This book was in many ways a first: first to provide a full collection of Joseph Smith’s Nauvoo discourses in the mature and climatic years of his life; first to reproduce them in exact fidelity to their original written sources in diaries and journals; first to cross-reference them to earlier sayings and discourses of Joseph Smith; first to index all the biblical and other scriptural verses discussed or alluded to; first to provide contextual settings for each discourse in proper chronological sequence; first to footnote the discourses in terms of their historical and doctrinal kinships; and first to interlace all these discourses with other fundamental teachings of this rich and formative period of Church history. ISBN 0-8849-4419-0

At the foundation of great religions lie holy books. Not all religious books have the sacredness of scripture, but few religions survive and thrive without creating a literature of belief. This book contains proceedings from an RSC symposium on such books. Seldom has the dialogue between the language of scholarship and the language of faith been so intense or sensitive. These proceedings reflect both the devotion believers feel for their scriptures and a rare respect that should mark each encounter with another’s sacred literature. ISBN 0-8849-4409-3

Contents:

America’s Decision About Christ / Reid E. Bankhead

A Testimony / Janice White Clemmer

An Appreciation for the Book of Mormon / Robert J. Matthews

Sanctification and Justification are Just and True / Gerald N. Lund

Becoming Perfect in Christ / Robert E. Parsons

The Condescension of the Father and the Son / N. Gaylon Hopkins

The Plates that Mormon Found and the Manuscript that Joseph Smith Lost / Eldin Ricks

Remnants of Israel: Who? When Gathered? / Paul E. Felt

A Man May Know for Himself / Hal L. Taylor

The Nephites and the Law of Moses / H. Donl Peterson

The Same God, Yesterday, Today, and Forever / Monte S. Nyman

Contents:

The Pearl of Great Price as Scripture / A. Theodore Tuttle

The New Edition of the Scriptures / Robert J. Matthews

Historical Background of the Pearl of Great Price: How the Book Came to Be / James P. Mitchell

Moses One: The Divine Prelude to the Holy Bible / H. Donl Peterson

To Prepare a People / William O. Nelson

Eschatology in the Pearl of Great Price / Rodney Turner

The Duel of the Kings / Richard D. Draper

Understanding Facsimile 2 of the Book of Abraham / James Roy Harris

Astronomy and the Book of Abraham / Fred Holmstrom

In this volume, nine Latter-day Saint scholars each address the question of Book of Mormon authorship from a different approach. The tests of authenticity they employ rely on analytical techniques borrowed from such diverse disciplines as history, literature, statistics, and ancient Near Eastern studies. For both layman and scholar, this book makes exciting reading. While ultimate acceptance of the Book of Mormon as the word of God is and will remain a spiritual matter, the reasoned analyses, comparisons, and examinations contained in these pages add to the swelling volume of evidence that supports Joseph Smith’s account of the authorship of that book. ISBN 0-8849-4469-7

Contents:

Our Faith is Centered in the Living Christ / David B. Haight

Misleading Translations of Paul / Richard L. Anderson

From Tanach to Talmud: The Emerging Rabbinic Judaism Which Jesus Knew / Albert W. Hoffman

The Four Gospels as Testimonies / S. Kent Brown

Spiritual Death, Temporal Death, and the Atonement of Christ / LaMar E. Garrard

The Necessity of the Book of Mormon in Teaching the New Testament / Monte S. Nyman

Fasting in the Perspective of Ancient Israel and the New Testament / Stephen D. Ricks

A Parable of Parables / Robert C. Patch

Paul: Apostle of Grace / Rodney Turner

The Parable of the Two Sons: A Revelation about God / Jay E. Jensen

Let Us Go On Unto Perfection: Paul’s Message in the Book of Hebrews / Leland H. Gentry

