Finally on Youtube

One rather obnoxious youth who is also a pseudo-scholarly apologetic hack named Steve Smoot has finally become famous. Earlier I mentioned how Kerry Shirts had filmed me at the FAIR Conference; well, here it is! The video is up and I am now world famous.*

*And rather humble, might I add. ;0)

In this video, you can see me around 8:27 until the end.

In this one you can see me around 4:35-7:35

And here I get an honorable mention at 2:10-2:40

People I met at the FAIR Conference

This year at the FAIR Conference, I had the opportunity to meet some outstanding people from online and elsewhere. I apologize for not listing everyone, but I shall nevertheless try to do my best to report who I met and the experiences we had.

1. Kerry Shirts - I have to mention the BackyardProfessor, since he not only is a fun and energetic dude with the smarts of a Hugh Nibley and the charisma of a Dan Peterson, but because he mentioned me on his Youtube video site. Kerry and I talked about a number of things, including the Book of Abraham and current LDS scholarship. He recommended some books to me which I am excited to look over, including Mark Smith's The Origins of Biblical Monotheism and Edward Watson's Mormonism: The Faith of the 21st Century. Kerry furthermore is very funny in person. I had the opportunity to speak with him at the 2007 FAIR Conference, but only for a moment. It was very nice to be able to speak with him some more and I wish him all the best of luck with his future podcasts and Youtube videos.

2. Blair Hodges (aka lifeonaplate) - Blair is an absolutely hilarious guy who can also be very profound when he talks on theology and Mormonism. I enjoyed some wonderful conversations with him and am sorry that he cannot afford all of the book he wants (don't worry, Blair, we are in the same boat).

3. Daniel C. Peterson - Professor Peterson is an absolute riot. He is very funny when you talk with him. A group of us were speaking with him when he related his desire to start an anti-Mormon watching club similar to the Audubon Society or how, when asked what will happen to the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, remarked that it would make a great Celestial Room for the temple going to be built there. But Dan is also very smart and intelligent, and I also enjoy his company as we can also talk about serious questions relating to Mormon apologetics.

4. Sione Pauni (aka Lamanite) - I met Sione for the first time at the FAIR Conference. He is a very nice gentleman who offered some insightful views on theodicy, or how to explain the existence of evil in the world and the relationship it has to God. Really a nice and intelligent guy.

5. Tyler Livingston (aka livy111us) - Tyler is my new pal at FAIR. We had met before to team up in filming Daniel C. Peterson before at a lecture he gave at Olivewood Bookstore and again to film Brant Gardner at the FAIR Conference yesterday. Tyler is a wonderful filmmaker who has produced video rebuttals to anti-Mormon charges and posted them on Youtube. Because of his efforts, he won the prestigious John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award this year at the FAIR Conference. I look forward to working on future projects with him.

6. Dan Vogel - Dan Vogel is a researcher and historian who has written some books critical of Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. However, that being so, he has also produced some wonderful books covering Mormon history, including a 5 volume series entitled Early Mormon Documents and I must applaud him for bringing this valuable series together. I was also informed that Dan is working on a critical text edition of the 7 volume series History of the Church.* I had the opportunity to meet Dan at the FAIR Conference (he had showed up to listen to Daniel C. Peterson's talk on apologetics) and speak with him on some stuff. He is a very nice gentleman who is amiable, friendly and soft spoken. He is also very civil in his discussions on Mormon history and all around a nice fellow. Even though I disagree with a lot of his conclusions on Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, I nevertheless respect him in that he is trying to be honest to the historical sources (unlike many other critics of Joseph Smith) and for his work done on documenting Mormon history.

Others I met include Matt Roper, Brian Hauglid, Louis Midgley, Scott Gordon, Mike Ash, Brant Gardner, Matt Brown, and several MADB posters such as HiJolly, Calmoriah, Deborah, Darin, C.I. and Wade Englund.

I also was able to pick up some wonderful book selections including The Origins of Biblical Monotheism by Mark Smith, Mormonism: The Faith of the 21st Century by Edward Watson, Organize my Kingdom by John Tvedtnes, Massacre at Mountain Meadows by Richard Turley, Ronald Walker and Glen Leonard, and How Wide the Divide? by Craig Bloomberg and Stephen Robinson. Hopefully I will be able to post my thoughts on these volumes in later posts here at American Testament.

* By critical text edition, that does not mean that Dan is going to be critical in that he will be criticizing, but instead that he will be providing historical and textual context for the different entries in History of the Church series.

