Proposed lehi travel route for the book of mormon people. All in all, i found pros, cons of book of mormon geography theories relatively well balanced, although still teetering toward the mesoamerican. Latter day saints members proposed a limited mesoamerican geography for the book of mormon. The book of mormon and defensive fortifications in mesoamerica. Book of mormon peoples, unsurprisingly, acted like real people. Although human sacrifice was likely practiced in earlier times among the lehites, this is the first time it specifically recorded in the book of mormon. The name being a nahuatl word meaning cincorn and tepechill.
Most lgt models place book of mormon lands in central america. We will be happy to book your air if you would likeair is available at all major gateways. Book of mormon, history of warfare in the encyclopedia. This change appears particularly problematic, as the book of mormon itself clarifies the lands to be uninhabited except for jaredites, mulek and the family of lehi. However, the selfpublished nature of the book should not dissuade readers from using it as a valuable contribution to book of mormon studies. Whenever the book of mormon uses the cardinal directions alone, it is usually referring to directions within the land southward. This explanation of the darkness has been particularly popular among those who advocate a limited geographical model of the book of mormon. Purpose of the book of mormon tour helps these single page descriptions of a specific book of mormon site are designed to provide pertinent information to the traveler about the site. Exploring the lands of the book of mormon book, 2011. Items do not represent the official views of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints or of book of mormon central. Seasonality of warfare in the book of mormon and in mesoamerica.
Reply to pros, cons of book of mormon geography theories book. Mormon s footprint in mesoamerica is a continuation of discovery that follows publication of mapping the book of mormon. Oct 03, 2016 a comparison of book of mormon geographies showing new york to be the most viable setting for book of mormon events. Moroni, towards the end of the book of mormon account, said it was revealed to him that littl. Mar, 2018 that sound made its way into later book of mormon languages and survived the centuries until today. Even the hill cumorah, where joseph smith obtained the gold plates, is not really the same hill cumorah mentioned in the text. Mesoamerican enthusiasts have argued that book of mormon people may.
Book of mormon comes alive in mesoamerica cruise lady. I propose that if mesoamerica is a good fit for the book of mormons real world. The church takes no position on the specific geographic location of book of mormon events in the ancient americas. Geology in the book of mormon and mesoamerica bom lands conference jerry. A summary of several theories of book of mormon lands in mesoamerica by. A summary of several theories of book of mormon lands in. Book of mormonlamanitesrelationship to amerindiansmaya and. An ancient american setting for the book of mormon. The shifting focus of book of mormon geography book of. Of course, placing the book of mormon lands within a limited region like mesoamerica. The maya and the olmec have a written languagea requirement for book of mormon peoples, who kept records. Saturday, june 11, 1842, was unusually cold in boston.
New discoveries about mayans and bias confirmation moroni. The mesoamerican limited geography model posits that the events of the book of mormon occurred in a geographically limited region in mesoamerica only. Reviewed by richard packham this book is a summary of the authors study of existing and wellknown attempts by mormon scholars to locate the places where the events narrated in the book of mormon took place. Discovering the lands of the book of mormon mesoamerica. Lund, mesoamerica and the book of mormon is this the place. Divine kingship in mesoamerica, and the book of mormon. The geographical setting of the book of mormon has been the subject of serious study and casual speculation since before the book was first published. It is also claimed that no draft animals existed in the new world to pull such chariots. Allen pointed out in his book, exploring the book of mormon lands, that a candidate for hill shim is found in southern vera cruz by the name of cintepec. This paper investigates the evidence for seasonality of warfare in the book of mormon account and compares it with what is currently known about the timing of warfare in mesoamerica. The limited size of book of mormon lands is outlined within its text. Since the publication of their work, an approach to the study of book of mormon geography, analysts of the scripture have found still more data in the book of mormon s own statements suggesting that the immediate land covered by the book s events was probably only.
