Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Making Visible The Beauty And Goodness Of The Gospel, Daniel C. Peterson

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

Apologetics is typically seen as a purely cerebral activity designed to convince others of the truth or, at least, of the plausibility of certain propositions, typically but not always religious. In the case of the Gospel, however, mere intellectual assent isn’t enough—not in the eyes of God and, probably, not for the typical mortal human being. To please God, we must live our lives according to the Gospel, not merely concede its truth. But living such lives to the end requires that we love God and the Gospel and find them desirable, in addition to checking off a list of …

Full Issue

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

No abstract provided.

Image Is Everything: Pay No Attention To The Man Behind The Curtain, Kevin Christensen

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

Soon after the appearance of my Interpreter review of Jeremy Runnells’ Letter to a CES Director, he promised to provide his personal response. Although this response has not yet appeared, he did post an essay called “The Sky is Falling” by his friend Johnny Stephenson. After I read the essay closely in May, I realized that it provides, however unintentionally, a valuable set of discussion points with illustrative examples. My response begins with some preliminaries, surveys essential background issues concerning facts, ideology, and cognitive dissonance, and then addresses his historical arguments regarding the First Vision and priesthood restoration accounts.

A Modern View Of Ancient Temple Worship, Julie J. Nichols

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

This well-produced, noteworthy volume adds to the growing number of resources available to help make more meaningful the complex and historically rich experience of the temple.

Understanding Genesis And The Temple, Tb Spackman

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

Genesis 1 meant something very particular to the Israelites in their time and place. However, because that contextual knowledge was lost to us for thousands of years, we tend to misread it. Walton offers an interpretation of Genesis 1 that juxtaposes it with temple concepts, simultaneously allaying some of the scientific issues involved.

You More Than Owe Me This Benefit: Onomastic Rhetoric In Philemon, Matthew L. Bowen

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

Wordplay and punning involving the names Philemon (Φιλήμων, “affectionate one”) and Onesimus (Ὀνήσιμος, “useful”) and their meanings, with concomitant paronomasia involving the name-title Χριστός (Christos) and various homonymic terms, constitutes a key element in Paul’s polite, diplomatic, and carefully-worded letter to Philemon, the Christian owner of a converted slave named Onesimus. Paul artfully uses Philemon’s own name to play on the latter’s affections and to remind him that despite whatever Onesimus may owe (ὀφείλει, opheilei) Philemon, Philemon more than owes (προσοφείλεις, prosopheileis) his very self — i.e., his life as a Christian and thus his eternal wellbeing — to Paul. …

Zarahemla Revisited: Neville’S Newest Novel, Matthew Roper, Paul Fields, Larry Bassist

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

This article is the third in a series of three articles responding to the recent assertion by Jonathan Neville that Benjamin Winchester was the anonymous author of three unsigned editorials published in Nauvoo in 1842 in the Times and Seasons. The topic of the unsigned editorials was the possible relationship of archeological discoveries in Central America to places described in the Book of Mormon narrative. The first article shows that, contrary to Neville’s claims, Winchester was not a proponent of a Mesoamerican setting for the Book of Mormon, but rather a hemispheric one. Since this was a view commonly held …

“How Lovely Is Your Dwelling Place” A Review Of Danel W. Bachman, “A Temple Studies Bibliography”, Shon D. Hopkin

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

“A Temple Studies Bibliography,” located on the Academy for Temple Studies website (http://www.templestudies.org/home/introductionto- a-temple-studies-bibliography/), boasts over 8,000 entries focused on ancient temples from the Mediterranean and the Near East and modern expressions of temple building and worship, primarily in the Latter-day Saint (Mormon) community. This review details the bibliography’s extensive strengths and comprehensive nature, identifies current limitations that will be resolved with full release of the resource, suggests future improvements, and gives examples of how this bibliography can be used to enhance scholarship in the growing field of temple studies.

A Vital Resource For Understanding Lds Perspectives On War, Morgan Deane

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

Even Unto Bloodshed: An LDS Perspective of War by Duane Boyce is a thorough and engrossing philosophical discussion describing the failure of secular and spiritual pacifism. Boyce provides a detailed summary of secular views regarding just war and pacifism, and systematic rebuttals of almost every major pacifist thinker in LDS thought. The text is far more brief describing the LDS theory of just war, but remains an essential resource for creating that theory.

