Somehow, I failed to call attention here to this little essay, even though it was published in Meridian Magazine a full week ago. Incidentally, too, just to clear up any confusion, despite the title of the article (which, I admit, could easily mislead many readers) it is not an entry taken from my wife’s diary: “On Choosing Prince Charming” The sixth chapter of Richard Lyman Bushman’s book Joseph Smith’s Gold Plates: A Cultural History (New York: Oxford University Press,... Read more
A reader of this blog by the name of Laralee Nelson shared a couple of links in a blog comment that, with her kind permission (and since they’re in the public domain over at FamilySearch), I’m now sharing here more generally. The first link is to the last will and testament of one Samuel Webb, “a butcher by trade, of Dry Drayton, county of Cambridge.” I quote one particular passage from the document: I am mindful of the tradition... Read more
These new items have appeared on the nearly comatose and virtually moribund website of the Interpreter Foundation. Happy weekend! We hope that you will enjoy them. “An Important Addition to the Library,” written by Kevin Christensen Review of Grant Hardy, The Annotated Book of Mormon (New York: Oxford University Press, 2023). 912 pages; $37.95 (hardcover). Abstract: Oxford University Press has published an annotated edition of the Book of Mormon. This represents a significant event and provides a useful study resource.... Read more
Conference Talks: The Two Ways in Ancient Egyptian Religion and Israelite Temple Theology, presented at the 2018 Temple on Mount Zion Conference by John Thompson The fourth “Temple on Mount Zion” Conference was held on Saturday, November 10, 2018 in the Tanner Building at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. The presentations were filmed, and both video and audio recordings of each presentation are available. The videos are currently available both at https://interpreterfoundation.org/conferences/2018-temple-on-mount-zion-conference/2018-temple-on-mount-zion-conference-videos/and on the Interpreter Foundation YouTube channel at... Read more
I’ve been reading a small collection of essays by the late Edward O. Wilson (1929-2021), the Harvard biologist, ecologist, and entomologist who is best known for developing the field of sociobiology: Every Species is a Masterpiece (London: Penguin Books, 2021). Wilson was also, by the way, an outspoken advocate of “scientific humanism” (a term that, indeed, he is said to have coined) and a vocal critic of religious belief, although he denied being an actual atheist. The principal theme... Read more
I read an interesting paper this morning — Stephan A. Schwartz, “Nonlocality and Exceptional Experiences: A Study of Genius, Religious Epiphany, and the Psychic,” Explore 6/4 (July/August 2010): 227-236 — from which I’ll share a few quoted passages. At the time that he published his article, Stephan Schwartz was Senior Samueli Fellow for Brain, Mind, and Healing at the Samueli Institute, in Alexandria, Virginia. First, the abstract: Two hundred years of reductive materialism has failed to explain the extraordinary... Read more
Spencer Kraus, Martin Tanner, Hales Swift, and Brent Schmidt came together for the 7 January 2024 episode of the Interpreter Radio Show, which focused on Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon lesson 5 and on evidences for the Book of Mormon. Their conversation is now archived, freed from commercial interruptions, and made available for your listening pleasure. The “New Testament in Context” portion of the 7 January 2024 show, for Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon lesson 5, will... Read more
We participated in the first dedicatory service for the new Orem Utah Temple this morning. Elder Hugo E. Martinez, whom we came to know just a bit during a tour of Israel many years ago (prior to his call as a General Authority), conducted the meeting, which featured a pre-recorded video message from President Russell M. Nelson. Elder Kevin R. Duncan led those assembled in the “Hosanna Shout.” Elder Patrick Kearon, who was ordained an apostle just last month,... Read more
We held our quarterly Interpreter Foundation board meeting today — technically, it’s our annual board meeting (so, among many other things, we voted to continue our officers as they had been constituted) — and our book committee met this afternoon. There are, I’m happy to report, some very good things on the horizon. I’m so grateful for all of those who contribute time and effort to make Interpreter work — notably including the members of our board — and... Read more
Newly published on the website of the Interpreter Foundation: “Heavenly Ascent in Jacob’s Writings in Second Nephi: Addressing the Question of What the Plan of Salvation is in the Book of Mormon,” written by Skyler R. Smith Abstract: Heavenly ascent describes the process of an individual (or community) returning to the presence of God. Though various elements exist within heavenly ascent literature, general patterns can be discerned. This project uses one such pattern as a hermeneutical tool to examine... Read more
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