Digital Commons Network^™

“Our Great God Has In Goodness Sent These”: Notes On The Goodness Of God, The Didactic Good Of Nephi’S Small Plates, And Anti-Nephi-Lehi’S Renaming, Matthew L. Bowen, Pedro A. Olavarria

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s speech (Alma 24:7–16) reveals multiple allusions to significant texts in Nephi’s small plates record. Thus, when he declares “I thank my God, my beloved people, that our great God has in goodness sent these our brethren, the Nephites, unto us to preach unto us,” he appears to allude to an inclusio that bookends the two books of Nephi’s small plates record which emphasizes the “goodness” of God as a theme. Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s description of his ancestors as “wicked fathers” appears to deliberately contrast Laman, Lemuel, and the sons of Ishmael with Nephi’s “goodly parents” in 1 Nephi 1:1. The name …

Premortal Life And Mortal Life: A Fearful Symmetry, Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Bodily weakness, along with the varied circumstances into which we were born, provide the essential initial and ongoing conditions that shape the challenges and opportunities of our mortal probation. In life, we are not expected merely to preserve our innocence in defiance of worldly tendencies, nor are we compelled to cede to cynicism in the face of disheartening earthly experience. Rather, we are meant to follow the Savior in uniting the state of innocence with that of experience, thus joyfully fulfilling the unique mission that has been generously given to each of us.

An Important Addition To The Library, Kevin Christensen

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Oxford University Press has published an annotated edition of the Book of Mormon. This represents a significant event and provides a useful study resource. At the same time, the author’s determination to follow the conclusions of mainstream biblical scholars inevitably generates tensions on issues where the Book of Mormon conflicts with those conclusions. The author also assures readers that the commentary follows “the plain meaning of the text,” which ought to acknowledge Joseph Smith’s foundational observation that different teachers of religion may understand the same passages very differently, depending on their framing context. In this review, I introduce the content …

Heavenly Ascent In Jacob’S Writings In Second Nephi: Addressing The Question Of What The Plan Of Salvation Is In The Book Of Mormon, Skyler Smith

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Heavenly ascent describes the process of an individual (or community) returning to the presence of God. Though various elements exist within heavenly ascent literature, general patterns can be discerned. This project uses one such pattern as a hermeneutical tool to examine what can be learned about how Book of Mormon prophets may have understood the plan of salvation. Specifically, Jacob’s understanding of the plan of salvation will be analyzed by examining his writings in 2 Nephi 9–10. The evidence from this study suggests that some Book of Mormon prophets (at least Jacob and Nephi) viewed the plan of salvation through …

Review Of Two New Theories About The Lamanite Mark Recently Presented In Two Different Forums, Clifford P. Jones

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

T. J. Uriona has offered two new theories about the meaning of Nephi’s term “skin of blackness” in 2 Nephi 5:21. He suggests that Nephi’s term may indicate impending death and/or it may be a literal reference to diseased or deathly skin. Both theories are based on a motif in an ancient Neo-Assyrian treaty that curses people to have skin as black as pitch and crude oil. I submit that these two theories are inconsistent with the larger context in the Book of Mormon.

“Armed With Righteousness And With The Power Of God”: Allusions To Priestly Clothing, Priesthood, And Temple In 1 Nephi 14:14, Matthew L. Bowen

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Nephi saw in vision that in the latter-days “the saints of the church of the Lamb” and “covenant people of the Lord” who, though scattered across the earth, “were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory” (1 Nephi 14:14). Nephi’s prophetic statement is loaded with meaning. This study explores how “armed with righteousness” means “clothed with righteousness” (Psalm 132:9) not merely in a martial, but also in a priestly sense (compare 1 Samuel 17:5; Isaiah 59:17). This concept relates to the latter-day temple and its ordinances, which enable the Lord’s people to “go forth” from …

The Seven Women Seeking The Bridegroom: Isaiah 4:1 As Transition Point In A Redemption Allegory, Jared T. Marcum

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Nephi laboriously copied many of the words of Isaiah in hopes that his readers would rejoice in Christ. While Isaiah 4:1 (2 Nephi 14:1) is generally not viewed as Messianic, there may be an allegorical interpretation that would place this verse among Isaiah’s other Messianic writings. A pre-Nicene patristic writer, Victorinus of Poetovio, interpreted the seven women of Isaiah 4:1 as representing the seven churches of the Apocalypse and the one man as Christ. Victorinus’s Christ-centered interpretation of Isaiah 4:1 has received very little attention in modern scholarship. This paper uses textual analysis to determine if a Christ-centered allegorical interpretation …

Teaching In The Transpersonal Paradigm, Christopher M. Bache

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This article explores the transpersonal dynamics of teaching by presenting two core themes of The Living Classroom: 1) the synchronicities and energetic resonances that radiated invisibly around me as my spiritual practice deepened over time and 2) the “learning fields” that surround well-taught courses—fields of collective consciousness that can trigger new insights and powerful transformations in our students.

