AuthorCast

Authorcast #110: Bradley J. Kramer, author of Gathered in One: How the Book of Mormon Counters Anti-Semitism in the New Testament September 24 2019

Show description: For devotees of Christian scripture, the suggestion that the New Testament contains anti-Semitic rhetoric is challenging. After all, how could the New Testament, largely written by Jewish authors about the Jewish Messiah contain any trace of disdain towards its own people? However, centuries of Christian hatred towards Jews demonstrates its roots in the New Testament portrayals of the Jews as a corrupt, conspiring, and murderous people. Take for example the near absolution of Pontius Pilate regarding the crucifixion of Jesus. The Gospels make clear that the blame for Jesus’s death rests upon the corrupt Jewish leaders and people who handed the Savior over to Roman authorities and, when given the chance to redeem him, shouted: “crucify him!” This New Testament depiction has led to the labeling of Jews as Christ-killers. Horrifically, this attitude has inspired pogroms against the Jewish people, the killing of Jews during the Crusades, and, in more recent times, the Jewish Holocaust. We are still dealing today with negative stereotypes of Jews that stem from early Christian attitudes.

For author Bradley Kramer, a scholar dedicated to interfaith studies and relations between Jews and Latter-day Saints, the Book of Mormon offers a different, decidedly pro-Jewish take while not undermining the authority of the New Testament. In his book, Gathered in One: How the Book of Mormon Counters Anti-Semitism in the New Testament, Bradley demonstrates how The Book of Mormon contains an intentionally pro-Judaic stance. For example, Bradley argues that the Book of Mormon minimizes Jewish involvement in the crucifixion of Jesus and rejects supersessionist claims by portraying the Jewish people as still being God’s covenant people. Taken together with the New Testament, the Book of Mormon smooths out the sharp edges of anti-Semitic imagery, settings, and language.

Gathered in One: How the Book of Mormon Counters Anti-Semitism in the New Testament
By Bradley J. Kramer

“His thesis is fresh, provocative, and rigorously argued. A signal contribution to Book of Mormon studies.”  Terryl Givens

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Authorcast #109: David B. Ostler, author of Bridges: Ministering to Those Who Question August 08 2019

In this episode of the Greg Kofford Books Authorcast, we chat with David B. Ostler about his book, Bridges: Ministering to Those Who Question. We discuss his personal story and what led him to write this topic as well the larger trends of disaffection and disaffiliation from religion in Western society and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as ways to reach out and minister to those whose faith has changed.

Bridges: Ministering to Those Who Question
By David B. Ostler

“A deeply Christian book that calls upon us all to seek understanding and minister to the wounded.” —Terryl Givens

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Authorcast #104: Laura Rutter Strickling, author of On Fire in Baltimore: Black Mormon Women and Conversion in a Raging City October 11 2018

On this episode, we chat with Laura Rutter Strickling, author of On Fire in Baltimore: Black Mormon Women and Conversion in a Raging City


On Fire in Baltimore: Black Mormon Women and Conversion in a Raging City
By Laura Rutter Strickling

$20.95 paperback
$34.95 hardcover
197 pages

Free sample preview
Q&A with the author

 

 

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AuthorCast #102: Interview with Charles Randall Paul July 25 2018

Episode 102: Interview with Charles Randall Paul
Hosted by Brian Whitney

In this episode, Charles Randall Paul discusses his forthcoming book, Converting the Saints: A Study of Religious Rivalry in America, as well as the interfaith organization he founded, the Foundation for Religious Diplomacy, and offers a few suggestions for dealing with religious, political, and ideological conflict. Be sure to check out his recent article, "Contesting Truth through Mutual Openness."


Converting the Saints: A Study of Religious Rivalry in America
By Charles Randall Paul

Available August 7, 2018
Pre-order your copy

 

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AuthorCast #101: Interview with Blake Ostler July 11 2018

Episode 101: Interview with Blake Ostler
Hosted by Brian Whitney

Blake T. Ostler is an independent scholar residing in Salt Lake City, Utah,and the author of the multi-volume Exploring Mormon Thought series. Volume 1: The Attributes of God has recently been re-issued in paperback. In this interview, Blake discusses his background, the series, some of the key philosophocal discussions in The Attributes of God, such as the nature of free will, God's existence within time, and Mormon Christology.



