Category: Uncategorized

Uncategorized

New web page

Now that this blog has fulfilled its purpose, I’m happy to announce a more comprehensive web page.

https://www.moronisamerica.com/

This is far more flexible format than a blog, although it will include a blog as well. We will have a newsletter you can subscribe to for updates. We are adapting the hundreds of posts on this blog so they will be accessible by category.

Thanks to Rian Nelson, there are some wonderful maps, some excellent artwork, some additional research, and much more. There is even a section for kids that includes activities and cartoons.

We think this is a more user-friendly resource that you can share with others. Let me know what you think. As always, we welcome feedback and want to incorporate suggestions as quickly as possible.

Thanks again for all your interest in the things we discuss on this blog.

And remember, we want everyone in the Church to read Letter VII during 2016.

Source: Book of Mormon Wars

Uncategorized

Summary post

I started this blog to explore questions of Book of Mormon historicity and geography. I’m an active member of the Church and I accept the Book of Mormon as an actual history of real people. There are a lot of active, inactive, and former members who don’t believe that. I wanted to know why. I’ve spent much of the last two years focusing on the issue, and now I’m going to state my overall conclusion and thesis.

After that, I will briefly summarize the history of the blog and the responses I have received.

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Preliminary matters.

Many members of the Church are deeply attached to a particular setting for the Book of Mormon. If your ideas work for you—in the sense that your beliefs make the text more real for you and help you understand and apply its meaning—then that’s great. In this blog I’m simply relating the facts as I understand them, along with reasonable inferences. This understanding works for me. Your mileage may vary. Do what you think best.

Many active Church members tell me it doesn’t matter where the Book of Mormon took place because it is the message (about Christ and the Gospel) that is the most important. To me, that’s a non sequitur. Granted, the message about Christ and the Gospel is the most important, but that’s not the reason we have the Book of Mormon. That message could have been communicated through modern revelation. It could also have been communicated through parables—which is exactly what many active members of the Church think the Book of Mormon is, instead of an actual history.

I’m not saying active members need to be interested in Book of Mormon historicity and geography, but I am saying they need to recognize they are self-selected by their faith in the Book of Mormon. When we recognize that most members of the Church are not active, maybe we’ll recognize one reason is because they don’t accept the Book of Mormon as a literal history. 

I think the reason we have the Book of Mormon is (as the Title Page explains) to convince people that Jesus is the Christ, manifesting himself unto all nations.  If, as I assert, the Book of Mormon is an actual history of real people, then the only explanation for it is what Joseph and Oliver said. And if it’s an actual history, then it took place somewhere—again, as Joseph and Oliver said.

Ultimately, the geography depends on where Cumorah is. I suspect most members of the Church—including me—think Cumorah is in New York. Many Church members are surprised to discover that is not what most LDS Book of Mormon scholars claim.

I think the scholars are wrong, and this blog explains why.
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Summary and thesis

This is a summary of the facts in Church history as I understand and interpret them. You may or may not have heard/read these things before, but probably you have not. Some people will disagree with me about some of the details, but my point here is not to convince anyone. I’m just explaining my thesis. I’m not including any references or detail; I’ve provided hundreds of footnotes in this blog and in my books for those interested.

My thesis:
In 1829, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery translated the plates Moroni deposited in the square box he constructed of stone and cement in the Hill Cumorah near Palmyra, New York.

Joseph and Oliver worked in Joseph’s small home in Harmony, Pennsylvania. While they worked on the translation, Joseph received a revelation (D&C 10) that he should not retranslate the first part of the plates—the Book of Lehi. (In 1828, he had translated that the Book of Lehi with Martin Harris acting as scribe, but Harris lost the manuscript.)

Consequently, when Joseph and Oliver reached the end of the Book of Moroni, they were finished with those plates. D&C 10 told Joseph he’d have to translate the Plates of Nephi to replace the lost manuscript—but he didn’t have the plates of Nephi.
Due to increasing persecution, Joseph and Oliver arranged to continue the work at the Whitmer farm in Fayette. Joseph gave the plates to a heavenly messenger in the form of a man. David Whitmer drove his wagon to Harmony to pick them up. On their way to Fayette, they passed the messenger on the road. David asked if he wanted a ride, but the man declined, saying he was heading for Cumorah. David had grown up in the area but had never heard of Cumorah. He turned to Joseph to inquire. When he turned back, the messenger had already left.

The messenger went to Cumorah where, separate from Moroni’s stone box, there was a large underground room—a repository—containing all the records of the Nephites. Mormon had moved the plates here from the original storage place in the Hill Shim. The messenger left Mormon’s plates in the repository and retrieved the plates of Nephi. He took these to Fayette. He showed them to David’s mother before giving them to Joseph Smith.
Joseph and Oliver translated the plates of Nephi (1 Nephi through Words of Mormon) in Fayette. When they finished, Oliver, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris sought permission to see the plates.
The messenger brought additional records from the repository, including the plates of brass, the plates of Ether, and other plates and artifacts. He set them up in the woods. Moroni then appeared to Joseph, Oliver and David, showing them all the records. He appeared to Martin Harris and Joseph separately, possibly showing Martin just some of the things Oliver and David saw.
The messenger then returned all the plates and artifacts to the repository in Cumorah.
Later, Joseph arranged to have eight other men view the plates. These men were all in the area of Palmyra when they saw them. Joseph and Oliver went to the repository, retrieved a set of plates (probably Mormon’s, not Nephi’s). Joseph and Oliver returned the plates to the repository. This likely happened on more than one occasion; i.e., two groups of four men each saw the plates, but they all signed a joint statement of testimony.

From the time Joseph first announced he had found the plates in the Hill Cumorah, people had been digging in the hill seeking buried treasure. The Lord knew that once the statements of the witnesses were published, the treasure seekers would renew their efforts. Before Oliver Cowdery left on his mission to the Lamanites, he and Joseph, probably assisted by David Whitmer and Joseph’s brothers Hyrum and Don Carlos, moved the plates out of Cumorah to another location. Probably this was to the Hill Shim where Ammaron had originally hidden them. It took several trips by wagon, but it left the repository in Cumorah empty.

All of the men involved operated under a vow of secrecy. Oliver and some of the others did tell Brigham Young and a few other people what happened. Possibly they told Brigham where they moved the plates, but if so, this has never been discussed publicly.
During Zion’s Camp, Joseph recognized the terrain as the plains of the Nephites. He wrote about it to Emma, who had been one of the original scribes. She knew what Joseph was referring to because they had discussed what Joseph learned from Moroni during his interviews, when Moroni told him all about Nephite society and showed him the people in vision.

Also on Zion’s Camp, Joseph had a vision of Zelph, a warrior in the final battles who was killed and buried in Illinois.
Joseph knew the Native American Indians who lived in the Great Lakes region were the descendants of Lehi’s people. He met with tribes from this area and told them their fathers had written the Book of Mormon. 
At various times, Joseph tried to write a history of the Church, but events were unfolding so rapidly—and he was not comfortable writing because of his limited education—that the efforts never amounted to much. In 1834, Oliver began writing a series of letters to W.W. Phelps, outlining the early history. Joseph assisted in the effort. Oliver wrote eight letters that were published in the Church’s newspaper, the Messenger and Advocate, in Kirtland. In Letter VII, he described the Hill Cumorah and explained that the final battles of the Nephites and Jaredites took place in the mile-wide valley west of Cumorah.

Oliver didn’t claim revelation on the point; he knew it was true because Mormon had deposited the records in the hill and Oliver and Joseph had both seen them there. That’s why Joseph had his scribes copy Letter VII into his journal as part of his history (this was after Letter VII was published in the Messenger and Advocate in 1835).

