BYU Studies
Alphabetical by Authors

This comparison of Joseph Smith and John Milton focuses on their literary output and especially the preparation each had for dictating a long religious work, in Milton’s case Paradise Lost and in Smith’s the Book of Mormon. Most notable authors, including Milton, had a long apprenticeship that involved writing several “try works,” practice works that served as tutorials and stepping stones preparing their authors for their magnum opus. Joseph Smith had no such trial period for learning how to weave together intricate subplots, multitudes of characters, and historical background detail. Milton, in particular, had all the advantages of a first-rate English education. Smith, by contrast,had the most meager of educational opportunities. According to his wife, at the time he dictated the Book of Mormon, he “could neither write nor dictate a coherent and well-worded letter.” In spite of these disadvantages, Smith dictated most of the Book of Mormon over a period of less than three months, whereas Milton’s dictation of Paradise Lost took place over more than a decade. While it has been popular since 1830 for critics to debunk or diminish the Book of Mormon, it has stood the test of time in more ways than one.

I have long thought that the importance and role of Joseph Smith in the history of religion in America has been muted more than necessary by the Latter-day Saint church. As his biographer, I was and remain very anxious that his contribution to American culture and religion in general be recognized and appreciated, both by Mormons and by non-Mormons.

No abstract available.

Gary A. Rendsburg, “Chiasmus in the Book of Genesis,” examines three sweeping chiastic structures in the following Ancestral Narratives of the text of Genesis—Abraham (Gen 11:27–22:24), Jacob (Gen 25:19‒35:22), and Joseph (Gen 37‒50). For each of the three structures, Rendsburg points out the various elements that constitute the chiasmus —the focal point and the mirrored elements that exist on each side of that focal point. Mirrored elements include both narrative themes and specific lexical items. The three chiastic structures are identified and developed in Rendsburg’s book The Redaction of Genesis. In this 2017 proceeding, Rendsburg presents new material, arguing that the major themes of the focal points of the three chiasms for the Ancestral Narratives are, respectively, the covenant (Abraham Cycle), the land of Caanan (Jacob Cycle), and the people of Israel (Joseph Cycle). The same three major themes, proffers Rendsburg, create the essential message of the Hebrew Bible.

The Bible describes a bifurcated world in which God bids, commands, and teaches the people he has created to follow him in the way of righteousness, and in which the devil leads people into wickedness. This way of seeing things surfaces explicitly in various texts and is known among scholars as the Doctrine of the Two Ways. While the same teaching has been noticed in the Book of Mormon, there is as yet no study that examines the Book of Mormon presentations systematically to identify the ways in which they might follow any of the ancient versions of the Two Ways doctrine, or the ways in which these might feature original formulations. In this article, Noel Reynolds shows that the Book of Mormon writers did retain most elements of the earliest biblical teaching, but with enriched understandings and original formulations of the Doctrine of the Two Ways in their prophetic teachings. He documents twelve exemplary passages in the Book of Mormon that explicitly refer to two paths or ways and assesses the extent to which these follow or vary from each other or from Jewish and Christian models.

In his landmark conference addresses in 1986, President Benson repeatedly cited the Doctrine and Covenants and reiterated his long-standing belief that the Church was under condemnation for taking the Book of Mormon too lightly. He also announced that “the Lord has revealed the need to reemphasize the Book of Mormon.” Latter-day Saints responded with an enormous and passionate effort to fully utilize the Nephite record. Such fervor did not always exist.

Nephi tells the story of the founding events of the Nephite people in such a way that his readers will see him as a second Moses. Although Nephi’s use of the Moses typology has been previously noted, what has not been noticed before is that his father, Lehi, also employs this same typology in his farewell address in 2 Nephi 1-4 in order to persuade his descendants of his own divine calling and of their new covenant relationship to the same God who had given the promised land to ancient Israel. The fact that Nephi and Lehi both saw themselves as Moses figures demonstrates their awareness of a recognizable feature of preexilic Israelite literature that has only recently been explicated by Bible scholars.