“These books are the most important works on Mormon theology ever written. There is nothing currently available that is even close to the rigor and sophistication of these volumes.” — FARMS Review, Neal A. Maxwell Institute, Brigham Young University

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AuthorCast #90: Interview with William V. Smith February 22 2018

Interview with William V. Smith
Hosted by Brian Whitney

In this episode, we interview William V. Smith about his new book, Textual Studies of the Doctrine and Covenants: The Plural Marriage Revelation

Read Bill's article, "A Very Brief History of D&C Section 132: The Plural Marriage Revelation"


William V. Smith will be signing books and speaking at a panel discussion hosted by Writ & Vision in Provo on Tuesday, March 13th. The panel will also feature Lindsay Hansen Park (Year of Polygamy podcast) and independent historian Don Bradley. The event is free to attend and begins at 7PM. Writ & Vision is located at 274 W. Center Street, Provo, UT.


Textual Studies of the Doctrine and Covenants: The Plural Marriage Revelation
By William V. Smith

Part of the Contemporary Studies in Scripture series

Purchase your copy

 

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AuthorCast #85: Interview with James and Judith McConkie January 26 2018

Episode 85: Interview with James and Judith McConkie
Hosted by Brian Whitney

In this episode, we interview James and Judith McConkie about their new book, Whom Say Ye That I Am? Lessons from the Jesus of Nazareth.

James and Judith will be signing books and speaking at Writ & Vision in Provo on Tuesday, Jan 30th at 7pm, and at Benchmark Books in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb 7 at 5:30pm. Both of these events are free to the public.

You can follow Whom Say Ye That I Am? on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WhomSayYe

 

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AuthorCast #66: AuthorCast Round Table Discussion August 16 2017


Round table discussion on Perspective on Mormon Theology: Apologetics. Topics discussed: nature and utility of apologetics, particularly in academic discourse. "Good vs Bad" apologetics. Participants: Blair Van Dyke, Stephen Smoot, Joseph Spencer, Amanda Brown, Loyd Ericson. Moderated by Brian Whitney. Discussion took place at Writ & Vision in Provo, Utah, on Thursday, August 3, 2017. 

Preview the volume here.
Read a Q&A with the editors here.

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AuthorCast #55: This Month in Mormon Studies June 16 2017

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events from the past month.

Highlights from this month include: MHA 2017, barbecue, Book of Mormon as literature, Joseph Smith: Monogamist?, LGBT history in Utah, new history of the Church, and David Bokovoy's mustache.


 

In the News

Passing of Nathan Ulrich
Passing of Charles S. Peterson
Administrative changes at Maxwell Institute

 
On the Blogs

Ardis Parshall, "The Sailor and the Apostle: 'The Thinking Has Been Done'?"
Ben Park, "LDS Church Distances Itself from Boy Scouts: Some Thoughts"
Matt B, "Ted Chiang, 'Arrival,' Mormons, Science Fiction, Angels, Time Travel, Sex, Free Will, The Tower of Babel, and the Secular: A Roundtable"
Michael Austin, "The Chosen People are Always Wrong"
Michael Austin, "Scripture as Genre"
Steve Evans, "Book Review Roundup"
Blair Hodges, "Troubling the Old Stories with Laurel Thatcher Ulrich"
Juvenile Instructor Summer Book Club Update
Jeff Turner, "The End of the Gathering: Mormonism and Immigration Regulation"
Grant Shreeve, "The Book of Mormon Gets the Literary Treatment"

Digital Content

Joseph Smith Papers updates
Signature Books updates at Archive.org

Podcasts

LDS Perspectives: "A Heavenly Mother - Rachel Steenblik and Caitlin Connolly"
LDS Perspectives: "Joseph's Seer Stones - Michael Hubbard MacKay"
LDS Perspectives: "Tough Questions about Mormon Polygamy - Brian and Laura Hales"
Year of Polygamy: "The Succession Crisis"
Year of Polygamy: "Lorenzo Snow"
Faith Matters: "Conversations with Terryl Givens"


Recent Book Releases
 

Joseph Smith Papers: Documents, Vol 5 (Church Historian's Press)
Seth Anderson, LGBT Salt Lake (Arcadia)
Joseph M. Spencer and Jeremiah John, Embracing the Law: Reading Doctrine and Covenants 42 (Maxwell Institute)
Mark D. Ogletree, No Other Success: The Parenting Practices of David O. McKay (BYU RSC)


