Horses in book of mormon

There are five incidences where horses are mentioned in the book of mormon, and are portrayed as being in the forest upon first arrival of the nephites, raised. Thinking about this question requires us to begin by reflecting on the book of mormon text itself. Each possible explanation also teaches important lessons about archaeology, ancient. Not to mention the text of the book of mormon would have used it in the wars. There were beasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, which were for the use of men. In spite of difficulties in defending this claim, and although the evidence is incomplete, the geological and archaeological record does provide support for horses and even wheeled vehicles in ancient america. It is possible that the subsequent disasters associated with the death of christ 3 nephi 810 or the wars and famines of later years alma 45. An account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the. These limited details seem to allow brant gardners observation, the book of mormon horse never fulfills the functions we expect of a horse. The mention of horses among domesticated animals kept by book of mormon peoples has raised questions in some peoples minds, due to the prevailing view that horses were not found in the americas during precolumbian times. The men who attacked amon demonstrated that tapirs could be ridden onehanded. This paper is based on a talk and powerpoint presentation given to the book of mormon lands conference, 20 october 2007.

Hard evidence of ancient american horses book of mormon. Horses, chariots, highways, and trade the book of mormon mentions horses and chariots. Horses are not mentioned in the book of mormon after the time of christ 3 nephi 6. Excerpt from the horses in the book of mormon article on fair mormon. The book of mormon s horses werent actually equus ferus caballus, horses in the precise modern sense, but some other animal e. Horse remains have been found in california which radiocarbon date before the spanish arrival to the area. Hard evidence of ancient american horses byu studies. Others believe that the word horse in the book of mormon does not refer to members of the genus equus but instead to other animals such as deer or tapirs. Scientists, historians, and other scholars have long maintained the view that there were no horses in the americas during book of mormon times.

Horses are only mentioned once during the nearly two. Although hard evidence is available to consider, so far no incontrovertible proof of book of mormon horses existsthat is to say, physical remains conclusively dated to around 500 bc and earlier from supposed book of mormon. Why are horses mentioned in the book of mormon lds living. Here are some important points that are often overlooked when exploring this challenge. In light of this view, latterday saints have approached this question in one of two ways. The book of mormon is supposed to be a history of real people living in a real place. There are five incidences where horses are mentioned in the book of mormon, and are portrayed as being in the forest upon first arrival of the nephites, raised, fed, prepared in conjunction with chariots, used for food, and being useful unto man. Hard evidence of ancient american horses part 1 dan. Jan 29, 2018 one of the most persistent questions about the book of mormon has been the mention of horses among the nephites, lamanites, and jaredites. Some people believe that references to horses are out of place since it is widely believed that they were extinct long before book of mormon times.

In fact, the last mentions of horses indicates that they were plentiful. The book of mormon mentions horses, yet these animals seem not to have been known to native americans who greeted the spaniards upon their arrival in the new world in the sixteenth century. Horses in the book of mormon lds scripture teachings. There is a documented report from a french baron fighting the iroquois in 1687 near rochester, new york, that reads, in all these villages, we found plenty of horses, black cattle, fowl and hogs. Horses in the book of mormon general discussions mormon. In fact, horses went extinct in the americas thousands of years before they show up in the book of mormon. Horses in the book of mormon book of mormon archaeological. Horses in the book of mormon the contents of all bmaf publications are the sole responsibility of the individual authors and therefore do not necessarily represent the views of bmaf or the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The nephites being in one body, and having so great a number, and having reserved for themselves provisions, and horses and cattle, and flocks of every. To know exactly when each horse, elephant, and cow went extinct has to be an unsure science. And it came to pass that the people of nephi did till the land, and raise all manner of grain, and of fruit, and flocks of herds and also many horses. There does not appear to be archeological proof for their existence in the new world during the time period in which they are mentioned 600 b. For addition precolumbian dated horse bones, see miller and roper, animals in the book of mormon, 164.

