It is on the basis of his or her faith and good works, the Qur’an explains, that the fate of the individual soul is determined.[1] We are assured that life and death were created in order to test us: “We try you with evil and good for a testing, then unto Us you shall be returned.”[2] This test is fairly and carefully constructed, and every man and woman has the capacity to pass it. No soul is asked... Read more
I’ve been slow in calling attention to the latest installment of my bi-weekly column for the Deseret News. Here it is: “How spirituals, such as ‘Michael, Row the Boat Ashore’ and ‘Swing Low,’ bridge the Bible and Greek mythology” One of the most familiar of all spirituals is ”Michael, Row the Boat Ashore” and it seems to have been written down first on St. Helena Island, off the coast of South Carolina, during the Civil War *** ... Read more
In August 1883, David Whitmer, the last surviving Witness of the Book of Mormon plates, spoke with a prominent member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by the name of James H. Hart (1825-1906), who was searching, at the time, for portraits of the Three Witnesses for the YMMIA’s publication, The Contributor. Hart, who was then the Church’s immigration agent in New York City, traveled to Missouri to secure and later to return a photograph of... Read more
Arguments have raged for well over a century and a half about the implications of the theory of evolution for theistic belief, and they will, no doubt, continue to rage for the foreseeable future. One thing that simply cannot be said, however, is that theism as such is impossible to reconcile with belief in evolution. This is empirically demonstrable: There are and have always been ardent theists who are committed evolutionists. The prominent French philosopher, geologist, paleontologist,... Read more
The ultimate destination of the damned is described in the Qur’an with highly picturesque language. Hell is a place of raging and roaring fire, of towering columns of destroying flame, and of scorching winds that drive pitch-black smoke across a blighted landscape. The souls of the unrighteous are prevented from escaping by fetters (hammered out of the very wealth that they lusted after on earth) that bind them to their place of punishment. Still subject to hunger and... Read more
I’m being attacked. That’s not news, of course. I’m attacked every single day on one message board, and very likely on others. What varies from day to day and hour to hour is the angle of attack. One of my recent crimes — in which I’m joined by some of my friends — is that a company called Cruise Lady: Latter-day Adventures has had me accompany a couple of its tours annually for the past decade or... Read more
John Wickliffe Rigdon, a son of Sidney Rigdon, left a memoir of his father. It was published as Karl Keller, ed., “‘I Never Knew a Time When I Did Not Know Joseph Smith’: A Son’s Record of the Life and Testimony of Sidney Rigdon,” in Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 1/4 (1966): 15-42. Here is something from pages 41-42, where John tells about his return from Utah Territory — he had not been positively impressed — and about a conversation... Read more
I continue with some notes from Jerry D. Grover, Jr., Geology of the Book of Mormon (2014). (See this and other works by him and by others at Brother Grover’s Book of Mormon Scientific and Linguistic Research site.). Here, in order, are the prior installments in this series of notes: “Commencing another look at the geology of the Book of Mormon” ‘Volcanism in Mesoamerica” “Ancient geology and really ancient geology” A guide to my... Read more
I continue chugging along with my manuscript on Islam for Latter-day Saints. Here, I’m discussing the Qur’an’s portrayal of the end of all things and the Last Judgment: We are the witnesses of all your thoughts and all your prayers and all your actions. Not an atom’s weight in earth or heaven escapes your Lord, nor is there any object smaller or greater, but is recorded in a glorious book.[1] The records of men’s deeds will be... Read more
New, on the website of the Interpreter Foundation: “Raising the Abrahamic Discourse: An Essay on the Nature of Dialogues About the Book of Abraham”, by Kerry Muhlestein “Scholarly Support for the Book of Abraham,” compiled by the administration of the Interpreter Foundation From Jonn Claybaugh: Come, Follow Me — Study and Teaching Helps: Lesson 35, August 31-September 6, Helaman 13-16 — “Glad Tidings of Great Joy” Audio Roundtable: Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon Lesson 35 “Glad Tidings of Great... Read more
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