Papers/Articles

Gerrit J. Dirkmaat, "A New Voice from the Past: The Council of Fifty Minutes"
Brady Winslow, "Irregularities in the Work of the Nauvoo Lodge: Mormonism, Freemasonry, and Conflicting Interests on the Illinois Frontier"
Brian C. Hales, "Joseph Smith: Monogamist or Polygamist?"
Colby Townsend, "Behold Other Scriptures I Would That Ye Should Write: Malachi in the Book of Mormon"
Joseph Spencer, "Isaiah 52 in the Book of Mormon: Notes on Isaiah's Reception History"
 

Conferences and Events

Faith Matters: "New Perspectives on Joseph Smith and Translation"
Mormon Scholars in the Humanities
Mormon Transhumanist Association
JSP Documents, Vol 5 release event at Benchmark Books
Mormon History Association 2017 Conference
Sunstone 2017 SLC Symposium
FairMormon 2017 Conference
John Whitmer Historical Association 2017 Conference
Book of Mormon Studies Conference

Call for Papers/Applications 

2018 Church History Symposium
2018 Mormon History Association Conference

 

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AuthorCast #43: This Month in Mormon Studies May 01 2017

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events from the past month.

Highlights from this month include: Blogs becoming independent presses, Mormon studies nerds filing briefs in the U.S. Court of Appeals, Marlin K. Jensen and insider baseball, summer book club, temple ships and Ouija boards, and big words like indigeneity!


 

In the News

Firm Foundation Expo and bad science
BCC Press; See also
Ben Park in Newsweek; See also
Signature Books digital archives project
Jana Riess The Next Mormons survey: trust gap

 
On the Blogs

Vincenzo di Francesca: Cultural Impediments in the Way of His Baptism
Mormon Scholars Opposed to Refugee and Immigrant Ban
Embracing the Chaos and Diversity of Mormonism's Past: Laurie Maffly-Kipp's MHA Presidential Address
Mormon Interpreter: Looking Back, Almost Five Years On
“Providing intellectual and devotional frameworks” (Nibley Fellow Reflections)
Looking Deeper Into Joseph Smith's First Vision: Imagery, Cognitive Neuroscience, and the Construction of Memory
An Evening With Elder Marlin K. Jensen
My Thoughts on Patrick Mason's Miller Eccles Presentation
BCC Press Q&A for academic historians
The Third Annual Summer Book Club: A House Full of Females
 

Podcasts

LDS Women at the Pulpit - Jenny Reeder and Kate Holbrook
Tithing and the Law of Consecration - Steven C. Harper
Laurel Thatcher Ulrich and “A House Full of Females”
Darron Smith interviews on Gospel Tangents
Richard Bennett interviews on Gospel Tangents
On the Erasure of Native Americans from the Book of Mormon Conversation: Thomas Murphy
Kava, Culture, Indigeneity and Mormonism: Daniel Hernandez
God, the Image of God, Theosis, Sex and Godly Creation: Blair Ostler


Recent Book Releases
 

Steven Peck, Science the Key to Theology: Volume One: Preliminaries (BCC Press); See also
Reid L. Neilson and Nathan N. Waite, eds., Settling the Valley, Proclaiming the Gospel: The General Epistles of the Mormon First Presidency (Oxford University Press)
Carol Cornwall Madsen, Emmeline B. Wells: An Intimate History (University of Utah Press)


Published Articles

Brian Hauglid, “Book of Abraham and Translating the Sacred
Robin Scott Jensen, “The Joseph Smith Papers and the Book of Abraham
Christopher Blythe, “The Church and Kingdom of God: Ecclesiastical Interpretations of the Council of Fifty”
 

Conferences and Events

Reid Neilson and Nathan Waite at Benchmark Books
2017 UVU Mormon Studies Conference on YouTube: Thurs sessions, Friday sessions
Sunstone Symposium in Southern Utah
2017 Association for Mormon Letters conference; AML Book Awards, Fundraiser
Sunstone Symposium in Boise
2017 Mormon History Association Registration
2017 Sunstone Symposium SLC
2017 FairMormon Conference
2017 JWHA in Nauvoo
 

Call for Papers/Applications 

The International Society of Landscape, Place and Material Culture

 

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AuthorCast #42: This Month in Mormon Studies April 03 2017

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events from the past month.