Book of mormon horses do not function anything like nineteenthcentury farm or field horses, nor are they utilized by either the nephites or lamanites as were the horses belonging to the farmers, explorers, or native americans in joseph smiths milieu. An entire book of essays deals with the contact between the maya and teotihuacan, the maya and teotihuacan, reinterpreting early classic interaction, edited by geoffery e. Horse manure in the book of mormon excultmember re. Horses are mentioned only on a few occasions in the book of mormon the last mention is around the time of christ horses are mentioned once. While the book of mormon mentions horses, nothing in the text indicates that their importance approached anywhere near that of horses in hun society. Jan 17, 2020 first of all, the author, daniel johnson, states the problem. Nov 01, 2008 but, now the lds church is saying the horse referred to in the book of mormon is probably a tapir or deer like animal known in central and south america, as is noted in an article from the fairlds site horses in the book of mormon by mike ash. Horses in the book of mormon book of mormon mormon. There were writings and drawings of lions in palestine and horses used by the. Ancient horses and the book of mormon the contents of all bmaf publications are the sole responsibility of the individual authors and therefore do not necessarily represent the views of bmaf or the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. What is the nature and use of chariots in the book of mormon. Jun 21, 2016 the word chariot conjures up images of horsedrawn war vehicles. Ted dee stoddard, in the issue of the word horse in the book of mormon, reminds us that horses existed at one time in the ancient world, but were believed to have become extinct. Horses are mentioned in eight different book of mormon episodes that involve an ancient new world setting.

Ancient horses and the book of mormon book of mormon. Horses, scholars believe, were only reintroduced by columbus to the carribbean in 1493, and by cortez to the continent over two decades later in 1819. Though wheeled vehicles are still unattested throughout precolumbian america, archaeology currently shows that some mesoamerican peoples did understand the. In the book of mormon, however, chariots are referenced little, and never in a battle context, making it hard to be certain about their nature. Bennett stated that as a comparison, the famed horses of the huns did not leave any archaeological trace yet numbered in the thousands. Though wheeled vehicles are still unattested throughout precolumbian america, archaeology currently shows that some mesoamerican peoples did understand the concept.

Gain a deeper understanding about this topic by learning what the text actually says, what the archaeological record shows, how ancient people labeled unfamiliar animals, and how the translation process might have happened. So, given the rarity of hun horse remains, we should not be disturbed if so far we do not have incontrovertable evidence of nephite horses. There were beasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals1 nephi 18. Scholars go over evidence and discuss horses found in. First of all, the author, daniel johnson, states the problem.

Dec 01, 2017 horses, scholars believe, were only reintroduced by columbus to the carribbean in 1493, and by cortez to the continent over two decades later in 1819. Another scholar pointed out several possibilities for mentions of horses. Each possible explanation also teaches important lessons about archaeology. Further, the weakness of uncertain horses in the book of mormon is an area with a hint of a familiar trend. The suggestion of horses and chariots in precolumbian america has long been an easy target for critics of the book of mormon.

In my opinion, a more likely candidate for the nephite loanshift horse would have been the central american tapir. Two major questions have been raised by antilds critics of the book of mormon concerning the statement that there were horses and chariots on the. Book of mormon difficulties, contradictions and explanations. For example, book of mormon references to horses suggest that they may have been uncommon or rare, being limited only to certain regions during specific periods of book of mormon history.

Many people who believe in the mesoamerican theory try very hard to explain why horses are mentioned in the book of mormon, when they. Feb 05, 2008 the following is a partial rebuttal to the anti mormon video bible vs. Readers can interpret the presence of horses in the book of mormon in a variety of different ways. Horses in the book of mormon sign in to follow this. Jones in the 90s had a bunch of bones independently tested that were in various mesoamerican strata that appeared precolumbian. The book of mormon speaks of horses used by book of mormon peoples, and yet there is no proof of such a thing. Why does the book of mormon mention horses when there were. When the spanish arrived on the american mainland in the 16th century, they brought horses with them and reestablished the animals on the continent. A related discussion is in my post, update on horses in the book of mormon, mormanity blog, feb.

One of the toughest challenges for the book of mormon is the issue of horses. The question of horses in the book of mormon lds magazine. Others believe that the word horse in the book of mormon does. Jul 16, 2019 the topic of horses in the book of mormons depiction of the ancient new world is undoubtedly a controversial one. The book of mormon mentions that horses were known and used by the jaredites and the people of lehi. Horses in the book of mormon post by nibbler fri apr 27, 2018 7. In other words, critics claim that the book of mormon is a fraud, since horses mentioned in the book of mormon couldnt have lived here at the time of the nephites. Nor does the book of mormon text indicate that horses or chariots play any role in the many nephite wars despite a popular classic book of mormon painting by arnold friburg depicting helaman leading the 2000 stripling warriors while astride a battleready horse. Donors interested in supporting this work can do so through book of mormon central. The topic of horses in the book of mormon s depiction of the ancient new world is undoubtedly a controversial one.

