I believe the book of mormon is to be taken literally. Dna and the book of mormon, by cooper johnson does dna evidence refute the book of mormon. Smith and the origins of mormon polygamy, john whitmer books 2010, pp. Jul 04, 2005 dna and the book of mormon modern jewish vs. Dna test came back mormon i found this a little funny sad and thought id share.
On, a reader wrote in and complained that her native american ancestry did not show up in her dna test. 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. Best free dna genealogy websites family tree magazine. 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. His attempt was to make the case that dna studies do indeed prove the validity, accuracy, and historicity of the book of mormon. 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. We have over 10,000 titles on site books, films, fiche. 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. Three geneticists respond to the lds essay on dna and the book of mormon, and to apologist michael ash. The criticism of the mormon church is the following. 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. Book of mormon and dna studies by michael degroote mormon times and deseret news february 4, 2014 february 4th, 2014.
Subtitled another testament of jesus christ, it recounts the story story of an israelite family who immigrated to and fully populated the american continents. Book of mormon and dna studies, posted at on friday, is one of several additions or enhancements to the sites. The controversy arises from dna studies of native american peoples. 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. It can help you connect with others who may be doing similar research or maybe even find new relatives. If we are to use modern jewish genetics as the control against which native american dna is to be evaluated for possible ancient israelite origins, we must first determine whether modern jewish dna data adequately. Archaeological and historical evidence dna and the 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. Ancient israelite dna thomas murphy and some other critics suggest that the plausibility of claims of israelite ancestry by nonjewish groups can be assessed by measuring their dna affinity with modern jewish groups.
The book of mormon and the new world dna deseret book. 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. 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. According to the book, two of these groups originated from ancient israel.
Dna controversy is an issue that most critics believe completely undermines mormon beliefs in the truthfulness of the book. Many items in the book of mormon that critics had previously claimed as impossible or anachronistic in ancient native america have since been shown to have existed for some examples, see matthew ropers article right on target. Inferential genotyping of y chromosomes in latterday saints. Jun 22, 2016 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. I dont know enough about dna to comment on what can or cannot be concluded from the research.
Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon. The book of mormon teaches that these israelites are the principal ancestors of modernday native americans. 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. Modern dna evidence in no way disproves the traditional lds belief that book of mormon peoples represent the principal ancestors of the american indians. Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of. While dna shows that ultimately all human populations are closely related, to date no intimate genetic link has been found between ancient israelites and indigenous americans, much less within the time frame suggested in the book of mormon. This must mean that amerindians are not descended from book of mormon peoples, and the book of mormon is false. 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. Dna evidence and the book of mormon conclusive proof that. 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. Dna and the book of mormon brigham young university.
I purchased over 50 copies of this dvd and sent them to mormon temples in the united states and abroad. To test any scientific hypothesis, we must first evaluate whether our controls are valid. Although autosomal dna testing has been available for a number of years, its use to. New discoveries in dna research currently allow scientists to test this historical claim. Before we begin to discuss book of mormon dna proofs and questions, here is an example that shows the difficulties in finding lamanite dna back to 600 b. Geographical issues related to dna and the book of mormon. I believe the book of mormon people resided somewhere in the americas. Book of mormondna evidencegeography issues fairmormon.
The book of mormon documentary examines and compares genetic evidence identifying the dna fingerprints of the jewish populations and american indian populations, and presents the testimony of several dna experts in seeking to answer the question, are israelites the principal ancestors of native american indians. Create your ancestry profile you can create a free profile to let other members know about you and your family history interests. The conference is an annual event sponsored by the book of mormon archeological forum. John dehlin september 16, 2015 apologetics, book of mormon, top 10 truth claims, top 100, top 5 response to essays 377 comments. One of the most popular arguments against the book of mormon involves results of dna testing of native americans. This requires that we establish a book of mormon model for potential testing. Last wednesday, rod meldrum visited nauvoo and gave a presentation on dna and the book of mormon. Devout mormon, daniel peterson, a professor of asian and near eastern languages at brigham young university, said. The population of the latterday saints lds mormon, by virtue of its. Thomas murphy, mormon anthropologist, american apocrypha, 2002, p. Dna evidence and molecular genetics disprove the book of mormon by rich deem introduction.
He addressed a book of mormon lands conference on 2007oct20 in salt lake city, ut. Last year, my siblings got a deal on one of those ancestry dna tests and gave it to me for my birthday like a good mormon, im thorough on the genealogy preoccupation. The dna truth that the mormon belief that they are related to the american indians is false. 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. World epidemics in a global perspective, albuquerque. The material below covers the geography of the book of mormon in north america. Nothing is known about the dna of book of mormon peoples. A new page posted on the lds churchs website says dna studies cannot decisively affirm or reject the historical authenticity of the book of mormon. The idea that america may have been overwhelmingly peopled by folks from northeastern asia. 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.