 

In the News

Dr. Robert Rees appointed chair of Mormon studies at GTU

Community of Christ announces three new World Church Historians

Joseph M. Spencer named editor of JBMS

George Q. Cannon digitization update (sort of)

175th Anniversary of the Articles of Faith

Richard Turley honored by Mormon Historic Sites Foundation

Signature Books newspaper digitization at Archive.org

JSP creates index to Joseph Fielding Smith's Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith

On the Blogs

William Law’s Amazing (and Suspect) Diary

Florence Smith Jacobsen: Saving Our Material Heritage

Eugenics and the Intellectual Underpinnings of Mormonism in the Alt-Right

Fake News, Leaked Documents, and the Book of Mormon

Also check out: Extra! Extra! Read All About It!: The Fake News of 1859

Finding a Story, or how to

Seers and Stones: The Translation of the Book of Mormon as Divine Visions of an Old-Time Seer

Finishing up the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project: An Introduction to The History of the Text of the Book of Mormon

Why Evolution and LDS Thought are Fully Compatible: Overcoming our Suspicions of Science

Three big things (and some little things) this lifelong Mormon learned from Matt Bowman's history of the Church

Denver Snuffer's teachings to be canonized

The good and bad of studying history

Paul Reeve wrote the race essay

The Relief Society 175th AnniversaryA Sermon

Five People Who Helped Found the Relief Society

Podcasts

Mark Lyman Staker on Gospel Tangents

The Book of Mormon as a 19th Centruy Political Commentary: Christopher C. Smith on A Thoughtful Faith

The Three Witnesses–Larry Morris on LDS Perspectives

In Brigham Young's Words–Gerrit Dirkmaat and LaJean Carruth on LDS Perspectives

New Perspectives on Joseph Smith and Revelation on Mormon Matters

Also: Faith Matters

Women at the Latter-day Saint pulpit, with Jennifer Reeder and Kate Holbrook on MIPodcast

Recent Book Releases 

Devery Anderson's Mississippi Freedem Summer Kickstarter

Patrick Q. Mason, What is Mormonism? A Students Introduction (Routledge)

Richard E. Turley Jr., Janiece L. Johnson, and Lajean Purecell Carruth, eds., Mountain Meadows Massacre: Collected Legal Papers (University of Oklahoma Press)

Michael Austin and Ardis E. Parshall, eds., Dime Novel Mormons (Greg Kofford Books)

Published Papers

Stephen Taysom, “’Satan Mourns Naked Upon the Earth’: Locating Mormon Possession and Exorcism Rituals in the American Religious Landscape, 1830-1977"

William Davis, “Reassessing Joseph Smith Jr.’s Formal Education”  

Conferences and Events

UVU Mormon Studies Conference

Book of Mormon Conference (formerly Book of Mormon Archaeological Foundation) 

Mormon Transhumanist Association 2017 conference

Mormon History Association 2017 conference

Kate Holbrook at Benchmark Books for At the Pulpit release event

Call for Papers/Applications 

Neal A. Maxwell Institute Summer Seminar

Surveying Trends in the Field: Mormon History and Mormon Studies in the Modern Academy

 

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AuthorCast #41—Live event for Dime Novel Mormons March 24 2017


Kofford Books AuthorCast, hosted by Brian Whitney. In this episode, we are featuring a recording from a round table press event for Dime Novel Mormons that took place on March 17 at the Greg Kofford Books office. Dime Novel Mormons is the latest volume in The Mormon Image in Literature series, edited by Michael Austin and Ardis E. Parshall.


About the book:

For this volume, four full-length dime novels have been chosen to represent different aspects of the Mormon image in dime novels: Eagle Plume, the White Avenger. A Tale of the Mormon Trail (1870); The Doomed Dozen; or, Dolores, the Danite’s Daughter (1881); Frank Merriwell Among the Mormons; or, The Lost Tribes of Israel (1897); and The Bradys Among the Mormons; or, Secret Work in Salt Lake City (1903). The often-lurid and scandalous portrayals of Mormons in these dime novels had consequences for the relationship between Mormons and the rest of the United States. They would represent reality for millions of people, and the basic portrayals found their way into more serious literature. Understanding how these stereotypes were created and first employed can help us understand many things about the way that Mormonism has always functioned in American culture.

Preview the volume here.
Read a Q&A with the editors here.

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AuthorCast #40: This Month in Mormon Studies March 01 2017

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events from the past month.


