The Sealed Book

English:

Article 1: The standard set by God (written by Maurício A Berger)

Article 2: The Same Faith of Jared’s Brother (written by Coriolano Pacheco)

Article 3: Kelvin Henson’s Testimony (written by Kelvin Henson)

Article 4: Morning Manna: Bringing truth to the light – God’s blessing upon the seers (written by Peter Gould)

Português:

Artigo 1: O Padrão Estabelecido Por Deus – (escrito por Maurício A. Berger)

Artigo 2: A MESMA FÉ DO IRMÃO DE JAREDE – (escrito por Coriolano Pacheco)

Artigo 3: Testemunho de Kelvin Henson – (escrito por Kelvin Henson)

Artigo 4: Maná da Manhã: Trazer a verdade à luz – a bênção de Deus para os videntes– (escrito por Peter Gould)

Español:

Articulo 1: El estándar  establecido por Dios (escrito por Maurício A. Berger)

Articulo 2: La Misma Fe del Hermano de Jared (escrito por Coriolano Pacheco)

Articulo 3: Testimonio de Kelvin Henson (escrito por Kelvin Henson)

Articulo 4: Maná de la Mañana – Traer la verdad a la luz – La bendición de Dios sobre los videntes (escrito por Peter Gould)

While the translation of the Sealed Book was being conducted in Brazil under the labors of the Seer Maurício Artur Berger, I had the following spiritual experiences for three consecutive nights.  In the night vision, it was as if my mind and that of Brother Maurício were made one and I could see the translation process as it was presented to the full consciousness of the Seer Maurício. The experience happened three consecutive nights, and oh, what rapture and joy filled my heart, mind, and soul.  The translation was given by the gift and power of Almighty God and not of man. For example, as Brother Maurício viewed the character for temple through the interpreters, our minds were flooded with a full understanding of the in-depth physical and spiritual aspects for the infinite embodiment and the creative purpose of every element, aspect, and concept embodied by the divine nature and spiritual fulfilment in the structure of the Temple as it stood erect and complete to our vision…”

Excerpt from the testimony of Apostle Samuel Shule Gould

Click here to read the entire article

The following is an excerpt from Dr. John P. Pratt’s logical, scientific and spiritual testimony of the authenticity of the plates of Mormon which were translated by the gift and power of God by the seer, Maurício A. Berger. Dr. Pratt is a descendant of Parley P. Pratt. The full article can be read at: https://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/2020/witness.html

Engravings. The plates were engraved with well-spaced characters on both sides. Mauricio showed us many details about the engravings (see Figure 3), turning several pages for us in various sections of the unsealed plates, showing us how different writing styles indicated different authors. Two things surprised me about the engravings. First was their large size and wide spacing. They are definitely larger than the artists’ conceptions which I have seen, which try to cram as many characters on a plate as possible. If the reader clicks on Figure 4 to enlarge it, the size of the characters and the space between them can be seen on the back side of the plate by my left hand side.

Secondly, the engravings were not as deep as expected. They hardly made any indentation at all, as if made with a special delicate tool, rather than a crude stylus. No attempt was made on my part to try to remember nor recognize any characters.

Rings. As can be seen in the photos, the plates are secured by three well-made “rings”, each of which consist of two vertical posts with a curved top. They appear to be made of steel. The strong magnet showed the posts to be highly ferromagnetic. Mauricio showed us where the two ends of each ring meet near the center of the plates. The joint was not joined (as by welding), but the two ends met so closely that my fingernail was many times too thick to insert between them. The rings demonstrated advanced skills in metalwork…”

Dr. John P. Pratt

Read Dr. John P. Pratt’s entire article “Examining the Gold Plates” by clicking here.

Illustration: The Three Witnesses. Engraving by H. B. Hall & Sons, 1883; image of Oliver Cowdery from a photograph by an unknown photographer, circa 1845; image of David Whitmer from a photograph by Jacob T. Hicks, circa 1865; image of Martin Harris from a photograph by Charles W. Carter, circa 1870

By João I. Vendemiatti

From ancient times, witness evidence was widely used in rudimentary legal systems. In the Law of Moses, we see that the power of two or three witnesses was sufficient to condemn a person to capital punishment (Deuteronomy 17: 6 and 19:15).

The purpose of this article is to show that the Testimony Proof in the process of the Mormon plates, as required by the Lord in their sacred scriptures, does not require witnesses to believe that the plates or their contents are true or not, but only to testify to the world that they saw them.

Jesus mentions that the truth is established by the mouth of two or three witnesses (Matthew 18:16 and John 8:17).

Paul, on at least three occasions, mentions the Law of Witnesses (2 Cor 13: 1, 1 Tim 5:19 and Heb 10:28).

In the Book of Mormon, God also uses this same principle, as we can see in 2 ne 11: 3, 27:12, Ether 5: 4 and Moroni 6: 7

In Doctrine and Covenants we have section 128: 3.

I have always wondered why this law of witnesses is so used by the Lord if it can easily be circumvented. That was when I realized that no, this law cannot be so easily circumvented.

As I began to advocate and deal with witnesses from both my clients and the opposing parties, I realized that creating a false witness is very difficult because it is easy to unmask someone who lies. Especially when one has to spend years telling the lie and being questioned by many. It is even more difficult to keep an agreement between several people, where over and over everyone will tell the same story.

The law of the three witnesses can indeed be circumvented in a court of law, but in everyday life it will be extremely difficult.

This is why God begins his work with witnesses of events, witnesses of the baptism of Jesus, witnesses of the miracles of Christ, witnesses of the resurrection of Christ, witnesses of the visitation of angels, witnesses of the handing over of the plates. Whenever someone claims to have 2 or 3 witnesses, and who bring messages from God to men, the saints should pay attention.

Should they believe only for this fact? Certainly not. But it deserves at least an impartial and honest study of the message and a sincere self-criticism as to whether we are not putting up a barrier made up of human precepts and traditions rather than listening to the possibility that God is speaking to us.

This is the Second Invitation. The law of witnesses does not require them to make a value judgment of the act, but to bear witness to something they witnessed. As in Joseph’s day, witnesses did not always believe in Joseph as a prophet, or even in the contents of the Book of Mormon. The testimony that was required of them is that they bore witness that they saw the angel and the plates. Joseph’s 3 witnesses abandoned him. Almost all 8 witnesses took different paths. Today is no different, many witnesses, who are from different branches of the restoration, attest to having seen the plates, but many do not believe in Maurício or the translation. The sealed portion brings new concepts, new doctrines, and the restoration of old ordinances that many do not believe because of their traditions. Some do not believe in Pre-existence, others do not believe that God has a physical body, others also do not believe in baptisms for the dead, others believe that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one God, others believe in the plurality of Gods. Each branch of the restoration has its doctrinal differences and witnesses fail to believe the truth of the book’s content based on their personal convictions and traditions. But none of them can claim they haven’t seen the signs. The three witnesses may leave Maurício, eventually failing to believe him as a prophet, but they can never fail to bear witness that they have seen a messenger from God and heard his voice.

Many who today are our friends, who open our homes, our lives, and the affection of our family, tomorrow will be our enemies who will aim to destroy us. This has happened in Kirtland in the 19th century, and is happening today, and will continue to happen. Because we are within an eternal circle, history will repeat itself over and over until the work is completed and the Great Jehovah decrees from Heaven that the work is finished and the great fold of Christ’s Church is complete.