Years later, Joseph gave express permission to Benjamin Winchester to republish the letters, including Letter VII, in the Gospel Reflector. Joseph’s brother Don Carlos also republished them in the Times and Seasons. The following year, 1842, Joseph referred to Cumorah in D&C 128. Cumorah in New York was universally understood in Joseph’s day because Joseph and Oliver taught it, and they taught it because they had been inside Mormon’s repository and had moved the Nephite records.

Apart from Cumorah, which Joseph mentioned in D&C 128, and Zarahemla, mentioned in D&C 125, the Prophet never officially identified specific Book of Mormon sites. He was faced with more pressing matters, including the troubles in Missouri, the need to build the temple and introduce all the temple ordinances before he died, the thousands of immigrants coming to settle in Nauvoo, and much more. It is possible he was unable to relate what he knew to the geography passages in the Book of Mormon because the references in the text are archaic and use Hebrew parallel forms.
From the outset of their missionary work, Parley P. Pratt, Benjamin Winchester, and other early missionary/authors were constantly being attacked by anti-Mormons. One persistent line of attack was the claim that Joseph had copied the Book of Mormon from a manuscript by Solomon Spaulding. Pratt and Winchester both responded to this claim. Another criticism focused on the text itself. The Book of Mormon describes advanced civilizations, but everyone knew the Indians were savages. Critics claimed the Book of Mormon merely repeated the legends of ancient civilizations in North America that were destroyed by the savage Indians. Pratt, Winchester, and others responded to these criticisms by pointing to discoveries of long-lost civilizations in Central America that built great stone pyramids and cities.

In 1842 Joseph Smith became the nominal editor of the Times and Seasons. From the early days of the Church, he knew it was important for the Church to have its own newspaper because he could not get fair coverage from the media. W.W. Phelps, an experienced newspaperman, was called to publish a newspaper in Missouri—The Evening and the Morning Star. Oliver Cowdery was called to assist in editing. Phelps had a strident tone, though, and he wrote an article that inflamed the Missourians and led to the destruction of the printing press. Joseph sent Oliver to buy another press. Oliver set it up in Kirtland and continued the Evening and the Morning Star. He replaced it with the Messenger and Advocate. Eventually, Phelps and Oliver were excommunicated. Joseph started the Elders’ Journal, which listed himself as Editor, although his brother Don Carlos (who had learned the newspaper business from Oliver), was the acting editor.
When the Saints moved to Nauvoo, Don Carlos started the Times and Seasons. He died in September 1841, after which Ebenezer Robinson took over as publisher and editor. Winchester moved to Nauvoo and began working at the paper in November, despite being severely disciplined by Joseph Smith on October 31. Every issue of the Times and Seasons from November 1 through February 15 contained at least one long article written by Winchester but published anonymously, giving credit only to the Gospel Reflector.

Joseph had misgivings about the operation of the paper. Based on his experience with Phelps and Oliver, he seemed willing to trust only his brother Don Carlos, but when Don died, he was left with few options. The Lord answered his prayers with a revelation that the Quorum of the Twelve should take over the paper. They “suspended” Winchester, who moved back to Philadelphia and started work on his Synopsis and Concordance.

The Twelve purchased the paper from Robinson and, beginning on February 15, 1842, named Joseph as printer, editor, and publisher. Wilford Woodruff managed the business affairs of the printing office and John Taylor assisted in writing. The printing office, which published a variety of material in addition to the Times and Seasons, had a staff of printers, proofreaders, and writers. In April, Joseph’s other brother, William, started a local paper called the Wasp. It was published from the same shop as the Times and Seasonsand shared editorial content.

Joseph’s involvement at the Times and Seasons started with the publication of the Book of Abraham, the Wentworth letter, and the History of Joseph Smith, a compilation of material Joseph supplied to his clerks but did not write himself. By the spring of 1842, W.W. Phelps had moved to Nauvoo and was helping to write and edit material for the Times and Seasons. 
Joseph was busy with many responsibilities, well documented in his journal. Editing the Times and Seasons was never mentioned in his journal. (Nor was printing the paper.) Although Joseph was the nominal editor, William soon became the acting editor of both newspapers, with the uncredited assistance of Phelps (although it is very difficult to determine which of them contributed what editorial content). Winchester, who had been sending material to the Times and Seasons since its very first issue in 1839, continued sending articles to the paper.

Because of his tenuous relationship with the Twelve, Winchester’s work was published anonymously and over the signature of the Editor. One example is the article “Try the Spirits,” published on 1 April 1842, which contains several passages that are nearly identical to portions of Winchester’s Synopsis and Concordance.

Later in the year, William published some of Winchester’s material over a pseudonym. Winchester continued adapting the material he was writing for his Synopsis and Concordance. As in the Gospel Reflector, Winchester’s main themes were baptism, opposing anti-Mormons, and proving the Book of Mormon with extrinsic evidence. Winchester wrote editorial comments about the works of Josiah Priest and Stevens and Catherwood. Three of these articles appeared in the September and October 1842 Times and Seasons, making an explicit link between the Book of Mormon and Central America. The one published on October 1 even claimed Zarahemla was in Quirigua, Guatemala.

Joseph Smith usually saw the paper when everyone else did—after it was published. He was dismayed by the Oct. 1 issue. He realized that having his name listed as the nominal editor conferred an element of authority on the paper that was unwarranted and risky. He had already been told by others that William’s editorial approach reflected badly on the Church so he decided to remove William as editor of both papers. He, Joseph, would officially resign first and allow William to keep his name on the Wasp for a while longer, although John Taylor would take over both papers immediately.
Joseph faced a dilemma that his resignation alone would not resolve. His critics read every word of the Times and Seasons, looking for opportunities to criticize Joseph and the Church. The paper was struggling financially. If he were to recant the Zarahemla article, his critics would have a field day. The same issue contained the letter that would become D&C 128. If he retracted the Zarahemla article, his critics would say D&C 128 was also false doctrine. He decided to let the article go without comment. It was never cited again or even mentioned (until the 20th Century by LDS scholars who sought to promote a Mesoamerican theory of geography).

Subsequent editorials and news items mentioned both North American and Central American archaeological findings in connection with the Book of Mormon, but this was consistent with what was generally believed. An earlier article in the Times and Seasons had observed that the Aztec people had traditions that contained “Traits of the Mosaic History” which came from migrations from Wisconsin to Mexico. The Wisconsin people, like other Great Lakes tribes, were descendants of Lehi; naturally the accounts of Moses would accompany Israelites wherever they went, even when the stories had been corrupted by Lamanite interpretations.

The only geographic detail that mattered, ultimately, was Cumorah in New York. In 1844, the year Joseph was murdered, a pamphlet in the UK republished Oliver’s letters yet again, including Letter VII. As long as Joseph was alive, everyone knew that Cumorah was in New York.

After Winchester and William Smith were excommunicated, they became persona non grata. Parley P. Pratt instructed Church members to stop buying Winchester’s books. William became President of the Quorum of the Twelve of the Strangites. In that capacity, he wrote a series of articles about the Book of Mormon, placing it in Central America.

Even today, William’s newspaper, the Wasp, is completely ignored at the recreated Printing Shop in Nauvoo. The Community of Christ has historical markers about the Wasp and reprints from its pages, but the LDS sites are silent about it. When I visited Nauvoo in 2015, the missionaries working in the printing shop had never even heard of the Wasp.

Despite his prominence in Nauvoo in 1841-1844—Winchester was President of the Nauvoo Literary Society in 1844—Winchester has largely vanished from Church history. Few LDS even know his name now. William Smith, too, has largely been ignored.

