The Most Essential Books of Mormon Religion

Book excerpt: The standard works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon. The four books of the standard works are: "The Bible (King James Version)" – English-speaking Latter-day Saints typically study a custom edition of the King James Version of the Bible, which includes custom chapter headings, footnotes referencing books in the Standard Works, and select passages from the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible. In doctrinal matters latter-day revelation supports the King James Version. "The Book of Mormon" – Latter-day Saints consider The Book of Mormon a volume of holy scripture comparable to the Bible. It contains a record of God's dealings with the prophets and ancient inhabitants of the Americas. "The Doctrine and Covenants" is a collection of revelations, policies, letters, and statements given to the modern church by past church presidents. This record contains points of church doctrine and direction on church government. "The Pearl of Great Price" is a selection of material produced by Joseph Smith and deals with many significant aspects of the faith and doctrine of the church. The Pearl of Great Price contains five sections: 1) Selections from the Book of Moses: portions of the Book of Genesis from the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible; 2) The Book of Abraham: a translation from papyri acquired by Smith in 1835, dealing with Abraham's journeys in Egypt. The work contains many distinctive Mormon doctrines such as exaltation; 3) Joseph Smith—Matthew: portions of the Gospel of Matthew from the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible; 4) Joseph Smith—History: a first-person narrative of Smith's life before the founding of the church; 5) The Articles of Faith: concise listing of thirteen fundamental doctrines of Mormonism composed by Smith in 1842.