30
April
2013
Jenny Webb is an independent scholar living in Huntsville Alabama with her husband, Nick Webb, and two young children. She has an MA in comparative literature from BYU and has worked as an editor and compositor for the past eight years. Her research interests include twentieth-century fiction and scriptural theology; her most recent publications include "Fantastic Desire: Poe, Calvino, and the Dying Woman" as well as "Reading Nephi Reading Isaiah," which she co-edited along with Joe Spencer. She serves as a member of the Mormon Theology Seminar Executive Board and in 2009 helped to found Salt Press along with Adam Miller, Joe Spencer, and Robert Couch.
In this interview Kirk and Jenny discuss the founding of Salt Press, the merger with the Maxwell Institute, apologetics, and the role that women play in the changing field Mormon Studies.
themormonbookreview 
scripture, theology, women, apologetics 
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20
April
2013
Michael R. Ash is a veteran staff member of the Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research (FAIR), former weekly columnist for the Mormon Times and has presented several papers at LDS-related symposiums. Ash is the author of Shaken Faith Syndrome: Strengthening One's Testimony In the Face of Criticism and Doubt, as well as Of Faith and Reason: Scholarly Evidences Supporting Joseph Smith
. Ash writes a semi-monthly column for Meridian Magazine's on-line publication and has written more than 100 articles defending the faith. Ash has had articles published by FAIR, FARMS, Sunstone, Dialogue, and most recently in the Ensign.
In this interview Kirk and Michael talk about what it means to doubt, the declining lack of literacy, how to stay a member of the church, and what it might mean for one to leave faithfully.
themormonbookreview The Book of Mormon, scripture, Joseph Smith, polygamy, Church history, apologetics Comments |
11
April
2013
Terryl Givens did graduate work at Cornell University in Intellectual History and at UNC Chapel Hill where he received his PhD in Comparative Literature. He holds the James A. Bostwick chair of English, and is Professor of Literature and Religion at the University of Richmond, where he teaches courses in 19thcentury studies and the Bible’s influence on Western literature. Author of several books, his writing has been praised by the New York Times as “provocative reading,” and includes, most recently, When Souls had Wings, a history of the idea of premortal life in Western thought, and a biography (with Matthew Grow) of Parley Pratt. The God Who Weeps (with Fiona Givens) was released in October. He is currently at work on a 2 volume history of Mormon thought for Oxford University Press.
Fiona Givens teaches French and German at schools in Richmond, Virginia. She was born in Nairobi, Kenya, educated in British convent schools, and converted to the LDS church in Frankfurt. She is a frequent speaker at conferences and Deseret Book’s Time Out For Women series, and has published in Journal of Mormon History and other periodicals. She is a longtime collaborator in Terryl’s books, and co-author of The God Who Weeps. They are the parents of six children, the youngest of whom is currently serving in the Frankfurt, Germany Mission.
In this interview Kirk talks with Terryl and Fiona about what it means to have faith, the Fall of Adam and Eve, and agency.
themormonbookreview theology, philosophy Comments |
29
March
2013
Ty Mansfield is a life-long member of the Church, served in the Manchester New Hampshire mission and graduated from BYU in Asian Studies and Business Management. His master’s- and doctoral-level education is in marriage and family therapy, and he currently works as a therapist in Lubbock, Texas, where he lives with his wife, Danielle, and their two kids.
Well-acquainted with the dichotomy faced by Latter-day Saints who experience same-sex attraction, Ty chronicled his own spiritual journey as co-author with Fred and Marilyn Matis of In Quiet Desperation: Understanding The Challenge Of Same-gender Attraction
, which includes a personal memoir of his spiritual journey as a member of the Church sorting through some of the conflicts often associated with this issue.
He has also compiled Voices of Hope: Latter-Day Saint Perspectives on Same Gender Attraction- An Anthology of Gospel Teachings and Personal Essays
, an anthology of gospel teachings by a number of prominent LDS inspirational writers, as well as a number of personal essays written by LDS men and women who have first-hand experience with homosexual attraction. In the May/June 2013 issue of LDS Living magazine, Ty and his wife were invited to share their story has the cover feature.
Ty is a cofounder of the nonprofit organization North Star, a faith-affirming support organization for LDS individuals and families affected by homosexuality and who desire to live within the framework of the doctrines and teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
http://ldsvoicesofhope.org
In this interview Kirk talks with Ty talks about his own spiritual path, labeling homosexuality, and how to stay in the church while being gay and Mormon.
themormonbookreview marriage, Homosexuality Comments |
24
March
2013
Taylor Petrey is an assistant professor of Religion at Kalamazoo College and Director of the Women, Gender, and Sexuality program. His area of specialization is New Testament and Early Christianity . Dr. Petrey received his ThD from Harvard Divinity School (2010), MTS from Harvard Divinity School (2003), and BA in Philosophy and Religion from Pace University (2001, summa cum laude). His research interests include issues of gender and sexuality in early Christianity, early Christian identity, and the relationship between Judaism and Christianity. Dr. Petrey teaches in the Jewish Studies and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Programs. He is the founder of the Greater Michigan Ancient Christianity Society (GMACS), a regional academic organization. He is also a fellow at the Neil A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship.
