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Find Answers—main page > Book of Abraham > Book of Abraham Accusations of Plagiarism > The Book of Abraham and Thomas Dick's Philosophy of a Future State
Summary: Critics charge that Joseph Smith was influenced by Scottish philosopher Thomas Dick’s Philosophy of a Future State in his alleged fabrication of the book of Abraham.
Fawn Brodie appears to be the first to advance this charge. She suggested that Joseph Smith developed the theology described in the book of Abraham by reading Dick’s book. There are scattered references to Abraham’s life throughout Dick’s book.
Critics note that an excerpt of Dick’s work was published by Oliver Cowdery in the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate in December 1836.[1] One could make a weak assumption, based in this evidence, that Joseph Smith had access to Dick’s work in 1835 during the time that it is widely believed he was translating the book of Abraham.
It is also known that Joseph Smith was in possession of Dick’s book on January 31, 1844 when he donated his copy to the Nauvoo Library and Literary Institute.[2]
Finally, it is known that two of Dick's books were available in the Manchester Library located near the childhood home of Joseph Smith.[3] However, none of the Smith family were actually members of the library and were unlikely to have had access to its resources.[4]
Based upon this circumstantial evidence, Brodie not only assumes that the Prophet must have read the book, but that he incorporated Dick’s ideas into the book of Abraham.
The connection of Dick’s work to Joseph Smith is tantalizing enough to our critics (the argument appears frequently in their works) that this argument merits a response based in comparison of the theology of Philosophy of a Future State with the theology of the book of Abraham as well as what Philosophy of a Future State and the book of Abraham say about Abraham’s life.
The editors of this FAIR page note that Philosophy of a Future State was published in 1829. The book contains scattered references to Moses and thus comparison with what Philosophy of a Future State and the book of Moses say about Moses has also been the subject of investigation in this article.
Philosophy of a Future State does not mention anything about Abraham’s life that is also mentioned in the book of Abraham.
There are references to "The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,"[5]: p. 121 to Abraham living as an intelligent being in another state at the time of Moses' encounter with the burning bush,[5] to Abraham "giving up the ghost" and being "gathered to his people,"[5] to Abraham being buried at Machpelah,[5] to the ability to sit with "Abraham , and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,"[5]:p. 123 and to Abraham's "[expectation] of a future city which had foundations, whose builder and maker is God." It is said that "[h]e obtained no such city in the earthly Canaan; and therefore we must necessarily suppose, that his views were directed at the mansions of perpetuity beyond the confines of the present world."[5]:p. 119
The following is a comparison and contrast of several of the theological concepts of both Joseph Smith and Thomas Dick.
Concept | Thomas Dick | Joseph Smith |
---|---|---|
Creation | None but that Eternal Mind which counts the number of the stars, which called them from nothing into existence, and arranged them in the respective stations...[5]:p. 192 | Now, I ask all who hear me, why the learned men who are preaching salvation, say that God created the heavens and the earth out of nothing? The reason is, that they are unlearned in the things of God... [6]:p. 350 |
Intelligences | Dick taught that The Creator stands in no need of innumerable assemblages of worlds and of inferior ranks of intelligences, in order to secure or to augment his felicity. Innumerable ages before the universe was created, he existed alone, independent of every other being, and infinitely happy in the contemplation of his own eternal excellencies.[5]:p. 52 One critic believes that this is among the stronger parallels between Thomas Dick and Joseph Smith.[7] | This parallel is severely complicated by the fact that "intelligence" was used commonly to refer to "a spiritual being" in Joseph Smith's day.[8] A spiritual being was commonly understood as an immaterial essence in Joseph Smith's day and Joseph taught the opposite: that spirit was made of matter.[9]
Finally, the Book of Abraham uses the words "intelligence," "spirit," and "soul" interchangeably. For example, one reads in Abraham 3:22-23:
|
Nature of God | a spiritual uncompounded substance, having no visible form.[5]:p. 188 | God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens![6]:p. 345 |
Ability to comprehend God | But the eternity, the omnipresence, and the omniscience of the Deity, are equally mysterious; for they are equally incomprehensible, and must for ever remain incomprehensible to all limited intelligences.[5]:p. 83 | It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the Character of God, and to know that we may converse with him as one man converses with another, and that he was once a man like us; yea, that God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth. [6]:p. 345 |
Nature of Matter | What successive creations have taken place since the first material world was launched into existence by the Omnipotent Creator? What new worlds and beings are still emerging into existence from the voids of space?[5]:p. 214 | 33 For man is spirit. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receive a fulness of joy;[11] |
The Throne of God | Critics allege that there are similarities between how both books describe the throne of God. | Edward T. Jones, in a comprehensive review of Thomas Dick's and Joseph Smith's theology, wrote the following about this supposed "parallel":
|
With regards to Moses, he is not mentioned in a context similar to that of the book of Moses. There is reference to Moses being animated by the conviction of a future world and life,[5] reference to Moses "being gathered to his people" as an evidence for the doctrine of afterlife in the Old Testament,[5]:p. 121 a reference to "holy intelligences" singing praises to God with the song of Moses--a reference to Revelations 15:3,[5]:p. 125 another reference to the same verse on page 225, a reference to Moses as a possible messenger to John regarding the "New Jerusalem" mentioned in revelations,[5]:p. 276 and a reference to Moses and others hypothetically forming "something approaching to a paradise on earth."[5]:p. 279
Notes
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