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2022

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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

Review: W. Paul Reeve, Project Manager And General Editor. Century Of Black Mormons. J. Willard Marriott Library, University Of Utah. Https://Exhibits .Lib.Utah.Edu/S/Century-Of-Black-Mormons/Page/Welcome., Lauren Cooper Jan 2022

Review: W. Paul Reeve, Project Manager And General Editor. Century Of Black Mormons. J. Willard Marriott Library, University Of Utah. Https://Exhibits .Lib.Utah.Edu/S/Century-Of-Black-Mormons/Page/Welcome., Lauren Cooper

Mormon Studies Review

W. Paul Reeve opens the statement of purpose on the Century of Black Mormons’s “About” page by capturing the mainstream media and pop culture commentators’ disbelief that a population of Black Mormons exists. In statements culled from sources during the 2012 US presidential election with Mitt Romney, a White Mormon, running against the reelection of Barack Obama, an African American Protestant, comedians describe Black Mormons as “mythical creatures” and news broadcasters speculate there may be “between 500 to 2,000.” In actuality, according to a 2009 Pew Research Study that Reeve references, the estimated Black Mormon population is between sixty thousand …

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Moving Histories: On Mobility, Materiality, And Experience In Mormon Heritage, Simon Coleman Jan 2022

Moving Histories: On Mobility, Materiality, And Experience In Mormon Heritage, Simon Coleman

Mormon Studies Review

In her engaging account of the intersections of Mormon history, memory, and place across the American West, Sara Patterson often returns to a striking narrative—one that is well known within LDS Church circles. It describes the occasion in 1847 when Brigham Young is said to have looked out at the Salt Lake Valley and declared, “This is the place.” From one perspective, Young’s words—both description and prescription—could hardly have been more unequivocal. They came at the end of a difficult journey and signaled the burgeoning fulfilment of Young’s vision of a Mormon Zion. Nowadays, the spot where he is assumed …

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Thetis, Courtney Lehikainen Jan 2022

Thetis, Courtney Lehikainen

Inscape

Her name was Thetis, and she was from the sea. And like the sea, she could not die. She ebbed and flowed, her mood changing with the centuries. At times she beat the rocky cliffs into sand relentlessly, drowning sailors and sending ships to the bottom of the sea that was also Thetis. Sometimes she was smooth and placid, movements precise and sometimes barely there at all. She was too uncaring, nearly unfeeling, and always undying.

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Covenant Theology For Latter-Day Saints, Jasmin Gimenez Rappleye Jan 2022

Covenant Theology For Latter-Day Saints, Jasmin Gimenez Rappleye

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

Covenants are central in the Latter-day Saint temple liturgy, our scriptural canon is infused with them, and General Authorities have increasingly drawn attention to their importance in the last half-century. Yet many Latter-day Saints are still unfamiliar with the form and function of covenants and the role they play in God’s plan of salvation. Kerry Muhlestein, well-informed by his academic training in ancient history and scripture, provides a lucid introduction to covenants for Latter- day Saints.

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A Comparison Of The Book Of Mormon’S Subordinate That Usage, Stanford Carmack Jan 2022

A Comparison Of The Book Of Mormon’S Subordinate That Usage, Stanford Carmack

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

This paper compares the Book of Mormon’s subordinate that usage with what is found in the King James Bible, pseudo-archaic writings, and the greater textual record. In this linguistic domain, the Book of Mormon manifests as thoroughly archaic, and it surpasses all known pseudo-archaic writings in breadth and depth of archaism. The implications of this set of linguistic data indicate that the translation as originally dictated by Joseph Smith cannot plausibly be explained as the result of Joseph’s own word choices, but it is consistent with the hypothesis that the wording was somehow provided to him.

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This Holy Mess, Sharlee Mullins Glenn Jan 2022

This Holy Mess, Sharlee Mullins Glenn

BYU Studies

When we go on road trips as a family, we often play what we call “Deep Questions.” One person asks a probing question, and then the rest of us have to answer (“What is the bravest thing you’ve ever done?” “If you could spend one hour with any historical figure, who would it be?” and so on). On one such occasion, someone asked: “What is your greatest fear?”

