I’m sure that he has many merits.  His “Samaritan’s Purse” charity seems to do a lot of good, for example.   But Franklin Graham has a hard edge that’s very different from his famous father’s graciousness:   http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865633179/Evangelicals-and-Muslims-together-denounce-Franklin-Graham7s-anti-Muslim-remarks.html     Read more

    As currently understood and reported, this discovery doesn’t appear directly relevant to the Book of Mormon and it certainly doesn’t count as evidence for its claims:   http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/israeli-researchers-group-of-colorado-indians-have-genetic-jewish-roots.premium-1.433227   But it’s intriguing.   And it does plainly suggest that there’s still a lot to be done and a lot to be discovered, and many surprises to be had, with respect to Amerindian genetics.  Moreover, as various authorities have pointed out, not identifyng Sariah’s unknown genetic signature among today’s Native Americans... Read more

    “To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.”  (C. S. Lewis)     Read more

    Some proponents of the so-called “Heartland” model of Book of Mormon geography have attempted to recruit the late Hugh Nibley as a supporter of their views and an opponent of the Mesoamerican “limited geographical model” most prominently associated with John Sorenson.   As Matt Roper shows, that simply won’t fly:   http://etherscave.blogspot.com/2015/07/hugh-nibley-on-john-sorensons-book.html     Read more

    A very nice conversion story:   http://www.ldsliving.com/What-Happened-When-My-Rabbi-Told-Me-to-Read-the-Book-of-Mormon/s/79536?utm_source=ldsliving&utm_medium=email     Read more

    The Never-Ending Story:   Hamblin 34:  From Smoot   Jenkins 22:  Credible and Plausible   Jenkins 23:  Empirical and Objective   Jenkins 24:  Nahom Part Deux   Jenkins 25:  Answer on Nahom   Hamblin 35:  Time for Clear Thinking on Nahom   Jenkins 26:  Still No Evidence?   Jenkins 27:  Bigfoot?   Jenkins 28:  The Myth of “Therefore”   Jenkins 28:  THE MYTH OF “THEREFORE” (Original)     Read more

      I’m pretty excited about the (familiar) places where the Choir will be performing next year:   http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/mormon-tabernacle-choir-announces-2016-european-tour   And here’s an interesting related piece:   “Mormonism in Pictures: Mormon Tabernacle Choir Expands Outreach”     Read more

    I received the following — which is quite relevant to the continuing . . . um, conversation between Dr. Phillip Jenkins, who is attacking the Book of Mormon, and Dr. William Hamblin, who is representing Truth and Goodness — in two separate emails from Stephen Smoot.  Brother Smoot plainly “gets it” where several loud observers of the exchange plainly don’t:   A note on the limits of archaeology from a filthy post-modernist Mormon apologist . . . or  a... Read more

    Many will agree, as they should, that members of the Church in Africa can be rightly considered pioneers.   But don’t sell yourself and your own family short.  You, too, may have something to contribute here:   http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-launches-online-campaign-to-recognize-pioneers-past-and-present     Read more

      There are a few who’re always curious, and a few others who aren’t the least bit curious but who are certain that I do nothing whatever related to the Islamic Near East and only earn my ill-gotten millions from my apologetic lies and slanders.   So here are the courses that I’ll be teaching this coming Fall Term at BYU:   Interdisciplinary Humanities 242 — Introduction to the Humanities of Islam Middle East Studies (Arabic) 350 — Introduction... Read more