Early Christianity saw a wide proliferation of theories and practices concerning baptism, and now many Christians, including Mormons, commonly understand it as a means to repent and wash away one’s sins. But the Book of Mormon prophets taught that baptism is a covenant and a witnessing to God that one has already repented and commits to follow Jesus Christ, and that sins are remitted by the Holy Ghost.

The revival of scholarly interest in Abraham in recent decades provides a timely opportunity to explore the contemporary findings of biblical scholars from a Latter-day Saint perspective. This review leads to an in-depth exploration of how the Lord’s covenants with Abraham were understood by the Nephite prophets in the Book of Mormon, how their perspectives compare with contemporary biblical scholarship, and how the Nephite perspective may modify or expand standard Latter-day Saint approaches to understanding the Abrahamic covenant. This article identifies three interrelated streams of covenant discourse in the Book of Mormon—each defined by its respective focus on the (1) Lehite covenant, (2) Abrahamic covenant, or (3) gospel covenant. Though these three streams of covenant discourse are closely related, each is distinct in purpose. Nephite prophets integrated these three in unique ways to develop one larger understanding of God’s use of covenants to bring salvation to the world.

The rendering of the Greek text of the Epistle to the Hebrews into modern English presents a flowing and easily understood translation of one of the most beautiful biblical studies of the nature and ministry of Christ. The English rendering comes from an extensive and excellent Commentary entitled The Epistle to the Hebrews by Richard D. Draper and Michael D. Rhodes forthcoming in 2019. This translation seeks to correct one of the major problems the King James translators were unable to overcome. These men were classists and knew well the power and beauty of the Attic prose of Plato and Aristotle. Unfortunately, “the rubbed down and difficult Greek” of the New Testament era held a number of mysteries they were unable to solve. This left a number of passages, especially in the dense and difficult writings of the epistles, very hard to understand in their translation. In this new rendering of the Greek text, the current translators have attempted to present the true sense of the New Testament writings as faithfully and clearly as possible in modern English. It strives to balance the esoteric details of a text with the importance of communicating the breadth of its meaning as clearly as possible to English readers. Sometimes grammatical and syntactical forms that make good sense in Greek seem stilted, odd, and even weird when translated word for word into English. The translators’ purpose has been to render the Greek in such a way that an educated reader could readily understand its meaning. They have consistently tried to avoid an overly “literal” translation, which would likely obscure original intents. They have, therefore, followed Bruce Metzger’s dictum to be “as literal as possible, but as free as necessary” in order to communicate to the English reader the meaning of the text. This Rendition is part of the BYU New Testament Commentary series. This scholarly project aims to create a faithful modern English translation together with a full, in-depth, carefully researched Latter-day Saint commentary for each book on the New Testament. As of 2019, volumes have been published on Mark, Luke, First Corinthians, and Revelation. More of the New Rendition and commentary volumes will be added in coming months and years.

The New Rendition of the book of Revelation provides a modern English translation of the Greek text while remaining true to the Apostle John’s intent. This translation is excerpted from The Revelation of John the Apostle by Richard D. Draper and Michael D. Rhodes. The text of Revelation in the King James Version seems oblique and in some cases inexplicable, but this New Rendition clarifies many misunderstood or misinterpreted passages and helps make John’s powerful testimony more understandable and applicable to the modern disciple. The authors have studied, taught, and published scholarly works on the book of Revelation for decades and aim to make the text accessible with this version. Insights into the meaning of this grand apocalyptic book are drawn from early Christian perspectives, Latter-day Saint scriptures, and a panoply of references to churches, angels, trumpets, seals, signs, beasts, and elders leading to the great marriage supper of the Lamb of God and the establishment of the celestial New Jerusalem. This Rendition is part of the BYU New Testament Commentary series. This scholarly project aims to create a faithful modern English translation together with a full, in-depth, carefully researched Latter-day Saint commentary for each book on the New Testament. More of the New Rendition and commentary volumes will be added in coming months and years. As of 2019, volumes have been published on Mark, Luke, First Corinthians, and Revelation.

