A positive step? I hope so.

Readers tell me that BMAF has changed its corporate mission. This is a nice step in the right direction--I hope.

It's nice to see a sort of olive branch extended just before General Conference, so I wanted to recognize it and remind readers here that I like and respect the people affiliated with BMAF and its subsidiaries and affiliates. Everyone has good intentions and wants to share the Book of Mormon.

I think we can all work together. All it takes is a mutual commitment to full disclosure and tolerance of others' views.

Maybe we can all remember what President Nelson said about how good inspiration is based upon good information--a powerful indictment of censorship.

https://presidentnelsonspeaks.blogspot.com/2018/11/good-inspiration-and-good-information.html
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Before we look at the change at BMAF (in the table below), we need to consider some context.
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Despite what this logo claims, Book of Mormon Central is a subsidiary of BMAF (Book of Mormon Archaeological Forum). BMAF.org has long been a promoter of M2C (the Mesoamerican/two-Cumorahs theory) and their web page still archives some of the articles that attracted my attention to this topic in the first place.

Years ago, I was a strong believer and supporter of M2C. After all, I had been educated by CES and BYU, which means I didn't know what the prophets had taught about the New York Cumorah.

Just like today's youth in the Church, I was a victim of M2C censorship.

Just like today's fine young scholars employed by Book of Mormon Central, I trusted my mentors and BYU professors who taught M2C as the only possible explanation for the Book of Mormon.

I used to read all the FARMS materials. I attended conferences and lectures. I viewed everything through the M2C filter and confirmed all my biases. I worked with an archaeologist who did early peer reviews of John Sorenson's book, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon. I visited sites in Mesoamerica. I was "all in" on M2C.

Then I noticed that FARMS was resorting to logical fallacies, such as ad hominem attacks on critics, including critics of M2C who were good members of the Church. I read some of the articles (they are still archived on bmaf.org) and thought to myself, "this is nonsense."

It struck me that FARMS had devolved into pure advocacy. It was anti-scientific. The more I re-examined the material, the more I realized I had been duped by a hoax. The M2C hoax.
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FARMS was eventually merged into the Maxwell Institute, where it was defanged. But the principles just changed venue. They formed new organizations: the Interpreter Foundation, which publishes the Interpreter journal and Book of Mormon Central, a multi-million dollar organization that operates the web page and spreads M2C on social media.

Book of Mormon Central still uses the old FARMS logo that incorporates M2C (a Mayan glyph).

Both organizations started with lofty promises of openness and diversity, but like FARMS, both devolved quickly into advocacy organizations. They promoted M2C exclusively--and still do. They still resort to the same logical fallacies. They claim their work is "peer reviewed" but both terms are misleading. The only "peers" they run the material by are like-minded M2C advocates, and the only "review" they conduct is to assure compliance with the M2C orthodoxy. For examples, you can see my blog that looks at a few.
http://interpreterpeerreviews.blogspot.com/

Except now they raise and spend millions of dollars to promote M2C. Their employees are active on social media. They claim the support of the prophets and the Church, in direct violation of the Gospel Topics Essay on Book of Mormon Geography. They coordinate with BYU Studies and Meridian Magazine, the Maxwell Institute, and other organizations to promote M2C and enforce censorship of alternatives, including (especially) the teachings of the prophets about the New York Cumorah.
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There have been moments of hope, however. Early on, I offered to let Book of Mormon Central put the first edition of my book, Letter VII, on its web page for free. They accepted because they recognized it was accurate Church history. Of course, Letter VII establishes the New York Cumorah as a fact, which contradicts that basic premise of M2C. By including the book in their archive, they took a step towards openness and diversity of thought.

But after a while, Book of Mormon Central removed Letter VII from its archive. They replaced it with a "Kno-Why" telling readers why they should distrust Oliver Cowdery and all the prophets and apostles who have reaffirmed the New York Cumorah.

It's the worst of FARMS all over again.

Years ago, I agreed with the M2C scholars that, in the interests of harmony, I would delete this blog if they would stop their censorship and remove their material that attacked alternatives to M2C. My offer remains open. I like and respect the M2C scholars. They are great people. I admire all their work apart from M2C advocacy.

