yahoo link


http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110330/ts_yblog_thelookout/could-lead-codices-prove-the-major-discovery-of-christian-history

and remember EVERYTHING *proves* the BOM is true, Just as a MORmON! (I heard even Hugh Nibley thought this BYU idea was insane crap)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BQrl4EZ07Y

Right, credit card sized metal plates with crude cryptic pictures that multiple people have seen are the same as gold plates no one saw that were translated by a dude sticking his head in a hat that contained a stone which projected the word one letter at a time. And the resulting paper book was 500 pages long.

I don't think I will be calling the missionaries for baptism any time soon.

Morons will grasp at straws to legitimize their fruit loop cult.

"Other texts from the period tell of sealed books of wisdom and of a secret tradition passed on by Jesus to his closest disciples."

In said tradition, they all dressed up like bakers and practiced suicide rituals.

It was the thing that made early xianity The Fun Religion!

But a London bobbie beat me to the crime scene, and I could only park the ol' police interceptor and wait and see if anyone needed a lift...

BTW, they're not even buying this one over at the latest incarnation of the MA&D Board... More on that one later...

So far the story has almost as many holes and possible conspirators as a certain wannabe prophet in 19th Century upstate New York. Here's the original thread...

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,150633,151775#msg-151775

And my Cabbie-as-Journalist report...

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,150633,150959#msg-150959

I mentioned I'd happened upon a discussion forum where an obvious individual of Irish descent was giving a news conference. I'll yield my microphone to Captain Sullivan...

http://www.politicalworld.org/showthread.php?t=7534

Capt'n Con:

sub: Jordan Battles to Regain Priceless Relics

>'They could be the earliest Christian writing in existence, surviving almost 2,000 years in a Jordanian cave. They could, just possibly, change our understanding of how Jesus was crucified and resurrected, and how Christianity was born.

>I'm a little concerned that these scholars are losing the run of themselves. Think I'll do some checking on the names- it's weird that archaelogical experts would make bald assertions prior to examining such a find...?

[Must be some Scottish in your genealogy, Capt'n, or some Irish I don't know about in mine. I had the same thoughts]

>Too many assumptions in here... but of course the find itself is of extraordinary interest and I look forward to hearing more about it... but I am slightly concerned about the way in which this is shaped as a story. Odd.

>Think I'll have a look and see what archaeological qualifications this guy has. Far be it from me to be dismissive of any study but ... got the creeps here.

The reason the Capt'n got the creeps was this story about David Elkington... Shoot, if I didn't know better I'd say it could've come right out of the BYU Religion department...

>David started his lecture with an anecdote to illustrate the effect that religion can have on the individual. Ten years ago, he was working as a sixth form lecturer at a college in Dorset. Late one night, he heard someone moving around outside and on taking a look spotted a man trying to break into one of the staff cars. David, an ex-monk, had taken to using his old habit as a bathrobe. He threw it on, put the hood up and going outside crept up to the man and put a hand on his shoulder. To much mirth, David described hearing a faint trickling sound. The man turned round to see David silhouetted against the moonlight, let out a piercing scream and ran off. The following day, a policeman arrived at the college and asked the principal if he knew the whereabouts of a "Mr. Death"! The man, a known felon, had been arrested in the Village Square in a state of shock, convinced he had seen death. David said that as a result of this experience the man became a practicing fundamentalist christian.'

Right....

>Just noticed that the three photos in the BBC News site article are all marked with a copyright sign saying 'David Elkington'. The article indicates he has been shown the books and he makes some extraordinary extrapolations from them that I am uncomfortable with.

Indeed, sir. I was uncomfortable meself...

>Wish the subject line could be edited to 'Larry, Curly and Mo go exploring' now... but sure never mind... :)

Glad to see the Three Stooges made it across the pond and have been immortalized in the lingua franca...

And even though the new Mormon Dialogue Board still hasn't fixed that goofy introduction to their "Focussed Discussion" section, a few of the knives over there did manage to demonstrate they can do more that spread butter...

http://www.mormondialogue.org/topic/53799-early-christian-books-on-lead-plates/

Volgadon: "If they are genuine, then it seems to me that they are probably examples of Jewish theurgic texts."

Zounds, Capt'n! I think these folks have scoured Middle Eastern history for stories about engraving on metal plates. Why ever would they have done that?

Good ol' "Metcalf is Butthead" William "Bull" Hamblin:

>I agree with Volgadon. The script is Paleo-Hebrew, the text may be in code, the iconography seems to be Jewish (and temple oriented--menorah, palm trees, luvav, stars), and the star and dot decoration is found in theurgic texts. Lead plates were widely used in theurgy, and the sealing of the plates might be linked theurgic binding rituals. I've seen nothing that points to them being Christian texts. I would say 4-5th century CE. All of this, however, is purely a guess.

Mormon self-centeredness at its absolute zenith; It can't concern the LDS Church because by 400 CE the Age of the Nephites was nearly over... Case dismissed...

A c'mon, Bull. Maybe one of those ancient sea voyagers John L. Sorenson is always telling us about crossed the Atlantic at that time, and there could be a connection...

"Catacomb of secret tunnels packed with mummified remains of EIGHT MILLION dogs!"

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1371492/Catacomb-secret-tunnels-packed-mummified-remains-EIGHT-MILLION-dogs-excavated-Egypt.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

I'm guessing all the dog heads were replaced by Elmer Fudd heads that were drawn by Horny Joe on the infamous BofA facsimiles.

Jesus Smith! I guess I need to go back to the Morg Sunday.

But these plates don't look big enough to contain all that wordiness you find in the BOM. I think FARMS will have to cast doubt on the authenticity of these plates for that reason.

Story does appear to be losing wind, however...

Lead plates just aren't as sexy as gold ones...