Book of Mormon/DNA evidence

Criticism

It is argued that because DNA evidence of modern Amerindians does not match the DNA of modern inhabitants of the Middle East, the Book of Mormon must be false.

Response

The response should be brief and summary in nature.

Conclusion

A summary of the argument against the criticism.

Further reading

FAIR wiki articles

• Straw man fallacy

FAIR web site

• "DNA and the Book of Mormon," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, 2003) Interviews, information, and overviews of the issues surrounding DNA and the Book of Mormon.
• Michael R. Ash, Is An Historical Book of Mormon Compatible With DNA Science? . This FAIR Brochure summarizes the flaws in claims that recent DNA evidence shows the Book of Mormon to be non-historical.
• Kevin L. Barney, "A Brief Review of Murphy and Southerton's "Galileo Event."," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, February 2003) A review of an article on DNA and the Book of Mormon that appeared in Anthropology News.
• Brant A. Gardner, "The Tempest in a Teapot: DNA Studies and the Book of Mormon," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, January 2003) A review of what DNA studies can and, more importantly, cannot tell us about the Book of Mormon.
• Cooper Johnson, "DNA and the Book of Mormon," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, March 2002) Some say that DNA research can disprove (or prove) The Book of Mormon. This article examines a presentation on the subject by Dr. Scott R. Woodward at the 2001 FAIR Conference.
• Greg Kearney, "DNA and the Book of Mormon," (Mesa, Arizona: FAIR, October 2003) A very apt cartoon draws attention to the double-edged sword presented by criticisms of the Book of Mormon based on DNA studies.
• Daniel Peterson, "Random Reflections on the Passing Scene," (2003 FAIR Conference presentation.) Dr. Peterson explores many current areas of interest including atheism, DNA studies, and the need for LDS apologetics.
• David Stewart, DNA and the Book of Mormon .
• Scott Woodward, "DNA and the Book of Mormon," (2001 FAIR Conference presentation.)

External links

• "The Problematic Role of DNA Testing in Unraveling Human History," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (Provo: FARMS, 2000), 66-84
• John M. Butler, "A Few Thoughts from a Believing Scientist," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2003), 36-37 Recent claims concerning the supposed absence of DNA evidence in support of the Book of Mormon caused the author to investigate more closely what the record itself has to say on the topic. This short essay indicates why the author is still a believing member of the Church.
• Jeff Lindsay, "Does DNA evidence refute the Book of Mormon," (December 2002) The Book of Mormon has come under heavy fire from critics in light of DNA evidence which is said to utterly refute claims of its historicity. These attacks typically rely on several faulty assumptions about the Book of Mormon and leave out important scientific details about the DNA evidence.
• Jeff Lindsay, "Does DNA Evidence Refute the Book of Mormon?," (2003) The Book of Mormon has come under heavy fire from critics in light of DNA evidence that is said to utterly refute the Book of Mormon, for the evidence points to Asiatic origins, not Middle Eastern origins of the ancient inhabitants of this continent. These attacks typically rely on several faulty assumptions about what the Book of Mormon actually states and do not refute a divine origin for the Book of Mormon.
• D. Jeffrey Meldrum and Trent D. Stephens, "Who Are the Children of Lehi," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2003), 38-51 The questions "Who are the children of Lehi?" and "How can we reconcile Book of Mormon perspectives with modern DNA data?" are issues of great importance to a number of Latter-day Saints and other people. The authors present this essay in an attempt to facilitate some reconciliation.
• Daniel C. Peterson, “Prolegomena to the DNA Articles,” FARMS Review 15:2 (2003): 25–34. - An exploration of how DNA critics misstate the conclusions of members who do not accept their conclusions.
• Matthew Roper, “Nephi's Neighbors: Book of Mormon Peoples and Pre-Columbian Populations,” FARMS Review 15:2 (2003): 91–128. - A thorough review of ideas about the origins of Book of Mormon peoples, from Joseph Smith to the present. Clearly demonstrates that this line of thought is a very old one in the Church, and certainly not a “reaction” against “devastating” DNA data.
• Matthew Roper, “Swimming the Gene Pool: Israelite Kinship Relations, Genes, and Genealogy,” FARMS Review 15:2 (2003): 129–164. - Considers what it means to be “Jewish,” “Nephite/Lamanite,” from textual, traditional, historical, and genetic perspectives
• Brent Lee Shelton and Jonathan Marks, "Genetic Markers Not a Valid Test of Native Identity," (City Unknown: Council for Reponsible Genetics, 2002) While not directly citing DNA in relation to the Book of Mormon, this article provides an interesting viewpoint that indicates why DNA tests cannot provide conclusive proof of whether a person belongs to a specific ethnic group (such as Lamanites).
• James E. Smith, [1] “Review of ‘Multiply Exceedingly: Book of Mormon Population Sizes’ by John C. Kunich,”] FARMS Review of Books on the Book of Mormon 6:1 (1994): 231–267. - Reviews the history of thought regarding Book of Mormon geography and origin(s) of its peoples.

