Podcasts by PDF feed of Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship
A nonprofit educational journal focused on the scriptures of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: the Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, the Bible, Doctrine and Covenants, early LDS history, and related subjects. All publications are peer-reviewed and are made available as free internet downloads or through at-cost print-on-demand services.
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Our Faithful Lord: Passover to Easter from 2022-04-15T17:59:58
Abstract: Studying the origins and traditions of Passover enriches our understanding of Easter. We can deepen our own worship and expand our ritual memory by an acquaintance with these tradition...
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Experiential Knowledge and the Covenantal Relationship in Alma 7 from 2022-04-08T17:59:29
Abstract: A favorite scripture of many faithful saints is Alma 7 where it describes how the Savior came to Earth to understand, in the flesh, not only human sin, but human suffering. He did this...
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“The Messenger of Salvation”: The Messenger-Message Christology of D&C 93:8 and Its Implications for Latter-day Saint Missionary Work and Temple Worship from 2022-04-01T17:59:07
Abstract: Several of the Prophet Joseph Smith’s earliest revelations, beginning with Moroni’s appearance in 1823, quote the prophecy of Malachi 3:1 with the Lord “suddenly com[ing] to his temple...
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An Unexpected Case for an Anthropomorphic God from 2022-03-25T17:59:13
Abstract: Given the knowledge of the corporeal, embodied nature of God that the Prophet Joseph Smith received in his 1820 First Vision, Latter-day Saints have argued from their earliest days tha...
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“The Wind and the Fire to Be My Chariot”: The Anachronism that Wasn’t from 2022-03-18T17:59:25
Abstract: In the Book of Abraham, God tells Abraham in Haran, “I cause the wind and the fire to be my chariot” (Abraham 2:7). While this initially might appear to be an anachronism, as the chari...
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Serpents of Fire and Brass: A Contextual Study of the Brazen Serpent Tradition in the Book of Mormon from 2022-03-11T18:59:37
Abstract: The story of the Israelites getting bitten in the wilderness by “fiery serpents” and then being miraculously healed by the “serpent of brass” (Numbers 21:4–9) is one of the most freque...
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Lehi and Nephi as Trained Manassite Scribes from 2022-03-04T18:59:47
Abstract: This paper brings together contemporary Ancient Near East scholarship in several fields to construct an updated starting point for interpretation of the teachings of the Book of Mormon...
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Overwriting Ether: Moroni’s Transfiguration of Jaredite Scripture from 2022-02-25T18:59:43
Review of Rosalynde Frandsen Welch, Ether: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 128 pages. $9.95 (paperback). Abstract: Th...
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“We Might Have Enjoyed Our Possessions and the Land of Our Inheritance”: Hebrew yrš and 1 Nephi 17:21 from 2022-02-18T18:59:18
Abstract: The verbal expression “we might have enjoyed,” as used in a complaint that Nephi attributes to his brothers, “we might have enjoyed our possessions and the land of our inheritance” (1 ...
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Nephi’s Small Plates: A Rhetorical Analysis from 2022-02-11T18:59:47
Abstract: In previous and pending publications I have proposed interpretations of various features of Nephi’s writings. In this paper I undertake a comprehensive discussion of the seven passages...
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A Deeper Understanding of the Temple in 175 Entries from 2022-02-04T18:59:05
Review of Donald W. Parry, 175 Temple Symbols and Their Meanings (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2020). 310 pages. $26.99 (hardcover). Abstract: In a must-have book written for a Latter-day Saint...
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Covenant Theology for Latter-day Saints from 2022-01-28T18:59:58
Review of Kerry Muhlestein, God Will Prevail: Ancient Covenants, Modern Blessings, and the Gathering of Israel (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2021). 177 pages. $14.99 (hardcover). ...
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Honoring Joseph’s Theophany Two Centuries Later from 2022-01-28T18:57:04
Review of Alexander L. Baugh, Steven C. Harper, Brent M. Rogers, and Benjamin C. Pykles, eds. Joseph Smith and his First Vision: Context, Place, and Meaning (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center,...
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“The Lord God Will Proceed”: Nephi’s Wordplay in 1 Nephi 22:8–12 and the Abrahamic Covenant from 2022-01-21T18:59:55
Abstract: Nephi quotes or alludes to four distinct Old Testament passages — Genesis 22:18; Isaiah 29:14; Isaiah 49:22–23; and Isaiah 52:10 — twice each in 1 Nephi 22:6, 8–12. These four texts fo...
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Verbal Punctuation in the Book of Mormon I: (And) Now from 2022-01-14T18:59:44
Abstract: The Book of Mormon, being an ancient book, was originally written without typographic punctuation and employs verbal punctuation instead. This article looks at the use of “and now” as ...
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A Comparison of the Book of Mormon’s Subordinate That Usage from 2022-01-07T18:59:36
Abstract: This paper compares the Book of Mormon’s subordinate that usage with what is found in the King James Bible, pseudo-archaic writings, and the greater textual record. In this linguistic ...
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If God Does Not Exist, Is Everything Permitted? from 2021-12-31T18:59:48
Abstract: Can people be good without believing in God? Obviously, yes. They can. Is atheistic naturalism capable of supplying a foundation for morality? That is a separate question, to which mor...
