Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Divergent Thinking | Risd President, John Maeda, Risd Xyz

RISD XYZ Fall/Winter 2013: Out of Bounds

"Innovation happens when convergent thinkers—people who march straight ahead towards a clearly defined goal—combine forces with divergent thinkers, those who may wander professionally but who are comfortable being uncomfortable and who look for what is real. RISD harbors a lot of divergent, agile thinkers. . .". – John Maeda, RISD President 2008-13

The Date Of Easter And Shakespeare’S ‘Progress Of The Stars’: Creed And Chronometry In The Sixteenth Century, Martin Connell

Theology Faculty Publications

William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" opens with the question "Is this a holiday?" followed by another, "What, know you not?" The queries seem benign and, perhaps, humorless four centuries after the drama about the assassination of the ancient Roman emperor premiered at the Globe Theater in 1599, but – within a century of King Henry VIII's start of the Church of England (1534) – chronometry was a grave matter of church and state. Shakespeare's first Roman play coincided with the worst span of controversy between the Vatican and Canterbury, and Flavius's questions reveal social rubs between churches and calendars in late …

'Our Opinion Is In Accordance With The Eucharist': Irenaeus And The Sitz Im Leben Of Mark's Gospel, Charles A. Bobertz

School of Theology and Seminary Faculty Publications

This article explores Irenaeus of Lyon’s 2nd century understanding of Eucharist in relation to a historical and theological reading of Mark’s Gospel, specifically the feeding narrative cycles (Mark 6:30-52; 8:1-21). Irenaeus contends, most particularly in books IV and V of Adversus haereses, that the union of divine spirit and flesh in the humanity of Jesus and its replication in the Eucharistic bread serves as primary refutation of docetic heretics. Jesus was, and his Eucharistic body is, fully a part of creation in contrast to only a spiritual entity. Similarly Mark’s understanding of Eucharist linked to the …

Street Sex Workers' Discourse: Realizing Material Change Through Agential Choice., Jill Mccracken

Faculty Books

Incorporating the voices and insights of street sex workers through personal interviews, this monograph argues that the material conditions of many street workers — the physical environments they live in and their effects on the workers’ bodies, identities, and spirits — are represented, reproduced, and entrenched in the language surrounding their work. As an ethnographic case study of a local system that can be extrapolated to other subcultures and the construction of identities, this book disrupts some of the more prevalent academic and lay understandings about street prostitution by providing a thorough analysis of the material conditions surrounding street work …

Investigating Virtual Worlds, Patricia D. Sobczak

VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

The global phenomena of online gaming engages millions of people, some playing over 45 hours a week - the equivalent of a second full-time job. Our children are logging over 10,000 hours of gaming time before they are 21 years old; the equivalent of the time children spend in formal classrooms from grades five through 12. Players in one of the most popular online games have logged over 5.3 million years of play time since 2004.

These statistics show that virtual worlds, including online games, have become an important component of modern culture, but their impact on society has yet …

Jewish Education (Chapter 26 Of The World Of The New Testament: Cultural, Social, And Historical Contexts), Kent Yinger

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

The nature of Jewish education in the first century has clear relevance for a number of issues in NT interpretation. How did Jesus learn Torah—at home, at school? Could he even read and write? Were his disciples illiterates? Could Peter or John have written letters? What sort of rabbinic training did Paul have, and did he study Greek rhetoric and use it in his letters?

Exhortation To Persevere And Grow In Holiness, Love, And Integrity (1 Thess 4:1-12) (Chapter In 1 & 2 Thessalonians), Nijay K. Gupta

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

Excerpt: "In the first three chapters of 1 Thessalonians, Paul's primary concern involved extending compassion and comfort to a suffering and troubled church. There is a gracious, warm, generous tone. He reminds them of how special they are, and how attentive God is to their plight. He reminds them of how God has worked among them in power in the past, he is at work in the present, and he will act again on their behalf through Messiah Jesus at his return. He confesses to them his longing to have close fellowship with them-they are loved and missed.

But Paul's …

One Day To A Cubit, Hollis R. Johnson

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

An investigation of ancient astronomy shows that a cubit was used not only as the metric of length (elbow to fingertip) but also as a metric of angle in the sky. That suggested a new interpretation that fits naturally: the brightest celestial object— the sun—moves eastward around the sky, relative to the stars, during the course of a year, by one cubit per day!