A verse-by-verse commentary on the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews. Provides a modern English version of the text. Cites scriptures of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). Focuses on Jesus Christ and his role as High Priest and Savior, highlighting the saving nature of faith in him. The Epistle to the Hebrews is a faith-filled testimony of Jesus Christ. This commentary is the most comprehensive study of the epistle that Latter-day Saint scholars have yet produced. The commentary removes many of the barriers that hinder the reader from understanding this complex work. The volume is not written for an academic audience but for anyone interested in a detailed examination of this highly spiritual and insightful work. The authors show that although the epistle has been ascribed to the Apostle Paul because its doctrines and approaches are so similar to his, it is actually the work of an unnamed early church authority. The result of this conclusion stresses that the Apostle was not alone in his understanding of the work, ministry, and mission of the Lord. In the past, many non–Latter-day Saint readers have viewed the epistle as a polemic against certain Jews who were making trouble for Jewish Christians. This work finds Hebrews to be primarily a pastoral work carefully designed to encourage its readers to base their lives on nothing more and nothing less than Jesus Christ. The commentary presents the full Greek text alongside the King James Version and the authors’ New Rendition, followed by translation notes and analysis. The translation notes explain the meaning and context of words, phrases, and passages and the choice of words in the New Rendition. The analysis examines the doctrine and teachings of each section, opening the epistle to the reader’s understanding. The work strives to be up to date, comprehensive, scholarly, and as doctrinally sound as possible. It relies on the canon of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Joseph Smith Translation, and teachings of latter-day prophets alongside rigorous biblical scholarship and the original Greek text. This commentary has the same purpose as the epistle itself: to bear witness of the Lord and his lifegiving ministry. This up-to-date commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews provides a unique restoration perspective on the Jewish and first-century Christian themes of Jesus Christ’s authority, priesthood, temples, and faithfulness. Draper and Rhodes make this somewhat neglected and challenging epistle much more understandable through a careful examination of the Greek text accompanied by a side-by-side KJV text and translation notes. Their analysis sections contain numerous invaluable insights gleaned from many decades of teaching. This commentary assists modern readers to gain the scripture study skill of context as Draper and Rhodes elucidate this epistle’s text from both a Semitic and Gentile historical and cultural milieu. — Brent Schmidt, faculty, Department of Religious Education, Brigham Young University–Idaho The commentary on Epistle to the Hebrews is fascinating! As with the other commentaries written by Richard D. Draper and Michael D. Rhodes, we have the Greek text, the translation, and the reasoning behind the translation. The historical, sociopolitical, and religious background they provide is invaluable in fully understanding the inspired (and inspiring) messages of the writer of Hebrews. I find this commentary very accessible. You don’t have to have a background in history or be a biblical scholar. You can dive in where you are at and learn at the feet of masters. I also appreciate the enhanced insights from the inclusion of Latter-day Saint scripture. There are a number of scholarly commentaries on Hebrews, but very few that are accessible to a lay person, and none with a Latter-day Saint perspective. If you are seeking a deeper understanding of Jesus Christ and His Atonement, this commentary will be invaluable. — Eleanor Thorne, administrator with BYU Continuing Education, PhD from University of Missouri–Colombia Draper and Rhodes have written a useful commentary to this important New Testament book. Their commentary is especially helpful for teasing out connections between the ancient writings in the New Testament and the unique contributions of the Restoration. The Epistle to the Hebrews is a book that has a lot of resonance with latter-day scripture and teachings, and Draper and Rhodes’s commentary is written with an ear to that resonance. — Avram Shannon, assistant professor, Department of Ancient Scripture, Religious Education, Brigham Young University