Once the Saints moved to Utah, the question of Book of Mormon geography was mostly ignored, except by Orson Pratt. Pratt did not adhere to the Zarahemla in Quirigua theory, however; he advocated a hemispheric model that put Zarahemla in South America near the Magdalena River.
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Later, in the 1920s, scholars in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proposed that the Book of Mormon took place in a “limited geography” much smaller than the hemispheric model. They settled on Central America. LDS scholars began adopting these ideas.

A dilemma arose. If Cumorah was in New York, how could all the rest of the Book of Mormon take place in Central America? The short answer: it couldn’t. This led to the development of the two-Cumorah theory; i.e., the New York Cumorah is only the place where Moroni buried the one set of plates in the stone and cement box. The “real” Cumorah—the site of the final battles of the Nephites and Lamanites—was located in Central America.

Joseph Fielding Smith, Church Historian and member of the Quorum of the Twelve, recognized that this “two-Cumorah” theory would cause members of the Church to become confused and disturbed in their faith in the Book of Mormon. He denounced the theory. However, LDS scholars ignored him and continued developing the idea. When he was President of the Quorum of the Twelve in the 1950s, President Smith reiterated his warning about the two-Cumorah theory. Again, he was ignored by LDS scholars.

By the 1980s, the two-Cumorah Mesoamerican theory had become so widely accepted that it appeared in the Ensign magazine. Artwork based on the Mesoamerican theory became ubiquitous in Church meeting houses, magazines, media, manuals, and web pages.

Letter VII was ignored by the scholars. A symposium at BYU on the life of Oliver Cowdery included a section on Oliver’s letters, but did not mention Oliver’s observation about Cumorah. Letter VII cannot be found on lds.org except in one footnote in an article about Moroni’s message to Joseph Smith. It is included in the Joseph Smith Papers because it was included in Joseph’s journal, but it is without comment.

LDS scholarly publications have published dozens of articles promoting the Mesoamerican theory. The prevailing consensus about Cumorah was expressed in a book titled Mormon’s Codex, published by Deseret Book and the Neal A. Maxwell Institute at BYU. There, the author, John L. Sorenson, wrote, “There remain Latter-day Saints who insist that the final destruction of the Nephites took place in New York, but any such idea is manifestly absurd.”

In other words, modern LDS scholars think Oliver Cowdery’s Letter VII is “manifestly absurd.”
LDS scholars have highly praised Mormon’s Codex. Terryl Givens wrote the Foreword, saying “So influential has Sorenson’s work on the Book of Mormon geography been that there is widespread consensus among believing scholarsin support of what is now called the ‘Sorenson model,’ which identifies the scripture’s setting within a Mesoamerican locale.” (emphasis added)
If it is not already evident to readers of my blogs, I completely disagree with the LDS scholars who endorse the Mesoamerican theory. To paraphrase Mormon’s Codex, I think the Mesoamerican model is manifestly absurd. I realize that sounds harsh to those who believe in the Mesoamerican model, but Mormon’s Codex sounds harsh to those of us who accept Letter VII.

In my view, there are only two approaches to Book of Mormon geography. You can accept Letter VII and believe the Hill Cumorah is in New York. Or you can reject Letter VII and put Cumorah somewhere else.

Where else doesn’t really matter.

Whether you concoct an abstract map, or put Cumorah in Mesoamerica, Peru, Baja, or Eritrea, you’re rejecting Letter VII.

For me, it’s an easy choice. Everything fits when you put the Cumorah pin in the map of New York.
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Why I wrote about all of this.

People ask me why I’ve spent so much time working on these issues and writing about them. The short answer: because I think Book of Mormon historicity is an increasingly important and critical issue.

As I mentioned at the outset, there is a train of thought that people should accept the Book of Mormon on faith; i.e., they should respond to the Spirit that bears witness as they read the book. That seems axiomatic to me; of course people should respond in this way. So I have no problem with this train of thought—but this should not be the only train allowed on the track.

Using the train analogy, let’s say there is a track leading to God. One train carries people who have faith. They believe based on what they’ve been taught, on what they’ve read, on what they feel. All good. (For that matter, people of other religions also exercise faith that brings them to God, but that’s a topic for another blog.)

But more than one train can travel on a track, and the scriptures directly tell us that not everyone has this kind of faith. “And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yeah, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith (D&C 109:7). Faith is a gift of the Spirit, and everyone has different gifts.
As I read the promise in Moroni 10, it doesn’t apply exclusively to those who have a gift of faith to believe on words only. In verse 1, Moroni says he writes to his brethren, the Lamanites. IOW, the Lamanites are real, identifiable people. Then he gives a specific date: “more than four hundred and twenty years have passed away since the sign was given of the coming of Christ.” Then he says he will “seal up these records,” showing they are real, tangible items. Then he tells his readers to “ponder in your hearts” the things you have read. Think about them. Then pray. The Holy Ghost will “manifest the truth of it unto you.”

Does this promise apply only to those on the faith train? I don’t think so. I think the Holy Ghost can manifest the truth of things through physical, extrinsic evidence as well.

In my view, this is the point Moroni makes starting in verse 8, when he emphasizes that “there are different ways that these gifts are administered.” Some have a gift to teach the word of wisdom, others the word of knowledge. That invokes D&C 109, where some don’t have faith so they can learn words of wisdom out of the best books.

Here’s where the issue of historicity seems to step on toes. I fully agree with Joseph Fielding Smith that the two-Cumorah theory causes members to become confused and disturbed in their faith. First, the two-Cumorah theory undermines the credibility and reliability of Oliver Cowdery, one of the three witnesses. According to LDS scholars, members should have complete confidence in Oliver as one of the Three Witnesses, but shouldn’t have confidence in him as the author of Letter VII. In other words, they ask you to believe what Oliver said about the restoration of the Priesthood, but they also ask you not to believe what he said about the repository in the Hill Cumorah in New York.

I find this irrational and confusing.

For decades, scholars have skirted the issue by avoiding Letter VII and discounting the repository as a “visionary” experience. But anti-Mormon web sites, easily accessible to anyone interested, hardly ignore Letter VII. People who search the Internet discover Letter VII and the disconnect with the current “widespread consensus among believing scholars.” 

Furthermore, it only exacerbates the problem when LDS scholars disagree with Joseph Fielding Smith. Now LDS students are supposed to follow the Prophet, but only if he agrees with the scholars. To me, that is completely backwards.

I won’t belabor the point. I commonly hear from people who were taught the Mesoamerican idea in Seminary, Institute, or Church schools (especially BYU), but who never believed it. That’s anecdotal, but what isn’t anecdotal is the number of people who leave the Church (or cease activity). Because the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion, false teachings about the book undermine faith. It’s that simple. When a student doesn’t believe what his/her religious teachers say about one topic, what impact does that have on other things the teachers say?

Let’s be clear: I think the Mesoamerican theory is false, and CES teachers should abandon it as soon as possible. I think everyone who has promoted the Mesoamerican theory ought to reject it publicly and reaffirm the credibility and reliability of Oliver Cowdery.

I know that’s a lot to ask. And as I’ve said, I’m fine with people having different ideas. I’m fine with agreeing to disagree about things.

What I’m not fine with is suppressing important information.

I think every member of the Church should read Letter VII and make a decision about whether to accept it or not.

Here’s another reason why I wrote this blog. For too long, I accepted and somewhat promoted the Mesoamerican theory. I taught it on my mission when I used Church-approved media. I taught it in my family and in Church, again using Church-approved media materials.