John L. Sorenson, “The Problematic Role of DNA Testing in Unraveling Human History,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 9:2 (2000): 66-74. - Contains a discussion of why proving the Book of Mormon “true” via DNA testing would be extremely difficult.

• John L. Sorenson and Matthew Roper, "Before DNA," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2003), 6-23 This article provides a framework within which the quality and aptness of questions about DNA studies on Native Americans and their implications for Book of Mormon history should be approached. The authors raise a set of issues that anyone should confront when thinking clearly and honestly about the subject.
• John A, Tvedtnes, "Interpreting the DNA Data and the Book of Mormon Part I," MeridianMagazine.com (17 July 2005) In this three-part series, LDS scholar, John Tvedtnes, examines the popular anti-Mormon claim that DNA research disproves the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.
• John A. Tvedtnes, "Interpreting the DNA Data and the Book of Mormon Part II," MeridianMagazine.com (17 July 2005) In this three-part series, LDS scholar, John Tvedtnes, examines the popular anti-Mormon claim that DNA research disproves the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.
• John A. Tvedtnes, "Interpreting the DNA Data and the Book of Mormon Part III," MeridianMagazine.com (17 July 2005) In this three-part series, LDS scholar, John Tvedtnes, examines the popular anti-Mormon claim that DNA research disproves the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.
• Michael F. Whiting, "DNA and the Book of Mormon: A Phylogenetic Perspective," Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2003), 24-35 Some persons have announced that modern DNA research has conclusively proved that the Book of Mormon is false and that Joseph Smith was a fraud. These claims err scientifically in that they are based on the naive notion that DNA provides infallible evidence for ancestry and descent in sexually reproducing populations and that the results from such analyses are straightforward, objective, and not laden with assumptions. Moreover, proponents of this naive view blindly ignore decades of theory associated with DNA sequence evolution and data analysis and rarely speak to the extremely tentative nature of their conclusions.
• Michael F. Whiting, "Does DNA Evidence Refute the Authenticity of the Book of Mormon?," (Provo, Utah: FARMS, January 2003) A 45-minute video presentation concerning DNA and the Book of Mormon. An excellent resource that explains the problems in drawing definitive conclusions about the Book of Mormon based on DNA findings.

Printed material

• Blake T. Olser, “Assessing the Logical Structure of DNA Arguments Against the Book of Mormon,” Part I of II, Sunstone (December 2004):70–72.

Source(s) of the Criticism

• Thomas W. Murphy, "Lamanite Genesis, Genealogy, and Genetics," in Dan Vogel and Brent Lee Metcalfe, eds., American Apocrypha: Essays on the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2002).
• Simon G. Southerton, Losing a Lost Tribe : Native Americans, DNA, and the Mormon Church, (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2004).