Gods word is to be established by two or more witnesses 2 cor. Whats more the record in the book of mormon describes a high civilization, with a written language, a centralized government, a religious hierarchy, and. Apr, 2016 today, it is easy to take for granted the evidence for large stone monuments from mesoamerica and assume it is of little or no significance for the book of mormon. This map plausibly positions these and other book of mormon locations in the general mesoamerican arena. How a mormon lawyer transformed archaeology in mexicoand. Any book of mormon lands proposal must be able to demonstrate all. Mesoamerica, the region of southern mexico, guatemala, and adjacent nations. For some nonbelievers, skeptics, and dogmatists, the book of mormon is a fantasy tale from the creative mind of joseph smith. Mar 10, 2018 10 reasons why mesoamerica is the land of the book of mormon reason 1. The heartland of the united states has winter, spring, summer and fall, which is the type of climate most indicative of. Although historians and archaeologists consider the book to be an anachronistic invention of joseph smith, many members of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church and other denominations of the latter day saint movement believe that it. Mesoamerica is the site of the only literate precolumbian population.
Five compelling archeological evidences for the book of mormon. Such an attitude, however, fails to appreciate how unknown the practice was in joseph smiths own time and the fact that it took 160 years for linguists and epigraphers to. We will be happy to book your air if you would likeair is available at all major gateways. Archaeological sites in mesoamerica book of mormon central. The book of mormon is a volume of sacred scripture, but did you know that it also contains references to monsters and mythical creatures. As the book of mormon states there were some seasons of the year, that doesnt fit the climate in mesoamerica which has tropic and subtropic climates. Mesoamerica and the book of mormon in book of mormon.
You will walk away with a greater knowledge and appreciation of mesoamericans and their. Archaeological and historical evidence jareditesolmecs. The later order of nehor, having common elements with the king noah syncretic religion, also correlates with known mesoamerican religious practices, one correlation being the principal bird deity and its manifestations. Why does the book of mormon include the rise and fall of two nations. Why did moroni include mormons condemnation of infant baptism. Sorenson beginning as early as 1955 i undertook to synthesize what i was learning about ancient mesoamerica that is, southern mexico and northern central america into a form intended to answer the question, how did the book of mormon account relate to the civilization that once occupied that area. The book presents the current thinking and models of book of mormon geography mesoamerica, great lakes and south america and gives many of the accepted ideas about the validity of the. This book locates everything from the narrow neck, to zarahemla, from cumorah, to the land of promise, bountiful. While the book of mormon makes sense in light of modern knowledge of ancient mesoamerican patterns of society, warfare, trade, literacy, temple building, and numerous other elements, and while the only plausible geographical setting for the book of mormon is a tiny section of the new world centered in mesoamerica, around the isthmus of. And i take mine account from the twenty and four plates which were found by the people of limhi, which is called the book of ether.
How does the book of mormon help date the first christmas. And now i, moroni, proceed to give an account of those ancient inhabitants who were destroyed by the hand of the lord upon the face of this north country. As the above logo depicts, we do respect this mandate, and our model is. Home true book of mormon geography lands western new. The traditional view of the translation process is that joseph smith concentrated on the text written on the gold plates, and the power of god somehow told him what those words meant. Not only have cement structures been identified throughout mesoamerica, but as dr.
New light on mesoamerica from lidar, something book of. Jan 22, 2011 anthropologist mark wrights 2008 fair conference address on similarities between mesoamerica and the book of mormon. But i could assure him that a potsherd from central mexico has scratched on it. Book of mormonlamanitesrelationship to amerindiansmaya. Since the publication of the book of mormon in 1830, mormon archaeologists have attempted to find archaeological evidence to support it. Another group came much earlier, when god confounded the tongues at the tower of babel. Mesoamerica and the book of mormon, is this the place. Archaeological evidence indicates that these ancient jaredite people, who according to the book of mormon lived on the western hemisphere from approximately 2500 b. Mirador and ammonihahangola correlate culturally and chronologically, as. 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. It is pure revisionist history in saints vol 1 this country vs.
We build enduring faith in jesus christ by making the book of mormon accessible, comprehensible, and defensible to the entire world. However, when serious book of mormon students first begin with a detailed consideration of the internal map implicit to the book of mormon and then search for a plausible location that fits the book of mormons map, there has consistently been one general result. Archaeological evidence has placed ancient american peoples such as the olmecs, teotihuacans, zapotecs, mayans, and chiapas in various general locations in mesoamerica. Evidence of the nehor religion in mesoamerica book of. Of course, placing the book of mormon lands within a limited region like mesoamerica requires that we take a fresh look at some of the longstanding questions that have been of interest to book of mormon readers. It uniquely goes about verifying each requirement, step by step. Advertised rates include port charges but do not include shore excursions, airfare, or gratuities.
