text from another, but simply that of placing two completed texts side by side for comparison." (Pg. 474-475)
"If the Kirtland Egyptian Papers were thought of as inspired or even reasonably helpful, they would have been expanded, used, and their worth announced to the world. The strictly confidential nature of the work tells us just what kind of an exercise it was... They were pursuing the same trial-and-error course that scholars and scientists must needs follow." (Pg. 477)
"You cannot make a grammar or alphabet of any language is you don't have at least one example of a translation... And the Book of Abraham offered the brethren the only exemplar of a sure translation from the Egyptian. They compared it with various texts, trying it on for size." (Pg. 479)
"The vignettes (facsimiles) that accompany Egyptian texts often seem to have no apparent connection with them." (Pg. 481)
"That the men of Kirtland, after at least parts of the Book of Abraham had been translated, tried their hand at using those passages in the construction of an Egyptian grammar ... in no way impugns the validity of the Book of Abraham." (Pg. 482)
"But was not (Joseph) Smith in on it? He was indeed sharing his ideas with others for both works---the Kirtland Egyptian Papers (KEP) and the translations (connected with it) were purely speculative and exploratory. How do we know that? Because each of the five men participating makes his own contribution..." (Pg. 496)
"Moreover, we nowhere find mention of Joseph Smith engaged in translating the Book of Abraham itself before October 1840, when he reports that ... '...my time has been hitherto too much taken up to translate the whole of them...' ... Wilford Woodruff was thrilled when in February 1842 'Joseph the Seer ... presented ... some of the Book of Abraham' to a group of the Saints... 'Joseph has had these records in his possession for several years but has never presented them before the world in the English language until now.'" (Pg. 511)
"...on the last three pages of Ms. #1 some Eqyptian characters are squeezed right off the page ... This can only mean that the English of the Book of Abraham was here copied down BEFORE the Egyptian signs were added." (Pg. 543)
"The Kirtland Egyptian Papers, we submit, represent that mandatory preliminary period of investigation and exploration... the Book of Abraham was NOT derived from the alphabet writings ... it was NOT derived from or by means of the grammar, which never got beyond the first page and a half; it was NOT translated from the first two lines of the ... Book of Breathings..." (Pg. 566-567)
"We have dealt entirely in possibilities, never in certitudes, possibilities being all we need to keep the door open." (Pg. 595)
"Why not admit that the relationship between the Kirtland Egyptian Papers and the Book of Abraham is an enigma, full of odd contradictions and unexplained anomalies? Why not admit that you are not privy to the mind of Joseph Smith? That the test of the Book of Abraham lies in what it says, not the manner in which it may have been composed..." (Pg. 598)

[David Carroll]

I found this book to be highly insightful. Reading this book w/o a testimony of the Book of Mormon might be doing things in the wrong order. Reading it after gaining a testimony made his insights all that much more interesting.

[Jeremiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is interesting that what I found in this book does not seem to have reached the current generation. I so enjoy having information confirmed that I had always felt was true but never had the background documentation to validate it.

[Kristie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are definitely some gold nuggets to discover in this volume, however, one has to plod through a few dry spells and frequent repetitions to get at them. Fascinating stuff!

[Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this just as I enjoy most of what Nibley wrote. It only addresses the context of the Book of Abraham, never delving into doctrine. A relatively easy read, the 600 pages passed fairly quickly. Useful for anyone who feels challenged by the history of or the historiocity of the Book of Abraham.

[Joe Atwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this, but definitely miss Nibley's style. Gee does a great job, but I just don't seem to be able to get past my traditions...(a little joke, for those of you who are with me on this one). Actually--does anyone ever read these books from goodreads, or are all of the Nibley people arguing with people on sites like F.A.I.R., etc?

[Ryan Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

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