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The River Conception's Mouth, David Thacker Jan 2022

The River Conception's Mouth, David Thacker

BYU Studies

Under her linea nigra the abdominals have parted, / and the couple has finally neared the river’s estuary, / a lowland of swirling impatience and rising pain.

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Prophets, Pagans, And Papyri, Stephen O. Smoot, Kerry Muhlestein Jan 2022

Prophets, Pagans, And Papyri, Stephen O. Smoot, Kerry Muhlestein

BYU Studies

Egypt has a long history of exchange and contact with a variety of people. Ancient people of diverse ethnic backgrounds made their way into Egypt—whether as war captives, mercenaries, merchants, invading armies, members of diplomatic parties, refugees, or simple migrants—bringing with them their language and culture. One such group was the ancient Jews, whose enslavement at the hands of “a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph” (Ex. 1:8), and exodus under the prophetic leadership of Moses may be the best-remembered incident of a Hebrew presence in Egypt, but it was not the only one.

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"Last At The Cross", John Hilton Iii, Jesse Vincent, Rachel Harper Jan 2022

"Last At The Cross", John Hilton Iii, Jesse Vincent, Rachel Harper

BYU Studies

An article in the 1921 issue of the Relief Society Magazine states, “Sisters of the Relief Society, . . . answer to your hearts one question: Have I secured to myself the Pearl of Great Price, the great gift of God to man, which is eternal life, and which can be secured only through first obtaining a testimony of the mission and crucifixion of the Savior, with the added testimony that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the living God, and that he revealed anew the gospel of Jesus Christ in this the last dispensation to the children of men?” …

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Constancy Amid Change, Michael Goodman, Daniel Frost Jan 2022

Constancy Amid Change, Michael Goodman, Daniel Frost

BYU Studies

Few issues are more sensitive and in need of serious study than gender and sexuality. Taylor Petrey’s book, Tabernacles of Clay: Sexuality and Sexual Difference in Modern Mormonism, contributes much to that study. The book provides a nuanced view of Church leaders’ attempts to understand and teach the nature of gender and sexuality. Petrey shows that Latter-day Saint discourse on these issues has changed substantially, especially since World War II. Petrey has gathered a trove of material for scholars and others who seek to better understand how culture, tradition, and theology have shaped teachings about gender and sexuality. Though …

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Introduction, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Introduction, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The Book of Abraham is accepted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as an inspired or revealed translation of the writings of the biblical patriarch Abraham. Joseph Smith began the translation of the text after he acquired some Egyptian papyrus scrolls and mummies in summer 1835. Canonized as scripture by the Church in 1880, the book narrates an account of the patriarch’s near-sacrifice at the hands of his idolatrous kinsfolk, his journey into Canaan, the covenant he entered into with God, and his visions of the premortal world and the Creation. Although a short book of only …

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The Relationship Between The Book Of Abraham And The Joseph Smith Papyri, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

The Relationship Between The Book Of Abraham And The Joseph Smith Papyri, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

It is clear that Joseph Smith’s inspired translation of the Book of Abraham was connected to the Egyptian papyri he acquired in summer 1835. However, less clear is the precise relationship between the Book of Abraham text and the papyri. “Several theories posit ways in which the Book of Abraham text relates to the papyri. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints maintains that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Abraham from papyri, but they do not specify which papyri. Theories about the relationship may be categorized under three heads: Joseph Smith produced the Book of Abraham (1) from …

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Abrahamic Astronomy, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Abrahamic Astronomy, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The Book of Abraham is noteworthy for its description of what is sometimes called “Abrahamic astronomy.” Chapter 3 of the Book of Abraham, along with Facsimile 2, contains this astronomical portrait, which is not always easy to understand. Scholars looking at the text in chapter 3 have articulated at least three different models for interpreting this feature.

