The geographical setting of the book of mormon is the set of locations of the events described in the book of mormon. Includes every geographical place mentioned in the book of mormon. Book of mormon geography 79 inhabiting parts although not necessarily all of the eastern united states. The one and only river mentioned in the entire book of mormon is called the sidon. The geographical setting of the book of mormon has been the subject of serious study and casual speculation since before. The prophet joseph smith himself accepted what he felt was evidence of book of mormon civilizations in both north america and central america. The book makes a lot of seemingly good approximations of where the book of mormon predominately took place. Book of mormon geography the encyclopedia of mormonism. Phelps, and the pratt brothers speculated about a setting in central andor south america. Its been over a year since someone posted something on book of mormon geography, so i think its about time. Interesting as these matters may be, study of the book of mormon is most rewarding when one focuses on its primary purpose. The starting point for this theory is the claim that a 4,000 mile journey to the malay peninsula, with appropriate winds and currents from the middle east, would have been much easier for the jaredites, mulekites and lehites than a 16,000 mile voyage across the indian and pacific oceans with no appropriate currents to the americas. The story of the people of antinephilehi anl is one of many examples which demonstrates why a basic knowledge of book of mormon geography enriches ones reading of the text. Clark,4 randall spackman determined that there are upwards of passages of potential geographic.
Church releases statement on book of mormon geography. An ancient american setting for the book of mormon. For the past 55 years, john sorenson has inhaled every detail of book of mormon life and history. Latterday saints speculated that the book of mormon took place. Sorenson indicates that what he has called mormon s map would, in its ideal form, be a twodimensional rendering of the body of information about geography that mormon possessed in his mind p.
This book locates everything from the narrow neck, to zarahemla, from cumorah, to the land of promise, bountiful. Statement on book of mormon geography page 7 general. Dont know much about book of mormon geography the faith. The great strength of the book is that it provides a wellargued perspective based on the geology of natural disasters that is new to the analysis of the book of mormon one that adds to the reality of book of mormon events and opens new doors for potential research and understanding of the geography of the book of mormon. Made popular by his 1985 publication an ancient american setting for the book of mormon, sorensons geographic model for the book of mormon has withstood the test of time and remains the preeminent geographic model for book of mormon events. It, therefore, is an important geographical indicator. Sorenson first developed his model in 1953 and committed it to paper in 1955.
A complete description of the book of mormon geography bomgeography, including an internal map model, external map model i. Hugh nibley and book of mormon geography by kirk magleby. Most of you believe that the book of mormon occurred in central america, right. The church takes no position on the specific geographic location of book of mormon events in the ancient americas, the essay reads. Missionaries didnt go to guatemala until 1947117 years after the restoration. An isthmus, the place where the sea divides the land ether 10. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints recently released a gospel topics essay which reiterates the churchs neutrality on the subject of book of mormon geography. The scriptural basis for book of mormon geography book. Why did mormon give so many details about geography. He provided his interpretation of over seven hundred verses he deemed relevant to the book of mormon. Historical antecedents and early interpretations matthew roper introduction the book of mormon is a record prepared and written by ancient american prophets.
Book of mormon geography posted by mormon heretic on january 25, 2008 in book of mormon, central america, geography, malay, mormon, science, south america about 7 years ago, i was introduced to the idea that the book of mormon lands didnt take place in. The discussion on book of mormon geography was getting heated. Scholars gathered in provo, utah, to discuss their theories about where the. In 1991, john sorenson of byu, the dean of book of mormon geography, created a book called the geography of. Sorenson, an ancient american setting for the book of mormon salt lake city, utah. Whereas many of the early members of the church of jesus christ of. List of evidence of the book of mormon john sorenson.
Clark had circumstances permitted a marked grave for the slain prophet, a fitting headstone could have read, by joseph smith, junior, author and proprietor. However, the version of mormon s map set forth in sorenson s book. Both the mesoamerican and the heartland book of mormon geography theories have their strong points and, shall we say, areas that need. The book of mormon makes it abundantly clear that the river sidon runs from the south to the north, sorenson said. The gospel was taught to the lamanites soon after the book of mormon was published in 1830.
How a mormon lawyer transformed archaeology in mexicoand. Speaking of the book s history and geography, president russell m. Virtual book of mormon book of mormon maps and learning. The first missionary activity in mexico was 187545 years after the restoration. Chief among these is the fact that we know we certainty where the story beginsin old world jerusalem. Pros, cons of book of mormon geography theories deseret news. How a mormon lawyer transformed archaeology in mexicoand ended up losing his faith. John sorensons mormons codex examines book of mormon. Sorenson s analysis cannot be considered the last word, but any coherent book of mormon geography must address the issues of distance within the text, as laid out by sorenson. Sorenson s useful study aid for those interested in book of mormon geography issues. Proposed book of mormon geographical setting wikipedia. Book of mormon geography jeff lindsays site and the. Numerous attempts have been made to diagram physical and political geographies depicting features mentioned in the text, but this requires many additional assumptions and is difficult to accomplish without making approximate relationships appear precise sorenson, 1991. Book of mormon geography your site for lds theology.