About 90% of what is on the Book of Mormon Central web page is great material. I use their archive material all the time and I encourage others to use it.

(The Interpreter, by contrast, is hopeless. The name itself gives away the editorial conceit; i.e., the intellectuals there purport to interpret everything for their readers. There are very few Interpreter articles that I could recommend, which is a shame because with a little legitimate peer review, much of that material could be salvaged and become useful.)

However, the M2C advocates at Book of Mormon Central have doubled down on the M2C hoax, as we all see when we look at their web page. They could easily add some comparison tables, such as the one at the end of this post. They could put material in their archives that supports, instead of repudiates, the teachings of the prophets about the New York Cumorah.

So far, they've refused. But maybe they're getting the message that insisting on M2C to the exclusion of everything else is not the best way to share the Book of Mormon.

Maybe they will decide to trust members of the Church to make informed decisions.

Maybe they'll recognize President Nelson's message that good inspiration is based upon good information.

I hope so.
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Which brings us to the change at BMAF.org.

They recently modified their Mission Statement page to portray an image of openness and diversity.

It's not much, but it is a step in the right direction. Whether it will produce any substantive changes remains to be seen.

Old	New (2019)
MISSION STATEMENT The Book of Mormon Archaeological Forum (BMAF) is a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization dedicated as an open forum for presentation, dissemination, and discussion of research and evidences regarding Book of Mormon archaeology, anthropology, geography and culture within a Mesoamerican context.	MISSION STATEMENT The Book of Mormon Archaeological Forum (BMAF) is a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization dedicated as an open forum for presentation, dissemination, and discussion of research and evidences regarding Book of Mormon archaeology, anthropology, geography and culture within Mesoamerican and other ancient contexts.
Our goals are	The specific and primary purposes of the organization are:
(1) to increase understanding of the Book of Mormon as an ancient Mesoamerican codex,	(1) to increase understanding of the Book of Mormon as an ancient book or codex,
(2) to correlate and publish works of LDS and CofC scholars,	(2) (a) to conduct archaeological, scientific, historical, sociological, anthropological and other research in the public interest in the areas of the peoples, places, and cultures described in The Book of Mormon, and/or (b) provide opportuities [sic] for the announcement, discussion, publication, distribution and other debate and dissemination to the general public with such research being in furtherance of the public welfare.
(3) to help promote unity and cooperation among scholars and students of the Book of Mormon, and	(3) to help promote unity and cooperation among scholars and students of the Book of Mormon,
(4) to provide a forum where responsible scholars can present current ideas and discoveries.	(4) to provide a forum where responsible scholars can present current ideas and discoveries.

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The comparison charts below allow readers to decide which approach aligns with their personal beliefs. Such a chart avoids the problem of censorship. By enabling informed decisions, the charts fulfill the purpose of the Church's position of neutrality that recognizes individual freedom to choose what to believe.

When I posted this in August 2016, I tried to make it completely neutral and accurate, and I solicited comment. No one offered any corrections or changes, so I assume it remains valid. Of course, both sides could edit it as they see fit.

Publishing this would reflect the intellectual honesty, openness and cooperation that ought to prevail at Book of Mormon Central. Let me know if you see it posted there.
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Agree and Agree-to-Disagree lists

Here's my first look at areas in which the two theories agree and agree to disagree. I've tried to reflect both sides as accurately as possible. If anyone has more or different ideas, I'm open to editing this. In the interest of simplicity, I haven't provided links, but the material is widely available. Post a comment or email me if you want to know more about a particular item.