Notes on Wright, Poulsen and Gardner

Alas! I took some notes on the talks given by these three Book of Mormon scholars, but after looking at the notes taken by Blair Hodges of Life On Gold Plates, I feel that my feeble notes cannot do justice (plus I am just too lazy right now to transcribe my notes). Therefore, I will outsource to Brother Hodges as he provides some excellent notes that the reader can look over. Enjoy!

Mark Alan Wright: Deification: Divine Inheritance and the Glorious Afterlife in the Book of Mormon and Ancient Mesoamerica.

Larry Poulsen: Convergences in Book of Mormon Geography

Brant Gardner: Mormon's Editorial Method and Meta-Message

Fun and Fanfare at the FAIR Conference!!

Wow! The 2008 FAIR Conference was, in a word, amazing! So many wonderful topics were presented and so many shoulders were rubbed. I am still reeling over how fun this recent conference was. And, as promised, I shall present on this year's FAIR Conference here at American Testament. However, after completing the two day conference, I realize that I cannot fit everything into one post, so I shall create many; one on the presentations of Mark Alan Wright, Larry Poulsen and Brant Gardner*, another on my experience in meeting different people at the conference and a third on some reflections on Mormon apologetics and the role of apologetics in the Church.

* Due to jet lag which tired me out and the fact that I am a terrible note taker, the reader is strongly encouraged to read the notes provided by Blair Hodges at his blog lifeongoldplates.blogspot.com.

An Interview with Margaret Barker

Professor William Hamblin of Brigham Young University, who is the author of several important articles and books relating to the subjects of Mormonism and ancient Near Eastern history*, has posted some Youtube videos of a conversation he had with biblical scholar Margaret Barker. Ms. Barker, a Methodist from Great Britain, has written some excellent books and articles on ancient Jewish and Christian theologies and their relationship to the Temple. She even has written an essay on the Book of Mormon and its ancient Near Eastern background that was presented at the Worlds of Joseph Smith Conference in 2005 at the Library of Congress. Her website can be accessed here.

I am posting these videos for those interested and must say in disclaimer that Professor Hamblin has promised more videos to come in the future, so keep your eyes open.

Part 1

Part 2

* His most recent publication, co-written with David Seely, was published by Thames & Hudson in 2007 and is entitled Solomon's Temple: Myth and History.

Article(s) of the Week: Daniel C. Peterson on Secular Anti-Mormonism

I have missed the last two sundays and hence my ability to post my weekly Article(s) of the Week. Because of such, I will post two more editions now; one for the week of 0f 07-27-08 and another for the week of 08-03-08.

This article of the week, although not directly connected to the Book of Mormon, is nevertheless an intensely fascinating study by Daniel C. Peterson, professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies at Brigham Young University. It was originally presented at the 2005 FAIR Conference under the name Reflections on Secular Anti-Mormonism and was subsequently re-published in the FARMS Review (17/2). 

In this fascinating essay, Dr. Peterson presents what he calls "merely preliminary thoughts" on secular anti-Mormonism and how it has affected not only the Church but the direction of Latter-day Saint apologetics. He briefly touches on the distinction between the Evangelical form of anti-Mormonism (which he describes has "come, with a few exceptions, to bore me intensely") and that of secular critics such as Dan Vogel and John Krakauer. Dr. Peterson further elaborates on some secular online critics on an unnamed message board (possibly the Recovery From Mormonism website) and how they, instead of dealing LDS scholars on intellectual grounds, tend to lean towards vicious ad hominem attacks and cheap caricatures. Further on in the essay, Dr. Peterson details European secularism and its relationship to secular anti-Mormonism.

I found this essay extremely interesting in a number of ways. First, Professor Peterson is absolutely hilarious in disarming the ridiculousness of online secular critics. His whit and sharp rhetorical skills creates an essay that is not only interesting, but fun to read. And, true to form, his subtle jabs into anti-Mormonism create an enjoyable ethos and pathos throughout the entire essay.*

But Professor Peterson does not just appeal to the audience in a rhetorical fashion. His analysis and critique of secular anti-Mormonism is backed by a mastery of secondary literature on the subject and a careful exposition on the arguments of critics such as Dan Vogel. At one point in the essay, for example, Dr. Peterson takes Vogel's ad hoc "tin plates"** theory to task and rebukes the accusation that Mormon apologists overly indulge in ad hoc approaches.

