Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Womanhood (Part 1)

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

No abstract provided.

Foreword, Leo Schelbert

Swiss American Historical Society Review

On the one hand, no information seems- o be available about Robert E.

Bieder's background, hls parents and siblings, his growing up, his schooling

and his teenage years before college.On the other hand, there seems

no explanation in reach why Robert E. Bieder did not receive a permanent

academic appointment despite his productive research and publication,

and why, after two to three years at an institution, he was again on the

move. He seemed to be changing from position to position in the United

States as well as abroad.

Joseph Knew First: Moses, The Egyptian Son, Nathan J. Arp

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

After about 1500 years of slumber, ancient Egyptian was brought back to life in the early 19th century, when scholars deciphered hieroglyphs. T his revolutionary success opened the door to a reevaluation of history from the viewpoint of ancient Egypt. In the wake of this new knowledge, the first scholar posited the idea in 1849 that the name of Moses stemmed from the Egyptian word for child. Subsequently, this idea was refined, and currently the majority of scholars believe Moses’s name comes from the Egyptian verb “to beget,” which is also the root for the Egyptian word for child, or …

“Come Unto Me” As A Technical Gospel Term, Noel B. Reynolds

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

The Book of Mormon repeatedly outlines a six-part definition of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but most writers within the book refer to only two or three of them at a time in a biblical rhetorical device called merismus. Throughout the scriptures, the term “come unto Christ” in its many forms is used as part of these merisms to represent enduring to the end. This article examines the many abbreviations of the gospel, connects the phrase “come unto Christ” with enduring to the end, and discusses some of the alternate uses of these types of phrases.

Assessing The Criticisms Of Early-Age Latter-Day Saint Marriages, Craig L. Foster

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

Critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have accused Joseph Smith and other early Latter-day Saint men of pedophilia because they married teenaged women. Indeed, they have emphatically declared that such marriages were against 19th-century societal norms. However, historians and other experts have repeatedly stated that young people married throughout the 19th-century, and such marriages have been relatively common throughout all of US history. This article examines some of the accusations of early Latter-day Saint pedophilia and places such marriages within the greater historical and social context, illustrating that such marriages were normal and acceptable for their …

Messengers Of The Covenant: Mormon’S Doctrinal Use Of Malachi 3:1 In Moroni 7:29–32, Matthew L. Bowen

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

Although not evident at first glance, shared terminology and phraseology in Malachi 3:1 (3 Nephi 24:1) and Moroni 7:29–32 suggest textual dependency of the latter on the former. Jesus’s dictation of Malachi 3–4 to the Lamanites and Nephites at the temple in Bountiful, as recorded and preserved on the plates of Nephi, helped provide Mormon a partial scriptural and doctrinal basis for his teachings on the ministering of angels, angels/messengers of the covenant, the “work” of “the covenants of the Father,” and “prepar[ing] the way” in his sermon as preserved in Moroni 7. This article explores the implications of Mormon’s …

I Don’T Have A Testimony Of The History Of The Church, Davis Bitton

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

In this masterful presentation, accomplished historian Davis Bitton addresses the role of history and belief. Testimonies, he asserts, are born of belief and spiritual witnesses, not from historical events. It is quite possible to know all about Church history and still remain a believing member.

Research And More Research, Daniel C. Peterson

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

Young members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have grown up with a plethora of information available to answer the questions they may have about the Gospel. This, in turn, has allowed discordant information to cause concern in many members, ultimately drawing some away from the Gospel. In a recent address to young, married members of the Church in Chicago, President Dallin H. Oaks advised that more research is often not the way to approach these concerns, but rather that members should rely on their faith in Jesus Christ. While many may not agree with this advice, …

Compassion As The Heart Of The Gospel, Daniel C. Peterson

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

The Greek philosopher Aristotle, clearly one of the world’s great geniuses, created the concept of the “unmoved mover,” which moves “other things, but is, itself, unmoved by anything else.” This label became the standard Jewish, Christian, and Muslim description of an impersonal God — a God without body, parts or passions — a concept that has, for nearly 20 centuries, dominated western theology, philosophy, and science. The problem for thinkers in these religious traditions is that the God depicted in the Bible and the Qur’an is plainly personal. A careful review of the Bible and modern scripture reveals a “compassionate, …

A Nourishing And Accessible Read, Morgan Deane

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

Sometimes it is easy to overlook, disregard, or discount the “war chapters” in the Book of Mormon. Michaela Stephens’ new book about these chapters deserves wider attention, as it is an excellent study resource that provides valuable devotional and academic insights while remaining accessible to lay readers.

