Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Deuteronomist Reforms And Lehi’S Family Dynamics: A Social Context For The Rebellions Of Laman And Lemuel, Neal Rappleye

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

Over the last few years, several Latter-day Saint scholars have commented on how the socio-religious setting of Judah in the late-seventh century bc informs and contextualizes our reading of the Book of Mormon, especially that of 1 and 2 Nephi. Particular emphasis has been placed on how Lehi and Nephi appear to have been in opposition to certain changes implemented by the Deuteronomists at this time, but Laman’s and Lemuel’s views have only been commented on in passing. In this paper, I seek to contextualize Laman and Lemuel within this same socio-religious setting and suggest that, in opposition to Lehi …

The Treason Of The Geographers: Mythical “Mesoamerican” Conspiracy And The Book Of Mormon, Matthew Roper

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

The claim that God revealed the details of Book of Mormon geography is not new, but the recent argument that there was a conspiracy while the Prophet was still alive to oppose a revealed geography is a novel innovation. A recent theory argues that the “Mesoamerican theory” or “limited Mesoamerican geography” originated in 1841 with Benjamin Winchester, an early Mormon missionary, writer, and dissident, who rejected the leadership of Brigham Young and the Twelve after 1844. This theory also claims that three unsigned editorials on Central America and the Book of Mormon published in the Times and Seasons on September …

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

A Response To Denver Snuffer’S Essay On Plural Marriage, Adoption, And The Supposed Falling Away Of The Church Part 2: Façade Or Reality?, Brian C. Hales

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

Part 2 of this response to Denver Snuffer’s essay entitled “Plural Marriage” posted on March 22, 2015, will primarily address non-plural marriage issues as discussed in the last twenty pages.1 Snuffer’s portrayal of adoption teachings and practices is analyzed and shown to be in error, along with his interpretation of presiding priesthood quorums as described in the Doctrine and Covenants. His primary thesis, that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in apostasy, is also examined including Snuffer’s personal need for the Church to have fallen away in order to create an opening for his new visionary voice. …

Index

Religion in the Age of Enlightenment

No abstract provided.

"To Put The Soul In Motion": Connoisseurship As A Religious Discourse In The Writings Of Jonathan Richardson, Clare Haynes

Religion in the Age of Enlightenment

It is only relatively recently that the significance of Jonathan Richardson's writings has been properly recognized. Carol Gibson-Wood, in a number of articles and a book, identified two main keys to Richardson's importance: first, Richardson adapted European art theory and "Englished" it for a British audience using a methodology heavily dependent on Locke. In doing so, he developed an approach to art that was distinctive in the European tradition. Second, Richardson, as both a writer and connoisseur, was more influential at home and abroad than was previously recognized. Indeed, Richardson was rightly acclaimed by Gibson-Wood as the "art theorist of …

Profound Depth In A Slender Book, Kevin Christensen

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

Occasionally, an LDS author puts out a slender little book that displays a profound depth and insight that belies its size. Truman Madsen’s Eternal Man is one such book, one that forever changed the way I viewed the faith in which I was raised. In that case, Madsen asked a set of basic philosophical questions and compared the LDS answers with those provided by a range of non-LDS and generally famous philosophers. Madsen commented in his preface that

Careless Accounts And Tawdry Novelties, Louis Midgley

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

The faith of Latter-day Saints is rooted in Joseph Smith’s recovery of the Book of Mormon, which presents itself as an authentic ancient text and divine special revelation. Book-length efforts to explain away these two grounding historical claims began in 1834, and have never ceased. They are often the works of disgruntled former Saints. In 1988 Loftes Tryk self-published an amusing, truly bizarre, seemingly countercult sectarian account of the Book of Mormon. In 2006, now under the name Lofte Payne, he again opined on Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. He discarded the notion that Joseph Smith was a …

Full Issue

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

No abstract provided.

