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Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 8:16 pm
by FiveFingerMnemonic
This is starting to pop up on the facebook feeds. The north america model followers will need to step up their game:
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/201 ... a-pacunam/
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 8:24 pm
by wtfluff
Are these FaceNeck feeds using this as "Book of Mormon evidence?"
A bit funny if they are...
National Geographic wrote:...The ancient Maya never used the wheel or beasts of burden ...
National Geographic wrote:The results suggest that Central America supported an advanced civilization that was, at its peak some 1,200 years ago ...
(A couple of many snippets that don't add up with BoM.)
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 8:35 pm
by FiveFingerMnemonic
wtfluff wrote:National Geographic wrote:The results suggest that Central America supported an advanced civilization that was, at its peak some 1,200 years ago ...
The argument won't be that this is THE book of mormon people, it will merely give them ammunition to say "see there's hidden stuff that we didn't find before!!" and "ramparts and fortresses".
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:32 pm
by Palerider
This doesn't surprise me at all, I've long suspected that there was much more than meets the eye in Central America. Just wake me up when someone finds gold plates or temple wall inscriptions written in reformed Egyptian....whatever the heck that is....
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:41 pm
by moksha
This is excellent. You can almost spot which structures were the Temple, the ward houses, the stake president's house, and the Council of Fifty chambers. Not sure which one would house the prophet, although if it was seen from street level it would become obvious since it would be the one with a penthouse. Do you think the smaller dwellings were used for various wives?
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:04 am
by wtfluff
FiveFingerMnemonic wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 8:35 pm
wtfluff wrote:National Geographic wrote:The results suggest that Central America supported an advanced civilization that was, at its peak some 1,200 years ago ...
The argument won't be that this is THE book of mormon people, it will merely give them ammunition to say "see there's hidden stuff that we didn't find before!!" and "ramparts and fortresses".
Ah yes.
Maybe the North American model folks need to start shooting lasers at the Hill Cumorah and the surrounding area. I'm eagerly looking forward to them finding the Mormon Cave of Wonders! [/SARCASM]
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:21 am
by BriansThoughtMirror
Wow, this is really cool! I can't believe what they can do now!
FiveFingerMnemonic wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 8:35 pm
The argument won't be that this is THE book of mormon people, it will merely give them ammunition to say "see there's hidden stuff that we didn't find before!!" and "ramparts and fortresses".
To me, this is actually a fair argument. There COULD be more that we don't know, and it could totally change our understanding of the ancient past. It's happened before. It will probably happen again. I don't think we've found very good evidence for the BOM at this point, and I don't ever expect to, but an intelligent person could reason that we just haven't found the right sites yet. It's not like we know exactly everything that went on in ancient America during the specified time, and we're learning new things all the time. There's a lot of jungle out there, and it's obviously hiding things! But, like I said, I don't expect anyone to dig up Zarahemla any time soon. But I also won't call anyone stupid because they keep hoping and digging. In any case, I am no expert on ancient American history, so I'd feel like a hack trying to argue about it. I know enough to convince myself, and probably not anyone else!
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:43 am
by Not Buying It
Wow, there were forts - the Book of Mormon must be true! Because no one besides Book of Mormon people ever had forts or warfare.
Let's talk about what they didn't find - tens of thousands of steel swords used in the final annihilation of an entire nation and all of its men, women, and children. Or horses. Or chariots. Or even wheels. Or...
...why bother? Believing members got a little boost for their faith, and that's all they want really, they don't care whether or not it is strong, convincing evidence for the Book of Mormon - they just care it could be construed as evidence. That's good enough for most of them.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2018 4:47 pm
by Hagoth
Not Buying It wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:43 am
Wow, there were forts - the Book of Mormon must be true! Because no one besides Book of Mormon people ever had forts or warfare.
My thoughts exactly. A real challenge would be to find an ancient civilization that didn't have conflict. The only one that comes to mind is the Book of Mormon's claim that there was peace for 200 years after Jesus' visit. So, what would be better evidence for the BoM would be a complete absence of weapon production, fortifications, bone trauma, and any other signs of combat in Mesoamerica from 33-233 AD. Two hundred solid years of swords-to-plowshares.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2018 10:06 am
by Rob4Hope
I'm stoked that they found metal, and iron and all that. TOTALLY COOL!...
Oh wait?...wrong article. Sorry.....
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2018 4:23 pm
by RubinHighlander
Did they happen to find a stash of Yamakas? Perhaps a minorah?
Guess I shouldn’t expect to see those things if there’s zero evidence for any Jewish bloodlines, no matter how big the Mayan city.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2018 7:37 pm
by EternityIsNow
What will they find? Would be interesting if they find inscriptions describing or illustrating the Mayan rituals of animal and human sacrifice.... like are found in some other sites. The Mayan 'temple rites' are not what the Mormons are thinking... Pretty brutal, borrowed from the Toltecs (according to historians). I wish the TBMs knew the truth about Mayan temples... that might dampen some of the flights of fantasy about Mesoamerica and the BoM.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2018 8:57 pm
by wtfluff
EternityIsNow wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 7:37 pm
What will they find? Would be interesting if they find inscriptions describing or illustrating the Mayan rituals of animal and human sacrifice.... like are found in some other sites. The Mayan 'temple rites' are not what the Mormons are thinking... Pretty brutal, borrowed from the Toltecs (according to historians). I wish the TBMs knew the truth about Mayan temples... that might dampen some of the flights of fantasy about Mesoamerica and the BoM.
One thing I LOVE about already discovered Mesoamerican sites is the ball court. Obviously, it was quite important to that culture. Golly, I wonder why ball courts were never mentioned in the Book of Mormon?
(And why did I never make that connection as a believer??? My, my, the emperor's new clothes
are very nice!