Temple Themes In The Book Of Abraham, Stephen O. Smoot

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

The Book of Abraham 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 explores these and other temple elements in the Book of Abraham and discusses how they heighten appreciation for the text’s narrative and …

Full Issue

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

No abstract provided.

“That They May Once Again Be A Delightsome People”: The Concept Of Again Becoming The Seed Of Joseph (Words Of Mormon 1:8 And Mormon 7:4–5), Matthew L. Bowen

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

In Words of Mormon 1:8, Mormon declares, “And my prayer to God is concerning my brethren, that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a delightsome people.” The expression “that they may once again” plausibly reflects the Hebrew idiom wayyôsipû or wayyôsipû ʿôd. Mormon’s apparent double-use of the wayyôsipû (ʿôd) idiom in Words of Mormon 1:8 (or some Nephite scribal equivalent), like 2 Nephi 5:2–3, recalls language in the Joseph story (Genesis 37:5, 8). The original Lamanite covenant, as an extension of the Abrahamic covenant, involved …

The Eucharist Of The Latter-Day Saints: The Sacrament In The Broader Christian Context, Robin Douglas

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

This paper views the sacrament prayers and rituals of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the broader context of Christian eucharistic worship, focusing on how the Latter-day Saint observances both resemble and differ from those of other Christian communities. It argues that, contrary to what is often supposed, the Church has a relatively “high” eucharistic theology.

2024-2025 Catalog, Governors State University

Catalogs

The 2024-2025 Governors State University Undergraduate and Graduate Catalog is a comprehensive listing of current information regarding:
Degree Requirements
Course Offerings
Undergraduate and Graduate Rules and Regulations

Undergraduate Catalog Of Studies, 2023-2024, University Of Arkansas, Fayetteville

Undergraduate Catalog of Studies

No abstract provided.

Logos-Sophia, Elliott Norman, Donald Wayne Viney, Keith Elliott Perkins, Addyson Kay Campbell, Hunter Hinds, Scott Squires

LOGOS-SOPHIA: The Journal of the PSU Philosophical Society

Logos-Sophia, Volume 17, Spring 2024. The Journal of the Pittsburg State University Philosophical Society has largely been a student publication with occasional faculty contribution

The Literary Structure Of Alma 17–20: A 14-Unit Chiasm, Derek Squire

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

This article is an analysis of the literary structure of Alma 17–20. These four chapters in the current Book of Mormon were originally a single chapter in the first edition of the Book of Mormon (originally, chapter 12). The current article describes a process and rationale that was used to identify several major literary units whose structure is no longer obvious with the division into four chapters. The original literary structure appears to have been written as a 14-part chiasm in which the matching units share many strong links and parallels. According to this analysis, the central units of this …

Meta Social Technology And A Ritual Of Power, Maurice Emelu

2024 Faculty Bibliography

This article critically analyzes Meta, a social technology platform, focusing on its thematic characteristics as a ritual platform. Drawing on Carey’s ritual model and incorporating Couldry’s media ritual framework, the study examines Meta’s distinct features and their implications for ritual practices regarding religion. By examining Meta’s ritual forms and their role in naturalizing sacred rituals, the analysis sheds light on the power dynamics and implications of Meta’s ritualization process within the broader context of its social technology affordances. It also provides some recommendations for a scholarly appreciation of Meta’s ritual relationship with religious communities.

Sexuality And Service: The Intersectionality To The Black Church Serving The Lbgtqia+ Community, Kwaun Felton

Doctor of Ministry

v ABSTRACT The term “Black Church” may seem old and outdated, however during the civil unrest in the 1960 were racial divide between European Americans and African American threatened the economic stability and existence of a country. The phrase black church represented hope in a heavenly change to come for people of color. In the discussion Sexuality and Service, the intersectionality to ministering to the LBGTQIA+ community you will discover how the black church can better serve a community of diverse sexualities in the manner Christ intended for the institution called black church was designed to service all people seeking …

What Is Transpersonal Psychotherapy? A Conceptual Template, Gabriel Fernandez-Borsot

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Transpersonal psychotherapy (TPT) lacks systematization, as it lacks a model that

characterizes what qualifies a psychotherapy as transpersonal. Due to this situation, TPT

has been developed in a state of fragmentation, through a multiplicity of idiosyncratic

approaches. This idiosyncratic fragmentation jeopardizes the theoretical development

of the field, undermines the possibilities of obtaining a wider recognition, and hinders

the training and the research. To remedy this, this paper proposes a model of five

components which characterize TPT: (1) purposeful use of states of consciousness,

(2) transpersonal therapeutic framework, (3) transpersonal techniques, (4) focus on

spirituality and/or existential meaning, and (5) suitable …

Virginia Commonwealth University Courses (2024), Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Bulletins

Listing of courses for the 2024-2025 year.

