Quoting form “All Things New” by Fiona and Terryl Givens:
It is an observable fact that we are not, in general, approaching scriptural reading in the light of core Restoration teachings that advise us to be cautious in our assumptions about scriptural inerrancy. The entire Restoration was a project intended to redress the state of awful “woundedness” that was explicitly attributed to scriptural corruption and the loss of the Bible’s plain and precious things” (1 Nephi 13:32) No wonder then that the first prophet of the Restoration reported that there were “many things in the Bible that do not . . . accord with the revelation of the Holy Ghost to me.”7
As for the role of our simple humanity and cultural conditioning in scriptural fallibility, George Q. Cannon took a position on divine revelation that is precisely opposite to the Chicago Statement: “The revelation we may get, imperfect at times because of our fallen condition and because of our failure to comprehend the nature of it, comes from God. . . . Man is but the medium, but the instrument, is the conduit through which it flows. . . .This is the position occupied by the Latter-day Saints. We believe in revelation. It may come dim; it may come indistinct; it may come sometimes with a degree of vagueness which we do not like. Why? Because of our imperfection; because we are not prepared to receive it as it comes in its purity; in its fulness from God. He is not to blame for this.”8 What is true of revelation in general must be true of scripture in particular, as scripture is one form that revelation takes.
Brigham Young’s concerns mirrored those of Joseph Smith and George Q. Cannon, except that Young went much further than most of his peers and fellow Christians:
“I have heard some make the broad assertion that every word within the lids of the Bible was the word of God. I have said to them, “You have never read the Bible, have you?” “O, yes, and I believe every word in it is the word of God.” Well, I believe that the Bible contains the word of God, and the words of good men and the words of bad men; the words of good angels and the words of bad angels and the words of the devil.9
Recognizing that the scriptures are fallible—and that superficial readings are harmful—gives us liberty to approach the scriptures with caution and with a more questioning spirit. There is good reason behind the injunction to search the scriptures (Doctrine and Covenants 1:37). Maturing into the recognition that scriptures, like prophets, are fallible, creates a dilemma many have felt when we leave such golden calves behind: What is the benefit then of putting our faith in an imperfect voice? Our canonical scriptures clearly bear the imprint of God’s inspiration, and we should treat them with reverence—even while recognizing that the Spirit is not the source of every word.~Fiona and Terryl Givens, All Things New (Faith Matters Publishing, 2020), 66-67
