Book of Mormon’s Hidden Connection to Native Americans (Thomas Murphy 1 of 4)

Can rigorous DNA research and religious scripture coexist? Years ago, Murphy’s groundbreaking DNA research directly challenged traditional Book of Mormon claims about Native American origins. It was a stance that put him at odds with his own stake president and nearly cost him his membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For many in the Mormon studies world, Murphy’s name has been synonymous with that controversy ever since.

Now, Murphy returns to Gospel Tangents with something new: his first full-length book, Unsettling Scripture: Iroquois and the Book of Mormon. And this time, the conversation isn’t just about DNA — it’s about history hiding in plain sight.

https://youtu.be/NYOCqWRKC6w

Don’t miss our other conversations with Thomas: https://gospeltangents.com/people/thomas-murphy/

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Check out a transcript of the interview on Amazon.

Book of Mormon Connection Few Have Considered

Murphy’s central argument in this episode is striking: the Smith family had real, documented contact with Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) communities living near Palmyra, New York, in the years leading up to the Book of Mormon’s publication. Rather than treating the Book of Mormon’s narrative as emerging in a vacuum, Murphy asks what it means that Joseph Smith grew up in close proximity to a living, sophisticated Native nation with its own oral traditions, history, and worldview. It’s a question that doesn’t get asked nearly often enough in Mormon history circles — and Murphy brings decades of anthropological training to bear on it.

Why This Conversation Matters

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