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Nibley Fellowship

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Each year at this time we remind graduate students about the Nibley Fellowship Program and its application deadline. Named in honor of the late eminent Latter-day Saint scholar Hugh Nibley, this program provides financial aid to students enrolled in accredited PhD programs in areas of study directly related to the work and mission of the Maxwell Institute, particularly work done under the name of FARMS—studies of the Book of Mormon, the Book of Abraham, the Old and New Testaments, early Christianity, ancient temples, and related subjects. Applicants cannot be employed at the Institute or be related to an Institute employee.

“Look To God And Live”, Kristian S. Heal

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Near the end of the children of Israel’s journey to the promised land following their miraculous escape from Egypt, they once again began to complain against the Lord and against Moses. As a result of this sin, the Lord sent “fiery serpents” among them (Numbers 21:6). Faced with physical death, the people went to Moses, confessed their sins, and entreated him to pray to the Lord to take the serpents away. However, the serpents were not taken away as requested. Instead, in what may have seemed an expression of deep irony—but was in reality a sacred symbol—Moses was instructed to …

Calvin Courier, Fall 2022, Number 69, Karin Maag

Calvin Courier

No abstract provided.

Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 64, No. 4

Restoration Quarterly

No abstract provided.

The Purpose Of Hell: Control Of Communities Through Apocalyptic Literature., Madison S Fogle

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Literature depicting Hell in late antique Christianity reveals more than the theological concern for one’s eternal soul, revealing the underlying values and morals of the growing society. Borrowing from Roman, Greek, and Jewish culture, Christians were seeking to set themselves apart while also grappling with their past around them. Through visions of Hell, apocalyptic literature in late antique Christian society exhibits the control exercised over parishioners, specifically control over their bodies and their wealth. The moral laws from Greek, Roman, and Jewish influences is evident through early Christian literature, which dictate the ways in which people are regulated by Christianity …

Exegetical Analysis Paper: An Examination Of 1 Corinthians 11:27-29, Keegan Matheson

Biblical Studies Student Projects

The paper is an exegetical analysis on 1 Corinthians 11:27-29. It offers several interpretative options of the phrase "discerning the body" which is found in verse 29 (ESV). The goal of this paper is to examine the different interpretative options of the phrase and decide which interpretation makes the most sense within the context of Pauline theology.

Not Just The Sinner’S Prayer: People’S Experiences With “Stranger-Evangelism”, Kenneth Nehrbass

Great Commission Research Journal

While churches and Christian concerts are typical loci for evangelism, some Christians also broach the subject of faith with strangers they encounter at their health club, at the beach, or while visiting door-to-door. This study draws from 34 stories of “stranger-evangelism” offered by 11 ministers and laypeople who participated in semi-structured interviews. The central finding of this study is that stranger-evangelism contains a rich variety of experiences that are typical of any ministry: sometimes planned (by proclaiming, inviting, programming, befriending, and serving), and sometimes spontaneously. Participants described the fruit of their efforts along a continuum from rejection to interest, and …

Approaches To Faith Integration: A Case Study Of Andrews University Employees, Duane Covrig, Glynis M. Bradfield, Steven Injety, Duduetsang Kakhu

Faculty Publications

For centuries, Christians have cultivated faith in themselves and others by engaging in prayer, evangelism, discipleship, and education, with Christian tertiary institutions playing a vital role in this nurturing of faith. However, previous studies have shown that Christian educators have also been complicit in depleting faith in others. This erosion of faith has been well documented in American "Christian" universities like Harvard, Yale, and Princeton, primarily due to modernity and secularization. For faith to thrive, it has to be backed with intention, and this is especially of paramount importance in American higher education today. As the oldest Seventh-day Adventist University, …

Biblical Leadership Themes Of The New Testament, J. David Pitcher Jr.