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Christmas and a Condescending God from 2021-12-24T18:59:15
Abstract: As religious holidays go, Christmas has been domesticated unusually well — and effectively commercialized — among people and even whole cultures that don’t accept (or even care about) ...
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A Masterpiece on Resisting Our Impulses to Leave from 2021-12-17T18:59:45
Review of S. Michael Wilcox, Holding On: Impulses to Leave and Strategies to Stay (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2021). 128 pages. $11.99 (paperback). Abstract: In his latest book, S. Michael Wi...
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Beyond Calculation: A Review of Robert J. Sawyer’s Calculating God from 2021-12-17T18:57:10
Review of Robert J. Sawyer, Calculating God (New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 2000). 336 pp. $23.99 (paperback). Abstract: In an entertaining and provocative science fiction novel, Calculating ...
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Demythicizing the Lamanites’ “Skin of Blackness” from 2021-12-10T18:59:49
Abstract: Racial bias is antithetical to the Book of Mormon’s cardinal purpose: to proclaim the infinite grandeur of the atonement of Jesus Christ. The book teaches that the Lord welcomes and re...
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The Word of the Lord as a Metonym for Christ from 2021-12-03T18:59:07
Abstract: The word of the Lord and the word of God are common expressions in the Bible. Frequently, these phrases refer to the written or spoken covenantal words of God to his people as given th...
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The Book of Mormon’s Complex Finite Cause Syntax from 2021-11-26T18:59:56
Abstract: This paper describes and compares the Book of Mormon’s 12 instances of complex finite cause syntax, the structure exemplified by the language of Ether 9:33: “the Lord did cause the ser...
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The Book of Moses as a Temple Text from 2021-11-22T18:59:28
Abstract: In this fascinating article, Jeff Bradshaw details how the Book of Moses might be understood as a temple text, including elements of temple architecture, furnishings, and ritual in the...
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Abraham’s Amen and Believing in Christ: Possible Applications in the Book of Mormon Text from 2021-11-19T18:59:04
Abstract: Following the discovery of delocutive verbs and their likely usage in the Hebrew Bible, Meredith Kline proposed that the verb האמין (he’emin) in Genesis 15:6 — traditionally interprete...
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Personal Relative Pronoun Usage in the Book of Mormon: An Important Authorship Diagnostic from 2021-11-12T18:59:24
Abstract: This study compares personal relative pronoun usage in the earliest text of the Book of Mormon with 11 specimens of Joseph Smith’s early writings, 25 pseudo-archaic texts, the King Jam...
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A Sympathetic but Flawed Look at Book of Mormon Historicity from 2021-11-12T18:57:27
Review of Terrence J. O’Leary, Book of Mormon: A History of Real People in Real Places (Pennsauken, NJ: BookBaby, 2020). 274 pages. Softcover, $20. Abstract: Terrence O’Leary enters the field of...
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Oh, That I Were an Angel! from 2021-11-05T17:59:08
Abstract: Alma’s conversion experience was both unusual and unusually powerful, and yet he fervently wished that he could provide others with the same experience. So much so, in fact, that he ac...
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Tamid: Zacharias and the Second Temple from 2021-11-01T17:59:38
Abstract: This essay follows Zacharias’ biography from entering the priesthood till the day the angel Gabriel appeared to him in Herod’s temple. After recounting the procedures to become a pries...
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Mine House is a House of Zion and not a House of Babylon! from 2021-10-29T17:59:20
Abstract: In Doctrine and Covenants 132:8 we read: “Behold, mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion.” I propose that the words “order” and “confusion” in...
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Moses 6–7 and the Book of Giants: Remarkable Witnesses of Enoch’s Ministry from 2021-10-25T17:59:50
Abstract: The Book of Giants (BG), an Enoch text found in 1948 among the Dead Sea Scrolls, includes a priceless trove of stories about the ancient prophet and his contemporaries, including uniqu...
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The Rise and Fall of Korihor, a Zoramite: A New Look at the Failed Mission of an Agent of Zoram from 2021-10-22T17:59:49
Abstract: The accounts of the Anti-Christ, Korihor, and of Alma’s mission to the Zoramites raise a variety of apparently unanswered questions. These involve Korihor’s origins, the reason for the...
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An Ishmael Buried Near Nahom from 2021-10-15T17:59:32
Abstract: Latter-day Saint scholars generally agree that “the place called… Nahom,” where Ishmael was buried (1 Nephi 16:34) is identified as the Nihm tribal region in Yemen. Significantly, a fu...
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Ancient Sacred Vestments: Scriptural Symbols and Meanings from 2021-10-11T17:59:37
Abstract: In this essay Parry starts with the symbology of ritual vestments, and then discusses in detail how the ancient clothing worn in Old Testament temples are part of the rituals and relig...
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Be Ye Therefore Loyal, Even as Your Father Which is in Heaven is Loyal from 2021-10-08T17:59:04
Abstract: The scriptures are saturated with covenantal words and terms. Any serious or close reading of the scriptures that misses or ignores the covenantal words, phrases, and literary structur...
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Celebrating Exactitude,When It’s Appropriate from 2021-10-01T17:59:52
Abstract: It’s almost always better to be right than to be wrong, to be exact than to be sloppy. In scholarship generally and serious scriptural study specifically, it’s important to work toward...