 

In the News

Laurel Thatcher Ulrich on NPR's Fresh Air 

Neylan McBaine, “As potters at the wheel, let us shape Utah from inside and outside” in SL Trib

Henry J. Eyring named president of BYU-Idaho

Updates to Joseph Smith Papers website


On the Blogs

“More Thoughts on Mormons and Muslims” by Paul Reeve

“The Modern Mormon Athletic Image” by Ben Park

“The Complexities of History in The Ensign” by Ben Spackman

“The Dance of Discourse” by Hannah Jung

Profile on Greg Kofford Books at AML by Andrew Hall

“Canon as Context: Insights from the Bible Wars” by Mike Austin

 

Recent Book Releases 

Scott Hales, The Garden of Enid: Adventures of a Weird Mormon Girl, Part Two (Greg Kofford Books)

Devery S. Anderson, Ed., Salt Lake School of the Prophets, 1867-1883 (Signature Books)

Reid L. Neilson and Nathan N. Waite, eds., Settling the Valley: Proclaiming the Gospel: The General Epistles of the Mormon First Presidency (Oxford University Press)

Jennifer Reeder and Kate Holbrook, eds., At the Pulpit: 185 Years of Discourses by Latter-day Saint Women (Church Historian's Press)

Book Reviews by Brandt

Ann Taves, Revelatory Events: Three Case Studies of the Emergence of New Spiritual Paths (Princeton University Press)

 
Events

Faith and Knowledge Conference

Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology

UVU Mormon Studies Conference

Kate Holbrook speaking at Tabernacle
 

Call for Papers/Applications 

Joseph Smith Papers Conference

 

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AuthorCast #36—This Month in Mormon Studies, November 2016 December 20 2016

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events from the month of November!

Special guest: Stephanie Lauritzen from Signature Books.


 

In the News

Maxwell Institute film

Passing of Edward Kimball

By Common Consent tribute

Maxwell Institute Visiting Fellows

D. Todd Christofferson invocation on Senate floor

 Salt Lake Tribune coverage

Retirement of "To Young Men Only" pamphlet

Revelations in Context Sunday School supplement

Gospel Topics Essays added to Sunday School lesson manual

On the Blogs

Ben Park, "2016 in Retrospect"

Christian Anderson, "Heavenly Parents at Conference"

Jessica Finnegan, Kari Waters, and Nancy Ross, "What are Mormon feminists trying to do?"

Nancy Ross review of One Hundred Birds Taught Me to Fly

Fair Mormon interviews:

Braving Isaiah with Joseph M. Spencer

Translating with Seer Stones with Michael Hubbard McKay

The Book of Mormon: A Closer Look with Brant Gardner

Emma Smith "An Elect Lady" with Matthew J. Grow

Steve Evans Book Review Roundup

Ashley Mae Hoiland "For many years my voice shook"

Johnathan Stapley, "Tools for teachers 2017"

Recent Book Releases 

Donald Faber, James Jesse Strang: The Rise and Fall of Michigan's Mormon King (University of Michigan Press)

Scott Hales, The Garden of Enid: Adventures of a Weird Mormon Girl, Part One (Greg Kofford Books)

Richard S. Van Wagoner, Natural Born Seer: Joseph Smith, American Prophet: 1805–1830 (Smith-Pettit Foundation)

Recent and Upcoming Events

"Intellectual Life of Mormonism" final panel at University of Utah

Call for Papers 

2017 Mormon Theology Seminar

2017 Mormon Scholars in the Humanities

 

 

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AuthorCast #35—Conversation with Scott Hales, creator of The Garden of Enid December 13 2016

 

In this episode, we chat with Scott Hales, author and illustrator of The Garden of Enid: Adventures of a Weird Mormon Girl.

About the book:

Fifteen-year-old Enid Gardner is a self-proclaimed “weird Mormon girl.” When she isn’t chatting with Joseph Smith or the Book of Abraham mummy, she’s searching for herself between the spaces of doubt and belief. Along the way, she must grapple with her Mormon faith as it adapts to the twenty-first century. She also must confront the painful mysteries at the heart of her strained relationship with her ailing mother.

This edition of The Garden of Enid: Adventures of a Weird Mormon Girl recasts the award-winning webcomic as a two-part graphic novel. With revised and previously unpublished comics, it features the familiar story that captivated thousands online, yet offers new glimpses into Enid’s year-long odyssey.

Preview the volume here.

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AuthorCast #34 — This Month in Mormon Studies, September 2016 November 11 2016

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events!

Music by Starflyer 59 from their record SLOW.


