It seems that every possible attempt has been made to discredit Joseph Smith as a prophet of God. In framing these arguments, though, many sectarians fail to see just how often these same - or very similar - arguments can be used against the very Biblical figures in whom they believe. Moses stands as a prime example of this.
- Joseph Smith was a Mason. Many of the temple rites and other doctrines that came through him are very similar to Masonic rites and beliefs, so he obviously did not receive them through revelation.
Moses was raised in Egypt by Egyptian nobles, so he was obviously subject to Egyptian paganism. Many of the doctrines he advocated were very similar to Egyptian beliefs, so he obvsiously did not receive them through revelation. (The word "Amen" is proof of this; it originated from the worship of the Egyptian god Amon.) - Joseph Smith claimed to have powers given to him through a set of objects called the Urim and Thummim.
Moses claimed to have powers given to him through a staff. (And Aaron used the Urim and Thummim.) - Joseph Smith was killed by a mob. So he must not have been a prophet.
Moses was not allowed to go into the Promised Land. So he must not have been a prophet. - Joseph Smith claimed to have a vision in which he saw God appear to him in a grove of trees, but he must have just had a seizure and hallucinated.
Moses claimed to have a vision in which he saw a burning bush and heard God talking out of it. He must have been delusional due to dehydration. - Joseph Smith was a polygamist, so he must not have been a prophet.
Moses was a polygamist, so he must not have been a prophet. - Joseph Smith pronounced death and destruction upon his enemies, so he must not have been a prophet.
Moses pronounced death and destruction upon his enemies, so he must not have been a prophet. - Brigham Young said we should look upon Joseph Smith as a God, and that is blasphemous.
Moses claimed to receive a revelation in which God told him that he would be God to Aaron and Aaron would be God to everyone else. And that is blasphemous. - Many of the eleven witnesses of the Book of Mormon were Joseph Smith's own family. Clearly, he practiced nepotism and could not trust many people outside of his family to help him in his farce.
Of all the people of Israel, Moses appointed his brother and sister to be leaders under him. Clearly, he practiced nepotism and could not trust many people outside of his family to help him in his farce. - Joseph Smith produced a record (The Book of Mormon) that condemns polygamy - but then he went and practiced polygamy.
Moses gave the Israelites a commandment that they should have no graven images of anything in heaven or even of beasts of the earth - but then he crafted a bronze serpent and told people dying of snakebite that they had to believe in it in order to be saved. - Joseph Smith claimed that God is anthropomorphic, and that he even talked to God face-to-face as one man talks to another.
Moses claimed that God was anthropomorphic, and that he even talked to God face-to-face as one man talks to another. - Joseph Smith claimed that his people were the most righteous in the world.
Moses claimed that his people were the Lord's chosen people - thus suggesting that others were not. - Joseph Smith said that the church he established would conquer the world with its "armies."
Moses made it clear that the Israelites would conquer Canaan and kill everyone there - and the man he appointed as his successor did just that. - Joseph Smith gave the priesthood to a black man, but he and those those who came after him did not give the priesthood to black men in general until 1978.
Moses and those who came after him did not allow anyone to have the priesthood but the Levites, but it is clear that non-Israelites such as Jethro and Baalim had it. - Joseph Smith had the audacity to think that anyone who rejected his message was rejecting God.
Moses had the audacity to think that anyone who rejected his message was rejecting God.
Many will read these accusations leveled against Moses and immediately protest that they are unfair, manipulative, oversimplified, and clearly rooted in bias. And I would agree. However, I must point out that these defenders of Moses tend to take very similar charges leveled against Joseph Smith at face value.
Let's not have a double standard. Joseph Smith was just as imperfect as Moses. Joseph Smith needed revelation specific to his time just like Moses. Joseph Smith was a prophet - just like Moses.