This book locates everything from the narrow neck, to zarahemla, from cumorah, to the land of promise, bountiful. Why did snakes infest jaredite lands during a famine. Second, book of mormon peoples should be expected to act and behave just as real people have throughout history. While nothing can take the place of a spiritual witness of the truthfulness of the book of mormon, an understanding of the correlating evidence of the book of mormon, especially as it relates to geography, can provide greater appreciation for this inspired book of scripture. Then the mesoamericanists came along with the idea of a theory that the book of mormon lands only took up a few hundred miles. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading an ancient american setting for the book of mormon.
The yucatan was not a peninsula during book of mormon times, so the land bountiful was along the north shore of the land southward. Grover has done an admirable job of setting forth his sound scientific analysis and interpretations, providing a new perspective on the settings and locations of book of mormon lands. Nov 22, 2007 mesoamerica and the book of mormon dr. Claims the narrow neck of land is the isthmus of tehuantepec, and the basic area is that of mesoamerica. As a result of volcanic activity, the level of the lake is known to have shifted very abruptly up to 60 feet during historical times. They discuss early church assumptions as to where the people of the book of mormon lived, and then discuss the plausible locale that is theorized by most lds scholars today. I purchased this book a few days prior to leaving, had it personalized and signed by him, and read it before, during, and after my adventure in the book of mormon lands. However, ash, miller and roper all point out that many scholars believe the book of mormon peoples lived in mesoamerica. Mark wright is a professor of ancient scripture and well versed in mesoamerican and mayan research, and he also sees mesoamerica in the book of mormon. Church releases statement on book of mormon geography. More and more, theories placing book of mormon events in mesoamerica and south america are giving way to the heartland of america as book of mormon lands. While capturing the city teancum, the lamanites took many women and children as prisoners and sacrificed them to idols mormon 4.
Proposed mesoamerican locations for the setting of the book. This fact alone virtually eliminates any other geographical area from being considered as lands of the book of mormon 7 socalled dna proofs use unsubstantiated theories. Proposed book of mormon geographical setting wikipedia. After relating the history of one civilization, the book of mormon provides a brief. Yet it is the indians who hold the secrets relevant to the lost lands of the book of mormon. Cheesmans, the world of the book of mormon, deseret book, 1978. Book of mormon tours has been operated by the allen family since 1970. In this page, i discuss the recent discoveries in mesoamerica which have caused a complete paradigm shift in the thinking of scholars. Criteria for book of mormon lands and people there are several theories held among latterday saints for the location of book of mormon lands. It is a book of scripture aimed at teaching people about christ and. Why does the book of mormon include the rise and fall of two. It will not do to just dig up any archaeological site in the americas and call it a book of mormon.
It is likely that, on arrival, nephi had the same problem as many others have historically when encountering new species in the promised land. This land of one hill cumorah book of mormon evidence. On february 1, 2018, national geographic broke a story about some incredible new discoveries in mesoamerican archaeology using new technology. Another area of agreement between mesoamerican and book of mormon. Annually, october 1, is the anniversary of a little known event in early church history that i believe, in consequence of significant research progress into 2019, now deserves recognition for identifying a region of major book of mormon lands and for initiating book of mormon archaeological historic research. Items in the bmc archive are made publicly available for noncommercial, private use. The 10th annual book of mormon lands symposium was held in salt lake city to discuss the research and discoveries most recently made.
These discoveries place the development and expansion of lime cement in mesoamerica for structural building construction very close to the same period that the cement mentioned in the book of mormon becomes widespread in the northern lands. Advertised rates include port charges but do not include shore excursions, airfare, or gratuities. Many accounts of significant lands and cities are given in the book of mormon. If there is never a paradigm shift in the scholarly. More recent work on the place of book of mormon peoples in mesoamerica sees them as participating in a mesoamerican culture rather than creating it. An ancient american setting for the book of mormon kindle edition by sorenson, john l download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The smoking gun of book of mormon geography rod meldrum. Thus, the saints were primed and ready when john lloyd stephens book incidents of travel in central america, chiapas and yucatan, came out. The king james quotations in the book of mormon, the history of the text of the book of mormon.
Book of mormon traditions found only in mesoamerica by. Book of mormon tours which take interested members to see the lands of the book of mormon in mesoamerica. Wirth the number seven had several connotations to the precolumbian communities of mesoamerica. This model limits the events depicted in the book of mormon to land immediately adjacent to the isthmus of tehuantepec narrow neck of land in southern mexico and argues the jaredites are the olmec civilization while the nephitelamanites the mayan civilizationall with no scientific backing. I had the pleasure of being amongst many on a tour to mesoamerica with john lund.
