“Truth” As Defined By Man (Is Always Subject to Revision)

TheDiscipleMD.com

“When the crew of the Virginia scallop trawler Cinmar hauled a mastodon tusk onto the deck in 1970, another oddity dropped out of the net: a dark, tapered stone blade, nearly eight inches long and still sharp. Forty years later, this rediscovered prehistoric slasher has reopened debate on a radical theory about who the first Americans were and when they got here.” (“Radical theory of first Americans place Stone Age Europeans in Delmarva 20,000 years ago”, Washington Post, By Brian Vastag)
I happened to come upon this article in an edition of the Washington Post. The story about the knife isn’t what caught my eye as much as the renewed dispute that is occurring regarding who first settled America. The article goes on to say this:
“Archaeologists have long-held that North America remained unpopulated until about 15,000 years ago, when Siberian people walked or boated into Alaska and then moved down the West Coast. But the mastodon relic found near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay turned out to be 22,000 years old, suggesting that the blade was just as ancient. Whoever fashioned that blade was not supposed to be here. Its makers probably paddled from Europe and arrived in America thousands of years ahead of the western migration, making them the first Americans, argues Smithsonian Institution anthropologist Dennis Stanford.”
Some individuals might find this article interesting because of its historical significance. I find it interesting because of its religious significance to my faith. Not too many years ago the scientific community released information regarding the DNA of the supposed first settlers on this continent. This information, to some, was cause of concern regarding the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. Time and space doesn’t allow me to approach the complex nature of DNA and such, nor do I have the expertise to do so. But suffice it to say, that this article simply reminded me of the limited knowledge that man really has regarding its ancient past. What is accepted as truth and fact today can change with a discovery tomorrow.
It is important to find out about our past so that we can learn from it. And I support and encourage all those who are engaged in doing it. But one thing I have learned in my short life on this planet from “my” past, is that truth as defined by man, is always subject to revision. But truth as revealed to man from God, is eternal. I’m grateful to have living prophets and apostles walking upon the face of the earth. In a never-ending sea of change, they provide an anchor for the soul.

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