I suppose I'll take this
nodeshell on. The question that really needs to be asked is: Does the
Bible not allow for additional scripture? Most verses of the Bible in reference to this say that you shouldn't change, remove or add to the Bible; something that has already been
done. The
Catholic Church has a large selection of
canonized works that actually introduce new theological concepts like the
Trinity. Mormon Scriptures like the
Book of Mormon and
Doctrine and Covenants are not additions to the Bible. They are completely seperate works. I'm pretty sure you can make the argument that there should be no scripture beyound the
Old Testament based on verses found in it that are very similar to ones in the
New Testament. A good question to ask yourself is: Why would
God leave us with only the
Bible, especially in it's current badly translated and incomplete state. I'll need to do some research to come up with a better explanation...
Baron: Actually Mormon Scripture does not "supercede" any other scripture.
anotherone: It's not
quite so definite. As, I think, aozilla points out, that verse pertains to the Book of Revelations. Heh, we won't know what really happened to
Brother Joseph until we die. I don't think being martyred is a sign that God didn't like you.
aozilla: The
LDS Church actually goes around asking people to do just what you are saying. Read the
Book of Mormon, then think about it and pray about it. I'm not sure why being written after "the time of the apostles" is a problem actually. The Church refers to the period after they died to the Restoration of the Church as the Apostasy. The
LDS Church has Apostles and Prophets and believe that authority was given to Joseph Smith to reestablish this. ::shrug::
More on the book: Well, the real answer to "What book is being talked about?" is that it's very much a matter of interpretation. It does appear right at the end of the Bible, and makes a nice ending to the whole thing. Or the "book" in question could be the "book of life" that is mentioned earlier in the Book of Revelations. Remember, the one with the seven seals or whatever. I'm not sure what the consensus is on the issue, but it's definitely not a definite disallowal of modern scripture.
Hmm, look at the next verse (22:19): "And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of THIS prophecy..." That seems to indicate the Book of Revelations which includes said prophecy. I'm sure this is debatable, but the "added scriptures" attack isn't even really used by anti-mormons anymore so it can't be that strong of an argument.