Elder Jeffrey R. Holland witnesses of head and heart

“…Truly rock-ribbed faith and uncompromised conviction comes with its most complete power when it engages our head as well as our heart… 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… I believe God intends us to find and use the evidence He has given—reasons, if you will—which affirm the truthfulness of His work… Evidence is still evidence even if it is not immediately observable… “My testimony to you tonight is that the gospel is infallibly true and that a variety of infallible proofs supporting that assertion will continue to come until Jesus descends as the ultimate infallible truth of all. Our testimonies aren’t dependent on evidence—we still need that spiritual confirmation in the heart of which we have spoken—but not to seek for and not to acknowledge intellectual, documentable support for our belief when it is available is to needlessly limit an otherwise incomparably strong theological position and deny us a unique, persuasive vocabulary in the latter-day arena of religious investigation and sectarian debate. Thus armed with so much evidence of the kind we have celebrated here tonight, we ought to be more assertive than we sometimes are in defending our testimony of truth… Farrer [English cleric Austin Farrer] said: “Though argument does not create conviction, lack of it destroys belief. What seems to be proved may not be embraced; but what no one shows the ability to defend is quickly abandoned. Rational argument does not create belief, but it maintains a climate in which belief may flourish.”… May our Father in Heaven bless us and an ever-larger cadre of young scholars around the Church to do more and more to discover and delineate and declare the reasons for the hope that is in us, that like those converted Lamanites, we may with bold conviction hold up to a world that desperately needs it “the greatness of the evidences which [we have] received,” especially of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, the keystone of our religion. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” The Greatness of the Evidence By Elder Jeffrey R. Holland August 16, 2017 

“Individual members are encouraged to independently strive to receive their own spiritual confirmation of the truthfulness of Church doctrine. Moreover, the Church exhorts all people to approach the gospel not only intellectually but with the intellect and the spirit, a process in which reason and faith work together.” LDS Newsroom https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/approaching-mormon-doctrine

Mesoamerican Geography

I don’t fully believe some Historians who believe in the Mesoamerican theory such as Book of Mormon Central or Scripture Central, and The Interpreter and FAIRMormon. They are great guys with a testimony and I love many of their answers but not about two Cumorah’s, or the Mesoamerican theory or the stone in the hat. They also don’t believe the last battles happened in NY at Cumorah, but somewhere in Mexico. They also don’t believe there is a second cave in Hill Cumorah that stored all the plates. They think Joseph just had a dream and the cave was probably in Mexico somewhere.

However, I am happy to see Book of Mormon Central is utilizing the word “Evidences” of the Book of Mormon as Rod Meldrum has been sharing for years. (Heart and Head as Elder Holland said above in Aug of 2017). I do appreciate Mr. Magleby visiting Tennessee to speak about the Mound builders in America. I believe the best evidence of the geography are the words the Lord used. “Promised Land” or “Chosen Land”. The place of the first landing of Lehi cannot be in Guatemala, Chile and Florida. It has to have happened somewhere specific. You can decide that on your own.

JOHN SORENSON: “Lehi and his party launched their vessel into the Indian Ocean from the south coast of the Arabian peninsula. The winds no doubt bore them on the same sea lanes that Arab, Chinese and Portuguese ships used later, touching India and ultimately the Malayan peninsula. From that point Nephi’s ship likely threaded through the islands of the western Pacific, then across the open reaches north of the equator to landfall around 14 degrees north latitude. Nephi left us no information in the Book of Mormon about the route, nor did he tell us in modern terms where they landed. But when we analyze Book of Mormon statements about geography and events, the “land of first inheritance” can only lie west (Pacific) coast of Central America (1 Nephi 18:23; Alma 22:28)… [T]he southernmost portion of Guatemala’s Pacific coast or adjacent El Salvador is most likely where Lehi’s party landed and first settled.(7)” Sorenson, John L., An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon. Salt Lake City, Utah; Deseret Book Company and Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1985, pp. 138-139. http://www.bmaf.org/node/415

“There remain Latter-day Saints who insist that the final destruction of the Nephites took place in New York, but any such idea is manifestly absurd. Hundreds of thousands of Nephites traipsing across the Mississippi Valley to New York, pursued (why?) by hundreds of thousands of Lamanites, is a scenario worthy only of a witless sci-fi movie, not of history.” John L. Sorenson, Mormon’s Codex (Deseret Book, 2013), p. 688.

