Doctrine and Covenants 3: The Lost Manuscript July 1828 – Joseph travels from Harmony, Pennsylvania to Palmyra, New York (about 200 kilometers away, a four day trip each way in 1828) because he has not heard back from Martin Harris. What were the events that led up to Section 3Continue Reading

Joseph Describes Spiritual Sight How could Joseph have had this vision of Moroni as he was in a room with his siblings at the time? Perhaps we are looking at this from a Western mindset and need to ask a different question. What kind of vision was this? What doContinue Reading

Show Notes: JSH 1:1-26 Quotes and Notes 00:35 – The First Vision ends the apostasy and ushers in the restoration. 06:43 – God restores information in the order of importance. 09:41 – Historical background of the First Vision. 20:57 – The First Vision teaches the pattern of prayer and revelation.Continue Reading

Show Notes: D&C 1 Quotes and Notes 00:30 – Brief overview of the Doctrine and Covenants. 06:58 – Find the Savior in this book. 08:39 – Anyone in a similar circumstance can apply these instructions. 16:23 – The setting and background of Section 1. 27:06 – Defending our beliefs withContinue Reading

An Overview of the Doctrine and Covenants The Doctrine and Covenants begins with many sections on how the Lord communicates and works with mankind: 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 19 [all early sections outlining his work]. Section 2 is a beautiful yet short overview of the entire purpose ofContinue Reading

Occasionally I find myself in a conversation with those that ask the question, “Is Satan essential for the Plan of Salvation to work?” While I do not think this question is one of the more vital gospel questions we may ask, it certainly is interesting! The answer may help usContinue Reading

I have the blessing of being the gospel doctrine teacher in my ward. Today the lesson was Lesson 11: “The Field Is White Already to Harvest” and we had a great discussion about missionary work. One of the promises the Lord gives his missionaries is that when we go toContinue Reading

Textual composition – how we “get” Scriptural Texts For Latter-day Saints, one of the best examples of an complex and merged scriptural text that corresponds with the fundamental notion of the Documentary Hypothesis is Doctrine and Covenants 132. In the Journal of Mormon History, Danel Bachman wrote an article illustratingContinue Reading

Scripture is both human and divine First, that in the Bible the divine and human are blended. We must not regard the Bible as an absolutely perfect book in which God is Himself the author using human hands and brains only as a man might use a typewriter. God usedContinue Reading