Category: Book of Mormon
The Rapid Fall of Nephite Society: Another Book of Mormon Weakness Begins to Make More Sense
As I saw troubling reports and videos this week of students at the once-great Harvard University and other major universities harassing Jewish students for being Jewish or chanting in…
Saved by Grace “After All We Can Do”? Nephi’s Context of Reconciliation
2 Nephi 25:23 has the statement, “for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” Does this mean that salvation is a chore in which we do much of the work, or a transaction in which we pay as much of the price as we can, and Christ only steps in after all we have done or paid to make up the difference? Or does this actually mean that salvation is completely “apart from” if not unrelated to all that we can do? Or something else? I think a plausible answer comes through considering the context.
Exciting News on an Apparent Breakthrough in Deciphering the Indus Valley Script: A Great Way to Turn the Hearts of the Children to Their Ancestors
The closing words of the Old Testament are a prophecy about the Lord sending Elijah, who “shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of…
“That Thy Faith Fail Not”
In studying the final days of Christ’s life, I was struck by the implications of Christ’s kind teachings to Peter to prepare him for what was to come. He…
What Does Jacob 2:30 Say About Polygamy? Is the Church’s Traditional Interpretation Wrong?
One of the many conundrums related to the controversial past practice of polygamy is the Book of Mormon’s stance on the issue. In Jacob 2, the prophet Jacob condemns the…
Cherishing the Book of Mormon’s Teachings on the Fairness of God
One of the most spiritually and intellectually satisfying elements of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ the is fairness of God. Contrary to centuries of tragically misguided theology about the…
Mary, Mother of the Lord: Thoughts for Mother’s Day
In the final week of Christ’s life, we see more of an ongoing theme in which Christ reveals to us the importance of, and His love for, the people we…
Relational Faith: An Essential Book for Understanding “Faith” as Used in New Testament Times and for Appreciating the Restoration
There’s a new book, Brent Schmidt’s Relational Faith, that may be one of the best resources around to help Latter-day Saints and perhaps many other Christians understand and explain what…
To Bear Testimony: Insights on a Popular Latter-day Saint Phrase and Its Connections to Modern Scripture and Early Modern English
Latter-day Saints often use the verb “bear” with “testimony” when expressing their religious conviction, as in “I’d like to bear my testimony that I know that Jesus Christ lives and…
Kevin Christensen’s Twenty-year Retrospective on Margaret Barker’s Influence on the Church
Twenty years ago Kevin Christensen introduced Latter-day Saints to the revolutionary work of a unique biblical scholar in the United Kingdom, Margaret Barker. Her message resonated with numerous Latter-day Saint…