New Testament Prophecies of Apostasy / Kent P. Jackson

The Price of Redemption / Robert J. Matthews

Islam, the faith of the Muslims, is a major world religion. Its believers are found on all of the inhabited continents. Nearly one out of every six people on earth today is Muslim. In common with Christians generally, Mormons as a whole know little of Islam and its adherents. Yet the two religions have many interesting similarities and parallels. Examples include a firm belief in a living God and obedience to him; emphasis on the family; assistance to the poor and other social concerns; a sense of man’s obligation to testify of God; belief in a physical resurrection and a life thereafter; and a total commitment to values and lifestyle rather than a mere creedal recitation. Islam is considered a “biblical faith” in part because Muhammad, the Arabian prophet of the Muslim world, revered the teachings of Abraham and Moses and other Bible prophets. To this common ground between Muslims and Mormons is added the fact that both Muhammad and Joseph Smith are regarded by their respective adherents as instruments in the hand of God in revealing new scriptures, the Qur’an and the Book of Mormon—in each case under angelic direction. In bringing together papers from a symposium held at Brigham Young University in October 1981, this book on Mormons and Muslims presents some of the finest and ablest exponents and interpreters of the Muslim faith. As well as relationships between that faith and Christianity generally, the book offers a new dimension in that much of the focus centers for the first time on parallels, similarities, and contrasts with the religion of the Latter-day Saints. This can be both explicit and implicit, as in chapters on pre-Islamic and Arabian prophets, the idea of redemption in Christianity and Islam, the Muhammad-Joseph Smith comparison, and religious practices of women in Islamic countries. Many spontaneously arising questions about analogies between Mormonism and Islam find here an informed forum for discussion, especially by the Mormon participants who have lived among Muslims and studied their cultures and life-styles. As prophetic figures, how do Joseph Smith and Muhammad compare? What is the role of women in the Muslim faith? Could Hud, the Qur’an prophet, actually be the Book of Mormon Lehi? Is there really a relationship between Jesus Christ and the Mahdi, the redemptive figure in Islam? Not all the answers are here, but the concepts, experiences, and suggested conclusions will certainly inform and stimulate each reader’s thinking. For both critic and believer, for both scholar and general reader, for both Mormon and Muslim, as well as for all serious students of comparative religion, here is an intriguing and authentic exchange leading to a deepening understanding of “spiritual foundations and modern manifestations.” ISBN 0884944832

Prominent scholars of diverse backgrounds participated in a March 1980 symposium, “Scriptures in the Sesquicentennial,” and brought to it their unique insights into the world of records. This book, a compilation of the addresses, explores some of those records that evidence both the antiquity and the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. ISBN 0-8849-4538-3

The answer to “What is a temple?” is partially the answer to “What was the temple?” Here a distinguished array of scholars trests this theme. This collection of essays—which grew out of a BYU symposium of experts—presents recent findings on the temple in antiquity: historical, linguistic, and archaeological data which bear on the idea of the temple in Israelite, Jewish, and Christian traditions. The book includes an expansive introduction to temple traditions and a bibliography for further clarification and comparison. ISBN 0-8849-4518-9

Gleaning from the expertise of an eminent array of Latter-day Saint scholars, a Brigham Young University symposium entitled “Isaiah and the Prophets” has brought to light a diversity of thought-provoking ideas relative to the Old Testament. This book contains ten of the addresses given at that symposium. Isaiah and the Prophets is rich in its outpouring of details. The book probes concepts that are pertinent to understanding the Old Testament as the Lord’s prophetic word and the gospel in its fullness. ISBN 0-8849-4522-7

Contents:

This Generation Shall Have My Word Through You / Bruce R. McConkie

The Living Canon / Richard O. Cowan

In Search of the Sensational / James R. Christianson

Proving the Holy Scriptures / Rex C. Reeve, Jr.

Voting Within the Restored Church of Christ / Wilson K. Andersen

The Joseph Smith Translation: A Primary Source for the Doctrine and Covenants / Robert J. Matthews

Clothed with Bonds of Charity: The Law of Consecration and Stewardship in Ohio, 1830-1838 / Milton V. Backman, Jr.

Six Visions of Eternity: Section 76 / Monte S. Nyman

Latter-day Visions of the Savior / Donald Q. Cannon

What is Man? / LaMar E. Garrard

Restoring the Doctrine and the Covenants / Joseph F. McConkie

Thomas B. Marsh as President of the First Quorum of the Twelve, 1835-1838 / Ronald K. Esplin

More Treasures than One: Section 111 / Kenneth W. Godfrey

Tithing in Ancient and Modern Israel / Stephen D. Ricks

Letters from Liberty Jail / Robert J. Woodford

Items of Instruction: Sections 130 and 131 / Bruce A. Van Orden

The Vision of the Redemption of the Dead / Robert L. Millet

The Doctrine and Covenants and the Conversion Process / James R. Moss

The Doctrine and Covenants and Modern Revelation / James E. Faust

This book zeroes in on thirteen of the less famous, behind-the-scenes Saints—supporting Saints. These pioneers were typical of the strength, courage, and faith that built the early Utah church as the base on which today’s worldwide church was founded. Their life stories are recounted here with a wealth of fascinating detail. Here, then, are supporting Saints, both men and women, in a variety of situations and occupations. Their stories, absorbing in themselves, bring us also much interesting detail about life in Utah and many other areas a hundred and more years ago. ISBN 0-8849-4565-0

Ten prominent Church scholars presented at the symposium on the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible. Their in-depth study of the Joseph Smith Translation and related scriptures clarifies the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and show how Joseph Smith restored many plain and precious truths to that holy book. This volume brings together those addresses, illuminating this inspired translation as perhaps no other book had done.