This blog is my repentance.
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History of the blog and responses.
My first post was an analysis of a list of 37 reasons why North America could not be the setting for the Book of Mormon. It was purportedly written by BYU Professor John L. Sorenson, a prominent advocate of the Mesoamerican theory of Book of Mormon geography. As I wrote in the post, I am skeptical of that he actually wrote the list, but it was a good starting point for my analysis.
Next I assessed some of the scholarly articles and books written by other proponents of the Mesoamerican theory. To me, the material contained some good points but also logical and factual errors accompanied by a strident, adversarial tone. I was curious where the theory originated. Some investigation into Church history led me to Benjamin Winchester, and the rest you already read in the first section.

What about the response?

I’m not going to name any individuals. I’ll just say that, generally, Church historians have been interested n the Church history elements of what I’ve written. They want to get things right. Some have told me I have a heavy burden to overcome because the tradition is so firmly established, and I’ve found that to be true. But eventually the right thing happens, and I’m hopeful the historians will further develop the things I’ve found.

Almost without exception, the Church historians want me to separate history issues from Book of Mormon geography issues.

For some of those who have written about Book of Mormon geography, it’s a different story.

[Trigger warning: if you are a Mesoamerican advocate or a contributor to the Interpreter, you should stop reading now.]

Anyone who has been reading this blog knows that while I like and respect LDS scholars as individuals, I don’t have high regard for most LDS scholarly publications. I say that because of their monolithic support and promotion of what I consider a false idea about Book of Mormon geography. Not only have the refused to publish alternative perspectives and ideas, but they have actively attacked alternatives. That leads me to think there are other fields that are equally problematic.

I have sought input and feedback from prominent LDS scholars who have written about Book of Mormon geography issues. I have given out pre-release versions of my books. But the first and only feedback I have received has been highly critical articles in the pages of the Interpreter. Not only that, but the Interpreter has refused to publish my responses. I’ve had people who read my books ask me about the Interpreter articles. When I explain that I have responded in detail, they are surprised because you would never know from the pages of the Interpreterthat there is another perspective, let alone that I have responses to the criticism.

I’m not the only one who has had similar experiences with the Interpreter.

Overall, because of its monolithic viewpoint advocacy I don’t consider the Interpreter a legitimate academic publication. It publishes enough good material to give it an appearance of scholarly, objective and rigorous academic standards, but in some areas I think it reflects poorly on LDS scholarship. It is a continuation of the worst of FARMS. I wouldn’t care except that there is a perception among many LDS readers that because the Executive Board, the Board of Editors and the Contributing Editors include BYU professors, there is a quasi-official imprimatur of credibility behind it. I’m hoping things will change at the Interpreter, but at this point, the only optimism I can summon for it is that other people, too, recognize the confirmation bias approach it takes.

That said, I think it is possible that LDS scholars will eventually take another look at these issues. I hope they do.

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In the meantime, thanks to everyone interested in these topics. Keep studying, thinking (pondering), teaching one another, and praying. Eventually we will all know the truth, and the truth will make us free.

Source: Book of Mormon Wars

Uncategorized

State level society and the Book of Mormon

De Soto discovers the Mississippi
The other day I read an insightful article that contrasted state level society with tribal society. This is a helpful analysis and offers the potential to help reach consensus about Book of Mormon geography. However, the article made a couple of mistakes that cause confusion.

The basic thesis of the article follows this logic:

1. Societies progress over time, starting with a tribal society and progressing into a state-level society.
2. These levels of society can be demonstrated by archaeological evidence.
3. The Book of Mormon describes state-level society, with some regression into tribal society described in 3 Nephi.
4. Archaeological evidence shows tribal societies in North America and state-level societies in Mesoamerica.
5. Therefore, the Book of Mormon must have taken place in Mesoamerica.

It seems to me the article misreads Book of Mormon history and also ignores archaeological evidence from North America that contradicts its conclusion.

1. The Book of Mormon describes mostly tribal or chiefdom societies, except for an interlude of a Nephite state-level society from about 84 B.C. to about 30 A.D. This state-level society was constantly weakened by wars and iniquity. The Lamanite adversaries (much larger tribal or chiefdom societies) were obsessed with destroying Nephite society and accomplished their goals in around 385 A.D. Consequently, according to the text, we should be looking for an area where tribal societies dominated, with little if any evidence of the state-level society surviving the wars and catastrophes.

2. Archaeology shows monumental architecture in North America–sophisticated and massive mound structures–that survived from the Nephite era to the present day and match the descriptions in the text. It doesn’t show evidence of writing, abstract thinking (apart from geometry and astronomy), sophisticated art, etc., all of which would be targets of Lamanite destruction.

3. Archaeology also shows extensive stonework, temples, and engravings on monuments in Mesoamerica–indicia of widespread state-level societies–that are never mentioned in the text.

As a result, consideration of tribal, chiefdom, and state-level societies helps to understand how the North American setting fits the text.
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Here are some of my thoughts that I submit for consideration. In my view, the state vs tribal analysis supports the North American setting.

The basic premise of the article is that there is archaeological evidence of state-level society in Mesoamerica but no evidence of state-level society in North America.

The article cites a paper by David Ronfeldt titled “In Search of How Societies Work.” That paper is based on a theory of social evolution. “This paper is the latest in a string of efforts to develop a theoretical framework about social evolution, based on how people and their societies use four major forms of organization: tribes, hierarchical institutions, markets, and networks.”

The article includes two lists, one of characteristics of state-level society, the other of tribal society, each accompanied by scriptural citations to the Book of Mormon. There is a photo of Hopewell artifacts, which the article claims was “diagnostically characteristic of tribalism.” This is followed by a photo of Mayan hieroglyphs from Palenque, accompanied by the observation that “classic lowland Maya society achieved state level.”

The article concludes, “State level societies leave unmistakable traces that scientists recognize. No North American culture known to science achieved state level society during Book of Mormon times. Several Mesoamerican cultures achieved state level societies during Book of Mormon times. John L. Sorenson succinctly summed up the situation: “Only one area in ancient America had cities and books: Mesoamerica.” Mormon’s Codex p. 21.”

Before introducing the list of tribal characteristics, all drawn from 3 Nephi, the article observes that “The Book of Mormon unequivocally describes state level society, as well as the precise moment when complex Nephite government degenerated into tribalism 3 Nephi 7:2-4.”

The Ronfeldt article discusses such regression.

“THE ULTIMATE FALLBACK FORM

“The tribal form remains not only an essential basis for the functioning of complex
societies but also the natural fallback option if the other TIMN forms falter or fail. Then
it again becomes the primal form of organization and behavior. People revert to it as a
sensible way to regroup and protect themselves under dire conditions—perhaps to start
rebuilding a society, or just to regress into a violent, recidivist rage against outsiders.”

Book of Mormon history starts with a tribe (Lehi’s family) leaving a state (Jerusalem) that faced imminent destruction. Once in the Promised Land, Lehi’s tribe divides into smaller tribes. The text implies that indigenous peoples are incorporated into Nephite and Lamanite society; at no time do the Nephites adopt an indigenous culture (but the Lamanites may have). Instead, the Nephites observe the law of Moses strictly. Nephite society becomes more sophisticated, while Lamanite society remains more primitive or tribal.

The article observes that “One word commonly associated with tribal societies is “tradition.” One word commonly associated with state level societies is “command.” Nephite writers often associated Lamanites with traditions as in Mosiah 1:5, Alma 9:16, and Helaman 15:4. Nephite writers often associated Nephites and deity with commands as in Alma 5:61, Helaman 14:9 and 3 Nephi 23:13. Another word commonly associated with tribal societies is “identity.” A word commonly associated with state level societies is ‘institution.'”