Virginia Commonwealth University Undergraduate Bulletin (2024), Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Bulletins

Undergraduate bulletin for Virginia Commonwealth University for the academic year 2024-2025. It includes information on academic regulations, degree requirements, course offerings, faculty, academic calendar, and tuition and expenses for undergraduate programs.

Decoding Babel: “Ungrieved Futility” And The Unrecognized Order Of The Depression Research Field, Marty Lynn Cooper

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

The field of depression research and theory is a preparadigmatic potpourri of different orientations without a central, consensus definition of depression. This study attempted to address these issues by investigating the depression sub-literatures (cognitive–behavioral, psychoanalytic, evolutionary, biomedical, phenomenological, existential–humanistic, cybernetic, environmental, and religious–spiritual theories) using a comparative analytic methodology, which allows for comparing disparate fields that do not share a common definitional set by relating them to a third concept, in this study the construct of “ungrieved futility” (UF) as a dynamic model of depression. UF defines the objective and/or subjective experience of the permanent loss of an …

Book Review Early Israel: Cultic Praxis, God, And The Sôd Hypothesis, By Alex Shalom Kohav, B. Les Lancaster

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

N/A

Mythcon 53 - Fantasies Of The Middle Lands, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Mythcon 53 with Diversicon 31
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Double Tree by Hilton – Park Place
August 2-5, 2024

CONFERENCE THEME: FANTASIES OF THE MIDDLE LANDS

The idea of “middle-ness” can suggest stability—the center of an object is less likely to break than its edges. It can also suggest the opposite: something in a state of change can be said to be “in the middle”—neither one thing nor another. Mythcon 53, located in the middle of the continental U.S., welcomes an exciting range of papers, panels, and discussions exploring the concept of “middle-ness” as it is worked out in fantasy, science fiction, …

Teaching For Transpersonal Learning, Paul Cunningham

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies Advance Publication Archive

This article addresses the “why,” “what,” and “how” of teaching for transpersonal learning. Why transpersonal education is relevant for addressing modern social problems and the global ecological crisis, what it is like to teach for transpersonal learning, and how transpersonal learning becomes transformative are discussed. Three promising options in technology and consciousness studies for transpersonal learning—transpersonal media, multistate studies, and entheogenic education—are described and the challenges of introducing transpersonal education into academic settings and assessing educational (student) learning outcomes are reviewed. The relevance of Mezirow’s Transformation Theory to transpersonal educational psychology, with special attention to ecological perspective transformation, is then …

Learning From Spiritual And Secular Sources Orchestrating Inspired Discussions While Teaching In The Savior’S Way, Damon L. Bahr

Religious Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel

One of the important topics of Teaching in the Savior’s Way is orchestrating gospel discussions. As teachers, leading a successful discussion is critical to helping class members “Hear Him.” This article begins by talking about two of President Nelson’s talks that describe how to integrate learning from spiritual and secular sources and show that what is learned from secular sources can inform learning from spiritual ones. Spiritual guidance for orchestrating discussions is provided, which is then augmented by some secular guidance from educational research about orchestrating classroom discussions.

Rahab And The Perpetuation Of Deliverance, Amy H. Fisher

Religious Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel

Deliverance is clearly the major theme of the memorable Exodus story, but the Exodus is not the only Old Testament account that teaches profound lessons about God’s redemption. The story of Rahab—the woman of Jericho—is situated in relation to the Exodus through shared images and narrative elements to highlight additional insights about God’s power to save. Specifically, the Rahab story shows that God continues in the temporal, collective delivery of his covenant people even after Egypt. God is also interested in both the temporal and spiritual deliverance of individuals, as shown in the life of Rahab herself. Finally, the story …

Uncanonized Revelations, Kent P. Jackson

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

In an important new volume, we now have easy access to revelations received by the Prophet Joseph Smith that were not included in the Doctrine and Covenants.

“I Shall Gather In”: The Name Joseph, Iterative Divine Action, And The Latter-Day Harvest Ingathering Of Israel As Themes In 3 Nephi, Matthew L. Bowen

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

The identity of “the people of Nephi who were spared, and also those who had been called Lamanites, who had been spared” (3 Nephi 10:18) as “a remnant of the seed of Joseph” (3 Nephi 5:23; 10:17; compare Alma 46:23–27; Ether 13:6–10) or “a remnant of the house of Joseph” (3 Nephi 15:12) is key to understanding Jesus’s Isaiah-based teaching at the temple in Bountiful in 3 Nephi. That teaching emphasizes iterative divine action (implied in the name Joseph [yôsēp], compare yôsîp) to restore and gather Israel and Judah. Like Mormon’s prophecies in 3 Nephi 5:23–26 and 26:8, Jesus’s sermon …

Contributors, Jeffrey Dudiak

Quaker Religious Thought

No abstract provided.