The problems with dna evidence and testing the atlantic. The book of mormon geography and map with dna evidence and the location of lands and cities such as zarahemla, cumorah, the narrow neck, mexico, caribbean sea, american indians, and true evidence are all here. Critics of the lds church recently latched onto dna studies that point to a predominant asiatic origin to the american indians and conclude that the book of mormon cannot be. The fact is proven with final and irrefutable evidence that joseph smith wrote the fictitious tale in the early 19th century and founded the lds church what he falsely claimed was revelation from god. Dna evidence and the book of mormon conclusive proof. Review of books on the book of mormon 19892011 volume 18number 1 article 8 2006 dna and the book of mormon david g. We may ask you to do a dna test if you cannot give us proof of a family relationship, such as a family book or a birth certificate. For those outside the faith, the depth of the churchs dilemma can be explained this way. Scientists theorize that in an era that predated book of. There is generally no direct support amongst mainstream historians and archaeologists for the. The book of mormon, the founding document of the latter day saint movement and one of the four books of scripture of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church, is an account of three groups of people. Book of mormon evidence in american archaeology wayne may. Jan 19, 2016 rod is a friend of mine and a member of my hp group, but he has oversimplified this dna matter, aside from falsely stating 1 that the maya are the center of interest of those who consider the book of mormon to be a mesoamerican codex, and 2 that they focus on the maya because they think that joseph smith did so as well.
Dna science has proven very useful and exact when matching a forensic blood sample to a criminal perpetrator. Nov 26, 2007 dna science has proven very useful and exact when matching a forensic blood sample to a criminal perpetrator. I spoke to them specifically about the x haplogroup that meldrum is using as evidence, and they all cautioned me against using it as evidence. Subtitled another testament of jesus christ, it recounts the story story of an israelite family who immigrated to and fully populated the american continents. However, the book of mormon has been scientifically proven to be false which means joseph smith was a gross liar and received no revelation from god. Genetic and blood testing studies have found that native americans are related closely to the inhabitants of siberia and not to the ancient israelites, as the book of mormon states. If the findings and the conclusions of the research are correct, then the entire mormon belief system is based. Does dna evidence prove the book of mormon to be false.
Whiting, a prominent geneticist whose work has received widespread attention it was featured as the cover story in cover article in nature in midjanuary 2003, recently gave a lecture at byu entitled, does dna evidence refute the authenticity of the book of mormon responding to the critics. While dna evidence shows that ultimately all human populations are rather closely related, to date no intimate genetic link has been found between ancient israelites and the indigenous peoples of the americasmuch less within the time frame suggested by the book of mormon. Dna vs book of mormon incredible new evidence general. Using both the 1st edition and the current edition of the book of mormon to compare against known discoveries. In other words, native americans whose ancestors include book of mormon peoples may not be able to confirm that relationship using their dna. Antimormons would have you believe that the dna evidence that disproves the book of mormon is just as certain. Today we will talk about some common criticisms of the book of mormon around archaeological evidence that some say proves or disproves the truthfulness of the book of mormon. A trailer for his amazing 5disc documentary discussing the various physical and spiritual evidence that the nephites. Book of mormon evidence 5 audio cd series book of mormon. The book of mormon geography lands and map with dna evidence.
Two of the most prevalent claims for the book of mormon are, there is much archaeological proof to the book of mormon, and the american indians are descendants of israelites who came to america as described in the book of mormon. Wayne may presents the supporting evidence for the heartland model, that the book of mormon nephites and jaredites lived in north america. However, this attack ignores several key points, among which is the fact that the book of mormon states that lehi and his family are clearly not jews. Genetic attacks on the book of mormon focus on the fact that amerindian dna seems closest to asian dna, and not dna from the middle east or jewish dna. How can mormons say that the american indians descend from. Nothing is known about the extent of intermarriage and genetic mixing between book of mormon peoples or their descendants and other inhabitants of the americas, though some mixing appears evident, even during the period covered by the books text. Rod is a friend of mine and a member of my hp group, but he has oversimplified this dna matter, aside from falsely stating 1 that the maya are the center of interest of those who consider the book of mormon to be a mesoamerican codex, and 2 that they focus on the maya because they think that joseph smith did so as well. Murphy, 35, is chairperson of the anthropology department at edmonds community college in lynnwood, wa. Devout mormon, daniel peterson, a professor of asian and near eastern languages at brigham young university, said.