This all makes sense. Essentially, Lamanites were tribal; Nephites had a state-level society (for about 150 years, albeit severely disrupted by warfare and internal disruption, until the destruction in 3 Nephi; it’s not clear what kind of society they had after that).

The Book of Mormon text emphasizes throughout that the Lamanites were far larger in population and, ultimately, destroyed the Nephite society. (Nephite society was also smaller than the larger society of Zarahemla, which exhibited none of the characteristics of state-level society; i.e., no writing, no cities, no organized religion, etc.) Consequently, throughout the Book of Mormon, tribal societies dominated in terms of population and territory. To find the setting for the Book of Mormon, we need to find a place where there is relatively little evidence of state-level society. Plus, any evidence of a state-level society would have to survive 1) the massive destruction described in 3 Nephi and 2) the determined and aggressive effort by the Lamanites to destroy any vestiges of Nephite society, including written records.

That’s exactly what we find in North America. And, as the article points out, it’s exactly what we don’t find in Mesoamerica.
___________________________

The article itemizes these criteria for state-level society:

Anthropologists use criteria to distinguish tribal societies from more sophisticated civilizations that reach state level. These criteria include:

  • Social stratification. Tribal societies develop a chiefly elite who outrank commoners. State level societies have complex social class hierarchies, each with different access to resources. Alma 51:8, 3 Nephi 6:12.
  • Dense populations. Tribal societies settle extensively across their ecosystems. State level societies support intensive populations. Omni 1:17, Ether 7:11. 
  • Urbanization. Tribal societies build hamlets and villages with occasional towns at particularly favorable sites such as the confluence of two rivers. State level societies build large, well-organized cities and city states. Mosiah 27:6, Helaman 7:22.
  • Food surpluses. Tribal societies subsist on hunting, agriculture, and extractive industries. State level societies produce surplus food that gets re-distributed to urban centers. Alma 1:29, Helaman 6:12.
  • Labor specialization. People in tribal societies tend to work in homogeneous occupations closely tied to nature. State level societies produce artisans Mosiah 11:10, lawyers Alma 10:15, merchants 3 Nephi 6:11, etc. who work in a wide variety of vocations.
  • Centralized government. Tribal societies organize along kinship lines. State level societies develop formal ruling institutions Alma 11:2 where shared ideologies Mosiah 29:39 allow elites to control power Mosiah 29:2.
  • Controlled trade. Tribal societies engage in long-distance trade of exotic goods. In state level societies, elites control trading networks to maximize their wealth Ether 10:22.
  • Public works. Tribal societies erect stones and heap up dirt. State level societies build monumental architecture such as palaces Mosiah 11:9, pyramids Mosiah 11:12, temples Alma 16:3, roads 3 Nephi 6:8, markets Helaman 7:10, etc.
  • Written records. Tribal societies communicate verbally and with ideograms. State level societies use writing systems Mosiah 28:11, develop widespread literacy Alma 46:19, and maintain record archives Jarom 1:14, Helaman 3:15.
  • Symbolic art. Tribal societies produce naturalistic art. State level societies portray symbol complexes representing abstract or theological ideas 1 Nephi 11:7-11, Alma 32:28.
  • Intellectual disciplines. Tribal societies orally transmit traditional wisdom. State level societies develop organized branches of knowledge such as biology Alma 46:40, physics Helaman 12:15, mathematics Alma 11:5-19, etc.
  • Standing armies. Tribal societies muster attackers or defenders based on perceived vulnerabilities or threats. State level societies maintain a professional military apparatus Alma 2:13, Alma 62:43.
  • Organized religion. Tribal societies have shamans, councils, and localized rituals. State level societies develop a priestly class overseeing religious institutions Mosiah 25:21-23, Alma 6:1.

I didn’t see a citation for these criteria, but the distinction between state-level and tribal societies is not binary. The sharp distinction implied by the article obscures the fluid reality of social development.

Ronfeldt notes an intermediate transitional stage of chiefdom. “Many anthropologists view the chiefdom as a distinct type of society that lies between the tribe and the early state. But in the TIMN framework, the chiefdom is a transition in which the tribal form is suffused and combined with the hierarchical form, yet the hierarchical form is still far from taking hold…. Chiefdoms could undertake activities that tribes could not, such as building public works and monuments, making larger weapon systems (e.g., long canoes), storing part of a harvest in a central granary, collecting tributes and taxes, organizing large ceremonies, arranging trade deals with outsiders, forming up for war, and making treaties. And as chiefdoms did so, the tribal propensity for egalitarian reciprocity gave way to a new
emphasis on inegalitarian redistribution; indeed, the shift from reciprocity to redistribution is a key theme in the literature on chiefdoms.”

Furthermore, Ronfeldt observes that “the most vigorous debates I have encountered concern the transition from tribes, to chiefdoms, to states. The major explanatory factors that scholars repeatedly posit for this transition are increases in population, in economic production, in local and long distance
trade, in warfare and conquest, and in social stratification. All these increases generate impulses and opportunities for central coordination and control, and thus for the emergence of specialized administrative and bureaucratic hierarchies—i.e., for the rise of the +I form.”

Chiefdom seems an apt description of Nephite society, although the Nephites used a system of elected judges instead of chiefs. “Secular and sacred roles also remained fused in this phase,” Ronfeldt explains. When Alma resigned the judgment seat (Alma 4:16-18), this may have marked a turn toward a state-level society. But it didn’t last long. Alma resigned about 84 BC. By 73 BC. Amalickiah sought to be king (or chief), with considerable support. The conflict between king-men and freemen reflects the difficult transition from chiefdom to state-level societies. The wars, the Gadiantons, and other problems caused continual turmoil. It wasn’t until around 30 B.C. that the people began to prosper, but the prosperity was short-lived.

I won’t take the time to go through each criteria, but one example shows how well the criteria match the text and the ancient North American cultures.

Let’s say tribal societies “erect stones and heap up dirt,” while state level societies “build monumental architecture.” Where do we find a society that erects stones? Not in North America–and not in the Book of Mormon. Mesoamerican societies are characterized by erected stones.

Where do we find societies that “heap up dirt?” In Alma 2:38, bones are “heaped up on the earth.” In Alma 16:11, “their dead bodies were heaped up upon the face of the earth and they were covered with a shallow covering.” In Alma 28:11, “the bodies of many thousands are moldering in heaps upon the face of the earth.” General Moroni caused that his armies “should commence in digging up heaps of earth round about all the cities.” All of these heaps are common in North America.

In addition, General Moroni’s army “had cast up dirt round about to shield them from the arrows and the stones of the Lamanites.” (Alma 49:2). “They cast up dirt out of the ditch against the breastwork of timbers.” (Alma 53:4). This is such an apt description of Hopewell fortifications that the Book of Mormon has been accused of relating commonly known aspects of moundbuilder culture.

What about monumental architecture?

“Monumental architecture, to archaeologists anyway, refers to large man-made structures of stone or earth. These generally are used as public buildings or spaces, such as pyramids, large tombs, large mounds (but not single burials), plazas, platform mounds, temples, standing stones, and the like. The defining characteristic of monumental architecture is typically its public nature–the fact that the structure or space was built by lots of people for lots of people to look at or share in the use of, whether the labor was coerced or consensual.”

The largest geometric earthwork complex in the world is in Newark, Ohio. “Enormous enclosures connected by walled roadways were spread across more than four square miles. This was the most spectacular of many such earthworks, concentrated along the tributaries of the Ohio River, marking the people’s beliefs, rituals, and sense of community.”

