Samoin kuin raamattu, esittäytyy Mormonin kirjakin Jumalan itsestään ilmoittavana historiallisena aikakirjana ihmissuvulle. Molemmat kirjat kertovat Jeesuksesta Kristuksesta, ja eri profeetoista, jotka tuntuvat näyttäytyvän ihmisille, jotka esitetään ihmisen historian todellisuudessa tiettyinä aikoina ja tietyissä paikoissa eläneille kansoille. Nämä historiallisuuden väitteet ovat ajaneet tutkijoita etsimään arkeologisia todisteita MK:ssa kuvattujen kansojen ja tapahtumien olemassaololle. He tekevät aiheen Mormonin kirjan arkeologiasta asiaankuuluvaksi.

On tietenkin rajansa sillä, mitä arkeologia voi tutkia. Se ei sovellu todistamaan oikeaksi tai vääräksi MK:n yliluonnollisia väitteitä tai hengellisiä totuuksia. Etsimällä todisteita MK:ssa kuvatuille sivilisaatioille arkeologia voi kuitenkin auttaa meitä arvioimaan tämän pyhän aikakirjan historiallista uskottavuutta. Todisteilla, jotka koskevat sen historiallisia väitteitä, voi olla merkitystä sille, tunnemmeko luottamusta sen hengelliseen sanomaan.

Maantieteellisiä näkökohtia

MK kuvailee asukkaidensa maailmaa tiimalasin muotoiseksi maamassaksi, joka muodostuu "etelänpuoleisesta maasta", jotka ympäröi meri paitsi "kapean kannaksen" kohdalla, mikä yhdistää sen "pohjoisenpuoleiseen maahan" (Alma 22:32). Näiden maa-alojen paikannusta tarvitaan ennen kuin voidaan arkeologisin keinoin arvioida Mormonin kirjaa, kuten mormonioppineetkin myöntävät.¹

Voisi odottaa, että Mormonin kirjan maiden maantieteellisen sijoituksen päätteleminen on melko yksinkertainen asia. Aiheesta on päin vastoin kehkeytynyt melkoisen riidanalainen, kun nykyajan mormonioppineiden teoriat joutuvat vastakkain kirkon perinteisten opetusten kanssa.

Perinteinen näkemys

Joseph Smithin ja häntä seuraavien MAP-kirkon presidenttien ja apostolien mukaan Mormonin kirjan maat käsittivät lähestulkoon koko Pohjois- ja Etelä-Amerikan.² Joseph Smith tunnisti Chilen rannikon paikaksi, jonne Lehin matkue rantautui Uudessa maailmassa,³ kun taas Kumoran kukkula, tarunomaisen nefiläisten ja laamanilaisten sukupuuttoon asti käydyn taistelun tanner, sijaitsi hänen mukaansa sieltä noin 9 600 kilometrin päässä Palmyrassa, New Yorkin osavaltiossa. Näin Pohjois- ja Etelä-Amerikan käsitettiin muodostavan tiimalasin leveät osat, ja niitä yhdistävä "kapea kannas" Väli-Amerikaksi.⁴ Kartta 1

Joseph Smith opetti myös, että Amerikan intiaanit olivat laamanilaisten jälkeläisiä. Kirkon virallinen historia History of the Church kertoo tapauksesta kesäkuulta v. 1834 jolloin hän tunnisti jumalallisen ohjauksen avulla luurangon, joka oli löydetty intiaanien hautakummusta Illinoisissa. Smith sanoi, että luut olivat kuuluneet Zelph-nimiselle laamanilaissoturille:

... the visions of the past being opened to my understanding by the Spirit of the Almighty, I discovered the person whose skeleton was before us was a white Lamanite, a large, thick-set man, and a man of God. His name was Zelph ... who was known from the Hill Cumorah, or eastern sea to the Rocky mountains.⁵

The LDS Church continues to teach that Native Americans are the direct descendents of Book of Mormon peoples. For example, the "Introduction" in current editions of the Book of Mormon (since 1981), describes the Lamanites as, "the principal ancestors of the American Indians."

Miksi mormonioppineet vastustavat

Despite the teaching of the Church's spiritual leaders, unquestioned for a hundred years, a number of Mormon scholars have concluded that the traditional view of Book of Mormon geography is unrealistic. Their conclusions are based on a number of major problems that arise when one attempts to apply Book of Mormon descriptions of travel times and population growth to the vast territories of North and South America. For instance, while the Book of Mormon makes it clear that the rival Nephite and Lamanite civilizations were centered near the "narrow neck" of land (understood to be somewhere in Central America), it says that they agreed to meet for their epic final battle at the "hill Cumorah" (Mormon 6:1-6). Joseph Smith and Mormon tradition locate this site several thousand miles distant in New York state. It is difficult to find a reasonable explanation for why the armies would travel this immense distance to do battle.

