BYU-CES Packet for Book of Mormon
classes
When the
issues of evolution and the origin of man generated controversy at BYU, the
administration developed an “Evolution packet” in 1992, titled “Evolution and
the Origin of Man.” See http://ndbf.net/010.pdf
The explanation
included this statement: “the selection of material for such a packet could not
depend on the content of the statements. The goal is not to achieve some kind
of "balance" among the views that have been expressed, but to give
students the full range of official views so that they can judge the different
positions they encounter. The full range of official views should provide the
basis for the evaluation of other views that have been expressed but that do
not have the status of official Church positions.”
_____
Now that the
issue of Book of Mormon geography has generated similar controversy, this
packet of statements by Church leaders is intended to achieve a similar
purpose.
These
statements evince a sharp distinction between two separate but related
teachings by Church leaders that have often been commingled or conflated; i.e.,
1. The Hill
Cumorah of Mormon 6:6 is in western New York, near Palmyra.
2. We don’t
know where the other events of the Book of Mormon took place, but there are
many possibilities.
Guidance
accompanying the “Evolution packet” is equally relevant to the “Geography
packet.”
“None of us
involved in preparing this packet for Board review anticipate that professors
will be limited from distributing other materials to their students. It is only
requested that BYU faculty members refer students to the materials in this
specific packet along with the other items they may choose to distribute. When
other items are distributed, they should be clearly separated and given as a
supplement to this material and include a fair sampling of the diverse
viewpoints among LDS leaders. For example, if one included statements by LDS
apostles in a handout on evolution, the range of views would include some
statements against evolution, some sympathetic to evolution and several shades
of opinion in between. We want to avoid the implication that a greater sense of
unanimity or resolution of this topic exists than is actually the case, and we
are eager to avoid contention. The university has also suggested that faculty
members limit supplemental LDS material on the subject of evolution and the
origin of man to published documents, avoiding private letters or other private
material.
This packet
contains, as far as could be found, all statements issued by members of the
First Presidency and official publications of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints on the subject of the hill Cumorah and the geography of the
Book of Mormon.
Original material is in blue.
_____
1. Early 1827 – Joseph Smith (quoted by his mother
Lucy Mack Smith)
The fact is,
I had learned to be a little cautious about matters with regard to Joseph; for
I was accostomed to see him look as he did on that occasion, and could not
easily mistake the cause thereof. Presently he smiled, and said in a very calm
tone, “I have taken the severest chastisement, that I have ever had in my
life”. My husband, supposing it was from some of the neighbors, was quite
angry; and observed, “I would would like to know what business any body has to
find fault with you.”
“Stop, father,
Stop.” said Joseph, “it was the angel of the Lord— as I passed by the hill of Cumorah, where the plates are, the angel
of the Lord met me and said, that I had not been engaged enough in the work of
the Lord; that the time had come for the record to <be> brought forth; and, that I must
be up and doing, and set myself about the things which God had commanded me to
do: but, Father,’
continued he, ‘give
yourself no uneasiness concerning the reprimand that I have received; for I now
know the course that I am to pursue; so all will be well.”
It was also
made known to him at this interview, that he should make another effort to
obtain the plates on the 22d. of the following September; But this he did not
mention to us at that time.
2. 1830 – Oliver Cowdery (quoted by Parley P.
Pratt) during the mission to the Lamanites (D&C 28, 30 and 32).
"This
Book, which contained these things, was
hid in the earth by Moroni, in a hill called by him, Cumorah, which hill is now
in the State of New York, near the village of Palmyra, in Ontario County.
"In that
neighborhood there lived a young man named Joseph Smith, who prayed to the
Great Spirit much, in order that he might know the truth; and the Great Spirit
sent an angel to him, and told him where this Book was hid by Moroni; and
commanded him to go and get it. He accordingly went to the place, and dug in
the earth, and found the Book written on golden plates.
"But it
was written in the language of the forefathers of the red man; therefore this
young man, being a pale face, could not understand it; but the angel told him
and showed him, and gave him knowledge of the language, and how to interpret
the Book. So he interpreted it into the language of the pale faces, and wrote
it on paper, and caused it to be printed, and published thousands of copies of
among them; and then sent us to the red men to bring some copies of it to them,
and to tell them this news. So we have now come from him, and here is a copy of
the Book, which we now present to our red friend, the chief of the Delawares,
and which we hope he will cause to be read and known among his tribe; it will
do them good."