“In 1982, professors Ray Hively and Robert Horn of Earlham College in Indiana discovered that the Hopewell builders aligned these earthworks to the complicated cycle of risings and settings of the moon. They recovered a remarkable wealth of indigenous knowledge relating to geometry and astronomy encoded in the design of these earthworks. The Octagon Earthworks, in particular, are aligned to the four moonrises and four moonsets that mark the limits of a complicated 18.6-year-long cycle.”

By any definition, these earthworks are monumental in scale and sophistication.

The scriptural citations in the article regarding a state-level society are important. The palace referred to in Mosiah 11:9 was made of wood: “And he also built him a spacious palace, and a throne in the midst thereof, all of which was of fine wood and was ornamented with gold and silver and with precious things.” The Book of Mormon never describes the use of stone for constructing buildings. Stone was used as a weapon and, in one occasion, to build walls. Instead, people used wood for construction (and in a particular case, cement). To find a setting for the Book of Mormon, we need to look for a culture that used wood, not stone, for construction.

The pyramids referred to in Mosiah 11:12 don’t show up in my version of the text. That verse refers to a high tower built near the temple. My search engine doesn’t find the term “pyramid” anywhere in the text. Consequently, we would not expect to find pyramids in an area where the Book of Mormon took place.

Temples are mentioned in many place in the text. Alma 16:13 explains that temples, sanctuaries and synagogues were built after the manner of the Jews. The Jews never built pyramids.

Roads are a good indicator of advanced civilization. 3 Nephi 6:8 explains “And there were many highways cast up, and many roads made, which led from city to city, and from land to land, and from place to place.” How many of these highways survived the destruction is unclear. Samuel prophesied that “many highways shall be broken up, and many cities shall become desolate.” (Hel. 14:24). And, in fact, “the highways were broken up, and the level roads were spoiled, and many smooth places became rough.” (3 Ne. 8:13).

Helaman 7:10 is the only reference to a market in the entire text. This was the “chief market” in the city of Zarahemla. We infer there were other markets because this was the “chief” one, and because “there were many merchants in the land,” (3 Ne. 6:11), but of course even tribal societies have extensive trade networks, which requires some form of market and merchant. Chiefdoms would have more sophisticated trade systems.

_______________________________

Let’s get back to the basic premise of the article; i.e., that there is archaeological evidence of state-level society in Mesoamerica but no evidence of state-level society in North America.

This is really a question of expectations vs. reality.

If we accept what the Book of Mormon text says, we have a large population of tribal-level people (Lamanites throughout, people of Zarahemla for hundreds of years) contrasted with a small population (the Nephites) that achieves a chiefdom/state-level society for about 130 years (following Mosiah’s discovery of the people of Zarahemla).

The state-level society survives a devastating war to prosper for a few years before the government is overtaken by Gadianton robbers. Once the robbers are defeated, old cities were repaired and roads built. But soon the government collapses and the people divide into tribes. Then the destruction in 3 Nephi 8 occurs. “Many great and notable cities were sunk, and many were burned, and many were shaken till the buildings thereof had fallen to the earth… and there were some cities which remained, but the damage thereof was exceedingly great.”

Assuming there was evidence of state-level society that survived the wars and tribalism, what evidence would have survived this destruction? The scripture says the destruction was intended in part to hide the abominations of the people, which implies obliteration of the society, including its art and culture.

4 Nephi 1:7-8 explains that the Nephites rebuilt the burned cities (another indication that they used wood, not stone, for construction), but not the cities that were sunk. After a period of peace during which little is known about the form of government, the society returned to tribalism (verses 36-7). Wickedness prevailed, to the point that Ammaron hid up the sacred records.

Society continued to degenerate to the point that Mormon says “it was one complete revolution throughout all the face of the land.” (Mormon 2:8). Mormon was unable to describe “the horrible scene of the blood and carnage which was among the people.” Towns, villages and cities were again burned throughout the land. Implements of war are the only man-made objects mentioned in the text.

Throughout the text, from Enos until Mormon, the Lamanites sought to destroy the records. That’s why Mormon hid them in the hill Cumorah (Morm. 6:6).

Finally, of course, the tribal Lamanites prevailed. Nephite culture, to the extent it was state-level at all, was annihilated.

In summary, the Book of Mormon describes a minority population that achieved what could be deemed a state-level society for about 150 years that was characterized by intense warfare and conflict. Even after the wars, the Nephite society was destroyed three times; first by the Gadianton robbers, second by the destruction preceding Christ’s appearance, and third by the final wars with the Lamanites.

What aspects of this brief state-level society could be expected to endure these repeated devastations?

The cities, towns, and villages were burned by the Lamanites, who were determined to wipe out every aspect of Nephite culture possible, including writing. The one thing the Lamanites would be unable (in a practical sense) to destroy was earthworks. These don’t burn and they’re difficult to destroy.

And that’s what we find in North America.

The Book of Mormon does not describe an enduring state-level society. It explicitly rejects the idea of a preserved written history, in stone or otherwise. Archaeological evidence of an enduring state-level society would contradict the text.

Source: Book of Mormon Concensus

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Make CUMORAH Great Again

Look at how far we’ve come regarding the Hill Cumorah in New York.

When Joseph Smith’s was alive:

1835 Messenger and Advocate and Joseph Smith’s own journal: It is a fact that the Hill Cumorah is in New York. [See Letter VII]

1841: Times and Seasons and Gospel Reflector: It is a fact that the Hill Cumorah is in New York. [See Letter VII]

1842:  D&C 128:20 And again, what do we hear? Glad tidings from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfilment of the prophets—the book to be revealed.

Modern day scholars:

FairMormon: “Since the 1950s, opinion among Book of Mormon scholars has increasingly trended toward the realization that the Nephite Cumorah and the Hill in New York cannot be the same.”

Neal A. Maxwell Institute: “the Cumorah of the golden plates is not the Cumorah of the final battles…This is not the place of Mormon’s last stand. We must look elsewhere for that hill.” BYU Professor John E. Clark, in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies.

BYU Studies: The hill Ramah/Cumorah, upon which both the Jaredites and Nephites fought their last battles… is shown here on the northwestern edge of the Tuxtla Mountains in Mexico.

Consequences:

Because most modern LDS scholars “realize” Cumorah cannot be in New York, tens of thousands of people visit the Hill Cumorah in New York every year to witness a recreation of a Mayan temple on the site. Here’s how it appears in Google Earth.

Attendees at the pageant are taught that Mormon buried the records in Cumorah, but then Moroni wandered for years before the Lord directed him to the hill in New York.

For those who don’t reject Oliver Cowdery’s observations about Cumorah, I propose that we make Cumorah great again.

_________________________

Excerpts from Letter VII:

The Hill Cumorah was “[Cumorah] is the highest hill for some distance round…At about one mile west rises another ridge of less height, running parallel with the former, leaving a beautiful vale between… the fact, that here, between these hills, the entire power and national strength of both the Jaredites and Nephites were destroyed…. In this valley fell the remaining strength and pride of a once powerful people, the Nephites—once so highly favored of the Lord, but at that time in darkness, doomed to suffer extermination by the hand of their barbarous and uncivilized brethren. From the top of this hill, Mormon, with a few others, after the battle, gazed with horror upon the mangled remains of those who, the day before, were filled with anxiety, hope, or doubt… [Mormon] deposited, as he says, on the 529th page, all the records in this same hill, Cumorah.

Source: Book of Mormon Wars

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Wonderful artwork

KnoWhy #144 reminded me of the wonderful artwork by Walter Rane. There’s an online exhibit here:

https://history.lds.org/exhibit/scenes-from-the-land-of-promise-book-of-mormon-paintings-by-walter-rane?lang=eng#promise

I like Rane’s style overall, but more importantly, Rane’s work helps to facilitate a consensus about Book of Mormon geography because it is not so specifically set in Mesoamerica as most of the other artwork on lds.org. Rane’s work will have enduring relevance and usefulness as a result.

