Replica built of the 600 B.C. ship that sailed around Africa. In 2008 this reconstruction of the Phoenician / Mediterranean trading vessel embarked on a journey with a crew of 20 to retrace the Phoenicians' route around Africa. One can easily see that such a ship could not have sailed into deep water across the Atlantic Ocean)The voyage around Africa was begun as a result of Pharoah Necho of Egypt who, at the time, had brought many Phoenicians into Egypt as a result of an earlier occupation of that northern land—these would have been much like slaves and had no choice in making the voyage. This voyage was neither one of trade nor settlement as all other recorded Phoenician voyages were. Nor was it done for the value of Phoenicia or the sailors, though it is likely they would have secured trading posts or ports along the coastal area for future purposes.
The white line shows the route of the Phoenician sailors in 600 B.C. on their historical route around Africa. The voyage took 3 years with constant stops along the way for overnight stays and replenishment of daily supplies)After all, Pharaoh Necho, the son of Psammetichus, king of Egypt, raised great armies, and sent out great fleets, as well on the Mediterranean as the Red Sea, and expended a vast sum and many thousands of lives in a fruitless effort to unite and Nile and the Red Sea by a canal. His commission to the Phoenician seamen to sail around Africa from east to west was part of this great, overall plan. This sailing venture had nothing to do with the Phoenicians directly, only that they performed the task.
Before 600 B.C, the Phoenician traveled only short distances in the Mediterranean and along the coast of Portugal, Much later they voyaged along the coast northward to Gaul and across the English Channel to Bretania, what is now England. These voyages were for the soul purpose of trade and purchase of tin in England, which they brought back and used along with copper from Cyprus to make bronze—a highly tradable item at the time.
Since all of these voyages were made by sailing along coastal waters in sight of land with shallow-draft ships used in the day, and would have had men at the oars to supplement a single-masted sail, and steerage was by outboard oar as a rudder, and by furling the sail when in close to the coast, it cannot be concluded that in 600 B.C., Phoenicians were so experience seamen that they could have sailed to the Western Hemisphere, bringing Mulek and the others to the Land of Promise.
The Phoenicians, like the Greeks and the Romans, sailed the Mediterranean Sea. Unlike the others, whose purpose was battle, conquest and expansion, the Phoenician purpose was trade. They established settlements along the northern coast of the Mediterranean and used these ports to move goods and trade. Their purpose was never to conquer, nor was it to settle other than establishing posts and settlements that would enhance their trading purposes.
On the rare and unique voyages outside the Mediterranean, they stayed in coastal waters, and their purpose was to trade—never to settlement. Even in the most unlikely case of taking Mulek to the Western Hemisphere, any Phoenicians involved would not have stayed there, for they never settled any land outside the Mediterranean basin. However, they most certainly would have brought back word of their voyage and the settlement established by the Jews in some far off land—obviously, this would have led to trade and the bringing of others to that land—an event that is directly opposite the Lord’s promise to Lehi. In fact, if such a scenario were to have happened, as Nibley, Sorenson and other Mesoamerica theorists so flippantly claim, the Lord would have been breaking his promise to Lehi at the same time he was making it.
Such is simply not possible!
For those who want to make such claims, they should look into this promise the Lord made to Lehi—a promise repeated by Nephi and others down through the centuries. Such promises may be broken by man, but never by God.
Thus we can see that the Phoenicians would not have made such a voyage, because they 1) did not have the knowledge to do so, 2) did not have the ships and maritime ability to do so, and 3) the Lord never would have been involved in such a way in bringing Mulek to the Western Hemisphere since it would have broken his promise to Lehi.