We then
presented him with a Book of Mormon.
There was a
pause in the council, and some conversation in their own tongue, after which
the chief made the following reply: "We feel truly thankful to our white
friends who have come so far, and been at such pains to tell us good news, and
especially this new news concerning the Book of our forefathers; it makes us
glad in here"—placing his hand on his heart.
Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, http://www.gutenberg.org/files/44896/44896-h/44896-h.htm
3. First formal Church History, 1834-35
Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith
wrote a series of essays, published as letters, about early Church history,
including the restoration of the Priesthood, the visit of Moroni, and Joseph’s
recovery of the plates. Letters I and II were published in The Messenger and Advocate
in Kirtland, Ohio, in October and November 1834. An excerpt from Letter I was
canonized in the Pearl of Great Price as a note to Joseph Smith-History.
In December
1835, Joseph Smith ordained Oliver Cowdery as Assistant President of the
Church. In 1835, when Letters IV through VIII were published, the First
Presidency consisted of Joseph Smith, Jr., President; Oliver Cowdery, Assistant
President; Sidney Rigdon, First Counselor; and Frederick G. Williams, Second
Counselor.
President
Williams began copying the letters into President Smith’s personal history
before another scribe completed the work, as Joseph noted in his journal. This
history can be seen in the Joseph Smith Papers and is the source of the
quotations below.
In 1840,
Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon specifically approved of the republication of
all eight letters in the Gospel Reflector, a newspaper in
Philadelphia published by Benjamin Winchester. Also in 1840, Joseph Smith gave
the letters to his brother, Don Carlos Smith, with instructions to republish
them in the Times and Seasons in Nauvoo. Don Carlos published them in
1840-1841. Parley P. Pratt republished all eight letters in the Millennial
Star.
Excerpt from Letter IV.
He [Moroni]
then proceeded and gave a general account of the promises made to the fathers,
and also gave a history of the aborigenes of this country, and said they were
literal descendants of Abraham. He represented them as once being an enlightned
and intelligent people, possessing a correct knowledge of the gospel, and the
plan of restoration and redemption. He
said this history was written and deposited not far from that place, and
that it was our brother’s privilege, if obedient to the commandments of the
Lord, to obtain and translate the same by the means of the Urim and Thummim,
which were deposited for that purpose with the record.
“Yet,” said
he, “the scriptures must be fulfilled before it is translated, which says that
the words of a book, which were sealed, were presented to the learned; for thus
has72 God determined to leave men without excuse, and show to the meek that his
arm is <not>
shortned that it cannot save.”73
A part of the
book was sealed, and was not to be opened yet. The sealed part, said he,
contains the same revelation which was given to John upon the isles of Patmos,
and when the people of the Lord are prepared, and found worthy, then it will be
unfolded unto them.74
On the
subject of bringing to light the unsealed part of this record, it may be proper
to say, that our brother was expressly informed, that it must be done with an
eye single to the glory of God; if this consideration did not wholly
characterize all his procedings in relation to it, the adversary of truth would
overcome him, or at least prevent his making that proficiency in this glorious
work which he otherwise would.
While
describing the place where the record was deposited, he gave a minute relation
of it, and the vision of his mind being opened at the same time, he was
permitted to view it critically; and previously being acquainted with the
place, he was able to follow the direction of the vision, afterward, according
to the voice of the angel, and obtain the book.
Excerpt from Letter VII.
I must now
give you some description of the place where, and the manner in which these
records were deposited.
You are
acquainted with the mail road from Palmyra, Wayne Co. to Canandaigua, Ontario
Co. N.Y. and also, as you pass from the former to the latter place, before
arriving at the little village of Manchester, say from three to four, or about
four miles from Palmyra, you pass a large hill on the east side of the road.
Why I say large, is because it is as large perhaps, as any in that country. To
a person acquainted with this road, a description would be unnecessary, as it
is the largest and rises the highest of any on that rout. The north end rises
quite sudden until it assumes a level with the more southerly extremity, and I
think I may say an elevation higher than at the south a short distance, say
half or three fourths of a mile. As you pass toward canandaigua it lessens
gradually until the surface assumes its common level, or is broken by other
smaller hills or ridges, water courses and ravines. I think I am justified in
saying that this is the highest hill for some distance round, and I am certain
that its appearance, as it rises so suddenly from a plain on the north, must
attract the notice of the traveller as he passes by.