Nephite Insights Into Israelite Worship Practices Before The Babylonian Captivity, A. Keith Thompson

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

General historical consensus holds that synagogues originated before the destruction of the Second Temple in AD 70, and therefore probably originated during the Babylonian captivity. The suggestion in Philo and Josephus that synagogues may have originated during the exodus was discredited by some historians in the 17th century, yet the Book of Mormon speaks of synagogues, sanctuaries, and places of worship in a manner which suggests that Lehi and his party brought some form of synagogal worship with them when they left Jerusalem around 600 BC. This essay revisits the most up to date scholarship regarding the origin of the …

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

Finding Parallels: Some Cautions And Criticisms Part Two, Benjamin A. Mcguire

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

Discovering parallels is inherently an act of comparison. Through comparison, parallels have been introduced frequently as proof (or evidence) of different issues within Mormon studies. Despite this frequency, very few investigations provide a theoretical or methodological framework by which the parallels themselves can be evaluated. This problem is not new to the field of Mormon studies but has in the past plagued literary studies more generally. In Part One, this review essay discusses present and past approaches dealing with the ways in which parallels have been used and valued in acts of literary comparison, uncovering the various difficulties associated with …

Book Review, Kevin Christensen

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

Margaret Barker is a biblical scholar whose books have been attracting increasing Latter-day Saint attention for over a decade. She has also been making inroads in the wider circles of scholarship, as evidenced by her Temple Theology: An Introduction being shortlisted for the Michael Ramsey Prize for theological writing, the first woman so honored. And she was awarded a Doctor of Divinity by the Archbishop of Canterbury for Temple Themes in Christian Worship. She is a prolific writer and a busy speaker.

“In The Mount Of The Lord It Shall Be Seen” And “Provided”: Theophany And Sacrifice As The Etiological Foundation Of The Temple In Israelite And Latter-Day Saint Tradition, Matthew L. Bowen

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

For ancient Israelites, the temple was a place where sacrifice and theophany (i.e., seeing God or other heavenly beings) converged. The account of Abraham’s “arrested” sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22) and the account of the arrested slaughter of Jerusalem following David’s unauthorized census of Israel (2 Samuel 24; 1 Chronicles 21) served as etiological narratives— explanations of “cause” or “origin”—for the location of the Jerusalem temple and its sacrifices. Wordplay on the verb rāʾâ (to “see”) in these narratives creates an etiological link between the place-names “Jehovah-jireh,” “Moriah” and the threshing floor of Araunah/Ornan, pointing to the future location of …

Introduction, Volume 6 The Modest But Important End Of Apologetics, Daniel C. Peterson

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

I first became involved in apologetics because I wanted to defend the truth of beliefs that are important to me and to defend the character of leaders for whom I have great respect, even veneration, against attack. I’m offended by falsehoods, prejudice, and injustice. I wanted to help faltering members who were sometimes besieged by intellectual challenges for which they had no adequate response. I also desired to assist interested observers to see sufficient plausibility in the Gospel’s claims that they would be able to make its truth a matter of sincere and receptive prayer. My hope was to clear …

Written To The Lamanites: Understanding The Book Of Mormon Through Native Culture And Religion, Gary P. Gillum

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

Latter-day Saints have always been encouraged to seek the truth wherever it can be found. With the Book of Mormon being written especially to the Lamanites, we can assume that the more we know about Lamanite and Native American culture, the more we can understand, appreciate and gain insights as we read that inspired scripture. In this article the writer has compared examples from Native American culture and history to what we read in the Book of Mormon and experience as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Most importantly, as we read through the eyes of …

Full Issue

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

No abstract provided.

Misunderstanding Mormonism In The Mormonizing Of America, Craig L. Foster

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

The Mormonizing of America by Stephen Mansfield has been touted as a solid, impartial look at Mormon history and doctrine. Unfortunately, on closer examination, the book is seriously lacking both in substance and impartiality. This article discusses the book’s numerous problems.

“Endless Forms Most Beautiful”: The Uses And Abuses Of Evolutionary Biology In Six Works, Gregory L. Smith

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

The position of the Church on the origin of man was published by the First Presidency in 1909 and stated again by a different First Presidency in 1925:

Stretching To Find The Negative: Gary Bergera’S Review Of Joseph Smith’S Polygamy: History And Theology, Brian C. Hales

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

At an author-meets-critic Sunstone Symposium on August 2, 2013, Gary Bergera devoted over 90% of his fifteenminute review to criticize my 1500+ page, three-volume, Joseph Smith’s Polygamy: History and Theology. This article responds to several of the disagreements outlined by Bergera that on closer inspection appear as straw men. Also addressed are the tired arguments buoyed by carefully selected documentation he advanced supporting that (1) John C. Bennett learned of polygamy from Joseph Smith, (2) the Fanny Alger-Joseph Smith relationship was adultery, and (3) the Prophet practiced sexual polyandry. This article attempts to provide greater balance by including new evidences …