The Prodigal’S Return To The Father: House Of Glory And Rediscovery, Timothy Guymon

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

The temple of God is a new experience with any visit, but its wonders are nigh astonishing to someone who has lost the privilege for a long time. Wilcox’s House of Glory is more than a guidebook to the House of God, it is a camera panning from the physical (such as the meanings of symbols and the appearances in and outside of temples) to the intensely personal (like the requirements and rewards of temple work, its ancient history, its powers of protection, and so on). Essentially a book for the experienced temple goer (one no longer stunned by the …

The Doctrine Of Resurrection In The Book Of Mormon, A. Keith Thompson

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

The doctrine of resurrection was taught by Lehi and Jacob among the first Nephites but was not mentioned again in the record until the time of Abinadi, perhaps 350 years later. In the court of King Noah that doctrine and the idea of a suffering Messiah who would bear the sins of his people and redeem them, were heresies and Abinadi paid for them with his life. While Abinadi’s testimony converted Alma1 and the doctrine of the resurrection inspired Alma2 after his conversion, it was a source of schism in the church at Zarahemla along lines that remind us of …

Not Leaving And Going On To Perfection, Matthew L. Bowen

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

In his most recent book, First Principles and Ordinances: The Fourth Article of Faith in Light of the Temple (hereafter First Principles), Samuel M. Brown observes that “the Plan of Salvation [is] fundamentally about relationships.”1 This recognition drove the prophet Joseph Smith and early Church members to “forge communities [of saints] that could endure beyond the veil of death” (151). Today, the importance of the temple and its ordinances to family relationships, eternal in their design, are clear to most Latter-day Saints. However, our collective view of the meaning of the principles and ordinances that precede the temple — and …

A Treasure Trove Of Questions, Steven T. Densley Jr.

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

The New Testament Made Harder is a book that collects study questions that follow the Gospel Doctrine reading schedule. The book contains very little commentary and does not provide answers to the questions posed. The main objective is not to provide information, but rather to encourage students of the New Testament to think more deeply about what they are reading. For those who are willing to put forth the effort, they will find this book to be a helpful tool in learning to analyze the scriptures more closely.

The Theory Of Evolution Is Compatible With Both Belief And Unbelief In A Supreme Being, David M. Belnap

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

The crux of the creation–evolution conflict is a futile desire to scientifically prove or disprove the existence of God. The conflict is manifest in the common belief that creation means a divine, supernatural process and that evolution denotes an atheistic, accidental event. Evolution involves a random change in an inherited trait followed by selection for or against the altered trait. If humans use this principle to design machines, solve complex mathematical problems, engineer proteins, and manipulate living organisms, then certainly a super-intelligent being could have used evolution to create life on earth. This reasoning indicates that evolution does not prove …

The New Testament Made Harder: Scripture Study Questions, James E. Faulconer

Maxwell Institute Publications

Latter-day Saint philosopher James E. Faulconer’s Made Harder series raises many more questions than it answers. And that is precisely the point. Faulconer wrote The New Testament Made Harder on the premise that scripture study is only as good as the questions we bring to the endeavor. While many scriptural guides provide useful chapter synopses, timelines, memorizable bullet-points, or shortcuts, this book consists almost entirely of challenging questions (with occasional commentary for clarity’s sake) because, in Faulconer’s experience, questions themselves are the key to reflective and deep scripture study. This book is intended to make reading harder—and therefore fresher—by …

Planted: Belief And Belonging In An Age Of Doubt, Patrick Q. Mason

Maxwell Institute Publications

For all its beneficial advances, our secular age has also weakened some people’s ties to religious belief and affiliation. Latter-day Saints have not been immune to this trend. In recent years, many faithful Church members have encountered challenging aspects of Church history, belief, or practice. Feeling isolated, alienated, or misled, some struggle to stay. Some simply leave. Many search for a reliable and faithful place to work through their questions.

You can find such a place in Patrick Q. Mason’s Planted: Belief and Belonging in an Age of Doubt. This book gives people who struggle with questions—and people who …

The Journal Of Response To Writing: A Response To A Professional Need, K. James Hartshorn, Norman W. Evans

Journal of Response to Writing

In a conversation with an editor of the Journal of Second Language Writing, the question was asked, “What is the most popular topic of submitted manuscripts to the Journal?” The response was as decisive as it was quick, “That’s easy. Feedback or response to writing is by far the most commonly submitted topic.” That brief exchange triggered a number of questions that needed answers. First and foremost among those questions is, if response to writing is such a popular topic, might there be a need within our profession for another venue for such scholarship? Though the Journal of Second Language …

