Was the Book of Mormon translated? Was the Book of Mormon revealed? Was it inspired? Was it all three, or a combination of the above? How much does it matter?
Archive for the 'joseph' Category
As a child, the story of Moroni visiting Joseph Smith seemed familiar to me, but I couldn’t put my finger on just why. Only later, on reflection, did the mythic aspects of the story stand out more sharply.
In 1999 a church news paper surveyed its Latter Day Saint subscribers to glean what single event they thought shaped the last 100 years in Latter Day Saint history. The number one event, rated by its subscribers was the 1978 Priesthood Revelation. Percentage wise the second event didn’t even come close. Continue reading…
Now that we’ve discussed the nature of the First Vision, what did it mean?
There are many meanings, the most vital being those which each person can discover for herself or himself. Here are those we are most familiar with, because they have been written and spoken about at length in the official media of the institutional LDS Church:
Do you believe that God the Father, the Son, and maybe even the Holy Ghost visited Joseph Smith in the spring of 1820?
Or did Joseph have a vision of them?
Does the difference matter? Do you base your testimony, your faith in the existence of God, your continued participation in Mormonism, on a visit of Deity to a young farmboy?
As we know from JS-H 1: 8, Joseph Smith had attended various religious meetings and (in his own words) “In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to the Methodist sect, and I felt some desire to be united with them.” So, what did Joseph Smith (as a future Mormon) see in Methodism, and what practices in our faith correspond with the brand of Methodism Joseph experienced? Continue reading…
For the unindoctrinated, MBTI (Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator) is a psychometric that classifies people into one of 16 profiles. It is primarily used to help people get along better at work (along with staples like Wacky Bowling and Ropes courses). So, what is Jesus’ MBTI type? Does Jesus’ personality type create a subtle bias against religious leaders (or even followers) with different personality traits? Continue reading…
A few months ago, I gave a talk in Sacrament meeting in which I discussed how studying other religious faiths and their scriptures had enriched my life. When the meeting was over, a couple approached me and said they wanted a copy of the talk to give their daughter because she described herself as a “Buddhist Mormon.” The couple said their daughter couldn’t decide whether to be a Buddhist or a Mormon, so she was trying to be both.
In studying Joseph Smith in the 1970s I was struck by how often Joseph Smith would remind the brethren that they did not know as much as they thought they did. He was also clear that he was much more human than they thought and that he did not know as much as he hoped to know or thought he did. He was sharply aware that his knowledge was limited by his language, his experience and his context and that what he could teach and communicate was further limited by the language, experience and contest of his listeners. He also knew that there was knowledge, truth and value he did not have and would surprise audiences (much like Brigham Young did) by pointing out that Methodists and others had truth that he lacked. (cf Discourses of Brigham Young, page 248). Continue reading…
After nearly 1800 years of silence, the heavens at last reopened. The boy prophet knelt before God the Father and the Son, who told him to “join [no Church], for they were all wrong.” (JS-H 1:19)
And why are they wrong? I suppose Jesus could have mentioned any number of reasons for considering no Church His own. The loss of priesthood authority comes immediately to mind. The loss of the Gift and powers of the Holy Ghost is another contender.
But Jesus’ condemnation of Christendom was instead rooted in their creeds: “all their creeds were an abomination in [God’s] sight…” he stated. (JS-H 1:19)
In today’s episode, J. Nelson-Seawright, David King Landrith and I discuss our favorite books on mormonism (listed below).
J. Nelson-Seawright’s Recommendations
- D. Michael Quinn:
- Douglas J. Davies: The Mormon Culture of Salvation: Force, Grace, and Glory
- Leonard J. Arrington and Davis Bitton: Saints Without Halos: The Human Side of Mormon History
- Levi S. Peterson: Juanita Brooks: Mormon Woman Historian
- Leonard Arrington: Great Basin Kingdom: Economic History of Latter-Day Saints 1830-1900
David King Landrith’s Recommendations
- Richard L. Bushman: Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism
- Leonard J. Arrington: Brigham Young: American Moses
- Fawn M. Brodie: No Man Knows My History
- Juanita Brooks: The Mountain Meadows Massacre
- Maurine Whipple: The Giant Joshua
- Richard L. Bushman: Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling
- D. Michael Quinn: Early Mormonism and the Magic World View
John Dehlin’s Recommendations
- Leonard Arrington: Adventures of a Church Historian
- Gregory Prince: David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism
- Richard and Joan Ostling: Mormon America: The Power and the Promise
- Levi Peterson: The Backslider
- Philip L Barlow: A Thoughtful Faith
- Mary L. Bradford: Lowell L. Bennion: Teacher, Counselor, Humanitarian