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Framing the Book of Abraham: Presumptions and Paradigms from 2021-09-24T17:59:14
Review of Dan Vogel, Book of Abraham Apologetics: A Review and Critique (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2021). 250 pp. $18.95 (softback). Abstract: The Book of Abraham continues to undergo scr...
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An Early Christian Context for the Book of Moses from 2021-09-20T17:59:44
Abstract: This study argues that the Book of Moses was an early Christian text. The book’s language, literary genre, and references to its own production could fit with a date in the late first ...
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The People of Canaan: A New Reading of Moses 7 from 2021-09-17T17:59:26
Abstract: Moses 7 is one of the most famous passages in all of Restoration scripture. It is also one of the most problematic in regard to its description of the people of Canaan as black (v. 8) ...
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The Good God Hermeneutic: A Reconsideration of Religious Vocabulary from 2021-09-10T17:59:20
Review of Fiona Givens and Terryl Givens, All Things New: Rethinking Sin, Salvation, and Everything In Between (Faith Matters Press, 2020). 188 pages. $12.95 (paperback). Abstract: Fiona and Ter...
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Book of Abraham Polemics: Dan Vogel’s Broad Critique of the Defense of the Book of Abraham from 2021-09-10T17:57:20
Review of Dan Vogel, Book of Abraham Apologetics: A Review and Critique (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2021). 250 pp. $18.95 (softback). Abstract: Dan Vogel’s latest book claims to offer clea...
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Latter-day Houses of the Lord: Developments in Their Design and Function from 2021-09-06T17:59:01
Abstract: This essay traces the modern-day usage and understanding of temples from the Kirtland Temple to Nauvoo and the Salt Lake Temple. Architecture was used to teach principles. While the Ki...
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Additional Janus Parallels in the Book of Mormon from 2021-09-03T17:59:05
Abstract: A little more than 40 years ago, Cyrus Gordon discovered and described for the first time an ancient literary technique which he had found in the Hebrew Bible, and he gave it a name — ...
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Vox Populi and Vox Dei: Allusive Explorations of Biblical and Book of Mormon Politeias from 2021-08-27T17:59:48
A review of David Charles Gore, The Voice of the People: Political Rhetoric in the Book of Mormon (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, Brigham Young University, 2019)...
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Better Kingdom-Building through Triage from 2021-08-20T17:59:28
Abstract: We are called to take the Gospel to the entire world, but our numbers are few and our time and resources are limited. This is where cold calculation can help. A field-surgical techniqu...
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Mormon, Moses, and the Representation of Reality from 2021-08-16T17:59:40
Abstract: In this essay, Richard Bushman borrows a critical perspective from Erich Auerbach’s Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature. He analyzes the representation of anti...
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Joseph Smith as a Book of Mormon Storyteller from 2021-08-13T17:59:49
Abstract: For nearly 200 years, skeptics have promoted different naturalistic explanations to describe how Joseph Smith generated all the words of the Book of Mormon. The more popular theories i...
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“What Would You Do with a Thousand Years To Do Whatever You Wanted?” from 2021-08-12T16:00:57
Some years ago, Hugh Nibley gave the students in his BYU honors class an unusual midterm assignment. He described that experience as follows:
“I asked them … to assume that they had been gu...
Alma’s Reality: Reading Alma as Sinful, Repentant, Traumatized, Questioning, and Righteous from 2021-08-06T17:59:19
Review of Kylie Nielson Turley, Alma 1–29: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 162 pages. $9.95 (paperback). Abstract: Ky...
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Axes Mundi: Ritual Complexes in Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon from 2021-08-02T17:59:51
Abstract: An axis mundi refers to a sacred place that connects heaven and earth and is believed to be the center of the world. These places are sanctified through ritual consecration or through ...
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The Practice and Meaning of Declaring Lineage in Patriarchal Blessings from 2021-07-30T17:59:14
Abstract: In this paper, I show that declarations of lineage in patriarchal blessings have, since the earliest days of the Restoration, evolved in terms of frequency of inclusion, which tribal l...
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The Origin and Purpose of the Book of Mormon Phrase “If Ye Keep My Commandments Ye Shall Prosper in the Land” from 2021-07-23T17:59:54
Abstract: We are told in the Title Page of the Book of Mormon that the Book of Mormon was revealed in our day “to show unto the remnant of the house of Israel what great things the Lord hath don...
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Adam, Eve, the Book of Moses, and the Temple: The Story of Receiving Christ’s Atonement from 2021-07-19T17:59:30
Abstract: The authors begin by the highlighting the importance of Book of Moses research that has discovered plausible findings for its historicity, rendering it at least reasonable to give the ...
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The Goodness of God and His Children as a Fundamental Theological Concept in the Book of Mormon from 2021-07-16T17:59:34
Abstract: The phrase goodness of God does occur occasionally in the Hebrew Bible but has not been considered by Old Testament scholars to be an independent principle in Israelite theology. Rathe...
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Glad Tidings from Cumorah: Interpreting the Book of Mormon through the Eyes of Someone in Hell from 2021-07-09T17:59:35
Abstract: This article offers evidence that at least some Book of Mormon authors may have understood the potential for post-mortal preaching of the gospel. Indeed, they may have recognized that ...
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Early Christian Temples and Baptism for the Dead: Defining Sacred Space in the Late Antique Near East from 2021-07-05T17:59:44
Abstract: This paper addresses the early Christian transition from temple-based Judaism to the Constantinian basilica of the fourth century. David argues that some Christians of the second and e...