Many of Taylor's thoughts are based on a blog post that he recently wrote, "How Mormons Read the Bible, See it here:
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/peculiarpeople/2013/03/how-mormons-read-the-bible/
On this episode of the show, Kirk switches up the format somewhat and talks about the 2013 changes to the LDS scriptures with Taylor Petrey. In this interview Kirk and Taylor discuss how Mormons read scripture, what changes are in this new edition, and Official Doctrine 2 (the new preface on the Priesthood ban).
themormonbookreview black mormons, scripture, theology, Church history, women Comments |
8
March
2013
Brian C. Hales, board-certified anesthesiologist in Layton, Utah, graduated from Utah State University with a B.S. in biology and from the University of Utah, College of Medicine. This book is his seventh. His Modern Polygamy and Mormon Fundamentalism: The Generations after the Manifesto
(Salt Lake City: Kofford Books, 2007) was awarded the "Best Book of 2007" prize from the John Whitmer Historical Association. He authored Setting the Record Straight: Mormon Fundamentalism
(2008) and The Priesthood of Modern Polygamy: A Lds Perspective
(1992). Hales has published articles in Mormon Historical Studies, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and the Journal of Mormon History. He also contributed a chapter to The Persistence of Polygamy: Joseph Smith and the Origins of Mormon Polygamy
, edited by Newell Bringhurst and Craig L. Foster (2010). He is also webmaster of www.MormonFundamentalism.com and www.JosephSmithsPolygamy.com. In addition to a fulltime LDS mission in Venezuela (1976-78), he has served as a music missionary (1999 -). Hales has also served as president of the Medical Staff at Davis Hospital and Medical Center. He is the father of four adult children.
In Part two of this interview Kirk and Brian talk about Emma Smith, Eliza R. Snow, sex, and the future of scholarship on the topic of Joseph Smith and his relationship to polygamy.
themormonbookreview marriage, Joseph Smith, polygamy, Church history, women Comments |
8
March
2013
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themormonbookreview Uncategorized Comments |
2
March
2013
Brian C. Hales, board-certified anesthesiologist in Layton, Utah, graduated from Utah State University with a B.S. in biology and from the University of Utah, College of Medicine. This book is his seventh. His Modern Polygamy and Mormon Fundamentalism: The Generations after the Manifesto (Salt Lake City: Kofford Books, 2007) was awarded the "Best Book of 2007" prize from the John Whitmer Historical Association. He authored Setting the Record Straight: Mormon Fundamentalism (2008) and The Priesthood of Modern Polygamy: A Lds Perspective (1992). Hales has published articles in Mormon Historical Studies, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and the Journal of Mormon History. He also contributed a chapter to The Persistence of Polygamy: Joseph Smith and the Origins of Mormon Polygamy, edited by Newell Bringhurst and Craig L. Foster (2010). He is also webmaster of www.MormonFundamentalism.com and www.JosephSmithsPolygamy.com. In addition to a fulltime LDS mission in Venezuela (1976-78), he has served as a music missionary (1999 -). Hales has also served as president of the Medical Staff at Davis Hospital and Medical Center. He is the father of four adult children.
In Part one of this interview Kirk and Brian discuss why Brian studies polygamy, what is different in these volumes from work previously done on the subject, the Fanny Alger situation, and why some people accuse the church of secretiveness surrounding polygamy.
themormonbookreview Joseph Smith, angels, polygamy, Church history, women Comments |
28
February
2013
Edward J. Blum is a historian of race and religion in the United States. He is the author of W. E. B. Du Bois, American Prophet (Politics and Culture in Modern America)
(2007), and Reforging the White Republic: Race, Religion, and American Nationalism, 1865-1898 (Conflicting Worlds: New Dimensions of the American Civil War)
(2005), and He is the co-author (with Paul Harvey) of The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America
(2012), as well as the editor or co-editor of several volumes. An award-winning writer and teacher, Blum was named by the History News Network a “top young historian” in 2007. Additionally, The Color of Christ was named a "best book" of 2012 by Publisher's Weekly ... in religion; and Book List named it one of their top 10 black nonfiction of the year.
In this interview Kirk and Edward discuss how Jesus has historically been portrayed in pictures, the common 19th century conception of Jesus, the meaning of a white Jesus to black and Native American Mormons, and the racial significance of Mormonism's usage of the Christus statue.
themormonbookreview black mormons, Church history, Native Americans, art Comments |
22
February
2013
Michael Scott Van Wagenen is an assistant professor and public history coordinator at Georgia Southern University. He previously taught borderlands history at the University of Texas at Brownsville. He is the author of The Texas Republic and the Mormon Kingdom of God (South Texas Regional Studies)
(Texas A&M Press, 2002) and co-editor with W. Paul Reeve of Between Pulpit and Pew: The Supernatural World in Mormon Folklore (Utah State University Press, 2011). His latest book, Remembering the Forgotten War: The Enduring Legacies of the U.s.-mexican War (Public History in Historical Perspective)
, was published in 2012 by the University of Massachusetts Press. Prior to earning his Ph.D. in U.S. History at the University of Utah he was a national award-winning documentary filmmaker. His films about the U.S. – Mexico Borderlands have twice won highest honors from the National Educational Media Network and have been screened at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the American Museum of Natural History, and numerous film festivals.
In this interview Kirk and Michael discuss Mormon folklore and how it has changed between the 19th and 21st centuries. They tackle such issues as Bigfoot, UFOs, the War in Heaven, and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
themormonbookreview film, Joseph Smith, Church history, Folklore Comments |
