{"id":71245,"date":"2019-03-08T18:12:42","date_gmt":"2019-03-09T01:12:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=71245"},"modified":"2019-03-08T20:46:47","modified_gmt":"2019-03-09T03:46:47","slug":"was-adam-a-monotheist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/03\/was-adam-a-monotheist.html","title":{"rendered":"“Was Adam a Monotheist?”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Michelangelos's<\/a>
The Creation of Adam
(A Wikimedia Commons public domain image of a detail from Michelangelo\u2019s Sistine Ceiling in the Vatican)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

It being Friday, a new article appeared today in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWas Adam a Monotheist? \u00a0A Reflection on Why We Call Abraham Father and Not Adam\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Abstract:<\/strong>\u00a0The three great monotheistic religious traditions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) all claim Abraham as father and prototypical monotheist. Though Adam is the putative first father in all of these traditions, he is seldom remembered in Judeo-Christian scriptural, apocryphal, or pseudepigraphic texts as an exemplary monotheist. This essay briefly reviews why Abraham retains the lofty title \u201cFather of Monotheism\u201d while exploring how Latter-day restoration scripture adds to and challenges this ancient tradition vis-\u00e0-vis enhanced understanding of Adam\u2019s covenantal and monotheistic fidelity to God.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Book of Mormon mentions dogs in the New World. \u00a0Is this an error? \u00a0Is it an anachronism?<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

No. \u00a0It\u2019s not.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cDogs in Mesoamerica\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Sacrifice of Dogs in Mesoamerica\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cUtah is full of impactful women leaders\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

For what little it\u2019s worth, by the way, I first met Astrid Tuminez when she was an undergraduate \u2014 a very impressive undergraduate (though, alas, never a student of mine<\/em>) \u2014 at BYU.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In case you missed this:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNew Mormon temple invites Romans for a look\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy journalists will keep using the word \u2018Mormon'\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

It seems to me completely unsurprising to expect that the media will continue to refer to us as \u201cMormons\u201d and as \u201cthe Mormon Church<\/a>.\u201d \u00a0Of course<\/em> they will. \u00a0Nevertheless, I see the point of \u2014 and the value in \u2014 asking members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints<\/a> and the Church itself to emphasize, in their self-labeling, the fact that the faith of Latter-day Saints is centered in and focused on Jesus Christ. \u00a0The nickname Mormon<\/em> too easily allows some to miss that fact and others to ignore or downplay it. \u00a0We can\u2019t control what others do, but we have considerable influence on ourselves.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s possible, though not altogether certain, that this will be the end of efforts by homosexual activists to harrass Jack Phillips and run him out of business:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cColorado, baker end legal spat over transgender woman\u2019s cake\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

A slightly related item from BYU:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFighting for Religious Freedom in the Supreme Court\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And another somewhat related item, from the Washington Post<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cUtah teacher forces student to wash off Ash Wednesday cross\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know whether the incident has anything to do with \u201cMormonism\u201d or not. \u00a0I don\u2019t even know whether the teacher involved is an active Latter-day Saint or an inactive Latter-day Saint or altogether not<\/em> a Latter-day Saint. \u00a0The incident might reflect ignorance about traditional Catholic practices connected with Ash Wednesday, or it might suggest an overzealous application of perceived legal bans on overt religious activity in public schools. \u00a0Whatever. \u00a0In any case, it was wrong<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 It being Friday, a new article appeared today in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: \u00a0 \u201cWas Adam a Monotheist? \u00a0A Reflection on Why We Call Abraham Father and Not Adam\u201d \u00a0 Abstract:\u00a0The three great monotheistic religious traditions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) all claim Abraham as father and prototypical monotheist. 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