His painting of Enos is one of my favorites, along with Ether’s Cavity and King Benjamin’s address (although that one still has an anachronistic pagan Mayan temple in the background, it is fairly well obscured).

Source: Book of Mormon Concensus

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New introduction to Letter VII book

In response to reader feedback, I often make changes and adjustments to my books. (My publisher updates the printing notice each time. The Letter VII book is currently in its fourth printing, with the date June 7, 2016.) By convention, a new edition contains about 20% new or different material, so the only way to tell what version you have is by the printing date.

Usually I update the Kindle version, which I’m told updates the file whenever you sync it. [BTW, the Kindle version is free if you buy the paperback from Amazon.]

The readable version on Book of Mormon Central, here, is an early edition.

I mention this because I thought I’d post important updates on this blog for those who may have an earlier version of the book.

Here’s the latest addition that appears on the dedication page:

Note to Readers:
If you’ve never heard of Letter VII, you’re not alone.
In Joseph Smith’s day, members of the Church knew Letter VII because it was republished several times. It was included in Joseph Smith’s own journal as part of his life story.  He referenced it in D&C 128.
In our day—2016—few Latter-day Saints have even heard of Letter VII. Fewer still have read it.
But that is changing.
We think Letter VII is an important, faith-sustaining explanation of one of the critical issues of our day. In it, Oliver Cowdery unequivocally declaresthat the Hill Cumorah—the scene of the final battles of the Jaredites and the Nephites—was in western New York.

Read Letter VII for yourself and see what you think.

Source: Letter VII

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The room in Cumorah – why it’s important

The valley west of the Hill Cumorah in New York

My previous post about the room in the Hill Cumorah focused on Brigham Young’s comments. He said Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery visited a room in the Hill Cumorah that contained numerous records on metal plates and other artifacts. They visited on multiple occasions.

The reason this is important for Letter VII is that if, in fact, Joseph and Oliver (and others) visited a room in the Hill Cumorah that contained the multitude of plates from which Mormon compiled our Book of Mormon, then that corroborates (I would say proves, but proof is in the eye of the beholder) what Oliver wrote in Letter VII.

The existence of the storage room in the New York hill is far more significant than the stone box in which Moroni hid the plates for Joseph to find. It’s one thing for a solitary Moroni to haul plates to New York from somewhere else on the continent (or from another continent). It’s another thing altogether for that same solitary Moroni (or for his father Mormon) to haul wagon loads of plates and other artifacts from somewhere else on the continent, just to store them in the New York hill.

To put it another way, if the room where Mormon hid all the Nephite records (wagon loads of them) was in New York, then Oliver Cowdery had good reason to write that it was a fact that the final battles also took place there–even if he didn’t receive a specific revelation to that effect. And, in that case, Joseph Smith had good reason for endorsing and incorporating Oliver’s account.

I think most readers of the Book of Mormon would agree with that statement. What do you think?

_________________________

Commentator Rory offered this citation to Cameron Packer’s excellent article on the topic that includes nine additional references to the room of records:

http://publications.mi.byu.edu/publications/jbms/13/1/S00006-50be6ae14ef1b5Packer.pdf

Here is the Abstract:

The significance of the Hill Cumorah in the restoration of the gospel goes beyond its identification as the ancient repository of the metal plates known as the Book of Mormon. In the second half of the 19th century, a teaching about a cave in the hill began surfacing in the writings of several leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In their view, the hill was not only the place where Joseph Smith received the plates but also their final repository, along with other sacred treasures, after the translation was finished. This article cites ten different accounts, all secondhand, that refer to this cave and what was found there. The author includes a comparison of the accounts that discusses additional records in the cave, God’s dominion over Earth’s treasure, miraculous dealings of God, and the significance of the presence of the sword of Laban.

_____________________

Brigham Young made the point that Oliver didn’t talk about this in public. He also mentioned Hyrum and Don Carlos as having seen the room. The other accounts have Hyrum telling Phelps about it, and so forth. You can read them at the above link.

Some LDS authors have speculated that this was a visionary experience. Yet the accounts refer to multiple visits by multiple people, including Joseph, Oliver, Hyrum, Don Carlos, and David Whitmer.

The two rationales I’ve seen for explaining these accounts as visionary are 1) such a large room cannot exist in a drumlin such as the Hill Cumorah in New York, and 2) the two-Cumorah theory requires that the room full of records be somewhere else.

I don’t find these rationales persuasive because we know there is a stone-lined room in the Hill Cumorah that fits the description–reality trumps theory in this case–and because the two-Cumorah requirement is a rhetorical concept (a circular argument, really), not a requirement of the text.
_____________________

This is another example of the simplest explanation and reconciliation rules.

We have multiple accounts (albeit hearsay) of Joseph, Oliver, and others entering a room in the New York Hill Cumorah that was full of additional plates and other artifacts. We have an actual room in the Hill that matches the description, although empty of artifacts at this point. We have Oliver writing that the final battles of the Nephites took place in the valley west of the New York Hill Cumorah. We have Joseph Smith endorsing Oliver’s account and incorporating it into his own journal. We have multiple reprintings of Oliver’s account while Joseph was alive. We have Joseph alluding to the Hill Cumorah in D&C 128.

The simplest explanation is that the final battles of the Jaredites and Nephites took place in the valley west of the New York Hill Cumorah, just as Oliver wrote. This simple explanation also reconciles all the available evidence.

The two-Cumorah theory requires a series of assumptions. First, that the multiple accounts of Joseph, Oliver, and others entering the room on multiple occasions are all visionary experiences. Second, that it is impossible to have a room in the New York Hill Cumorah. Third, that Oliver was merely speculating about the scene of the final battles, and that when he wrote it was a fact, he was lying or confused or inarticulate. Fourth, when Joseph endorsed and incorporated Oliver’s Letter VII, he, too, was speculating.

I choose the simplest explanation. Others choose the complex explanation. I have no problem with whatever you choose, as readers here, so long as we are all clear on what our choices entail.

In my view, the multiple accounts of multiple people making multiple visits to the room in the New York Hill Cumorah that contained wagon loads of plates and other artifacts effectively corroborate Letter VII. And with Letter VII putting Cumorah in New York, we can work out Book of Mormon geography from there. 

Source: Letter VII

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Repeat Over Again…the Same Things as Before

A question has arisen as to why Letter VII and the other letters written by Oliver Cowdery were reprinted so often. I happened to be reading a devotional address by Elder Bednar and thought it might be an answer.

Here’s an excerpt:

We have learned to treasure the spiritual gems that are revealed through repetition. The distinctive nuggets of inspiration and spiritual knowledge that flow into our minds and hearts as we repeatedly teach and testify of gospel truths are the product of a line upon line and precept upon precept pattern of revelation. Repetition is a vehicle through which the Holy Ghost can enlighten our minds, influence our hearts, and enlarge our understanding.
Have you ever heard a Sunday School teacher introduce the topic for a lesson and thought, “I already know about this subject?” Have you ever heard a speaker in sacrament meeting identify the theme about which he or she will speak and responded, “Not again?” Have you ever wondered, “Why do Church leaders always address the same basic doctrine and principles in general conference?” Have you ever “checked out” mentally and spiritually because you anticipated an episode of repetitious teaching? We all have, of course. And we need to repent for doing so and more fully appreciate the value of repetition as a means of facilitating revelation.

