Daniel C. Peterson's Blog, page 215

3 Nephi and Regional Earthquake Fault Zones

    Here are some notes from “Identification of a Regional Earthquake Fault Zone,” Chapter 10 of Jerry D. Grover, Jr., Geology of the Book of Mormon (2014), pages 139-148.  (See this and further works by him and others at Brother Grover’s Book of Mormon Scientific and Linguistic Research site.).  Brother Grover — who, incidentally, served from 1995 […]

Revision 4.11 “More on the Ethical Values of the Qur’an”

    The sins that are likely to characterize the wealthy in a com­mercial society come in for particular attention in the Qur’an. For instance, believers are told to give just weight and full measure in their mar­ket and trade exchanges.[1] The Qur’an shows special solicitude for the treatment of orphans. Its admonitions resemble the […]

“Some Notes on Jacob 4:14, Revelation, Canon, Covenant, and Law”

    It’s Friday and, accordingly, a new article has appeared in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship.  This one is by Dr. Matthew L. Bowen, of Brigham Young University – Hawaii:   ““God Hath Taken Away His Plainness”: Some Notes on Jacob 4:14, Revelation, Canon, Covenant, and Law” Abstract: This article examines Jacob’s […]

On Latter-day Saint Rejection of Evolution

    My attention was called some time back to a 2014 blog article titled “So just what do Mormons think about evolution?”  According to this article, Latter-day Saints are among the least evolution-friendly religious groups in the United States.  Recent discussions of Latter-day Saints and evolution prompt me to revisit that article.   I have […]

Revision 4.10 “On the Moral Teachings of the Qur’an”

    It is on the basis of his or her faith and good works, the Qur’an explains, that the fate of the individual soul is determined.[1] We are assured that life and death were created in order to test us: “We try you with evil and good for a testing, then unto Us you […]

The Book of Moses and a School for Souls

    I’ve been slow in calling attention to the latest installment of my bi-weekly column for the Deseret News.  Here it is:   “How spirituals, such as ‘Michael, Row the Boat Ashore’ and ‘Swing Low,’ bridge the Bible and Greek mythology” One of the most familiar of all spirituals is ”Michael, Row the Boat Ashore” […]

David Whitmer’s testimony, in verse

    In August 1883, David Whitmer, the last surviving Witness of the Book of Mormon plates, spoke with a prominent member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by the name of James H. Hart (1825-1906), who was searching, at the time, for portraits of the Three Witnesses for the YMMIA’s publication, The […]

No doubt: “There is grandeur in this view of life”

    Arguments have raged for well over a century and a half about the implications of the theory of evolution for theistic belief, and they will, no doubt, continue to rage for the foreseeable future.  One thing that simply cannot be said, however, is that theism as such is impossible to reconcile with belief […]

Revision 4.9 “Hell and Heaven in the Qur’an”

    The ultimate destination of the damned is described in the Qur’an with highly picturesque language. Hell is a place of raging and roar­ing fire, of towering columns of destroying flame, and of scorching winds that drive pitch-black smoke across a blighted landscape. The souls of the unrighteous are prevented from escaping by fetters […]

Greed, Priestcraft, and Me

    I’m being attacked.   That’s not news, of course.  I’m attacked every single day on one message board, and very likely on others.  What varies from day to day and hour to hour is the angle of attack.  One of my recent crimes — in which I’m joined by some of my friends […]