Of all of Paul’s epistles, First Corinthians may resonate the most with Latter-day Saints. Many of its doctrinal teachings reappear in the Restoration: baptism for the dead, degrees of glory, charity never faileth, the administration of the sacrament, and others. The counsel Paul gave remains remarkably relevant today because conditions and attitudes found in ancient Corinth have reemerged in the postmodern Western world. The Corinthian microcosm was largely a skeptical, materialistic, pluralistic, immoral society whose standards were contrary to those of the Christian community. The Corinthians questioned God, the Resurrection, and the place of the Spirit in their lives. Paul was compelled to address such issues in that society, and the result is an epistle highly germane still today. This book is the most comprehensive study of First Corinthians that LDS scholars have yet produced. It relies on the LDS canon of scripture and the teachings of LDS prophets alongside rigorous biblical scholarship and Paul’s original Greek. Because this commentary relies heavily on the Greek text, the full Greek text is presented along with the King James Version. It also presents a new rendering of the Greek text that makes the text more understandable to modern readers. This rendition is set side by side with the King James text for easy comparison. The commentary contains translation notes and helpful historical and cultural background. The work strives to be as up to date, comprehensive, scholarly, and doctrinally sound as possible. Through examining every verse of First Corinthians, the rich theology of the Atonement, grace, the gifts of the Spirit, the sacrament, love, and resurrection of the dead come alive. Those who read this volume will find in it faith, hope, and understanding of key principles and doctrines. The text bears a strong witness of the Lord Jesus Christ and a clear elucidation of his gospel as articulated by the Apostle Paul. The commentary on Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians is absolutely enlightening! It provides the Greek text, a translation entitled a “Rendition,” and an in-depth explanation for why most words, phrases, and verses are rendered the way they are. But the authors don’t stop there. They give us the historical, sociopolitical, and religious background necessary to understand Paul’s writing in context. Their discussion of Paul’s teachings is articulate, straightforward, and doctrinally and spiritually insightful. Paul’s message to the Corinthians and the conditions surrounding it have truly come alive for me. This commentary has become an invaluable tool and a regular part of my scripture study. — Eleanor Thorne, Administrator with BYU Continuing Education, PhD from University of Missouri–Columbia Draper and Rhodes’s collaboration on First Corinthians, is, in my estimation, even better than their very solid and substantial commentary on ­Reve­lation. A detailed introduction sets the stage for Paul’s letter by surveying questions of authorship, date, historical background to Corinth, circumstances for writing, unifying themes, and, as a special bonus, a collection of interpretations and famous quotations by LDS authorities for each chapter of the letter, organized in decreasing order of the frequency of comments on the chapter. This commentary advances by light years what previous Mormon projects of this nature have done. — Craig L. Blomberg, Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Denver Seminary Draper and Rhodes collectively have many decades of experience teaching and writing about the New Testament in a faith-promoting manner. This volume examines First Corinthians on many levels, both secular and spiritual. Their rendition closely follows the Greek when possible while also idiomatically and skillfully rendering cryptic and ambiguous passages into plain English. Their analysis often illuminates terms, doctrines, and concepts that sometimes escape traditional New Testament scholarship. Their commentary deeply explores the first-century setting and context of this important letter of Paul. The results are invaluable for students, teachers, leaders, and scholars of all types who seek wisdom by study and also by faith. — Brent J. Schmidt, Professor of Religious Education at Brigham Young University-Idaho, author of Relational Grace: The Reciprocal and Binding Covenant of Charis

