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BYU Studies
BYU Studies publishes scholarship that is informed by the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Submissions are invited from all scholars who seek truth "by study and also by faith" (Doctrine and Covenants 88:118), discern the harmony between revelation and research, value both academic and spiritual inquiry, and recognize that knowledge without charity is nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2). For more information, visit our website at byustudies.byu.edu
Episodes
BYU StudiesRebaptism in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
This article by Jonathan A. Stapley and David W. Grua discusses the practice in the first several decades of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of…
BYU StudiesBook Review: Understanding Joseph Smith’s Translation of the Bible by Kent P. Jackson
This is a book review by Kerry Muhlestein, discussing Understanding Joseph Smith’s Translation of the Bible by Kent P. Jackson. Muhlestein summarizes the book…
BYU StudiesHoly Places
This poem by Merrijane Rice was a finalist in the 2022 Clinton F. Larson Poetry Contest, sponsored by BYU Studies. CLICK HERE to read the poem online.
BYU StudiesBook Review: Joseph Smith for President: The Prophet, The Assassins, and the Fight for American Religious Freedom by Spencer McBride
This is a review by Jordan Watkins of Spencer McBride's 2021 book Joseph Smith for President: The Prophet, The Assassins, and the Fight for American Religious…
BYU Studies“Last at the Cross”: Teachings about Christ’s Crucifixion in the Woman’s Exponent, the Relief Society Magazine, and the Young Woman’s Journal
This article by John Hilton III, Jesse Vincent, and Rachel Harper examines how women of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have historically…
BYU StudiesThe Last Leaf
This is a poem by Ben de Hoyos. It was a finalist in the 2022 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It beautifully explores the natural imagery of a falling leaf. CLICK…
BYU StudiesStiff-Necked
This poem by Darlene Young was a finalist in the 2024 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. CLICK HERE to read the poem online.
BYU StudiesIn Memoriam, Orrin Glenn Hatch (1934–2022)
Note and comment by BYU Studies Staff regarding the passing of Orrin Glenn Hatch.
BYU StudiesOne Week Before Kindergarten
This poem by Ali Benson Moulton was a finalist in the 2022 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It examines the complexities of watching a child grow up. CLICK HERE to…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Approaching the Tree: Interpreting 1 Nephi 8, edited by Benjamin Keogh, Joseph M. Spencer, and Jennifer Champoux
This is a book notice for Approaching the Tree: Interpreting 1 Nephi 8, edited by Benjamin Keogh, Joseph M. Spencer, and Jennifer Champoux. It describes a…
BYU StudiesMary's Assumption
This poem by Christopher Bissett won 3rd place in the 2023 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It examines the difficult role of motherhood for Mary in the context of…
BYU StudiesBuilding an Innovative “Latter-day Saints without Borders” Organization
Author Warner Woodworth describes what he calls "practical Christianity," that is, actively perusing service by caring for the poor. Woodworth offers many…
BYU StudiesThe Stewardship of Our First Freedom
This article by Clark G. Gilbert was originally given as a keynote address at the BYU Religious Freedom Annual Review. It focuses on the value of religious…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Mormon Envoy: The Diplomatic Legacy of Dr. John Milton Bernhisel
This is a book notice for Bruce W. Worthen's biographyMormon Envoy: The Diplomatic Legacy of Dr. John Milton Bernhisel was written by Matthew B. Christensen…
BYU Studies“Dumb” Puns in Alma 30: A Mesoamerican Twist on Korihor’s Talionic Punishment
This article by Mark Alan Wright and Neal Rappleye offers a fascinating look into Korihor being "struck dumb" in Alma 30 from an ancient Mesoamerican cultural…
BYU StudiesRichard Bushman’s BYU Years: The Beginnings of an Influential Career
This article by J.B. Haws explores the early career of influential Latter-Day Saint Historian Richard Bushman, whose joint focus on both theology and academics…
BYU StudiesKnit Together
This essay by Liz Busby explores a literal and figurative interpretation of Colossians 2:2 through discussion of what it means to be “knit together” in our…
BYU StudiesThoughts, In Threes
This Poem by Isaac James Richards was a finalist in the 2023 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It artfully explores what exists at the intersection of different…
BYU StudiesBook Review: The Mormon Military Experience: 1838 to the Cold War by Sherman L. Fleek and Robert C. Freeman
This is a review by Kenneth L. Alford of Sherman L. Fleek and Robert C. Freeman's Book The Mormon Military Experience: 1823 to the Cold War. Alford lauds the…
