Even small religions can be stupid
Whilst Scientology is currently flaunting it's lack of credibility lets not forget that there are plenty of other religions out there just as deluded.
Moronism holds that certain Native American tribes are actually decedents of a lost Jewish tribe, the tribe coming to America around 600BC and bringing with it the Book of Mormon. This is actually rather crucial to their faith as had the Native Americans not come across the atlantic carrying the Book of Mormon then it could not be a lost book of the bible and would be in fact something that Joseph Smith just made up. (I could say something about the fact that the Angel that supposedly showed Smith to the Book was called Moroni, but you can make up your own joke here).
Unfortunately they have a small problem, Native Americans did not come across the Atlantic. The migrated from Asia crossing the Pacffic probably via the pack ice of the Bering Straits sometime probably around 10,000 years ago. And DNA analysis backs this up. So what is The Church of the Latter-Day Saints to do when a key part of it's beliefs get blown away? Well there are tried and tested ways around with they are already putting into place as can be seen by this statement on the issue:
The Mormon Church says that nothing in the Mormon scriptures is incompatible with DNA evidence and that the genetic studies are being twisted to attack the church.So they are going to ignore it and then subtly change their eternal truths to fit better with reality.
posted by chris at 3/19/2006 10:25:00 pm
2 Comments:
I hold no brief for the Mormon Church but recent DNA analysis shows that people from what is now South West France travelled by sea to North America some 18000 years ago.
The DNA has been found in present day Native Americans living on or near the Canadian border. Interesting too that some of the present day items such as the design of some Native American bone needles are almost identical to artefacts found in SW France.
I guess that you actually mean 1800 years ago as 18000 is toward the end of the last Glacial Period. My point isn't that nobody could have got across the Atlantic, the vikings certianly did around the 1st millennium and earlier crossings might have been possible, but that an ancient lost Israelite tribe did not. The way that the Church of the Later-Day Saints is reacting to this is indicative of the way that most religions would to similar revelations, though denial.
Post a Comment
<< Home