The Lord has told us that many things in the Apocrypha are true and many false. The fascination that apocryphal writings generally hold for Latter-day Saints was recognized in a 1983 BYU symposium on this topic addressed by fifteen scholars representing a wide range of expertise. Those addresses are collected in this book.

Contents:

Introduction: 1985 Sperry Symposium / Robert J. Matthews

1. Spiritual Communication / Richard G. Scott

2. The Doctrine of Godhood in the New Testament / Rodney Turner

3. The Fall of Man / LaMar Garrard

4. To Be As Gods: Original Sin or Eve’s Motive For Mortality? / Alan K. Parrish

5. Insights Into the Atonement from Latter-day Scriptures / Keith W. Perkins

6. The Sacrament: Principles Essential to Exaltation / S. Brent Farley

7. Having A Testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ / Chauncey C. Riddle

8. A New Commandment / George W. Pace

9. Humanity and Practical Christianity: Implications For a World-Wide Church / James R. Christianson

10. Covenants and Covenant People / James R. Moss

11. Affliction and the Plan of Salvation / Philip M. Flammer

12. Political Responsibility and Religious Belief / Gary C. Bryner

13. Personal and Family Preparedness: Lessons From Church History / William G. Hartley

14. Temples, Ordinances, and Art / R. L. Gunn

While some had previously made the journey individually, the first collective emigration of Utah-bound Welsh Latter-day Saints occurred in 1849. They were led by Dan Jones, a Welshman who had joined the Church in Nauvoo and was one of the last persons to see Joseph Smith alive. The three-hundred-plus emigrants in the two ships were part of the three thousand or so souls brought into the Church during this energetic and enthusiastic mission president’s first ministry in Wales. This book contains interesting detail, narrative, and journal entries of those Welsh Saints. ISBN 0-8849-4628-2

Enhance your study of the New Testament with help from respected gospel teachers. the New Testament and the Latter-day Saints contains a collection of findings from BYU religion professors and other renowned scholars that is perfect for any student of the New Testament. Whether you use it for personal or family study, lesson or talk preparation, or to help you participate in the ongoing dialogue of world academicians, this is one book your gospel library can\'t do without.Inside you\'ll find:Susan Easton Black on New Testament WomenJoseph Fielding McConkie on Special Witnesses of the Birth of ChristMonte S. Nyman on the Stumbling Blocks of First CorinthiansAnd more!The New Testament contains some of the most personal details of our Savior\'s life on earth, and now you can increase your love for this book of scripture as you gain a deeper appreciation of its cultural setting, historical significance, and doctrinal insights by reading the New Testament and the Latter-day Saints.

Contents (first edition):

Preface

Contributors

1. The New Testament and the Latter-day Saints / John K. Carmack

2. Rhetoric versus Revelation: A Consideration of Acts 17, verses 16 to 34 / Richard P. Anderson

3. The New Testament Women: The Exemplars / Susan Easton-Black, Alan K. Parrish

4. The Doctrine of Justification and the Writings of the Apostle Paul / Edward J. Brandt

5. Seducing Spirits and Doctrines of Devils / Leland H. Gentry

6. The “I Am” Passages in the Gospels and in 3 Nephi / James R. Harris

7. The Beatitudes: Eight Qualities that Savor the Eternal Quest / Clark V. Johnson

8. The Book of Mormon, an Interpretive Guide to the New Testament / Dennis Largey

9. Isaiah as Taught By the New Testament Apostles / Victor L. Ludlow

10. We Have Found the Messiah, Which is the Christ / Robert J. Matthews

11. Special Witnesses of the Birth of Christ / Joseph Fielding McConkie

12. Jesus and Josephus Told of the Descruction of Jerusalem / Keith H. Meservy

13. Jude: A Call to Contend for the Faith / T. John Nielsen II

14. Is Any Sick Among You?: Anointing the Sick with Oil in Early Christian and Latter-day Thology and Practice / Walter A. Norton