Review Of Responding To Student Writers By Nancy Sommers, Lauren Kelly

Journal of Response to Writing

Nancy Sommers’s Responding to Student Writers is a self-proclaimed “modest book” (vii) with an important goal: discussing best practices in responding to student writing. Published by Bedford St. Martin’s, the book aims to address teachers at the college-level who may find themselves struggling with increasing enrollment and a practice that “takes more time, thought, empathy, and energy than any other aspect of teaching writing” (x). At approximately 50 pages, Sommers’s slim book is both conversational and easy to digest, a text that could easily be slipped in a carry-on bag for a trip to a conference or read quickly between …

Volume 1 Number 1 (2015)

Journal of Response to Writing

No abstract provided.

"Light And Truth" In The Public University Classroom, John G. Turner

Mormon Studies Review

No abstract provided.

Reid L. Neilson, Exhibiting Mormonism: The Latter-Day Saints And The 1893 Chicago World's Fair, Reviewed By Peter J. Thuesen

Mormon Studies Review

No abstract provided.

Stephen H. Webb, Mormon Christianity: What Other Christians Can Learn From The Latter-Day Saints, Reviewed By James E. Faulconer

Mormon Studies Review

No abstract provided.

From The Editor, John W. Welch

BYU Studies

The motto on the title page in each issue of BYU Studies Quarterly reads: "Involving readers in the Latter-day Saint academic experience." As this issue goes to press and to you, our readers, all over the world, I am excited about all that our experienced authors bring to you. How do their articles and other materials involve you in an LDS academic experience?

Two Challenges Facing Brigham Young University As A Religiously Affiliated University, Kevin J. Worthen

BYU Studies

The following message is adapted from remarks given by BYU President Kevin J Worthen at the annual BYU Studies Academy Meeting on March 28, 2015.

A Narrative Approach To The Joseph Smith Translation Of The Synoptic Gospels, Jared W. Ludlow

BYU Studies

One of the first projects Joseph Smith undertook after the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in April 1830 was a translation of the Bible. Although it was not a typical translation from original Greek or Hebrew manuscripts, the project was often called a “translation” nonetheless. The Joseph Smith Translation, or JST as it is often called, was referred to by the Lord in the Doctrine and Covenants as “the new translation of my holy word” (D&C 124:89). At the top of the manuscript of the revision of Matthew, it reads, “A translation of the New …

Speculative Grace: Bruno Latour And Object-Oriented Theology, Brent J. Schmidt

BYU Studies

Adam S. Miller. Speculative Grace: Bruno Latour and Object-Oriented Theology.

Perspectives in Continental Philosophy Series.

New York: Fordham University Press, 2013.

An Exhortation To Study God’S Two “Books”, Daniel C. Peterson

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

From the birth of modern science at the end of the sixteenth century, Galileo famously believed that God had written two books — the scriptures and the Book of Nature. The scriptures, he contended, should be interpreted by scholars and theologians, whereas the Book of Nature was the province of scientists:

Cracking The Book Of Mormon’S “Secret Combinations”?, Gregory L. Smith

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

The Book of Mormon has been explained by some as a product of Joseph Smith’s 19th century environment. Advocates of this thesis have argued that the phrase secret combinations is a reference to Freemasonry, and reflects Joseph’s preoccupation with this fraternity during the Book of Mormon’s composition in 1828 29. It is claimed that this phrase is rarely, if ever, used in a non Masonic context during 1828–29, and that a type of “semantic narrowing” occurred which restricted the term to Freemasonry. Past studies have found a few counter-examples, which are reviewed, but none from during the precise years of …

Heartland As Hinterland: The Mesoamerican Core And North American Periphery Of Book Of Mormon Geography, Mark Alan Wright

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

The best available evidence for the Book of Mormon continues to support a limited Mesoamerican model. However, Alma 63 indicates that there was a massive northward migration in the mid-first century bc. I argue that these north-bound immigrants spread out over the centuries and established settlements that were geographically distant from the core Nephite area, far beyond the scope of the text of the Book of Mormon. I introduce the Hinterland Hypothesis and argue that it can harmonize the Mesoamerican evidence for the Book of Mormon with Joseph Smith’s statements concerning Nephite and Lamanite material culture in North America. Archaeological …