More potential DNA trouble for the BoM
Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2023 11:23 am
Archaeologists recently extracted the first DNA from ancient Israelite graves.
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/202 ... 9b21fd0000
Although there is still much analysis to be done, the initial results cause problems for Mormons on two fronts involving both the BoM and the Bible.
One of the last remaining tactics of BoM apologist when confronted with DNA problems is to declare that we can't draw any conclusions because we don't know what ancient Israelite DNA looked like. Well now we do. The Y chromosome and Mitochondrial DNA extracted from a man and a woman from roughly the time of Lehi reveals that Israelites were pretty much genetically homogenous with their Canaanite neighbors. Soon we will have full genome extraction that will provide much more detail. This is a great opportunity for Mormon geneticists to really dig in and find that elusive genetic overlap with Native American DNA. Who knows, maybe this will be the long awaited proof that the Book of Mormon is a real history of American origins. I'm willing to put money on the odds that it will be another disappointment.
The second great disappointment is that this DNA appears to support the hypotheses of archaeologist like Israel Finklestein who believe there was no significant exodus from Egypt, but that the Israelite identity was a culture that arose out of the Canaanite milieu, just like the the other local societies of the region. The Exodus might just be echoes of nomadic stories exaggerated by Israelite storytellers to solidify their theology and to set themselves apart from their neighbors who worshipped basically the same gods under different names.
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/202 ... 9b21fd0000
Although there is still much analysis to be done, the initial results cause problems for Mormons on two fronts involving both the BoM and the Bible.
One of the last remaining tactics of BoM apologist when confronted with DNA problems is to declare that we can't draw any conclusions because we don't know what ancient Israelite DNA looked like. Well now we do. The Y chromosome and Mitochondrial DNA extracted from a man and a woman from roughly the time of Lehi reveals that Israelites were pretty much genetically homogenous with their Canaanite neighbors. Soon we will have full genome extraction that will provide much more detail. This is a great opportunity for Mormon geneticists to really dig in and find that elusive genetic overlap with Native American DNA. Who knows, maybe this will be the long awaited proof that the Book of Mormon is a real history of American origins. I'm willing to put money on the odds that it will be another disappointment.
The second great disappointment is that this DNA appears to support the hypotheses of archaeologist like Israel Finklestein who believe there was no significant exodus from Egypt, but that the Israelite identity was a culture that arose out of the Canaanite milieu, just like the the other local societies of the region. The Exodus might just be echoes of nomadic stories exaggerated by Israelite storytellers to solidify their theology and to set themselves apart from their neighbors who worshipped basically the same gods under different names.
