{"id":95935,"date":"2022-07-22T21:50:34","date_gmt":"2022-07-23T03:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=95935"},"modified":"2022-07-25T18:26:02","modified_gmt":"2022-07-26T00:26:02","slug":"abridging-the-records-of-the-zoramite-mission-mormon-as-historian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2022\/07\/abridging-the-records-of-the-zoramite-mission-mormon-as-historian.html","title":{"rendered":"“Abridging the Records of the Zoramite Mission: Mormon as Historian”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"It<\/a>
Local signage claims that Depoe Bay is the smallest harbor in the world. And the claim may well be correct.
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photo by Joe Mabel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had only intermittent internet access over the past few days \u2014 thus far, today, the WiFi where we\u2019re staying has been down for at least the past nine hours (and I\u2019ve had to walk to another, fairly distant, location to post this<\/em>) \u2014 so I\u2019m a little bit behind in announcing here the appearance of two new items on the website of the Interpreter Foundation.\u00a0 (We\u2019ve been here for four days, and the WiFi has failed for several hours on each and every one of those days.)\u00a0 But here are links to the two articles:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAbridging the Records of the Zoramite Mission: Mormon as Historian,\u201d<\/a> by Steven L. Olsen<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Abstract:\u00a0<\/strong>Since the mid-twentieth century, scholarly studies of the literary craftsmanship of biblical texts have revealed considerable insights into the intended purposes of the authors of these scriptural narratives. The present study applies the analytical methods of these studies to Mormon\u2019s abridgment of Alma\u2019s records of the Zoramite mission (Alma 31\u201335), revealing intricate patterns of literary conventions ranging from the most specific (e.g., diction, syntax, and figures of speech) to the most general (e.g., rhetoric, tone, and structural logic). From this perspective, Alma 31 provides a framework to distinguish Nephite and Zoramite religious practices and structure the narrative of the entire Zoramite mission, including the missionaries\u2019 teachings. More broadly, Mormon\u2019s account of the Zoramite mission sets the stage for the general degradation of Nephite society that focuses his abridgment of Nephi\u2019s Large Plates for the next one hundred years.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cInterpreting\u00a0Interpreter<\/em>: Structuring Alma\u2019s Zoramite Mission,\u201d<\/a> by Kyler Rasmussen<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

This post is a summary of the article \u201cAbridging the Records of the Zoramite Mission: Mormon as Historian<\/a>\u201d by Steven L. Olsen in Volume 52 of\u00a0Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

An introduction to the Interpreting\u00a0Interpreter<\/em>\u00a0series is available at\u00a0https:\/\/interpreterfoundation.org\/interpreting-interpreter-on-abstracting-thought\/<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Takeaway:<\/strong>\u00a0Olsen points to several patterns in Alma 31 that appear to provide a framework for how Mormon understood Alma\u2019s mission to the Zoramites, one that presages the eventual decline of Nephite society.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"My<\/a>
The entrance to Depoe Bay proper, which runs between two rocky cliffs, is just slightly to our south.
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

You might find these links of interest:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Rome, President Oaks continues Latter-day Saint effort to champion religious liberty worldwide: Speech at international Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is the latest by Latter-day Saint apostles to bring a multifaith solution to defending freedoms.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAt a Catholic Conference in Rome, President Oaks Offers Four Ways to Strengthen Religious Freedom: \u2018I call for a global effort to defend and advance the religious freedom of all the children of God in every nation of the world\u2019\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Oaks and Vatican II: A Latter-day Saint apostle praises a late pope and a Catholic document\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And here is another account of that same meeting in Rome:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cReligious freedom is under fire across the globe, experts warn\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finally, though, here\u2019s a ghastly horror from the Christopher Hitchens Memorial \u201cHow Religion Poisons Everything\u201d File<\/em>\u00a9 that will surely cause decent people everywhere to wonder whether so-called \u201creligious freedom\u201d ought to be abolished altogether<\/em>, and as soon as possible<\/em>:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Perks of Faith: How religious belief and behavior help students thrive in school\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

It kinda sends a shiver right down yer spine, don\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

And that, folks, is about all the time and patience I can muster for the Web right now.\u00a0 It\u2019s been too exasperating today.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Posted from Depoe Bay, Oregon<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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

\u00a0 \u00a0 I\u2019ve had only intermittent internet access over the past few days \u2014 thus far, today, the WiFi where we\u2019re staying has been down for at least the past nine hours (and I\u2019ve had to walk to another, fairly distant, location to post this) \u2014 so I\u2019m a little bit behind in announcing here […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[30208,30214,30217,30211,30193,30196,30199,30202,30205,56,813,20206,21150,5811,30220,5394,30223,4898,11530,2767,2652,20511,24374,10558,788,5142,1359,1830,743,2100,2097,3988,12737,22168,16122,16125,16612,3448,20176,23708,30190,23705],"class_list":["post-95935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-abridge","tag-abridger","tag-abridging","tag-abridgment","tag-alma-31","tag-alma-32","tag-alma-33","tag-alma-34","tag-alma-35","tag-book-of-mormon","tag-christopher-hitchens","tag-christopher-hitchens-memorial-how-religion-poisons-everything-file","tag-dallin-h-oaks","tag-dallin-oaks","tag-editing","tag-editor","tag-editorial","tag-education","tag-historian","tag-historiography","tag-hitchens","tag-hitchens-file","tag-kyler-rasmussen","tag-mission","tag-mormon","tag-nephite","tag-nephites","tag-notre-dame","tag-religion","tag-religious-freedom","tag-religious-liberty","tag-rome","tag-school","tag-steven-l-olsen","tag-student","tag-students","tag-studies","tag-vatican","tag-zoram","tag-zoramite","tag-zoramite-mission","tag-zoramites"],"yoast_head":"\n"Abridging 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