Martin & Lucy Harris and the Lost 116 Pages of the Book of Mormon - John Turner Pt. 3 | Ep. 2028

Welcome to part three of the Joseph Smith Podcast! Today we are back with Dr. John Turner to cover his new book “Joseph Smith: The Rise and Fall of an American Prophet.” Today we are covering Chapter Four titled: Lost in Translation which takes place in 1827-1829 in Palmyra, New York. In this episode, we explore one of the most pivotal and mysterious events in early Mormon history — the story of Martin and Lucy Harris and the infamous loss of the 116 pages of the Book of Mormon manuscript. With historian and non-Latter-day Saint scholar John G. Turner, we dive into the complexities of translation, belief, and the relationships that shaped the early Restoration movement. We also examine: -The discovery of the plates -Martin Harris’ background and motives -Lucy Harris’ suspicions and possible involvement -The cultural and religious context of the time -Theories about the Book of Mormon translation process -What the loss of the 116 pages reveals about Joseph Smith’s prophetic development This episode also reflects on broader themes of faith, deception, historical interpretation, and the psychology behind religious movements. Whether you're a believer, skeptic, or historian, this deep-dive provides rich insight from a non-Mormon perspective. Please purchase the book here: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/97803... To support this series please donate here: https://donorbox.org/josephsmith. One half of all donations will go to Dr. Turner for as long as he is participating in the series. You can find the Joseph Smith podcast feed on Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vxj75p... Show notes can be found on the Mormon Stories blog here: https://www.mormonstories.org/martin-... Timecodes: 00:00:00 Introduction 00:04:40 Mound Builder Myth 00:13:10 Feedback and comments on this new podcast 00:21:55 What matters more than Joseph Smith being a fraud? 00:26:07 What John G. Turner thinks of the Book of Mormon 00:35:45 The background of Martin Harris 00:45:40 Joseph performs a magic trick with a pin 00:50:10 Did Martin Harris try to see and feel the plates? 01:02:53 What was likely in the box if not the plates? 01:21:04 Is Emma a co-conspirator with Joseph Smith or does she truly believe? 01:37:16 The Anthon transcript 01:41:00 John Turner’s best explanation 01:50:20 What does he make of the Urim and Thummim spectacles? 02:04:43 Theory of what Joseph Smith likely was doing? 02:13:24 Did Joseph Smith have co-authors that helped him? 02:16:33 The Lost 116 Pages 02:29:44 What about Joseph Smith’s response to the lost 116 pages? 02:43:21 The Mosiah Priority in the Book of Mormon 02:48:55 Closing comments ___________________ At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals. Our overall mission is to: 1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology 2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis 3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions 🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?d... Patreon:   / mormonstories   Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonsto... Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories Join this channel to get access to perks:    / @mormonstories   Our Platforms: 🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 🎙️Patreon:   / mormonstories   ✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7d... 🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... 🖼️Instagram:   / mormstories   📱TikTok:   / mormonstoriespodcast   🎮Discord:   / discord   Contact us: 📧 [email protected] 📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117