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“If Ye Believe on His Name”: Wordplay on the Name Samuel in Helaman 14:2, 12–13 and 3 Nephi 23:9 and the Doctrine of Christ in Samuel’s Speech from 2021-07-02T17:59:48
Abstract: The Semitic/Hebrew name Samuel (š?mû??l) most likely means “his name is El” — i.e., “his name [the name that he calls upon in worship] is El” — although it was also associated with “he...
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Ancient Temple Imagery in the Sermons of Jacob from 2021-06-28T17:59:42
Abstract: This essay makes a compelling argument for Jacob, the brother of Nephi, having deep knowledge of ancient Israelite temple ritual, concepts, and imagery, based on two of Jacob’s sermons in...
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The Implications of Some Standard Assumptions of New Testament Scholars: Responding to a Modern Anti-Christ from 2021-06-25T17:59:39
Review of Raphael Lataster, Questioning the Historicity of Jesus: Why a Philosophical Analysis Elucidates the Historical Discourse (Leiden, Netherlands: E. J. Brill, 2019). 508 pages. Hardback, $21...
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Nephi’s Gethsemane: Seventeen Comparisons from the Literary Record from 2021-06-25T17:57:36
Abstract: This note explores a literary comparison between Nephi’s confronting of Laban and shrinking from the act of shedding blood, to Jesus’s experience in the Garden of Gethsemane of shrin...
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De Profundis from 2021-06-18T17:59:34
Abstract: Is the Gospel profound? Yes, it is. And one of the goals of the Interpreter Foundation is to call attention to that sometimes-overlooked profundity. In one sense, though, the question is ...
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Psalm 105: Chiasmus, Credo, Covenant, and Temple from 2021-06-14T17:59:31
Abstract: In this essay Stephen Ricks takes a close look at the literary structure of a psalm, reintroducing us to chiasmus both in modern and ancient texts, including the Book of Mormon, then uses...
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Understanding the Year 1820 from 2021-06-11T17:59:45
Book Note: Richard E. Bennett, 1820: Dawning of the Restoration (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center at Brigham Young University / Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2020). 380 pages. Hardcover, $3...
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Seeking a Global Context for the First Vision from 2021-06-11T17:57:48
Review of Richard E. Bennett, 1820: Dawning of the Restoration (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center at Brigham Young University / Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2020). 380 pages. Hardcover, $31...
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Jesus’ First Visit to the Temple from 2021-06-07T17:59:34
Abstract: In this rich and detailed description, S. Kent Brown paints an evocative, historically contextualized account of Jesus Christ’s first visit to the Jerusalem Temple since his infancy, when...
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Discipleship As the World Collapses Around You from 2021-06-04T17:59:08
Review of Adam S. Miller, Mormon: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 162 pages. $9.95 (paperb...
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Types of Repetition and Shadows of History in Hebraic Narrative from 2021-06-04T17:57:09
Abstract: Modern readers too often misunderstand ancient narrative. Typical of this incomprehension has been the inclination of modern biblical critics to view repetitions as narrative failures. Wh...
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From Dust to Exalted Crown: Royal and Temple Themes Common to the Psalms and the Dead Sea Scrolls from 2021-05-31T17:59:05
Abstract: David J. Larsen, after showing how many of the Qumran texts rely on the “Royal Psalms” in the Bible—which have a vital connection to the temple drama—then goes on to exaltation in the vie...
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Remembering Hugh Nibley as a Scholar and, More Importantly, as a Man: Observing the Faith of the Observer from 2021-05-28T17:59:32
Review of Hugh Nibley Observed, edited by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, Shirley Ricks, and Stephen Whitlock (Orem, UT: Interpreter Foundation, 2021). 820 pages. $45.00 (hardback), $35.00 (pap...
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Did Captain Moroni Lack the Typical Religious Virtues? from 2021-05-28T17:57:26
Abstract: In his well-known volume about the Book of Mormon, Grant Hardy focuses primarily on the book’s main narrators. However, he also makes a number of observations about other f...
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“Put Off Thy Shoes from Off Thy Feet”: Sandals and Sacred Space from 2021-05-24T17:59:36
Abstract: While many have written on ancient temples looking at the big picture, John Gee discusses one small detail on a single Egyptian temple from the New Kingdom. He focuses on depictions of Ra...
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“Beloved by All the People”: A Fresh Look at Captain Moroni from 2021-05-21T17:59:08
Abstract: In his well-known volume about the Book of Mormon, Grant Hardy focuses primarily on the book’s main narrators. However, he also makes a number of observations about other f...
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“Worlds Without Number”: Hugh Nibley on Science and Religion from 2021-05-20T17:59:30
Somehow, in addition to his continual immersion in ancient records and the pressing religious and social issues of the day, Hugh Nibley managed to keep up with important new developments in an impr...
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Job: An LDS Reading from 2021-05-17T17:59:03
Abstract: Mack C. Stirling examines the well-known story of Job, one of the literary books of the Bible and part of the Wisdom literature (which is heavy in temple mysticism and symbols), and propo...
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An Ingenious and Inspiring Literary Analysis of Alma 30–42 from 2021-05-14T17:59:03
Review of Mark A. Wrathall, Alma 30–63: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 176 pages. $9.95 (paper...
