Archaeology & Polytheism
Taken from page 107 of The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel, 1998:
Archaeology repeated affirmation of the New Testament’s accuracy provides important corroboration of its reliability. This is in stark contrast with how archaeology has proved to be devastating for Mormonism.
Although Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon church, claimed that his Book of Mormon is “the most correct of any book upon the earth,” [Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 8 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret, 1978), 4:461, cited in Donald S. Tingle, Mormonism (Downers Grove, Ill.: Intervarsity Press, 1981), 17.], archaeology has repeatedly failed to substantiate its claims about events that supposedly occurred long ago in the Americas.
I remember writing to the Smithsonian Institute to inquire about whether there was any evidence supporting the claims of Mormonism, only to be told in unequivocal terms that its archaeologists see “no direct connection between archaeology of the New World and the subject matter of the book.”
As authors John Ankerberg and John Weldon conclude in a book on the topic, “In other words, no Book of Mormon cities have ever been located, no Book of Mormon person, place, nation, or name has ever been found, no Book of Mormon artifacts, no Book of Mormon scriptures, no Book of Mormon inscriptions . . . nothing which demonstrates the Book of Mormon is anything other than myth or invention has ever been found.” [Clifford Wilson, Rocks, Relics, and Biblical Reliability (Grand Rapids: Zondervan; Richardson, Tex.: Probe, 1977), 120 cited in Ankerberg and Weldon, Ready with an Answer, 272.]
http://www3.telus.net/trbrooks/mormonism.htm
You are making several mistakes which ought not to be made if you are in the truth for it speaks of your lack of humility thus bearing badly on your god. You are assuming this has no validity for if archaeology itself had no validity in anything it does then, then confirming many things in history by it physically should be nullified, but such claims are not reasonable to anyone.Quote:
Paul writes - There are two problems with this approach:
1) Existence of archaeological evidence for specific events or places doesn't validate any religious text (e.g., the Koran), nor does lack of evidence indicate falsehood (e.g., almost all Bible events prior to 1000 BC). This is particularly true when a text claimed to be ancient (e.g., the Book of Mormon) makes no claim identifying itself with any particular area or culture.
2) There has been, in fact, at least one archaeological find that appears to support the Book of Mormon. The BoM refers to only one place in Saudi Arabia by what it claims to be an existing place name (Nahom). Several years ago ancient inscriptions were found indicating that the tribal name N'H'M existed in just that area during the time period that the BoM takes place there. This is obvious not "proof" of anything, but it is unusual and would probably constitute evidence. I mean, if someone found an inscription in ancient Egypt referring to slaves called something close to "hebrews", you can be sure that Christians and Jews would immediately declare that there existed archaeological evidence of the Egyptian captivity. Likewise an inscription referring to YHWH in a cave in the Sinai written during the alleged period of the 40 year wandering would also be taken as "proof" of that event by believers.
Another note: A recent find in Jerusalem from the 600 BC time period (BoM era) that refers to "M'L'K, son of the king" could also be used to support the unique BoM claim that King Zedekiah had a son named "Mulek." Again, not proof, but an interesting development.
Sincere Christians should be careful that the arguments used against the Mormons can't be applied also to Bible events, places, and people.
The other mistake you are making is that archaelogy can not have a good probability of invalidating something. If a town archaeloglically is found to be in a specific place when a document says it is elsewhere, we can conclude that document is wrong. In the same way if the book of Mormon keeps saying things are here and there with this and that name, but no archaeology in history can confirm, them in the americas it is reasonable to conclude it is just a book of make believe, which would make sense considering it came from a man's imagination, however well read or not, in Joseph Smith. Let his imagination make up place names uncooberated in any facet, but don't fall into a dead spirit with him. He will take you to hell with him.
Thirdly your reasoning on Hebrews and Israelites slaves is just a slighting comment, negatively, ought to be considered of not account, not just by me, but by you too in your own heart since the Jewish slaves of 400 years is not based on a word "Hebrew". That was a dumb argument on your part. In trying to give your one example of archaeological evidence, you attempt to debase God's chosen people in unsound reasoning when they do not even think as you just thought when you hebrew must mean slave. Other proofs come to that conclusion, not just a word. Why blame an inscription to YHWH in a cave dated at the time of the Exodus in Sanai? In your reasoning I have observed a mindless blaming and a bad correlating. A Christian does not like the mind of a mormon as you can well see for it is unrenewed because your spirit is unregenerated.
Fourth, the 66 books of the Bible, the complete Word of God, has itself not just one somewhat close archaealogical possibility, but thousands of precise confirmations. There is no comparison in history. Truly the Jesus of faith is the Jesus of history.
Fifth, the original point of this thread is that of the Americas, not a discussion surrounding the middle east. The place names are so unalike the archaelogists at Smithsonian have come to the reasonable conclusion that nothing matches in the imagination of Joseph Smith to such places in America wherever Mormons and whomever they choose to associate with which names and which places. All they are left with to say, is more things may be found. It is a little too late for that. You have had over 2500 years of archaeological digging. Sooner a later you have to realize enough is enough. Satan is the head of moronism idolaters of the bad mind and bad logic.
Sixth, There is some truth in all documents of the world, even in the book of the Mormon, but it is the untruth parts that invalidate its motivation. It is the untruth parts that have its aim to predecide God is gods which is impossible since puff the magic beings is not God of the Bible of creation, Whom agrees with the Spirit in my spirit.
7th, there is a lot of "coulds" and "obviously no proof of anything" are just that, limited in the fullest sense of the word. That's all you got which is exactly what you might expect in someone trying to proove another man's imagination who started a cult on its only personal flavor of gnosticism. Nothing is new under the sun.
It has become readily apparent people have made it up in their mind in your cult that God is gods along with Joseph Smith and will seek hell or highwater to prove it. But the historical archaeological scrunity is so pervasively unable to align anything in the Americas substantially, this is a very strong proof we are dealing with the imagination of one man named Joseph Smith. It is also highly possible that Joseph Smith did come across some document from that came from period in time, only to use it to his person deceitful gain to create a cult as he was looking for money, but since it is so contradictory to the Scriptures it is has its errors rendinger it useless, thus leaving it out of the Word of God, just as the other lost books are showing that you are worshipping a replicator, and a bad one at that.
All of this is a caniving effort of one man's self-indulgent charade, Joseph Smith, who speaks to the physical of the Americas and not the spiritual of the Christ. He speaks of gods being God, killing that personal relationship with God which ought to happen when you got all these gods running around working different roles. It's a sugar coated polytheism.
Ultimately what the evil spirit is doing through these false teachings is stimulate the mind of the moron making him cold and distant to the reality of God's life preventing new birth in that soul.