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Shinehah, The Sun, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Shinehah, The Sun, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

One of the astronomical terms defined in the Book of Abraham is Shinehah, which is said to be the sun (Abr. 3:13). Earlier in the Book of Abraham, the “god of Shagreel” is identified as the sun as well (Abr. 1:9). The context of these passages suggests that Shagreel is a West Semitic name or word while hinehah is an Egyptian name or word, although this is not explicit in the text.1 We do not know how Joseph Smith intended the word Shinehah to be pronounced; whether, for instance, shine-hah or shi-ney-hah or some other way. However it is pronounced, …

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Egyptianisms In The Book Of Abraham, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Egyptianisms In The Book Of Abraham, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

One way of determining whether the Book of Abraham is a translation of an underlying Egyptian document or whether it was originally composed in English is to see if the text contains what might be called Egyptianisms, or literary and linguistic features of the Egyptian language. The presence of Egyptianisms in the text of the Book of Abraham “might indicate some knowledge of Egyptian on Joseph Smith’s part.” Because “Egyptian was not really understood in Joseph Smith’s day,” any knowledge of Egyptian Joseph Smith may have possessed could only have come by revelation.

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Abrahamic Legends And Lore, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Abrahamic Legends And Lore, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

As a central figure in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, there are many extrabiblical traditions about the life of the patriarch Abraham. These sources are important to study because they may contain distant memories of real events in Abraham’s life. It is also interesting to compare the Book of Abraham with these sources because the Book of Abraham might help us understand these extrabiblical sources better and vice versa.

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Facsimile 1 As A Sacrifice Scene, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Facsimile 1 As A Sacrifice Scene, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

Facsimile 1 of the Book of Abraham visually depicts the narrative contained in Abraham 1:12–19. As interpreted by Joseph Smith, this scene depicts Abraham fastened upon an altar before some idolatrous gods. An idolatrous priest is about to sacrifice Abraham, who is protected by the angel of the Lord.

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Shulem, One Of The King's Principal Waiters, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Shulem, One Of The King's Principal Waiters, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

Figure 5 in Facsimile 3 of the Book of Abraham is identified as “Shulem, one of the king’s principal waiters.” We don’t know anything more about the man Shulem beyond this brief description because he does not appear in the text of the Book of Abraham. Presumably, if we had more of the story, we would know more about how he fit in the overall Abrahamic narrative. However, there are some things we can say about Shulem and his title “the king’s principal waiter.”

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Abraham And Osiris, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Abraham And Osiris, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

Figure 1 of Facsimile 3 of the book of Abraham was interpreted by Joseph Smith as “Abraham sitting upon Pharaoh’s throne, by the politeness of the king, with a crown upon his head, representing the Priesthood, as emblematical of the grand Presidency in Heaven; with the scepter of justice and judgment in his hand.” This interpretation has clashed with those offered by Egyptologists, who have instead identified the figure as the god Osiris. What’s more, two Egyptologists have claimed to arrive at this interpretation from reading the hieroglyphs to the right of figure 1.

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Religion And Sexual Orientation As Predictors Of Utah Youth Suicidality, W. Justin Dyer, Michael A. Goodman, David S. Wood Jan 2022

Religion And Sexual Orientation As Predictors Of Utah Youth Suicidality, W. Justin Dyer, Michael A. Goodman, David S. Wood

BYU Studies

Adolescent suicide rates have increased substantially over the last two decades; suicide has become the second leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults since 2017. Some areas in the U.S. have experienced particularly large rises in suicide. For example, according to the Utah Department of Health, there was a 136.2 percent increase in suicides among Utah youth age 10–17 from 2011 to 2015, compared to an increase of 24 percent nationally.

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Jesus Makes Everything Better, Sam Brown Jan 2022

Jesus Makes Everything Better, Sam Brown

BYU Studies

I’ve been writing this eulogy in my head for some years now. Several times it has seemed clear that Kate would be leaving us soon. But then she has stayed. And now she is gone.

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Book Of Mormon Studies: An Introduction And Guide By Daniel Becerra, Amy Easton-Flake, Nicholas J. Frederick, And Joseph M. Spencer, Matthew B. Christensen Jan 2022

Book Of Mormon Studies: An Introduction And Guide By Daniel Becerra, Amy Easton-Flake, Nicholas J. Frederick, And Joseph M. Spencer, Matthew B. Christensen

BYU Studies

The aptly titled Book of Mormon Studies: An Introduction and Guide gives readers a welcome, straightforward, and helpful overview of where the field of Book of Mormon studies has been, where it is currently, and where it may go in the future. The book is coauthored by Daniel Becerra, Amy Easton-Flake, Nicholas J. Frederick, and Joseph M. Spencer—all professors of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