A discussion of the arabian, or old world, geography of the book of mormon enjoys many advantages over discussion of new world matters. Here is a post i have done that deals with geography of the book of mormon. Before we examine some of the possible locations for book of mormon geography however, i would like to stress the fact that as of today, the lord has not revealed where the nephites or lamanites lived, and as such, the lds church has taken no official stance on anything related to book of mormon geography. Archaeological trends and the book of mormon origins author john e. Foundation for ancient research and mormon studies, 1996 1985, 1. Oliver cowdery and joseph smith taught this clearly.
As the ancient prophet mormon edited the scriptural texts that would become the book of mormon, he must have had a map in his mind of the places and physical features that comprised the setting for the events described in that book. Discover the book of mormon like youve never seen it before. Book of mormon geography in the world of joseph smith. For example, bountiful is south of the land desolation. These tribes were located in new york, ohio, and the missouri area. The book of mormon geography lands and map with dna evidence.
Jershon and book of mormon geography lehis library. All lds students of book of mormon geography who have worked systematically with the problem in recent decades have come to agree on this sorenson 1985, 2930. Upon seeking refuge among the nephites from their bloodthirsty lamanite brethren, the nephites grant land to the people of anl in jershon which joins bountiful, and. John sorenson, the geography of book of mormon events, pp. Early church authors, including benjamin winchester, william smith, w. He shows clearly that the book of mormon occured in a rather limited geographical scope, in the order of a few hundred miles or so, and that the lds church has no official position on the book of mormons geography. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints released a statement today concerning the geography of the book of mormon in the form of a. Home true book of mormon geography lands western new. Like the church, book of mormon central bmc is officially geography neutral. Based on extensive textual analysis and comparison of the book of mormon limited geography model to existing geographical regions, timelines and cultures, the majority of lds scholars, so it has been claimed, agree that the book of mormon geography is centered in mesoamerica around the isthmus of tehuantepec, in the area of current day guatemala and the southern mexico states of tabasco. Archaeological trends and the book of mormon origins byu. The article concludes by emphasizing the churchs neutrality on book of mormon geography and quoting president russell m. Controversy, evidence, and two cumorahs the book of mormon is not intended to be a history book or a guide to geography, science, or any other secular topic.
The malay book of mormon geography model asserts that the book of mormon account matches the geography and historical record of the malay peninsula. Sharing map with rian nelson permission from works of joseph. Many proposed book of mormon geography theories were originated using a method proposed by dr. He also claimed joseph smith learned the geography of the book of mormon from a popular travel book and decided it. Sorenson, one of the foremost students on the subject, identified over 600 passages relevant to geography. And in alma 2, alma and his army wade across the river to fight the invading lamanites the river sidon in the heartland model is considered to be the mississippi river. The church and byu stay neutral in questions of exactly where the book of mormon took place. The fight over book of mormon geography deseret news. The lord could have removed all questions regarding the exact locations of these events but he did not. Overview of book of mormon geography and church history. Sorenson outlined his model in his seminal 1985 work, an ancient american setting for the book of mormon, john l. It was sorenson who first proposed that the scriptures action likely took place in guatemala and southern mexico, rather than encompassing both north and south america.
Statement on book of mormon geography page 2 general. Unfortunately, exploring and testing his geographic model in an accessible way has proven difficult given the arrangement of data and maps in his books. This has lead to more than 150 different proposed geographies. Unconventional book of mormon geography theories mormon. Book of mormon geography in nevillenevilleland book of. Mormon s map is book of mormon scholar john sorenson s reconstruction of that mental map solely from. In 1985, when john sorenson published his landmark book an ancient american setting for the book of mormon, many mormon scholars thought he had firmly established a workable mesoamerican model for book of mormon geography. Limited geography and the book of mormon byu scholarsarchive. Mormon stories dr michael coe an outsiders view of book of mormon archaeology here are posts from bofm blog that i enjoy about. Sorenson, the geography of biook sic of mormon events.
It argues for a limited mesoamerican model of book of mormon geography, meaning that, in sorensons view, most of the story of the nephites occurred within a relatively small area of guatemala and southern mexico. A sourcebook, he laid out his thinking on the subject in detail. Sorenson stated his geography theory consisted of just a few hundred miles in length and width, bounded on two sides by oceans within mesoamerica. The book of mormon geography book, a promised land, the land of promise, is one of our books at alpha publishing available for purchase at virginia elieson was inspired with this geography, while with her patriarch husband and mission president in dallas here organized into a book by peter covino, jr. Each year at its annual book of mormon lands conference, the book of mormon archaeological forum gives the father lehi award and the mother sariah award to a couple who have contributed significantly to book of mormon. Book of mormon geographymodelslimitedsorenson 1955. In this text, sorenson reconstructs the internal geography of the book of mormon. It is a book of scripture aimed at teaching people about christ and how to find happiness through the gospel. This site can be used as a study guide to help understand the book of mormon.