In october 2015, genetics news site genomeweb reported that gedmatch has over,000 registered users, over 200,000 samples in its dna database, and more than 75 million. However, this attack ignores several key points, among which is the fact that the book of mormon states. Dna and the book of mormon the traditional latterday saint position t he book of mormon recounts the story of a small israelite group led by lehi and also one headed by mulek from ancient jerusalem to the american continent in approximately 600 bc. Dna vs book of mormon incredible new evidence youtube. Prophets who taught of the messiah were called from among this people for over a. Critics claim that such studies prove conclusively that there is no evidence of a middle eastern strand within the native american gene pool. 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. The documentary is a must see for all those who view the book of mormon as an accurate history of the native american indians.
Much as critics and defenders of the book of mormon would like to use dna studies to support their views, the evidence is simply inconclusive. Our critics allege that science has proven the book of mormon to be false. As book of mormon students increasingly understand that the book of mormon actually describes a very limited geographical area in its accounts, and as they recognize that mesoamerica southern mexico, guatemala, and surrounding territory offers the best candidate for the setting of the book of mormon, they also recognize that the dna attacks. The most popular thirdparty tool is gedmatch, created by curtis rogers and john olson to help users can upload their raw dna data and perform a variety of analyses. Dna puts to rest that any of the culture, civilization or peoples of the book of mormon ever existed. The hebrew origin of those races in our book is so unequivocally stated and so emphasized that if the said american races could be proven beyond doubt to be of other than hebrew origin, the claims of the book of mormon would be shattered. Dna genealogies of american indians and the book of mormon. Who were the lamanites in the book of mormon and who are their. The mainstream scientific consensus about the origin of the ancient americans and peoples is at odds with the claims put forth in the book of mormon, though mormon apologists have made efforts to reconcile these contradictions.
The book of mormon documentary accurately presents the consensus of the scientific community that northern asia not israel is the place of origin of the native american indians. The lds church released an essay on their website titled book of mormon and dna studies. Apr 17, 2015 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. I also sent a copy to byu university, to farms, the mormons branch that is in charge of protecting mormon beliefs, asking how i could refute this dvd. Book of mormon dna mormonism, the mormon church, beliefs. Brant gardner is a software consultant with training in mesoamerican studies and anthropology. The book of mormon makes several scientific claims that can be tested. In this article, excerpted from my book the family tree guide to dna testing and genetic genealogy, ill show you how to use the best free thirdparty tools to analyze your autosomal dna atdna and make new genealogy connections ancestrydna, 23andme, myheritage dna and family tree dna. 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. The only true statements in the book of mormon are those taken from the bible. The controversy stems from dna studies of native american peoples. Book of mormon and dna studies church of jesus christ. Nov 06, 2006 the book of mormon teaches that these israelites are the principal ancestors of modernday native americans.
In this episode, three geneticists respond to the lds essay book of mormon and dna studies, and to apologist michael ashs article entitled the dna challenge to the book of mormon that fizzled. Sep 15, 2017 dna evidence seems to show that native americans came from asia rather than from the middle east as the book of mormon implies. The chief claim, and the premise of the entire book, is that hebrews carried the message of the coming messiah on a voyage across the atlantic. May 11, 2009 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. 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. Thousands of native americans from more than 150 tribes have been tested to determine their ancestry. The evidence assembled to date suggests that the majority of native americans carry largely asian dna.
Book of mormondna evidenceissues identifying ancient dna. Each of the major testing companies23andme, ancestrydna, myheritage dna and family tree dnaoffers. Resolving a 150yearold paternity case in mormon history using. The essay asserts that dna studies cannot be used decisively to either affirm or reject the historical authenticity of the book of mormon.
Mormonisms founding prophet, joseph smith, once said, i told the brethren that the book of mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion. Dna evidence and the book of mormon conclusive proof. Attacks on the validity of the book of mormon using dna data support for the book of mormon by mormon academics. 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. Dna vs book of mormon incredible new evidence general. Does dna evidence prove the book of mormon to be false. While critics may believe that book of mormon dna testing entirely undermines mormon beliefs, it is important to realize that some underlying assumptions may have lead to faulty conclusions. Dna samples taken from modern american indians show no connection to the dna of the peoples of the middle east. 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.
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. Dna evidence of the book of mormon in north america, linking native americans to the jewish population in the middle east. Book of mormon and dna studies response to an essay on book of mormon and dna studies was added on 114 in the topical guide of the website. If the book of mormon is false, joseph smith was not a prophet. The videos arguing that dna disproves the book of mormon have been circulating for many years. 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.
Simon has written a book that examines lds beliefs about the origins of native americans and polynesians. 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. I cant imagine a scenario in which the book of mormon is scripture from god, but not a literal story. 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. The largest genealogical group out there is the mormon church, so fundamentally every genealogy company makes their software compatible with the churchs free familysearch site, tries to market to mormons, and at.