Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Abrahamic Legends And Lore, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies Quarterly

As a central figure in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, there are many extrabiblical traditions about the life of the patriarch Abraham. These sources are important to study because they may contain distant memories of real events in Abraham’s life. It is also interesting to compare the Book of Abraham with these sources because the Book of Abraham might help us understand these extrabiblical sources better and vice versa.

Stephen H. Webb (1961-2016): Universal Scholar And Personal Friend, Alonzo L. Gaskill

BYU Studies Quarterly

For many Latter-day Saints, their first awareness of the Roman Catholic scholar Stephen H. Webb came through his 2012 First Things article, titled “Mormonism Obsessed with Christ.” In that piece—which surprised Latter-day Saints and non-Latter-day Saints alike—Webb pointed out that “what gives Christianity its identity is its commitment to the divinity of Jesus Christ. And on that ground Mormons are more Christian than many mainstream Christians. . . . Mormonism is obsessed with Christ, and everything that it teaches is meant to awaken, encourage, and expand faith in him.” Within a week of that article’s publication, my inbox was flooded …

The Heresy Of Orthodoxy: How Contemporary Culture's Fascination With Diversity Has Reshaped Our Understanding Of Early Christianity, Andreas J. Köstenberger, Michael J. Kruger, Noel B. Reynolds

BYU Studies Quarterly

Readers interested in the ongoing debate over the reliability of the New Testament texts will find this new book to be an excellent contribution to the defense of those texts. Authors Kostenberger and Kruger are both allied personally and professionally with the contemporary movement that defends the inerrancy of scripture. Andreas J. Kostenberger is Professor of New Testament and Greek and director of PhD and ThM studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He is the editor of the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society and is the author of books and articles on biblical texts …

Religious Metaphor And Cross-Cultural Communication: Transforming National And International Identities, Joseph E. Richardson

BYU Studies Quarterly

The challenges of intercultural communication multiply in religious discourse, with its objective of translating abstract ideas into cultures and languages with sufficient power to transform individual, ethnic, and regional identities and to build cohesive communities of faith. Metaphor plays a primary role in this transformative communication. A powerful tool to abbreviate and facilitate communication, metaphor enables individuals to transmit abstract ideas quickly, efficiently, and memorably. Metaphor is not just a tool for efficient communication; it also guides thought, extends ideas, and influences behavior. Daily language is full of metaphor, which affects our beliefs and faith and, consequently, our actions. As …

Confessing History: Explorations In Christian Faith And The Historian's Perspective, Rachel Cope, John Fea, Jay Green, Eric Miller

BYU Studies Quarterly

George Marsden's 1994 book The Soul of the American University ended rather unusually for an academic work--this well-respected historian suggested that religious faith should have a place in the academy. Such a bold assertion sparked a number of heated discussions within and without the intellectual world. Three years later, Marsden responded again to his critics by producing a volume that explored this topic, which he aptly titled The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship. As a result of this book, additional conversations ensued in which Christian and non-Christian scholars grappled with Marsden's proposition. More recently, the contributors to the edited volume …

Mere Mormonism, Thomas B. Griffith

BYU Studies Quarterly

Devotees of C. S. Lewis will recognize that I have adapted the title of my remarks from Mere Christianity, his classic exposition of the fundamentals of the Christian faith. An hour lecture is not the forum to attempt for Latter-day Saint Christianity what Lewis achieved for traditional Christianity. In any event, I lack the skill to pull that off. What follows is something much more modest. I will speak from my own observation and try to identify what is at the heart of the Mormon experience in an attempt to provide an introduction to the faith. A disclaimer is …

Against The Grain: Christianity And Democracy, War And Peace, George Weigel, Gary P. Gillum

BYU Studies Quarterly

Deification has been a difficult theological concept for mankind to accept. St. Augustine's doctrine of original sin and the depravity of man helped spur on a deep skepticism to the idea that God's children could become anything like God, let alone progressing to the eventual state of gods or goddesses. Latter-day Saints have often been cautious about broaching the topic of deification around most Catholics and Protestants, for fear that our Christian brethren would brand us as blasphemers and cease any further discussion about Mormonism. But the climate surrounding deification and other doctrines, such as baptism for the dead, seems …

The God Of Old: Inside The Lost World Of The Bible. By James L. Kugel, Scott H. Partridge

BYU Studies Quarterly

James L. Kugel. The God of Old: Inside the Lost World of the Bible. New York: The Free Press, 2003.

