Jenkins Rejoinder 2

I’m not sure what happened, but this comment from Prof. Jenkins did get posted yesterday.  It is a comment that should immediately follow my fourth response on scholarship.  The subsequent comment won’t make a lot of sense if you don’t read this one first.

Sorry about the inconvenience and confusions this might cause.  Here is Dr. Jenkins’ comment first comment

You mis-state my views. I have never suggested that LDS scholars in ANY field are inferior to their colleagues, whether in Meso-American studies or not.

Or as I said, “By the way, there are outstanding archaeologists of Mormon faith, and some do indeed publish in such stellar outlets. They do not do so, though, on the Book of Mormon schema.”

Here is his second:

My original comment is still not up, unless there is some technical reason why I am not seeing it. I would like that up, please, as it is an important response to your post.

My main point in that comment is that I never said that LDS scholars are any less reputable than those of other faiths. As I said in my column, “By the way, there are outstanding archaeologists of Mormon faith, and some do indeed publish in such stellar outlets. They do not do so, though, on the Book of Mormon schema.”

My main issue is this. There are, as you say, terrific Mormon Mesoamericanists – world class people. Why don’t they publish in mainstream outlets on Book of Mormon themes? The answer is simple. They would dearly love to, but they have nothing vaguely convincing, plausible or respectable that would support that text, and they can’t make bricks without straw. If they did have anything plausible to play with, their professional reputation and clout would mean that it would appear in a flagship journal almost instantly. And that is given all their knowledge, experience and background. It sort of suggests that there is nothing there to find, doesn’t it?

You misconstrue my comment. I said people, all people, have a great ability to juggle competing world views. I never suggested any form of dissociation in a psychological or medical sense, nor that LDS people are more or less likely to suffer from such attitudes. I accuse them of suffering from human nature, much as you and I do.

Perhaps you missed my comment that “The same is true, to varying degrees of other faiths.” I should have added: or people of no faith.