 

In the News

Postdoctoral fellow and lecturer position at The University of Virginia

Maxwell Institute Executive Committee and Advisory Board

 

On the Blogs

The Beleagured Progress of LDS Women

SMPT Annual Meeting notes here, here, and here

The Sacrament: a (somewhat speculative) liturgical genealogy

Michael MacKay on changing views that seemed set in stone

On the Dating of Moroni 8-9

If Not 1890, What Year Did Mormonism Change the Most?

The JST at the JSP

 

Recent Book Releases 

Foundations of the Restoration: 45th Annual Brigham Young University Sidney B. Sperry Symposium, edited by Craig James Ostler

Joseph M. Spencer, The Vision of All: Twenty-five Lectures on Isaiah in Nephi's Record

Richard S. Van Wagoner, Natural Born Seer: Joseph Smith, American Prophet, 1805-1830

At Sword's Point, Part 2: A Documentary History of the Utah War, 1858-1859, edited by William P. MacKinnon

 

Recent and Upcoming Events

The Intellectual Life of Mormonism, Lecture 3

David F. Holland lecture at Maxwell Institute (video)

Roundtable Discussion for The Vision of All (video)

Sunstone Northwest 2016

 

Call for Papers

Mormon Scholars in the Humanities 2017 conference

Mormon Theology Seminar 2017

 

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AuthorCast #33 — Conversation with Joseph M. Spencer, author of The Vision of All: Twenty-five Lectures on Isaiah in Nephi's Record October 27 2016

 

 

In this episode, we bring Joseph M. Spencer back for a conversation about his newest book, The Vision of All: Twenty-five Lectures on Isaiah in Nephi's Record, part of the Contemporary Studies in Scripture series published by Greg Kofford Books.

 

About the book:

In The Vision of All, Joseph Spencer draws on the best of biblical and Latter-day Saint scholarship to make sense of the so-called “Isaiah chapters” in the first two books of the Book of Mormon. Arguing that Isaiah lies at the very heart of Nephi’s project, Spencer insists on demystifying the writings of Isaiah while nonetheless refusing to pretend that Isaiah is in any way easy to grasp. Presented as a series of down-to-earth lectures, The Vision of All outlines a comprehensive answer to the question of why Nephi was interested in Isaiah in the first place. Along the way, the book presents both a general approach to reading Isaiah in the Book of Mormon and a set of specific tactics for making sense of Isaiah's writings. For anyone interested in understanding what Isaiah is doing in the Book of Mormon, this is the place to start.

Preview the volume here.

Join us on Thursday, October 27th for a special author round table event at Writ & Vision in Provo, UT with Joseph Spencer, Adam Miller, Sharon Harris, and Nicholas Frederick. The discussion starts at 7:00 pm and is free to the public. For those who aren't able to make it in person, Greg Kofford Books will be livestreaming the discussion on our Facebook page.

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AuthorCast #32 — This Month in Mormon Studies, September 2016 October 13 2016

 

Join co-hosts Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report) in this lively look at the latest happenings in the field of Mormon studies, including news, blogs, new book releases, and events!

Music by Starflyer 59 from their record SLOW.


 

In the News

Deseret News: Panel discusses the intellectual Mormon legacy of Nibley, Bennion, McMurrin and Arrington

Deseret News: Top 10 Treasures in the Church History Library

Daily Herald: Mountain Meadows Massacre's John D. Lee trial records now online

On the Blogs

“Dialogue, and Me, at 50

Flunking Sainthood: Why I still need ‘Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought’

Not Even Close: Faculty Gender Balance at the BYUs.”

Gender & Employment at BYUs

The Changing Forms of the Latter-day Saint Sacrament

Notes from the Council of Fifty Minutes Launch Event.”

The Mormon Council of Fifty: What Joseph Smith’s Secret Records Reveal

Joseph Smith Papers Council of Fifty minutes offers view of LDS Church in Nauvoo

Scholarly Inquiry: Nicholas Frederick

LDS Perspectives Podcast.

Assessing the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Introduction to the Historiography of their Acquisitions, Translations, and Interpretations.”

The CES Podcast (for the rest of us)

An Orthodox Theology of Heavenly Mother… and a Caveat.”

Recent Book Releases

The Joseph Smith Papers: Administrative Records, Council of Fifty. Church Historian’s Press.

Out of Obscurity: Mormonism since 1945, edited by Patrick Mason and John Turner. Oxford.