Nephi’S Good Inclusio, Matthew L. Bowen

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

As John Gee noted two decades ago, Nephi is best explained as a form of the Egyptian word nfr, which by Lehi’s time was pronounced neh-fee, nay-fee, or nou-fee. Since this word means “good,” “goodly,” “fine,” or “fair,” I subsequently posited several possible examples of wordplay on the name Nephi in the Book of Mormon, including Nephi’s own autobiographical introduction (1 Nephi 1:1: “I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents … having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God”). It should be further pointed out, however, that Nephi also concludes his personal writings on …

The Old Testament And Presuppositions, Tb Spackman

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

Peter Enns identifies three problematic assumptions Evangelicals make when reading the Old Testament. LDS readers tend to share these assumptions, and Enns’ solutions work equally well for them.

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

Viewing The Temple Through Wilford Woodruff’S Eyes, Laura Harris Hales

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

In Wilford Woodruff’s Witness, Jennifer Ann Mackley takes what could easily be a dry topic and turns it into a fascinating study not only of the unfolding of Latter-day Saint temple doctrine but also of early Mormonism. Primarily using Woodruff’s own words taken from his journals and published discourses, the narrative follows the line-upon‑line revelation of doctrine pertaining to the purpose and ordinances of the temple and the quest for sacred space to conduct these rites.

The More Part Of The Book Of Mormon Is Early Modern English, Stanford Carmack

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

Royal Skousen has done an excellent job of summarizing the use of the construction “the more part of + ‹ NOUN PHRASE ›” (and close variants) in the Book of Mormon at Helaman 6:21 in his Analysis of Textual Variants.1 In this phrase, the adjective more conveys an obsolete meaning of ‘greater’.2 My concern here is to compare Book of Mormon usage to that of the King James Bible and the textual record and to place it in its proper time.

“He Did It”: A Christmas Message, Clayton M. Christensen

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

A number of years ago, my home teacher, John Wright, stopped by to see me, unannounced. As we talked, he said, “I’ve been thinking a lot about what it was like when we were in that meeting in heaven where God said that he would choose the Savior.”

Cloud Illusions And The Perfect Day, Daniel C. Peterson

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

I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now, from up and down, and still somehow it’s cloud illusions I recall.1

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.2

The Yoke Of Christ: A Light Burden Heavy With Meaning, Jeff Lindsay

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

Christ’s famous call to take his yoke upon us in Matthew 11 may merit more analysis than it has commonly received. Taking up the yoke may have connections to other things that are taken upon us as well, including the name of Christ, temple covenants, priestly robes, and sacred anointing. These all reflect a relationship of obedience and service to the Master, who set the example by taking the heaviest yoke of all upon him, including the yoke-like beam of the cross that he carried to Golgotha and the full weight of human sin and misery as he suffered for …

Joseph Smith Read The Words, Standford Carmack

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

This study examines the assertions of two investigators who have discussed the nature of the translation of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith’s role in it: Brant Gardner and Orson Scott Card. Their writings on the subject have declared that Smith’s own language frequently made its way into the wording of the Book of Mormon. However, a comparison of the earliest text with the textual record tells us that this is an incorrect view of the translation. The linguistic fingerprint of the Book of Mormon, in hundreds of different ways, is Early Modern English. Smith himself — out of …

“They Were Moved With Compassion” (Alma 27:4; 53:13): Toponymic Wordplay On Zarahemla And Jershon, Matthew L. Bowen

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

As in Hebrew biblical narrative, wordplay on (or play on the meaning of) toponyms, or “place names,” is a discernable feature of Book of Mormon narrative. The text repeatedly juxtaposes the toponym Jershon (“place of inheritance” or “place of possession”) with terms inherit, inheritance, possess, possession, etc. Similarly, the Mulekite personal name Zarahemla (“seed of compassion,” “seed of pity”), which becomes the paramount Nephite toponym as their national capital after the time of Mosiah I, is juxtaposed with the term compassion. Both wordplays occur and recur at crucial points in Nephite/Lamanite history. Moreover, both occur in connection with the migration …

The Case Of Plural Was In The Earliest Text, Standford Carmack

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

Because it is primarily an Early Modern English text (in terms of its English language), the earliest text of the Book of Mormon understandably employs plural was — for example, “the words which was delivered” (Alma 5:11). It does so in a way that is substantially similar to what is found in many writings of the Early Modern period — that is, it manifests the syntactic usage, variation, and differential rates typical of that era.

