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< Book of Mormon | Geography | Statements | Nineteenth century | Joseph Smith's lifetime 1829-1840 | Joseph Smith
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Joseph Smith would also make later remarks that included Central America and its inhabitants as also being relevant to Book of Mormon geography and peoples. (See [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements/Joseph_Smith#16_November_1841:_Joseph_dictates_the_Bernhisel_letter|Bernhisel letter]] and [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements/Joseph_Smith#15_July_1842:_Joseph_Smith_discusses_high_civilization_in_the_Americas.2C_uses_mound-builders_and_Guatemalan_ruins_as_an_example|July 1842 ''Times and Seasons'']] Wilford Woodruff, who wrote one of the Zelph accounts, also regarded a book on Central American ruins to be evidence for the Book of Mormon account (See [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#13_Sept_1841:_Wilford_Woodruff_cites_the_city_of_Copan_as_.22proof_of_the_Book_of_Mormon.22|City of Copan]]). Parley P. Pratt ([[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#March_1842:_Parley_P._Pratt|March 1842]] and Orson Pratt ([[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#27_August_1843:_Orson_Pratt_believes_that_the_Book_of_Mormon_names_Central_American_cities|August 1843]]) were of a similar view. | Joseph Smith would also make later remarks that included Central America and its inhabitants as also being relevant to Book of Mormon geography and peoples. (See [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements/Joseph_Smith#16_November_1841:_Joseph_dictates_the_Bernhisel_letter|Bernhisel letter]] and [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements/Joseph_Smith#15_July_1842:_Joseph_Smith_discusses_high_civilization_in_the_Americas.2C_uses_mound-builders_and_Guatemalan_ruins_as_an_example|July 1842 ''Times and Seasons'']] Wilford Woodruff, who wrote one of the Zelph accounts, also regarded a book on Central American ruins to be evidence for the Book of Mormon account (See [[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#13_Sept_1841:_Wilford_Woodruff_cites_the_city_of_Copan_as_.22proof_of_the_Book_of_Mormon.22|City of Copan]]). Parley P. Pratt ([[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#March_1842:_Parley_P._Pratt|March 1842]] and Orson Pratt ([[Book_of_Mormon/Geography/Statements#27_August_1843:_Orson_Pratt_believes_that_the_Book_of_Mormon_names_Central_American_cities|August 1843]]) were of a similar view. | ||
− | =={{Conclusion label}} | + | == == |
+ | {{Conclusion label}} | ||
LDS scholars have differed about the reliability of the accounts, and their relevance for Book of Mormon geography.<ref>Kenneth Godfrey's articles have cast doubt on the reliability of many key elements of the story as we have them. Donald Q. Cannon has argued for the basic reliability of the accounts. See the articles by each author for both perspectives.</ref> As Kenneth Godfrey observed: | LDS scholars have differed about the reliability of the accounts, and their relevance for Book of Mormon geography.<ref>Kenneth Godfrey's articles have cast doubt on the reliability of many key elements of the story as we have them. Donald Q. Cannon has argued for the basic reliability of the accounts. See the articles by each author for both perspectives.</ref> As Kenneth Godfrey observed: |
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Joseph Smith reportedly found the bones of an individual named "Zelph," during the Zion's camp march. Does this have implications for Book of Mormon geography?
To see citations to the critical sources for these claims, click here
Latter-day Saints continue to want to know where the events described in the Book of Mormon took place, and there continue to be those who claim this or that answer to certain questions. One element related to the question posed by all students of Book of Mormon geography is the account of the 1834 discovery in Illinois of the "white Lamanite," called "Zelph" by members of Zion's Camp. Those who support the view that North America was the scene of battles between the Nephites and Lamanites always cite this datum as proof that their view is correct. Before using it as proof of anything, however, careful investigation of the circumstances of this discovery has much to teach us about how historical information needs to be critically examined before one tries to use it to settle a dispute.
The most common version of this story is found in the History of the Church.[1] It should be noted, however, that the History of the Church version was created by amalgamating the journal entries of several people:
The accounts were published after the death of Joseph Smith, and the text has a convoluted history:
A comparison of the various accounts is instructive:[4]
Aspect | WW | HCK | GAS | LH | MM | RM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | May-June 1834 | JS on 3 June 1834 | Group on 2 June 1834 | -- | -- | JS on 3 June 1834 |
Place | Illinois River | Illinois River | -- | Illinois River | Pike County | -- |
Description | -300 ft above river -Flung up by ancients |
-Several 100 feet above -3 altars on mound |
300 ft above river | Big mound | -many mounds -fortifications |
-- |
Artifacts | Body, arrow | Human bones, a skeleton, arrow | Human bones | Human bones, arrow | Human bones, arrow | Skeleton of man, arrow |
Person? | Zalph, large thick-set man, warrior, killed in battle |
Zalph, warrior, killed in battle | -- | Zalph, warrior, white Lamanite | Mighty prophet, killed in battle | Zalph, warrior, white Lamanite, man of God, killed in battle |
Nephite/ Lamanite? |
Nephite and Lamanite | Lamanite | -- | Lamanite | -- | Lamanite |
JS Vision? | Vision: Onandangus, great prophet Known Atlantic to Rockies |
-- | -- | Onandangus | -- | Onandangus, Known Atlantic to Rockies |
William Hamblin described some of the difficulties in identifying the roots of this story:
Whatever the case with the Zelph reports, Joseph Smith was of the opinion that the natives of the area had something to do with Book of Mormon peoples, calling them "Nephites." In a statement in a letter to his wife, dated June 3, 1834, he wrote:
But keep in mind, that even in the Book of Mormon, groups such as the Mulekites and the people of Ammon joined the Nephite Nation over time and were called by the name Nephite, only because they had given their allegiance to that faction politically. This had nothing to do with ancestry in a great many cases. Therefore, Joseph Smith's use of the word here doesn't necessarily imply ancestry of the peoples in the area. Furthermore, Joseph Smith's opinions on these points are not necessarily based on revelation, nor are they necessarily any more reliable than the rest of the opinions previously held by other General Authorites, some of whom later held the same office that Joseph Smith held. Since their opinions were not all the same, there is no reason to assume that anyone had actual revelation on these points. Only future revelation can clarify these points.
Joseph Smith would also make later remarks that included Central America and its inhabitants as also being relevant to Book of Mormon geography and peoples. (See Bernhisel letter and July 1842 Times and Seasons Wilford Woodruff, who wrote one of the Zelph accounts, also regarded a book on Central American ruins to be evidence for the Book of Mormon account (See City of Copan). Parley P. Pratt (March 1842 and Orson Pratt (August 1843) were of a similar view.
LDS scholars have differed about the reliability of the accounts, and their relevance for Book of Mormon geography.[6] As Kenneth Godfrey observed:
Thus, it is unclear exactly what Joseph said. Many of the accounts date from many years after the event, and may have been shaded by later ideas in the writers. Joseph never had a chance to correct that which was published about the event, since he was killed before it was made public. The "Lamanites" may refer to native Amerindians generally, or Book of Mormon peoples specifically. If the latter are referred to, the events may well apply to post-Book of Mormon events, in which case it can tell us little about the geographic scope of the Book of Mormon text. It is at least clear enough that Joseph Smith called the peoples of the area "Nephite" in the statement that he made in the letter to his wife, but those titles of political factions again don't do much for determining ethnicity.
As always, the Book of Mormon text itself must remain our primary guide for what it says. Joseph Smith does not seem to have later regarded his knowledge about Zelph as excluding other peoples or locations as being related to the Book of Mormon, or to have discouraged other Church leaders from similar theories.
Notes
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