What Does It Mean To Be A Christian?: The Views Of Joseph Smith And Soren Kierkegaard, David L. Paulsen

BYU Studies Quarterly

The Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) and the American prophet Joseph Smith (1804-1844) both radically critiqued nineteenth-century Christian culture. Though Søren often directed critiques specifically toward the State Church of Denmark, his ultimate target was Christianity as a whole, or simply "Christendom." Joseph's critique singled out no specific church; he also focused on Christianity as a whole. Notwithstanding important differences, Paulsen finds Søren's and Joseph's critiques of nineteenth-century Christendom mutually reinforcing and illuminating. The comparison of Smith's and Kierkegaard's views includes the following ideas: (1) the New Testament church no longer existed, (2) Christian theology had become defiled, (3) the …

Margaret Barker. Temple Themes In Christian Worship, Don Norton

BYU Studies Quarterly

Margaret Barker. Temple Themes in Christian Worship. London: T&T Clark International, 2008

The Reverend Dr. Peter Christian Kierkegaard's "About And Against Mormonism" (1855), Julie K. Allen, David L. Paulsen

BYU Studies Quarterly

Born on July 6, 1805, the Danish Lutheran priest Peter Christian Kierkegaard, brother of philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, was an exact contemporary of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Both men devoted their lives to the refinement and advancement of their religious beliefs, albeit within very different sociohistorical contexts, and both had profound impacts on the shape of the religious landscape in their home countries. While Peter Christian Kierkegaard, as the most eloquent and influential advocate of the views of the controversial nineteenth-century Danish religious reformer N. F. S. Grundtvig, concentrated on bringing …

The Next Christendom: The Coming Of Global Christianity. By Philip Jenkins, Mark L. Grover

BYU Studies Quarterly

Philip Jenkins. The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity. Revised and Expanded Edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.

American Gospel: God, The Founding Fathers, And The Making Of A Nation. By Jon Meacham, Neal W. Kramer

BYU Studies Quarterly

Jon Meacham. American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation. New York: Random House, 2006.

The Gnostic Context Of The Gospel Of Judas, Gaye Strathearn

BYU Studies Quarterly

This article discusses the Gospel of Judas, an Early Christian text found in Egypt about 1978 and published in 2006 with much media attention. Discussions about the Gospel of Judas raise questions about Gnosticism. Gaye Strathearn explains that Gnosticism is a name scholars, beginning in the eighteenth century, apply to the teachings of groups outside mainstream Christianity. The Gospel of Judas and the Nag Hammadi texts reveal the Gnostics' unorthodox views, including Judas being a hero, the serpent in Eden being good, and an emphasis on the pursuit of knowledge. Some of their beliefs seem to parallel modern Latter-day Saint …

Are Christians Mormon?: Reassessing Joseph Smith's Theology In His Bicentennial, David L. Paulsen

BYU Studies Quarterly

Harold Bloom, the self-proclaimed “unbelieving Jew” and distinguished scholar, recently characterized Joseph Smith as “a religious genius,” stating that the religion Smith founded “is truly a biblical religion.” More recently, Carl Mosser has written concerning the doctrine of that religion: “Mormonism’s heresies are legion; they are also very interesting and often unique in the history of heresy.” Biblical or heretical? Of these two reactions, the charge of heresy has been far more common, especially among conservative Christian critics, who consistently draw a circle that leaves Joseph’s Mormonism out.

Joseph Smith's Christology: After Two Hundred Years, Robert L. Millet

BYU Studies Quarterly

During the last decade, a recurring question has been posed to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Is the church “changing?” In addition, it is asked, Is there some effort on the part of church leadership to have the church and its teachings, particularly those concerning Jesus Christ, become more acceptable to and thus more accepted by other Christians? The natural Latter-day Saint inclination is to react sharply that the church’s doctrines concerning Jesus Christ are intact and even eternal, that the doctrines of Joseph Smith’s day and the doctrines of our own day are one …

Toward An Anthropology Of Apotheosis In Mozart's Magic Flute: A Demonstration Of The Artistic Universality And Vitality Of Certain "Peculiar" Latter-Day Saint Doctrines, Alan F. Keele

BYU Studies Quarterly

It seems there are certain notions held by Latter-day Saints, deviating almost diametrically from those promulgated by orthodox Christianity, that have the power to evoke form certain conservative Christian quarters the most vituperative fulminations. One thinks immediately of the idea expounded by Joseph Smith at King Follett's funeral that humans have the potential to become gods through a process of perfection experienced by the gods themselves. The orthodox response to this notion in the form of the Godmakers films and other manifestations of righteous indignation has been extraordinary. The paradox, however, is this: Scratch the orthodox surface of Christianity, explore …

From Arcadia To Elysium In The Magic Flute And Weimar Classicism: The Plan Of Salvation And Eighteenth-Century Views Of Moral Progression, John B. Fowles

BYU Studies Quarterly

The painful sighs are now past.

Elysium's joyful banquets

Drown the slightest moan—

Elysium's life is

Eternal rapture, eternal flight;

Through laughing meadows a brook pipes its tune.

..........

Here faithful couples embrace each other,

Kiss on the velvet green sward

As the soothing west wind caresses them;

Here love is crowned,

Safe from death's merciless blow

It celebrates an eternal wedding feast.