Proposition	M2C	Moroni’s America
1. The most important aspect of the Book of Mormon is its message.	Agree	Agree
2. The Book of Mormon is an inspired translation of an actual ancient record of actual people who lived in the real world.	Agree	Agree
3. The ultimate objective of our research/writing is to motivate people to read the Book of Mormon and strengthen their faith in Christ as a result.	Agree	Agree
4. Another objective of our research/writing is to help people better understand the text of the book by understanding its setting, culture and context.	Agree	Agree
5. The Church has no official position on where Book of Mormon events took place.	Agree	Agree
6. In Letter VII, Oliver Cowdery identified the valley west of the Hill Cumorah in New York as the location of the final battles of the Nephites and Jaredites.	Agree	Agree
7. Joseph Smith instructed his scribes to copy Oliver’s letters, including Letter VII, into his journal as part of his life story.	Agree	Agree
8. Joseph Smith gave permission to Benjamin Winchester to republish Oliver’s letters, including Letter VII, in his newspaper called the Gospel Reflector	Agree	Agree
9. Don Carlos republished Oliver’s letters, including Letter VII, in the 1842 Church newspaper called the Times and Seasons (T&S).	Agree	Agree
10. On Sept. 9, 1841, Dr. Bernhisel gave Wilford Woodruff a copy of the Stephens' popular archaeology books about Central America to give to Joseph Smith	Agree	Agree
11. On Nov. 5, 1841, Wilford Woodruff wrote a letter to Dr. Bernhisel that is not extant.	Agree	Agree
12. A thank-you letter dated Nov. 16, 1841, was sent to Bernhisel on Joseph Smith’s behalf. No one knows who wrote the letter because the handwriting remains unidentified and no journals mention it.	Agree	Agree
13. A series of editorials were published in the T&S during 1842 that linked the Book of Mormon to archaeological findings in North and Central America. They cited the Stephens books and archaeology books by Josiah Priest. All were published either anonymously or over the signature of Ed. for Editor.	Agree	Agree
14. From February 15 through October 15, 1842, the boilerplate of the T&S said the paper was edited, printed, and published by Joseph Smith.	Agree	Agree
15. Joseph Smith originally obtained the plates from a stone box Moroni constructed out of stone and cement in the Hill Cumorah in New York.	Agree	Agree
16. Brigham Young said Oliver told him that he (Oliver) and Joseph had made at least two visits to a room in the Hill Cumorah in New York that contained piles of records and ancient Nephite artifacts.	Agree	Agree
17. Mormon said he buried all the Nephite records in the Hill Cumorah (Morm. 6:6), the scene of the final battles of the Nephites, except he kept out the plates he gave to his son Moroni to finish the record.	Agree	Agree
18. D&C 128:20 reads, “And again, what do we hear? Glad tidings from Cumorah! Moroni, an angel from heaven, declaring the fulfilment of the prophets—the book to be revealed,” followed by references to other events that took place in New York.	Agree	Agree
19. The geography passages in the Book of Mormon are subject to a variety of interpretations.	Agree	Agree
20. To date, apart from Moroni’s stone box and the plates and other objects Joseph Smith possessed and showed to the Witnesses, no artifact or archaeological site that can be directly linked to the Book of Mormon has been found anywhere.	Agree	Agree
21. Cultural characteristics can be discerned from the text.	Agree	Agree
22. The New Jerusalem Ether wrote about is located in Jackson County, Missouri.	Agree	Agree
23. Mayan civilization collapsed around 800 A.D. and Mayans migrated to North America, where they lived for several hundred years before returning to Central America.	Agree	Agree
24. The Newark Ohio earthworks are the largest earthworks in the world and demonstrate knowledge of astronomy and geometry.	Agree	Agree
25. There were a million ancient mounds in North America before the Europeans arrived.	Agree	Agree
26. There are two million skeletons buried in mounds in Illinois alone.	Agree	Agree
27. As an Apostle and Church Historian, Joseph Fielding Smith said the two-Cumorah theory caused members to become confused and disturbed in their faith in the Book of Mormon. He reiterated this when he was President of the Quorum of the Twelve in the 1950s in his book Doctrines of Salvation.	Agree	Agree
28. The land of Zarahemla is north of the land of Nephi and lower in elevation than the land of Nephi.	Agree	Agree

And here's where we agree to disagree. Everyone can choose which position he/she agrees with on each topic. Other ideas are also fine.