One of the strongest arguments lund makes is to show what was known at the time of publication made the book of mormon completely unbelievable. Our changing understanding of ancient america and its scripture. The book of mormon geography lands and map with dna evidence. Daniel johnson, jared cooper, and derek glasser, an lds guide to mesoamerica springville, ut.
The prophets in the book of mormon did not lack creativity when they described their lives and views on the gospel. Book of mormon comes alive in mesoamerica cruise lady. Analytical and contextual commentary on the book of mormon, 6 vols. Interestingly, all the early church leaders knew the book of mormon lands were in south america and not mesoamerica. Tres zapotes is close to where the final jaredite and nephite battles are believed to have been fought.
Major public structures at cacaxtla were built using cement. Mesoamerica and the book of mormon linkedin slideshare. To read more about metallurgy and the book of mormon, please read. The book presents the current thinking and models of book of mormon geography mesoamerica, great lakes and south america and gives many of the accepted ideas about the validity of the mesoamerica model. The book of mormon says people in the land northward used cement as an architectural building material helaman 3. Book of mormonlamanitesrelationship to amerindiansmaya and. While this description of mesoamerica is only a broad sweep, the conditions described in the book of mormon clearly fit the problem. Bmaf supports a mesoamerican context for the major book of mormon sites. Is this the place and millions of other books are available for amazon kindle. Lund also quotes from statements made by joseph smith about specific locations and accepts them literally.
Anthropologist mark wrights 2008 fair conference address on similarities between mesoamerica and the book of mormon. Even the hill cumorah, where joseph smith obtained the gold plates, is not really the same hill cumorah mentioned in the text. Why was coriantumrs record engraved on a large stone. A book that introduces all the requirements of book of mormon lands. Welch pointed out that no archeologist in 1829 could have known how accurately the dating of this. Many accounts of significant lands and cities are given in the book of mormon. 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. I loved the thought of mesoamerica being the site of the book of mormon. Now, after almost two hundred years, more and more scientific finds in mesoamerica show that the book of mormon is more accurate and authentic than previously thought.
For believers in the prophetic mission of joseph smith, the book of mormon is a history book as well as another testament of jesus christ. The name mesoamerica is a term used to identify the heartland of a number of significant precolumbian cultures. In addition, the entire story of the book of mormon occurred within a small 500mile radius within mesoamerica. One of the arguments book of mormon scholars sometimes present to counter the claim that horses as a method of transportation would have transformed the history of ancient mesoamerica is that the geography of mesoamerica was simply incongruent with the use of the horse as transportation.
The book of mormon purports to give an account of two civilizations formed by families who migrated to the americas. Part of the strength of book of mormon apologetics depends upon carefully qualifying how the book of mormon was translated. Free shipping get free shipping free 58 day shipping within the u. He is a great teacher, a brilliant scholar, and gifted with a sense of humor.
Lund is an excellent book for both the beginning enthusiast of book of mormon geography and chronology, and the seasoned scholar. Book of mormon tours which take interested members to see the lands of the book of mormon in mesoamerica. This over 2000 year time period, allow them to spread out over the land from at least as far south as peru, traveling by boat along the west coast. Oct 24, 2019 as the book of mormon states there were some seasons of the year, that doesnt fit the climate in mesoamerica which has tropic and subtropic climates. In 1975, he submitted a paper to a symposium about book of mormon geography outlining the failure of archaeologists to find old world plants, animals, metals, and scripts in mesoamerica. Lunds love for history and the book of mormon has taken him to mexico, honduras, belize and guatemala more than twenty times.
Book of mormon geography jeff lindsays site and the. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies. The prophecies of abinadi in the book of mormon, his sacrificial death, and the deaths of his murderers all correlate with maya rituals and ceremonies. Muleks party first arrived in the land north see helaman 6. Today, while some individuals still argue for a book of mormon setting in the great lakes region of the united states and canada, 2 most latterday saint scholars acknowledge mesoamerica as the most likely region that matches descriptions found within the book. This is a touchy subject since so many people are convinced joseph said the final nephite battle was in new york. Sorenson published an ancient american setting for the book of mormon, which lays out the essential arguments for a correspondence between mesoamerica and the book of mormon. John sorenson noted, the firstcenturybc appearance of cement in the book of mormon agrees strikingly with the archaeology of central mexico. The effort i have put into making this information about the book of mormon and ancient mesoamerica is my way of repaying that community. The maya and the olmec have a written languagea requirement for book of mormon peoples, who kept records. Shown here are various archaeological sites in mesoamerica that may correspond to book of mormon places. Apr 06, 2007 mesoamerica and the book of mormon book.