To read the book of Revelation is to see a myriad of representations pass by our gaze, offering a kaleidoscope of bizarre and incongruent images. This world strikes us at first as fearfully and mysteriously strange and fantastic. But once these symbols are properly deciphered, they combine to present crucial messages for those living in the last days. These messages were designed by God to lead all successfully through these troubled times if they will read, hear, and do his will. This commentary presents a comprehensive analy­sis of John’s book aided by the lens of Latter-­day Saint doctrine and experience. God delivered his messages in the form of images housed within discrete visions, with each symbol explaining, exposing, or emphasizing various aspects of the message conveyed. The challenge is getting beyond the symbols to the represented realities. Information is drawn from all the Standard Works, the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible, and from modern Prophets and Apostles. Even so, the best of world scholarship has not been overlooked. Because this commentary relies heavily on the Greek text, the full Greek text of the book is presented in sections along with the King James Version and the authors’ new rendition. The commentary contains translation notes and analysis of every verse. The work strives to be as up to date, comprehensive, ­scholarly, and doctrinally sound as possible. Most important, the commentary emphasizes the primary focus of John’s work, “the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 1:1). The commentary highlights the Apostle’s witness that Jesus is the Lamb of God alive and active in these last days—directing earthly affairs and preparing his Saints and the faithful so that the Father’s intentions will ultimately be accomplished. Hope and promise dominate the work. The Lamb is in charge, and nothing moves beyond the limits he sets. He is coming to “destroy them which destroy the earth” (Rev. 11:18) and to bring his people into triumphant millennial glory. This commentary details how. This is the most ambitious, detailed, and scholarly commentary series on a portion of the Bible ever produced by Latter-day Saints. Perhaps even more noteworthy is the use of the full range of scholarly sources. The new rendition alone could be of great help to Latter-day Saints, especially those who may be wary of modern translations of the Bible outside the Church and nevertheless find the Elizabethan English of the KJV increasingly difficult to navigate. Adela Yarbro Collins has offered the pithiest summary of the Apocalypse I have ever heard: “Jesus wins!” But Draper and Rhodes offer the necessary unpacking of this summary in language that both captures John’s message accurately and highlights humanity’s appropriate response of worship. — Craig Blomberg, Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Denver Seminary Over the years, I’ve dealt with many biblical commentaries, and this one has a very reader-friendly format. It is at its best when introducing ideas about historical and contextual points from various non-LDS scholars. The authors understand that the audience this book is aimed at may not be as familiar with the terms as those who read and use most such commentaries. In fact, this is the strongest point of the book. It is a great step ahead for LDS readers. Naturally, LDS scholars and especially LDS General Authority and LDS scriptural comments are added at appropriate places. This is a book which will be used and referred to for years to come. — Terry L. Hutchinson, attorney and book reviewer for KDXU Radio This is an important contribution and one that should be applauded by those who wish to see, at the very least, a wider understanding of at least some of the concepts and problems expressed by the wider biblical community that otherwise may have no other way of being “safely” expressed from within. While the answers and issues may not be addressed or resolved how all might ideally like them to be, the fact that issues are being expressed and acknowledged from a substantial work by a Church-run institution is in and of itself, at least for me, a major gain. — David Tayman, media developer for technology consulting company and LDS blogger

The New Rendition of the book First Corinthians provides a modern English translation of the Greek text while remaining true to Paul’s intent. This translation is excerpted from Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians by Richard D. Draper and Michael D. Rhodes. This new version clarifies many previously vague or misunderstood passages and enlightens the text for today’s readers. This epistle is particularly interesting and important to faithful Christians interested in the Apostle Paul’s testimonies of knowledge, revelation, purity, gifts of the spirit, the sacrament, charity, the resurrection, baptism for the dead, heavenly glory, and many other topics crucial to the life of righteousness. This Rendition is part of the BYU New Testament Commentary series. This scholarly project aims to create a faithful modern English translation together with a full, in-depth, carefully researched Latter-day Saint commentary for each book on the New Testament. More of the New Rendition and commentary volumes will be added in coming months and years. As of 2019, volumes have been published on Mark, Luke, First Corinthians, and Revelation.

On September 2, 1829, a new paper was born in Palmyra, New York, called The Reflector and published by O. Dogberry, Jun. The object of the papers was to “correct the morals and improve the mind.” O. Dogberry was the pseudonym for a certain Esquire Cole, an ex-justice of the peace, who had obtained access on Sundays and evenings to the use of the idle E. B. Grandin & Co. press, the same press which was being used to print the Book of Mormon. Apparently rumors and gossip about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon were widespread; and Esquire Cole, who looked upon Joseph as an impostor, printed rather tart comments about him and the Book of Mormon.

This article deals with defining the exact date of Alvin Smith’s death which helps the author to pinpoint the visits of Moroni.

