Baja and Dartmouth

Recently the theoretical Baja setting for the Book of Mormon has attracted attention on the Stick of Joseph channel, where it is characterized as a "NEW THEORY on Book of Mormon Geography."

The Baja theory has been around for a long time. I discussed it 10 years ago on this and other blogs. 

Here's the link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIeBFtP7XZA&t=5238s

The Baja theory website: https://achoiceland.com/

I welcome multiple working hypotheses, pending more information, and these are great guys, faithful Latter-day Saints who have put a lot of time and effort into their Baja theory. 

However, we have to all understand the underlying premises.

Like M2C, the Baja theory (B2C) rejects what the prophets have taught about the New York Cumorah. Specifically, they reject what Oliver Cowdery explained in Letters IV, VII, and VIII. For more on that, see https://www.lettervii.com/2023/02/the-cumorah-issue-is-simple.html.

In one of my posts 10 years ago I commented on the Baja theory, although they had a different website then that I referenced: https://www.bookofmormoncentralamerica.com/2016/05/why-abstract-models-don-can.html

After observing the Baja and other theories, I posted comments about how it is easy to create a setting for the Book of Mormon anywhere in the world. Once we repudiate the New York Cumorah, any location in the world is a viable candidate. Or even an imaginary world such as the BYU map. 

https://www.bookofmormoncentralamerica.com/2018/01/getting-real-about-cumorah-part-2.html

All you have to do is:

1) reject the teachings of the prophets about Cumorah

2) establish assumptions and inferences that support the setting you want to promote.

Ten years ago I also commented in the logic of rejecting what Oliver said about Cumorah.

https://www.bookofmormoncentralamerica.com/2016/11/distinguishing-between-anti-mormon-and.html

_____

Dartmouth. I recently posted comments about the theory that, when Joseph was around 8-11 years old, he learned Hebrew literary styles and sophisticated Christian theology from his brother Hyrum, who had attended a boy's charity school located on the campus of Dartmouth college. 

I forgot to mention that the original attendance records are available for anyone to see here:

https://www.mobom.org/dartmouth-college-and-moors-school

Recent claims about chiasmus

The story of chiasmus in the Book of Mormon is well known by most people who study the Book of Mormon, including both believers and critics.

For a summary, see the articles here:

https://scripturecentral.org/search?q=chiasmus

Critics have a variety of responses, but one of the most creative is being promoted by Randy Bell. 

Randy is known for his obsession with Hyrum Smith's alleged connection with Dartmouth. Lately he has extended his Dartmouth conspiracy theory to include chiasmus.

He finally found a podcaster to promote his bizarre claims about Dartmouth, hyped by click-bait.  

Although he was not on Mormon Stories, I commented on the podcast here:

https://mormonstoriesreviewed.blogspot.com/2026/03/randy-bells-delusional-dartmouth.html

Even more interesting than Randy's conspiracy theory is the psychology that drives people to develop such theories. That might make for an interesting topic some day.

Alma 24:7-10

Jonah Barnes pointed out something in Alma 24:7-10 on Ward Radio.

https://youtu.be/eVsplMUutsA?t=1709

if you look in verse uh seven, okay, it says and and you can apply this to

27:44

that. I thank my God that God in his goodness has sent us our brethren to preach to us to convince us of the

27:51

traditions of our wicked fathers. If you believe in the Mesoamerican model, you

27:56

can repent. There's forgiveness for you. Okay? You can repent of that wicked

28:04

tradition of your father.  And look, it says, "We might repent of the

28:10

of these things, these wicked traditions, and be forgiven of the many sins that we've committed."

28:16

See, look at this. And we can come into the fold of the Heartlanders. This is so great. It's so meta, right? It's so meta

28:23

that Mormon foresaw the skepticism of those of those guys and he knew it was

28:29

coming and he prepared this version just for just for y'all. So, you can repent of that. 

:)

Back when I believed M2C

I empathize with BYU students, institute and seminary students, and everyone who was taught the Mesoamerican/two-Cumorahs theory (M2C) because I, too, used to believe all of that when I was a student.

I didn't know there were any other scenarios.

It was many years before I even heard of an alternative.

Now, in our day, the people who taught M2C and their followers all know about the alternative interpretations of the text that are faithful to what Joseph and Oliver taught all along. But few of them tell their students, readers, and listeners about the alternatives to M2C.

They should do so.

This all reminds me of a famous statement:

“One of the bittersweet things about growing old is realizing how mistaken you were when you were young. As a young political leftist, I saw the left as the voice of the common man. Nothing could be further from the truth.” — Thomas Sowell