There have been many witnesses of the events of the Book of Mormon beginning in the Heartland of the United States, by Prophets, Apostles, and other members of the church. Some were shared at General Conferences, some from church pulpits and some from the ordinary lives of our beloved Pioneers. All statements are important to read and reflect upon and search for the spirit of truth. For myself, knowing the Land of Joseph is indeed the Promised Land of America, is an important part of my testimony of the Book of Mormon. I will share why geography is important to me at the end of this blog.
Truman G. Madsen
“If you live into the next century you will see evidence for the Book of Mormon come forth in droves.” Truman G. Madsen, speaking of what the Prophet Joseph Smith said to a colleague, in the opening statement of the 2005 video, “Journey of Faith.”
F. Michael Watson
“The Church has long maintained, as attested to by references in the writings of General Authorities, that the Hill Cumorah in western New York state is the same as referenced in the Book of Mormon.” F. Michael Watson, Secretary to the First Presidency, in a letter dated October 16, 1990
Anthony W. Ivins
“The passages which I have quoted from the Book of Mormon and the more extended discussion of this subject by Elder B. H. Roberts which was published in The Deseret News of March 3 definitely established the following facts: That the hill Cumorah, and the hill Ramah are identical. That it was around this hill that the armies of both the Jaredites and Nephites fought their great last battles. That it was in this hill that Mormon deposited all of the sacred records which had been entrusted to his care by Ammaron, except the abridgment which he had made from the plates of Nephi, which were delivered into the hands of his son, Moroni. We know positively that it was in this hill that Moroni deposited the abridgment made by his father, and his own abridgment of the record of the Jaredites, and that it was from this hill that Joseph Smith obtained possession of them.
Ivins continued. “According to the Book of Mormon, many hundreds of thousands of people fell in battle around this hill and in the immediate vicinity. It was here that two once-powerful nations were exterminated so far as their national existence was concerned. It was here that these nations gathered together for their last great struggles.
All of these incidents to which I have referred, my brethren and sisters, are very closely associated with this particular spot in the state of New York. Therefore I feel, as I said in the beginning of my remarks, that the acquisition of that spot of ground is more than an incident in the history of the Church; it is an epoch—an epoch which in my opinion is fraught with that which may become of greater interest to the Latter-day Saints than that which has already occurred. We know that all of these records, all the sacred records of the Nephite people, were deposited by Mormon in that hill. That incident alone is sufficient to make it the sacred and hallowed spot that it is to us. I thank God that, in a way which seems to have been providential, it has come into the possession of the Church” The Hill Cumorah by President Anthony W. Ivins, Improvement Era, 1928, Vol. Xxxi. June, 1928 No. 8
Russell M. Nelson
Gerald Lund said, “In the fall of 2007, my assignment as a General Authority Seventy was in Salt Lake City, working in the Church Office Building. One day I went down to a small cafeteria in the basement of the Church Administration Building that is reserved for General Authorities. After getting my food, I saw that four of my colleagues in the Seventy were seated at a table for six, just starting to eat. They invited me to join them. We spoke briefly about our various assignments, but soon the talk turned to the current financial crisis. It didn’t take long for our conversation to become quite bleak in tone. One of the brethren had a grandchild who had recently graduated with an MBA but was having no luck in finding employment. Another reported that a grandchild was unsure about wanting to get married and bring children into the world.
About that time, as this cloud of gloom settled over our lunch table, Russell M. Nelson, then Elder Nelson of the Twelve, came into the lunchroom with a tray of food. Seeing that we had a vacant spot at our table, he joined us. He ate quietly for a time as our conversation went right on in that same sense of discouragement. Finally, one of the brethren said, “They’re talking about the possibility of the whole government of the United States failing. Then what shall we do?”
Elder Nelson, who hadn’t said much since sitting down, laid down his fork and looked at us directly. His expression was very sober as he spoke quietly, saying something like this: “Brethren, the Lord chose the United States of America as the place for the Restoration of the gospel in our dispensation. He did that so we would have a base of religious freedom that would sustain the work of the Restoration. Also, the financial affluence and the political stability of the United States makes it possible for our Church to take the gospel to the world. That is a task that is not yet finished. Brethren, the Lord is at the helm. He will not let this work fail.”