Mormonism and the Making of a British Zion by Matthew L. Rasmussen. U of U Press.

Joseph Smith's Seer Stones, Michael Hubbard MacKay & Nicholas J. Frederick. BYU RSC Press.

Thirteenth Apostle: The Diaries of Amasa M. Lyman, 1832-1877, Scott H. Partridge (Editor). Signature.

The Trek East: Mormonism Meets Japan, 1901-1968 by Shinji Takagi. Greg Kofford Books.

Upcoming Conferences and Events

Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology annual meeting

Call for Applicants: Neal A. Maxwell Institute Summer Seminar

Also mentioned in Times & Seasons

The Intellectual Life of Mormonism Fall Panel Discussion Series

 

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AuthorCast #31 — Interview with Julie M. Smith, editor of As Iron Sharpens Iron August 12 2016

 

 

In this episode, we bring back Julie M. Smith to discuss her latest release, As Iron Sharpens Iron: Listening to the Various Voices of Scripture, available now!

In this unique volume, fictionalized dialogues between the various voices of scripture illustrate how differences and disagreements are not flaws of the texts but are rather essential features of the canon. These creative dialogues include Abraham and Job debating the utility of suffering and our submission to God, Alma and Abinidi disagreeing on the place of justice in the Atonement, and the authors Mark and Luke discussing the role of women in Jesus’s ministry. It is by examining and embracing the different perspectives within the canon that readers are able to discover just how rich and invigorating the scriptures can be.

A model for a new, Jewish-informed way of reading scriptures with rich potential for Latter-day Saint audiences. One that embraces complexity rather than fleeing from it; an approach that values nuance and richness over simplicity and closure. Highly recommended.” — Fiona Givens, co-author of The Crucible of Doubt: Reflections On the Quest for Faith and The God Who Weeps: How Mormonism Makes Sense of Life

Preview the volume here.

Read a Q&A with Julie M. Smith. 

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AuthorCast #24 - This Month in Mormon Studies! June 03 2016

  

This Month in Mormon Studies is a new series co-hosted by Brian Whitney (Greg Kofford Books) and Brandt Malone (Mormon News Report). In this engaging and lighthearted series, Brian and Brandt will be discussing the latest going's-on in the field of Mormon studies. From news and blog highlights to new book releases and upcoming events, this monthly series is not to be missed. Subscribe today!

See the links below for more information about topics discussed in the episode:

Subscribe to the Mormon News Report.

In the News

Spencer Fluhman named director of Maxwell Institute

Historian Ronald Walker passed away at age 76

George D. Smith receives honorary Doctorate from University of Utah

First edition of Book of Mormon to be part of Library of Congress

On the Blogs

Juvenile Instructor Book Club for Summer 2016 - Mormon Enigma

Harmonized First Vision accounts in CES broadcast (times & Seasons)

Matthew Grow’s touching tribute to Ronald Walker @ BCC

Re-examining and re-evaluating the Gospel Topics essays by Mary-Ann at W&T

Steve Taysom interviewed by Matt Bowman on craft of biography writing

Latest Book Releases

Adam Miller, Future Mormon: Essays in Mormon Theology

Kate Holbrook and Matthew Bowman, eds., Women and Mormonism: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives

Gregory A. Prince, Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History

Matthew C. Godfrey, et al., eds., Joseph Smith Papers: Documents, Vol. 4: April 1834 - September 1835

Martha Bradley-Evans, Glorious in Persecution: Joseph Smith, American Prophet, 1839-1844

Patrick Q. Mason, ed., Directions for Mormon Studies in the Twenty-First Century

Laura Hales, ed., A Reason for Faith: Navigating LDS Doctrine & Church History

Read Brandt Malone's interview with Laura Hales on the Cultural Hall Podcast.

Upcoming Events

UVU professor Brian Birch to teach new class at University of Utah - “The Intellectual Life of Mormonism.”

Mormonism in Religious Studies workshop at University of Utah

Mormon History Association 2016 Conference in Snowbird, UT

Mormon Women's History Initiative Team (MWHIT) sponsoring a fundraising bazaar at MHA.

Greg Prince author event at Benchmark Books, June 8

Greg Prince author event at Writ & Vision, June 9

Adam Miller author event at Writ & Vision, June 14

Jack Harrell author event at Writ & Vision, June 28

Matthew Godfrey speaking on Zion's Camp at Temple Square Assembly Hall, June 23

 

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