Students of the Book of Mormon tend to overlook what the book
actually states about the nature of the advanced Jaredite and Nephi
civilizations. Instead of a proper understanding of these civilizations,
many resort to believing that the hunter-gatherer societies north of
Panama were somehow once advanced civilizations. Such
assumptions are far from the truth.
Indeed, early Church leaders believed that Joseph Smith taught that
Lehi landed in Chile. The same is true of several recent Church
Presidents. Here are some of the defining characteristics that
describe what the Book of Mormon civilizations were actually like.
- Great city-states that date back to the early Jaredites (early third
millennia BC) - A society that could forge and hammer gold plates as early as 6 th century BC.
- A society that could mine and forge gold, silver, copper and brass in abundance
- A society that could mine iron and steel
- A society that was known for its fair-skinned Indigenous population
- A vanished written language (Jacob 4:1-2)
- A society that raised flocks of sheep and other animals e.g. horses.
- A society that made animal sacrifices according to the law of Moses
- A society that made costly apparel as fine as silk
- An army that wore armor made of thick clothing
- A climate that could grow crops from seeds from Jerusalem
- Temple built with rooms and altars after the manner of Solomon’s temple
- A vast highway network that connects cities and places
- Walled and fortified cities
- Cities that were sunken, buried, or burned
- A ocean-going maritime tradition (Alma 63:5-8; Helaman 3:10, 3:14)
- Houses made of cement
- Solar and Lunar Calendars
- A counting system based on the decimal system
- Cultural influences from the Ancient Near East
In my free e-book, Christ’s Mission in Ancient South America, I document how all 20 of these
characteristics of the Book of Mormon socialites existed in ancient Peru during Book of Mormon
times. While claims have been made that these characteristics existed in North America, the truth is
otherwise, and it would take the wildest imagination to believe that the ancestors of any North
American tribes ever possessed such economies and technologies.
While Mesoamerican societies in Book of Mormon times had a few of these characteristics, Central
America had no gold, silver, copper, or iron during Book of Mormon times, and the only animals that
were domesticated in pre-Columbian America north of Panama were dogs (for food), turkeys, rabbits
and ducks. Without gold, how was the Book of Mormon produced? Further, the great Mesoamerican
cities were built after 400 AD and it people had no ocean-going vessels, silks, a vast highway system,
etc.
If you would like to know more about the Jaredite and Nephite civilizations and why the Book of
Mormon is a true history, please read my free book Christ’s Mission in Ancient South America.
Otherwise, you can join our tour to Peru in June 2025 and appreciate for yourself the remains of the
Book of Mormon civilizations.
Download the free e-book” Christ’s Mission in Ancient South America.
Free Book
Peru Tour Information: https://christinperu.com/tour-bom/