—Friedrich Schiller

The Fellowship Of Christ's Sufferings As Reflected In Lear And Life, Sally T. Taylor

BYU Studies Quarterly

That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings.

—Philippians 3:10

The Great High Priest, Margaret Barker

BYU Studies Quarterly

This article was presented as a public lecture at Brigham Young University on May 9, 2003. Footnotes have been added that refer to places in the writings of Margaret Barker where the topics of this lecture are discussed in greater depth and with extensive documentation. This lecture develops the themes of several of her prior works and presents the essence of her most recent book. The Great High Priest (London; T&T Clark, 2003). Further information about specific topics can be located by consulting the index of persons, places, and subjects or the index of biblical and ancient texts found at …

Hedonism, Suffering, And Redemption: The Challenge Of Christian Psychotherapy, Edwin E. Gantt

BYU Studies Quarterly

Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

—Matthew 26:38

Christianity: A Global History David Chidester; A World History Of Christianity Adrian Hastings, Ed.; The Next Christendom: The Coming Of Global Christianity Philip Jenkins, Richard D. Ouellette

BYU Studies Quarterly

David Chidester. Christianity: A Global History. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2000.

Adrian Hastings, ed. A World History of Christianity. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1999.

Philip Jenkins. The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Mormonism And Islam Through The Eyes Of A “Universal Historian”, James K. Lyon

BYU Studies Quarterly

In 1912 the internationally known German historian Eduard Meyer published a book that ranked as a curiosity among his writings to that point. In it this remarkably prolific scholar, who in the previous thirty years had published a monumental five-volume history of the ancient world and 274 other books, treatises, and articles, explored two topics that were so alien to the mainstream of his previous work that it baffled his learned peers. Those topics were Mormonism and Islam. Entitled Ursprung und Geschichte der Mormonen, mit Exkursen über die Anfänge des Islâms und des Christentums (The origin and history of the …

The Story Of Christian Theology: Twenty Centuries Of Tradition And Reform Roger E. Olson, David L. Paulsen

BYU Studies Quarterly

Roger E. Olson. The Story of Christian Theology: Twenty Centuries of Tradition and Reform. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1999. 652 pp. Notes, index. $34.99.

The Church Of The Ancient Councils: The Disciplinary Work Of The First Four Ecumenical Councils Peter L'Huillier, Carl W. Griffin

BYU Studies Quarterly

Peter L'Huillier. The Church of the Ancient Councils: The Disciplinary Work of the First Four Ecumenical Councils. Crestwood, N.Y.: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1996. xii; 340 pp. Index. Paperback, $19.95.

The Rise Of Christianity: How The Obscure, Marginal Jesus Movement Became The Dominant Religious Force In The Western World In A Few Centuries Rodney Stark, John W. Welch, Kathryn Worlton Pulham

BYU Studies Quarterly

Rodney Stark. The Rise of Christianity: How the Obscure, Marginal Jesus Movement Became the Dominant Religious Force in the Western World in a Few Centuries. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1996; San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1997. xiv; 215 pp. Illustrations, index, bibliography. $14.00.

Fire On Ice: The Conversion And Life Of Guðmundur Guðmundsson, Fred E. Woods

BYU Studies Quarterly

In A.D. 1000, the Icelandic Parliament held their annual two-week summer session in Parliament's Field, a remote area of southwest Iceland where they had convened each year since A.D. 930. In this lush plain, where lava cliffs bear witness of fire meeting ice, Christianity was adopted as the official religion of the entire Icelandic nation. The year 2000 marks the millennial anniversary of this event. It is also a year of reflection for Latter-day Saints, as the first LDS chapel in Iceland will be dedicated in the summer of 2000.

Christus In Amerika? Mormonentum Als Christliche Religion In Vergleichender Kirchengeschichte Christian Gellinek, Richard Hacken

BYU Studies Quarterly

Christian Gellinek. Christus in Americka? Mormonentum als christliche Religion in vergleichender Kirchengeschichte. Münster, Germany: agenda Verlag, 1999. 150 pp. Foreword, introduction, bibliography. Paperback, 24.80 DM ($10.00 from BYU Studies).

Rediscovering Ancient Christianity, C. Wilfred Griggs

BYU Studies Quarterly

This Distinguished Faculty Lecture at BYU argues that diverse strands in early Christianity were excised by emerging orthodox leaders and that only a new paradigm based in revelation can recapture the original gospel of Jesus Christ.

How Wide The Divide? A Mormon And An Evangelical In Conversation Craig L. Blomberg And Stephen E. Robinson, Eugene England

BYU Studies Quarterly

Craig L. Blomberg and Stephen E. Robinson. How Wide the Divide? A Mormon and an Evangelical in Conversation. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1997. 228 pp. Paperback, $11.99.