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Monster Theory And The Book Of Enoch: Angels And Giants As Chaos And Identity, Jordan C. Cerone

Student Publications

The Book of Enoch is a non-canonical text that is often referenced in later Judeo-Christian apocalyptic texts and mythology. Enoch scholarship is limited to the past two centuries due to its status as a “lost” work; research has only recently begun. Most prior scholars focused their research on examining the text through the lens of form and historical criticism. They sought to define the genre, to contextualize the book, to determine its authorship, and simply to translate the text from various languages. Though research focused on the Watchers as literary devices in the historical narrative, this study proposes using monster …

Toward An Eco-Cosmopolitanism: Wendell Berry And Ecowomanism In Conversation, Wade Casey

Dissertations

Agriculture, Alice Walker, bell hooks, Ecology, Theology, Wendell Berry

Engaging And Mobilizing Baby Boomers For Effective Ministry, Paul D. Russell

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

In the 21st-century church in America, can Baby Boomers, who presently range from 57 to 76 years of age, be envisioned and commissioned to make a difference through effective and meaningful ministry? The intent of the research was to discover relevant information and present considerations to help those entering the last third of life make an informed contribution to the church and community. Evidence will be presented to show that Boomers need the church and that the church needs the presence and resourceful productivity of the Boomer cohort. This reality does not circumvent the essential mission of reaching other generations …

Biblical Boogeymen, Holy Ghosts, And The New Demonology: A Review Of Three Recent Books On Religion And Horror, Brian Collins

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a book review essay on three books: Brandon R. Grafius, Reading the Bible with Horror (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); Brandon R. Grafius and John Morehead, eds., Theology and Horror: Explorations of the Dark Religious Imagination (Fortress Academic/Lexington, 2021); and Steve A. Wiggins, Nightmares with the Bible: The Good Book and Cinematic Demons (Fortress Academic/Lexington, 2020).

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Syriac Studies Reference Library Now Completed, Carl Griffin

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

On June 20, 2001, representatives of BYU’s Maxwell Institute, The Catholic University of America (CUA), and Beth Mardutho, a Syriac studies institute, met together to discuss the digital imaging of key holdings in the Semitics/ICOR Library of CUA’s Mullen Library. CUA’s Semitics/ICOR Library houses one of the largest collections in the world of early and rare books on the Christian East. All parties shared a particular interest in early Syriac printed works, both for their continuing value to contemporary Syriac Christian communities as well as to Syriac scholars. Many early printed catalogs, text editions, grammars, lexica, and other instrumenta and …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Institute Supports Graduates And Undergraduates

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Maxwell Institute continues to encourage and support the work of graduate and undergraduate students through two funds.

Each year at this time we remind graduate students about the Nibley Fellowship Program and its application deadline. Named in honor of the late eminent Latter-day Saint scholar Hugh Nibley, this pro-gram provides financial aid to students enrolled in accredited PhD programs in areas of study directly related to the work and mission of the Maxwell Institute, particularly work done under the auspices of one department of the Institute, the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, such as studies of the …

Review Of George Marsden, A Short Life Of Jonathan Edwards, Matthew C. Mccracken

Bound Away: The Liberty Journal of History

Historian George M. Marsden's piece on the life of American preacher and theologian Jonathan Edwards offers a biographical account as rich in insight as it is convenient in succinctness. The biography explores religion in colonial America up to the eve of revolution, as well as social and political developments surrounding the First Great Awakening, all through the lens of the Edwards' experience and prolific influence.

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A Chat With The New Editors Of The Maxwell Institute Journals

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Accompanying this issue of Insights is volume 17 (combining numbers one and two) of the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies; however, readers will note that the Journal now carries a new name, the Journal of the Book of Mormon and Restoration Scripture. In connection with this change, the Institute asked Andrew H. Hedges, an associate professor of Church History and Doctrine at BYU, to become the new editor, replacing Professor S. Kent Brown, who served as editor and associate editor for many years, and who recently retired from the university. The new associate editors are Grant Hardy, professor of …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Farms Review Stresses Biblical Studies, Remembrance, And Church History

