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Mormon Impressions of Dan Brown’s ‘The Lost Symbol’

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Book Cover

I just finished Dan Brown’s latest thriller, The Lost Symbol, which was published a few days ago on September 15th.  There has been a lot of anticipation surrounding this book, since 6 years have passed since the publication of his bestseller The Da Vinci Code, with 80 million copies sold worldwide to date.  Many wondered if Brown would repeat his success with this book, and while the jury is still out on the answer to that question, I must say that I’m personally fascinated by the material that Brown discusses in this novel.

As was predicted, the story centers around the subject of Freemasonry (or simply Masonry), which most people have heard of but know little about.  This is perhaps the reason Brown chose to explore this subject, one that was ripe for novelty in historical fiction.  However, as before, Brown branches out into a myriad of related subjects and connections, weaving a web of mystery and puzzles which must be solved once again by his favorite character, Robert Langdon.

But this is not going to be a review of the book.  There will be ample time for that, with more qualified critics analyzing the merits and faults of Brown’s work.  In addition, I don’t want to spoil anything while the pages are still wet.  I do quote some brief excerpts from the book below, but they are mostly circumstantial details, and won’t give much away about the plot, if anything.

What I do want to point out are some interesting general impressions I had while I read, particularly as they relate to me, my studies, and the LDS (Mormon) faith.  Call them synchronicities or coincidences, or just interesting tidbits, either way they have called my attention.  [Read more…]

Sacred Space Symposium at BYU – June 3rd, 2009

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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.

Liveblog Notes from Mormon Studies Conference

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I went to the Mormon Studies Conference today at UVU, and heard some great presentations. I liveblogged much of it. Unfortunately, my hard drive crashed part-way through the day, and I could not finish. Below are the notes that I was able to take of several of the presentations. Feel free to read through them (click the replay button). Since I am out a computer now, I will not be liveblogging the Mormon Studies Conference tomorrow. However, I will still be liveblogging General Conference, so be sure to tune in to TempleStudy.com this weekend for live commentary and Twitter discussion!

Mormon Temples’ Endowment from Mormon Perspective Video

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The late Krister Stendahl (1921-2008), who was a Swedish theologian, New Testament scholar, and a Professor and Dean of Divinity at Harvard University, once addressed the press about one of the Mormon temples that was being built nearby, and spoke about three important rules for religious understanding.  These rules have since been recognized for their tremendous insight and application in interfaith dialogue and learning.  They are:

  1. When you are trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies.
  2. Don’t compare your “best” to their “worst.”
  3. Leave room for “holy envy.”  In other words, recognize those aspects of other religious traditions that you admire and wish could be reflected in your own.

I think there is great truth embedded in these principles, and we have the opportunity to exercise them every day.  In fact, we use them often here on TempleStudy.com to compare the similarities and differences of Mormon temples with other religious traditions and sacred worship practices.

Below is a short new video which succinctly explains what Mormon temples mean to the Latter-day Saints, from the Latter-day Saint perspective.  Hopefully those that are inquisitive about the Church will be able to learn, from us, what the temple means when investigating and evaluating LDS temple worship.

A more comprehensive video of 44 minutes, of which this is only a snippet, is also available to watch, entitled “Between Heaven and Earth,” which includes commentary and interviews from a number of scholars and theologians, both LDS and from other faiths.