What the Heartland has, that Mesoamerica does not!

1-Animals and items for use during the Law of Moses: Sheep, Goats, Bullocks, Rams, Doves, Wheat, Barley and Red Wine.
2- Four seasons of the year not two. Alma 46:40; 1 Nephi 11:8
3- Seeds from Jerusalem and Florida both were planted at 30 degrees latitude.
4- Sacred places such as, Garden of Eden, Adam-Ondi-Ahman, Cumorah NY, Zarahemla (D&C 125) in North America
5- We know Cumorah was in upstate NY. D&C 128:20
6- A written language in Mesoamerica was not earlier than 1550 AD. More here: https://bookofmormonevidence.org/a-written-record-critical-to-book-of-mormon-geography/
7- The Hopewell Culture began in Florida in 600 BC the same place and time we believe Lehi and his people began. The Hopewell Culture ended in upstate New York in 400 AD, amazingly the same dates and time we believe the Nephites ended their civilization.
8- Did you know Elephants, Mastodons and Mammoths have not existed in Mesoamerica?
9- The Constitution of the United States was written for God’s purposes here in the Promised Land of the United States and not in Guatemala, or Chile, or Mesoamerica.
10- No mention of Volcanoes in the Book of Mormon
11- Whirlwinds (Tornadoes) in North America, seldom in Mesoamerica.
12- Horses found in ancient Nephites timeline in North America, and not Mesoamerica
13- There are 36 Prophecies and Promises found in the Book of Mormon that can only be answered by Heartland Geography.

Heartland Geography

Elder Russell M. Nelson said, “The Book of Mormon reveals that Joseph, the son of Jacob who was once sold into Egypt, foresaw the Prophet Joseph Smith and his day (see 2 Ne. 3:6–21) and noted that there would be many similarities in their lives. Centuries later, the Prophet Joseph stated, “I feel like Joseph in Egypt.” (The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, ed. Dean C. Jessee, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1984, p. 409; spelling modernized.) The Book of Mormon reveals that the inheritance of Joseph, son of Israel, was not forgotten when, as promised in the Abrahamic covenant, land was distributed to the tribes of Israel. Joseph’s inheritance was to be a land choice above all others. (See Ether 13:2, 8.) It was choice not because of beauty or wealth of natural resources, but choice because it was chosen. It was to be the repository of sacred writing on plates of gold from which the Book of Mormon would one day come, choice because it would eventually host world headquarters of the restored church of Jesus Christ in the latter days.” A TREASURED TESTAMENT By Elder Russell M. Nelson Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles JULY 1993 Adapted from an address given 25 June 1992 at a seminar for new mission presidents, Missionary Training Center, Provo, Utah.

WHY FLORIDA IS PLAUSIBLE FOR THE LAND OF LEHI’S LANDING

First Mission to the Lamanites

In D&C 28, 30, and 32, the Lord went with the missionaries to the Lamanites. Parley P Prat said the first mission to the Lamanites was in NY, OH, and MO. The Lord said, “And Ziba Peterson also shall go with them; and I myself will go with them and be in their midst; and I am their advocate with the Father, and nothing shall prevail against them. (See D&C 32:3) Where is it referring to when it is mentioned Promised Land or mission to the Lamanites etc.? Greenland, Brazil, Guatemala, Ontario, anywhere in the “Americas”? I believe it was in North America and the United States of America.

Gordon B. Hinckley knows and loves North America

No land is better than any other land, but the Lord Himself “chose” the areas of America for Eden, Adam-Ondi-Ahman, SLC, NY Cumorah, Zarahemla (D&C 125) and more. It is fine wherever you think the geography began. We are all entitled to our own opinions.

Pres Hinckley said, “I should like to say a few words about America…. No land is without its beauty, no people without their virtues, and I hope that you who come from elsewhere will pardon my saying a few words concerning my own native land, America. I know that she has problems. We have heard so much of them for so long. But surely this is a good land, a choice land, a chosen land. To me it is a miracle, a creation of the Almighty….” Gordon B. Hinckley, Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled 1974.

