The Book of Mormon

So, it turns out that Duke has a first edition copy of the Book of Mormon. You have to register with the special collections people, and promise not to steal anything, but then they just bring it out and put it there for you to flip through! My friend Camille and I went on Friday to check it out. Here are a few pictures.

I should have taken a picture of it, but the last page has a picture of some kind of animal (potentially a dragon) by a kid. Church is long sometimes, right?

Jokes aside, this was obviously a really cool opportunity. As we were flipping through, Camille said "I wonder how many people this book converted?" It was neat to reflect on what that books life might have been like. This was a book never before seen by the world. It was suddenly much easier to see the Book of Mormon through the eyes of someone who has never hear of it or seen it before. What would have been like to receive this book without any preconceived notions about "Mormons" or Joseph Smith? Reading the testimonies of Jesus Christ, the detailed explanations of faith, repentance, justice, mercy, and grace, the stories of missionary work and entire civilizations conversion to Christianity, the account of Jesus Christ visiting the people personally! It is a remarkable book. This book was the initial fulfillment of hundreds of years of prophecy and promises to the people in the Americas.

I guess you could say that even more amazing are the millions of people who have received this book since it was first printed in 1830. Last night I attended a baptism for my ward. I sat next to another guy in my ward who was baptized last fall. It is still having a significant impact on the world. How many books that have ever been published have had such a profound impact on the world (and I mean the entire world, since it has been translated into 82 languages and more than 150 million copies have been printed)? I can only think of a few. Obviously, this is no ordinary book. 

And when I think about the impact it has had on my own life, I can hardly believe it. There is no doubt in my mind that this book is true. I love this book for what it teaches and for the Spirit and power it brings into my life when I study it. I had no idea the first time I read the Book of Mormon how great an impact it would have had on the choices I would make and the kind of person I would become. 

For anyone reading this who doesn't know much about the Book of Mormon, here is a short introductory video.