Interpreter Foundation Book of Mormon Tour Preview by Blake Joseph Allen (Mesoamerica Lecture #1)

Blake describes his lecture as follows: “In several places within the pages of the Book of Mormon, it seems as if Mormon writes as though, in the latter days, we would have a map of the lands described in that great book. Such is not the case. However, we can follow the information from the Book of Mormon and combine that knowledge with modern research to follow the clues to learn more about those special lands. In our tour preview, we will discuss the daily outline of the tour, touch on some of the candidates for Book of Mormon locations such as the land of Nephi, the east wilderness, the land of Zarahemla, including a candidate for the Nephite hill Cumorah where the both the Nephite and Jaredite nations came to an end, and answer any questions about the tour.”
Blake began his traveling days as a young boy of 10 years old when he had the opportunity to visit Mexico City with his father, Dr. Joseph L. Allen, founder of Book of Mormon Tours. Dr. Allen was conducting research in the Museum of Anthropology for his doctoral dissertation on the white god, Quetzalcoatl. That was the beginning of an experience of a lifetime for the Allen family. Blake spent many summers with his family traveling through the country of Mexico where he gained an appreciation and love for the Hispanic people, their culture, and their history.
Blake served a mission in the Chile Santiago South Mission from 1979 to 1981. He earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting at Southern Utah University with minors in both business administration and Spanish. He has been taking tours to Mexico and Guatemala for over 30 years and has taken more than 150 tours. He has a love of the Book of Mormon and enjoys being able to share those feelings with others.
He conducts tours each year to Mexico and Guatemala, the proposed lands of the Book of Mormon. In 2008, he and his father released the second edition of their book, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon.
He and his wife Marion live in Richfield, Utah. They have six children and twenty grandchildren.
Blake says, “The company mission statement is that the Book of Mormon is a true account of two major civilizations that lived in the New World during pre-Colombian times. Its message is to teach of Christ and His Atonement. We believe that the more we understand the history, language, culture, and geography of the Book of Mormon, the more we understand the Book of Mormon. We have chosen Travel and Research to pursue this goal. We invite you to join us in exploring the lands of the Book of Mormon.”