trine and Covenants and The Pearl of Great Price. The Bible is the first of the "Four Standard Works" of the Mormon Church. The King James is most widely used. Because of the manner in which the Bible has come down through the centuries, with errors in translations and interpretations of language, the church makes a reservation for its own interpretation as given in its "Articles of Faith," number 8: "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly . . . " The Book of Mormon is the second of the four standard works of the church. It is a direct translation from ancient records (gold plates) of God's dealings with ancient peoples on the Western Continent. Many of these civilizations which are described in the book to have chariots and swords and all types of fantastic things, have never been proven to exist by archeological discoveries. Historians alike tend to disbelieve the claims of these civilizations. In number 8 of the Articles of Faith, the church signifies the importance of this book, " . . . we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the Word of God." In the Book of Mormon, a record with detailed description is given to the appearance and visitation of Jesus Christ the Savior to the people on the American Continent, following His death and resurrection in Jerusalem. The Doctrine and Covenants or books of Commandments contain modern day revelations, written mostly verbatim as given by God to Joseph Smith. They deal with some great variety subjects pertaining to the organization of the church: its name, special instructions to many men in the beginning of its history; the counsel on diet and health; explanations on the life to come; and instruction on the authority to act and perform ceremonies in the name of God, such as baptism, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost and many others. The Pearl of Great Price is the fourth of the Four Standard Works of the church. It contains many sele...