So, considering these factors, I nominate Dr. Daniel C. Peterson's essay Reflections on Secular Anti-Mormonism as the article of the week for 07-27-08.

Reflections on Secular Anti-Mormonism by Daniel C. Peterson. 

* Truth be told, this has landed Professor Peterson in some hot water before. Some have criticized him for being too sarcastic in his writings and employing ad hominem attacks. However, it must be considered that in order to connect with the pathos and ethos of an audience, one will inevitably be forced to involve some form of sarcasm or irony in one's piece for the sake of rhetorical appeal.

** Dan Vogel, an influential albeit critical biographer of Joseph Smith, in order to combat the testimony of the 3 & 8 Witnesses and others who testified to handling the plates (such as Emma and Lucy Mack Smith), has previously argued that perhaps Joseph Smith crafted a set of bogus tin plates to fool his contemporaries. On the flaws of this argument, see Richard L. Anderson in Attempts to Redefine the Experience of the 8 Witnesses.

2008 FAIR Conference

FAIR - or the Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research - has its annual FAIR Conference this year on August 7th and 8th at South Towne Exposition Center in Sandy, Utah. This year's conference is sure to be good, as a number of excellent scholars and speakers are lined up to speak on topics including the Book of Mormon, the Book of Abraham, the Book of Moses, Church history, apologetics, Joseph Smith's DNA and many more topics. 

Even though I am reporting this late, it is still not too late to come. I attended last year and can testify to the fun and excitement of being able to rub shoulders and talk shop with other online apologists and brilliant scholars. Anyone who wishes to still come are highly encouraged to attend. More information on the conference can be found at the FAIR website.

I will be attending and will report on the FAIR Conference here at American Testament. Three speakers, Mark Wright, Brant Gardner and Larry Poulsen will be focusing on topics involving the Book of Mormon, which I will pay considerable attention to and report here after words. I also will then discuss the role of apologetics in the Church and why I am proud to call myself a Mormon apologist. 

For a complete schedule of the 2008 FAIR Conference, see below:

Thursday Schedule
Time		Speaker/Event		Presentation
8:00 am		Registration
9:00 am		Opening
9:10 am		Mike Ash		Shaken Faith Syndrome
10:10 am		Mark Wright		The Book of Mormon and Mesoamerica
11:10 am		Margaret Young and Darius Gray		Nobody Knows, the Untold Story of Black Mormons
12:10 pm		Lunch
1:15 pm		Brian Birch, Blake Ostler, and James Faulconer		Philosophy and Mormonism
2:30 pm		Jeffrey Bradshaw		The Message of the Joseph Smith Translation: A Walk in the Garden
3:30 pm		Snack Break
3:45 pm		Larry Poulsen		Book of Mormon Geography
4:45 pm		Ugo Perego		Joseph Smith's DNA Revealed: New Clues from the Prophet's Genes
5:45 pm		Closing

 

Friday Schedule
Time		Speaker/Event		Presentation
8:00 am		Registration
9:00 am		Opening
9:05 am		Ron Esplin		The Joseph Smith Papers
10:05 am		Matthew Brown		The Israelite Temple and the Early Christians
11:05 am		Newell Bringhurst and Craig Foster		The White Horse Prophecy: Myth vs. Reality
12:05 am		Lunch
1:00 pm		FAIR Business
1:30 pm		Scott Gordon		Online Apologetics
2:30 pm		Brian Hauglid		The Book of Abraham
3:30 pm		Snack Break
3:45 pm		Brant Gardner		Second Witness: The Book of Mormon
4:45 pm		Daniel Peterson		Humble Apologetics
5:45 pm		Closing

Extra! Extra! Read All About it!

The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, formerly the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, has recently released two new books that are a must have for members of the Church in general and Latter-day Saint apologists in particular. They are Eloquent Witness: Nibley on Himself, Others, and the Temple and The Book of Mormon and DNA Research. The former is a new volume (#17) in the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley and the latter is a compilation of articles and essays written by faithful Latter-day Saint scholars on the topic of the recent DNA controversy surrounding the historicity of the Book of Mormon. Considering that I have read both, I will give a quick synopsis of them for the reader here.

Eloquent Witness: Nibley on Himself, Others, and the Temple

This new volume in the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley is a compilation of some of the late Dr. Nibley's letters, journals, interviews and reviews on, as the title says, himself, others and the Temple. Also included, (at last!), is a transcript of the documentary Faith of an Observer and some of Nibley's materials that are otherwise difficult to find. For example, also included are personal letters Nibley sent to friends, or foes, and an unpublished autobiography.