BYU StudiesLife and Death Blessing and Cursing New Context for the Skin of Blackness in the Book of Mormon
This article by TJ Uriona explores the phrase "skin of blackness" used in 2 Nephi 5:21. Uriona provides evidence in support of the claim that, within an…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Both Things Are True
This is a book notice by Katie Lewis about Kate Holbrook's essay compilation entitled Both Things are True. These essays explore areas of doctrine in which…
BYU StudiesThe Psalm of Nephi in an Age of Anxiety and Division
This article by Patrick Q. Mason examines one of the most literarily impressive passages of the Book of Mormon: 2 Nephi 4:16–35. These verses, often referred…
BYU StudiesOne Days Return, Long Past Childhood
This poem by Dixie L. Partridge was a finalist in the 2023 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It explores a pastoral depiction of memory and the beauty of nature…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Restless Pilgrim: Andrew Jenson's Quest for Latter-day Saint History
This is a book notice of Reid L. Neilson and Scott D. Marianno's biography of Andrew Jenson, written by Matthew B. Christensen. Restless Pilgrim: Andrew…
BYU StudiesI Have Dreamed with Her The Fruitful Relationship between Minerva Teichert and Alice Merrill Horne
This essay by Laura Paulsen Howe explores the relationship between prolific LDS painter Minerva Teichert and her agent Alice Merrill Horne. Horne acted as a…
BYU StudiesBoxwoods
This poem by Andrew Maxfield was a finalist in the 2022 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It explores the love and practices shared between generations in an effort…
BYU StudiesBook Review: The King Follett Sermon: A Biography
This a book review by Matthew B. Christensen of William Smith's The King Follett: A Biography. Christensen speaks highly of Smith's work. This compelling book…
BYU StudiesOn Gospel Methodology at Brigham Young University
This essay by Richard D. Osguthorpe and Justin Collings describes President Spencer W. Kimball's “Second Century Address,” and how teachers can pursue its…
BYU StudiesBook Review of Susa Young Gates: Daughter of Mormonism by Romney Burke
This is a book review of Romney Burke's biography of influential second generation church leader Susa Young Gates was written by Dave Hall. It describes the…
BYU StudiesThe Dance
This essay by Michelle Forstrom was a finalist in the 2023 BYU Studies Essay Contest. It explores the power of song and dance, with an emphasis on Bulgarian…
BYU StudiesReclaiming the Primary Question A New Beginning for Joseph Smiths First Vision
This article by William G. Perez examines the value of introducing Latter-Day Saints to the multiple accounts of the first vision, a subject that had…
BYU StudiesForgiveness
A poem by Erik Jacobsen. This poem was a finalist in the 2023 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It explores the relief of forgiveness.
BYU StudiesEmbracing Our Highest Worship
This personal essay by Tyler Johnson discusses temple preparation and making temple worship more meaningful. He addresses the discomfort and confusion some…
BYU StudiesBook Review: Vengeance Is Mine
This is a book review by Kent P. Jackson of Richard E. Turley Jr. and Barbara Jones Brown's Vengeance Is Mine: The Mountain Meadows Massacre and Its Aftermath…
BYU StudiesWeaving
A poem by Christine Bird. This poem won first place in the 2023 BYU Studies poetry contest. It explores both the figurative and literal act of weaving within…
BYU StudiesA Register Analysis of Public Prayers
This article by Lindsey Newton and Brett Hashimoto presents the findings of an in-depth analysis of language used in General Conference prayers from 2009 to…
BYU StudiesWhat If I'd Not Been Raised to Know You?
This poem by Darlene Young was a finalist in the 2023 BYU Studies Poetry Contest. It explores the many places we can sense and see God's hand, even if we were…
BYU Studies“Show Them unto No Man” Part 2. The Book of Moses and the Early Jewish Christian Esoteric Tradition
This essay by Barry R. Bickmore dives deep into understanding the differences in esoteric and exoteric teachings during Joseph Smith's lifetime. Specifically…
BYU StudiesDocuments 1 January to 15 May 1844
This is a Book Review by Richard E. Bennett examine's Documents, 1 January–15 May 1844, Vol. 14 of the Documents series of the Joseph Smith Papers, Edited by…
BYU StudiesTo Make the Attempt
A poem by Isaac James Richards. This poem won second place in the 2023 BYU Studies poetry contest. Richard's draws inspiration from Joseph's Smith's words: "I…
BYU StudiesThe Baptismal Chair
This personal essay by Ellis William LeRoy Jr. explores the author's "house calls" as a physician to an elderly man's home. After years of knowing the man, he…
BYU StudiesThe Place—or the Tribe—Called Nahom?