Dna and the book of mormon explained fulllength video. I have produced a video on dna and the book of mormon called the book of mormon and new world dna, and interviewed and spoke with many lds geneticists. New discoveries in dna research currently allow scientists to test this historical claim. In the book of mormon, the book of nephi tells the story of a hebrew family that flees the city of jerusalem around 600 b. Whiting, a prominent geneticist whose work has received widespread attention it was featured as the cover story in cover article in nature in midjanuary 2003, recently gave a lecture at byu entitled, does dna evidence refute the authenticity of the book of mormon. The evidence assembled to date suggests that the majority of native americans carry largely asian dna. Anyone who disagrees with the content of this video, didnt watch it. Nonmormon archaeologists speak on book of mormon evidence. In fact, several mormon organizations have been founded in order to prove. Dna and the book of mormon brigham young university.
Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon. Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon by rich deem introduction. If the findings and the conclusions of the research are correct, then the entire mormon belief system is based on a lie. The book of mormon claims that the native american peoples are descended from the house of israel, but the dna evidence, according to this book, points to an asiatic origin for the american continents native people. Attacks on the validity of the book of mormon using dna data support for the book of mormon by mormon academics. Respected dna scientists, geneticists, and book of mormon scholars provide their views on dna and the book of mormon.
Murphy, 35, is chairperson of the anthropology department at edmonds community college in. The topic of dna research is a timely one, as are the compelling views presented in this book. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints affirms that the book of mormon is a volume of sacred scripture comparable to the bible. Does dna evidence prove the book of mormon is false. It contains a record of gods dealings with three groups of people who migrated from the near east or west asia to the americas hundreds of years before the arrival of europeans. It is also very exact when used to determine paternity.
All opinions, speakers and presenters represent and express their own individual opinions, and not necessarily the opinions of firm foundation, book of mormon evidence, or its employees, and no information or opinions represent the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. One last topic on the subject of archaeological evidence for the book of mormon that i want to talk about is horses. Dna evidence has never proved a specific origin for the american indian. Now the same dna evidence used in courts of law can credibly speak to the validity of the book of mormon, which serves as the foundation of the mormon. On january 31, 2014, the lds church published an essay entitled book of mormon and dna studies in the gospel topics series on its official website. Thousands of native americans from more than 150 tribes have been tested to determine their ancestry. Author libby copeland looks at the dna testing business and the offshoots the problems in her new book, the lost family.
The most informative dna research involves work on mitochondrial and ychromosome dna, because they simply reflect male and female dna genealogical lineages. Archaeological evidence of the book of mormon latterday. In 2002, anthropologist thomas murphy published an essay in which he argued that dna evidence points to native americans being related to asians, and therefore this disproves the book of mormon. This new evidence, in contrast to the first, appears to provide support for the book of mormon as well as and an interesting geographic paradigm for the events therein. This book locates everything from the narrow neck, to zarahemla, from cumorah, to the land of promise, bountiful. Joseph wambaugh wrote in the blooding, his book on the midlands murders. In this article, we will provide some background on this issue focusing on the scientific issues, followed by a point by point response to various statements made in the essay about the book of mormon. I suggest that if we are serious about assessing whether what the book of mormon teaches is consistent with dna evidence, we must assess it based on. For instance, there is a genetically related bluish mark near the base of the spine of newborn aztec babies, called the mongoloid spot, which is characteristic of east asian children.
Archaeological and historical evidence dna and the book. Dna genealogies of american indians and the book of mormon. As always, i invite you to study the issues, evaluate what we know and what we dont know, and pray for the guidance. All that would be left would be for an interested mormon to compare the two findings to the dna of israelites who lived about 600 b. Book of mormondna evidencegeography issues fairmormon. Forensic dna evidence interpretation, second edition guide books. Understanding the scientific evidence this page supports my main mormon answers page on dna evidence and the book of mormon. By one estimate, the lab handled dna evidence from at least 500 cases a.
