We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
I have a great deal of respect for and interest in both the Bible and the Book of Mormon. As such I am committed to a lifetime of study and prayer on their subjects. I don’t however believe that either book is inerrant. As Joseph Smith puts it in the preface to the Book of Mormon, “if there are faults they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God.” The faults of both books come from two sources. Firstly, even the most pious prophet is apt to be directed only as far as God can without destroying agency. Faulty men make for faulty messengers. Secondly, it is impossible to completely portray eternal ideas in finite language. This is why God speaks to us directly in a language that is sometimes beyond mere words.
So, I see the word of God as a lens to help us see God more clearly rather than a box in which God can be contained or a list of promises that we can interpret and force God to keep. We must learn the word from God and be open to other perspectives about it. The principle that seems most appropriate is, “that no prophecy of the scriptures is of any private interpretation” (2Pet 1:20). This ensures that we do not adopt the attitude that we know all there is to know about God and need know no more. This attitude is expressed in the Book of Mormon with, “Thou fool, that shall say: A Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible” (2Nep 29:6). We do need both books and continuing revelation to understand them.
I have concluded that The Book of Mormon is central to my personal faith and that the Bible is complimentary to it. I affirm that “The Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book” (History of the Church, 4:461). The Bible is beautiful, but it is historical context to the Restored Gospel in the same way that the Old Testament gives context to the New Testament. We have another testament, and it concerns me whenever the LDS Church downplays that in an attempt to fit into historical Christianity. It makes me wonder if there were second century Christians who insisted they were just another Jewish sect. I reject the notion that Mormonism is just another Christian sect but don’t believe that is a battle I can win at this time.
Latter Day Sinner 