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The Brass Plates: Can Modern Scholarship Help Identify Their Contents? from 2021-05-14T17:57:52
Abstract: The Book of Mormon contains little information about what the Brass Plates contain. Nephi said it was a larger record than the Hebrew Bible brought to America by the Gentil...
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“We Will Still Weep for Zion”: War and Wealth from 2021-05-13T16:00:05
This is the seventh of eight weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed, available ...
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Matthew Black and Mircea Eliade Meet Hugh Nibley from 2021-05-10T17:59:44
Abstract: As a graduate student, Gordon Thomasson had the opportunity to introduce two internationally renowned scholars to the publications and scholarship of Hugh Nibley: Matthew Black, an eminen...
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Honoring Hugh Nibley — Again from 2021-05-07T17:59:44
Review of Hugh Nibley Observed, edited by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, Shirley Ricks, and Stephen Whitlock (Orem, UT: Interpreter Foundation, 2021). 820 pages. $45.00 (hardback), $35.00 (pap...
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Giving the Book of Ether its Proper Due from 2021-05-07T17:57:45
Review of Daniel L. Belnap, ed., Illuminating the Jaredite Records (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University / Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2020). 320 pages. Ha...
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“One Peep at the Other Side”: What Did Hugh Nibley’s Near-Death Experience Teach Him about the Purpose of Life? from 2021-05-06T16:00:48
This is the sixth of eight weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed, available in...
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The Divine Handclasp in the Hebrew Bible and in Near Eastern Iconography from 2021-05-03T17:59:53
Abstract: David Calabro explores what he describes as the “divine handclasp” in the Hebrew Bible. The term refers to a handclasp between God and his human servant that had a place in ancient Israel...
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And the One Pointed the Way: Issues of Interpretation and Translation Involving the Liahona from 2021-04-30T17:59:01
Abstract: In describing the operation of the spindles in the Liahona, Nephi’s statement that “the one pointed the way” in 1 Nephi 16:10 is frequently taken to mean that one of the two spi...
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Why Is Hugh Nibley More Important Now Than Ever? from 2021-04-29T16:00:17
This is the fifth of eight weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed, available in...
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Vast Prairies and Trackless Wilds of Snow: A Good Test of Sincerity from 2021-04-23T17:59:03
Abstract: Embarking roughly six months after the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the 1830–1831 “mission to the Lamanites” faced challenges that we pampered moderns ...
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“The Book That Answers All the Questions”: Hugh Nibley and the Pearl of Great Price from 2021-04-22T16:00:01
This is the fourth of eight weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed. In line wit...
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Nibley’s Early Education from 2021-04-19T17:59:26
Abstract: In this intimate glimpse of Hugh Nibley’s childhood, written by his daughter Zina, we read of what it was like for Hugh to grow up as a gifted child with Victorian parents and, in turn, w...
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Understanding Covenants Anew: Using Ancient Thought to Enrich Modern Faith from 2021-04-16T17:59:17
Review of Jennifer C. Lane, Finding Christ in the Covenant Path: Ancient Insights for Modern Life, (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center at Brigham Young University / Salt Lake City: ...
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“The Messiah Will Set Himself Again”: Jacob’s Use of Isaiah 11:11 in 2 Nephi 6:14 and Jacob 6:2 from 2021-04-16T17:57:40
Abstract: In sermons and writings, Jacob twice quotes the prophecy of Isaiah 11:11 (“the Lord [??d?n?y] shall set his hand again [yôsîp] the second time to gather the remnant of his people”). ...
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Edfu and Exodus from 2021-04-12T17:59:48
Abstract: In this essay John Gee draws a connection between the Egyptian “Book of the Temple” and the book of Exodus, both in structure and topic, describing the temple from the inside out. Gee con...
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Much More than a Reader: The Latest in Chiastic Studies for Interested Scholars and Lay Readers Alike from 2021-04-09T17:59:03
Review of Chiasmus: The State of the Art, edited by John W. Welch and Donald W. Parry (Provo, UT: BYU Studies and Book of Mormon Central, 2020). 358 pages. $24.68, pap...
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Josiah to Zoram to Sherem to Jarom and the Big Little Book of Omni from 2021-04-09T17:57:28
Abstract: The first 450 years of Nephite history are dominated by two main threads: the ethno-political tension between Nephites and Lamanites and religious tension between adherents of rival theol...
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The Past and Future of the Temple Lot in Independence, Jackson County, Missouri from 2021-04-05T17:59:22
Abstract: Fifteen months after the Church of Christ’s inception in April 1830, Joseph Smith received a revelation indicating that Independence, Jackson County, Missouri, was to be the “center-place...
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Resurrection Month from 2021-04-02T17:59:31
Abstract: We tend to have big events and a full month celebrating Christmas, but here we are in a very Christian church that has come to almost ignore the events of the crucifixion and th...
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The Ark and the Tent: Temple Symbolism in the Story of Noah from 2021-03-29T17:59:21
Abstract: Jeffrey M. Bradshaw compares Moses’ tabernacle and Noah’s ark, and then identifies the story of Noah as a temple related drama, drawing of temple mysticism and symbols. After examining st...
