The title page of the 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon. Last summer there was a bit of an online tussle between Philip Jenkins, a professor of history at Baylor University, and a number of Mormon commenters (including William Hamblin, a retired professor of history at Brigham Young University) on the topic of what … Read more
“And now I, Nephi, write more of the words of Isaiah, for my soul delighteth in his words. For I will liken his words unto my people, and I will send them forth unto all my children” (2 Nephi 11:2). Nephi’s effusive love for Isaiah is well-known to readers of the Book of Mormon. Unfortunately, … Read more
Andrew H. Hedges is a scholar with the Joseph Smith Papers Project who holds a PhD in American History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He was one of the editors for the second volume of the journals series, which covered the years 1841–1843 and includes material pertinent to Joseph Smith’s practice of plural … Read more
Yours truly with Professor Neal Rappleye, deciphering a Maya stele that reads, “I, Nephi, made this stele.” Speaking of the lack of direct archaeological verification for an Israelite exodus from Egypt, James K. Hoffmeier, an American Egyptologist who has written extensively on the historicity of the Exodus, remarked, There are several possible reasons for this … Read more
“How should you read the Book of Mormon?” It’s a question that is often asked by both lay and scholarly readers of the foundational scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But instead of asking this, another, arguably more interesting question would be, “How does the Book of Mormon read itself?” This … Read more
As all students of Christianity know, poor St. Sebastian was viciously martyred after simply voicing some innocent doubts about Diocletian and the Roman government. Those who have studied the history of Christianity will be familiar with the term hagiography. The term derives from Greek and means, essentially, writings about saints. Hagiographical accounts were valuable tools … Read more
Mormon and Moroni by Joseph Brickey. “There is reason to believe that the story of Israel’s ancestors (Gen. 12–50), though understood in the light of later experiences, reflects to some degree the cultural background of the millennium starting with Hammurabi’s reign (second millennium B.C.E.).” So states Bernhard W. Anderson in his volume Understanding the Old … Read more
“17th-century Russian icon illustrating the articles of the Creed” (Source) Earlier this week I participated in an Evangelical-Mormon interfaith dialogue with students from Biola University. In the course of the evening one of the Biola students made the point (if I understood him correctly) that he has a hard time accepting as Christian those who … Read more
Broadly speaking, there are two general ways to know if an author’s work is taken seriously in academia. The first is where an author publishes his work. One mark of a genuine scholar is if he is able to publish in academic journals relevant to the given field or with a university press. If a … Read more
Not too long ago, as I was walking along the shores of the Aegean, I stumbled upon a fragmentary papyrus that read thus: οἱ δὲ ἵπποι οἱ ποτάμιοι νομῷ μὲν τῷ Παπρημίτῃ ἱροί εἰσι, τοῖσι δὲ ἄλλοισι Αἰγυπτίοισι οὐκ ἱροί. φύσιν δὲ παρέχονται ἰδέης τοιήνδε· τετράπουν ἐστί, δίχηλον, ὁπλαὶ βοός, σιμόν, λοφιὴν ἔχον ἵππου, χαυλιόδοντας … Read more
From the Latter-day Saint historian Patrick Q. Mason. I. Concerning studying the past: In seeking learning, the revelation [in D&C 88] counsels, we must do so “diligently.” If we want answers to our questions, we have to put in the time. Research is hard work. If we have existential questions, we cannot be satisfied with … Read more
A popular, if not highly imaginative, depiction of Samuel the Lamanite preaching to the Nephites. In his “Letter to a CES Director,” Jeremy Runnells claims that the story of Samuel the righteous Lamanite preaching repentance to the apostate Nephites in Helaman 13–16 demonstrates Joseph Smith was guilty of plagiarizing Ethan Smith’s book View of the Hebrews. (On … Read more
(Click to enlarge) As an article of faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints affirms, “We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God” (Article of Faith 9). Among the … Read more