The horse evolved in the americas, but became extinct between 8,000 and 12,000 years ago. May 06, 2011 if the book of mormon truly is an ancient history of america, we can search the book of mormon, then search archaeology to discover if the book of mormon is accurate. The following is a partial rebuttal to the anti mormon video bible vs. Ash, scholar, author of shaken faith syndrome and of faith and reason the charge that the book of mormon must be fiction. So much for the fourthgrade idea that eastern woodland indians always walked and that the first horses came to the plains tribes, who. Horses in america and book of mormon recovery from. The book of mormon mentions horses a few times, even though were not in the americas before the spanish arrived, according to current expert opinion. The book of mormon claims that horses were found on the american continent after the arrival of at least two groups of people. Miller and matthew roper, animals in the book of mormon. Horses true book of mormon geography lands western new. Here are a couple of apologetic sources suggesting that tapirs are what the book of mormon means by horses. Moreover, archaeological evidence for the presence of the horse in the precolumbian americas is presently scant and inconclusive. Several recent publications on this topic deserve to be considered. The king james quotations in the book of mormon, the history of the text of the book of mormon.

The most recent issue of byu studies quarterly includes an. Horses and the book of mormon why the lds church is true. The book of mormon is allegedly about a lost tribe of israel that made it to north america and lived with the indians here. There is no evidence that horses existed on the american. Of course, archaelogical and anthropological research shows us that the western horse went extinct thousands of years before the time of the alleged. Any casual student of archaeology knows scientists frequently find animals alive that were previously believed to be extinct. The book of mormon is a sacred text of the latter day saint movement, which, according to adherents, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the american continent from approximately 2200 bc to ad 421.

But, now the lds church is saying the horse referred to in the book of mormon is probably a tapir or deer like animal known in central and south america, as is noted in an article from the fairlds site horses in the book of mormon by mike ash. The first apologist argument that they did not find archaeological evidence of lions in palestine until very recently is not applicable since pictographic and literary evidence of horses in the new world outside of the book of mormon is unknown. Horses in america and book of mormon recovery from mormonism. Gotta have something to pull the chariots since hoses didnt exist. It was first published in march 1830 by joseph smith as the book of mormon. There are three possible ways to approach this puzzle, dealing with archaeology, ancient cultural practices, and difficulties in translation. In fact, book of mormon horses are never mentioned in a combat narrative. The question of horses in the book of mormon meridian. Scholars go over evidence and discuss horses found in precolumbian times, chariots, and elephants.

Below is the modern map of the area of smiths youth. Critics claim that horses are mentioned eleven times in the book of mormon in the context of its new world setting, however, this is not true. At first glance, its a simple case for rejecting the book. Precolumbian horses in book of mormon proves it false. May 26, 2018 the book of mormon talks about horses. Excerpts from step by step through the book of mormon unpublished by alan c. Horses, cattle, oxen, sheep, swine, goats, elephants, wheels, chariots, wheat, silk, steel, and iron did not exist in precolumbian. Book of mormon verses containing the reference to horses. Many critics ridicule the mention of horses in the book of mormon, for it is widely assumed that horses were not known to man in the americas prior to contact with europeans.

Apr 28, 2018 the book of mormon has a few different mentions of horses in different verses, but horses in the book of mormon arent used in the way we understand horses to be used. For those new to arm who arent informed on the controversythe book of mormon claims that its people had and used horses as late as 26 ad 3 nephi 6. Mormon challenges are precolumbian horses in book of. There are a small number of mentions in the book of mormon of horses. The word chariot conjures up images of horse drawn war vehicles. Captain moroni made every other medieval war advancement in a period of 20. Aug 03, 2018 every time there is some new evidence for horses, i am extremely skeptical because previous claims have turned out to be bogus. New evidence for horses in america book of mormon central. On three of these occasions, the horse is related to other lands 2 nephi 12. In contrast to old world use of real horses, however, it does not appear that tapirs were used in battle, as the book of mormon makes no mention of it despite detailed descriptions of battles, war strategy, and war theory. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading science and the book of mormon. Wikipedia excerpt from the horses in the book of mormon article on fair mormon. For the first 150 years of mormonisms existence, everyone thought it was a story about a people who left the middle east and came to south or central america, and who fought wars clear up into new.

Anthropologist state that north american horses went extinct around 1 bc. In the bible we find the same animals as listed in the book of mormon with the exception of the elephant along with the lion, bear, ape, ostrich, hare, bat, badger. Book of mormon horses in ancient north america book of. The most likely animals to have been included in the expanded definition of the book of mormon horse are the deer and the tapir. Braswell, which is appropriate to my particular point. In alma there is a reference to horses, however there were no horses in the americas before columbus got here in 1492. Each possible explanation also teaches important lessons about archaeology, ancient writings, and the. Apr 11, 2016 the book of mormon mentions horses a few times, even though were not in the americas before the spanish arrived, according to current expert opinion.