The Jaredites

[dougtheavenger]

Here is a thread largely for my fellow members of the restored church of Jesus Christ; namely Mormons.

I have heard members of the church state that the Jaredites came to America in 2200 BC. However, the Book of Ether suggests that they were the first Americans. I base this on the Biblical story of the Tower of Babel. My understanding of that story is that the whole human race was present at the Tower of Babel when the languages of mankind were confounded. I also have doubts as to how literally the Tower of Babel story should be taken. I know it is one of the oldest if not the oldest story that still survives in any form. I also am certain that the first Americans brought it from the Old World with them. My own suspicions are that it is at least 10,000 to 15,000 years old. Here is a version told to Diego Duran when he was a child by a Chola priest.

In the "Historia Antiqua de la Nueva Espana", Diego Duran recorded the following story from a Cholula priest.

[Brant Gardner]

Where to begin?

1) Personally, I date the Jaredites later rather than this early, but that is me. Still, the idea that they are the only ones in the New World comes from an interpretation of the text that is not required by the text (and contradicted by the way such terms are used in other texts in the ancient world).

2) Duran is not the best source for Central Mexican mythology. He was very interested in Christianized versions. He has some good stuff, but must be used with caution.

3) The particular legend given for Cholula is clearly garbled, with pieces of better-attested tales mashed together into something not recognizable.

4) The use of the text to suggest that the Jaredites were not first is hardly necessary, as I don't know of any current LDS scholar working on the history of the Book of Mormon who would accept that hypothesis.

[Robert F. Smith]

I have heard members of the church state that the Jaredites came to America in 2200 BC. However, the Book of Ether suggests that they were the first Americans. I base this on the Biblical story of the Tower of Babel. My understanding of that story is that the whole human race was present at the Tower of Babel when the languages of mankind were confounded. I also have doubts as to how literally the Tower of Babel story should be taken. I know it is one of the oldest if not the oldest story that still survives in any form. I also am certain that the first Americans brought it from the Old World with them. My own suspicions are that it is at least 10,000 to 15,000 years old.

The Book of Mormon mentions the Great Tower (Ether 1:33), rather than the late biblical Tower of Babel and some of the other matters associated with that later version of the story. I estimate the event to be circa 3100 B.C. somewhere in Mesopotamia (probably north Mesopotamia). By contrast, the first immigrants to the Western hemisphere arrived at least by 20,000 B.C. I and some of my colleagues identify the Jaredites with the Olmecs, whose great civilization came to florescence during the 2nd millennium B.C.

[Jon63]

The Book of Mormon mentions the Great Tower (Ether 1:33), rather than the late biblical Tower of Babel and some of the other matters associated with that later version of the story. I estimate the event to be circa 3100 B.C. somewhere in Mesopotamia (probably north Mesopotamia). By contrast, the first immigrants to the Western hemisphere arrived at least by 20,000 B.C. I and some of my colleagues identify the Jaredites with the Olmecs, whose great civilization came to florescence during the 2nd millennium B.C.

Your view is not shared by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

This is from the Church's official website...

Jaredites

See also Book of Mormon; Jared; Jared, Brother of.People in the Book of Mormon who were descendants of Jared, his brother, and their friends (Ether 1:33

[Robert F. Smith]

Your view is not shared by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

This is from the Church's official website...

Jaredites

See also Book of Mormon; Jared; Jared, Brother of.People in the Book of Mormon who were descendants of Jared, his brother, and their friends (Ether 1:33

[Kiviuq]

The answer hinges on another favorite topic, that of a literal global flood. If a global flood wiped out all of humanity then, based on the timing of that event, the American continent would be empty at the time of the Jaredites.

[Robert F. Smith]

The answer hinges on another favorite topic, that of a literal global flood. If a global flood wiped out all of humanity then, based on the timing of that event, the American continent would be empty at the time of the Jaredites.

Bear in mind that much of what we read in the early sections of genesis is telescoped and abbreviated. Indeed, far from any indication of stasis following the great Deluge in Genesis 8, we find in Genesis 9-10 specific instructions to "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" (9:1), followed by lists of the names or eponyms of ancestral groups who "overspread" the earth (9:19). Only in Genesis 11 do we find a late version of the Tower of Babel story, and there is no indication of an empty earth at that point. What we do have there is a recognition of what any student of Sanskrit recognizes -- all languages were once one language. Genesis, which is not a manual of anthropology or linguistics, deals with such realities in epic and poetic fashion. Modern historiography had yet to be invented.