D&C 21, George Albert Smith, And Hugh B. Brown: A Fresh Look At Three Incidents In Church History, Duane Boyce

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

When discussions arise about the relationship between Church members and the prophets who lead them, certain episodes in Church history often appear. These include the Lord’s words about “all patience and faith” in Doctrine and Covenants 21:4–5, as well as incidents involving George Albert Smith and Hugh B. Brown. On the surface, such episodes might seem to raise doubts about the reliability of the presiding Brethren in representing the Lord or to minimize the importance of Church orthodoxy itself. A closer look shows such interpretations to be a mistake, however. When we clarify the record, we see that these episodes …

The Māori Latter-Day Saint Historical Narrative: Additions And Amendments, Louis Midgley

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

Selwyn Kātene has again assembled twelve essays written by the descendants of famous Māori Latter-day Saints. This volume flows from a revival of interest in the ground and content of the faith of early Māori Saints that began in the late 1990s. In various ways the essays in this volume add to and amend what has previously been known about what began unexpectedly on Christmas Day in 1882, when the first group of Māori joined the Church of Jesus Christ. Not only did the Māori have Seers who opened the way, some of those elite Māori men, who had been …

Full Issue

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

No abstract provided.

2019 Conference Schedule

Mormon Pacific Historical Society

No abstract provided.

The Building Of The Toyko Temple, Conan P. Story

Mormon Pacific Historical Society

This is a story of the building of the Tokyo Temple, the first temple built in Asia by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is not a history, although I hope it will shed some historical light on a few aspects of this magnificent temple. It is simply my story—what I saw and did, and what I learned about this House of the Lord as it rose from the ground and was dedicated in 1980. I like to tell this story starting in 1948 because that is when the Lord began to reveal His plan for where …

A Woman Here, Ranae Rudd

Inscape

I've tried to sing, "Heavenly Mother, are you really there? And do you hear and answer every child's prayer?" but I always get stuck on that intangible word-prayer. Afterall, Gordon B. Hinckley said we shouldn't pray to our Mother in Heaven, and I wonder what praying to her would look like. Is reaching out with my heart too prayer-like? If it is, how, then, do I honor her?

Interview With Matt Mendez

Inscape

Matt Mendez, author of Twitching Heart, a collection of short stories, and Barely Missing Everything

"A Mother And Fully Human At Once": Depictions Of Black Motherhood In Life And Literature

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

Procedural Violations In The Trial Of The Woman Taken In Adultery, Steven T. Densley Jr.

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

The story in John 8 of the woman taken in adultery is sometimes used to argue that Jesus was lenient toward sin and that we should be too. However, when placed in its broader context, we can see the story is not one in which Christ shows indifference or contempt for the law, but rather utmost respect for it.

Read This Book: A Review Of The Maxwell Institute Study Edition Of The Book Of Mormon, Brant A. Gardner

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

The Maxwell Institute Study Edition of the Book of Mormon is an important tool for personal and class study of the Book of Mormon. Not only does it provide a better reading experience, it has important features that enhance study.

Feasting On The Book Of Mormon, Stephen O. Smoot

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

The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship has recently published a new study edition of the Book of Mormon. Edited by Grant Hardy, the Maxwell Institute Study Edition (MISE) incorporates important advances in Book of Mormon scholarship from the past few decades while grounding the reader’s experience in the text of the Book of Mormon. The reformatted text presented in the MISE improves the readability of the Book of Mormon, while footnotes, charts, bibliographies, and short explanatory essays highlight the strides made in recent years related to Book of Mormon scholarship. The MISE is a phenomenal edition of the …

