Narnia, Star Wars, and the Book of Mormon

One of the fascinating things that I have discovered in studying Mormonism and reading the Book of Mormon is just how utterly it is utterly unlike what it purports to be- a historical narrative. Having read ancient historical narratives like Tacitus, Eusebius, Suetonius, and Josephus, I get the sense that the authors are firmly rooted in a real solid three dimensional world.

The Book of Mormon on the other hand is more reminiscent, if not as well written as a fanciful account like Geoffrey of Monmouth's "History of Britain", which spun an entirely fictional account of how Britain was settled by Brutus, a Roman, who was descended from Aeneas who fled from the fall of Troy.

The Book of Mormon has been totally refuted by archaeology, which have unearthed no evidence of the
supposedly vast nations of the book. It has been refuted by Zoology, mentioning horses, elephants, other animals not native to Pre-Columbian America. It has been refuted ethnology, DNA, and linguistics which demonstrate no connection between the aboriginal Americans and Jews. And it has been refuted by its many historical and linguistic anachronisms, such as swords and synagogues in Pre-Columbian America.

The world of the Book of Mormon has no historical context whatsoever. It is a flat and lifeless place that cannot be mapped and has left absolutely no evidence of its having ever existed. It does not even have the imaginative appearance of reality that one finds in Narnia or Middle Earth because Smith, highly intelligent,
but poorly educated, did not have the literary talent of even a John Bunyan,

Nevertheless several million people purport to believe the book and its claims. I have often wondered why.
Then one realizes how many people believe unbelievable things. Thousands in England and America to believe in the "Jedi" religion from Star Wars. While many have taken it as a joke for some it is an obvious reality, certainly as real as the Lamanites and  Nephites.

People have a remarkable capacity for self deception. Look up the Unarius Society, or Aetherius society.
In recent years, as many refutations of the Book of Mormon have arisen, more liberal Mormons have simply embraced the post-modern view that the historical truth of  the book is irrelevant, so long as they get a buzz of it. Non liberal minds, however know that truth is important and will recognize Joseph Smiths journey through the wardrobe, lacks both historical reality,and the spiritual truth of Lewis'

One may appreciate the skill with which an author weaves a fantasy world like Narnia or Middle Earth.
However it is extremely foolish to get your spiritual values and stake the salvation of your soul on fiction.