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"The Book of Mormon Meets Pentecostals" by Christopher Thomas now available on YouTube

October 23, 2015 12:00 AM
Pentecostalism is one of the fastest-growing Christian faiths in the world today. How might the Book of Mormon be viewed within that context? Professor John Christopher Thomas returned to Brigham Young University in October to talk about the Book of Mormon’s reception among—and relevance to—Pentecostals past and present. An audio recording of the lecture including Thomas's slides is now available on our YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9ZHcb4WI1IThomas examines Pentecostal forerunners (leaders and laity) who had personal or theological contact with the Book of Mormon and Mormonism in general. He surveys attitudes and assessments of the scripture in early Pentecostal periodical literature. In conclusion he briefly compares aspects of Pentecostal and Book of Mormon theology.The Maxwell Institute’s Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies examines the Book of Mormon in each of its contexts—from the ancient through the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries. It continues to benefit from the insights of interested readers within and beyond the LDS tradition.
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If you missed the Willes Book of Mormon Lecture by Kristin Matthews here's a quick overview in Tweets

October 12, 2015 12:00 AM
I think the Institute's Twitter feed got more traffic than ever last week when Kristin Matthews delivered the 2015 Laura F. Willes Book of Mormon Lecture, 'Come Into the Fold of God: Caring for the Poor and Needy.' Here are a few highlights in case you missed it. (For all you non-Twitterites, keep in mind Tweets are limited to 140 characters each.) Kristin Matthews begins the 2015 Willes Book of Mormon Lecture #willesbom pic.twitter.com/ubF2UEy0TV
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October 8, Lecture: Chris Thomas, "Pentecostals Meet the Book of Mormon"

October 01, 2015 12:00 AM
John Christopher ThomasPentecostalism is one of the fastest-growing Christian faiths in the world today. How might the Book of Mormon be viewed within that context? Professor John Christopher Thomas is coming back to Brigham Young University to talk about the Book of Mormon's reception among—and relevance to—Pentecostals past and present.Thomas's lecture will consist of three parts. First, he will examine Pentecostal forerunners (leaders and laity) who had personal or theological contact with the Book of Mormon and Mormonism in general. Second, he'll survey attitudes and assessments of the scripture in early Pentecostal periodical literature. Finally, he will compare aspects of Pentecostal and Book of Mormon theology.The Maxwell Institute's Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies examines the Book of Mormon in each of its contexts—from the ancient through the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries. It continues to benefit from the insights of interested readers within and beyond the LDS tradition.We hope to see you there!For those who cannot attend in person, a recording of the lecture may appear on our YouTube channel, where you can find his previous lecture, 'A Pentecostal Reads the Book of Mormon.' WhenThursday, October 812:00 PM–1:00 PM WhereBrigham Young University Joseph F. Smith Building (JFSB) Room B192 WhoJohn Christopher Thomas (PhD, University of Sheffield) is the Clarence J. Abbott Professor of Biblical Studies at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary in Cleveland, TN, and the Director of the Centre for Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies at Bangor University, in Bangor, Wales. Professor Thomas is an elected member of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas and author of numerous scholarly articles and eight books. He and his spouse, Barbara, have two daughters, two sons-in-law, and one granddaughter.
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Collection of FARMS Preliminary Reports now available online

December 19, 2014 12:00 AM
As described by founder John W. Welch, The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies was established in 1979 as a clearinghouse to reprint and distribute articles written about the Book of Mormon and to promote more academic-minded studies of this foundational Restoration scripture. Welch emphasized that FARMS aimed to perform rigorous research to achieve a better understanding “both intellectual and spiritual” of the Book of Mormon text. Welch emphasized the importance of analyzing the book as an ancient text and issued a call for an interdisciplinary approach:
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DRAFT Celebrating the 35th anniversary of FARMS founding