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Issue 19/2 of the FARMS Review, which is now available, follows a long tradition of dealing with a wide variety of fascinating topics. Of particular interest in this issue is a series of articles on pre-serving and enlarging the memory of the Saints. As Louis Midgley notes in his introduction to this section, “In the April 2007 General Conference, Elder Marlin K. Jensen of the Seventy delivered a powerful sermon entitled ‘Remember and Perish Not,’ in which he urged the Saints to pay close attention to the ways of remembrance in our scriptures” (p. 23). At the next conference, President …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Institute Supports Graduates And Undergraduates

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Maxwell Institute continues to encourage and support the work of graduate and undergraduate students through two funds.

How Servant Leaders Navigate Conflict: An Analysis Of Acts 15:36–41, Joshua D. Henson, Justin R. Craun

Selected Faculty Publications

Greenleaf’s foundational work on servant leadership has evolved considerably over the past 50 years. Servant leadership has been found to have positive outcomes on group and organisational effectiveness. While servant leadership characteristics and outcomes have been measured, is a need to be better understand how servant leaders navigate when they disagree. Using a social and cultural analysis, the conflict between Paul and Barnabas is explored. Social and cultural analysis allows interpreters to understand what the characters in the narrative ‘see and hear.’ The analysis of Acts 15:36–41 yielded three emerging themes related to how these servant leaders navigated conflict: (1) …

Homosexuality In Leviticus: A Historical-Literary-Critical Analysis, Ian Jarosz

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

The book of Leviticus from the Hebrew Bible is often referenced when discussing the LGBTQ+ community and related topics. This project offers historical, literary, and etymological analyses of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, exploring cultural and thematic similarities between Leviticus, the Avestan Vendidad of ancient Persia, and the Book of the Watchers in 1 Enoch. The influential views of other ancient Near Eastern cultures and the growing Persian culture during the time of the Exile establish a tolerant cultural background for the Levitical authors and for the Hebrew Bible. Moreover, the exilic priests who finalized the laws within Leviticus did not …

From Divinely Equal To Violently Oppressed: Brutality Against Women In The Bible, Shana Clemence

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

The Old Testament tells us the first woman on earth, Eve, was created from the rib of the first man, Adam. To many, this symbolizes equality between the sexes. A historical theologian said, “to be formed from the side symbolically indicates equality rather than domination or subjection” (O’Loughlin, 1993). Wheelwright-Brown (2020) stated how the effect of mankind’s view of Eve’s brave choice to partake of the fruit of the tree of life had serious, harmful consequences for women:

There’s the effect it had on men, and the way they have been subtly influenced to perceive women and think of women. …

Our Own Complicity: The Unnamed Woman In Judges 19 And Mmiwg, Cassidy Crosby

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

Singular brutality marks the unnamed woman’s story in Judges 19—perhaps the most disturbing and upsetting story in the Hebrew Bible, in which a group of men rape and then murder her. Our religious discussions therefore usually ignore this story, preferring to focus on tales that are not as difficult to deal with. However, ignoring the woman’s story does a disservice to her life and death, and to ourselves. If we believe the content in the Bible is divinely inspired, then we have a duty to search for the divine in this story. Perhaps the most important path comes in applying …

Holy Impairment: The Body As The Nexus Of Apocalyptic Ekphrasis In Acts 2:1–13, Meghan Henning

Theology and Religious Studies Faculty Publications

This article reads Acts 2:1–13 as an example of apocalyptic ekphrasis, bringing together disparate imagery for rhetorical effect. In particular, the Septuagint imagery of theophany is combined with the imagery of divine healing that was associated with the god Asclepius. I explore the imagery of the divided tongue that rests on bodies and transforms them, an element of Acts 2:3 that many interpreters have given up trying to explain. The visual association of snakes and healing was prevalent not only at the shrines devoted to Asclepius but broadly in a variety of contexts outside the shrines. This complex of imagery …

On The Authorship Of Hebrews: The Case For Paul, Félix H. Cortez

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.