The shift began in 1958 with the work of heinrich berlin, who showed, as coe puts it. Exploring the lands of the book of mormon, by joseph allen, sa publishers, orem, utah, 1989, pp. New revelations of the americas before columbus by charles c. Cumorah and the limited mesoamerican theory religious. Ron anderson as tour guides with the expertise of jeffrey burrows as local tour guide as we visit important places of interest in guatemala, honduras, belize and mexico beginning in 2017. Instead, we are left to our own speculations concerning book of mormon geography. Revisiting the seven lineages of the book of mormon and the seven tribes of mesoamerica diane e. The three days of darkness is consistent with a period of intense volcanism.
Hazard assessment of description of 3 nephi event 3. Some place the geography of the book in upstate new york or near the great lakes. The shifting focus of book of mormon geography book of mormon. The book of mormon is not intended to be a history book or a guide to geography, science, or any other secular topic. Why does the book of mormon include the rise and fall of two nations. The main passage mentions the land of nephi bordering on the seas, a narrow strip of wilderness, the land of zarahemla, and the headwaters of the river sidon see alma 22. The book of mormon claims that nonspecific seeds were brought from the land of jerusalem. Mar 10, 2018 so the general orientation of the book of mormon lands are in a general northwest to southeast direction. A summary of several theories of book of mormon lands in mesoamerica the contents of all bmaf publications are the sole responsibility of the individual authors and therefore do not necessarily represent the views of bmaf or the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. Before we examine some of the possible locations for book of mormon geography however, i would like to stress the fact that as of today, the lord has not revealed where the nephites or lamanites lived, and as such, the lds church has taken no official stance on anything related to book of mormon geography.
Book of mormon geography jeff lindsays site and the. New discoveries about mayans and bias confirmation posted february 5, 2018 jonathan neville we have an outstanding new example of how confirmation bias works in the arena of book of mormon geography and historicity. He also taught them that moroni had traveled from central america to palmyra, newyork dedicating future temple sites along the way. There are times when there is not the opportunity to get a clear understanding of what the traveler saw and these bulletins will help with that understanding. A major question in book of mormon studies is, where was the land of zarahemla really. Within mesoamerica the isthmus of tehuantepec in mexico provides a convenient narrow neck of land. One popular lds theory places the setting for the book of mormon in the vicinity of mexico and central america surrounding the isthmus of tehuantepec. That sound made its way into later book of mormon languages and survived the centuries until today. Many latterday saints have not had access to sources which communicate how recent research has changed our understanding of the book of mormon as an ancient document. For overviews of the development of ideas regarding book of mormon geography, including the development of the limited mesoamerican theory, see sorenson, geography of book of mormon events, and matthew roper, limited geography and the book of mormon. Stephenss discoveries caused him to shift the city of. Limited geography and the book of mormon byu scholarsarchive. Lund lecture notes 07072018 03272020 nate the following are my rough notes on a few key points and resources for further study on this presentation of mesoamerica as the place of book of mormon events.
Where did the idea that the bom occurred in central america. In diverse, informative, and morally instructive accounts, the book of mormon reports a wide variety of military customs, technologies, and tactics similar to those found in many premodern societies before a. An introduction to the lands of the book of mormon and then it came to pass looking at dates archaeology in mesoamerica the olmec jaredite culture the maya lamanitenephite culture the zapotec mulekitenephite culture the teotihuacan culture the izapa jareditenephitelamanite culture ancient mesoamerican documents. If you arent familiar with the book of mormon, please see my book of mormon introduction page and get your own free copy at mormon. Revisiting the seven lineages of the book of mormon and the. Jan 22, 2011 anthropologist mark wrights 2008 fair conference address on similarities between mesoamerica and the book of mormon. It should be remembered that chariots do not play a major role in the book of mormon. A dna study by emory university, accepted by the smithsonian, acknowledges that some native americans have ancestry in common with the peoples in modern israel and the mediterranean area. View the original article at the book of mormon resources blog. The land was preserved for a righteous people, explicitly kept from the knowledge of other nations ether 2. The book of mormon mentions chariots, which one assumes to be a wheeled vehicle. Travel companies boldly offer tours of book of mormon lands, and books. Jul 11, 2018 thus, it was commonly accepted by scholars and laymen alike, and even by the early saints, that an ancient civilization once occupied the area long before the indians became lords of the land. Inclusion within the bmc archive does not imply endorsement.