An Essay On The One True Morality And The Principle Of Freedom, Alma Don Sorensen

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

The author introduces the subject of the essay based on scripture by observing that one true morality governs the heavens and exists to govern mortality, which contains all possible ways to live in time and eternity and orders them into a hierarchy of rational preferability. In order to live their endless lives with enduring purpose and fullness, humankind must undertake two stages of probationary preparation, one as premortals and one that begins with mortality and concludes in the post-mortal world with the final judgment, in which they come to know for themselves the one morality and accept its ordering of …

Where Shall Wisdom Be Found?, Zina Petersen

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

Mormons who know about her are usually fans of Margaret Barker. Disclosure: I am one of them (Mormon who knows about her, and fan). For further disclosure, she paid attention and respect to the writings of Hugh Nibley, to whom I was and am filially devoted. So it isn’t as if I am unbiased in appreciating Barker’s work. I am also not alone; there are quite a few of us who read and love her. Indeed it may be said we love her because she first loved us—or at least unwittingly agreed with us. With her 2012 book, The Mother …

The Original Text Of The Book Of Mormon And Its Publication By Yale University Press, Royal Skousen

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

An earlier version of the following paper was presented 5 August 2010 at a conference sponsored by FAIR, the Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research (now FairMormon). The text of this paper is copyrighted by Royal Skousen. The photographs that appear in this paper are also protected by copyright. Photographs of the original manuscript are provided courtesy of David Hawkinson and Robert Espinosa and are reproduced here by permission of the Wilford Wood Foundation. Photographs of the printer’s manuscript are provided courtesy of Nevin Skousen and are reproduced here by permission of the Community of Christ. The text of the …

Sophic Box And Mantic Vista: A Review Of Deconstructing Mormonism, Kevin Christensen

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

Riskas’s Desconstructing Mormonism claims that believers are trapped in a box for which the instructions for how to get out are written on the outside of the box. He challenges believers to submit to an outsider test for faith. But how well does Riskas describe the insider test? And is his outsider test, which turns out to be positivism, just a different box with the instructions for how to get out written on its outside? Ian Barbour’s Myths Models and Paradigms provides instructions on how to get out of the positivistic box that Riskas offers, and at the same time …

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

Passing Up The Heavenly Gift (Part Two Of Two), Gregory L. Smith

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

Claims #4 and #5: The Source of the Authority of Brigham Young and the Apostles After Joseph’s Death

The Late War Against The Book Of Mormon, Benjamin L. Mcguire

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

Recently, the Exmormon Foundation held their annual conference in Salt Lake City.1 A presentation by Chris and Duane Johnson proposed a new statistical model for discussing authorship of the Book of Mormon.2 The study attempts to connect the Book of Mormon to a text published in 1816: The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain.3 The latter is a history of the war of 1812 deliberately written in a

Elder Neal A. Maxwell On Consecration, Scholarship, And The Defense Of The Kingdom, Daniel C. Peterson

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.

Book Review, Cassandra Hedelius

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

I expected better things from Professor Fink’s book, as it points out on the cover that he started as the son of a “conservative Christian Minister” and ended as a professor of philosophy; such a life journey, made thoughtfully, ought to sow very interesting things to say. His stated purpose is broad: an “orderly,” “even-handed” analysis of the Bible, Koran, Torah, and Book of Mormon. He invites readers to imagine themselves on a jury—one called to impartially evaluate the evidence regarding these sacred works, with minds cleared of presupposition and bias, and required to conclude with completely logical answers to …

Evangelical Controversy: A Deeply Fragmented Movement, Louis C. Midgley

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

Four Views on the Spectrum of Evangelicalism should be helpful to Latter-day Saints (and others) seeking to understand some of the theological controversies lurking behind contemporary fundamentalist/evangelical religiosity. Four theologians spread along a spectrum speak for different competing factions of conservative Protestants: Kevin Bauder 1 for what turns out to be his own somewhat moderate version of Protestant fundamentalism; Al Mohler 2 for conservative/confessional 3 evangelicalism; John Stackhouse 4 for generic evangelicalism; and Roger Olson 5 for postconservative evangelicalism. Each author introduces his own position and then is critiqued in turn by the others, after which there is a rejoinder. …