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Interpreter offers an Annual Print Subscription, and Temple Studies

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copies-fannedThose of you who like to read materials in hard print, or even if you just like to keep a print copy in your home library, The Interpreter Foundation has announced that they are now offering an annual print subscription to its journal, Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture. I serve on the Executive Board of the foundation, and I can attest to the quality of the Board, the authors, and of the publications. There is fantastic new scholarship being published on the Church, the Gospel, Church history, the temple, the Book of Mormon, ancient religion, and all things Mormonism, and Interpreter is a great place to find it.

For $35 annually you can receive paperback copies of all volumes of the journal. That is a fantastic deal when you consider that the foundation is producing four or five volumes annually, or about 1000-1250 pages in a year. There is no royalty or markup of that price; it covers cost of printing and shipping only.

If you are interested in temple materials only, there have been a number of great articles related to the temple that have already been published in the journal, and it is a recurring theme. These have included the following to date:

Jesus’s High Priestly Prayer: A Temple Discourse

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Above is a film portrayal of the prayer of Jesus from John 17, which is a conclusion of his Last Discourse given to his disciples on the eve of the Passover. This discourse stretches from John 13 through chapter 17, with the prayer at the end, comprising chapter 17. This scene comes from a 2003 film entitled “The Gospel of John,” and takes it’s text from the American Bible Society‘s Good News Bible, which loses some of the intricate meaning in Christ’s words, but otherwise I think it is well done. I’m looking forward to the Church’s version when it is added to the collection of Bible Videos, which will use the King James Version directly (here you can see the Last Supper, which is the beginning of the discourse from John 13).

I just finished reading Professor William Hamblin‘s recent paper in Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture entitled, “‘I Have Revealed Your Name’: The Hidden Temple in John 17.”  It is an excellent commentary on John 17 viewed in the light of the temple. This chapter represents what is often called Jesus’ Intercessory Prayer, but also Jesus’s High Priestly Prayer, suggesting the temple theology that is central to it. [Read more…]

HBO’s Big Love Attempts Mormon Temple Profanation

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Many of you are no doubt aware of the infamous and libelous Big Love TV episode that is supposed to air on HBO this March 15th.  But for those who aren’t, the producers and writers of the show have reached a new level of disrespect in attempting to profane the LDS temple ordinances on public television, and to make a mockery of the Church.  According to executive producer Mark Olsen, “We researched it out the wazoo . . . We go into the endowment room and the celestial room . . . and we present what happens in those ceremonies. That’s never been shown on television before.”  Then Olsen has the audacity to add, “But it’s not for shock value. It’s really a very important part of the story.”

Of course, those that read these statements will easily find Olsen’s words more than contradictory—it’s never been shown on television before, but it’s not for shock value.  Anyone that is excited about showing something on television that’s “never been shown before,” particularly when that thing is held exceptionally sacred by a large group of people, is doing it for shock value.  It’s the very same reason that the media continues to push the envelope in how explicit sex, violence, and horror is portrayed.  They have to show something new to keep the audience hooked, something that pushes beyond the limits of what has been shown before, regardless of the impact it may have on those whose values and morals are higher than theirs.  [Read more…]