At about one
mile west rises another ridge of less height, running parallel with the former,
leaving a beautiful vale between. The soil is of the first quality for the
country, and under a state of cultivation, which gives a prospect at once
imposing, when one reflects on the fact,
that here, between these hills, the entire power and national strength of both
the Jaredites and Nephites were destroyed.
By turning to
the 529th and 530th pages of the book of Mormon120 you will read Mormon’s
account of the last great struggle of his people, as they were encamped round this hill Cumorah. (it is printed
Camorah, which is an error.) In this vally fell the remaining strength and
pride of a once powerful people, the Nephites—once so highly favored of the
Lord, but at that time in darkness, doomed to suffer extermination by the hand
of their barbarous and uncivilized brethren. From the top of this hill, Mormon,
with a few others, after the battle, gazed with horror upon the mangled remains
of those who, the day before, were filled with anxiety, hope or doubt. A few
had fled to the South, who were hunted down by the victorious party, and all
who would not deny the Saviour and his religion, were put to death. Mormon
himself, according to the record of his son Moroni, was also slain.
But a long time
previous to this disaster it appears from his own account, he foresaw
approaching destruction. In fact, if he perused the records of his fathers,
which were in his possession, he could have learned that such would be the
case. Alma, who lived before the coming of the Messiah, prophesies this. He,
however, by divine appointment, abridged from those records, in his own style
and language, a short account of the more important and prominent items, from
the days of Lehi to his own time, after
which he deposited, as he says, on the 529th page, all the records in this same
hill, Cumorah and after gave his small record to his son Moroni, who, as
appears from the same, finished, after witnessing the extinction of his people
as a nation. …
This hill, by the Jaredites, was
called Ramah: by it, or around it pitched the famous army of Coriantumr their
tents. Coriantumr was
the last king of the Jaredites The opposing army were to the west, and in this
same vally, and near by, from day to day, did that mighty race spill their
blood, in wrath, contending, as it were, brother against brother, and father,
against son. In this same spot, in full view from the top of this same hill,
one may gaze with astonishment upon the ground which was twice covered with the
dead and dying of our fellow men. Here may be seen where once sunk to nought
the pride and strength of two mighty nations; and here may be contemplated, in
solitude, while nothing but the faithful record of Mormon and Moroni is now
extant to inform us of the fact…
In this vale lie commingled, in one mass of ruin the ashes of
thousands, and in this vale was destined to consume the fair forms and vigerous
systems of tens of thousands of the human race—blood mixed with blood, flesh
with flesh, bones with bones and dust with dust!
Excerpt from Letter VIII
I have now
given sufficent on the subject of the hill Cumorah—it has a singular and
imposing appearance for that country, and must ex[c]ite the curiosity curious
enquiry of every lover of the book of Mormon: though I hope never like
Jerusalem and the sepulcher of our Lord, the pilgrims. In my estimation,
certain places are dearer to me for what they now contain than for what they
have contained. For the satisfaction of such as believe I have been thus
particular, and to avoid the question being a thousand times asked, more than
any other cause, shall procede and be as particular as heretofore.
4. 1836 “An Angel Came Down from the
Mansions of Glory”
Hymn 16, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 1835
(published in 1836)
Pursuant to
D&C 25, Emma Smith selected hymns for the first Church hymnal, published in
Kirtland, Ohio, in 1836. Hymn 16 mentions Cumorah.
An angel came
down from the mansions of glory,
And told that a record was hid in
Cumorah,
Containing
the fulness of Jesus’s gospel;
And also the
cov’nant to gather his people.
Attributed to
W.W. Phelps
From the
Historical Introduction in the Joseph Smith Papers: “At a meeting of the
church’s presidency on 14 September 1835, it was “decided that Sister Emma
Smith proceed to make a selection of sacred hymns, according to the revilation,
and that President W. W. Phelps be appointed to revise and arrange them for printing.”
(Minute Book 1, 14 Sept. 1835)”
Emma retained
this hymn in the hymnal she produced in Nauvoo in 1841 as Hymn 262.
5. 1840 An Angel from on High
Elder Parley
P. Pratt wrote the lyrics of this hymn, which he included in the hymnal he,
Brigham Young and John Taylor published in Manchester, England in 1840
as hymn #197.
Emma Smith
added this hymn to her 1841 Nauvoo collection as hymn #275.
These are the
lyrics of the first verse.
