Matthew Bowman is the Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies at Claremont Graduate University. He specializes in American religious history with interests in Mormonism, new religious movements, and the concept of “religion” in the United States. Bowman is the author or co-editor of The Mormon People, Women and Mormonism, and Christian: The Politics of a Word in America. He has written for the Washington Post, Slate, The New Republic, and the Huffington Post, and he has appeared on MSNBC and NPR.
The Wonder of Scripture series, sponsored by the BYU Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, invites thoughtful speakers from diverse disciplines to reflect on how sacred texts inspire wonder, deepen understanding, and shape lives. Each lecture offers a unique perspective on engaging scripture with curiosity, reverence, and intellectual depth.