____________

Letter VII was originally published in 1835 in the Messenger and Advocate. Later that year, Joseph Smith had his scribes copy it into his journal as part of his life history. He could have simply referred to the Messenger and Advocate, but he felt it was important to include all the letters, together, as a single narrative.

Orson Pratt quoted from Letter VII in his 1840 pamphlet, Interesting Account of Several Remarkable Visions, which is online here.

Later, when Benjamin Winchester asked for permission to reprint Oliver’s letters, Joseph readily agreed. It wasn’t until March 1841 that Winchester finally published the letters, as a single narrative, in the Gospel Reflector. That made the letter available to the Saints in Philadelphia and the Eastern States. Later, when the issues of the Gospel Reflector were bound, the volume was sold in Nauvoo. Wilford Woodruff purchased a copy for a friend who wanted to know what Mormons believed. The bound copy was, in effect, yet another republication of Letter VII.

Don Carlos Smith was the editor of the Times and Seasons in Nauvoo. Beginning in late 1840, he published portions of the Cowdery letters as well. Letter VII was published on April 15, 1841, making it available to the Saints in Nauvoo and to anyone who subscribed to the newspaper.

The letters were published as a separate pamphlet in Liverpool in 1844. That pamphlet was adapted from Winchester’s Gospel Reflector and is available online here.

I think Letter VII was reprinted so many times because it was so important. Oliver’s history was the most complete history of the early days of the Church until the serialized History of Joseph Smith began running in the Times and Seasons in 1842, but it was also important for people to know that the New York hill was a touchstone for the Book of Mormon. It was a connection between ancient and modern times–a pin in the map.

In fact, had Letter VII been republished after Joseph died, and maintained as prominently as it was when Joseph was alive, alternative theories about Cumorah may never have arisen.

Source: Letter VII

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11 Documents part 3

Stephens’ Incidents of Travel and the Times and Seasons

6. 1841 Bernhisel letter. This is the thank-you note, purportedly from Joseph Smith, to John Bernhisel, who had given a copy of the Stephens’ books to Wilford Woodruff to give to the Prophet. Brother Hedges infers that the letter is in John Taylor’s handwriting, but so far the handwriting remains unidentified. The significance of the letter, based on its content alone, is unclear; it does not link specific sites anywhere in the Americas to the Book of Mormon.

More importantly, I think Wilford Woodruff drafted this letter and had it written out by someone with good penmanship. An entire chapter in The Editors: Joseph, William, and Don Carlos Smith is devoted to this issue. The evidence, in my view, is overwhelming, but we’ll see what others think when the book is released later in June. I don’t think Joseph had anything to do with this letter and never even saw it.

7. May 2, 1842 T&S editorial: “A Catacomb of Mummies Found in Kentucky.” This 231-word editorial accompanies an extract from Josiah Priest’s book American Antiquities. It is signed “ED.” for Editor. Joseph Smith was the nominal editor at the time, which has given rise to a long-held assumption that he wrote, edited, or approved of the editorial. As I’ve shown in Brought to Light, the evidence instead points to other authors, operating under the generic umbrella of the “Ed.” signature. I can find no extrinsic evidence that Joseph Smith wrote, edited, approved of, or even read any of these editorials (this one or the following four). As explained elsewhere, I think William Smith was editing the Times and Seasons, with the assistance of W.W. Phelps. William promoted the Mesoamerican setting even after he was excommunicated.

8. July 15, 1842 T&S editorial: “American Antiquities.” This 249-word editorial accompanies another extract from American Antiquities. Again, it is signed “ED.” for Editor. In Brought to Light, I demonstrate that the quotations in the July 15 editorial comes from the 2d or 3d edition; i.e., the one Benjamin Winchester used elsewhere. (Parley P. Pratt used the 5th Edition.) For the reasons set out in that book, I think Winchester probably wrote this editorial. His friend William Smith would have no problem publishing this editorial, or the ones that followed.

9. Sept. 15, 1842 T&S editorial: “Extract.” This editorial comments on an extended extract from Stephens. It is unsigned (anonymous), but it concludes with the statement “surely the Lord worketh and none can hinder,” an allusion to the masthead of Winchester’s newspaper, the Gospel Reflector. I find it highly unlikely that Joseph Smith would have taken the time to find this long extract from the Stephens book and write this editorial without signing it, let alone without mentioning it in his journal or to any of the people around him (none of whom noted a single incident in which Joseph commented on or even read the Stephens books). Winchester never signed his articles, either when originally published in the Gospel Reflector or when republished in the Times and Seasons.

10. Sept. 15, 1842 T&S editorial: “Facts Are Stubborn Things.” This brief editorial accompanies another brief extract from Stephens. The author would have had to search the Stephens books to find this quotation. The title comes from a famous saying by John Adams. I think Winchester wrote this editorial as well, although Phelps or William Smith could have done it (or edited it).

11. Oct. 1, 1842 T&S editorial: “Zarahemla.” This is the editorial that claims Zarahemla is located in Quirigua. Although the writer equivocates a little, he places a heavy burden of proof onto those who disagree with that setting. It is this preposterous claim that I propose led Joseph Smith–who didn’t see the article until after it was published–to resign as editor and fire William Smith from the Wasp (and the Times and Seasons).

__________________

The bottom line, as this brief outline explains, is that all the documents that can be directly attributed to Joseph Smith describe a North American setting. All those that describe a Central American setting cannot be directly attributed to Joseph Smith; to the contrary, the facts distance them from him.

Source: Letter VII

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11 Documents: part 2

The Plains of the Nephites and the Hill Cumorah

4. 1834 letter to Emma. This is the letter Joseph wrote to Emma during Zion’s Camp. He was on the eastern bank of the Mississippi and explained how the camp, which had just crossed Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, had been “wandering over the plains of the Nephites, recounting occasionaly the history of the Book of Mormon, roving over the mounds of that once beloved people of the Lord, picking up their skulls & their bones, as a proof of its divine authenticity.” We don’t have the original of this letter, but the letter was copied into a letterbook which we do have. Consequently, it is in the handwriting of the scribe.

5. 1835 Letter VII. Everyone who reads this blog by now should know that Oliver Cowdery wrote Letter VII to explain that Cumorah–in New York–was the scene of the final battles. In it, he expounded on “the fact, that here, between these hills, the entire power and national strength of both the Jaredites and Nephites were destroyed.” He leaves no room for conjecture about this. However, as brother Hedges points out, Oliver did not discuss “the extent of Nephite lands or settlement, or where their civilization may have been centered.”

Since 2007, we’ve seen that Letter VII was far more widespread and even ubiquitous during Joseph Smith’s lifetime. It was published in the Messenger and Advocate (1835), copied into Joseph’s journal as part of his life history (1835), quoted in Orson Pratt’s 1840 pamphlet, republished in the Times and Seasons (1841) and the Gospel Reflector (1841), and published in Edinburgh (1844) along with the other seven letters in a special pamphlet. Joseph gave Winchester specific permission to publish Oliver’s letters. I can’t find any uncertainty or speculation about the New York Cumorah until the 1920s, when scholars from the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints first developed the two-Cumorah theory. Joseph Fielding Smith denounced that, “because of this theory some members of the Church have become confused and greatly disturbed in their faith in the Book of Mormon.” Nevertheless, LDS scholars picked up the RLDS theory and now, as of 2016, it is the prevailing theory among scholars, portrayed in Church media (including the Arnold Friberg paintings in the pages of the text itself). The two-Cumorah theory is as ubiquitous today as Letter VII was during Joseph Smith’s day.

Summary: These letters put a pin in the map for the New York Cumorah and, arguably, for the plains of the Nephites (mentioned in several verses) in the Midwest. They are not specific about other locations, however.

Source: Letter VII