Mormon Treasures

Latter Day Saint Quotes and Insights

[mormontreasures]

Some Old Testament Resources

I have been teaching Gospel Doctrine in my ward and am frequently asked where I pull information. I went ahead and put together a list which those of you who find Gospel Doctrine marginally beneficial may find interesting. 

The Seminary and Institute Manuals for the Old Testament. These have much more information than the Sunday School lessons. They are definitely apologetic. https://www.lds.org/manual/old-testament-seminary-teacher-manual?lang=eng

https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32490_eng.pdf?lang=eng I also refer to the following books frequently: How to Read the Bible, James L. Kugel

The Oxford Companion to the Bible, Edited by Metzger & Coogan

The Harper Collins Study Bible, Revised Edition

They are not written or compiled from LDS sources so their purpose and approach is different. How to Read the Bible is extremely accessible and full of interesting insights.

There is an open course at Yale on the Old Testament. I find myself reading through the transcript for the lecture that corresponds to the weekly Gospel Doctrine lesson. https://oyc.yale.edu/religious-studies/rlst-145 On occasion, I tap into the archives of Dialogue. It contains articles by Mormon (mostly) academics about a wide variety of topics. As an example, "The Struggle for Female Authority in Biblical and Mormon Theology," discusses women who appear in the Old Testament and their relationship to the priesthood. The fact that the article dissects what it means for Hannah to present herself before Yahweh in the Temple prompted me to ask questions I did not even know existed. https://www.dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V48N02_cc.pdf

Hopefully you find a resource listed above helpful. I know my approach to the Old Testament has changed and led to a deeper engagement between myself and the text. The resources above helped me do it and could do that same for you.

[mormontreasures]

I do not even believe that there is a single revelation, among the many god has given to the Church, that is perfect in its fullness. The revelations of God contain correct doctrine and principle, so far as they go; but it is impossible for the poor, weak, low, grovelling, sinful inhabitants of the earth to receive a revelation from the Almighty in all its perfections

Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Vol 2, page 314

[mormontreasures]

“Joseph Feilding Smith (JFS) became the last prominent keeper and forger of the chain of Mormon memory whose authority derived from personal experience. He was replaced as the Mormon anamnesis, not coincidentally, by his son, Joseph F. Smith Jr., who became Church historian and who crafted collective Mormon historical memory for more than half a century. He drew his authority not from personal experience but rather from his privileged access to documents, his position as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, and his blood relation to the Smith family. This is one of the ways in which JFS’s role as memory-maker rippled far beyond the span of his own life.”

Dialogue Journal, Vol. 48, Num. 3 - Fall 2015, Stephen C. Taysom - The Last Memory: Joseph F. Smith and Lieux de Mémoire in Late Nineteenth-Century Mormonism

[mormontreasures]

This grave of a husband and wife who shared different theological beliefs is a wonderful example of tolerance. I find myself trying to reach over a wall of theological differences inside Mormonism especially on issues surrounding gender roles. Strive to be the person who reaches out an uplifts despite differences.

[mormontreasures]

The Mishna and Talmud have six terms for gender

I recently saw a post in the #queerstake on non-binary gender roles in the Bible. The discussion around the topic while thoughtful, was incomplete. It seemed to revolve around the lack of scriptural support for non-binary gender roles. A verse in Matthew came to mind where Jesus answers a question from his disciples on non-binary gender roles. In verse 19 (KJV) He says,

For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

There is wonderful comfort in Christ’s words. By teaching the disciples that individuals who do not neatly fit a binary gender role can still receive the kingdom of heavan, Christ not only acknowledges the existence of more than one gender, he explicitly states that those of all genders are welcome in his fold.

If you are interested in Old Testament gender identity, I think you will find the perspective of Jewish feminists insightful. For anyone interested in reading the thoughts of an individual who has explored non-binary gender roles in the Bible much deeper than I, see Charlotte Elisheva Fonrobert. In the linked article she provides a breakdown of gender in Jewish written and oral law.

Joseph Smith borrowed many ideas from other religious communities. I think our current discourse on the role of gender in the LDS tradition would benefit from a similar practice. Let me know what you think with a re-blog or an ask.

[transonthemountaintop]

I quess one thing that would help is what exactly the meaning of “eunuch” is, both modernly and at the time of translation, and in Christ’s time.

[mormontreasures]

Eunuch is a difficult word to define. Shawn Tougher, editor of Eunuchs in Antiquity and Beyond claims “the growth of eunuch studies shows no sign of abating” as recently as 2002. The fact that eunuchology is a current field of study speaks to the difficulties defining what a eunuch is. 

