Daniel C. Peterson's Blog, page 227

“Nephite Daykeepers: Ritual Specialists in Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon”

    New on the website of the Interpreter Foundation, a piece by Mark Alan Wright:   “Nephite Daykeepers: Ritual Specialists in Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon” Abstract: Mark Alan Wright describes a common type of ritual specialist among the Maya called a “daykeeper.” He discusses similarities and differences with descriptions of ritual specialists in […]

Revision 2.10 “The epitome of pre-Islamic Arabian generosity”

    Closely related to the obligations felt by a host toward his guests is the notion of generosity, which was one of the leading vir­tues of a pre-Islamic Arabian hero. And, of all those heroes, there’s one whose name became virtually synonymous in subsequent Arab tradition with the idea of generosity—Hatim of Tayyi. He […]

In support of “Heart of Africa”

    I was heartbroken at what happened to the Latter-day Saint film Heart of Africa upon its debut on 13 March 2020.  That was the very day — Friday the thirteenth, no less — on which BYU classes were canceled for the first time because of the surging coronavirus pandemic.  (I remember the date […]

“A superbly structured universe where mind is an integral component”

    The British paleontologist Simon Conway Morris (1951-) established his international reputation on the basis of his studies of the fossilized fauna of the Burgess Shale and, not coincidentally, of the so-called “Cambrian Explosion.”  (The Burgess Shale is located in the British Columbian portion of the Canadian Rockies.)  Stephen Jay Gould’s bestselling 1989 book Wonderful Life […]

Revision 2.9. “Fidelity to One’s Promises in Ancient Arabia (and the Book of Mormon!)”

    As in the case of Shanfara, the devotion to one’s oath among these ancient Arabians is strik­ing.  They were a people who saw words themselves as sacred, as containing a power of their own, independent of the intentions of those who uttered them.  Such a notion wasn’t uncommon among pre-modern peoples. (We ourselves […]

“Death is nothing more than a doorway, something you walk through.”

    The birth of contemporary interest in near-death experiences is often credited to Raymond Moody’s 1975 bestseller, Life After Life.. In a sense, though, it was the near-death experience of the twenty-year-old soldier George Ritchie (1923-2007) during World War II that launched modern fascination with the subject.  Ritchie went on to become a physician and […]

“Sacred Time, Sacred Space, & Sacred Meaning”

    I’m. pleased to announce the appearance of a new book from the Interpreter Foundation, edited by Stephen D. Ricks and Jeffrey Mark Bradshaw and featuring articles by Matthew L. Bowen, Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, David Calabro, and Camille Fronk Olson:   Sacred Time, Sacred Space, & Sacred Meaning: Proceedings of the Third Interpreter Matthew B. […]

A note on Joseph Smith, death, and out-of-body experiences

    Back in 2018, I shared the platform for a moderately small meeting at Church headquarters with Elders Randy Funk of the Seventy and Gary Stevenson of the Twelve, as well as with Elder Robert S. Wood, an emeritus member of the Seventy, who was the moderator.  The only other non-General Authority speaker beside […]

“The Lady at the Horizon: Egyptian Tree Goddess Iconography and Sacred Trees in Israelite Scripture and Temple Theology”

    An intriguing article, written by John S. Thompson, was posted today on the website of the Interpreter Foundation.  It will shortly appear in print form in volume 38 of Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship:   “The Lady at the Horizon: Egyptian Tree Goddess Iconography and Sacred Trees in Israelite Scripture […]

Revision 2.3 “Frankincense and Lehi’s Trail”

    Frankincense is a fragrant gum resin consisting of small white chunks and beads that can easily be ground into a powder. When burned, this powder gives off a pleasant odor like that of balsam. The resin, milky white in color, was probably produced in the central district of Hadramawt, along the Indian Ocean […]