How does a seer stone work?

Seer stones and treasure-hunting

Some early-nineteenth-century Americans used seer stones in attempts to gain revelations from God or to find buried treasure. From about 1819, Smith regularly practiced scrying, a form of divination in which a "seer" looked into a seer stone to receive supernatural knowledge.

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Moreover, what happened to Joseph Smith's Urim and Thummim?

"[Joseph Smith] used a stone called a 'Seers stone,' the 'Interpreters' having been taken away from him because of transgression. Smith said that after translating the Book of Mormon, he returned the plates and the Urim and Thummim to the angel, whom he identified as the resurrected Moroni.

Also, how did the Mormon religion start with Joseph Smith? Joseph Smith. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was founded by Joseph Smith in New York State in the USA in 1830. Smith had received a revelation from God, first through an angel, and then through a book inscribed on golden plates.

Also Know, what did Joseph Smith use to translate the golden plates?

After the loss of the first 116 manuscript pages, Smith translated with a single seer stone, which some sources say he had previously used in treasure-seeking. Smith placed the stone in a hat, buried his face in it to eliminate all outside light, and peered into the stone to see the words of the translation.

How does the Mormon religion work?

Mormons believe that Jesus paid for the sins of the world and that all people can be saved through his atonement. Mormons accept Christ's atonement through faith, repentance, formal covenants or ordinances such as baptism, and consistently trying to live a Christ-like life.

38 Related Question Answers Found

What is the purpose of the Urim and Thummim?

Considering the scholars' conclusion that Urim essentially means "guilty" and Thummim essentially means "innocent", this would imply that the purpose of the Urim and Thummim was an ordeal to confirm or refute suspected guilt; if the Urim was selected it meant guilt, while selection of the Thummim would mean innocence.

How did Joseph Smith obtain the brown seer stone?

According to an uncorroborated account by Hale, Smith attempted to locate the mine by burying his face in a hat containing the seer stone; however, as the treasure hunters got close to their objective, Smith said that an enchantment became so strong that Smith could no longer see it.

What is an ephod in the Bible?

A passage in the Book of Exodus describes the Ephod as an elaborate garment worn by the high priest, and upon which the Hoshen, or breastplate containing Urim and Thummim, rested.

Where is Joseph Smith's seer stone?

Joseph Smith's seer stone will be put on public display in an LDS Church visitors center in Harmony, Pennsylvania.

What did the Liahona look like?

It is described as a round brass ball of "curious workmanship" with "two spindles," one of which indicated the direction that his party should travel (1 Nephi 16:10). It is sometimes referred to as a compass, although the context makes it clear that it did not function like a magnetic compass.

What is in the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon?

This sealed portion contains the complete record of the vision of the brother of Jared (see Ether 4:4–5). This vision included “all things from the foundation of the world unto the end thereof” (2 Nephi 27:10–11; see also Ether 3:25).

How did Joseph Smith translate the Bible?

Joseph's translation was not carried out in the traditional sense. He didn't consult Greek and Hebrew texts or use lexicons to create a new English version. Rather, he used the King James Version of the Bible as his starting point and made additions and changes as he was directed by the Holy Ghost.

Where is the main Mormon temple?

Salt Lake City

Why did David Whitmer leave the church?

Whitmer resigned and separated from the church. Whitmer and the other excommunicated Latter Day Saints became known as the "dissenters." Some of the dissenters owned land in Caldwell County, Missouri, which they wanted to retain. Consequently, most of the Latter Day Saints were expelled from Missouri by early 1839.

Is the Book of Mormon historically accurate?

The dominant and widely accepted view among Latter Day Saints is that the Book of Mormon is a true and accurate account of these ancient American civilizations whose religious history it documents.

What happened to the 8 witnesses of the Book of Mormon?

Eight Witnesses

They were all members of the Whitmer or Smith families: Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, Jr., John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sr., Hyrum Smith, and Samuel Harrison Smith. Christian Whitmer died in 1835 and his brother Peter Whitmer, Jr. died the following year.

Who transcribed the Book of Mormon?

Joseph Smith

Is the angel Moroni mentioned in the Bible?

Because of his instrumentality in the restoration of the gospel, Moroni is commonly identified by Latter Day Saints as the angel mentioned in Revelation 14:6, "having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people."

Who helped Joseph Smith translate?

His early work on the translation, with Emma Smith and Martin Harris serving as the main scribes, was lost in 1828. Almost all of the present Book of Mormon text was translated during a three-month period between April and June 1829 with Oliver Cowdery as the scribe.

What language is the Book of Mormon?

English

What was on the brass plates?

The Brass Plates were a set of plates retrieved by Nephi at the direction of his father, Lehi. They contained Jewish records similar to the Old Testament, up to the time of Jeremiah. The large plates of Nephi which are the source of the text abridged by Mormon and engraved on the Golden Plates.

How did the Hill Cumorah get its name?

In the 1820s, the hill did not have a name. It later became known as the Hill Cumorah because Moroni, the Book of Mormon's final author and the angel who met with Joseph Smith, wrote that he had hidden the golden plates in a hill called Cumorah (see Mormon 6:6). A monument designed by Torleif S.