Daniel C. Peterson's Blog, page 965

Should we pressure the Brethren to change Church policies?

    Some members of the Church believe that lobbying, demonstrations, petitions, rallies, marches, protests, and so forth should be brought to bear upon the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in order to pressure them into making what those members believe would be desirable improvements in Church practices and even [Read More...]

Mr. Justice Holmes on religion and science

      “Science makes major contributions to minor needs.  Religion, however small its successes, is at least at work on the things that matter most.” Oliver Wendell Holmes   I’m not sure that I fully agree with this comment.  In fact, at two points, I’m sure that I don’t.  However, I understand his point [Read More...]

“The Case of Plural ‘Was’ in the Earliest Text”

    Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture actually published two articles today.  Here’s the second of them:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/the-...    

“The Case of the {-th} Plural in the Earliest Text”

    It being Friday, there’s a new article up from Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/the-...   Happy weekend!    

“Muslims collect money to build a church in the Egyptian province of Al-Manufiyya”

    I somehow missed this story when it appeared late last April, but it’s such a pleasant one that I want to be sure that others see it:   http://www.fides.org/en/news/37699-AF...    

“Egypt’s president attends mass, vows to rebuild churches”

    Thanks to Russell Spencer for bringing this very welcome item to my attention:   http://www.clarionproject.org/analysi...#    

“‘Mormonism–Shadow or Reality?’ History or Propaganda? Joseph Smith as a Case Study”

    In August 2000, the organization that was then called FAIR and is today called FairMormon held the second of its annual conferences, in Alta, Utah.  One of the speakers at the 2000 conference was Danel W. Bachman, and here is the paper that he presented, in which he examines a representative specimen of the [Read More...]

BOM 1 Nephi 20

    Today’s reading, 1 Nephi 20 (compare Isaiah 48), is the first of the infamous “Isaiah chapters” in the Book of Mormon.  “Infamous,” because readers who’ve been sailing along, thus far, with the fairly straightforward narrative of the book of 1 Nephi now run into prophetic texts that are, to most, as inscrutable as T. S. [Read More...]

Wanting to leave a legacy?

    “No legacy is so rich as honesty.”  William Shakespeare (or “William Shakespeare”), All’s Well That Ends Well, Act III, Scene V    

Did Mormon leaders claim, between 1843 and 1904, that polygamy was required for exaltation?

    The irreplaceable Robert Boylan weighs in, at his invaluable blog Scriptural Mormonism, on a common accusation against the Church:   http://scripturalmormonism.blogspot.i...