An angel from
on high
The long,
long silence broke;
Descending
from the sky,
These
gracious words he spoke:
Lo! in Cumorah's lonely hill
A sacred
record lies concealed.
Lo! in
Cumorah's lonely hill
A sacred
record lies concealed.
Lyrics by Parley
P. Pratt
In the 1985
Hymnal (current) this hymn appears as #13
6. 1842 Times and Seasons (D&C
128)
Eighteen
months after Don Carlos Smith republished the eight historical letters in the Times
and Seasons, Joseph Smith wrote a letter that he sent to the Editor of
the Times
and Seasons for publication. This letter has since been canonized as
D&C 128.
20 And again,
what do we hear? Glad tidings from
Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfilment of the
prophets—the book to be revealed. A voice of the Lord in the wilderness of
Fayette, Seneca county, declaring the three witnesses to bear record of the
book! The voice of Michael on the banks of the Susquehanna, detecting the devil
when he appeared as an angel of light! The voice of Peter, James, and John in
the wilderness between Harmony, Susquehanna county, and Colesville, Broome
county, on the Susquehanna river, declaring themselves as possessing the keys
of the kingdom, and of the dispensation of the fulness of times!
7. 1844 The Prophet in New York City.
In 1844,
Joseph’s brother (and Apostle) William Smith republished the eight historical
letters in a Church newspaper in New York City titled The Prophet. Also in
1844, the eight letters were republished in England as a separate pamphlet that
sold thousands of copies.
8. 1877 President Brigham Young
Just two months before he died, as he was
travelling through Utah reorganizing the Priesthood and setting in order the
Temple ordinances, Brigham Young spoke to a Special Conference in Farmington.
As recorded in the Journal of Discourses, President Young said this:
"I lived right in the country where the plates were found from which the Book of Mormon was translated, and I know a great many things pertaining to that country. I believe I will take the liberty to tell you of another circumstance that will be as marvelous as anything can be. This is an incident in the life of Oliver Cowdery, but he did not take the liberty of telling such things in meeting as I take. I tell these things to you, and I have a motive for doing so. I want to carry them to the ears of my brethren and sisters, and to the children also, that they may grow to an understanding of some things that seem to be entirely hidden from the human family.
Oliver Cowdery went with the Prophet Joseph when he deposited these plates. Joseph did not translate all of the plates; there was a portion of them sealed, which you can learn from the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. When Joseph got the plates, the angel instructed him to carry them back to the hill Cumorah, which he did. Oliver says that when Joseph and Oliver went there, the hill opened, and they walked into a cave, in which there was a large and spacious room. He says he did not think, at the time, whether they had the light of the sun or artificial light; but that it was just as light as day. They laid the plates on a table; it was a large table that stood in the room. Under this table there was a pile of plates as much as two feet high, and there were altogether in this room more plates than probably many wagon loads; they were piled up in the corners and along the walls. The first time they went there the sword of Laban hung upon the wall; but when they went again it had been taken down and laid upon the table across the gold plates; it was unsheathed, and on it was written these words: “This sword will never be sheathed again until the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our God and his Christ.”
I tell you this as coming not only from Oliver Cowdery, but others who were familiar with it, and who understood it just as well as we understand coming to this meeting, enjoying the day, and by and by we separate and go away, forgetting most of what is said, but remembering some things. So is it with other circumstances in life. I relate this to you, and I want you to understand it. I take this liberty of referring to those things so that they will not be forgotten and lost. Carlos Smith was a young man of as much veracity as any young man we had, and he was a witness to these things. Samuel Smith saw some things, Hyrum saw a good many things, but Joseph was the leader.
Now, you may think I am unwise in publicly telling these things, thinking perhaps I should preserve them in my own breast; but such is not my mind. I would like the people called Latter-day Saints to understand some little things with regard to the workings and dealings of the Lord with his people here upon the earth."
"I lived right in the country where the plates were found from which the Book of Mormon was translated, and I know a great many things pertaining to that country. I believe I will take the liberty to tell you of another circumstance that will be as marvelous as anything can be. This is an incident in the life of Oliver Cowdery, but he did not take the liberty of telling such things in meeting as I take. I tell these things to you, and I have a motive for doing so. I want to carry them to the ears of my brethren and sisters, and to the children also, that they may grow to an understanding of some things that seem to be entirely hidden from the human family.