Another significant problem for traditional Book of Mormon geography involves the premise that the native populations of the vast North and South American continents are the descendents of two tiny groups of transoceanic Semitic immigrants (the Jaredites, who arrived in the New World between 3000 - 2000 B.C. but later battled themselves to extinction, and the Nephites and Mulekites, who arrived beginning about 600 B.C.). Archaeological evidence shows conclusively that the western hemisphere was populated at least as far back as 10,000 B.C. by east Asian peoples who migrated across the Bering Strait. It is these Mongolian peoples who are the ancestors of the American Indians, according to the Smithsonian Institution:

The American Indians are physically Mongoloids and thus must have originated in eastern Asia. The differences in appearance of the various New World tribes in recent times are due to (1) the initial variability of their Asian ancestors; (2) adaptations over several millennia to varied New World environments; and (3) different degrees of interbreeding in post-Columbian times with people of European and African origins."⁶

There is no solid evidence for immigration via other routes involving long sea voyages (prior to the Norse arrivals from Greenland and Newfoundland about A.D. 1000), as proposed by the Book of Mormon, and if such voyages did occur, they were not significant for the origins and composition of New World populations.⁷

Rajoitetun maantiedon teoria

In order to remove these inherent improbabilities and protect the credibility of the Book of Mormon as authentic history, a number of LDS scholars have proposed a new approach to Book of Mormon geography called the "limited geography theory." The most influencial proponent of this view is Prof. John L. Sorenson of Brigham Young University. Sorenson restricts the Book of Mormon setting to an approximately 400-mile-long section of Central America, with the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in southern Mexico corresponding to the "narrow neck" of the hourglass-shaped land mass described above.⁸

While the limited geography theory appears to resolve some of the flaws of traditional Book of Mormon geography, it creates other problems that are equally serious. It conflicts with details in the Book of Mormon, contradicts the teaching of a long line of LDS presidents and apostles, and in the end cannot produce a single piece of archaeological evidence that can be identified as Nephite or Jaredite (a fact which BYU professors such as Hugh Nibley, Bruce W. Warren, and David J. Johnson all acknowledge).⁹

Kaksi Kumoran kukkulaa?

One area of major contradiction between the limited geography theory and the Book of Mormon concerns the identity and location of the hill Cumorah. Sorenson locates Cumorah in Central America, at a site only 90 miles from the "narrow neck". While this removes an unrealistic requirement of the traditional view, which has the two armies marching thousands of miles north to do battle at what is now Palmyra, New York, it conflicts with the Book of Mormon description of Cumorah as "an exceeding great distance" from the narrow neck into the "land northward" (Helaman 3:3,4). If the Isthmus of Tehuantepec — Sorenson's "narrow neck" of land — at 120 miles across is "narrow," how can the 90 miles from the "narrow neck" to Sorenson's Cumorah fit the Book of Mormon description of "an exceeding great distance"?¹⁰

The limited geography theory also seems to be at odds with the Book of Mormon by requiring two Cumorahs. This is necessary since it locates the final Nephite-Lamanite battle at a Cumorah in Central America, whereas Joseph Smith retrieved the Book of Mormon plates from the traditional hill Cumorah in New York State. This also leaves Moroni with the task of single-handedly transporting the hefty Book of Mormon plates (not to mention the entire Nephite library) over two thousand miles to the New York Cumorah.

Directional Skewing

Another major discrepancy of the limited geography theory is the 45 degree directional skewing that results when the geographic features of the Book of Mormon are superimposed onto the proposed Central American site. Map 2 illustrates the problem. It shows that the Book of Mormon's "land northward" and "land southward" are actually oriented along a northwest-southeast line. This places the "east sea" and "west sea" almost directly north and south of these proposed Book of Mormon lands. It is clear from the Bible that the ancient Israelites used the rising sun as the basis for directional orientation (e.g., Exodus 27:13; 38:13; Numbers 2:3; Ezekiel 8:16). Therefore, one must ask, "Would Hebrew immigrants arriving at the proposed Central American site and using the sun as their directional reference, have arrived at the severely skewed directional orientation suggested by Sorenson?"

