Fireside in St. George this Sunday

[William Schryver]

I am also convinced of a "vicinity of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec" setting as the central locus of the Nephite civilization, but I am likewise persuaded that the tentacles of that civilization reached much further. Not to imply that it reached further in a contiguous fashion. Quite to the contrary. I believe those who emigrated from the Mesoamerican Nephite homeland had to pass through or around lands occupied by non-Nephites, and then established Nephite "outposts" in distant locales. But I am inclined to believe that those Nephite outposts extended well into North America from a fairly early date.

[Kevin Christensen]

I like the idea of Mike Ash, Mark Wright, and Daniel Peterson giving firesides. The more that the LDS get exposed to the good stuff, the better off we shall be.

Kevin Christensen

Pittsburgh, PA

[cinepro]

Nobody's yet had the nerve to ask me that question to my face, but, yes, that's about the way certain Meldrumites seem to view things.

Of course, you could always say "The only time I've been tempted to disregard the Prophet is when I was called as a Bishop..."

[Hashbaz]

I like the idea of Mike Ash, Mark Wright, and Daniel Peterson giving firesides. The more that the LDS get exposed to the good stuff, the better off we shall be.

As Dan just said on another thread, "all it takes is an invitation, an adequate justification, sufficient time, somebody to set up the program and publicize it, and somebody to pick up the tab for lodging and transportation." All I'm asking in return for doing the fireside in St. George this weekend is $64 to cover gas to and from Provo and a place to sleep (which turns out to be a princess bed - complete with pink canopy - in a hastily cleaned room at a stake clerk's house). I have no books, dvds or websites to promote, so hopefully accusations of priestcraft will be kept to a minimum. I really do just want to get people excited about reading the Book of Mormon.

[Hashbaz]

Question for Mike, Mark, Dan and any others who give firesides on Book of Mormon geography in Utah:

In the last year or two, have you noticed any change in the nature or tenor of the Q&A questions that would indicate an increase in the number of "Meldrumites" in the audience?

Not so much in the Q&A, but I've had a few approach me afterward to privately ask my thoughts. I actually get more questions about 2012 than I do about Lamanite DNA (last year I got a number of questions about crystal skulls).

[MAsh]

Not so much in the Q&A, but I've had a few approach me afterward to privately ask my thoughts. I actually get more questions about 2012 than I do about Lamanite DNA (last year I got a number of questions about crystal skulls).

I wish had the opportunity to come hear you speak Mark. I really enjoyed your FAIR presentation in 08.

I've also had a few people ask me my thoughts about Lamanite DNA as evidence for the BoM. Dan's pretty much summed up my experience and attitude to BoM geography.

[Daniel Peterson]

Of course, you could always say "The only time I've been tempted to disregard the Prophet is when I was called as a Bishop..."

And it would be true, too.

[Daniel Peterson]

The only thing, it seems, that would have improved Mark Wright's fireside in St. George would be if the real expert on Mesoamerica, who calls herself "beastie" these days, could have spoken there in his stead. From what I've read about her over on a certain other board, after easily destroying the much ballyhooed Oxford book Massacre at Mountain Meadows that Ron Walker, Rick Turley, and Glen Leonard, assisted by many other historians and archivists, had spent years researching and writing, she turned her hand to Mesoamerican archaeology and destroyed the Book of Mormon. Or something like that. (Perhaps I have the sequence of these two accomplishments mixed up.)

[Daniel Peterson]

So, Hashbaz. Is there going to be a report?

Was your talk mainly ad hominems and insults? Was there a good turnout? Were they typical mind-numbed Mormon robots? Were their eyes glazed and vacant? Did they buy your deceptions? Did you make lots and lots of money?

Inquiring minds want to know.

[Anijen]

Hashbaz I am going to talk to my SP and see if he would be interested, I know I would. I'd take care of the travel and room and board, I can beat that princess bed with a hot pink room of my daughters she is currently at Utah State, but it might give you a headache I know it does me....

[Hashbaz]

So, Hashbaz. Is there going to be a report?

Was your talk mainly ad hominems and insults? Was there a good turnout? Were they typical mind-numbed Mormon robots? Were their eyes glazed and vacant? Did they buy your deceptions? Did you make lots and lots of money?

Inquiring minds want to know.

I'm happy to report it was a packed house, and they bought all of my lies hook, line and sinker, except for one woman who came up to me at the end and told me she could prove everything I said was wrong because she had a quote from her Institute teacher that said Lehi landed in Chile. During the Q&A I had two questions about 2012 (one concerning the Galactic Alignment and the other the coming Apocalypse) and a couple about Cumorah, but there didn't seem to be any clearly Meldrum flavored questions. Financially, I was not rewarded as handsomely as I hoped. I tried turning the period into a comma and adding an extra zero to make my $64.18 in gas receipts look like $64,180, but I'm afraid the ward financial clerk's well-developed spirit of discernment (and 20/20 vision) foiled my plan. Guess the Double Double from In-N-Out is coming out of my own pocket this time.

On a serious note, the whole stake had been making a concerted effort to read the Book of Mormon by the end of summer and they brought me in to cap off the reading challenge. I ended my presentation with a slide that asked "What is the greatest proof that the Book of Mormon is true?", and then read Moroni 10:4-5 and bore my testimony, which came to me long before I began studying Mesoamerican archaeology. There was a wonderful spirit there, and I could tell that a majority of the audience had taken up the challenge to read it. It was a great experience for me; I suppose it even made up for having to shell out my own cash for a Double Double.