Lincoln H. Blumell - Approaching Antiquity: Joseph Smith and the Ancient World

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ISBN 978-0-8425-2966-2

Retail US $31.99

Front cover image of Joseph Smith by Dan Weggelend.

Cover design by Carmen Cole.

Interior design by Rebecca Bird and Alex Masterson.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Brigham Young University Church History Symposium (2013 : Salt Lake City, Utah; Provo, Utah), author.

Approaching antiquity : Joseph Smiths study of the ancient world : Brigham Young University Church history Symposium / edited by Lincoln H. Blumell, Matthew J. Grey, and Andrew H. Hedges.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-0-8425-2966-2

1. Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844--Knowledge and learning--Congresses. 2. History, Ancient--Study and teaching--Congresses. I. Blumell, Lincoln H. (Lincoln Harris), 1975- editor. II. Grey, Matthew J., editor. III. Hedges, Andrew H., 1966- editor. IV. Title.

BX8611.B725 2013

289.3092--dc23

2015021492

Contributors

Richard E. Bennett received a PhD in US intellectual history from Wayne State University and is currently a professor of Church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University.

Lincoln H. Blumell holds a BA in classics and early Christian studies from the University of Calgary, an MA in religious studies from the University of Calgary, an MSt in Jewish studies from the University of Oxford (Christ Church College), and a PhD in religious studies from the University of Toronto. He is currently an assistant professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Matthew Bowman received his PhD in American religious history from Georgetown University in May 2011 and a masters in American history from the University of Utah, and he has taught religion at Hampden Sydney College. He is currently an associate professor of history at Henderson State University.

Richard L. Bushman retired as Gouverneur Morris Professor of history at Columbia University in 2001 and was visiting Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies at Claremont Graduate University from 2008 to 2011.

Nicholas J. Frederick received a BA in classics, an MA in comparative studies from Brigham Young University, and a PhD in the history of Christianity from Claremont Graduate University. He is currently an assistant professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

John Gee is the William (Bill) Gay Research Chair at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. He earned his PhD in Egyptology at Yale University.

Matthew J. Grey received a BA in Near Eastern studies from Bri-gham Young University, an MA in archaeology and the history of antiquity from Andrews University, an MSt in Jewish studies from the University of Oxford (Christ Church), and a PhD in religious studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is currently an assistant professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Brian M. Hauglid received a BA in Near Eastern studies from Brigham Young University and an MA and PhD in Arabic and Islamic studies from the University of Utah. He is currently an associate professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Kristian S. Heal was educated at University College London (BA), the University of Oxford (MSt) and the University of Birmingham (PhD). He is currently a research fellow at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship and the director of the Center for the Preservation of Ancient Religious Texts.

Andrew H. Hedges received his PhD from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and was a managing historian of the Joseph Smith Papers. He is currently an associate professor of Church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University.

David F. Holland was an associate professor of history at the University of Nevada Las Vegas and is currently an associate professor of North American religious history at the Harvard Divinity School. He earned a BA in history from Brigham Young University and an MA and PhD from Stanford University.

Kent P. Jackson holds a BA in ancient studies from Brigham Young University and an MA and PhD in Near Eastern studies from the University of Michigan. He is currently a professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Michael Hubbard MacKay studied history at the University of York, where he was awarded a PhD in 2009. He worked as a historian in the LDS Church History Department in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is currently an assistant professor of Church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University.

Kerry Muhlestein received an MA in ancient Near Eastern studies from Brigham Young University and his PhD in Egyptology from UCLA. He is currently an associate professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Matthew Roper holds a BA in history and an MA in sociology from Brigham Young University. He is currently a research scholar at the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship.

Thomas A. Wayment holds a PhD in New Testament studies from the Claremont Graduate School and is currently a professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

John W. Welch attended Brigham Young University (BA in history; MA in Latin and Greek), studied Greek philosophy at Oxford University, and received his JD from Duke University. He is currently a professor of law at the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University.

Mark Alan Wright holds degrees in anthropology from UCLA (BA) and UC Riverside (MA and PhD) with a subfield of specialization in Mesoamerican archaeology. He is currently an assistant professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.

Preface

In the summer of 2011, a small group of recently hired faculty in the departments of Ancient Scripture and Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University visited LDS Church history sites in Palmyra, New York; Kirtland, Ohio; and Nauvoo, Illinois, to receive professional development training related to the origins and early history of Mormonism. During this experience, several participants (including Lincoln Blumell and Matthew Grey) became interested in the numerous points of contact between Joseph Smith and the ancient world. It seemed to us that every location presented an opportunity to discuss the inherent fascination with antiquity held by many early Latter-day Saints. In the case of Joseph Smith, this fascination began early in life and continued throughout his prophetic career as he attempted to recover ancient scripture, restore the ancient church, and bring the Latter-day Saints into communion with the sacred past. As we visited the historical sites where many of these activities transpired, we were impressed as the extraordinary range of Josephs encounters with antiquity became increasingly apparent.