A brief note in the History of the Church under the date of Sunday, 3 April 1836, records the appearance of the Lord, Moses, Elias, and Elijah to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple. Subsequent writers have noted that this date corresponds to the Jewish Passover, during which the arrival of Elijah is traditionally awaited. A parenthetical note in the Missionary Training Manual: For Use in the Jewish Proselyting Program states the correlation of the two events emphatically. There we are informed that Elijah appeared in the Kirtland Temple “at about the same hour that the Jewish families in that time zone would have been preparing to begin their feast of the Passover.” These statements, although correct in their identification of the Jewish Passover with the ritual expectation of Elijah and in their connecting the time of the appearance of Elijah in the Kirtland Temple with the Passover season, warrant further elucidation and modest chronological correction.

There is a striking example of a “narrative” type call in the prophetic commission of Enoch in Moses 6:23–36. This study considers the elements of the narrative call pattern; those elements of this form found in the prophetic commission of Enoch are examined and compared with the biblical narrative call passages.
The report of the prophetic vocation of Enoch in the book of Moses accords with impressive consistency with the call narratives in the Bible. All of the elements of the prophetic call pattern isolated and examined by Habel in the calls of Moses, Gideon, and Jeremiah are also found in the Enoch passage; with one minor exception, the order of the elements in the vocation of Enoch is the same as in the call accounts recorded in the Bible. This additional authenticating detail places Enoch more securely in the tradition of the prophets and the book of Moses more firmly in the form and tradition of the prophetic literature.

In the April 1937 general conference, President David O. McKay, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, asked the following question, “If at this moment each one [of you] were asked to state in one sentence . . . the most distinguishing feature of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, what would be your answer?” He then said: “My answer would be . . . divine authority by direct revelation.” Priesthood authority revealed from heaven is the foundation upon which the Church is built. This collection of writings explores the revelatory nature of authority in the Church, beginning with the restoration of priesthood authority and keys through the ministering of angels and including the 1978 revelation on priesthood. William G. Hartley presents a history of how the priesthood developed from a simple seed planted in 1829 to a fairly complex tree by the time of Joseph Smith’s death in 1844. The unfolding of priesthood restoration produced two major branches, several offices, an organizational hierarchy, and specific instructions on the proper use of priesthood authority. Brian Q. Cannon and the BYU Studies staff then present seventy contemporaneous documents about the restoration of the priesthood. The middle portion of the book addresses the 1978 revelation on priesthood in great detail. Ronald K. Esplin gives circumstantial historical evidence that the priesthood denial to members of black African descent did not originate with Brigham Young, but likely had its roots in Nauvoo prior to Joseph Smith’s death. Edward L. Kimball presents a fascinating history of the revelation received by his father, President Spencer W. Kimball, and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which made priesthood blessings available to all worthy male members of the Church. Kimball’s account traces the roots of the priesthood ban, examines doctrinal implications of the policy, suggests various influences that impelled his father to make this a matter of long study and prayer, presents a marvelous narrative of the revelation itself, and, finally, describes the aftermath of the revelation. Marcus H. Martins, Emmanuel Abu Kissi, and Tessa Meyer Santiago offer perspectives on how the 1978 revelation affected Church members in Brazil, Africa, and South Africa. Finally, as extra content, reviews of seven books give a glimpse of issues related to the 1978 priesthood revelation: race and slavery in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; Mormon conceptions of race and lineage; social and historical origins of the Church’s pre-1978 priesthood policy; the first official LDS missionaries in Africa; and the personal experiences of Church members with black African ancestry.

In most forms of Gnosticism secret oral tradition is often associated with accounts of the creation of the world, the experiences of Adam and Eve in the Garden, and the fall of man. It is usually in this creation setting or in a temple or on a mountaintop that Gnosticism places the revelation of the esoteric mysteries and the knowledge needed to thwart the archontic powers and return to God.
Gnosticism is primarily concerned with the questions, Who am I? Where am I from? and What is my destiny? That the answers to these questions are often associated with the creation, the Garden, and the fall of man is probably due to the Gnostic presupposition that the end of all things is to be found in their beginning. Of those documents which manifest this concern, the Nag Hammadi Apocalypse of Adam is perhaps the prime example.

