I want to share some passages that I marked a while back from Richard Lyman Bushman, Joseph Smith’s Gold Plates: A Cultural History (New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023). The account of the golden plates as we know it is documented very early: The first known mention of the gold plates in writing occurred in the fall of 1828 in letters to Asael Smith, Joseph Smith Jr.’ s grandfather. Joseph Smith Sr. had not seen his father for... Read more
Incredibly to me, my father died twenty-two years ago today. Soon, it will have been a quarter of a century. I still miss him very much. Somewhat to my surprise, I still think about him every day. Certain sights always, invariably, remind me of him, sometimes for reasons that aren’t clear to me. There are many things that I would like to tell him, many questions that I would like to ask of him. Virtually all, if not absolutely... Read more
Our (superb) guide on the recent Interpreter Foundation Church history tour, Peter Fagg — whom my wife and I have known for years now, and who will also, if all goes according to plan, accompany us on a Christian history-themed tour of England in May of 2026 — shared these remarks with us while we were there a few weeks ago. We liked them so very much that we invited him to share them with the readership of the... Read more
Today, 27 June, is the 181st anniversary of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. I haven’t been looking for such things, but I have already seen one celebratory note about the murders. It was posted by a former member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it puts me in mind of Matthew 7:16-20. This article, written by Matthew Roper, went up earlier today in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: Anachronisms:... Read more
I’ve begun writing down notes for the presentation that I plan to give on Friday, 8 August, at the 2025 FAIR Conference. And, by the way, the conference organizers have included a special discount code that folks can use in order to register for the conference at a reduced rate — which, the organizers say, is “just our way of saying thank you and making it easier for more people to attend.” The discount code that they’ve given to... Read more
Yesterday on social media, I noticed an attack by a former Latter-day Saint on the idea of a “great apostasy” of the early Christian church. I didn’t spend much time reading what he had to say, and I’m not specifically engaging with him here — I may or may not yet do so — but I thought that I might make a general comment affirming my confidence that there was, indeed, such a universal falling away. To me, the... Read more
After considerable discussion that began several months ago and grew more intense within recent weeks, we at the Interpreter Foundation have decided to move on from our long-running radio program and to turn, in its place, to a video and audio podcast. Our inaugural effort, in two parts, can be accessed through the following links. We appreciate constructive feedback, and we hope that you’ll find these both enjoyable and useful: The Interpreter Foundation Podcast — June 23, 2025 In... Read more
I want to share a passage from a 2023 book by Fr. Robert Spitzer, SJ, entitled Science at the Doorstep to God: Science and Reason in Support of God, the Soul, and Life after Death (Ignatius Press) that I marked while reading it a while ago: Though some have contended that scientific evidence overwhelmingly favors materialism—that is, rejection of God, religion, or a spiritual dimension of humans (e.g., a soul)—it is interesting to note a survey conducted by the... Read more
Some of you, I think, will be interested in this ninety-minute interview: “Mayim Bialik Chats with Bruce Greyson on Remarkable ‘Breakdown’ Podcast: Check out the new episode of Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown Podcast, where she sits for a chat about NDEs with IANDS founder Dr. Bruce Greyson.” “Mayim Bialik Explores Near-Death Experiences With Bruce Greyson, MD, in Not-To-Be Missed ‘Breakdown’ Podcast.” Neuroscientist and actress Mayim Bialik, Ph.D., interviewed IANDS founder and University of Virginia Professor Emeritus Bruce Greyson, MD, in... Read more
As I sit in the airport at Kansas City, waiting for a flight back to Salt Lake City that has been repeatedly delayed, news has just come out that American B2 bombers have struck nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The bombers are now safely out of Iranian airspace. The big remaining question is whether the Iranian nuclear facilities have been destroyed. Israel has already used “bunker buster” bombs in the current conflict (as well as... Read more
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