Another passage from one of my rough-cut manuscripts:   We’ll first look at various explanations holding that, yes, there was an objective reality [to the plates, etc.], but it was an artifact of fraud.  This is perhaps the most common explanation advanced by skeptics.  As one recent book from a prestigious academic publisher remarks in passing, with regard to the Book of Mormon, “Exactly how this work was composed remains a matter of debate, but most non-Mormons would... Read more

      “We are an impossibility in an impossible universe.” Ray Bradbury   “Every moment of light and dark is a miracle.” Walt Whitman   “Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.” Socrates   “The feeling of awed wonder that science can give us is one of the highest experiences of which the human psyche is capable. It is a deep aesthetic passion to rank with the finest that music and poetry can deliver. It is truly one of the... Read more

    Some interesting comments from a German theoretical physicist about possibly running up against the limits of science:   “How do you prove that Earth is older than 10,000 years?”   If I had to hazard a judgment from the article, I would guess that she’s not a theist.  But I expect that I’ll be assaulted yet again for quoting only anti-scientific Christian apologists, or something of that sort.  Sigh.   ***   Our scientific knowledge remains distressingly superficial.  By which I... Read more

    Here’s a column that I wrote for the Deseret News back in December 2010:   I often wonder which of the two holidays, Christmas or Easter, is the most theologically significant.  Occasionally, I’m repelled not only by the commercialism of modern Christmas but by its sentimentality.  It’s too easy, sometimes, to gush about the “babe of Bethlehem.”  Babies are cute.  They’re funny.  They’re unthreatening.  And, although they certainly make demands upon their parents (often in the middle of... Read more

    Continuing with the discussion that I began in a prior entry, “How can a Latter-day Saint entertain the possibility that Muhammad might have been a prophet? (Part One)”:   The Facebook comments from Richard Giroux appear in red.  My one additional Facebook response will appear in green, while my responses here will simply appear in the ordinary default black.   “Truth exists independent of the speaker/messenger of it. According to the LDS canon, Satan spoke truth, accompanied by... Read more

    Another Friday?  Yes.  So there’s another new article in Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture, this one written by Dr. Matthew Bowen, of Brigham Young University’s campus in Hawaii:   “‘He Did Go About Secretly’: Additional Thoughts on the Literary Use of Alma’s Name”   ***   The latest installment of the biweekly Hamblin-Peterson column in the Deseret News:   “Impact of the Russian religious revolution”   ***   An interesting program on the Book of Abraham, in which... Read more

    There have been several negative responses to my blog post of the other day titled “Mormonism in the Middle,” in which I indicated my openness to the idea that Muhammad might have been a genuine prophet and my strong sense that, at a minimum, he probably received genuine inspiration.   Some of the responses have been mere regurgitations of pretty standard-issue anti-Islamic propaganda.  Some (I’m thinking of one particular message board) merely reflect the usual hostile (and thoroughly unserious) eagerness to... Read more

    I find the continual contrasts of science to religion made by certain atheists — including at least two who like to comment on my blog — exceedingly odd.  They incessantly point out that science has given us new technologies and cures for polio and other diseases, while theology hasn’t.   My response, on the whole, is “So what?”   To me, this is rather like criticizing the Houston Astros for their failure to score a single touchdown during the entire 2017 baseball... Read more

    First off, I want to express my gratitude for all of the good that so many of you do.  And particularly, today, I want to thank those who have been supportive of the Interpreter Foundation — as writers, donors, editors, media specialists, volunteers, and so forth.  I’m especially grateful to Bryce Haymond for the work he did, in remarkably short order, of designing our website and getting us up online and, for years, of running our online operations, and... Read more

Revised and reposted. Read more