A Study of Latter-Day Saint Theology, Doctrine and History
[Note: if you haven't read the post on Isaiah's Servant Songs and part one of the Second Comforter Heresy, please begin there.] I apologize for the delay in finishing this post. For whatever reason, it's been difficult to muster up the enthusiasm to hunker down and get it done. There are many other topics I... Continue Reading →
Aside from Jesus Christ, there is probably no more significant, influential or beloved figure in scripture than Isaiah. Isaiah is quoted 85 times in the New Testament, second only to the Psalms. The Book of Mormon contains 21 full chapters, eight additional citations, and 22 paraphrases from Isaiah. Joseph Smith's revelations are replete with direct... Continue Reading →
"For although a man may have many revelations, and have power to do many mighty works, yet if he boasts in his own strength, and sets at naught the counsels of God, and follows after the dictates of his own will and carnal desires, he must fall and incur the vengeance of a just God upon him."—Revelation to... Continue Reading →
"Behold, thou art Joseph, and thou wast chosen to do the work of the Lord, but because of transgression, if thou art not aware thou wilt fall." —Revelation to Joseph Smith, July 1828 (D&C 3:9) [Note: this post is intended as a follow up to the three-part series on Joseph Smith's financial malfeasances. I recommend reading... Continue Reading →
"Smith gets a commandment that he shall be the 'head of the Church,' or that he 'shall rule the Conference,' or that the Church shall build him an elegant house and give him1000 ($35,250) dollars. For this the members of the church must vote, or they will be cast off for rebelling against the commandments... Continue Reading →
“Our whole strength rests on the validity of that vision. It either occurred or it did not occur. If it did not, then this work is a fraud. If it did, then it is the most important and wonderful work under the heavens.” —Gordon B. Hinckley on Joseph Smith's First Vision, October 2002 General Conference... Continue Reading →
When I was a teenager, I was told that mine was a "chosen generation." I heard it in church, I heard in seminary, and I heard it from the mouth of the living prophet, Ezra T. Benson, “Youth of Zion, do you realize you are living in the days of the fulfillment of these signs... Continue Reading →
(NOTE: This is a rewrite of one my first posts. I was never really happy with it, so I decided to give it another pass. The previous entry has been deleted.) In the Latter-Day Saint canon, there is perhaps no document more controversial than D&C 132. While the Book of Abraham is believed to be... Continue Reading →
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was... Continue Reading →
“No other psalm has in research evoked so many hypotheses and discussions as Psalm 110.... We should at once emphasize that both in questions of textual criticism and in history-of-religions problems the last word has not yet been spoken.”— Hans-Joachim Kraus New Testament writers quote Psalm 110 more than any other psalm. (And one of... Continue Reading →
BOOK OF MORMONISM 