)
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2018 11:11 pm
by moksha
BriansThoughtMirror wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:21 am
To me, this is actually a fair argument. There COULD be more that we don't know, and it could totally change our understanding of the ancient past. It's happened before. It will probably happen again.
Don't be surprised when the excavation uncovers a frieze depicting a steel chariot being pulled by a team of tapirs, with the words carved below,
"Onward Nephite soldiers, marching as to war. With the Stripling Warriors marching on afore".
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2018 9:27 am
by Hagoth
wtfluff wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 8:57 pm
EternityIsNow wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 7:37 pm
What will they find? Would be interesting if they find inscriptions describing or illustrating the Mayan rituals of animal and human sacrifice.... like are found in some other sites. The Mayan 'temple rites' are not what the Mormons are thinking... Pretty brutal, borrowed from the Toltecs (according to historians). I wish the TBMs knew the truth about Mayan temples... that might dampen some of the flights of fantasy about Mesoamerica and the BoM.
One thing I LOVE about already discovered Mesoamerican sites is the ball court. Obviously, it was quite important to that culture. Golly, I wonder why ball courts were never mentioned in the Book of Mormon?
(And why did I never make that connection as a believer??? My, my, the emperor's new clothes
are very nice!
)
Hugh Nibley noticed this serious oversight and suggested that Ammon cut off all those arms while playing a ball game. One of the most heinous examples or reading between the lines.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2018 11:03 am
by wtfluff
Hagoth wrote: ↑Sun Feb 04, 2018 9:27 am
wtfluff wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 8:57 pm
EternityIsNow wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 7:37 pm
What will they find? Would be interesting if they find inscriptions describing or illustrating the Mayan rituals of animal and human sacrifice.... like are found in some other sites. The Mayan 'temple rites' are not what the Mormons are thinking... Pretty brutal, borrowed from the Toltecs (according to historians). I wish the TBMs knew the truth about Mayan temples... that might dampen some of the flights of fantasy about Mesoamerica and the BoM.
One thing I LOVE about already discovered Mesoamerican sites is the ball court. Obviously, it was quite important to that culture. Golly, I wonder why ball courts were never mentioned in the Book of Mormon?
(And why did I never make that connection as a believer??? My, my, the emperor's new clothes
are very nice!
)
Hugh Nibley noticed this serious oversight and suggested that Ammon cut off all those arms while playing a ball game. One of the most heinous examples or reading between the lines.
Oh goodness...
"Translation" means, well, whatever you need it to mean dependent on circumstances.
"Sheep herding" means playing whatever-it-is-they-played on a Mesoamerican ball court, and hacking dude's arms off.
Definitely gold-medal level mental gymnastics...
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2018 9:58 am
by BriansThoughtMirror
EternityIsNow wrote: ↑Sat Feb 03, 2018 7:37 pm
What will they find? Would be interesting if they find inscriptions describing or illustrating the Mayan rituals of animal and human sacrifice.... like are found in some other sites. The Mayan 'temple rites' are not what the Mormons are thinking... Pretty brutal, borrowed from the Toltecs (according to historians). I wish the TBMs knew the truth about Mayan temples... that might dampen some of the flights of fantasy about Mesoamerica and the BoM.
My wife and I visited Teotihuacan and other Aztec ruins near Mexico city a while back, right after visiting the Mexico City Anthropology museum (INCREDIBLE!!!!) and learning about the practices of human sacrifice. We stood on top of the temple of the feathered serpent, where a lot of those sacrifices took place. It was seriously creepy and a bit disturbing to think about. Nothing very uplifting, but lots that was very interesting!
We also visited some Mayan ruins, and we saw some cool ball courts and rode bikes through an ancient city in the jungle! No Nephites, though. But, dang, it was a cool trip!
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2018 10:10 am
by oliver_denom
Hagoth wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2018 4:47 pm
Not Buying It wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:43 am
Wow, there were forts - the Book of Mormon must be true! Because no one besides Book of Mormon people ever had forts or warfare.
My thoughts exactly. A real challenge would be to find an ancient civilization that didn't have conflict. The only one that comes to mind is the Book of Mormon's claim that there was peace for 200 years after Jesus' visit. So, what would be better evidence for the BoM would be a complete absence of weapon production, fortifications, bone trauma, and any other signs of combat in Mesoamerica from 33-233 AD. Two hundred solid years of swords-to-plowshares.
You know what would really seal the deal? Come up with a single scrap of evidence that either Judaism or Christianity was being practiced anywhere in North or South America from 600 BC to 420 AD. Forget about every other anachronism, show me the religion.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2018 10:10 am
by Corsair
BriansThoughtMirror wrote: ↑Mon Feb 05, 2018 9:58 am
My wife and I visited Teotihuacan and other Aztec ruins near Mexico city a while back, right after visiting the Mexico City Anthropology museum (INCREDIBLE!!!!) and learning about the practices of human sacrifice. We stood on top of the temple of the feathered serpent, where a lot of those sacrifices took place. It was seriously creepy and a bit disturbing to think about. Nothing very uplifting, but lots that was very interesting!
We also visited some Mayan ruins, and we saw some cool ball courts and rode bikes through an ancient city in the jungle! No Nephites, though. But, dang, it was a cool trip!
I visited
Tikal in Guatemala. It was a fascinating trip and I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in archaeology. Claiming that there was some kind of ancient Mormon influence on the area is really not possible. Any hints of the LDS gospel will be only what you bring in yourself.
Re: Mesoamerica discovery
Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2018 11:52 am
by BriansThoughtMirror
Here's another articel about the recent Mayan discoveries with more info:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/spe ... 9945b2d9fe
Looks like there is a lot we don't know. Surprise!