Review of Books on the Book of Mormon 1989–2011, Jul 8, 2014
As a younger son who might not inherit his wealthy father's business, the Book of Mormon prophet ... more As a younger son who might not inherit his wealthy father's business, the Book of Mormon prophet Nephi may have been trained for another profession. One of the high-status professions open to him would have been that of scribe. The evidences of his scribal training are reviewed. His early professional training may have been important preparation for his later role in establishing the Nephites as a true "people of the book."
Nephite apostates turned away from true worship in consistent and predictable ways throughout the... more Nephite apostates turned away from true worship in consistent and predictable ways throughout the Book of Mormon. Their beliefs and practices may have been the result of influence from the larger socioreligious context in which the Nephites lived. A Mesoamerican setting provides a plausible cultural background that explains why Nephite apostasy took the particular form it did and may help us gain a deeper understanding of some specific references that Nephite prophets used when combating that apostasy. We propose that apostate Nephite religion resulted from the syncretization of certain beliefs and practices from normative Nephite religion with those attested in ancient Mesoamerica. We suggest that orthodox Nephite expectations of the "heavenly king" were supplanted by the more present and tangible "divine king." S criptures frequently call us back to walking in the Lord's way. Ancient Israel received repeated prophetic calls to return from a specific type of apostasy. A typical report of Israelite apostasy is found in Judges 2:13: "And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth." 1 Israelite apostasy typically occurred when Israel embraced certain religious and cultural elements from a nearby people with whom they shared similar traits and merged them with their own. 2
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
Gardner examines the timeline and process that Mormon plausibly underwent when he compiled and ad... more Gardner examines the timeline and process that Mormon plausibly underwent when he compiled and added to the Book of Mormon. Mormon's message is the cycle of history-the Messiah will come again.
Behind the Mask, Behind the Curtain: Uncovering the Illusion M agicians are illusionists who ente... more Behind the Mask, Behind the Curtain: Uncovering the Illusion M agicians are illusionists who entertain with wonderful things that appear real. Of course their craft is not real magic any more than the Wizard of Oz was more than a man behind a curtain. It is masterful illusion, the art of misdirection, a play upon our credulity. A magician lures us into believing we have seen something that is not really there. Living Hope Ministries has produced a film entitled The Bible vs. the Book of Mormon that performs magic tricks with ideas. It slickly demonstrates its points with the classic techniques of misdirection, unexamined assumptions, and hidden information. In technique and effect, the film is the analog of a magic show. One can watch it and actually believe that one has seen something, although that is not in reality what happened. Not that long ago a few television specials took a different tack on magic shows. Rather than celebrate the illusion, they showed the reality behind the curtains. It seems appropriate to use that model as I examine The Bible vs. the Book of Mormon. When we see how the magician performed the trick, it does not seem nearly so impressive. In this case, Brant A. Gardner 146 • The FARMS Review 17/2 (2005) the illusion is that the film is based on scholarship. Unmasked, the film is far from scholarly-it is empty propaganda. The film is separated into several segments. To help those who might like to follow along, I will divide this review into the film's segments and discuss them in order. For each segment I will present Living Hope's illusion, and then I will unmask it.
The 1985 publication of John L. Sorenson's An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon pre... more The 1985 publication of John L. Sorenson's An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon presented the best argument for a New World location for the Book of Mormon. For all of its strengths, however, one aspect of the model has remained perplexing. It appeared that in order to accept that correlation one must accept that the Nephites rotated north to what we typically understand as northwest. The internal connections between text and geography were tighter than any previous correlation, and the connections between that particular geography and the history of the peoples who lived in that place during Book of Mormon times was also impressive. There was just that little problem of north not being north. This paper reexamines the Book of Mormon directional terms and interprets them against the cultural system that was prevalent in the area defined by Sorenson's geographical correlation. The result is a way to understand Book of Mormon directions without requiring any skewing of magnetic north.
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
Review of Books on the Book of Mormon 1989–2011, Jul 8, 2014
As a younger son who might not inherit his wealthy father's business, the Book of Mormon prophet ... more As a younger son who might not inherit his wealthy father's business, the Book of Mormon prophet Nephi may have been trained for another profession. One of the high-status professions open to him would have been that of scribe. The evidences of his scribal training are reviewed. His early professional training may have been important preparation for his later role in establishing the Nephites as a true "people of the book."