Elder L Tom Perry knows where the Book of Mormon Geography is

“The United States is the promised land foretold in the Book of Mormon—a place where divine guidance directed inspired men to create the conditions necessary for the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” Elder L. Tom Perry Ensign Dec. 2012.

President Thomas S. Monson knows the United States is a favored country

“The Lord gave a divine promise to the ancient inhabitants of this favored country (the United States): ‘Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ” (Ether 2:12). Our Heavenly Father inspired the leaders of…the United States of America, that they might together, under His direction, having been raised up by God for the purpose, establish the Constitution of this country and…Bill of Rights, that by the year of our Lord 1805 [there would be] a climate where our Heavenly Father could send into this period of mortality a choice spirit who would be known as Joseph Smith, Jr.” Teachings of Thomas S. Monson by Thomas S. Monson 2011.

Joseph Smith witnesses that North America is the very Plains of the Original Nephites

Joseph Smith said while on Zion’s Camp in 1834 in Illinois on the banks of the Mississippi River said, “The whole of our journey, in the midst of so large a company of social honest and sincere men, wandering over the plains of the Nephites, recounting occasionally 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.

I love all people and especially all Lamanites, wherever they live, but in my opinion the Book of Mormon events began in the Heartland of America, and through war, marriage, migration, or other causes, many parts of South and Central America and the world in general, may possibly also have the blood of Father Lehi. But, I believe it began in America with the landing of Lehi near Florida. I know the Church is neutral on this subject, which I appreciate, but for me, the beginning was in this Promised Land of America. Thanks to Scripture Central for giving the Heartland a say in their discoveries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8vZuCDivlc

Why the Church is Neutral

“(Note. The present associate editor of The Instructor was one day in the office of the late President Joseph F. Smith when some brethren were asking him to approve a map showing the exact landing place of Lehi and his company. President Smith declined to officially approve of the map, say- ing that the Lord had not yet revealed it, and that if it were officially approved and afterwards found to be in error, it would affect the faith of the people. — Asst, Editor. )” https://archive.org/details/instructor734dese/page/160/mode/2up

Joseph Fielding isn’t wrong.
The Heartland of the United States is the Promised Land of the Book of Mormon

“This modernistic theory of necessity, in order to be consistent, must place the waters of Ripliancum and the Hill Cumorah some place within the restricted territory of Central America, notwithstanding the teachings of the Church to the contrary for upwards of 100 years. Because of this theory (Mesoamerica) some members of the Church have become confused and greatly disturbed in their faith in the Book of Mormon. It is for this reason that evidence is here presented to show that it is not only possible that these places could be located as the Church has held during the past century, but that in very deed such is the case… It is known that the Hill Cumorah where the Nephites were destroyed is the hill where the Jaredites were also destroyed. This hill was known to the Jaredites as Ramah. It was approximately near to the waters of Ripliancum, which the Book of Ether says, “by interpretation, is large, or to exceed all…

It must be conceded that this description fits perfectly the land of Cumorah in New York, as it has been known since the visitation of Moroni to the Prophet Joseph Smith, for the hill is in the proximity of the Great Lakes and also in the land of many rivers and fountains. Moreover, the Prophet Joseph Smith himself is on record, definitely declaring the present hill called Cumorah to be the exact hill spoken of in the Book of Mormon. Further, the fact that all of his associates from the beginning down have spoken of it as the identical hill where Mormon and Moroni hid the records, must carry some weight. It is difficult for a reasonable person to believe that such men as Oliver Cowdery. Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, David Whitmer, and many others, could speak frequently of the Spot where the Prophet Joseph Smith obtained the plates as the Hill Cumorah, and not be corrected by the Prophet, if that were not the fact. That they did speak of this hill in the days of the Prophet in this definite manner is an established record of history.” Doctrines of Salvation Joseph Fielding Smith Chapter 12 Quotes added

Mark E. Petersen isn’t wrong about the truth of the Heartland Theory.

“The book, Book of Mormon Geography, SLC: Bookcraft, argues that the Hill Cumorah and the Hill Ramah as geographical locations in the Book of Mormon were located in upstate New York. It therefore challenges the theory that the Hill Cumorah was located somewhere in Latin America. In the preface we find the following: “In recent years there has been a tendency among certain students of the Book of Mormon to orientate Book of Mormon cultures far to the south. Many students of the subject are convinced that the three colonies that came to America had their existence in Central America and Mexico. They are thought to have lived within a radius of a few hundred miles of Zarahemla, never pushing northward many miles, certainly not thrusting out their branches as far north as the Great Lakes along our Canadian border. . . .