December 15, 2014 12:00 AM
The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies was established in 1979 as a clearinghouse to reprint and distribute articles written about the Book of Mormon, and to promote more academic-minded studies of this foundational Restoration scripture. Early reprint articles included FARMS founder John W. Welch’s landmark BYU Studies piece detailing his discovery of chiasmus—a Hebrew literary gesture—in the Book of Mormon. ((John W. Welch, 'Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon,' BYU Studies 10/1 (1969): 69–84.)) After moving the non-profit group from California to Utah’s Brigham Young University, Welch emphasized that FARMS aimed to perform rigorous research to achieve a better understanding “both intellectual and spiritual” of the Book of Mormon text. Welch emphasized the importance of analyzing the book as an ancient text and issued a call for an interdisciplinary approach: 'The more you understand about the ancient world, the more the Book of Mormon makes sense and the more meaningful it becomes. . . . A great number of diverse disciplines needed to be brought together. The Book of Mormon should be studied with literary, historical, religious, political, military, legal, social, economic, and just basic textual concerns in mind.' ((n.a., 'Scholars Seek Understanding of Book of Mormon,' California Intermountain News, Thursday, November 22, 1984, n.p.)) Within a few years, FARMS grew from issuing reprints via catalog order form to facilitating and publishing original scholarship in a variety of books and journal articles. In the pre-Internet days it served as a magnet attracting interested Latter-day Saints who could enjoy the offerings or pitch in their own research. FARMS began publishing a newsletter, eventually named Insights: An Ancient Window, to highlight research developments for interested subscribers. It included a series of “Updates” consisting of one- or two-page summaries of ongoing research projects, such as recent archaeological or cultural discoveries that seemed to support the Book of Mormon as an ancient record or Hebrew-like constructions in the Book of Mormon text. ((The first Update, “F.A.R.M.S. Update December 1983, Inauguration of the Cornerstone Club,” was released December 1983. Welch cites the December 1984 Update as the first in Re-exploring the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, FARMS, 1992), xi.)) FARMS also began compiling 'Working Papers,' 'Preliminary Reports,' 'Study Aids,' and other materials. As increasingly sophisticated articles came in, the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies was established as the premier venue for scholars studying this Latter-day Saint scripture. All of this was done to stimulate more Book of Mormon research, to better appreciate the text's richness, understand its origins, and comprehend its messages. ((See this description on the back cover of Reexploring the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1992).)) Some of the reports led to honed publications. All of this was also done in the pre-word processor days, which blows my mind.FARMS was formally brought into Brigham Young University in 1997. BYU combined it with several other important academic initiatives in 2006, thereby creating the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. Following a generous donation from the Laura F. Willes family, FARMS was eventually absorbed by the Institute's Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies—one of a number of important research initiatives currently housed under the Maxwell umbrella. Although the FARMS name is no longer in active use, the Willes Center continues to support approaches to the Book of Mormon with 'literary, historical, religious, political, military, legal, social, economic, and just basic textual concerns in mind,' just as FARMS-founder Welch described back in 1984. ((See footnote 2.)) Also, as the latest issue of the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies demonstrates, the Book of Mormon's translation and reception contexts will also receive closer attention in order to flesh out the life of the its inception, transmission, and reception—from the ancient world through the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries.This 35th anniversary year is a fine time to celebrate the work of FARMS, the Willes Center's predecessor, and one among several forerunners to today's Maxwell Institute. As a way to honor the devoted students of the Book of Mormon who've worked for decades to bring the scripture into greater light through academic research, we've been working to make more classic FARMS materials more widely available than ever.To that end, the PAST PUBLICATIONS page on the Institute's website has been updated with a new PRELIMINARY REPORTS section. It features over two hundred Papers, Study Aids, Transcripts, and other ancient-but-not-that-ancient documents.FARMS Preliminary Reports were said to consist of 'tentative papers reflecting substantial research not yet ready for final publication.' Although some of them have never been publicly released until now, FARMS made most of them available via catalog order 'to be critiqued and improved and to stimulate further research.' ((Prelim. Report coversheets in my possession.)) The Willes Center offers them now in that same spirit. Some are very outdated—having been surpassed or still awaiting update by subsequent researchers (see a few anti-evolution pieces, for instance)—while other inclusions will prove just as useful today as they were when they were first created (such as John Tvedtnes's exhaustive survey of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon). Although their quality is uneven, they represent the energy and zeal of those who sought to enrich understanding of LDS scripture over the past several decades.And even more documents and ephemera will be made available on the site in coming months.I express my gratitude to Caitlyn Ainge and Sarah Skriloff who assisted me in this project and to Matthew Roper for contributing ideas for this blog post. The Willes Center dedicates this new section of the Maxwell Institute website to all those who've contributed their insights over the past thirty-five years.
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Announcing our online edition of the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project (vols. 1, 2, and 4)

October 29, 2014 12:00 AM
A stray drop of ink and a quirk of nineteenth-century penmanship make the difference between “retain that wrong” and “repair that wrong.” Only scrupulous attention to the earliest written manuscripts of the Book of Mormon can uncover such discrepancies. Professor Royal Skousen has spent more than twenty five years meticulously researching the original and printer’s manuscripts of the Book of Mormon, revealing discrepancies and making a case for the type of translation the Book of Mormon is. Every page, every sentence, every word, letter, and mark are accounted for in the landmark Critical Text Project, arguably the most important Book of Mormon research to date.
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Adam Miller: Mormon Theology Seminar about to bear more fruit