Still another conflict is the absence of the "sea north" and the "sea south" (Helaman 3:8). In the traditional view, these descriptions correspond to the Atlantic Ocean below the tip of the South America (Cape Horn), and the Arctic Ocean north of North America, respectively. Editions of the Book of Mormon from 1888 to 1921 included a note to this effect at Helaman 3:8-9. Because of these conflicts with Mormon tradition and Book of Mormon internal evidence, the limited geography theory has been repeatedly condemned by LDS leaders, including Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr. (10th President), Harold B. Lee (11th President), and Bruce R. McConkie.¹¹ In 1978 the Church News labeled it "harmful" and a "challenge" to the "words of the prophets concerning the place where Moroni buried the records."¹²

Book of Mormon geography raises a theological dilemma: on the one hand, the traditional view produces a number of improbabilities that undermine the historical credibility of the Book of Mormon; on the other hand, the limited geography approach rejects the clear pronouncements of Joseph Smith and subsequent presidents and apostles, and conflicts with Book of Mormon teaching on a number of important points.

Erään mormoniarkeologin johtopäätös

As was noted earlier, the Bible and the Book of Mormon are alike in presenting themselves as records of ancient history. However, whereas the authenticity of the Bible is widely accepted even by secular scholars (see article titled "Does Archaeology Support the Bible?"), no non-LDS archaeologist accepts the Book of Mormon as authentic history, and now even many LDS scholars no longer support its historicity.¹³ Why do archaeologist take such a dim view of the Book of Mormon?

One of the best answers to this question was offered by former Brigham Young University anthropology professor, Dr. Raymond T. Matheny at an August 25, 1984 Sunstone conference in Salt Lake City.¹⁴ After working in the area of Mesoamerican archaeology for twenty-two years, Prof. Matheny reported his conclusion that the scientific evidence simply does not support the existence of the peoples and events chronicled in the Book of Mormon, be it in Central America or anywhere else in the western hemisphere.

Dr. Matheny described the Book of Mormon as filled with anachronisms — things that are out of place historically and culturally. It introduces Old World cultural achievements into the pre-Columbian Americas, though the archaeological evidence shows no such levels of culture were attained during this period. Defenders of the historicity of the Book of Mormon are left with only scattered bits of evidence which they interpret apart from accepted scientific standards. The following are among the more significant Book of Mormon anachronisms described by Prof. Matheny:

Rautateollisuus

Nephite civilization is depicted as having iron and other metal industries; we read of metal swords and breastplates, gold and silver coinage, and even machinery. However, according to Matheny, there is no evidence that any Mesoamerican civilization attained such an industry during Book of Mormon times (terminus ad quo: A.D. 421). He pointed out that an iron industry is not a simple feat involving a few people, but a complex process that requires a specialized socio-economic context and leaves virtually indestructible archaeological evidence. However, Matheny reports that:

No evidence has been found in the new world for a ferrous metallurgical industry dating to pre-Columbian times. And so this is a king-size kind of problem, it seems to me, for so-called Book of Mormon archeology. The evidence is absent.¹⁵

Prof. Matheny noted that while scattered iron artifacts have been found in pre-Columbian settings, in the absence of evidence of a metallurgical industry, they must be accounted for by random means, such as meteorites. A few random, scattered artifacts are not a basis for scientific conclusions.¹⁶

Vanhan maailman viljatuotteita

The Book of Mormon depicts the Nephites as producing wheat, barley, flax (linen), grapes, and olives, but none of these products existed in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. As with iron, Matheny pointed out that a complex economic and so- cial level is required to produce these products as they are portrayed in the Book of Mormon:

There's a whole system of production of wheat and barley ... It's a specialized production of food. You have to know something to make flax [the source of linen], and especially in tropical climates. Grapes and olives ... all these are cultures that are highly developed and amount to systems, and so the Book of Mormon is saying that these systems existed here.¹⁷

Matheny noted that a 1983 Science magazine article describing barley found in a pre-Columbian setting is wrongly claimed as support for the Book of Mormon because the grain described was not a domesticated old world barley.¹⁸

Vanhan maailman eläimiä

Another whole group of anachronisms involve various old world domesticated animals which the Book of Mormon describes as integral to Nephite culture. These include asses, cows, goats, sheep, horses, oxen, swine, and elephants. Here again, Matheny pointed out that these domesticated animals are each specializations that require a specific cultural level not attained in the pre-Columbian Americas:

You don't just have a cow or a goat or a horse as an esoteric pet or something. There is a system of raising these things, and the picture that is painted for me as I read this, and others too, is that we have [in Book of Mormon portrayals]... domestic animals and so forth in the New World.¹⁹

Is it valid to claim, as some defenders of the historicity of the Book of Mormon do, that these names — cow, horse, etc. — are simply being used as substitutes for native New World animals such as peccaries or tape deer? Matheny argues that this is not legitimate because the Book of Mormon descriptions occur in specific literary contexts that assume complex old world systems for the raising and use of the various domestic animals:

