Temple Themes in the Book of Abraham

Presented at

The 2022 Temple on Mount Zion Conference

Saturday, November 5, 2022

Sponsored by The Interpreter Foundation, BYU College of Humanities, and BYU Religious Education

The Book of Abraham in the Pearl of Great Price is replete with temple themes, although not all of them are readily obvious from a surface reading of the text. Temple themes in the book include Abraham seeking to become a high priest, the interplay between theophany and covenant, and Abraham building altars and dedicating sacred space as he sojourns into Canaan. In addition to these, the dramatic opening episode of the Book of Abraham unfolds in a cultic or ritual setting. This paper will explore these temple elements in the Book of Abraham and discuss how they heighten appreciation for the text’s narrative and teachings, as well as how they ground the text in an ancient context.

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