Campbellites And Mormonites: Competing Restoration Movements, Roseann Benson

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

: In October 1830, Oliver Cowdery, Peter Whitmer Jr., Parley P. Pratt, and Ziba Peterson were the first missionaries sent to travel through the western states to the Indian territory at the far reaches of the United States. Pratt, a former resident of northeastern Ohio, suggested they stop in the Kirtland, Ohio, area and visit his preacher friend, Sidney Rigdon. It was Rigdon who had earlier convinced Pratt that the restoration of the ancient order that included faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, and the promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit could be …

Revisiting “Sariah” At Elephantine, Neal Rappleye

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

Jeffrey R. Chadwick has previously called attention to the name ŚRYH (Seraiah/Sariah) as a Hebrew woman’s name in the Jewish community at Elephantine. Paul Y. Hoskisson, however, felt this evidence was not definitive because part of the text was missing and had to be restored. Now a more recently published ostracon from Elephantine, which contains a sure attestation of the name ŚRYH as a woman’s name without the need of restoration, satisfies Hoskisson’s call for more definitive evidence and makes it more likely that the name is correctly restored on the papyrus f irst noticed by Chadwick. The appearance of …

The Record Of My Father, Clifford P. Jones

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

In 1 Nephi 1:16–17, Nephi tells us he is abridging “the record of my father.” The specific words Nephi uses in his writings form several basic but important patterns and features used repeatedly by Nephi and also by other Book of Mormon writers. These patterns and features provide context that appears to indicate that Nephi’s abridgment of Lehi’s record is the third-person account found in 1 Nephi 1:4 through 2:15 and that Nephi’s f irst-person account of his own ministry begins in 1 Nephi 2:16.

The Lives Of Abraham: Seeing Abraham Through The Eyes Of Second-Temple Jews, Taylor Halverson

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

During the Second-Temple Period, Jews remembered and reimagined the story of Abraham to address their own immediate historical and cultural concerns. By exploring these reimaginations, we learn more about the faith and interests of later Jews who looked to their forefather for inspiration and guidance on how to live in a world of change, opportunity, and challenge. Second Temple Jewish writers included in this article are Artapanus, the author of Jubilees; Pseudo-Eupolemus, the author of Genesis Apocryphon; Philo, and Josephus. Abraham was resurrected in these texts, but with the body and soul of the later author, Josephus; these authors live …

Matt Mendez Q/A

Inscape

Matt Mendez: I'd first like to thank Spencer [Hyde] for inviting me to come over here. I'm so excited to be here. We're going to do a Q&A first and talk a little bit about MFA programs and short stories and YA novels. We've got YA novelists and future YA novelists in here, short story writers, correct? I do both, and I love both equally. I started writing in 2004 with short stories, and that's essentially the form that I first starting doing and will always be, I think1 my first love. I love writing short stories, I love reading …

Barriers To Belief: Mental Distress And Disaffection From The Church, Steve Densley Jr., Geret Giles

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

People leave the Church for a variety of reasons. Of all the reasons why people leave, one that has attracted little or no attention is the influence of mental distress. People who experience anxiety or depression see things differently than those who do not. Recognizing that people with mental distress have a different experience with church than others may help us to make adjustments that can prevent some amount of disaffection from the Church. This article takes a first step in identifying ways that mental distress can affect church activity and in presenting some of the things that individuals, friends, …

Indigenizing Mormonisms, Farina King

Mormon Studies Review

Over generations, scholars have emphasized the binary of “Mormons and Indians” using racialized terms.1 This language and approach often overlooks complex dynamics and locally specific identities of peoples and communities that engaged with Mormonism in North America and Central America.2 Since the founding of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, many Mormons have identified Indigenous peoples of the Americas as “Lamanites,” comparable to how white settler colonizers categorized Natives as “Indians.” Although colonizers, including Mormon settlers, used such terms to shape Indigenous identities and populations, individuals and communities appropriated and adapted them.

Evolution Of The Research On Mormonism In Asia, Pierre Vendassi

Mormon Studies Review

The first Mormon attempts to put down roots in Asia date back to 1851. Today the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as other Mormon denominations such as the Community of Christ are officially present in about twenty Asian countries. While many student dissertations and essays as well as testimonial or devotional books have been written on different aspects of Mormonism in Asia, including both the Latter-day Saints and Community of Christ traditions, the allotted space for this paper as well as my own resources prevented me from providing an exhaustive survey. Instead, I chose a few …