A Smithsonian Magazine article titled “ Native Americans Spread Horses Through the West Earlier Than Thought ” (2023) has been circulating in Mormon spaces as supposed proof that horses existed in the Americas during Book of Mormon times. The article summarizes a legitimate scientific study published in Science titled “ Early Dispersal of Domestic Horses Into the Great Plains and Northern Rockies .” (2023) But when you read what the researchers actually found, it’s clear this does not support the Book of Mormon’s claims at all. What the Study Actually Found The research team, led by William Timothy T. Taylor, analyzed horse remains found across the Great Plains and northern Rockies. Using radiocarbon dating, DNA sequencing, and isotopic analysis, they discovered that the animals were of Spanish origin. In other words, these were not remnants of ancient, native North American horses that somehow...
For nearly two centuries, critics of Mormonism have engaged in debate after debate about its doctrines. Is God a man of flesh and bone? Are there many gods? Did Jesus and Satan really start as spiritual brothers? Is there still need for prophets? Doctrinal rebuttals almost never land , because Mormon theology is internally coherent (so long as you accept its starting assumptions). And because of that, critics would be far more effective if they stopped trying to disprove Mormon beliefs and instead turned their attention to the foundation on which all of those beliefs rest: The Book of Mormon.