This is a valuable addition to anyone's library, as it offers a glimpse into Nibley's personal life and character. It allows those who have read his other works to get a peek into the man behind the books.

The Book of Mormon and DNA Research

There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the role of DNA testing and the Book of Mormon. Some critics claim that the absence of discernible Near Eastern DNA in Native American populations disproves the Book of Mormon's claims of authenticity and historicity. These claims and criticisms, however, have been countered by Latter-day Saint scholars and apologists almost as soon as the criticisms hit print.

This new book, edited by Daniel C. Peterson, is a collection of some of the cream of the crop of the Mormon response to the "DNA question". It is essentially a collection of previous articles and essays written in the FARMS Review and the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies. These articles individually may be difficult to come by, as it would require searching through the pages of the FARMS Review and the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies. So this new volume offers a place wherein one can find these articles easily and in a reader friendly format. This book is also a good one to give to perhaps friends or family struggling with the issue of DNA and the Book of Mormon as it brings together the current Mormon scholarship on the issue into one volume. Thus, you can skip having to laboriously search the website of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for these articles individually.

In short, these two new books are a must have and should be seen as a welcomed addition to one's personal library.

My Experience with the Book of Mormon in Kenya

For the last two weeks I have had the amazing opportunity to travel with a Salt Lake City based humanitarian group called YouthLinc to a small village in Kenya called Kiamuri. It was an absolutely wonderful experience that was rewarding, fun and profoundly life changing. Our group of about 40 was involved in several things, which we all participated in with ernest.

1. We all taught Kenyan school children different lessons, such as American holidays, music, science, wildlife, rudimentary English, etc. I was assigned to teach about oceans and aquatic creatures, which was very fun, considering that most of the kids I taught had never heard of some of the animals mentioned.

2. We all as a group worked at a construction site in which we built an add on to a small school and help dig a foundation for a wall to go around the school. I even had the opportunity to learn how to chisel stone from professional Kenyan Stone Masons.

3. Our group taught at a health care seminar at the local hospital. We taught everything from hygiene, AIDS/HIV prevention, nutrition, etc.

But perhaps one of the most profound things that happened to me while I was in Kenya was when I presented Books of Mormon to two men; a older gentleman and local herbalist named Dominick and a 13 year old orphan boy named Phineous. The story behind these experiences has strengthened my testimony in the Book of Mormon as the Word of God considerably.

It should be noted that when I travel, I like to take copies of the Book of Mormon and other scriptures with me to hand out should an opportunity present itself. Twas no different in my trip to Kenya. I took a copy of the Book of Mormon, a Triple Combination and my old KJV Bible. 

On the first Sunday in Kenya our group split up and headed to Church with a local family. I went with a gentleman named Jacob to his local Methodist Church. It was absolutely amazing to attend this Church service, since not only was it all in Swahili with some smattering English here and there but we arrived during a testimony meeting in which patrons of the Church would sing their testimonies in Swahili hymns. What's more, the Pastor asked me to preach a sermon on the spot. Startled, I stood up and began to read from and elaborate on 2 Nephi 25:26 and bore my testimony of Jesus Christ. The Pastor, thankfully, was kind enough to translate to the congregation.

Before this happened, however, I spoke with the before mentioned Dominick, who, upon seeing my scriptures tucked away under my arm, asked if I was a pastor. I responded in the negative and explained that I was simply a devoted member of my Church. He was still curious about my scriptures, so, upon further inquiry I presented him a new Book of Mormon. Dominick quickly snatched the book and began to investigate it with a fiery curiosity. In broken English he read the title and articulated upon the subtitle "Another Testament of Jesus Christ".

"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Another testament! Like the New Testament?"

In response, I gave a quick introduction and explanation of the Book of Mormon to Dominick, who was absolutely enthralled. He asked if he could keep the book, since he wanted to use it in his sermons at his Church. He said how any book like the Bible that testifies of Christ is good enough for him, and thus, he was excited to read and ponder over the Book of Mormon. I have no way of knowing for sure, but I sincerely hope that Dominick is reading the Book of Mormon right now and pondering it's words and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Later that week I met 13 year old Phineous, who was orphaned at 8 years old when his family, everyone save his older brother Nicholas, was killed in an automobile accident. Phineous and I became quick friends and began striking up conversations about everything and anything about our lives, cultures, countries and religions. Phineous and his brother, since the death of their parents, had been living in St. Francis of Assis Parish and thus explained that they had been raised Catholic. Phineous explained, however, that he was not particularly inclined to Catholicism and was still searching for the fulness of the truth of God. When he asked me about my faith, I began to elaborate on the Church and its teachings, including the Book of Mormon and the story of the Restoration and Joseph Smith. 

