Korihor: The Enlightenment Era Boogieman Empirical Skeptic Trapped in Ancient LDS Scripture
Korihor is framed in the Book of Mormon as a dangerous heretic from 74 BCE—but his ideas sound straight out of the 1700s. In Alma 30, he questions prophecy, demands evidence, and calls out priestcraft as a tool of control. But none of this matches ancient Mesoamerican thought. Instead, Korihor sounds suspiciously like Enlightenment thinkers such as Thomas Paine, David Hume, and Voltaire.
This episode dives deep into how Korihor echoes 18th-century rationalism and anti-clericalism, likely influenced by Joseph Smith’s own upbringing and exposure to The Age of Reason. We examine the contradictions in his story, including how he gets punished for espousing ideas that later became LDS doctrine. We also explore how his fate reveals 19th-century anxieties about secularism, skepticism, and institutional authority.
Korihor wasn’t an ancient villain. He was a straw man—crafted to speak Enlightenment critiques only to be divinely silenced. Let’s talk about how this “anti-Christ” ends up saying the quiet part out loud.
📚 SOURCES: Alma 30, The Age of Reason, Bushman (2005), Hume's Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
🔍 Tags: Korihor, Enlightenment, Book of Mormon, Thomas Paine, Joseph Smith, LDS Church, Alma 30, Anti-Christ, Voltaire, Hume, Mormon history, rationalism, priestcraft, Mormon criticism
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