Oliver Cowdery went with the Prophet Joseph when he deposited these plates. Joseph did not translate all of the plates; there was a portion of them sealed, which you can learn from the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. When Joseph got the plates, the angel instructed him to carry them back to the hill Cumorah, which he did. Oliver says that when Joseph and Oliver went there, the hill opened, and they walked into a cave, in which there was a large and spacious room. He says he did not think, at the time, whether they had the light of the sun or artificial light; but that it was just as light as day. They laid the plates on a table; it was a large table that stood in the room. Under this table there was a pile of plates as much as two feet high, and there were altogether in this room more plates than probably many wagon loads; they were piled up in the corners and along the walls. The first time they went there the sword of Laban hung upon the wall; but when they went again it had been taken down and laid upon the table across the gold plates; it was unsheathed, and on it was written these words: “This sword will never be sheathed again until the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our God and his Christ.”
I tell you this as coming not only from Oliver Cowdery, but others who were familiar with it, and who understood it just as well as we understand coming to this meeting, enjoying the day, and by and by we separate and go away, forgetting most of what is said, but remembering some things. So is it with other circumstances in life. I relate this to you, and I want you to understand it. I take this liberty of referring to those things so that they will not be forgotten and lost. Carlos Smith was a young man of as much veracity as any young man we had, and he was a witness to these things. Samuel Smith saw some things, Hyrum saw a good many things, but Joseph was the leader.
Now, you may think I am unwise in publicly telling these things, thinking perhaps I should preserve them in my own breast; but such is not my mind. I would like the people called Latter-day Saints to understand some little things with regard to the workings and dealings of the Lord with his people here upon the earth."
9. 1879 Edition of the Book of Mormon
The 1879 Edition of the Book of Mormon, published in Salt Lake City, Utah, was the first edition to divide the text into the chapters and verses we have today. It also contained footnotes to some of the geographical references in the text.
The footnotes recognized the distinction between the surety of the New York Cumorah and the uncertainty regarding every other site. The footnote to Mormon 6:2 simply declared, "The hill Cumorah is in Manchester, Ontario Co., N. York." The footnote to Ether 11:6 read, "The ancient mounds of North America."
More speculative designations were indicated, such as the note to 1 Nephi 18:23: "believed to be on the coast of Chili [sic] S. America."
You can see these footnotes here:
https://byupackets.blogspot.com/p/1879-footnotes-in-book-of-mormon.html
https://byupackets.blogspot.com/p/1879-footnotes-in-book-of-mormon.html
The footnotes were discontinued in the 1920s.
10. 1899, Improvement Era.
President
Joseph F. Smith, as counselor in the First Presidency and Editor of the Improvement
Era, republished the eight historical letters again in Salt Lake City
in 1899.
11. 1899, Articles of Faith, by James E. Talmage, published by the Church
The hill, which was known by one division of the ancient people as Cumorah, by another as Ramah, is situation near Palmyra in the county of Wayne, State of New York.
The final struggles between Nephites and Lamanites were waged in the vicinity of the Hill Cumorah, in what is now the State of New York, resulting in the destruction of the Nephites as a nation, about 400 A.D. The last Nephite representative was Moroni, who, wandering for safety from place to place, daily expecting death from the victorious Lamanites, wrote the concluding parts of the Book of Mormon, and hid the record in Cumorah. It was this same Moroni who, as a resurrected being, gave the records into the hands of Joseph Smith in the present dispensation. …
Here they [the Jaredites] became a flourishing nation; but, giving way in time to internal dissensions, they divided into factions, which warred with one another until the people were totally destroyed. This destruction, which occurred near the Hill Ramah, afterward known among the Nephites as Cumorah…
12. 1928, President Anthony W. Ivins in
General Conference
On April 6,
1928, President Anthony W. Ivins of the First Presidency spoke in General
Conference about the Hill Cumorah in New York, which had recently been
purchased by the Church.
"Reference
has been made by the President of the acquisition by the Church of the spot of ground in the state of New
York known as the hill Cumorah. It appears to me to be an event of such
importance that I desire to devote the short time which is at my disposal this
morning to a discussion of that subject. There have been some differences of
opinion in regard to it, and in order that I might be correct in the statements
which I make I have this morning finished a short manuscript which I would like
to read—the first time, I believe, in my experience, that I have ever addressed
a congregation in this manner, and I do it for the purpose stated….