Like Dominick, when Phineous was presented with a set of scriptures (this time a Triple Combination and my KJV Bible) he eagerly began to investigate them and read through selected parts. He was not just interested in the Book of Mormon but particularly the Pearl of Great Price as well. Later that week he explained how he had read parts of the Book of Moses as well as the Book of Mormon and was overwhelmed with joy because, in his own words, these books of scriptures "explained so much" and "clarified many issues" that he had been grappling with. He literally threw his hands in the air in describing his fascination for these books of scripture and I could see his face light up with joy as he promised to read more. 

On our group's final day in Kiamuri, I spent some time alone with Phineous and talked more on the Book of Mormon. I mentioned Moroni 10:4-5 and the promise that Heavenly Father will grant a testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon to sincere searchers by the power of revelation and the Holy Ghost. Shortly after that, our group departed.

In short, my experience with the Book of Mormon in Kenya was simply amazing. I was touched by the spirit deeply, which testified of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and the mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am so grateful for being able to talk with these two good men about the Book of Mormon and I sincerely hope that they will indeed read an ponder the words of the most correct book.

Nephi explains Isaiah to his family (1 Nephi 22)

Nephi was orally teaching his family about Isaiah as well as writing it down. Chapter 22 is devoted to the reaction of Laman and Lemuel to Nephi's interpretation of Isaiah. As we will see in the next book of the Book of Mormon, Second Nephi, this appears to have been a turning point such that the family would soon divide into two opposing tribes.

Their main question, in 1 Nephi 22:1, was whether what Isaiah was describing was "spiritual, which shall come to pass according to the spirit and not the flesh". In other words, in today's terms, their question was somewhat loaded. They wanted to know whether it was meant to be figurative or real.

Nephi gently corrects them by saying that because the words of Isaiah were received through the Spirit, that in that sense they were spiritual. They were also temporal (literal) in that they would someday come to pass.

He describes what today we call "the diaspora", or the great scattering of the twelve tribes of Israel such that ten of those tribes were completely lost in the great populations of the earth.

Nephi goes on to explain that it is through the Gentiles that Israel will be gathered back to their ancestral homeland.

Verses 7-9 describe how the Gentiles would found a great nation which would be instrumental in scattering Laman and Lemuel's posterity. Then, the Lord would restore the Gospel through the Gentiles and gather together the remnant of the people left over. In the LDS Church, we understand the fulfillment of this prophecy to be the founding of the United States of America and the various Latin American countries by European nations (what the Jews would consider "Gentiles").

The Lord would use these events as a catalyst for gathering from all parts of the world every living descendant (and deceased, through restored temple ordinances) of the house of Israel, most particularly those of the lost ten tribes.

At the end of the gathering, the Lord will destroy any worldly organizations that rise up to fight against His Gospel and who try to persecute His servants. He will miraculously preserve the righteous during that terrible time. "Wherefore, the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet [Isaiah], they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire."

People who read the Bible today often ask the question "In what way will Satan be bound when Christ comes?" While it is tempting to think of Satan, the individual, tied up with ropes so he can't bother us anymore, he is a spirit with free will and cannot be contained in that way, even by God, who will never force anyone to do anything against their will.

Rather, the Book of Mormon clearly teaches that because of the faith in Christ of those righteous people remaining after the destruction, they will be righteous (Christ's atonement covering their sins) "And because of the righteousness of his people, Satan has no power; wherefore, he cannot be loosed for the space of many years; for he hath no power over the hearts of the people, for they dwell in righteousness, and the Holy One of Israel reigneth."

Quite literally, they will not be tempted by Satan because they will not have a desire to sin because of their faith in Christ. They will know where such things lead, based on the experience of witnessing the destruction of the world, and will instead reject temptations when they come and choose to obey only righteous principles.

The overall message Nephi has for his brothers is to repent so that they can be counted among the righteous when the Lord comes the second time at the end of the world.

30 Wherefore, my brethren, I would that ye should consider that the things which have been written upon the plates of brass are true; and they testify that a man must be obedient to the commandments of God.

31 Wherefore, ye need not suppose that I and my father are the only ones that have testified, and also taught them. Wherefore, if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day. And thus it is. Amen.