I mean in Alma there [18:10; 20:6,8] , you know he's using the stable there preparing the horses for King Lamoni, and also he's preparing the King's chariots because they're going to take a trip from one city to another over the royal highway. And also the horses are pastured, no less. So there are contexts within the Book of Mormon itself. These are not just substitutions, it seems to me, but the authors of the Book of Mormon there are providing the context, they're not trying to describe a tape deer or something else, it seems to me. This is a weak way to try to explain the presence of these names in the Book of Mormon.²⁰

Ei sijaa Uudessa maailmassa

Mathenyn kokonaisarvio on, että arkeologia ei tarjoa mitään tukea Mormonin kirjalle historiallisena teoksena: "Sanoisin arvioidessani Mormonin kirjaa, ettei sillä ole mitään sijaa Uudessa maailmassa."

Professori Matheny ei ole yksin arvionsa kanssa. Erittäin arvostettu Väli-Amerikan arkeologian tutkiaj Michael Coe on kirjoittanut:

Alastomat tosiasiat ovat ne, ettei missään Uuden maailman kaivauksessa ole tullut ilmoille mitään, yhtään mitään, mikä saisi puolueettoman tutkijan uskomaan, että Mormonin kirja, kuten Joseph Smith väitti, olisi historiallinen dokumentti, joka kertoo pallonpuoliskollemme tulleiden varhaisten siirtolaisisten historiasta.²¹

Tämä artikkeli alkoi myönnöllä, että arkeologiaa ei voida käyttää suoraan todistamaan oikeaksi tai vääräksi Mormonin kirjan tai raamatun hengellisiä väitteitä. Arkeologia voi kuitenkin arvioida kummankin kirjan historiallisia väitteitä, ja sellainen arviointi osoittaa, että kun objektiiviset todisteet osoittavan raamatun olevan autenttista historiaa, niin samaa ei voida sanoa Mormonin kirjasta.

Luke P. Wilson

Notes

1. Ks. esim. John L. Sorenson, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and Provo: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1985), p. 1.
2. That Joseph Smith and successive generations of Mormon presidents and apostles taught that the Nephites and Lamanites ranged over all or most of South and North America and fought a battle to extinction at the Hill Cumorah in New York State, is documented by Joseph Fielding Smith, 10th President of the LDS Church, in his well known work, Doctrines of Salvation, 3 vols. (Bookcraft, 1955), 3:232-243.
3. Ks. Joseph Smithin "Lehi's Travels" revelation in Franklin D. Richards and James A. Little, A Compendium of the Gospel, 2nd ed. (Salt Lake City: George Q. Cannon & Sons Co., 1884), p. 289.
4. This geographical overview was spelled out in the footnotes of editions of the Book of Mormon from 1876 through 1920.
5. History of the Church, 1948 ed., II: 79-80.
6. "Origin of the American Indians," National Museum of Natural History-Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 1985, p. 1.
7. Ibid.
8. Sorenson's theory is detailed in his book, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, (Deseret Book, 1985).
9. Hugh Nibley, An Approach to the Book of Mormon, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1964, 1979), p. 370; Bruce W. Warren, "Book Reviews," BYU Studies, Vol. 30, No. 3 (Summer 1990), p. 134; David J. Johnson, "Archaeology," in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 4 vols. (New York: Macmillan, 1992), 1:62-63.
10. As noted by Dan Vogel, "Book of Mormon Geography," p. 32, unpublished paper, no date.
11. Church News, 10 September 1938, pp. 1,6; reprinted, 27 February 1954, pp. 2,3; and compiled by Bruce R. McConkie in Doctrines of Salvation, op. cit., 3:233.
12. Deseret News, Church News 48, No. 30 (29 July 1978): p. 16, as cited by Harry L. Ropp, Are the Mormon Scriptures Reliable?, revised ed. (Inter-Varsity Press, 1987), pp. 60, 61; cf. also Vogel, pp. 3,4.
13. Michael Coe, "Mormons and Archeology: An Outside View," Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Vol. 8, No. 2 (Summer 1973), p. 42 — ". . . as far as I know there is not one professionally trained archaeologist, who is not a Mormon, who sees any scientific justification for believing the foregoing to be true, and I would like to state that there are quite a few Mormon archaeologists who join this group."
14. Most of the anachronisms discussed by Prof. Matheny are also mentioned by the eminent (non-Mormon) Mesoamerican archaeologist Michael Coe in the Dialogue article cited in note 13, pp. 40-54.
15. Matheny, p. 23.
16. Ibid., p. 24.
17. Ibid., p. 29.
18. Ibid., p. 28.
19. Ibid.
20. Ibid., p. 30.
21. Coe, p. 46.