In this essay I will first review what leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have said about Book of Mormon geography. Second, I will address a related question: Does accepting Joseph Smith as a prophet and the translator of the Book of Mormon, a record brought forth through the “gift and power of God,” require that we believe Joseph was an authority on the ancient geography of that book? Third, I will examine terms such as “this land,” “this continent,” and “this country” used by Joseph Smith in his descriptions of the Book of Mormon. Does such language support a limited North American setting for the Book of Mormon and rule out a Mesoamerican setting? Fourth, I will examine the basis for the authors’ claim that the heartland setting was revealed to Joseph Smith. Is that claim supported by the historical evidence? Finally, I will explore early Latter-day Saint interest in Central American discoveries as evidence for the historicity of the Book of Mormon. What does such interest suggest about the question of a divinely revealed geography?

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The preponderance of evidence does not support the claim that Joseph Smith’s revelations included details about Book of Mormon geography, but rather suggest that this, as with many other questions, was an issue in which Joseph Smith, as time allowed him to give it attention, followed the dictates of his own judgement and expressed his own opinion.

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I believe these findings underscore the wisdom of the neutrality of the Brethren on the question of Book of Mormon geography. We cannot avoid the hard work, faith, and earnest study that some questions require by an easy appeal to something Joseph Smith or someone else has said. The sincere and diligent study of Book of Mormon geography can be a worthy endeavor if kept in perspective. Each reader of the Book of Mormon must judge the scholarly merits and value of such work. Hopefully, we will each judge wisely and hold fast to every good thing (1 Thessalonians 5:21). In the meantime, differences of opinion about the details of Book of Mormon geography and other questions of secondary importance need not be a cause of stumbling.