The Salt Lake Tabernacle held the North American record for the widest unsupported interior space at its completion in 1867. Finished two years before the arrival of the railroad, it was constructed primarily of local stone, timber, and adobe. One of a long succession of buildings constructed to permit members of the Mormon faith to hear from their prophet, the Tabernacle accommodated over thirteen thousand people. A recent seismic upgrade provided a unique opportunity to view details of the historic building. Construction challenges, acoustics, the development of the organ, and subsequent alterations and upgrades are amply illustrated, providing a complete story of this magnificent edifice. Early meetings in the Mormon faith were held in private homes or outdoors. The first buildings constructed by the Church, the Kirtland and Nauvoo Temples, were multipurpose buildings that were woefully inadequate to accommodate the growing number of Saints. After arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, Brigham Young decided to construct a hall where thousands could attend services. The Salt Lake Tabernacle is a bold and daring building, setting a North American record for an unsupported interior span. Developed from bridge trusses, the building was frankly modern in the way it eschewed traditional ornamentation and styles and clearly expressed its form on the exterior. Brigham Young relied upon bridge builder Henry Grow and architects William Folsom and Truman O. Angell to realize the unprecedented structure. Grow tested the truss capacity with scale models and oversaw the construction of the lofty trusses. Folsom developed the initial plans, but then Angell worked out the details of the stand, seating, and gallery. Together they created an audience hall that seated approximately thirteen thousand and held as many as fifteen thousand with congregants standing in the aisles. The recent seismic upgrade of the building provided an opportunity to view many original details and finishes that were long hidden underneath later layers and additions. The upgrade allows the building to be of service continuing into the next century. Built from local materials and volunteer labor before the railroad arrived in the Great Basin, the Tabernacle stands as a witness to the collective sacrifice made by members of the Mormon faith. Driven from homes and disavowed by families, these early Saints made the arduous trek to the West to follow a prophet, and this remarkable building made it possible for many thousands of them to gather as one under a single roof.

Hopeful and heartbreaking, sobering and exultant. A Call to Russia captures missionary life as experienced by a mission president, his wife and daughter, and the sisters and elders who served under him. But above all, this book is an invitation to reflect upon our own lives. Some glimpses from President Rogers: “Every morning Merriam still wakes up and asks, ‘Where am I?’ while I shake off the night’s slumber and involuntarily ask, ‘Who am I?’” “Our senior district president recently asked me, ‘What are your greatest impressions since coming here?’ I answered, ‘Faith and love. Love and faith.’ And the way things seem to fall apart on at least a weekly basis before they’re somehow put back together.” “In our quest to see God’s face, what most matters in mortality is how we face one another—with what patience, tenderness, mercy, and good humor.” “Another great blessing—a mission makes us more aware than otherwise of our personal inadequacies.” “A friend wrote me, ‘You’ve certainly changed.’ It’s good others can see how the gospel has indeed changed us—how we have repented. As a great assistant to the president put it, ‘The best missionary is a repenting missionary.’” “We all confront, all the time, a choice between two paths. One is higher, with steeper terrain, where you often strain to catch your breath or to reach a handhold. The other lies well below it and tends if anything toward a gradual and easy descent.”

Interwoven throughout the Book of Mormon are images of eating and drinking that serve as symbols and metaphors inspiring readers to flee degradation and partake of eternal life. In significant ways, the Book of Mormon employs images of eating and drinking or the absence of them to develop implications of survival, social relations, and covenants. Its metaphorical use of these images is especially rich. It calls to those who approach it, “Taste and feast.”

In a previous issue of BYU Studies, John W. Welch explores the early Christian allegorical interpretation of the good Samaritan and argues that this parable “become[s] even richer when understood in terms of restored Latter-day Saint doctrines of God’s plan of salvation.” In a version of that article adapted for the Ensign, he further explains how understanding the parable in this way “adds eternal perspectives to its moral imperatives.” The same is true of the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, which, like the parable of the good Samaritan, were traditionally connected with Christ’s incarnation. In fact, I argue that this is their primary meaning and that subsequent moral lessons are valuable but subordinate.