Lucy Harris

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Lucy Harris (née Harris) (1792—1836) was the wife of Martin Harris, one of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon's Golden Plates.

Lucy and Martin were first cousins. They were married on March 27, 1808, in Palmyra, New York.

Early on during the translation of the Book of Mormon Lucy became frustrated with Martin (and skeptical of Joseph Smith, Jr.) because of how much Harris was helping Smith with the translation of the Book of Mormon. In order to convince Lucy that they were translating an ancient book of scripture, Martin Harris asked Joseph Smith, Jr. to let him borrow the first 116 pages of the translation of the Book of Mormon. Smith said that these pages of the translation of the Book of Mormon were a translation from the Book of Lehi. At Harris' insistence (and despite Smith saying he was warned not to by the Lord) Smith reluctantly loaned the pages to Harris. The manuscript was subsequently lost, and a variety of theories as to its disappearance have arisen. Some Mormons believe that Lucy hid them from Joseph Smith, Jr, gave them to friends, disposed of them in some way or that they were stolen from the Harris's house.

When Harris approached Smith and told him what happened, he became angry and left to go and pray. When he returned, he said God appeared to him in a vision and told him to not retranslate the portion of the Golden Plates the 116 pages were taken from. Instead, the material would be replaced with Nephi's Abridgment of his father's record.[1][2]

[edit] In Popular Culture

  • Lucy Harris is referred to in the comedy series South Park in an episode "All About Mormons". She is the only skeptic shown of Joseph Smith, Jr. She is referred to, in song, as "smart smart smart smart smart", while her husband Martin is referred to as "dumb dumb dumb."
  • Prominent author Christopher Hitchens uses the Lucy Harris story as proof that Joseph Smith was not a prophet, and that Smith was therefore a fraud in his book God is not Great: How religion poisons everything.[3]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints section 3.
  2. ^ The Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints section 10.
  3. ^ Exclusive excerpts from Christopher Hitchens' God Is Not Great. - By Christopher Hitchens - Slate Magazine


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