BYU

Hugh Nibley Weekly Lecture Series Beginning Tonight at BYU

10 Comments

Dr. Richard Bushman

The Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies and the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS), in conjunction with Religious Education and the Harold B. Lee library, are hosting a weekly lecture series that begins tonight, January 14th, 2010, at 7:00pm, and extends through Winter Semester 2010 on Thursday evenings in the Harold B. Lee Library Auditorium at BYU.

This lecture series is in honor of the 100th anniversary of Hugh Nibley’s birth this year.  Hugh Nibley was born on March 27, 1910.

The presenters at these lectures will include Richard Bushman, Robert Millet, Terry Ball, Daniel Peterson, Zina Petersen, Ann Madsen, Alex Nibley, Bert Wilson, John Welch, Marilyn Arnold, Eric Huntsman, and Gaballa Ali Gaballa.

Tonight’s lecture is by Richard Bushman, biographer of Joseph Smith (Rough Stone Rolling), and an editor of the Joseph Smith Papers Project.  His topic is “Nibley and Joseph Smith.”  Next week’s lecture, January 21st, will be by Robert Millet who will present on “Nibley and the Church.”

I’m looking forward to these lectures.  Hugh Nibley catapulted LDS scholarship and apologetics into a new dimension, and his work will affect many generations of Latter-day Saints to come.  His work on the temple has particularly influenced me, and many others I know.

Update 1/15/10: The lecture was wonderful last night.  And there’s good news!  There were three cameras there filming it, which I think they will continue for the series, which means that they are planning on putting it all on TV or making it available somehow for later viewing (perhaps online).  They also gave the rest of the series schedule of lectures:

  • 14 Jan – “Nibley and Joseph Smith” – Richard Bushman
  • 21 Jan – “Nibley and the Church” – Robert Millet
  • 28 Jan – “Nibley’s Early Education” – Zina Petersen
  • 4 Feb – “Nibley as Apologist” – Daniel Peterson
  • 11 Feb – “Nibley and the environment” – Terry Ball
  • 18 Feb – “Graduate School through BYU” – Alex Nibley
  • 25 Feb – “Nibley on the Bible” – Ann Madsen
  • 4 Mar – “Folklore on Nibley” – Bert Wilson
  • 11 Mar – “The Lasting Legacies of Hugh W. Nibley” – John W. Welch
  • 18 Mar – “Nibley and Classical Scholarship” – Eric Huntsman
  • 25 Mar – “Nibley on the Book of Mormon” – Marilyn Arnold
  • 1 Apr – “Nibley the Mentor” – Wilfred Griggs
  • 8 Apr – “Nibley, Egyptology & the Book of Abraham” – TBA

These lectures will all be held in the Harold B. Lee Library Auditorium (Level 1) at 7:00pm.  This is a great lineup!  If you plan on coming to these lectures, make sure you come early to get a seat, as the room was filled to overflowing last night.

Daniel C. Peterson Temple Fireside – July 12, 2009

3 Comments
Daniel C. Peterson

Daniel C. Peterson

For those who are in the Salt Lake area, BYU professor and LDS scholar Dr. Daniel C. Peterson will be giving a fireside this coming Sunday, July 12, 2009.  His topic is “The Temple as a Place of Ascent to God.”

The fireside comes in connection with the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house, and will begin at 7:00pm at the Daybreak Stake Center (near the new temple).  Here is the address:

4517 W. Mille Lacs Drive
South Jordan, UT 84095

I have heard Br. Peterson speak on several occasions, and have been greatly impressed with his scholarship, style, wit, and humor.  He is a fantastic speaker, and I’m sure this fireside about the temple will not disappoint.  I will be taking notes.

[via MADB]

“The Cosmic Ring-Dance of the Angels” by Frederick M. Huchel

9 Comments
Detail from "The Last Judgment" by Fra Angelico - "The Dance of the Angels"

Detail from "The Last Judgment," c1425, by Fra Angelico - "The Dance of the Angels"

Some of you may remember my paper The Genesis of the Round Dance that I posted early in the life of TempleStudy.com.  It was a paper I wrote for a BYU Dance Department Symposium a few years ago that addressed the ancient ubiquitous practice of ring dancing, particularly as connected with religious worship and prayer.  It was a subject that really intrigued me, and is probably one of the most researched topics I’ve ever written about, as well as one of the first, taking some precious leads from Hugh Nibley and running.

Br. Frederick M. Huchel, an independent historian and scholar of the temple from Logan, Utah,  a week and a half ago spoke on the same subject at Margaret Barker’s Temple Studies Group symposium in London, England.  His presentation was entitled “The Cosmic Ring-Dance of the Angels: An Early Christian Rite of the Temple.”  The paper has now been published on David Larsen’s Heavenly Ascents blog.

I have not yet had the chance to read the paper, but I am confident that it will go far and above the detail of my paper, lending valuable insights particularly in the area of the ancient Israelite and early Christian elements.  Br. Huchel’s original work on the subject spans over 100 pages that he plans to publish at some point, of which this paper is a portion.

I’m really looking forward to learning more about this subject from Br. Huchel!  You can find the paper at the links below:

Introduction by Br. Huchel at Heavenly Ascents
PDF of “The Cosmic Ring-Dance of the Angels: An Early Christian Rite of the Temple”

Update: Frederick M. Huchel has now published a book on this subject.  You can buy it here: http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/the-cosmic-ring-dance-of-the-angels—softbound/7409216?fNo=Cancel

Notes on Sacred Space Symposium at Juvenile Instructor

3 Comments

I’ve been taking notes this morning at the Sacred Space symposium at BYU, and was thinking of posting my scribbles.  But instead of reinventing the wheel, you might want to check out the great notes at the Juvenile Instructor blog.  Jared and Ben are doing a fantastic job over there of summarizing the presentations.  I don’t think I could do any better.

I will still probably post about my experience at the symposium, but it will be my own take and thoughts on what was presented.

Juvenile Instructor

Sacred Space Symposium at BYU – June 3rd, 2009

6 Comments
Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple

Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple

This Wednesday, June 3rd, the Richard L. Evans Chair of Religious Understanding at BYU will be sponsoring an academic symposium entitled “Sacred Space.”  The symposium will commence at 9:15 a.m. at the Gordon B. Hinckley Center at Brigham Young University, with a welcome from President Cecil O. Samuelson.  Presenters will include Terryl Givens, Richard A. Cohen, Jeanne H. Kilde, Hamid Mavani, Michael Fishbane, Steven Olsen, and Laurie Maffly-Kipp.  There will also be a panel discussion in the evening with Richard Bushman as moderator.

The symposium comes in recognition of the open house of the new Oquirrh Mountain Temple, and will discuss the idea of sacred space among several scholars of different religious backgrounds.  It should be very interesting.  I’m planning on attending.  I’m still unsure whether I will liveblog it or not.  The last time I liveblogged a BYU conference, it did not seem like there was that much interest.  Let me know if you would be interested in a liveblog.

More information, including presentation topics, can be found at the Times and Seasons blog, and this BYU News Release.