Untangling Scripture From The Philosophies Of Men, Mark Bukowski

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

Terryl Givens’ masterful work Wrestling the Angel takes on the daunting task of examining the history of Christian belief while also examining the worldly philosophies which shaped its scriptural interpretation. As in the biblical story of Jacob’s struggle with the angel, we all must forge our own testimonies while confronting a secular world including godless philosophies. Sometimes testimony wins, and tragically sometimes the world wins and a testimony is lost. In dealing with this intellectual “matter unorganized,” interpretation of the secular philosophy becomes the key. With the right interpretation, philosophies deemed “secular” or “godless” can be seen as helpful and …

Front Matter

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

No abstract provided.

The “Fiery Darts Of The Adversary” In 1 Nephi 15:24, Stephen O. Smoot

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

After receiving a revelation (1 Nephi 11–14) that clarified the meaning of his father Lehi’s dream (1 Nephi 8), Nephi explained to his rebellious brothers the significance of the various symbols of that dream. Concerning the “rod of iron,” which led to the tree of life, Nephi recorded, And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction. …

Science And Mormonism, David H. Bailey, Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

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

From the beginning, Latter-day Saints have rejected the notion that science and religion are incompatible. In this article, we give an overview of studies that have surveyed the professional participation of Mormons in science and the views of American academics and scientists on religion in general, Mormons in particular, and why many thoughtful people in our day might be disinclined to take religion seriously. We conclude with a brief survey of current LDS perspectives on science. Our brief survey demonstrates that it is not only futile for religion and science to battle each other; it is also unnecessary.

Why Did You Choose Me?, Joseph Grenny

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

By seeing the example of a county prosecutor, I learned that we are never more like the Savior than when we willingly and vulnerably enter the self-created pain of another person’s life.

Full Issue

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

No abstract provided.

On Being A Tool, Daniel C. Peterson

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

Members, missionaries, and apologists must never lose sight of the fact that the gospel isn’t merely about abstractions and theoretical principles. It’s also, and most importantly, about people, about people with their own life stories, fears, hopes, and questions. Thus, if we want to be optimally effective, we must listen to people, understand them, and craft our message to reach them individually, where they are. The Interpreter Foundation is committed to helping with this task, but it cannot replace personalized instruction and caring.

Shulem, One Of The King’S Principal Waiters, John Gee

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

Shulem is mentioned once in the Book of Abraham. All we are told about him is his name and title. Using onomastics, the study of names, and the study of titles, we can find out more about Shulem than would at first appear. The form of Shulem's name is attested only at two times: the time period of Abraham and the time period of the Joseph Smith papyri. (Shulem thus constitutes a Book of Abraham bullseye.) If Joseph Smith had gotten the name from his environment, the name would have been Shillem.

Latter-Day Saint Youths’ Construction Of Sacred Texts, Eric D. Rackley

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

The texts that religious youth negotiate are often deeply embedded in their sociocultural practices, which can have profound influences on their religious literacy development, construction and manifestation of religious identities, and the development of their faith. Yet, although 85% of American youth claim a specific religious tradition, literacy research has not explored how these youth construct their views of sacred texts. In this two-year qualitative study of the literacy practices of nine Latter-day Saint youth, interviews and observations were used to explore what texts these youth considered sacred and how their views of these texts were informed by their religiocultural …

“My People Are Willing”: The Mention Of Aminadab In The Narrative Context Of Helaman 5-6, Matthew L. Bowen

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

Aminadab, a Nephite by birth who later dissented to the Lamanites, played a crucial role in the mass conversion of three hundred Lamanites (and eventually many others). At the end of the pericope in which these events are recorded, Mormon states: “And thus we see that the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon the Lamanites, because of their easiness and willingness to believe in his words” (Helaman 6:36), whereas he “began to withdraw” his Spirit from the Nephites “because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts” (Helaman 6:35). The name Aminadab is a Semitic/Hebrew name meaning …