This is another in my series of article on challenging questions that missionaries will likely face. Oct 29, 2006 dna evidence has never proved a specific origin for the american indian. Imagine if dna evidence revealed that the pilgrims didnt sail from europe to escape religious persecution but rather were part of a migration from iceland and that u. The book of mormon makes several scientific claims that can be tested. The book of mormon makes a handful of references to horses existing on the american continents in these ancient times. The material below covers the geography of the book of mormon in north america. The conclusion of dna evidence brings us the fascinating testimony of an exmormon. In addition, dna studies used to trace the ancestry of native american peoples support the conclusions of scientists in other fields and together the evidence raises serious questions about the veracity of the book of mormon and the historical and theological authenticity of the. This article addresses how it relates to the book of mormon.
Well documented facts, and he covered so many different aspects of evidence to back up his video presentation, aside from the compelling dna evidence, he used weather, animal migration, mapping, rivers, water bodies, descriptions from the book of mormon and matched them to the local geography. My brother had served in many senior leadership positions including seven years as a bishop, as a stake young men president and as a member of a mission presidency. I have watched more than 20 hours of wayne may book of mormon lecture videos and conversed with both wayne may and rod meldrum in person. Critics of the lds church recently latched onto dna studies that point to a predominant asiatic origin to the american indians and conclude that the book of mormon cannot be an ancient record as claimed by joseph smith. The book of mormon and the new world dna deseret book. However, this attack ignores several key points, among which is the fact that the book of mormon states. The dna evidence is the last in a long line of research that supports the firm conclusion that the ancestors of the american indians migrated from asia over 12, 000 years ago. A recently published book claims that dna evidence proves the book of mormon, one of the books of scripture used by the mormon church, incorrect. The idea that america may have been overwhelmingly peopled by folks from northeastern asia.
Its 30 years since dna fingerprinting was first used in a police investigation. The technique has since put millions of criminals behind bars. Dna evidence of the book of mormon trailer youtube. Dna evidence and the book of mormon conclusive proof that. Dna and the evidence for intelligent design reprint by stephen c. Killer breakthrough the day dna evidence first nailed a murderer. The dna evidence was just another problem in a long list of issues that seriously troubled them about the church. According to the book, two of these groups originated from ancient israel. Miraculous claims surrounding the coming forth of the book of mormon are an evidence of the prophetic calling of joseph smith. This book of mormon is brought to you for free and open access by the all journals at byu scholarsarchive.
I was borninthecovenant, lived in utah my whole life,four years of seminary, returned missionary to england, bachelors and masters degrees in education from brigham young university where i was young women president twice, married in the provo temple, multiple relief society, primary,and young women presidencies amongst a myriad of other. Dna evidence reported in nature in november 20 shows support for american indian dna that descends from areas including the middle east. The remainder of the video features interviews with experts in history, biology, anthropology, linguistics and archaeology. Dna testing immigration and citizenship home affairs. The book of mormon for more than 170 years, the church of jesus christ of latterday saints has declared the book of mormon to be a scriptural and literal history. The archaelogical evidence which shows the americas to have been continuously inhabited for at least 10,000 years the dna evidence which shows a close relationship between amerinds and asians the dna evidence which does not support the semite origins of amerinds in the timeline necessary for us to accept the boms claims.
The book of mormon was released in march of 2003, the lds church was only beginning to wrestle with the implications of dna research that posed serious challenges to the historical validity of the book of mormon. A recently published book claims that dna evidence proves that the book of mormon, a book of scripture used in conjunction with the bible by the mormon church, is incorrect and points to an asiatic origin versus a middle eastern origin for the inhabitants of the american continents about 100 genetic studies have been done on about 75 groups out of 500 known native. The american indians of today are without doubt a mix of many originsincluding asiatic. Sep 08, 2016 on january 31, 2014, the lds church published an essay entitled book of mormon and dna studies in the gospel topics series on its official website.
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