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“Strong Like unto Moses”: The Case for Ancient Roots in the Book of Moses Based on Book of Mormon Usage of Related Content Apparently from the Brass Plates from 2021-03-26T17:59:46
Abstract: Over 30 years ago, Noel Reynolds compared matching non-Biblical phrases in the Book of Moses and Book of Mormon. Based on this analysis, Reynolds proposed a possible connec...
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Variety and Complexity in the Witnesses to the Book of Mormon from 2021-03-19T17:59:59
Abstract: This paper examines the testimonies of the witnesses of the Book of Mormon— not only the Three Witnesses and the Eight Witnesses, but many others who experienced and testified o...
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Women and the Priesthood in the Contemporary Church from 2021-03-15T17:59:13
Abstract: During the last century there has been a prophetic emphasis on the understanding of women and their priesthood power and authority that has been unprecedented since the days of Joseph Smi...
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“Wherefore, for This Cause”: The Book of Mormon as Anti-type of the Brass Serpent from 2021-03-12T18:59:08
Abstract: Nephi1 represents the sacred record that becomes the Book of Mormon as a new brass serpent to heal the nations. Nephi’s typological project is reasonable given that he self...
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The Crown of Creation from 2021-03-08T18:59:27
Abstract: The Seelys discuss the well-known concept of the universe as a temple, and link the creation story to the temple drama. They explore how God, in creating the universe, had the same roles ...
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Feet of Clay: Queer Theory and the Church of Jesus Christ from 2021-03-05T18:59:29
Review of Taylor G. Petrey, Tabernacles of Clay: Sexuality and Gender in Modern Mormonism (Chapel Hill, NC The University of North Carolina Press, 2020). 288 pages. $29.95 (paperback).
The Lord Will Not Forget Them! M?ori Seers and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Nineteenth-Century New Zealand from 2021-03-01T19:59:25
Abstract: This essay demonstrates that the key prophetic matakite dreams and visions of at least the nine nineteenth-century East Coast M?ori seers appear to have been (and should continue to be) f...
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That Which You Have Translated, Which You Have Retained from 2021-02-26T18:59:41
Abstract: I propose that our current Words of Mormon in the Book of Mormon was originally a second chapter of the book of Mosiah following an initial chapter that was part of th...
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“All Can Partake, Freely” from 2021-02-19T18:59:12
Abstract: The Interpreter Foundation welcomes faithful ideas, insights, and manuscripts from people of all backgrounds. In this brief essay, I share some that were recently shared with me rega...
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The Handclasp, the Temple, and the King from 2021-02-15T18:59:55
Abstract: In this article Matthew Brown examines the possible meaning behind the imagery of the handclasp between God in heaven and the earthly king. He focuses on this imagery as it is articulated...
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Polygamists and Political Activists: The Unlikely Marriage in Pioneering the Vote from 2021-02-12T18:59:19
Review of Neylan McBaine, Pioneering the Vote: The Untold Story of Suffragists in Utah and the West (Salt Lake City: Shadow Mountain, 2020). 240 pages. $19.99 (hardback).
Abstract: Pionee...
Coming Down and Bringing Down: Pejorative Onomastic Allusions to the Jaredites in Helaman 6:25, 6:38, and Ether 2:11 from 2021-02-12T18:55:38
Abstract: Mormon uses pejorative wordplay on the name Jaredites based on the meaning of the Hebrew verb y?rad. The onomastic rhetoric involving the meaning of y?rad first surfaces in Helaman 6 wher...
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The Book of Mormon as a Resurrected Book and a Type of Christ from 2021-02-08T18:59:30
Abstract: This essay emphasizes the remarkable participation of the Book of Mormon in the gospel symbolism of death and resurrection. It explains how the Book of Mormon itself may be seen as a resu...
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The Inclusive, Anti-Discrimination Message of the Book of Mormon from 2021-02-05T18:59:07
Abstract: Attitudes of superiority lead to societal conflict. The racial interpretation of a few Book of Mormon verses has contributed to these attitudes and conflicts, yet hundreds ...
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Tree of Life, Tree of Healing from 2021-02-01T18:59:05
Abstract: The late Hebrew scholar John Tvedtnes takes readers on a grand tour of Jewish and Christian stories and traditions that attest to the Tree of Life as not only a means to prolong life, but...
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Fantasy and Reality in the Translation of the Book of Abraham from 2021-01-29T18:59:07
Abstract: The volume editors of The Joseph Smith Papers Revelations and Translations: Volume 4 propose a theory of translation of the Book of Abraham that is at odds with the documents they publish...
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Record-Keeping Technology among God’s People in Ancient and Modern Times from 2021-01-25T18:59:34
Abstract: In a fascinating survey of the efforts of ancient and modern Saints to honor the Lord’s commandment to keep reliable records of their doings, the authors take us on a colorful tour ...
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Prolegomena to a Study of the Egyptian Alphabet Documents in the Joseph Smith Papers from 2021-01-22T18:59:45
Abstract: For many theories about the Book of Abraham, the Egyptian Alphabet documents are seen as the key to understanding the translation process. While the original publication of those document...
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Poesy and Prosody in the Book of Mormon from 2021-01-18T18:59:50
Abstract: Robert Smith makes the case that “poetic art in the Book of Mormon is highly developed” — you just need to have the eye to recognize it. Though many readers are aware of the stunning exam...
