DNA Evidence for BofM Geography

[jbalm]

I read the rebuttal (albeit hurriedly).

What plaque?

[Proud 2b Peculiar]

I read the rebuttal (albeit hurriedly).

What plaque?

The one put there by the church that talks about the Nephite tower. There on tower hill.

If you look to your left while looking at the plaque at the tree line that is close to the plaque, it may seem that it is just trees that are there. Walk over and look down into the trees. Every time we go, a little more is uncovered.

I guess some storm came through and uncovered some things. I tried to look at it with google earth, but the trees hide it too well.

I wanted to take pictures, but felt strongly not to, so I did not.

[livy111us]

As I mentioned before, I don't doubt that there were Nephites in that area. Archaeology has shown migrations from Mesoamerica to that area. Just as there were tens of thousands of people migrating northward in The Book of Mormon.

[Proud 2b Peculiar]

Yep, I think that it covered the Central America and Mexico and North American Continent. And that the Lamanite border was at Missouri like the Lord says in the D&C. The Nephites were from the East coast to Missouri, until the Lamanites came in and clobbered them. Can't prove it, but just by reading the scriptures and having been to some of these places in Missouri, Ohio and knowing that the hill Cumorah was where the plates were, it is a no brainer to me.

Look at all the temples too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7_CRN74Ues

Some questions I have asked myself recently, are

Why Kirtland?(Ohio) Why Nauvoo? (Illinois) Why so many sites in Missouri?

[livy111us]

And who knows, Moroni *could* have dedicated those sites as well. Joseph Smith said that Moroni left Guatamala, where Zarahemla was located, and travelled to Utah first and dedicated Temple sites, then went East to Adam-Ondi-Ahman and dedicated many Temple sites along the way, and ended up at what is called Cumorah today to bury the plates.

[Proud 2b Peculiar]

Source on that please?

I think that it is incredible that there were significant events at the same locations.

Adam and Eve live at Adam-Ondi-Ahman because they were cast out. Which makes me wonder if this is also where Cain slew Able.

Nephite tower was there. And likely was the scene of battles, hence the watch tower being where it is high above the valley.

In Gallatin just 3 miles away is where they did not allow the saints to vote and the skirmishes got going.

Prophesy about no yellow dog fulfilled there too, after the saints were driven out, Cravensville was created and dead within 30 years.

A Civil war battle was also fought there.

Meeting with priesthood to be there, and gathering of Adam and his children.

You know how they say that history repeats itself? Sometimes I wonder if it is not just the event reoccurring, but the location does too.

[livy111us]

Sure. iT is a bit of information that has not been to well known until recently. Joseph Smith told Andrew Hamilton and William McBride and possibly others. But these two men wrote it down and even copied the map that Joseph Smith drew of these travels from Central America to Utah, then his eastward travels. They also told this story throughout their lives in talks. Here is one recorded instance: "Joseph Smith marked with his cane in the sand the track the saints would take to the Rocky Mountains...described the valley of the Great Salt Lake just as though he had lived there...said we should make stations all the way to New and Old Mexico until we crossed the Isthmus of Teohuantipec and get back to the place where the covenant was broke by the Nephites. Spoke of the great Temple in Central America unifinished...This river was situated by the River Copan, anciently called the River of Nephi" (Diary of Charles Lloyd Walker, 2:524-525)

"On the map 'land Bountifull' is listed in 'Sentral America'. The cartogropher wrote 'starting point' below the reference to Central America. Above the 'land Bountifull' is 'Sand hills in the south part of Arizona' and above it to the left is 'Salt Lake...Below this on the right-hand side of the map is written: 'Moronis Travels starting from Sentral America to the Sand hills of Arizona then to Salt Lake Utah, Territory, then to Adam on Diammon Mo, then to Nauvoo, Ill, then to Independence Mo, then to Kirtland Ohio then to Cumoro NY' (Peterson, The Book of Mormon: Forth Nephi Through Moroni, 244-247)

Peterson goes onto say:
"The second map...is quite similar to the first...It is interesting to note that the brethren, [Mcbride and Hamilton], mentioned on these documents were contemporaries of the Prophet Joseph Smith, and they credited him with the notion that the travels of Moroni begain in the land Bountiful, which was in Central America, and went through the Western Great Basin area prior to going east to Cumorah in Western New York. Why Moroni took the route he did is still without answers. These men stated that the Prophet Joseph believed Bountiful is in Central America while the hill Cumorah, the burial place of the plates, is in New York State" (Peterson, The Book of Mormon: Forth Nephi Through Moroni, 247)

Very interesting stuff.
We also have, of course, the editorials in Times and Seasons which state that Central America was the central place of the happenings in The Book of Mormon, which paper Joseph Smith was the editor. You can read the basics of that here: http://www.meridianmagazine.com/ideas/030930joseph.html

And a couple of the actual articles here:
http://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v3n23.htm
http://www.ancientamerica.org/library/m ... so.htm?n=0

The Book of Mormon is placed directly in Mesoamerica.

We also have an interesting Ensign article that does a comparison of Spencer W Kimballs comments on the Lamanites, to Mesoamerica. This was done by the Assistant to the Twelve.