This article examines the “NHM” naming pattern in Near Eastern Language to find evidence that the “place… called Nahom” described in the Book of Mormon is the…
BYU Studies“The Gospel of Intelligence and Culture”: Literature and Literary Instruction in the Twentieth-Century MIA Curriculum
This article by Michael Austin and Rachel Meibos Helps details the cultural significance of literature in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Let's Talk About Series
This book notice by BYU studies editor Matthew B. Christensen explains the series of short books published by Deseret Books: The Let's Talk About series. This…
BYU StudiesA Close Look at Scriptural Teachings Regarding Jesus Feeling Our Pains as Part of His Atonement
This article, written by Scott C. Woodward, explores the scriptural evidence of Christ experiencing not only sin, but also individual physical and emotional…
BYU StudiesWild Fruit
In this personal essay, Victoria Webb Rutherford shares her experience of fostering and adopting two boys who had suffered from complex trauma. She reflects on…
BYU StudiesA Prophet’s Journey: The Journals of Spencer W. Kimball
This article by Brandon J. Metcalf and Jeffery L. Anderson explores the life and legacy of President Spencer W. Kimball, the twelfth president of The Church of…
BYU Studies“He Is God and He Is with Them”: Helaman 8:21–23 and Isaiah’s Immanuel Prophecy as a Thematic Scriptural Concept
“He Is God and He Is with Them”: Helaman 8:21–23 and Isaiah’s Immanuel Prophecy as a Thematic Scriptural Concept by Matthew L. Bowen How does the Book of…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Perspectives on Latter-day Saint Names and Naming: Names, Identity, and Belief
This book notice by BYU Studies editor, Matthew B. Christensen, examines the recent book edited by Dallin D. Oaks, Paul Baltes, and Kent Minson. The book is an…
BYU StudiesBook Notice: Every Needful Thing: Essays on the Life of the Mind and the Heart, edited by Melissa Wei-Tsing Inouye and Kate Holbrook
This book notice is about "Every Needful Thing: Essays on the Life of the Mind and the Heart," which was edited by Melissa Wei-Tsing Inouye and Kate Holbrook…
BYU StudiesAfter Anger
A poem by Daniel Teichert. This poem won third place in the 2022 Clinton F. Larson Poetry Contest, sponsored by BYU Studies. To read the poem on our website…
BYU StudiesThe Book of Mormon Art Catalog: A New Digital Database and Research Tool
The Book of Mormon Art Catalog is a digital database of over 3,000 images inspired by the Book of Mormon. It aims to recover the full history of art based on…
BYU StudiesJoseph Smith and the Mormons by Noah Van Sciver (book review)
Scott Hales reviews Joseph Smith and the Mormons, a graphic novel by Noah Van Sciver. Of the book, he wrote, "While no reader may be wholly satisfied with…
BYU StudiesSalad Days
"Salad Days," is a poem by Alixa Brobbey. It won second place in the 2022 Clinton F. Larson Poetry Contest, sponsored by BYU Studies.
BYU StudiesCharity as an Exegetical Principle in the Book of Mormon
Charity is more than a Christlike virtue we show towards others. It is a virtue we should employ in reading the scriptures as well. In his article "Charity as…
BYU StudiesRecorded in Heaven: The Testimonies of Len and Mary Hope
The testimonies of Len and Mary Hope are among the earliest audio-recorded testimonies of Black Latter-day Saints. In this article, learn more about these…
BYU StudiesThat They May Be Light
When covenant women are together, they become each other’s shelter. The storms might be raging around them, but they don’t feel the rain or hear the thunder…
BYU Studies“Show Them unto No Man”: Part 1. Esoteric Teachings and the Problem of Early Latter-day Saint Doctrinal History
In ““Show Them unto No Man: Part 1. Esoteric Teachings and the Problem of Early Latter-day Saint Doctrinal History” Barry R. Bickmore examines how two texts…
BYU StudiesFired from Carpool
From BYU Studies Quarterly Volume 62, Number 1 In this essay, Cristie Cowles Charles reflects on her journey coming to terms with ADHD as an adult. This essay…
BYU StudiesIt Takes Two
In this article, Jenet Jacob Erickson explains that fathers and mothers tend to play distinctive roles nurturing children’s development. It reviews social…