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Utahisms: Unique Expressions, Inventions, Place Names, And More By David Ellingson Eddington, Roger Terry Jan 2022

Utahisms: Unique Expressions, Inventions, Place Names, And More By David Ellingson Eddington, Roger Terry

BYU Studies

This slim volume by Brigham Young University linguistics professor David Eddington should interest anyone who grew up in Utah, lived in Utah, or is curious about the linguistic, geographic, and historical curiosities of the Beehive State. The book offers numerous surprises and debunks several common misconceptions about the origins of Utah names, places, inventions, and novelties.

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Front Matter Jan 2022

Front Matter

BYU Studies

No abstract provided.

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Ur Of The Chaldees, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Ur Of The Chaldees, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The opening verse of the Book of Abraham places the beginning of the patriarch’s story “in the land of the Chaldeans” (Abr. 1:1). Several references to the city of Ur and “Ur of the Chaldees” are also present in the text (Abr. 1:20; 2:1, 4, 15; 3:1). This location is said to be the “residence of [Abraham’s] fathers” and Abraham’s own residence and “country” (Abr. 1:1; 2:3).

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The Priesthood Ban And The Book Of Abraham, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

The Priesthood Ban And The Book Of Abraham, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The Book of Abraham preserves an account of the founding of Egypt (Abr. 1:23–27) and mentions the origins of a “curse in the land” (v. 24) pertaining to the priesthood among the descendants of Ham. “The land of Egypt,” the text says, was “first discovered by a woman, who was the daughter of Ham, and the daughter of Egyptus” (v. 23). According to this account, “when this woman discovered the land it was under water, who afterward settled her sons in it; and thus, from Ham, sprang that race which preserved the curse in the land” (v. 24). Before the …

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Human Sacrifice, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Human Sacrifice, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The Book of Abraham begins with an account of the biblical patriarch Abraham almost being sacrificed to the “dumb idols” and “strange gods” of his kinsfolk (Abr. 1:7–8). The form of sacrifice practiced by Abraham’s kinsfolk in Ur of the Chaldees (vv. 8, 13) was said to be “after the manner of the Egyptians” (vv. 9, 11), and indeed a “priest of Pharaoh” was involved in this procedure (vv. 7–8, 10). This suggests that Abraham’s kinsfolk had adopted Egyptian practices and incorporated these elements into their local (Chaldean) rituals.

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The Idolatrous God Elkenah, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

The Idolatrous God Elkenah, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The Book of Abraham tells how Abraham’s kinsfolk worshipped false gods. One of these was “the god of Elkenah” (Abr. 1:6). When Abraham preached against the worship of this god, he said that his kinsfolk “hearkened not unto [his] voice, but endeavored to take away [his] life by the hand of the priest of Elkenah” (v. 7). Not only did the priest try to take Abraham’s life, but “this priest had offered upon this altar three virgins at one time, . . . because of their virtue; they would not bow down to worship gods of wood or of stone, …

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Sobek, The God Of Pharaoh, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

Sobek, The God Of Pharaoh, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

The opening chapter of the Book of Abraham identifies “the god of Pharaoh” as being one of the idolatrous gods worshipped by Abraham’s kinsfolk (Abr. 1:6, 9, 13, 17). In figure 9 of Facsimile 1 of the Book of Abraham, this god is depicted as a crocodile. Is there any evidence for who this god might have been and whether he was worshipped in Abraham’s lifetime (ca. 2000–1800 BC)?

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The Divine Council, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson Jan 2022

The Divine Council, Stephen O. Smoot, John Gee, Kerry Muhlestein, John S. Thompson

BYU Studies

One thing that differentiates the Book of Abraham’s account of the Creation from the biblical account in Genesis is that the Book of Abraham mentions plural Gods as the agents carrying out the Creation. “And then the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at the beginning, and they, that is the Gods, organized and formed the heavens and the earth” (Abr. 4:1). These Gods are mentioned thirty-two times in Abraham 4 and sixteen times in Abraham 5. Significantly, these Gods are said to have taken “counsel” among themselves during the Creation (Abr. 4:26; 5:2–3, 5).

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