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==Question: Are lions anachronistic to the Book of Mormon?== | ==Question: Are lions anachronistic to the Book of Mormon?== | ||
===Several options exist for this=== | ===Several options exist for this=== | ||
− | Critics of the Book of Mormon claim that the lion is anachronistic to it. Lions are mentioned throughout the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 15:28, 29; 21: 6, 7; 30: 12, 13; Mosiah 20: 10; Alma 14: 29; 3 Nephi 20:16; 21:12; and Mormon 5:24. | + | Critics of the Book of Mormon claim that the lion is [[Book of Mormon/Anachronisms/Basic principles|anachronistic]] to it. Lions are mentioned throughout the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 15:28, 29; 21: 6, 7; 30: 12, 13; Mosiah 20: 10; Alma 14: 29; 3 Nephi 20:16; 21:12; and Mormon 5:24. |
The passages from 2 Nephi are quoting Isaiah. The rest of the passages aren’t necessarily affirming the existence of a lion but are rather using lion as a simile for behavior that each writer is witnessing. Thus, we need a lion OR we simply need a lion-like animal. | The passages from 2 Nephi are quoting Isaiah. The rest of the passages aren’t necessarily affirming the existence of a lion but are rather using lion as a simile for behavior that each writer is witnessing. Thus, we need a lion OR we simply need a lion-like animal. | ||
The Lion actually presented a similar challenge to the Bible until the late 20th and early 21st century. Michael Ash has written: | The Lion actually presented a similar challenge to the Bible until the late 20th and early 21st century. Michael Ash has written: | ||
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:If we look for a moment at the wild animals pictured in the Book of Mormon, a further plausible picture emerges. They “fought like lions for their prey” (Mosiah 20:10) could obviously refer to the [https://www.nationalgeographic.com/archaeology-and-history/magazine/2018/07-08/jaguar-natural-history-mesoamerica/ jaguar], the most feared animal in tropical America. Other possible “lions” in that area include the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar cougar], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocelot ocelot], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguarundi jaguarundi], and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margay margay].<ref>John L. Sorenson, “Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book” (Provo and Salt Lake: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship and Deseret Book, 2013) 320.</ref> | :If we look for a moment at the wild animals pictured in the Book of Mormon, a further plausible picture emerges. They “fought like lions for their prey” (Mosiah 20:10) could obviously refer to the [https://www.nationalgeographic.com/archaeology-and-history/magazine/2018/07-08/jaguar-natural-history-mesoamerica/ jaguar], the most feared animal in tropical America. Other possible “lions” in that area include the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar cougar], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocelot ocelot], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguarundi jaguarundi], and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margay margay].<ref>John L. Sorenson, “Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book” (Provo and Salt Lake: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship and Deseret Book, 2013) 320.</ref> | ||
− | The Spanish spoke of jaguars as lions upon their arrival in the New World in the 16th century <ref> | + | The Spanish spoke of jaguars as lions upon their arrival in the New World in the 16th century <ref>Fray Diego Durán, "The History of the Indies of New Spain" (Oklahoma City: University of Oklahoma Press, 1994) 207. See esp. footnote 6. A similar pattern is followed in Bernal Diaz, "The Conquest of Spain" (London: Penguin Books, 1964).</ref>. |
Thus this doesn’t present an insurmountable hurdle for the Book of Mormon. | Thus this doesn’t present an insurmountable hurdle for the Book of Mormon. | ||
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{{endnotes sources}} | {{endnotes sources}} | ||
+ | [[Category:Questions]] |
Critics of the Book of Mormon claim that the lion is anachronistic to it. Lions are mentioned throughout the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 15:28, 29; 21: 6, 7; 30: 12, 13; Mosiah 20: 10; Alma 14: 29; 3 Nephi 20:16; 21:12; and Mormon 5:24. The passages from 2 Nephi are quoting Isaiah. The rest of the passages aren’t necessarily affirming the existence of a lion but are rather using lion as a simile for behavior that each writer is witnessing. Thus, we need a lion OR we simply need a lion-like animal. The Lion actually presented a similar challenge to the Bible until the late 20th and early 21st century. Michael Ash has written:
Thus we have the presence of Lions in ancient Israel and thus a base for which the Nephite culture established their oft-repeated comparison.
Now we could end our response here. It is possible that the Nephites simply retained the comparisons within the culture through orally transmitted myth. But it may perhaps be necessary to have either a lion or a lion-like animal (the latter more likely) to ground the 13 comparisons to the Lion.
John L. Sorenson as written:
The Spanish spoke of jaguars as lions upon their arrival in the New World in the 16th century [3].
Thus this doesn’t present an insurmountable hurdle for the Book of Mormon.
Notes
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