El Libro de Mormón/Shiz lucha por respirar

Criticism

The human brain. The midbrain is located at the level marked 'cerebral peduncle'. From: Henry Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 1918, Fig 677. off-site (Inglés).

In Ether 15:31, a final showdown occurs between two warriors, Shiz and Coriantumr. Coriantumr "smote off the head of Shiz...[and] after he had smitten off the head...Shiz raised up on his hands and fell; and after that he had struggled for breath, he died."

Critics insist that this would not, or could not, happen.

Source(s) of the Criticism

  • John R. Farkas and David A. Reed, Mormonism: Changes, Contradictions, and Errors (Grand Rapids, Mich. : Baker Books, 1995), 152.
  • Ed Decker, Decker's Complete Handbook on Mormonism (Eugene: Harvest House, 1995), 114.
  • Latayne Colvett Scott, The Mormon Mirage : a former Mormon tells why she left the church (Grand Rapids : Zondervan Pub. House, 1979), 90.
Closeup of mid- and hind-brain; the mid-brain is the area above the pons. From: Henry Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 1918, Fig 681. off-site (Inglés).

Response

Contrary to the critics' assumptions,

Shiz's death struggle illustrates the classic reflex posture that occurs in both humans and animals when the upper brain stem (midbrain/mesencephalon) is disconnected from the brain. The extensor muscles of the arms and legs contract, and this reflex action could cause Shiz to raise up on his hands [1]

Cutting the brainstem in this location causes the muscles which extend (straighten) the arms and legs to contract. This makes the arms and legs rigid, which would raise a corpse up until lack of oxygen and blood loss caused eventual muscle failure.

Decerebrate posturing - Notice how the arms and legs are rigidly extended.This information was provided by Clinical Tools, Inc., and is copyrighted by Clinical Tools, Inc. Non-commericial use is permitted. off-site (Inglés).

People in this "decerebrate" reflex posture can also display "opisthotonos," a position "characterized by rigidity and severe arching of the back, with the head thrown backwards. This is such that if a person were laid on his or her back, only the back of the head and the heels would touch the supporting surface." [2] If the person — as in Shiz's case — were face down, the body would appear to rise up, with the neck bent backward and the face upraised. This dramatic positioning would make it appear as if the person was 'struggling for breath,' even though such behavior is a mere reflex, and not intentional.

Conclusion

With the death scene of Shiz, Joseph Smith provides the reader with a vivid example of a catastrophic mid-brain injury which is consistent with a weary, sloppy cut made by the exhausted Coriantumr. Being a seasoned warrior, Moroni likely knew that such behavior would be relatively rare on the battlefield, even if he did not understand the rather precise neuroanatomy needed to cause it.

Shiz's death throes are a realistic touch, and represent a phenomenon that went unrecognized in the medical literature of the modern era until 1898. It is one more mark of the Book of Mormon's status as genuine history.

Endnotes

  1. [back]  M. Gary Hadfield, "Neuropathology and the Scriptures," Brigham Young University Studies 33 no. 2 (1993), 324. GL direct link
  2. [back]  See off-site (Inglés)

Further reading

FAIR wiki articles

Libro de Mormón "Anacronismos"


External links

  • John W. Welch, in "The 'Decapitation' of Shiz," Insights (November 1994): 2. off-site (Inglés)

Printed material

  • M. Gary Hadfield, "Neuropathology and the Scriptures," Brigham Young University Studies 33 no. 2 (1993), 313–28. GL direct link
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