SIGN UP FOR CLASSES Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon
FREE
Question: How can you propose
to create a reliable Book of Mormon map when “the face of the whole earth became
deformed” at the death of Christ? (See 3 Nephi 8:17.)
Answer: As great as the
destruction was, it did not alter geographical boundaries. The writers of the
Book of Mormon used the same terms to describe the land after the destruction
as they did before the destruction.
For example, Moroni, who abridged the predestruction
Jaredite record, said that “the army of Coriantumr did pitch their tents by the
hill Ramah; and it was that same hill where my father Mormon did hide up
the records” (Ether 15:11;
emphasis added).
The land southward, land northward,
narrow neck of land, land
of Nephi, and land of Zarahemla are other geographical
locations mentioned both before and after the destruction. Furthermore,
archaeological sites that date back prior to the great destruction demonstrate
evidence of destruction but do not demonstrate evidence of any geographical
change. Finally, the Book of Mormon itself makes it clear that the destruction
did not distort the geography of the land: “And the earth did cleave together
again, that it stood” (3 Nephi 10:10).
In reality, because some cities were
covered with earth or water or otherwise preserved, we are enabled today,
through archaeological research, to gather accurate information that dates to
the time period of the Book of Mormon.
Question: We should not
concern ourselves with Book of Mormon geographical locations because the Lord
will reveal that information when He is ready. Is that not correct?
Answer: Yes, He has and will
continue to reveal such information when He is ready. However, a better
statement may be that He will reveal the additional information to us when we
are ready. He has challenged us to study things out in our minds and ask if
they are right (see D&C 9:8). We suspect that if we follow His counsel, we
will learn many things about the Book of Mormon that we presently do not know.
Question: The above
statements suggest a much more limited geographic area for the historical
setting of the Book of Mormon than has been traditionally proposed. What is the
justification for such a proposal?
Answer: The justification for
this proposal is the essence of the second edition of this text, Exploring
the Lands of the Book of Mormon. To understand the justification, you are
encouraged to read all of this book and then judge for yourself whether
a limited geographic area for the Book of Mormon has validity.
To place the limited geographic area
in perspective at the outset, we propose that most of the events we read about
in the Book of Mormon took place in the geographic area known as Mesoamerica. During much of the time about twenty years
ago while we were initially writing the first version of this text, we intended
to call the resulting book Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon. As you
look at the current title, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon,
and then forge ahead to the other chapters, we suggest you keep in mind that
the New World geographic statements found in the Book of Mormon, from our
perspective, relate almost exclusively to the area known as Mesoamerica.
April 22, 2009
Memo:Chapter 1
Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon
To:Participants of the October 30, 2009 Panama
Cruise – B/M Seminar
Dear Ted and Mary,
Thank you for signing up with
Book of Mormon Tours for the October Panama Canal cruise beginning in San Diego on October 30 and ending at Fort Lauderdale, Florida
on November 13..
If you love the Book of
Mormon, you will love the Seminar at Sea and side excursions to Izapa and
Kaminaljuyu.We will do all we can to
help make this a wonderful travel and educational experience for you.To assist you in your preparation, we will
periodically send out e-mails with summary questions for each chapter in the
book, Exploring the Lands of the Book of
Mormon.
Chapter 1
1.John Lloyd Stephens was a contemporary of the
Prophet Joseph Smith.Stephens wrote a
book about his travels to Guatemala, Chiapas and the Yucatan
beginning in 1839.Regarding the works
of Stephens, Joseph Smith who was editor of the Church’s newspaper wrote:
A.We have no
interest in discussing archaeology and the Book of Mormon
B.It would not be
a bad plan to compare Stephens’ ruined cities with those in the Book of Mormon.
C.It appears that
the Book of Mormon history took place in New
York
D.We encourage
Stephens to examine the ancient ruins of Peru
2.From both internal and external evidence, we
can deduce that the name Mormon in the Maya language has the same meaning as
the word Tehuantepec in the Aztec language, meaning:
A. Jaguar of the Mountains
B.Feathered
Serpent
C.More Good
D.Narrow neck of
land
Note: Hit “reply” and give
your answers.I will write back and tell
you your score.
Discussion question:
When asked about the value of
studying the archaeology and geography of the Book of Mormon, some members of
the Church have questioned the importance of that type of study.Perhaps a better question is, why do you
think Mormon included material on geography, climate, wars, monetary system,
etc., when by his own admission, he could not even write one hundredth part of
the history of his people?
Have a good day!
Joe
P.S.If you have not yet received your
complimentary copy of Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon, it will be
coming soon.
To:Participants of the October 30, 2009 Panama Cruise – B/M Seminar
From: Joseph Allen
1.UTCHI is a Maya (Yucatec) word that when translated to English means:
A.And then it came to pass
B.
In the tops of the mountains
C.
The Promised Land
D.
The Anointed One
2.In Mesoamerica the term CODEX is used
to identify writing on:
A.Gold Plates
B.Stone Monuments
C.Tree bark
D.Animal bones
3.The word CHIASMUS is Greek for the letter:
A.W
B.X
C.Y
D.Z
Discussion question:
Alma 46:39-41 is written in the
literary form of chiasmus and in the style of Hebrew writing called “types and
shadows,”Inasmuch as the stated purpose
of the Book of Mormon is to lead us to Christ, what is the spiritual meaning,
or “type,” that is implied in Alma 46:40?Explain how you arrived at your answer.
ANSWERS TO LAST WEEKS QUESTIONS
(Chapter 1: Introduction to the Lands of the Book of Mormon)
1.John Lloyd Stephens was a contemporary of the Prophet Joseph Smith.Stephens wrote a book about his travels to Guatemala, Chiapas and
the Yucatan
beginning in 1839.Regarding the works
of Stephens, Joseph Smith, who was editor of the Church’s newspaper wrote:
The
answer is B. It would not be a bad plan to compare Stephens’ ruined cities with
those in the Book of Mormon.
2.From both internal and
external evidence, we can deduce that the name Mormon in the Maya language has
the same meaning as the word Tehuantepec in the Aztec language, meaning:
The
answer is A. Jaguar of the Mountains
Discussion Question:
When asked about the value of
studying the archaeology and geography of the Book of Mormon, some members of
the Church have questioned the importance of that type of study.Perhaps a better question is, why do you
think Mormon included material on geography, climate, wars, monetary system,
etc., when by his own admission, he could not even write one hundredth part of
the history of his people?
Jo Talbot writes:Anytime you
write about a people, you have to include material on geography, climate, wars,
monetary systems, etc. as those things are directly influential on the nature
of the people. All of us grow stronger or weaker depending on how we
react to life and the challenges we face. Jo Talbot