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Subtle Hebraic Features in the Book of Mormon from 2021-01-15T18:59:29
Review of Donald W. Parry, Preserved in Translation: Hebrew and Other Ancient Literary Forms in the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book; Provo, UT: Religious Studies ...
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The Pleading Bar of God from 2021-01-11T18:59:53
Abstract: Royal Skousen’s essay shed light on enigmatic references in Jacob 6:13 and Moroni 10:34 to “the pleasing bar of God.” After establishing that the term “pleading bar” is an appropriate leg...
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Working out Salvation History in the Book of Mormon Politeia with Fear and Trembling from 2021-01-08T18:59:35
Review of James E. Faulconer, Mosiah: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 135 pages. $9.95 (paperb...
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Two Essays on Sustaining and Enlarging the Doctrine from 2021-01-01T18:59:09
Abstract: In a pair of recent books, Patrick Mason and Terryl and Fiona Givens seek to revitalize, reinvigorate, and deepen our understanding of basic terms and concepts of the Restoration. I&...
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Medieval Christian Views of Hebrew as the Language of Magic from 2020-12-28T18:59:52
Abstract: The view of Hebrew as a language of magic, for which precedents can be discerned in the Bible and in rabbinic tradition, spilled over into early and medieval Christianity. Andrew Skinner ...
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Christmas as Devotional: A Time of Commitment from 2020-12-25T18:59:08
Abstract: Christmas is more than a time for celebrations and traditions — it is an occasion to remember the blessings and miracles in our lives. From the joy of friends and family to the peace...
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“A Prophet Like Moses” (Deuteronomy 18:15–18) in the Book of Mormon, the Bible, and the Dead Sea Scrolls from 2020-12-21T18:59:21
Abstract: David Seely provides a wide-ranging survey of interpretations of the prophecy in Deuteronomy 18:15–18 concerning “a prophet like unto Moses.” He examines relevant passages in ...
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Joseph Smith’s Translation Projects under a Microscope from 2020-12-18T18:59:17
Review of Producing Ancient Scripture: Joseph Smith’s Translation Projects in the Development of Mormon Christianity, edited by Michael Hubbard MacKay, Mark Ashurst-McGee, and Brian ...
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“I Will Deliver Thy Sons”: An Onomastic Approach to Three Iterations of an Oracle to Mosiah II (Mosiah 28:7; Alma 17:35, 19:23) from 2020-12-18T18:55:24
Abstract: Three times in his narrative Mormon recounts the Lord’s oracle (revelation) to Mosiah II regarding his sons undertaking a mission among the Lamanites (Mosiah 28:7, Alma 17:35, and Alma 19...
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Proper Names from the Small Plates: Some Notes on the Personal Names Zoram, Jarom, Omni, and Mosiah from 2020-12-14T18:59:33
Abstract: With a selection of a few notable examples (Zoram, Jarom, Omni, and Mosiah) that have been analyzed by the ongoing Book of Mormon names project, Stephen Ricks argues that “proper na...
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Itty Bitty Books with Big Lessons: Enos, Jarom, Omni from 2020-12-11T18:59:19
[Page 219]Review of Sharon J. Harris, Enos, Jarom, Omni: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 1...
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Jacob — The Prophet of Social Justice from 2020-12-11T18:55:30
[Page 211]Review of Deidre Nicole Green, Jacob: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 148 pages. $9.99 (pa...
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Chiastic Structuring of Large Texts: Second Nephi as a Case Study from 2020-12-07T19:59:21
[Page 193]Abstract: In this important paper, Noel Reynolds extends his 1980 argument for the chiastic structure of 1 Nephi to demonstrate that 2 Nephi can be seen as a matching structure with a sim...
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“We Are a Remnant of the Seed of Joseph”: Moroni’s Interpretive Use of Joseph’s Coat and the Martial n?s-Imagery of Isaiah 11:11–12 from 2020-12-04T19:59:06
[Page 169]Abstract: Genesis 30:23–24 offers a double etiology for Joseph in terms of “taking away”/“gathering” (??sap) and “adding” (y?sap). In additio...
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Formed in and Called from the Womb from 2020-11-30T19:59:12
[Page 153]Abstract: Drawing on his deep knowledge of biblical Hebrew, Dana Pike gives us a close reading of Jeremiah 1:5, the most important Old Testament verse relating to the Latter-day Saint und...
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An Intelligent, Thoughtful Work on One of the Richest Portions of the Book of Mormon from 2020-11-27T19:59:44
[Page 145]Review of Terryl Givens, 2nd Nephi: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 124 pages. $9.95 (pape...
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Nephi’s Obsession, Or, How to Talk with Nephi about God from 2020-11-27T19:55:21
[Page 131]Review of Joseph M. Spencer, 1 Nephi: A Brief Theological Introduction (Provo, UT: The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2020). 146 pages....
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Notes on Mormonism and the Trinity from 2020-11-23T19:59:34
[Page 87]Abstract: With “awe, humility, and circumspection,” Daniel C. Peterson provides a useful summary and discussion of Latter-day Saint beliefs as they relate to traditional Christ...
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Count Your Many Mormons: Mormon’s Personalized and Personal Messages in Mosiah 18 and 3 Nephi 5 from 2020-11-20T19:59:43
[Page 75]Abstract: The present work analyzes the narrative art Mormon employs, specifically Mormon’s unique strategies for personalized and personal messaging, which can be seen in how Mormon...