Nephite apostates turned away from true worship in consistent and predictable ways throughout the... more Nephite apostates turned away from true worship in consistent and predictable ways throughout the Book of Mormon. Their beliefs and practices may have been the result of influence from the larger socioreligious context in which the Nephites lived. A Mesoamerican setting provides a plausible cultural background that explains why Nephite apostasy took the particular form it did and may help us gain a deeper understanding of some specific references that Nephite prophets used when combating that apostasy. We propose that apostate Nephite religion resulted from the syncretization of certain beliefs and practices from normative Nephite religion with those attested in ancient Mesoamerica. We suggest that orthodox Nephite expectations of the "heavenly king" were supplanted by the more present and tangible "divine king." S criptures frequently call us back to walking in the Lord's way. Ancient Israel received repeated prophetic calls to return from a specific type of apostasy. A typical report of Israelite apostasy is found in Judges 2:13: "And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth." 1 Israelite apostasy typically occurred when Israel embraced certain religious and cultural elements from a nearby people with whom they shared similar traits and merged them with their own. 2
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
Gardner examines the timeline and process that Mormon plausibly underwent when he compiled and ad... more Gardner examines the timeline and process that Mormon plausibly underwent when he compiled and added to the Book of Mormon. Mormon's message is the cycle of history-the Messiah will come again.
Behind the Mask, Behind the Curtain: Uncovering the Illusion M agicians are illusionists who ente... more Behind the Mask, Behind the Curtain: Uncovering the Illusion M agicians are illusionists who entertain with wonderful things that appear real. Of course their craft is not real magic any more than the Wizard of Oz was more than a man behind a curtain. It is masterful illusion, the art of misdirection, a play upon our credulity. A magician lures us into believing we have seen something that is not really there. Living Hope Ministries has produced a film entitled The Bible vs. the Book of Mormon that performs magic tricks with ideas. It slickly demonstrates its points with the classic techniques of misdirection, unexamined assumptions, and hidden information. In technique and effect, the film is the analog of a magic show. One can watch it and actually believe that one has seen something, although that is not in reality what happened. Not that long ago a few television specials took a different tack on magic shows. Rather than celebrate the illusion, they showed the reality behind the curtains. It seems appropriate to use that model as I examine The Bible vs. the Book of Mormon. When we see how the magician performed the trick, it does not seem nearly so impressive. In this case, Brant A. Gardner 146 • The FARMS Review 17/2 (2005) the illusion is that the film is based on scholarship. Unmasked, the film is far from scholarly-it is empty propaganda. The film is separated into several segments. To help those who might like to follow along, I will divide this review into the film's segments and discuss them in order. For each segment I will present Living Hope's illusion, and then I will unmask it.
The 1985 publication of John L. Sorenson's An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon pre... more The 1985 publication of John L. Sorenson's An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon presented the best argument for a New World location for the Book of Mormon. For all of its strengths, however, one aspect of the model has remained perplexing. It appeared that in order to accept that correlation one must accept that the Nephites rotated north to what we typically understand as northwest. The internal connections between text and geography were tighter than any previous correlation, and the connections between that particular geography and the history of the peoples who lived in that place during Book of Mormon times was also impressive. There was just that little problem of north not being north. This paper reexamines the Book of Mormon directional terms and interprets them against the cultural system that was prevalent in the area defined by Sorenson's geographical correlation. The result is a way to understand Book of Mormon directions without requiring any skewing of magnetic north.
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful ... more The goal of The Interpreter Foundation is to increase understanding of scripture through careful scholarly investigation and analysis of the insights provided by a wide range of ancillary disciplines, including language, history, archaeology, literature, culture, ethnohistory, art, geography, law, politics, philosophy, etc. Interpreter will also publish articles advocating the authenticity and historicity of LDS scripture and the Restoration, along with scholarly responses to critics of the LDS faith. We hope to illuminate, by study and faith, the eternal spiritual message of the scriptures-that Jesus is the Christ. Although the Board fully supports the goals and teachings of the Church, Interpreter Foundation is an independent entity and is neither owned, controlled by nor affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or with Brigham Young University. All research and opinions provided are the sole responsibility of their respective authors, and should not be interpreted as the opinions of the Board, nor as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.
Uploads
Papers by Brant Gardner