This is an archived copy of a post written by Conflict Of Justice (conflictofjustice.com). Used with permission: Conflict Of Justice may not agree with any alterations made.
“Latter-day Saint Thomas Stuart Ferguson was BYU’s archaeology division (New World Archaeological Funding) founder. NWAF was financed by the Church. NWAF and Ferguson were tasked by BYU and the Church in the 1950s and 1960s to find archaeological evidence to support the Book of Mormon. This is what Ferguson wrote after 17 years of trying to dig up evidence for the Book of Mormon:
‘…you can’t set Book of Mormon geography down anywhere – because it is fictional and will never meet the requirements of the dirt-archaeology. I should say – what is in the ground will never conform to what is in the book.’” – Letter dated February 2, 1976 (CES Letter)
Obviously, it is impossible for archaeology to prove a story–any story–as fiction. This statement from Ferguson shows incredible ignorance about what science is. But I actually agree with Ferguson when he says the Book of Mormon is unlikely to be verified with archaeology. This is because the Book of Mormon provides few unique physical clues that are likely to be found among ancient remains. Scientists are unlikely to find a set of metal plates that read: “Hi, my name is Nephi and I am from Jerusalem.”
A vast field of study has grown to consider physical evidences that have been found for the Book of Mormon, and there are many evidences. I found 112 pieces of evidence. But smoking gun proof is not going to happen. Sorry.
Not An Archaeologist – According to FairMormon, Thomas Ferguson “never studied archaeology at a professional level,” and his undergraduate degree was in law. He was not the founder of BYU’s archaeology division, and is regarded by nobody as an authority or scholar. He was not tasked by BYU to find anything. Nobody has really heard of him in the church. He’s a nobody.
Thomas Ferguson misspells “geography” in the letter that CES Letter cites:
After looking into this guy more, I found that Ferguson was in charge of fundraising for the NWAF, a private archaeology association, and he got some funding from the LDS church in the early 1950’s. The NWAF became part of BYU in 1961, under BYU’s anthropology department, and Ferguson’s position was quickly replaced.
| Maybe Thomas Ferguson was smart, but he was definitely a naïve man who thought he could find some kind of smoking-gun clue to verify his faith. Like the crusaders of old, he sought some physical object, some relic, that he could use as visual confirmation for his beliefs. The normal clues that we find in archaeology, such as social characteristics and governmental dynamics, simply would not due as evidence. He wanted a smoking gun, a holy grail. This is an important lesson for members of the Mormon church. Living faith cannot be confirmed from dead bones in the ground. We are a church of the living. |  |
CES Letter Logical Fallacies
| Falsehood | Thomas Stuart Ferguson helped found the NWAF as fundraiser, but it only became a subset in BYU’s anthropology and archaeology division, and he was quickly replaced when BYU acquired it, because he was not a professional or educated archaeologist. Ferguson was not tasked by BYU or the church to find anything. I do not find anything that reveals how long he spent “digging,” or what digs he participated in at all. |
| Association Fallacy | Why should an attorney who helped acquire funding for a private archaeology group be considered an authority on archaeology? He can’t even spell the word “geography” right! |
| Appeal to Authority | CES Letter tries to appeal to the Mormon church’s own authority on the subject to use science to attack the religion. |
| Argument from Ignorance | The Book of Mormon claims the land of the Nephites underwent great physical changes during the appearance of Christ. So why would Ferguson expect to find geography as described earlier to that point? You can’t determine that a story is “fictional” just because it doesn’t list enough clues that allow you to verify or discredit it through archaeology. |
Use Opponent As Authority Tactic – This is a popular Marxist tactic that anti-Mormons use. They use Mormonism’s own authorities to discredit the faith, such as a Mormon archaeologist who says there is no evidence for the Book of Mormon. Looking at this argument in an isolated context, it is a very poor argument. Some lawyer takes up archaeology as a hobby and decides it must be false because he didn’t find smoking gun evidence, which any real professional would admit would be unlikely to be found? But what makes this argument powerful is:
- Deceptively discredits the vast libraries of study on Book of Mormon physical evidences by LDS professionals.
- Gives more focus to the small handful of cherry-picked things that haven’t been verified, such as horses.
- Divides the ranks of the church.
- Establishes a frame that demands clear physical evidence for every little thing, in an unreasonable and unscientific way.
This is a powerful introduction to CES Letter‘s next attacks which have to do with geography, because geography is something that is described in the Book of Mormon and can be verified (unless it totally changed at the coming of Christ. There isn’t much of a description and everything actually changed near the end of the Book of Mormon, but at least it’s something scientists can study. This illogical statement by an angry amateur anti-Mormon makes geography an issue of archaeology. Suddenly, every little thing in the Book of Mormon must be uncovered in the dirt, or the “georgrahy” is “fictional.”
No amount of evidence is enough! This frame is in direct opposition to real faith and a reasonable understanding of any historical event.
Contradiction Strategy – Following the Marxist strategy of contradiction, CES Letter uses an alleged member of the Mormon church to attack the Mormon church. The attack is always more powerful when it comes from an alleged member, which is why anti-Mormons so often pretend to be faithful latter day saints and sow dissension inside the church. The founder of BYU’s archeology division, no less! This appeals subtly to the bandwagon fallacy, where we get the impression that all the smart people in the church are changing their minds about its truthfulness. We think, “Even the experts on my side think I should leave the church! I must really have it wrong.” It also insulates the Marxist anti-Mormons from counter-attacks, because it is not them saying these things, why, it is the Mormon experts admitting it.
Also, what does CES Letter believe in? What tenant of faith do hold that we can verify or discredit with archaeology? Global warming? Human evolution? Give us something! Why don’t they discuss an alternative belief to the beliefs of the Book of Mormon and bible, and talk about physical evidences? Instead, they nit-pick and tear down an entire belief system with unscientific appeals to fake science.
This Marxist propaganda technique is especially insidious as it defines Mormons in a constrained and unfair frame, and it rallies non-Mormons or anybody who was sitting on the fence in solidarity against Mormons and their beliefs.