That was more than ten years ago, but I still vividly remember two things. First, how sheepish we felt for letting ourselves become so negative. And the second was the lesson taught: God is in control. Why then do we fear? It was a profound teaching moment, and I have reminded myself of that day often when I have found myself growing discouraged and pessimistic”. God is at the helm! by Elder Gerald N. Lund, adapted from “The Second Coming of the Lord” | Oct. 07, 2020 See dozens of additional quotes here:
In the Midst of the Lamanites
“No,” said the old Patriarch [Joseph Smith Sr.], his whole being seeming to be alive with animation. “The Lord has told Joseph that when we leave here we will go into the Rocky Mountains, right into the midst of the Lamanites.”
This information filled our hearts with unspeakable joy, for we knew that the Book of Mormon and this gospel had been brought to light more for the remnants of Jacob upon this continent than for the Gentiles.
Father Smith again enjoined upon us profound secrecy in this matter, and I don’t think it was ever uttered by one of Father Huntington’s family.
The history of Nauvoo shows that we located in Nauvoo in 1839 and left it in 1846.
See Sources here: The Young Woman’s Journal, II, (December, 1890), pp. 124-125; (February, 1891), pp. 225-226; (April, 1891), pp. 314-315; (May, 1891), p. 366; (July, 1891), pp. 466-468; IV (March, 1893), pp. 274-275; (April, 1893) pp. 320-321; (June, 1893), pp. 424-425; Hyrum L. Andrus and Helen Mae Andrus, comps., They Knew the Prophet [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1974], 63
A Veritable Swamp
“When President Young visited the proposed sites, he requested that his teamster conduct the party to the lowest place in the valley, a veritable swamp infested with marsh-grass and cattails. Pointing out the marsh to the brethren, he explained that the [St. George] Temple must be built at that place, because the Nephites had previously dedicated that very site for the erection of a Temple, but had been unable to bring their hopes to a full fruition.” McGavin, E. Cecil, 1935, Mormonism and Masonry, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret News Press, p. 156
This Spot was Dedicated by the Nephites
Another account by David Henry Cannon Jr., a witness to the event, says:
To the South, they finally stopped. ‘But, Brother Young,’ protested the men, ‘this land is boggy . . . There is no place to build a foundation. We will make a foundation, said President Young. Later on while plowing and scraping where the foundation was to be, my horse’s leg broke through the ground into a spring of water. The brethren then wanted to move the foundation line twelve feet to the south, so that the spring of water would be on the outside of the Temple. Not so,’ replied President Young, ‘We will wall it up and leave it here for some future use. But we cannot move the foundation. This spot was dedicated by the Nephites. They could not build it (the Temple), but we can and will build it for them.’ To this day the water from that very spring is running through a drain properly built for it.” Heinerman, Joseph, 1986, Temple Manifestations, Salt Lake City Utah: Joseph Lyon and Associates, Inc. dba Magazine Printing and Publishing, pp. 60-
Prophet Moroni Stood and Dedicated this Piece of Land
Once, Brigham Young, accompanied by Warren S. Snow, went to where they would build the Manti Temple. Warren S. Snow said:
“We two were alone: President Young took me to the spot where the Temple was to stand; we went to the southeast corner, and President Young said: ‘Here is the spot where the Prophet Moroni stood and dedicated this piece of land for a Temple site, and that is the reason why the location is made here, and we can’t move it from this spot; and if you and I are the only good persons that come here at high noon today, we will dedicate this ground.’ A Source Book, Provo, UT: FARMS; Whitney, Orson F., 1974, Life of Heber C. Kimball, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, p. 477; Cheesman, Paul R., 1978, The World of the Book of Mormon, Horizon Publishers, Bountiful, Utah, p. 25; Heinerman, Joseph, 1986, Temple Manifestations, Salt Lake City, Utah: Joseph Lyon and Associates, Inc. dba Magazine Printing and Publishing, p. 101
Gadianton Robbers
Upon one occasion President Brigham Young was in the Tabernacle at St. George and was speaking on the spirit world. He stated that it was not far from us and if the veil could be taken from our eyes there wouldn’t be either a man, woman or child who would dare go out of “this tabernacle as the spirits of the Gadianton robbers were so thick out there. This is where they lived in these mountains,” said he.” Crowther, Duane S., 1967, Life Everlasting, Bookcraft, SLC, UT, p. 165, as quoted from N. B. Lundwall, Temples of the Most High, p. 89.
