Several weeks ago we had a sacrament meeting talk that remains on my mind. The gentleman who concluded the meeting used most of his time to read a story that he frankly admitted came from his mother, who “got it from Google.” If you are thinking that the word “Google” is a bad sign in this context, your spidey sense is doing well. The narrative he read was the highly embellished story of Gertrude Specht. You can read the Google... Read more
1. Although this discourse opens by naming the disciples as the audience, at its conclusion the crowds are said to be listening and “astounded at his teaching” (7:28). 2. The first antithesis (5:21-26), against anger, requires disciples to maintain their relationships despite (or through) their frustrations and displeasure with others. 3. The KJV reads (5:22) “..whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment…” The bolded phrase, which suggests that anger “with cause”... Read more
In preparation for the release of the new season of The Mysterious Cities of Gold, rumored to be out in September (in French only?), here’s what I propose for August: Watch all 39 episodes of the original Mysterious Cities of Gold … at least as many as possible. Read pertainent mini-volumes in the Oxford Very Short Introduction series, such as The Aztecs (2012; there is not one on Incas yet), The Conquistadors (2012), and The North American Indians (2010). Reread... Read more
1. Although commonly referred to as the “Ten Commandments,” in the Hebrew Bible itself they are not so called; rather, they are referred to as the “ten words/sayings” (Exod 34:28; Deut 4:13; 10:4). Thus a better designation perhaps is that derived from the ancient Greek translation of the Bible, known as the Septuagint (LXX), from the 3rd or 2ndcentury B.C.E: the “Decalogue.” The word “Decalogue” comes into English via French and Old Latin from the Greek, deka meaning “ten,” and logos... Read more
Closing out the fifth chapter of Mosiah is an exhortation to righteous living followed by the promise of being sealed to/by God (Mos 5:15): Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of him who created all things,... Read more
Tucked away near the end of the BoM is a description of Christ as “the author and finisher of their faith” (Mor 6:4). A very similar appellation is also applied to Christ in Heb 12:1-2a as it is found in the KJV, although the details of the immediate context are very different. This looks to be a standard way of employing such Christological “nuggets:” much of the “punch” of the NT use remains while the NT co-text is dropped in... Read more
I still have a “church” itch as the idea is found in the BoM. So below, in no particular order, are some observations and thoughts as they stand now: Gendered imagery in the Bible illustrating the relationship between God (or Christ) and his people, represented by Israel, Jerusalem or the Church, is pretty common. In Revelation alone, there are multiple striking images such as the Cosmic Woman of Revelation 12, the Whore of Babylon (Revelation 17) or the “Bride, the... Read more
One the more striking passages from the BoM is the natural man pericope in Mosiah 3. Perhaps I shall have more to say on the central idea of the natural man, later. In the meantime, I wish to focus on the correctives to this fallen state. Three things are recommended: yield to the Holy Spirit put off the natural man and become a saint become as a child, willing to submit to all things It is this third prescriptive statement... Read more
I met Boyd Peterson at Utah Valley State College in the the Summer of 2004. We were both in a week long faculty seminar on ethics-across-the-curriculum. I had recently read Boyd’s biography of his father-in-law Hugh Nibley. Having never attended BYU, I had not had many opportunities to discuss Nibley and I was excited to meet Boyd. In our conversation, Boyd mentioned something that has stuck with me. He said that Nibley fans fall into two categories: 1. Approaching Zion... Read more
The Book of Enos opens like this: “ Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.” Although Enos never really tells us what this “joy of the saints” might be, it seems to me that the entire story functions as an illustration of John 16:22, a verse in one of the stories in which... Read more
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