Charles M. Larson writes a comment on August 17, 2024, in response to Why Mormonism Can’t Recover from “The Book of Abraham”:

Hello. I am the author of By His Own Hand Upon Papyrus — a New Look at the Joseph Smith Papyri (Institute for Religious Research, Grand Rapids, MI 1992), and I strongly endorse the composition and content of this post. Thank you for using photos and illustrations from my book!

At the time of my writing (1985) there was, of course, no attempt by the LDS church to “officially” explain or respond to the problems the reappearance of the papyri presented. So, since Smith’s version didn’t fit the actual Egyptian text, they essentially allowed various apologists — “Defenders of the Faith” — to present whatever cockamamy explanations they could come up with. In BHOHUP I described eight apologist rationalizations that were eventually offered. From the most orthodox to the most desperate, they are:

1) The “Hidden Meaning” theory
2) The “Mnemonic Device” theory
3) The “Any Egyptian Connection” theory
4) The “The Scribes Did It” theory
5) The “Missing Black and Red Scroll” theory
6) The “Mistaken Identity” theory
7) The “Catalyst” theory
8) The “Nobody Really Understands Egyptian Anyway” theory.

The poor questioning, distraught Mormon would first be offered the least radical version, and if that didn’t reassure them in the Faith, they would be moved on to the next, and so on. The idea wasn’t to ever provide a definitive answer, just to find whatever level would satisfy the person enough to allow them to remain faithful in the LDS church.

Interestingly, every one of the eight rationalizations are still used (in one form or another) to this day, and NOT ONE NEW explanation has ever come forth in the 40 years since I first described them.

May God bless you all,

Charles M. Larson (Yes, I am still alive.)”