Noted critic of Mormonism John Dehlin is facing possible excommunication. No doubt there will be a lot of discussion of this in the near future. Those interested in the deep background to Dehlin’s situation should read the following studies by Gregory L. Smith of Dehlin’s thought and activities, available here. Read more
I’m going to be teaching a class on “Mysticism and Esotericism” at BYU, in Fall 2014. I’ll be posting occasional materials from the class on my blog. If there is enough interest, I can record some of the classes and post the recordings as well. The class will be divided into four parts, each three weeks long: 1- classical Mediterranean 2- Jewish 3- Christian 4- Islamic The flier for the course is attached here: Mysticism flier Read more
People interested in temple theology, deification, celestial ascent, and biblical esoterica should check out David Larsen’s blog Heavenly Ascents. Read more
Not exactly religious, but it is the great tragedy of our age that such a case can be seriously made. Andrew McCarthy, Faithless Execution Read more
The claim is often made by supporters of the Documentary Hypothesis that there is scholarly consensus on the validity of the theory. This claim is exaggerated. Neal Rappleye sent me the following quotations from Carol A. Redmount, “Bitter Lives: Israel in and out of Egypt,” in The Oxford History of the Biblical World, ed. Michael D. Coogan (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998), 79–121. “Among those who accept [the Documentary Hypothesis], however, major areas of dispute persist, including disagreements over... Read more
I’ll be leading a tour to Guatemala on 23 January-1 Feb 2015. Click here for information. More details will be forthcoming. Read more
Another remarkable characteristic of the Documentarians is their unwillingness to simply admit, “We just don’t know.” What I have been trying to do in this series of blogs is explore the reasons for the problems and ultimate failure of the hypothesis, and thereby explain why I find the hypothesis unconvincing. In my opinion the Documentary Hypothesis has been a century and a half-long exercise in academic futility. Scholars are further from consensus now regarding the details of the Documentary Hypothesis... Read more
A review of The Apocalypse in the Light of the Temple by Peter Leithart. This book basically argues that the book of Revelation is a temple text. Read more
Interesting reflections on what I call Para-Buddhists (people on the sides or fringes of Buddhism). It illuminates similar types of issues among Para-Mormons. Read more
Photos from my recent trip to Idaho Falls LDS Temple. http://imaginalworlds.smugmug.com/Idaho/Idaho-Falls-LDS-Temple/ Read more
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