Book of Abraham/Church Hides Book of Abraham Info (1879-1968)

FAIR Answers—back to home page

This page is still under construction. We welcome any suggestions for improving the content of this FAIR Answers Wiki page.

LDS-authored publications (1879-1968)



A FAIR Analysis of: Publications Addressing and/or Mentioning Book of Abraham Controversies, a work by author: Various

LDS-authored publications which address and/or mention Book of Abraham controversies (1879-1968)

1879 George Reynolds, The Book of Abraham: Its Authenticity Established as a Divine and Ancient Record (Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1879). This is one of the very first books that responded to criticism of the Book of Abraham.

1913 B.H. Roberts, "A Plea in Bar of Final Conclusions," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 309–325. This article and others from the February 1913 edition of the Improvement Era (the Church's official magazine at the time) respond to "Joseph Smith as Translator"--a pamphlet published by Reverend Franklin Spaulding criticizing the Book of Abraham.

1913 Janne Sjodahl, "The Book of Abraham," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 326–333.

1913 Frederick Pack, "The Spaulding Argument," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 333–341.

1913 Junius Wells, "Scholars Disagree," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 341–343.

1913 John Henry Evans, "Bishop Spaulding's Jumps in the Logical Process," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 343–346.

1913 Levi Edgar Young, "The Book of the Dead," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 346–348.

1913 Joseph F. Smith, "Editor's Table," Improvement Era 16, no. 4 (February 1913): 378–380.

1913 Robert C. Webb, "A Critical Examination of the Fac-Similes in the Book of Abraham," Improvement Era 16, no. 5 (March 1913): 435–454.

1913 John A. Widtsoe, "Comments on the Spaulding Pamphlet," Improvement Era 16, no. 5 (March 1913): 454–460.

1913 Richard W. Young, "Scientists Not Always Correct," Improvement Era 16, no. 5 (March 1913): 460–466.

1913 Osborn J.P. Widtsoe, "The Unfair Fairness of Rev. Spaulding," Improvement Era 16, no. 6 (April 1913): 593–603.

1913 N.L. Nelson, "An Open Letter to Bishop Spaulding," Improvement Era 16, no. 6 (April 1913): 603–610.

1913 Franklin S. Spaulding, "Rev. Spaulding's Answer to Dr. Widtsoe," Improvement Era 16, no. 6 (April 1913): 610–616. Not only were the responses to Rev. Spaulding written on BoA controversies included in the Church's magazine, but the critics' rejoinders to the responses as well!

1913 John A. Widtsoe, "Dr. Widtsoe's Reply to Rev. Spaulding," Improvement Era 16, no. 6 (April 1913): 616–619.

1913 Janne Sjodahl, "The Word 'Kolob'," Improvement Era 16, no. 6 (April 1913): 620–624.

1915 Robert C. Webb [J.E. Homans], The Case Against Mormonism (New York: L.L. Walton, 1915). Despite its title, the book is actually an apologetic for the Church. It addresses then-recent controversies over the BoA.

1936 R.C. Webb [J.E. Homans], Joseph Smith as a Translator (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1936).

1938 Sidney B. Sperry, Ancient Records Testify in Papyrus and Stone, 1938-1939 Course of Study, Adult Department, M.I.A. (Salt Lake City: General Boards of M.I.A. [Mutual Improvement Association] of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1938).

1946 Charles Edward Haggerty, A Study of the Book of Abraham (M.A. Thesis, Brigham Young University, 1946).

1948 Milton R. Hunter, Pearl of Great Price Commentary (Salt Lake City: Stevens & Wallis, Inc., 1948).

1951 Arch S. Reynolds, The Book of Abraham Brought Forth by Divine Means (Springville, UT: Art City Publishing Co., 1951).

1955 James R. Clark, The Story of the Pearl of Great Price (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1955).

1959 Walter L. Whipple, An Analysis of Textual Changes in "The Book of Abraham" and in the "Writings of Joseph Smith, the Prophet" in the Pearl of Great Price (M.A. Thesis, Brigham Young University, 1959).

1960 Charles D. McOmber, Jr., A Study of the Criticisms of the Book of Abraham (M.A. Thesis, Brigham Young University, 1960).

1960 Lynn M. Hilton, A Concordance of the Pearl of Great Price (Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Extension Publications, 1960).

1965 George Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl, Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price, ed. Philip C. Reynolds (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1965).

1965 James R. Clark, "Review of Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price, by George Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl, ed. Philip C. Reynolds (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book Company, 1965)," BYU Studies 7/1 (Autumn 1965): 83–84.

1965 Hugh Nibley, "On the Pearl of Great Price," Lecture given May 13, 1965.

1965 Hugh Nibley, "Pearl of Great Price Problems: The 1912 Critics Examined, the Present Critics Examined, Some Guesses of Our Own," BYU Education Week, Summer 1965.

1965 Deta Peterson Neeley, A Child's Story of The Pearl of Great Price (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1965).

1965 James R. Clark, "Pearl of Great Price Bibliography," unpublished paper.

1967 Glen Wade, "The Facsimile Found: The Recovery of Joseph Smith's Papyrus Manuscripts (A Conversation with Professor Atiya)," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought (hereafter, Dialogue), 2/4 (Winter 1967): 50–55.