(See the next post, “Who Were the Phoenicians? Part IV,” for an understanding of the availability of a ship to take the Mulekites to the Land of Promise)
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ReplyDeleteOops, lol
DeleteActually, I personally feel that the North American turf that Lehi was promised by the Lord God of Israel was also given to others, namely, Adam, Mahonri Moriancumer, and who knows how many other groups we haven’t been given knowledge of thus far. It wasn’t a logical thing to human that an ark could be built, nor were the Jaredites’ boats conceivable to those around them, nor was Lehi’s ship coming as common sense even to some of her s own children who dragged their feet in helping him, so it won’t feel “logical to mortal logic or reasoning” that the Mulekites thought of their own travel vehical for such an oceanic journey, either. In fact, their float would have been designed by their Heavenly Benefactor just as were the others’ vessels. Our mortal logic is such a dangerous mental place when left to itself that we are literally under the threat of a complete disconnect with God’s understanding when we mentally meander there. We are not in a position to tell the Lord what His people cannot “follow” from Him, not from any era. These li’l oceans are bitty puddles to Him. People of faith aren’t stopped, therefore, by the issue of mortal logic or doubt because they know that. The Phoenecians had habits, true, and trade was their thing-a-ma-jig, but no one can prove they didn’t have moments of stepping out of the box. When Michigan copper is found anywhere, all archeologists know that it is Michigan copper because it is the only known source of that type ever found the world over even to this day. So when and wherever the Bronze Age copper artifacts are found, even after being brought to Crete anciently from, yes, what is now known as “Michigan, USA”, all archeologist define it and verify it (Bronze Age copper) as “Michigan copper”...not sure if Minnesota is included...(con’t.)
ReplyDelete(...Con’t.) The ancient mines are still there, and still laden with amazing specimens. Perhaps some have doubt about mortal mans’ capability and travels, and I would agree with that to a degree, when left to themselves, but having experienced the Other Side of the veil at a young age, I realize that we are not only not on our own, but are directed daily far more than I understood before that happened. We, in fact, don’t even have any limitations at all, should the Lord have a directive for is under the power of His hand. Therefore, as I see it, the Mulekites had no limitation at all whatsoever, because that would be like saying the Lord had limitations. With their mere obedience alone, He had no limitations and His hand could not be stayed. Human history understanding is no reasoning-anchor at all, simply because we don’t even have all of the story, so there is no reasonable case for attempting to fill in the blanks that we are not yet given. I do know that when the Smithsonian covers up the findings of a dozen remaining Pheonecian ships on USA soil, it means only one thing to me—that the Lord is not quite ready to return the Land to those who claim it as theirs via their ancient and modern thefts and abuses of power, and yes, they were viciously abusive, even up through the whole 1800’s, vicious, even one tribe toward another, except for a very few tribes. The Smithsonian does hide true artifactual facts, and are deviant, but I feel like it’s more that the Lord uses them, even in their wickedness, for His own purposes. When Adam’s posterity was removed and divided from “this land”, as Isaiah would come to call it, it all made sense to me. The breaking up of the earth during the great flood made sense to me for the same reason, as well as flood geology, even though this earth was formed from timelessly ancient materials. If the Lord can cause the land to divide in order to preserve a place for the righteous, then He can certainly float them on a boat back to where they are safe from affliction. He cannot do everything, though, as He has told us of an even stronger influence that He cannot override, and that is that He won’t trespass our free agency to choose His Way, the only Way to preserve that free agency. Therefore, His hands are tied when the righteous turn cult via abuse of power one against another, using their free agency in such a way as to lose it. That is when they are left to self-destruct. Free agency was never given as unconditional. Grown adults even have trouble figuring that out. In today’s world, we see it in the form of political correctness, as though politics is the bottom line, calling good “bad”, and bad “good”. It does matter “where” the Mulekites were, because when God leads them to a Covenant location and they mess with it, it officially incriminates them in the courtroom. A testimonial of a truth that comes from the Holy Ghost after supplication to the Father through the Lord cannot be challenged by one merely using logic and reasoning about whether an account is true. I can say this, that a confirmation I have experienced through the Holy Ghost concerning the Mulekites is as permanently penetrated into my soul as any other experience I’ve had is imprinted on me—including the taste of pain, debilitating sorrow, food poisoning, joy, and seriously amazing ice cream. Seeing something sharp is nothing compared to •knowing when you’ve stepped on sharpness, even when you never saw it. No one is going to tell you that your impression is all in your head unless they’re disregarding that accounting, right?
Delete-Marianne Sites