We have taken more tours to mesoamerica to compare the ancient sites and civilizations with the book of mormon than any other tour operator. The articles linked below will describe the various. Book of mormon traditions found only in mesoamerica by diane e. We are the pioneers of the book of mormon tour concept. Joseph smith did not receive revelation where book of mormon lands were located, but his last statements about book of mormon geography point us to mesoamerica. Oct 27, 2010 these man credited joseph smith with teaching them that the land of bountiful mention in the book of mormon was in central america. Geographic evidences that have become overgrown by forests, or deliberately destroyed, are coming to light and are being connected to people and places of the book of mormon. Mesoamerica is the site of the only literate precolumbian population. Analysis of potential 3 nephi volcanoes in mesoamerica 2. The new essay begins with this declarative statement. Archaeological remains of peccaries have been found in mesoamerica from the preclassic or. And would send or bring forth another people to possess the land, by his. The popular theory that the land southward including zarahemla was in mesoamerica southern mexico and parts of central america started in 1842 with some speculation in the church.
Mid resolution 830 k when image is loaded, click on it for a detailed view high resolution 5. Many also are unaware of some rather surprising new discoveries supporting the book of mormon which have been brought about by the advanced methods of science. The church has been neutral when it comes to issues relating to book of mormon geography, as is fairmormon. Since the publication of the book of mormon in 1830, mormon archaeologists have attempted. They believe that cumorah and all the rest of the lands were actually down in mesoamerica, so they have dispensed entirely with a cumorah in new york state. Geology in the book of mormon and mesoamerica bom lands. The teotihuacans are thought to have been in the land northward where some nephites resettled about 50 b. This page is a supplement to my book of mormon evidences page. Archaeology research in precolumbian americas and the book of mormon. Oct 30, 2019 the only thing that was ever in doubt was how far south the rest of the lands mentioned in the book of mormon were from cumorah in new york. The name mesoamerica is a term used to identify the heartland of a number of significant precolumbian cultures. The book of mormon geography lands and map with dna evidence. A limited geography model for the book of mormon is one of several theories by latter day. Discovering the lands of the book of mormon mesoamerica theory by dr.
The three authors of an lds guide to mesoamerica, walk us through the lands of the book of mormon. Mormons footprint in mesoamerica is a continuation of discovery that follows publication of mapping the book of mormon. There can be no real book of mormon archaeology until the true realworld setting of the book of mormon is identified. Sorenson suggests that the question about metal in mesoamerica should shift from. Book of mormon archaeology has long been a favorite interest of. This is a touchy subject since so many people are convinced joseph said the final nephite battle was in new york. We hope you will consider joining us on our unforgettable book of mormon lands tours to mesoamerica with dr. Divine kingship in mesoamerica, and the book of mormon fair mormon.
The church of jesus christ of latterday saints released a statement today concerning the geography of the book of mormon in the form of a new gospel topics essay titled book of mormon geography. Everywhere in those latitudes, war was normally carried on by the precolumbian inhabitants during a limited annual period. Seasonality of warfare in the book of mormon and in. Since the publication of their work, an approach to the study of book of mormon geography, analysts of the scripture have found still more data in the book of mormon s own statements suggesting that the immediate land covered by the book s events was probably only hundreds rather than thousands of miles long and wide. Apr 06, 2007 i had the pleasure of being amongst many on a tour to mesoamerica with john lund. A limited geography model for the book of mormon is one of several theories by latter day saint movement scholars that the book s narrative was a historical record of people in a limited geographical region, rather than of the entire western hemisphere as believed by some early latter day saints. The big shift came with the 1970 work by tulane university at becan.
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