Topic	M2C	Moroni’s America
1. Location of the Hill Cumorah	The hill in New York had nothing to do with ancient Nephites or Jaredites (apart from Moroni traveling to the area). The real Hill Cumorah which contains Mormon’s repository of records and was the scene of the final battles is elsewhere.	The hill in New York is the actual Hill Cumorah/Ramah where both the Nephites and the Jaredites were destroyed.  It also contained Mormon’s repository of the Nephite records.
2. Two-Cumorah theory described	There are two Cumorahs. The one in New York where Joseph Smith found the plates was just the place where Moroni buried his record. Unknown early Mormons gave this hill the name Cumorah and Joseph Smith later adopted this tradition. The real Cumorah where Mormon deposited the Nephite records is the scene of the final battles and it is in Mesoamerica.	There is only one Cumorah and it is in New York.
3. Joseph Fielding Smith’s comments on the two-Cumorah theory	Joseph Fielding Smith’s criticisms of the two-Cumorah theory are invalid because 50 years ago, someone heard a BYU professor say Pres. Smith told him he could teach whatever he wanted about Cumorah.	Joseph Fielding Smith’s criticisms of the two-Cumorah theory are valid, have caused and continue to cause members to become confused and disturbed in their faith of the Book of Mormon.
4. Oliver Cowdery’s Letter VII	Oliver Cowdery was speculating and was factually wrong about the New York location of the Hill Cumorah.	Oliver Cowdery stated a fact about the New York Cumorah based on his own experience in Mormon’s repository as related to Brigham Young and others.
5. Anonymous T&S article, Sept/Oct 1842	The articles linking the Book of Mormon to Central America were written, or at least approved by, Joseph Smith	The articles linking the Book of Mormon to Central America were not written, approved of, or even seen by Joseph Smith prior to publication
6. T&S Editor	Joseph was a hands-on editor of the T&S	Joseph was a nominal editor only. The paper was actually edited by William Smith and/or W.W. Phelps.
7. Book of Mormon overall geography	The text describes an overall hourglass shape.	The text does not describe an overall hourglass shape. Instead, Cumorah is a pin in the map in New York and Zarahemla is a pin in the map in Iowa.
8. Setting in Central America vs. North America	The description in the text best fits someplace in Central America, including Guatemala and Mexico.	The description in the text best fits North America, from Florida to New York and west to Missouri and Iowa.
9. Cultural elements in the text	The text describes an ancient Mesoamerican culture. Towers in the text refer to massive stone pyramids. Horses may be tapirs. The Nephites sacrificed agouti or other large rodents.	The text describes an ancient North American culture. Towers in the text refer to wooden towers. Horses are horses. The Nephites strictly observed the Law of Moses, including species.
10. Joseph Smith’s knowledge	Joseph did not leave a first-hand record of a revelation about Book of Mormon geography, so he had no revelation or inspiration regarding Book of Mormon geography	Joseph Smith knew where the Book of Mormon events took place because Moroni had shown him, as mentioned in the Wentworth letter and by his mother Lucy.
11. “Plains of the Nephites” (Joseph's letter to Emma refers to Ohio, Indiana and Illinois as the "plains of the Nephites")	Joseph speculated about a location not specifically mentioned in the text ("the plains of the Nephites").	Joseph recognized the plains referred to in the text of the Book of Mormon; i.e., "meet them upon the plains between the two cities" (Alma 52:20); "pitch their tents in the plains of Nephihah" (Alma 62:18) and "battle against them, upon the plains" (Alma 62:19).
12. Zelph	Zelph was a warrior killed in Illinois who was known to some of Lehi’s descendants who migrated northward from Mesoamerica into the Hinterland (areas not covered by the text)	Zelph was a warrior in the final battles of the Nephites, killed in Illinois between Zarahemla and Cumorah.
13. Location of Zarahemla	Zarahemla is located somewhere in Mexico or Guatemala; D&C 125:3 does not refer to the Nephite Zarahemla	Zarahemla is located across from Nauvoo as indicated by D&C 125:3 (near Montrose Iowa)
14. River Sidon	Because the land of Nephi is south of the land of Zarahemla and people travel down to the land of Zarahemla from Nephi, and because the river Sidon flows past the city of Zarahemla, the River Sidon flows north. Sidon is the Umacita or Grijalva river in Mesoamerica	Because the land of Nephi is south of the land of Zarahemla and people travel down to the land of Zarahemla from Nephi, the river between the two lands flows North. This is the Tennessee River, unnamed in the text. The text says that the river Sidon flows past the city of Zarahemla and along the land of Zarahemla, but not that it goes to the land of Nephi. These descriptions fits the Iowa location; Sidon is the upper Mississippi River.