15. The Stumbling Blocks of First Corinthians / Monte S. Nyman

16. Interpreting the New Testament / Chauncey C. Riddle

17. The Book of Romans: An Orthodox Description of Faith, Works, and Exaltation / Joseph B. Romney

18. Visions of Christ in the Spirit World and the Dead Redeemed / Catherine Thomas

19. Joseph Smith and the Apocalypse of John / Rodney Turner

20. The Revelation / S. Michael Wilcox

21. Securing Divine Protection: Putting on the Armor of God / Clyde J. Williams

Index

Contents:

Rooted and Built Up in Christ / Carlos E. Asay

The Old Testament: An Indispensable Foundation / George A. Horton

Noah, the Ark, the Flood: A Pondered Perspective / James R. Christianson

The Seed of Abraham in the Latter Days / Bruce A. Van Orden

Genesis 22: The Paradigm for True Sacrifice in Latter-day Israel / Andrew C. Skinner

Trust in the Lord: Exodus and Faith / S. Kent Brown

Kibroth-Hattaavah: The Graves of Lust / Jeff O’Driscoll

The Latter-day Significance of Ancient Temples / Richard O. Cowan

Joseph and Joseph: “He Shall Be Like Unto Me” (2 Nephi 3:15) / Ann N. Madsen, Susan Easton Black

“Has Thou Considered My Servant Job?” / John S. Tanner

Prophets: How Shall We Know Them? / Joseph F. McConkie

Jesus’ Commandment to Search the Words of Isaiah / L. LaMar Adams

A Latter-day Saint Reading of Isaiah in the Twentieth Century: The Example of Isaiah 6 / Paul Y. Hoskisson

Micah, the Second Witness with Isaiah / Monte S. Nyman

The Restoration of the Tribes of Israel in the Writings of Jeremiah and Ezekiel / Stephen D. Ricks

The Last Shall Be First and the First Shall Be Last / LaMar E. Garrard

Daniel: Ancient Prophet for the Latter Days / H. Dean Garrett

Your Daughters Shall Prophesy: A Latter-day Prophecy of Joel, Peter, and Moroni Examined / Alan K. Parrish

Malachi and the Latter Days / Rex C. Reeve Jr

Justification, Ancient and Modern / Chauncey C. Riddle

Ancient Hebrew “Psychology”: A Radical Option for Educators in the Latter Days / Neil J. Flinders, Paul Wangemann

The Restoration as Covenant Renewal / David Rolph Seely

Joseph Smith’s Use of the Old Testament / Grant Underwood

The Brass Plates: An Inspired and Expanded Version of the Old Testament / Robert L. Millet

The Old Testament: Voice from the Past and Witness for the Lord Jesus Christ / Robert J. Matthews

The First Annual Book of Mormon Symposium at BYU Joseph Smith called it “the most correct . . . book on earth” and “the keystone of our religion.” Both correctness and keystone are reflected in these papers presented at the Religious Studies Center’s first annual Book of Mormon Symposium at BYU. The foremost consideration is the book’s message about Jesus Christ and His mission and teachings. ISBN 0-8849-4637-1

Mormon missionaries began proselyting in Wales in 1840. From their pulpits Welsh religious leaders warned members of their congregations to be wary of this new faith. Their concern was reflected not only in sermons and conversations but also in the Welsh periodical and pamphlet literature as well. Although willing to publish attacks against the Mormons, the editors of the religious periodicals refused to print any of the rebuttals submitted by those under siege. What the Welsh Mormons needed was their own periodical, a vehicle through which they could defend themselves against their enemies and spread their unique religious beliefs as well. The father of the Welsh Mormon press was Captain Dan Jones. This book contains some of the writings that resulted. ISBN 0-8849-4656-8

Volume 1 in the Occasional Papers Series This volume contains the preliminary reports from the 1984 field campaign of the Brigham Young University excavation team at Seila in the Fayum in Egypt. As both this set of reports and those expected from later expeditions will demonstrate, the work done near the Egyptian town of Seila will have a significant impact on further studies of not only Egypt’s Old Kingdom but also the Greco-Roman era. The essays in this volume demonstrate the unusually broad approach to the project this diversity of specialists allowed the team to take. ISBN 0-8849-4680-0

In this volume, twenty-one prominent social scientists address the complex set of relationships that emerge between religion and the family. They show that increased knowledge of how religions and families influence each other sheds light on vaguely understood processes of social change and sharpens questions asked about the church and family influence on such things as marriage, divorce, abortion, birth control, children, sex roles, authority patterns, and belief systems. The authors discuss the religion and family connection in a variety of settings: Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Mormon, Amish, Ireland, and Middletown, U.S.A., among others. ISBN 0-8849-4636-3

In 1989 there were two Sperry Symposiums held. The first was in February on the Doctrine and Covenants, which was published later that year as Doctrines for Exaltation. The second was in October on the Old Testament, which was published in 1990 as A Witness of Jesus Christ.

