Some further notes from John W . Welch, et al., eds., Knowing Why: 137 Evidences That the Book of Mormon Is True (American Fork: Covenant Communications, 2017), 35-40:
The essay “Did Pre-Christian Prophets Know about Christ?” (35-36) addresses something that is often derided as an anachronism in the Book of Mormon: Did the pre-Christian Jaredite and Nephite prophets simply know too much about Christ? Is their foreknowledge plausible? If so, why didn’t the ancient Hebrew prophets of the Old Testament know so much.
Drawing on both Latter-day Saint and non-Latter-day Saint (and even non-Christian) scholarship, the essay argues that the ancient Hebrews actually did know surprisingly much in advance — and, in fact, pretty much the same major things.
“What Does the Virgin Mother Have to Do with the Tree of Life” (37-38) cites my research, along with that of others, to make the case that the curious conjunction of the ancient Near Eastern symbol of the Tree of Life with the Virgin Mary in Nephi’s vision (1 Nephi 11) fits extremely well into the world of pre-exilic Israel. A remarkable bullseye for Joseph Smith, if you imagine that he invented the Book of Mormon.
“What Was the Great and Terrible Gulf in Lehi’s Dream?” (39-40) contends that the abyss and the “filthy water” described in Lehi and Nephi’s visions reflect the actual topography of ancient Arabia — the very region through which the Lehites passed and in which they spent several years.
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New, on the website of the Interpreter Foundation, from Paul Hoskisson:
“Symbolism in the Bible and the Flood”
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A nice article from Taylor Halverson:
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From The Daily Signal: “I’m a Mormon, and The New York Times Needlessly Defamed My Church’s Leader”
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“LDS Meetinghouse in Twin Falls Vandalized with Message That Couldn’t Be Further from the Truth”
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If you missed the announcement of the new First Presidency and the press conference that followed it, here are two ways that you can watch at least part of what happened:
“New First Presidency Holds News Conference”
“New First Presidency Speaks to Members Worldwide”
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Finally, some of you might find this of interest.
A year or so ago, I told the head of CruiseLady.com that I would be going to the famous Passion Play in Oberammergau, in Bavaria, when it’s next held in 2020. (I’ve already attended the play three times before.) I told her that, if she wanted to organize a tour around it, that would be fine, but that I was going in any case.
My suggestion, if you’re interested, is that you sign up soon. It will absolutely sell out.
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