Do Mormons (LDS) believe American natives descend from ancient Israelites?

Question

and do they also believe that Jesus went to North America?
any details greatly appreciated

Answer 1

We do believe that after Christ was resurrected that He came to the Americas and taught the people what He taught his other "sheep" in Jerusalem. (See John 10:16 for what I am hinting at).

We also believe that Lamanites from the Book of Mormon are among the ancestors of the Native Americans; however, it is likely that there were other groups here in America too, since the Book of Mormon tells of at least two others.

An introductory page of the Book of Mormon talks about this. It was written by a church historian to help people get a general idea of what the Book of Mormon is about; however, the wording on this page was recently changed in some editions to say "they are among the principle ancestors of the American Indians." instead of "they are the principal ancestors of the American Indians." as it reads in the link below. This is because the church does not have an official doctrine on this and the revised version in more in line with current scientific research, so it avoids the controversy that the old explanation left the door open to, even though it wasn't official doctrine or a part of the Book of Mormon translated by Joseph Smith.
http://scriptures.lds.org/en/bm/introduction

barlowgirl8605's: in response to your claim: The scientific research only lends support to the idea that the major ancestors of American Indians came from Asia/ Eastern Siberia, but this theory keeps changing too. Either way, scientists cannot say whether or not a group is among their ancestors, all they can say is that the mtDNA passed through the mothers genes has variation and common threads among it that are probably related to those in Asia. It is also interesting to note that the Nephites did likely pass through Asia as they came to America, as well as the fact that all those who survived in the Book of Mormon were those who killed believers in Christ, and they were likely living with and marrying those in the surrounding areas. This is clearly not doctrine or even proof of how the DNA came to be how it is, but it just shows that the case isn't as open and shut as you try to make it sound. We are talking about a group of people in one area, who killed off large portions of their population in a great war.

Answer 2

LDS believe some native Americans are descendants of ancient Israelites. We don't know where he visit in the Americas, but we believe he came after he was risen from the dead to preach the gospel to a group of people in the Americas.

There were native Americans before, during and well after this group of ancient Israelites colonized a part of the Americas. They weren't the first nor the sole ancestors of the native Americans.

Answer 3

The Book of Mormon tells us of 3 different groups that arrived in the Americas. It makes no claim that these were the only ones or that they were uninhabited when they arrived.

We believe that some of the Native Americans have descendants that came from these groups of people.

The LDS church has no official policy on where the events of the Book of Mormon took place. My personal belief is that they were in southern Mexico and Guatemala.

Hope that helps

Answer 4

Many mistakenly claim that Mormons believe a small group of Hebrews emigrated from Israel in 600 B.C. and are the sole ancestors of all Native Americans. In reality, Mormon scholars have been moving away from this idea for decades. Bruce R. McConkie, a now deceased world-wide leader of the Mormon Church, said this in 1966: "The American Indians, however, as Columbus found them also had other blood than that of Israel in their veins. It is possible that isolated remnants of the Jaredites may have lived through the period of destruction in which millions of their fellows perished. It is quite apparent that groups of orientals found their way over the Bering Strait and gradually moved southward to mix with the Indian peoples. We have records of a colony of Scandinavians attempting to set up a settlement in America some 500 years before Columbus. There are archaeological indications that an unspecified number of groups of people probably found their way from the old to the new world in pre-Colombian times. Out of all these groups would have come the American Indians as they were discovered in the 15th century."

A recent change to the introduction of the Book of Mormon goes even further in explaining this decades-long shift in Mormon thought. Mormons do not necessarily believe that Hebrews are the sole or even principal ancestors of Native Americans. We do believe that a small group of Hebrews came to the Americas around 600 B.C. and mixed with the vast Native American peoples they encountered here.

See http://www.allaboutmormons.com for more information about the Mormons.

Answer 5

What do the Native Americans think?

The true Pahana is the "Lost White Brother" of the Hopi. Pahana or Elder Brother left for the east at the time that the Hopi entered the Fourth World and began their migrations. However, the Hopi say that he will return again and at his coming the wicked will be destroyed and a new age of peace will be ushered into the world. It is said he will bring with him a missing section of a sacred Hopi stone in the possession of the Fire Clan, and that he will come wearing red. Traditionally, Hopis are buried facing eastward in expectation of the Pahana who will come from that direction.[

Answer 6

"If such may have been the fact, that a part of the Ten Tribes came over to America, in the way we have supposed, leaving the cold regions of Assareth behind them in quest of a milder climate, it would be natural to look for tokens of the presence of Jews of some sort, along countries adjacent to the Atlantic. In order to this, we shall here make an extract from an able work: written exclusively on the subject of the Ten Tribes having come from Asia by the way of Bherings Strait, by the Rev. Ethan Smith, Pultney, Vt., who relates as follows: "Joseph Merrick, Esq., a highly respectable character in the church at Pittsfield, gave the following account: That in 1815, he was leveling some ground under and near an old wood shed, standing on a place of his, situated on (Indian Hill)... [Joseph then discusses the supposed phylacteries found among Amerindians, citing View of the Hebrews p. 220, 223.]" That's something Joseph Smith said. Now tell me something, if he plagiarized from the View of the Hebrews, why would he reference the View of the Hebrews? It doesn't even make sense to say he copied from the View of the Hebrews.

Answer 7

Yes we believe some of the American natives are descended for Israel but not all of them descended from Israel.
Yes we also believe that Christ visited America.

Answer 8

Some are descended from the tribe of Joseph/Manasseh. I don't think they've checked the DNA of every single Indian tribe yet. We believe Jesus Christ visited some site(s) in the Americas after His crucifixion and resurrection.

Answer 9

yes they do, but recent studies of DNA of over 5,000 different Native americans and other Indians from South America to greenland. Proves that to be a lie. But just recently they had a new revelation from "a modern day prophet" how convienent. That those teachings were a misprint. mmm If you are from Utah, now you know why so many family's adopted young Indian children. I wonder now how those people feel about what they done.

2 Nephi 5:21 And he had caused the cursing to come upon them,yea, even a sore cursing,because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceeding fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them.

Answer 10

Yes, to both questions.
The history (obviously this will be abbreviated) goes like this. Lehi the prophet is teaching about God in Jerusalem and prophesying their destruction if they continue their wicked ways. Lehi and his family get death threats, they leave with another family (gotta get some spouses for your kids), his son Nephi (both names have long i sound) builds a ship and they travel to America. Jerusalem is then conquered by the Babylonians. 600 years later Christ is born and has his ministry in Jerusalem, after his death he appears to the people living in the Americas and ministers to them for a while. These are some of the "other sheep" he refers to in his teachings. For a complete account read the Book of Mormon, if you don't want to read the whole thing 1st, then end of 3rd, and 4th Nephi, will answer your questions. 2nd Nephi is mostly quoting Issiah in the Bible and hard to read.