Note: this blog post first appeared at this link. Joseph Spencer gave two interesting papers at the Mysticism conference of the Mormon Scholars in the Humanities meeting last week. In them he proposed (if I understood him correctly) that there is a “way forward” in...
read moreThis is my analysis of the changes in the 2013 edition text of the Book of Mormon, which will be discussed in my lecture on Tuesday, March 5th....
read moreIt is a common anti-Mormon assertion that Joseph Smith invented stories about the restoration of the priesthood in 1834, falsely claiming that the angelic John the Baptist, and later Peter, James and John, restored the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods. (See, for...
read moreby John Gee An entire folk tradition has sprung up based on the translation of Luke 2:7 which explains that Jesus was laid in a manger “because there was no room for them in the inn” (KJV). The King James translators did not invent the phrase. Tyndale rendered the...
read moreThere is a new ebook in the works targeting Hugh Nibley’s ideas about the relationship between politics and religion. A video of part of an interview with Senator Robert Bennett gives a glimpse into some of the content of that forthcoming work. More information...
read moreJeffrey Bradshaw has posted the first of six articles on Meridian Magazine discussing the story of Noah. The series looks at that story both seriously and literally without taking it overly simplistically. See the first article here (link no longer available), and...
read moreTwo new books of interest have just been published by Eisenbrauns. 1. Anne Porter and Glenn M. Schwartz, Sacred Killing: The Archaeology of Sacrifice in the Ancient Near East. Eisenbrauns, 2012. $59.50. ISBN: 9781575062365...
read moreRobert A. Rees, Ph.D. It is not uncommon for Latter-day Saints to hear jokes, ridicule and derisive remarks about the sacred underclothing Mormons wear. On late-night television, on blogs, on YouTube and the Internet one hears these garments referred to as “weird,”...
read moreIf I were in charge (which I’m not–which is probably a good thing), I would try to initiate the following long-term, multi-participant studies on LDS scripture. 1- An online “hyper”-scripture in which the full text of LDS scripture is linked in numerous, color-coded...
read moreJames Faulconer, in his blog on Patheos, has written an excellent response to Ben Witherington’s claim that Mormons are not Christians.
A retouched and colorized version of the best photo available of David Whitmer, one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon....
read moreAn attempt to retouch and colorize an early 19th century daguerreotype which may depict Oliver Cowdery....
read moreAndrew C. Skinner has recently published a short book entitled Third Nephi: the Fifth Gospel.[1] Two chapters emphasize a temple context for 3 Nephi, chapter 3, entitled “The Temple Context of the Fifth Gospel,” and chapter 4, “The Temple Sermon on Exaltation.” It is...
read moreCraig L. Foster Well, over a week has passed since the presidential elections and a number of us have had more than enough to say about the elections, potential fall out, continuing reverberations and what’s next. Some comments have been insightful, others snarky...
read moreThere is a new ebook in the works targeting Hugh Nibley’s ideas about the relationship between politics and religion. A video of part of an interview with Senator Robert Bennett gives a glimpse into some of the content of that forthcoming work. More information...
read moreNew Hamblin-Peterson column in Deseret News “Sacred stone: one of the most enduring metaphors of the holy.”
The three volumes of the “Revelations and Translations” series of thePapers of Joseph Smith are now on sale at Deseret Book. The Facsimile Edition is regularly $99.95, on sale for $39.98 (60% off). Revelations and Translations, vol. 1: Manuscript Revelation Books is...
read morehttps://www.deseret.com/2012/9/23/20437124/does-papyrus-prove-jesus-was-married
The simple biblical definition of what is a Christian can be found in Matthew 16:15-17 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon...
read moreBen Witherington recently posted the following essay on Patheos: “Why Mormonism is not Christianity– the Issue of Christology.” I’ll examine each of his six claims....
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