Using the Word “and” to Validate the Book of Mormon
By Alan C. Miner

The Ancient America Foundation (AAF) is pleased to present AAF Notes: a series of research articles by scholars of Book of Mormon culture and history and reviewed by AAF editors. Visit our Web site: http://www.ancientamerica.org.  This article by Alan C. Minder comes from Step by Step through the Book of Mormon, an unpublished work.  It cites excerpts from an article by Elder Hugh W. Pinnock.

Elder Hugh Pinnock writes that polysyndeton is among the easiest of repetitious ancient Hebrew writing forms to identify because it repeats "the word and at the beginning of successive clauses."  A good example of polysyndeton in the Book of Mormon is found in Alma 1:29:

an abundance of flocks

            and herds
            and fatlings of every kind,
            and also abundance of grain,
            and of gold,
            and of silver,
            and of precious things,
            and abundance of silk
            and fine-twined linen,
            and all manner or good homely cloth.

Easily recognizable, polysyndeton was a tool frequently used by Hebrew writers and is an obvious support for the Book of Mormon's Hebraic roots.  [Hugh W. Pinnock, Finding Biblical Hebrew and Other Ancient Literary Forms in the Book of Mormon, FARMS, 1999, pp. 21-23, 27] 

Richardson, Richardson and Bentley note that other uses of polysyndeton in the Book of Mormon are found in 1 Nephi 2:4; 49; 2 Nephi 33:9; Enos 1:21; Alma 7:27; 8:21-23; 9:21; Helaman 3:14; 3 Nephi 4:7; 11:19-20; 17:13-25; 4 Nephi 1:5-7; Mormon 8:37 and Ether 9:17-27.   [Allen H. Richardson, David E. Richardson and Anthony E. Bentley, 1000 Evidences for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints;Part Two-A Voice from the Dust: 500 Evidences in Support of the Book of Mormon, p. 262]

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