Mitochondrial and Y-chromosome DNA are wonderful things. Since we inherit them from only one parent (mitochondrial DNA coming from our mothers, and Y-chromosome DNA coming from our fathers–if we happen to be male), they allow us to figure out how people are or aren’t distantly related.
The first time the existence of such genetic family-tree tracing broke into public consciousness was a number of years ago when evidence of a “mitochondrial Eve”–a woman from whom all living humans are descended–was reported. That story has been kicked around a number of times, but it’s still being taken seriously in scientific circles.
The same kind of genetic research has the potential to solve other historical puzzles. One that I’ve been waiting for lo these long years is word about where the so-called ten “lost tribes of Israel” ended up. There is some genetic evidence indicating that some of them ended up in Africa, but I’m still waiting for a fuller picture.
Now there’s evidence (which is really just the last nail in the coffin) for where they didn’t end up, and it’s bad news for the Mormon Church. Ever since the Book of Mormon was written, Mormons have held that the American Indians were descendants of immigrants from Israel.
Just as it’s possible to find a lost tribe with DNA evidence, it’s also possible to lose one.
Anthropologists have long-maintained, and genetic studies are confirming, that American Indians are descendants of immigrants from East Asia, not the Middle East. A new book by a former Mormon bishop now explores the matter, and he admits where the evidence points.
Mormon apologists have seen the handwriting on the wall on this one for some time, and they have been doing what Mormon apologists typically do when faced with scientific evidence contary to historic Mormon belief: change their claims.
Still, it’s not good for the folks in Salt Lake.
Salt Lake City may be the headquarters, but Mesa, Arizona is Mormon Capital of the World.
“They have been doing what Mormon apologists typically do when faced with scientific evidence contary to historic Mormon belief: change their claims.”
Truer words . . .
Scientists, though similar study of human genes, have also concluded that the Catholic Church’s insistence on monogenism is false, akin to the falseness of the geocentrism She once endorsed.
This might be somewhat off topic, but is it heresy to believe polygenism? Yeah, I know Pius XII condemned it in “Humani Generis,” but the Holy Office, with papal approval, once condemned heliocentrism too.
Obviously, they were wrong.
It would seem to me that the Church’s claims of monogenism are just as esential to her belief system (i.e. original sin and subsequent redemption) as Mormonism’s are to them.
Even the existence of “Mitochondrial Eve” did not disprove polygenism, as any scientific article on the subject will demonstrate.
I’m just saying I don’t know how wise it is to gloat over Mormonism’s supposed defeat, especially on genetic grounds.
I think that monogenism is one of the Church’s most beautiful teachings.
“I think that monogenism is one of the Church’s most beautiful teachings.”
Whiich doesn’t make it true, much less scientifically accurate.
Monogenism probably is to now what geocentrism was to the 1500s.
I wasn’t trying to claim it was true just because I like it.
I thought this was one of those Church teachings that we had to accept.
Also, I’m not a biologist, just a math guy, but it seems to me that monogenism would be the much more sensible explanation. I’m not convinced that biologists can really prove one way or the other by just looking at genetic records. If you go back far enough, any polygenism will turn into monogenism. Though it may be possible that this “Adam” and “Eve” looked decidedly pre-human to us.
I find that biologists often make wild exotic claims with little or no real evidence. Most of the bio and chem people I know don’t really understand the math and stats concepts that they use.
speaking of “lost tribes of Israel” have you all heard of the Lemba? They are a (black) African tribe in South Africa who keeps Jewish customs (including animal sacrifice). It turns out they carry the genetic marker of the Aaronic priesthood.
http://www.haruth.com/JewsLembaNY.html
The story was also picked up by Nova:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/israel/parfitt.html
I am a chem guy with a firm grasp on the numbers.
hey watch it… i work in mesa
The DNA argument looks like a valid attack for those unfamiliar with the Book of Mormon and with DNA science. It’s all based on old and naive views of the scope of the Book of Mormon – the idea that it described the origins of ALL Native Americans across the entire continent, a claim foreign to the actual text though held as a popular but incorrect opinion by many. But in this century, it has been recognized by many leaders and scholars (before DNA became an issue) that the geographic scope of the book is limited, and that the tiny migrations in the text are not meant to cover ALL migrations, and in fact may only be a drop in the bucket as far as Native American origins go. Once we discard the old nineteenth century assumptions and look at what the text really says, there is little difficulty in accomodating modern DNA results.
See the details at http://www.jefflindsay.com/LDSFAQ/DNA.shtml.
Before this ever came to light many LDS thinkers and scholars strongly beleived that the America’s were NOT EXCLUSIVELY populated by the Isrealite immigrants, rather such immigrants came upon the continent to meet hosts of people already living there. How else could huge populations be engaging in war and conflict within a few years if not for the fact that there were already peoples in the area? Furthermore, the BOM points out that many of these people were wiped out, perhaps leaving a dominance of ‘native’ people. Furthermore, it is false to say that there is NO DNA evidence of Israelite blood in Native Americans, that is false, one major finding is that there is connections between the two. Way to cherry pick your evidence.
Boy, you people (original posters on this site) are so bigoted it makes me want to puke. Go get a life, instead of spending it bashing a religion you don’t understanding, by mis-interpreting facts and lack of information. Some people have made good comments here. I want to add that Mormons (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), by way of the Book of Mormon and the Kinderhook Plate (not cannonized) beleive in AT LEAST three immigration to the Americas before modern history. And we certainly don’t bar others. I also want to re-iterate the point that at least two of the four civilizations we beleive to have existed in the Ancient Americas (the Nephites and the Jaredites) were completely and utterly illimentated. That leaves an awful lot of room for other sources of genetic info to be dominant in current descendents of natives. Also, perhaps most importanly, please remember that science also tells us several things that contradict mainstream Christianity: there was no Flood, evolution, the earth is billions of years old, dinosaurs, etc.
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