June 26, 2014 12:00 AM
This post by Adam Miller is also at Times & Seasons where you can leave questions or comments. Miller is director of the Mormon Theology Seminar, which recently entered into partnership with the Institute’s Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies. This year’s Seminar drew to a close last week, but its fruits are yet to be fully gathered in. Podcasts of the papers presented at the Seminar will soon be available both through the Seminar website and through the Maxwell Institute podcast. Plans to publish the whole collection are also in the works. The proceedings of the previous conferences on Alma 32 and 2 Nephi are being printed and bound as we speak. More information about these new books to follow, as well as blog posts from seminar participants describing their Seminar experience. —BHodges
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Upcoming Mormon Theology Seminar to focus on 1 Nephi 1

May 28, 2014 12:00 AM
The First Annual Summer Seminar on Mormon Theology is scheduled to begin on June 9th at the BYU London Centre in London, England. The theme of the seminar is “A Dream, A Rock, and a Pillar of Fire: Reading 1 Nephi 1.”
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Mother Goose and the Book of Mormon

May 14, 2014 12:00 AM
The Book of Mormon became fodder for newspaper gossip columnists months before it came off the press. An 1829 issue of the Wayne Sentinel newspaper printed the “Golden Bible’s” title page as a “curiosity,” noting that those who’d heard of the forthcoming translation expected a “gross imposition and a grosser superstition.” ((See the Wayne Sentinel, June 26, 1829.))
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Brian M. Hauglid appointed as new director of the Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies

May 29, 2013 12:00 AM
The Maxwell Institute is pleased to announce the appointment of Brian M. Hauglid as director of the Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies. He replaces Paul Y. Hoskisson, who is returning to full-time teaching in BYU’s department of Ancient Scripture in Religious Education.“I’m thrilled that Dr. Hauglid has agreed to join our staff,” said M. Gerald Bradford, executive director of the Maxwell Institute. “He’s uniquely positioned to make the most of the Willes Center by cultivating the highest level of scholarship on the Book of Mormon.” Bradford added, “We also recognize all of the work and effort that Dr. Hoskisson has put into directing the Center these past years. We especially appreciate his work as editor of the Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture.”
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Recent Book of Mormon lecture available on our new YouTube channel

March 29, 2013 12:00 AM
It has been a few months since Professor James E. Faulconer delivered our annual Laura F. Willes Book of Mormon Lecture, “Sealings and Mercies: Moroni’s Final Exhortation in Moroni 10.” We’re kicking off our new YouTube channel with Faulconer’s fresh perspective on the last chapter of the Book of Mormon.Faulconer teaches in the BYU Philosophy Department and holds the Richard L. Evans Chair of Religious Understanding at BYU. He publishes regularly in journals on topics concerning scripture study and the philosophy of religion.
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Joseph Spencer named next editor of 'Journal of Book of Mormon Studies'

March 08, 0017 12:00 AM
Joseph M. Spencer has been selected as the next editor of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute's Journal of Book of Mormon Studies.
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"A Pentecostal Reads the Book of Mormon" by Christopher Thomas now available on YouTube

September 08, 0015 12:00 AM
As the keystone scripture of the Latter-day Saint faith, the Book of Mormon has spiritually nourished millions. Over the past decade it has received increasing attention beyond Mormonism. Scholars and students from a variety of backgrounds have come to better appreciate its richness, complexity, and messages. On January 15, 2015 the Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies sponsored a lecture by Christopher Thomas, the Clarence J. Abbott Professor of Biblical Studies at Pentecostal Theological Seminary. Thomas's lecture briefly examined the book's structure, content, theology, and reception history, focusing on insights from his forthcoming work on the Book of Mormon. The full lecture is now available on our YouTube channel:
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Podcast (Old)

Lecture, January 15: "A Pentecostal Reads the Book of Mormon"

January 05, 0015 12:00 AM
As the keystone scripture of the Latter-day Saint faith, the Book of Mormon has spiritually nourished millions of Latter-day Saints. But over the past decade it has received increasing attention beyond Mormonism. Scholars and students from a variety of backgrounds have come to better appreciate the richness, complexity, and messages of the Book of Mormon. Scholars like Laurie Maffly-Kipp, Krister Stendahl, and Paul Gutjahr bring fresh eyes to the text, often recognizing things that have previously gone unnoticed.
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Watch Skousen's lecture series on the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project

July 17, 0013 12:00 AM
In early 2013, our Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies sponsored three lectures by Royal Skousen called '25 Years of Research: What We Have Learned About the Book of Mormon Text.' It took a while to get all of the requisite permissions, but we finally got the green light to post all three videos on our YouTube channel. The lecture series was also sponsored by the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at BYU's Harold B. Lee Library.
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