“Of course, the significance of this statement makes sense only in light of the land of Zarahemla being in the United States [D&C 125]. The Nephites wouldn’t have gone all the way from Mexico into the United States to hunt the Gadianton Robbers, nor would the Gadiantons have gone into the United States to hide from Nephites in Mexico. It is clear that since the Gadianton Robbers were hiding out in Utah in the St. George region, the Land of Zarahemla must have been in the United States as well. The “mountains” mentioned in the following scriptures, therefore, are the Rocky Mountains of the United States.” Some references used from Joseph Smith Foundation Website
A Nephite or a Jaredite?
EXPERIENCE OF ZEKE JOHNSON, son of Joel Hills Johnson, born in 1869. (Recorded in the JOHNSON BULLEITN, September 1973)
“I have been requested to relate an experience I had in 1908-9 in San Juan Co. I was just making a home in Blanding and the whole country there was covered with trees and sagebrush. I was working hard to clear the ground to plant a few acres of corn. We had five acres cleared and stared to plant corn. My little boy, Roy, about 7 or 8 years old was there to help me plant the corn. I’d plow around the place, then he would plant the furrow with corn, then I’d cover it and plow again. While I was plowing on that piece of ground, I discovered there were ancient houses there, that is the remains of them.
As I was plowing around I noticed that my plow had turned out the skeleton of a small child, the skull and backbone, but most of the bones of course were decayed and gone. Part of the skeleton was there, so I stopped immediately as my plow had passes it a little. I turned and looked back against the bar of the plow between the needles. As I was looking at that little skeleton that I had plowed out and wondering, all of a sudden, to my surprise, I saw the bones begin to wiggle and they began to change position and to take different color and within a minute there lay a beautiful little skeleton. It was a perfect little skeleton.
Then I saw the inner parts of the natural body coming in the entrails, etc. I saw the flesh coming on, and I saw the skin come on the body when the inner parts of the body were complete. A beautiful head of hair adorned the top of the head, and in about a half minute after the hair was on the head, it had a beautiful crystal decoration in the hair. It was combed beautifully and parted on one side. In about half a minute after the hair was on the head, the child raised up on her feet. She was lying a little on her left side with her back toward me. Because of this I wasn’t able to discern the sex of the child, but as she raised, a beautiful robe came down over her left shoulder and I saw it must be a girl.
She looked at me and I looked at her, and for a quarter of a minute we just looked at each other smiling. Then in my ambition to get hold of her, I said, ‘Oh you beautiful child.’ I reached out as if I would embrace her and she disappeared. That was all I saw, and I just stood there and wondered and thought for a few minutes… Now, I couldn’t tell that story to anyone, because it was so mysterious to me and such. Why should I have such a miraculous experience? I couldn’t feature a human being in such a condition as to accidentally plow that little body out and see it come alive. A body of a child about 5 to 7 years old, I’d say. I just couldn’t tell that story to anyone until finally, one day I met a dear friend of mine, Stake Patriarch, Wayne II. Redd of Blanding. He stopped me on the street, and said, ‘Zeke, you have had an experience on this mesa you won’t tell, and I want you to tell me.’ Well, I told it to him. Then he had me tell it to other friends and since then I’ve told it in 4 temples in the United States, and many meeting houses, many socials, Fast meetings, and at Conference time.
I wondered and worried about it for years as to why I was allowed to see it, a common man like me – uneducated as I was. Why was I, just a common man, allowed to see such a marvelous manifestation of God’s powers? One day as I was walking along with my hoe on my shoulder, going to hoe some corn, something said, ‘Stop under the shade of the tree for a few minutes and rest.’ This just came to me and I thought I would, so I stopped there and this was given to me:
It was an answer to my prayers. I prayed incessantly for an answer as to why I was privileged to see that resurrection. Then I was told why. When the child was buried there, it was either in time of war with the different tribes, or it was wintertime when the ground was frozen, and they had no tools to dig deep graves. If it were during time of war they couldn’t possibly take time to dig a deep grave. They just planted the little body as they could under the circumstances. Then it was done, the sorrowing Mother knew that it was such a little shallow grave that in her sorrow she cried out to the little group present, ‘That little shallow grave, the first beast that comes along will smell her body, and will dig her up and scatter her to the four winds. Her bones will be scattered all over these flats.’