The Doctrine and Covenants is the book of modern-day scripture that teaches member of the Church about eternal families, temple work, the degrees of glory, Church organization, and many other great truths about the Restoration.

Contents:

The Sacred Role of Women / Susan Easton Black

The Doctrine and Covenants on Temples and Their Functions / Richard O. Cowan

Light, Truth, and Grace: Three Interrelated Salvation Themes in Doctrine and Covenants 93 / Richard D. Draper

The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood / S. Brent Farley

God, Natural Law, and the Doctrine and Covenants / LaMar E. Garrard

Redemption for the Dead / Leland H. Gentry

Salvation Cannot Come Without Revelation / Richard Neitzel Holzapfel

The Law of Consecration: The Covenant that Requires All and Gives Everything / Clark V. Johnson

The Doctrine of Submission and Forgiveness / Daniel K Judd

Revelation on the Priesthood: The Dawning of a New Day in Africa / E. Dale LeBaron

The Doctrine and Covenants Leads Us to Christ / Robert England Lee

What is the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times? / Robert J. Matthews

Quest for the City of God: The Doctrine of Zion in Modern Revelation / Robert L. Millet

The Second Gathering of the Literal Seed / Monte S. Nyman

Doctrine and Covenants 76 and the Visions of Resurrected Life in the Teachings of Elder John A. Widtsoe / Alan K. Parrish

The New and Everlasting Covenant / Chauncey C. Riddle

Eyes that See Afar / S. Michael Wilcox

The Articles and Covenants of the Church of Christ and the Book of Mormon / Robert J. Woodford

Perhaps no institution has had a bigger hand in shaping the history of the Western world in the Christian era than the Roman Catholic Church. But how was that church itself shaped? What kinds of forces and personalities operated in the molding process? This book addresses such questions. The author supplies commentary on facts and claims, along with much interesting detail. His expressed hope was “that this study might lead to better understanding and better tolerance among religious groups.” ISBN 0-8849-4679-7

One of Mormondom’s premier poets came from a stone tenement in the slums of Glasgow. Taking readers back to John’s early years, the book recreates early nineteenth-century Scotland, providing an analysis of the social milieu in which he existed, interspersed with autobiographical accounts of his own youthful experiences, including the death of his father, John’s apprenticeship to a weaver at age nine, and his efforts at self-education. As his story continues, we see his bright hopes become reality. Then the gospel found him. He embraced it fully and anxiously awaited the “call” to join the Saints in Zion. As well as telling the story, the author explores the poetry and prose of John Lyon, comparing and analyzing its merits and giving background information on the various writings. Appendices include his poetry and prose. ISBN 0-8849-4708-4

The Third Annual Book of Mormon Symposium at BYU In this volume, twenty-two scholars comment knowledgeably on a variety of themes evoked by the prophetic words of Isaiah, Lehi, Nephi, and Jacob as given in 2 Nephi. Contributors discuss doctrines of Christ such as repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, the Fall, the Atonement, hope, endurance, the name of Jesus Christ as revealed to the Nephites, and the Nephite diligence in teaching and transmitting the gospel. Comments on the early Nephite period deepen our appreciation for Nephi’s spiritual strength. Although many perspectives are offered here, its underlying purpose is to illumine, clarify, and reinforce the gospel of Jesus Christ. ISBN 0-8849-4699-1

The Second Annual Book of Mormon Symposium at BYU In a variety of themes and approaches, the symposium papers reproduced in this volume explore the first book in the Book of Mormon—First Nephi. The value of the Book of Mormon, historical background of the plates, and the title page are all discussed. How the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ, how its biblical allusions and its affirmations of God’s dealings with man establish the truth of the Bible; and how textual evidences further verify the authenticity of the Book of Mormon are demonstrated. ISBN 0-8849-4647-9

“For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pas the immortality and eternal life of man.” This profound doctrinal statement is one of many contained in the Pearl of Great Price, the smallest of the standard works and the last to be canonized. Studying that scripture in depth adds immensely to our understanding of the Lord’s eternal plan. Comprising addresses delivered at a symposium on the Pearl of Great Price, this book combines the insights and testimonies of thirteen gospel scholars. All things were created to bear witness of God. As here shown, the Pearl of Great Price does that in many ways.