15. Correspondences in Central America between BoM and ancient cultures	Many correspondences suggest the BoM took place in Central America, including Mayan banners, pyramids, stone temples, warfare, symbols of the tree of life, state-level society, etc.	These correspondences are typical of most cultures and, to the extent they are unique to BoM, they reflect culture brought to Central America from North America when the Mayans returned after 900 AD.
16. Jaredites	The Jaredites lived in Central America and were destroyed at the Hill Cumorah (Ramah) in Mexico	The Jaredites likely expanded throughout the western hemisphere and only those who lived in “this north country” were Ether's ancestors who were discussed in the Book of Ether and were destroyed at Cumorah
17. Presence of ancient writing	The text requires the presence of ancient writing systems, which are found only in Mesoamerica	The text excludes the presence of ancient writing systems because Lamanites destroyed any records they could find, which is why Mormon had to hide the plates.
18. Western Hemisphere setting	Although Joseph merely speculated about BoM geography, he knew it took place somewhere in the Western Hemisphere	Joseph knew by revelation that the Book of Mormon took place in the Western Hemisphere because he identified the plains of the Nephites, identified the western tribes of Indians as Lamanites, etc.
19. 1842 Wentworth letter statement that the “Lamanites are Indians in this country.”	This refers to all indigenous people in the Western Hemisphere.	Joseph was writing from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Mr. Wentworth who lived in Chicago, Illinois. Joseph's statement refers to the Native American Indians in Illinois and what was then the United States.
20. 1830-31 Mission to the Lamanites (D&C 28, 30 and 32)	Early Mormons believed the American Indians were Lamanites, but the term actually refers to all indigenous people in the Americas	Referred specifically to those tribes they visited (and other culturally connected tribes) in New York, Ohio and Missouri
21. Archaeological evidence in North America between BoM and ancient cultures	The archaeology in North America during BoM times shows a tribal level society, but BoM describes a state-level society	The archaeology shows a tribal level society but also a long-lost state-level society with monumental architecture among Adena and Hopewell societies, just as BoM describes
22. Modern prophets/apostles have identified Lamanites in Latin America	These statements corroborate the Mesoamerican setting.	These statements are not limited to Mesoamerica and reflect post-Book of Mormon migrations (Mayans moving north after 800 AD, then returning to Mesoamerica).
23. DNA evidence	All known DNA in Mesoamerican is Asian in origin, but DNA evidence is inconclusive; cannot prove or disprove the Book of Mormon.	Only northeastern (Great Lakes) Indian tribes have DNA other than Asian; dating of X2 haplotype (Middle-Eastern) remains an open issue because scientists currently say the X2 haplotype appeared in the Great Lakes region thousands of years before Lehi.
24. Promised land covenant	Promised land and covenant land includes entire Western hemisphere	Promised land and covenant land refers to the United States
25. Statements recorded by Wilford Woodruff and Martha Coray and attributed to Joseph Smith say that Zion is all of North and South America	These statement mean Lehi’s descendants filled the hemisphere, but BoM took place in a limited geography (Mesoamerica)	These statements originally meant Northern and Southern states, but Zion is anywhere the pure in heart live. Winchester’s wing concept of the continents of North and South America was adopted by Hyrum Smith and successors, then applied retroactively (Wilford Woodruff, Martha Coray)
26. Uto-Aztecan languages have Hebrew and Egyptian influence	These language influences show transoceanic interaction with Indians in western U.S. and Mexico.	These language influences show transoceanic interaction with Indians in western U.S. and Mexico, but not on Mayans. In addition, Algonquin (Great Lakes Indians) languages also have Hebrew and Egyptian influence.
27. General Conference talks that affirm the New York Cumorah	Presidents Ivins and Romney of the First Presidency were merely expressing their own opinions and were wrong. Same with Elder Mark E. Petersen.	Presidents Ivins and Romney of the First Presidency testified to the truth of what President Oliver Cowdery and others taught. Same with Elder Mark E. Petersen.

There's also a useful decision tree here:

http://bookofmormonconsensus.blogspot.com/2017/02/cumorah-decision-tree-for-book-of.html