There just happened to be a man present holding the Priesthood. (A Nephite or a Jaredite, I don’t know which, because they both had been in this country.) This man said, ‘Sister, calm your sorrows. Whenever that little body is disturbed or uncovered, the Lord will call her up and she will live.’ Since that time I have taken great comfort, great cheer, consolation, and satisfaction with praise in my heart and soul, until I haven’t the words to express it, that it was I that uncovered that little body.
Thank you for listening to me. I just can’t tell this without crying.” Zeke Johnson, son of Joel Hills Johnson
Why Geography Matters by Rian Nelson
“If we in the church cannot even decide among ourselves where the Book of Mormon happened, how confusing is that to our youth and adults? Many anti-Mormons love the idea that we don’t even know where our sacred scriptures happened. There are over 100 theories of where the Book of Mormon happened, including, Baja, Chile, Malaysia, Honduras, Peru, etc. My feelings on all geographical theories about the Book of Mormon must include the following -The Hill Cumorah in NY is the hill where Joseph Smith received the plates from Moroni, and it is also the place of the last battles of the Nephites (Cumorah) and of the Jaredites (Ramah). I also believe the letter of Joseph Smith to his wife Emma in 1834 Illinois where he said “The whole of our journey, in the midst of so large a company of social honest men and sincere men, wandering over the plains of the Nephites, recounting [p. 57] occasionaly the history of the Book of Mormon, roving over the mounds of that once beloved people of the Lord, picking up their skulls & their bones, as a proof of its divine authenticity” Joseph Smith Papers Letter to Emma Smith, 4 June 1834 Page 56-7 (spelling not corrected), is a true statement. Any other specific locations of the Book of Mormon cities and places are not fully known.
Any other geography that doesn’t include these preceding important details isn’t a viable interpretation in my opinion. No scholar, computer or archaeology tells me this, I just feel it is true by personal revelation.
I also believe the Promised Land spoken of in the Book of Mormon is indeed the United States of America and its Constitution was written under the Savior Jesus Christ’s direction. D&C 101:80. Also knowing that Adam lived in Missouri and the New Jerusalem will be in Missouri, tells me the importance of “this Land” of the United States as the cradle of civilization and is critical as the headquarters of the Church, the land where the Gospel goes forth from, the place where the “Marvelous Work and Wonder” takes place, and the “Land of Joseph” of Egypt spoken of by prophets, is indeed the United States of America. I also believe there is a great possibility that D&C 125:3 is the Lord designating the area west of Nauvoo, Illinois as the ancient place of Zarahemla. I also feel the Prophet Joseph Smith had a vision about the warrior Zelph who was killed during one of the many last and great battles between the Nephites and Lamanites, near Valley City, Illinois. This information makes me conclude that indeed the Book of Mormon events happened in the heartland of the United States of America.
I believe there are great Lamanites all over North, South and Central America today and in other countries, but they are not necessarily the ones spoken of in the Book of Mormon time frame. The Book of Mormon only contains a fraction of the history of the Promised Land Lehites. But I believe that small fraction of Book of Mormon history speaks about Lehi, and Nephi, and Alma, and Mormon as they lived and fought in these United States.
I spent over 40 years looking and studying the Mesoamerican theory and other many theories, and found them very lacking. Like I mentioned, I will have an open mind if and until the church acknowledges the specific location. I will follow the 15 chosen Prophets and Seers.
I know the Brethren of the Church take a neutral position on the geography of the Book of Mormon. For you and me to take a neutral stand is not required. The Lord told us to read and study, and in the promise to Moroni, He said we may know the truth of ALL things, and I feel that would include knowing the location of the Book of Mormon events. I believe knowledge of the Spirit and of the head, are both important in learning truth. As Elder Holland in 2017 said, “truth borne by the Holy Spirit comes with, in effect, two manifestations, two witnesses if you will—the force of fact as well as the force of feeling.”
Previously posted by Rian Nelson on Facebook Sept 22, 2019