Most students who accept this theory do not consider the Hill Cumorah in western New York as the hill where the gold plates were originally deposited, nor the area immediately south of the Great Lakes as the site of the Jaredite and Nephite battlefields. This theory leads to the assumption that Moroni buried the gold pates in a hill in Middle America known as Cumorah. After Joseph Smith’s family moved to Palmyra, New York, it is thought that the Angel Moroni took the plates from the Hill Cumorah in Central America and deposited them in the largest hill near the Smith homestead in western New York.

The following pages are a plea in defense of the old theory–the interpretation of Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, Orson Pratt, and a countless number of the Authorities of the Church. It is our humble opinion that there is no occasion to fling aside the old interpretation and accept the new, thus restricting the Book of Mormon races to the restricted confines of Central America.

We are indebted to Elder Mark E. Petersen, of the Quorum of the Twelve, for reading the manuscript and encouraging us to hasten its publication. He wrote these lines after reading it:” “I greatly enjoyed my perusal of your manuscript, and was very much impressed with the array of information you have gathered together from archaeological and other sources to prove your points. I recall that many of our people who have made studies in the region of the Hill Cumorah in western New York are convinced that the Nephites and Lamanites fought their last battles there because of the discovery of so many evidences of an ancient battle in that region. I am glad for anything that strengthens the faith of our people, and I believe that this new book will do that, particularly with respect to their attitude toward the Book of Mormon. I hope many people will read it and enjoy it as I did.” 1948 E. Cecil McGavin and Willard W. Bean Book of Mormon Geography, SLC: Bookcraft

Mark E. Petersen also said: “You from other lands don’t need to become jealous of America. Who is jealous of Palestine, where Jesus was born? We are not jealous of the country; we merely recognize the hand of God in sending him there. We must also recognize the hand of God in sending the gospel to this land. We learn to love America because it is God’s land! The Great Prologue Mark E. Petersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles September 29, 1974

Elder Petersen also said, “As the fighting neared its end, Mormon gathered the remnant of his forces about a hill which they called Cumorah, located in what is now the western part of the state of New York…. When finished with the record, Moroni was to hide it up in that same Hill Cumorah which was their battlefield. It would come forth in modern times as the Book of Mormon, named after Moroni’s father, the historian who compiled it… His people were Americans, too. His words constituted a people-to-people message, ancient Americans speaking to modern Americans.” Mark E. Petersen https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1978/10/the-last-words-of-moroni?lang=eng

A Land of  Liberal Institutions

How is it even possible to listen to these Prophets and Apostles and not believe them? I trust these men and not the Historians or Intellectuals today who are trying to fit their bias into a reason to believe that Lehi landed anywhere else than the area of North America? Common sense says the land the Lord chose for the restoration was not in the land of Mesoamerica or Central or South America, as in these lands there were not the right conditions for the restoration.

As Bishop Whitney said, “…in culmination of the grand scheme of schemes, this great nation, the Republic of the United States, might be established upon this land as an asylum for the oppressed; a resting place, it might be said, for the Ark of the covenant, where the temple of our God might be built; where the plan of salvation might be introduced and practiced in freedom, and not a dog would wag his tongue in opposition to the purposes of the Almighty. We believe that this was His object in creating the Republic of the United States; the only land where his work could be commenced or the feet of his people find rest. No other land had such liberal institutions, had adopted so broad a platform upon which all men might stand. We give glory to those patriots for the noble work they did; but we give the first glory to God, our Father and their Father, who inspired them. We take them by the hand as brothers. We believe they did nobly their work, even as we would fain do ours, faithfully and well, that we might not be recreant in the eyes of God, for failing to perform the mission to which He has appointed us.” Bishop Orson F. Whitney, delivered in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday Afternoon, April 19, 1885. Reported by John Irvine. Journal Discourses Volume 26 Page 201