This sealed
portion of the record which came into the hands of Joseph Smith but was not
translated by him so far as we are aware, with the abridgment made by Mormon,
the record of Ether, and the other
sacred records which were deposited in the hill Cumorah still lie in their
repository, awaiting the time when the Lord shall see fit to bring them
forth, that they may be published to the world.
Whether they
have been removed from the spot where Mormon deposited them we cannot tell, but
this we know, that they are safe under the guardianship of the Lord, and that
they will be brought forth at the proper time, as the Lord has declared they
should be, for the benefit and blessing of the people of the world, for his
word never fails….
"All of
these incidents to which I have referred, my brethren and sisters, are very closely associated with this
particular spot in the state of New York. Therefore I feel, as I said in
the beginning of my remarks, that the acquisition of that spot of ground is
more than an incident in the history of the Church; it is an epoch—an epoch
which in my opinion is fraught with that which may become of greater interest
to the Latter-day Saints than that which has already occurred. We know that all of these records, all the
sacred records of the Nephite people, were deposited by Mormon in that hill.
That incident alone is sufficient to make it the sacred and hallowed spot that
it is to us.... Those additional records will come forth, they will be
published to the world, that the children of our Father may be converted to
faith in Christ, our Lord and Redeemer, through obedience to the doctrines
which he taught.”
13. 1975 President Marion G. Romney.
In the
October 1975 General Conference, President Romney, then First Counselor in the
First Presidency, gave a talk titled “America’s Destiny” that included these
statements:
In the western part of the state of New
York near Palmyra is a prominent hill known as the “hill Cumorah.” (Morm. 6:6.) On July twenty-fifth of
this year, as I stood on the crest of that hill admiring with awe the
breathtaking panorama which stretched out before me on every hand, my mind reverted to the events which
occurred in that vicinity some twenty-five centuries ago—events which brought
to an end the great Jaredite nation.
You who are
acquainted with the Book of Mormon will recall that during the final campaign
of the fratricidal war between the armies led by Shiz and those led by
Coriantumr “nearly two millions” of Coriantumr’s people had been slain by the
sword; “two millions of mighty men, and also their wives and their children.”
(Ether 15:2.)
As the
conflict intensified, all the people who had not been slain—men “with their
wives and their children” (Ether 15:15)—gathered
about that hill Cumorah (see Ether 15:11)....
Thus perished
at the foot of Cumorah the remnant of the once mighty Jaredite nation, of whom
the Lord had said, “There shall be none greater … upon all the face of the
earth.” (Ether 1:43.)
As I
contemplated this tragic scene from the crest of Cumorah and viewed the
beautiful land of the Restoration as it appears today, I cried in my soul, “How
could it have happened?”
...
"The
tragic fate of the Jaredite and the Nephite civilizations is proof positive
that the Lord meant it when he said that this “is a land of promise; and
whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept off
when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fulness of his
wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity.” (Ether 2:9.)"
14. 1978. Elder Mark E. Peterson.
In the October 1978 General Conference,
Elder Mark E. Peterson of the Quorum of the Twelve said:
Moroni’s father was commander of the
armies of this ancient people, known as Nephites. His name was Mormon. The war
of which we speak took place here in America some four hundred
years after Christ. (See Morm. 6.)
As the fighting neared its end, Mormon gathered the remnant of his forces about a hill which they called Cumorah, located in what is now the western part of the state of New York.
Their enemies, known as Lamanites, came against them on this hill....
When finished with the record, Moroni was to hide it up in that same Hill Cumorah which was their battlefield. It would come forth in modern times as the Book of Mormon, named after Moroni’s father, the historian who compiled it.
As the fighting neared its end, Mormon gathered the remnant of his forces about a hill which they called Cumorah, located in what is now the western part of the state of New York.
Their enemies, known as Lamanites, came against them on this hill....
When finished with the record, Moroni was to hide it up in that same Hill Cumorah which was their battlefield. It would come forth in modern times as the Book of Mormon, named after Moroni’s father, the historian who compiled it.
15. 1990 –
Letter from the Office of the First Presidency
On October 16, 1990, the Office of the First Presidency responded to a question from a Bishop in Oklahoma with a formal letter. The letter was approved by each member of the First Presidency, indicated by a literal stamp of approval on the original. The members of the First Presidency at the time were Ezra Taft Benson, Gordon B. Hinckley, and Thomas S. Monson.
- The Church has long maintained, as attested to by references in the writings of General Authorities, that the Hill Cumorah in western New York state is the same as referenced in the Book of Mormon.
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