1967 Charles F. Graves, George D. Smith, Normal Tolk, and Lynn Travers, "The Facsimile Found: The Recovery of Joseph Smith's Papyrus Manuscripts (An Interview with Dr. Fischer)," Dialogue 2/4 (Winter 1967): 55–64.

1967 Hugh Nibley, "Pearl of Great Price Papyri," Transcript of a talk given March 14, 1967.

1967 Hugh Nibley, "Unrolling the Scrolls: Forgotten Witnesses"

1967 Hyrum L. Andrus, Doctrinal Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1967).

1968 Louis C. Zucker, "Joseph Smith as a Student of Hebrew," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 41–55 (esp. 50–52).

1968 John A. Wilson, "A Summary Report," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 67–85.

1968 Richard A. Parker, "The Joseph Smith Papyri: A Preliminary Report," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 86–88.

1968 Richard P. Howard, "A Tentative Approach to the Book of Abraham," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 88–92.

1968 Grant S. Heward and Jerald Tanner, "The Source of the Book of Abraham Identified," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 92–98.

1968 Richard A. Parker, "The Book of Breathings (Fragment I, The "Sensen" Text, With Restorations from Louvre Papyrus 3284," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 98–99.

1968 Hugh Nibley, "Phase One," Dialogue 3/2 (Summer 1968): 99–105.

1968 Hugh Nibley, "Prolegomena to Any Study of the Book of Abraham," BYU Studies 8/2 (Winter 1968): 171–194.

1968 James R. Clark, "Joseph Smith and the Lebolo Egyptian Papyri," BYU Studies 8/2 (Winter 1968): 195–202.

1968 Hugh Nibley, "Getting Ready to Begin: An Editorial," BYU Studies 8/3 (Spring 1968): 245–254.

1968 R. Grant Athay, "Worlds Without Number: The Astronomy of Enoch, Abraham, and Moses," BYU Studies 8/3 (Spring 1968): 255–269.

1968 Hugh Nibley, "As Things Stand at the Moment," BYU Studies 9/1 (Autumn 1968): 69–102.

1968 Klaus Baer, "The Breathing Permit of Hor: A Translation of the Apparent Source of the Book of Abraham," Dialogue 3/3 (Autumn 1968): 109–134.

1968 Hugh Nibley, "A New Look at the Pearl of Great Price," Improvement Era: Part 1. Challenge and Response, January 1968, 18–24. Part 1. Challenge and Response (continued), February 1968, 14–18, 20–21. Part 1. Challenge and Response (continued), March 1968, 16–18, 20–22. Part 1. Challenge and Response (continued), April 1968, 64–69. Part 2. May We See Your Credentials?, May 1968, 54-=–57. Part 2. May We See Your Credentials? (continued), June 1968, 18–22. Part 3. Empaneling the Panel, July 1968, 48–55. Part 4. Second String, August 1968, 53–64. Part 5. Facsimile 1: A Unique Document, September 1968, 66–80. Part 5. Facsimile 1: A Unique Document (continued), October 1968, 73–81. Part 6. Facsimile 1: A Unique Document (continued), November 1968, 36–38, 40, 42, 44. Part 6. Facsimile 1: A Unique Document (continued), December 1968, 28–33.

1968 Hugh Nibley, Book of Breathings, P. Louvre 3284: An English Translation.

1968 Jay M. Todd, "Egyptian Papyri Rediscovered," Improvement Era (Jan. 1968): 12–16.

1968 DLG, "New Light on Joseph Smith's Egyptian Papyri," Improvement Era (Feb. 1968): 40.

1968 Jay M. Todd, "Background of the Church Historian's Fragment," Improvement Era (Feb. 1968): 40A–40I.

1968 T. Edgar Lyon, "The Sketches on the Papyri Backings," Improvement Era (May 1968): 19–23.

1968 Rabbi Nissim Wernick, A Critical Analysis of the Book of Abraham in the Light of Extra-Canonical Jewish Writings (Ph.D. Dissertation, Brigham Young University, 1968).

1968 Keith Terry and Walter Whipple, From The Dust of Decades: A Saga of the Papyri and Mummies (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968).

Newsletter and Proceedings of the S.E.H.A. [Society for Early Historic Archaeology], N105, March 1, 1968

  • 105.0 Faculty Forum on Egyptian Papyri
  • 105.1 Others Do Research On the Papyri: Some Notes and Comments
  • 105.2 Other Publications On the Papyri
  • 105.3 Symposium Paper on Facsimiles
  • Newsletter and Proceedings of the S.E.H.A., N106, May 8, 1968
  • 106.0 Where Was "Ur of the Chaldees"?
  • 106.1 More on the Location of Ur
  • 106.2 Possible Identity of Pharaoh
  • 106.8 Summer Talks on Archaeology
  • Newsletter and Proceedings of the S.E.H.A., N109, October 25, 1968
  • 109.0 A Study of the Hor Sen-Sen Papyrus (also transcribed here)
  • 109.1 Symposium Held