How a Mormon lawyer transformed archaeology in Mexico

[Maidservant]

How a Mormon lawyer transformed archaeology in Mexico

Thought this might be of interest of some.  The article uses the story to challenge faith, and I am not well-versed enough in this history to know if the facts are accurate.  But aside from those things, I think it does a good job of capturing a person and a time and the movement that Mormons have generally for archaeology.  Bits I hadn't known.

[Robert F. Smith]

Tom Ferguson was indeed a powerful force in creating and funding the New World Archaeological Foundation (NWAF), which went on to do more excavating and producing more reports of high quality than any other archeological enterprise in Mesoamerica.  Lizzie Wade's article is quite right to point out the nature of that continuing effort, and to cite all the non-Mormon scholars who did it. However, a true understanding of science eluded both Ferguson and Wade.  Unfortunately, even though Wade pointed out Ferguson's lack of any scientific training, she bought into the same faulty version of the results of Mesoamerican archeology which infected Ferguson -- leading to his apostasy.  Wade does mention Mormon scientists who worked with Ferguson in Mesoamerica (John Clark and John Sorenson), but failed to point out that they did not apostatize.  Why not?  Surely they were well aware of all Ferguson had to say.  Not only that, each of them has written strong defenses of the Book of Mormon using the results of Mesoamerican archeology.

Wade cites a "paper" written by Ferguson for a 1975 symposium on BofM archeology.  However, as a participant myself in that symposium (who contributed a major paper), I can say that Ferguson did no such thing.  What he gave each of us was an off-the-wall, childish pastiche of pages xeroxed from the BofM dealing with items which archeology had supposedly not discovered.  Nothing scholarly about it -- more likely evidence of Ferguson's dementia.  My 1975 paper is online at https://www.scribd.com/document/365401091/REVIEW-OF-PROPOSED-NORMAN-SORENSON-BOOK-OF-MORMON-GEOGRAPHY-CORRELATIONS .

The main problem for Ferguson was his absurd notions on the nature of science.  Indeed, the LDS Church only made contributions to the NWAF on condition that the archeology conducted would be standard, professional archeology.  No Book of Mormon archeology.  That is the way basic research proceeds, without bias.  A good example of the restrained use of science in discussing archeology and the Book of Mormon is John L. Sorenson's two-part series in the Ensign:  “Digging into the Book of Mormon: Our Changing Understanding of Ancient America and Its Scripture,” part 1, Ensign, 14/9 (Sept 1984), online at https://www.lds.org/ensign/1984/09/digging-into-the-book-of-mormon-our-changing-understanding-of-ancient-america-and-its-scripture?lang=eng .  Part 2 is at https://www.lds.org/ensign/1984/10/digging-into-the-book-of-mormon-our-changing-understanding-of-ancient-america-and-its-scripture-part-2?lang=eng .

[Kevin Christensen]

Jeff Lindsay has a long response to this as well.

http://mormanity.blogspot.com/2018/01/science-how-mormon-lawyer-transformed.html

FWIW

Kevin Christensen,

Canonsburg, PA

[cdowis]

del

Edited January 23, 2018 by cdowis

[Exiled]

On 1/21/2018 at 9:21 AM, Robert F. Smith said:

Tom Ferguson was indeed a powerful force in creating and funding the New World Archaeological Foundation (NWAF), which went on to do more excavating and producing more reports of high quality than any other archeological enterprise in Mesoamerica.  Lizzie Wade's article is quite right to point out the nature of that continuing effort, and to cite all the non-Mormon scholars who did it. However, a true understanding of science eluded both Ferguson and Wade.  Unfortunately, even though Wade pointed out Ferguson's lack of any scientific training, she bought into the same faulty version of the results of Mesoamerican archeology which infected Ferguson -- leading to his apostasy.  Wade does mention Mormon scientists who worked with Ferguson in Mesoamerica (John Clark and John Sorenson), but failed to point out that they did not apostatize.  Why not?  Surely they were well aware of all Ferguson had to say.  Not only that, each of them has written strong defenses of the Book of Mormon using the results of Mesoamerican archeology.

Wade cites a "paper" written by Ferguson for a 1975 symposium on BofM archeology.  However, as a participant myself in that symposium (who contributed a major paper), I can say that Ferguson did no such thing.  What he gave each of us was an off-the-wall, childish pastiche of pages xeroxed from the BofM dealing with items which archeology had supposedly not discovered.  Nothing scholarly about it -- more likely evidence of Ferguson's dementia.  My 1975 paper is online at https://www.scribd.com/document/365401091/REVIEW-OF-PROPOSED-NORMAN-SORENSON-BOOK-OF-MORMON-GEOGRAPHY-CORRELATIONS .

The main problem for Ferguson was his absurd notions on the nature of science.  Indeed, the LDS Church only made contributions to the NWAF on condition that the archeology conducted would be standard, professional archeology.  No Book of Mormon archeology.  That is the way basic research proceeds, without bias.  A good example of the restrained use of science in discussing archeology and the Book of Mormon is John L. Sorenson's two-part series in the Ensign:  “Digging into the Book of Mormon: Our Changing Understanding of Ancient America and Its Scripture,” part 1, Ensign, 14/9 (Sept 1984), online at https://www.lds.org/ensign/1984/09/digging-into-the-book-of-mormon-our-changing-understanding-of-ancient-america-and-its-scripture?lang=eng .  Part 2 is at https://www.lds.org/ensign/1984/10/digging-into-the-book-of-mormon-our-changing-understanding-of-ancient-america-and-its-scripture-part-2?lang=eng .

Thomas Ferguson had dementia? Where is the evidence for that?

[Robert F. Smith]

31 minutes ago, Exiled said:

Thomas Ferguson had dementia? Where is the evidence for that?

I said " What he gave each of us was an off-the-wall, childish pastiche of pages xeroxed from the BofM dealing with items which archeology had supposedly not discovered.  Nothing scholarly about it -- more likely evidence of Ferguson's dementia."  My statement in context dealt with his extremely puerile 1975 nonsense.  He was a lawyer, for heaven's sake!!  How does one explain such irrationality?  In another 8 years he was dead, and I do not know whether he suffered from dementia.  But he certainly had no concept of science or scholarship.  Just the opposite.

[Exiled]

On 1/27/2018 at 10:53 AM, Robert F. Smith said:

I said " What he gave each of us was an off-the-wall, childish pastiche of pages xeroxed from the BofM dealing with items which archeology had supposedly not discovered.  Nothing scholarly about it -- more likely evidence of Ferguson's dementia."  My statement in context dealt with his extremely puerile 1975 nonsense.  He was a lawyer, for heaven's sake!!  How does one explain such irrationality?  In another 8 years he was dead, and I do not know whether he suffered from dementia.  But he certainly had no concept of science or scholarship.  Just the opposite.

Is the presentation still extant?

[Robert F. Smith]

13 minutes ago, Exiled said:

Is the presentation still extant?

Yes.  See Ferguson, Thomas S., "Written Symposium on Book-of-Mormon Geography: Response of Thomas S. Ferguson to the Norman & Sorenson Papers," 12 March 1975a, Univ of Utah. Reprinted in Tanner and Tanner 1988a = Jerald & Sandra Tanner, Ferguson's Manuscript Unveiled. Salt Lake City: Utah: Lighthouse Ministry, 1988a.