Brenton Yorgesen belives in the Heartland

“The Book of Mormon records that due to the wickedness of the Nephite civilization they were destroyed by their brothers the Lamanites. The final battles of this unholy war took place near a hill that was called Cumorah. At Cumorah, hundreds of thousands of Nephites were slain, and the prophet/historian Moroni buried the history of his people in that hill (Mormon 6:2-15; 8:1-5). Hundreds of years later, that same history was unearthed in upstate New York, by the boy prophet Joseph Smith and translated to become the Book of Mormon (Joseph Smith–History 1:51-52).
“When Joseph Smith made his “fantastic” claims and published the Book of Mormon as an ancient history of the American Indians, some scoffed at the idea that a major battle had anciently taken place in the local vicinity. However, evidence was soon produced that documented that this region of the country did indeed once possess a heavy Indian population, and that a terrible battle had taken place in that locality.

Writing in 1851, E. G. Squier says that in the region: “Human bones of men, women, and children of both sexes were thrown together promiscuously by the thousands.” He notes large quantities of pottery, pipes, flint arrow-heads, stone hatchets and other implements were also found there. He further states that the ancient relics unearthed in the vicinity (which he estimates to be several hundred years old) showed considerable evidence of Hebrew origin.” (See E. G. Squier, Antiquities of New York, 1851, pp. 137-138.)

In New York State Bulletin #2 it is documented that several miles south of “Mormon Hill,” as it was then called, a site was found where flint arrowheads and spear points and many unfinished weapons were found in great abundance.” All of the above sources are cited in Brenton G. Yorgason, Little Known Evidences of the Book of Mormon, 1989, p. 10.

James E. Talmage speaks out on Cumorah Land

Elder James E. Talmadge of the Council of the Twelve made the following statements to Elder Golden Jensen who was serving as secretary of the Eastern States Mission in New York in 1920, which Elder Jensen recorded in a letter to a friend in 1954:

Dear Brother Dixon: June 10, 1954

“In keeping with your request, I will endeavor to give you herein an account of an experience which I greatly enjoyed while laboring as secretary of the Eastern States Mission.

In the summer of 1920, I received an assignment to attend a special meeting with the missionaries laboring in Buffalo, New York. The day following the meeting I met George W. McCune, my mission president, and the late Dr. James E, Talmage who had driven to Buffalo from Detroit, Michigan. At their invitation I accompanied them to New York City. Enroute, however, we proceeded to Rochester, thence to the city of Palmyra, where we visited briefly. We then proceeded to the Joseph Smith Farm, where we left our car and walked to the sacred grove. As we were about to enter the grove, Dr. Talmage stopped, removed his shoes, and requested that President McCune and I remain where we were while he entered and prayed, alone in that sacred and holy spot, to the Living God.

After a while he called us to join him, whereupon he retold the story of the boy Prophet and of the glorious vision which Joseph had beheld, while President McCune and I sat and wept with joy.

Leaving the grove, we went immediately to the Hill Cumorah and viewed the spot where the Angel Moroni had, ages before, deposited the golden plates according to the instructions of the Lord. These records were later revealed and delivered to Joseph the Prophet and were translated by him forth to the world The Book of Mormon.

All the while I was being thrilled and edified by the continuous flow of information and wisdom that came from the marvelous store of knowledge of Elder Talmage. I think I shall never forget how he looked, standing with bared head on the crest of the Hill Cumorah and with outstretched arm describing as he seemed to visualize that last great battle between the armies of the Nephites and Lamanites, calling attention to the significance of the hill as a vantage point for the forces who might gain control or possession of it.

At this time he stated that he had found as a result of a survey and extensive analysis made by him, while a student in an eastern university, the soils of the surrounding area to be very rich in calcium, and phosphate content, in the soils particularly adjacent to the Hill Cumorah. With further investigation he discovered that there was a lack of these elements in the land which lay further than a few miles in radius in any direction from the Hill Cumorah. To him, this discovery was indicative of the fact that there was decaying of bones of the Nephite and Lamanite armies that perished there.

To Apostle Talmage there was no doubt as to the reality of those great events as related in the Book of Mormon, nor was there any doubt in his mind as to the place where they had occurred.

I commend you, Brother Dixon, for your keen interest in the visible and physical evidences which declare the truth of the Book of Mormon; and may the Lord bless you in your endeavor to bring attention of same to closer view.”

Sincerely your brother, Golden Jensen (Riley L. Dixon, Just One Cumorah , 1958, 147-149)