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The Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa)—Catalogue of Textual Variants from 2020-11-16T19:59:38
[Page 55]Abstract: In this erudite survey of textual variants in the “Great Isaiah Scroll” from Qumran, Donald W. Parry lays out the major categories of these differences with illustrat...
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A Priesthood Restoration Narrative for Latter-day Saints Believers from 2020-11-13T19:59:30
[Page 49]Review of Michael Hubbard MacKay, Prophetic Authority: Democratic Hierarchy and the Mormon Priesthood (Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2020). 184 pages. $22.95 (paperback).
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“We May Not Understand Our Words”: The Book of Abraham and the Concept of Translation in The Pearl of Greatest Price from 2020-11-13T19:55:55
[Page 1]Review of Terryl Givens with Brian Hauglid, The Pearl of Greatest Price: Mormonism’s Most Controversial Scripture (New York: Oxford University Press, 2019). 285 pages. $34.95 (hardbac...
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It Came from Beyond from 2020-11-06T19:59:18
[Page vii]Abstract: The early Latter-day Saints viewed the Book of Mormon not only as a symbol of Joseph Smith’s prophetic calling but also as the most powerful evidence for that ca...
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The Covenant of Christ’s Gospel in the Book of Mormon from 2020-11-02T19:59:01
[Page 283]Abstract: With the trained eye of an anthropologist and a historian, Steven Olsen refutes claims that the Book of Mormon is a simple hodge-podge of biblical phrases and responses to contr...
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Notes on Book of Mormon Heads from 2020-10-30T18:59:34
[Page 263]Abstract: This paper looks at the two types of heads used in the Book of Mormon. It argues against a recent theory that these heads served as mnemonic cues that enabled Joseph Smith to ex...
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The Theology of C. S. Lewis: A Latter-day Saint Perspective from 2020-10-26T18:59:32
[Page 243]Abstract: In this essay, Robert Millet describes the work and impact of C. S. Lewis as it pertains to the Latter-day Saints. He explores possible reasons why Church leaders have felt comf...
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Where Did the Names Mahaway and Mahujah Come From? A Response to Colby Townsend’s “Returning to the Sources,” Part 2 of 2 from 2020-10-23T19:59:23
[Page 181]Review of Colby Townsend, “Returning to the Sources: Integrating Textual Criticism in the Study of Early Mormon Texts and History,” Intermountain West Journal of Religious Studies 10, no....
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Tocqueville on New Prophets and the Tyranny of Public Opinion from 2020-10-19T19:59:12
[Page 163]Abstract: Louis Midgley discusses the rise and fall in popularity of Alexis de Toqueville’s unrivaled volumes entitled Democracy in America and the impressive renaissance of interes...
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Textual Criticism and the Book of Moses: A Response to Colby Townsend’s “Returning to the Sources,” Part 1 of 2 from 2020-10-16T19:59:27
[Page 99]Review of Colby Townsend, “Returning to the Sources: Integrating Textual Criticism in the Study of Early Mormon Texts and History.” Intermountain West Journal of Religious Stud...
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The Visions of Moses and Joseph Smith’s Bible Translation from 2020-10-12T19:59:44
[Page 89]Abstract: This contribution focuses on the earliest and one of the most significant chapters of the Book of Moses: Moses 1, sometimes called the “Visions of Moses.” Kent Jackso...
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“I of Myself Am a Wicked Man”: Some Notes on Allusion and Textual Dependency in Omni 1:1-2 from 2020-10-09T19:59:08
[Page 71]Abstract: Omni greatly revered his ancestors and their personal accounts on the small plates of Nephi. A close examination of Omni’s brief autobiography (Omni 1:1–3) evidences borrowing fr...
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Janus Parallelism: Speculation on a Possible Poetic Wordplay in the Book of Mormon from 2020-10-05T19:59:02
[Page 61]Abstract: In this article, Paul Hoskisson discusses the question of whether Janus parallelism, a sophisticated literary form found in the Hebrew Bible and elsewhere in manuscripts of the a...
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Some Notes on Joseph Smith and Adam Clarke from 2020-10-02T19:59:58
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[Page 15] Abstract: Authors of two recent articles believe they have found evidence that Joseph Smith, in preparing...
A Uni-Dimensional Picture of a Multi-Faceted Nauvoo Community from 2020-10-02T19:57:56
[Page 1]Review of Benjamin E. Park, Kingdom of Nauvoo: The Rise and Fall of a Religious Empire on the American Frontier (New York City: Liveright Publishing, 2020). 336 pages. $28.95...
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Reckoning with the Mortally Inevitable from 2020-09-25T19:59:32
[Page vii]Abstract: Every human enterprise — even the best, including science and scholarship — is marred by human weakness, by our inescapable biases, incapacities, limitations, preconceptions, an...
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Jesus’s Courtroom in John from 2020-09-21T19:59:12
[Page 325]Abstract: John Gee gives us a sketch of the divine judgment as presented in the gospel of John. “In John’s gospel, the individual is the defendant; Jesus is the judge; the dev...
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The Expanse of Joseph Smith’s Translation Vision from 2020-09-18T19:59:03
[Page 321]Review of Samuel Morris Brown, Joseph Smith’s Translation: The Words and Worlds of Early Mormonism (New York: Oxford University Press, 2020). 314 pages. $34.95 (hardback).
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