I believe that defining defining eunuch as a trusted neutered man enables basic comprehension. Working with this definition it would make sense for Christ to point out three distinct “eunuchs.” Those born neutered, neutered by others, or neutered by choice. But the word neutered brings to mind images of veterinary procedures, not chaste individuals. Which is why I enjoy the Tyndale translation of Matthew 19:12:

>  There are chaste, which were so born out of their mother's belly. And there are chaste, which be made chaste of men. And there be chaste, which have made themselves chaste for the kingdom of heavens' sake. He that can take it let him take it.

Eunuchs do not fit in the man-woman/Adam-Eve binary yet they were often celebrated. The recognition of eunuchs by spiritual leaders leads me to believe there is room for more than two gender roles in God’s Kingdom.

[mormontreasures]

The Mishna and Talmud have six terms for gender

I recently saw a post in the #queerstake on non-binary gender roles in the Bible. The discussion around the topic while thoughtful, was incomplete. It seemed to revolve around the lack of scriptural support for non-binary gender roles. A verse in Matthew came to mind where Jesus answers a question from his disciples on non-binary gender roles. In verse 19 (KJV) He says,

For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

There is wonderful comfort in Christ’s words. By teaching the disciples that individuals who do not neatly fit a binary gender role can still receive the kingdom of heavan, Christ not only acknowledges the existence of more than one gender, he explicitly states that those of all genders are welcome in his fold.

If you are interested in Old Testament gender identity, I think you will find the perspective of Jewish feminists insightful. For anyone interested in reading the thoughts of an individual who has explored non-binary gender roles in the Bible much deeper than I, see Charlotte Elisheva Fonrobert. In the linked article she provides a breakdown of gender in Jewish written and oral law.

Joseph Smith borrowed many ideas from other religious communities. I think our current discourse on the role of gender in the LDS tradition would benefit from a similar practice. Let me know what you think with a re-blog or an ask.

[nekokasumi]

I am tagging @mormonmonastery as they are the ones that was answering my question and it was actually transgender. That is interesting tho. Thank you for that as I am trying to find scripture that dealt the transgender/non-binary. Although I am sure that fits into being transgender but it help a bit. Thank you.

[mormontreasures]

Perfect. I was unable to find the question earlier and missed the opportunity to re-blog with my thoughts added. 

[mormontreasures]

The Mishna and Talmud have six terms for gender

I recently saw a post in the #queerstake on non-binary gender roles in the Bible. The discussion around the topic while thoughtful, was incomplete. It seemed to revolve around the lack of scriptural support for non-binary gender roles. A verse in Matthew came to mind where Jesus answers a question from his disciples on non-binary gender roles. In verse 19 (KJV) He says,

For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

There is wonderful comfort in Christ's words. By teaching the disciples that individuals who do not neatly fit a binary gender role can still receive the kingdom of heavan, Christ not only acknowledges the existence of more than one gender, he explicitly states that those of all genders are welcome in his fold.

If you are interested in Old Testament gender identity, I think you will find the perspective of Jewish feminists insightful. For anyone interested in reading the thoughts of an individual who has explored non-binary gender roles in the Bible much deeper than I, see Charlotte Elisheva Fonrobert. In the linked article she provides a breakdown of gender in Jewish written and oral law.

Joseph Smith borrowed many ideas from other religious communities. I think our current discourse on the role of gender in the LDS tradition would benefit from a similar practice. Let me know what you think with a re-blog or an ask.

[mormontreasures]

Critically Viewing Prophets and Scripture

Critically pondering imperfect people attempting to convey God's will has value because the earnest act strengthens one's personal relationship with God.

[mormontreasures]

The editors of the LDS Bible Dictionary, working from a non-LDS base text, changed the wording of the entry on Deborah from a “prophetess” to “a famous woman who judged Israel,” while Huldah was excised altogether (whereas she had been present in the base text).

Cory Crawford,  “The Struggle for Female Authority in Biblical and Mormon Traditions”

[fyp-philosophy]

The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently.

Friedrich Nietzsche (via fyp-philosophy)

If you interact with youth in any way, please teach tolerance.

[mormontreasures]

Women in the Bible Acting Like Priests

Hannah, Jael, and Zipporah are names to remember. These are the women the Bible mentions who act the way LDS members believe current priesthood holders ought to.

[mormontreasures]

It is clear that priests used their power as custodians of knowledge and history to employ older traditions to influence and to make sense of the social changes underway in monarchic and post-monarchic Israel. There is also strong evidence, discussed below, of the deliberate manipulation of texts by their later custodians to remove and downplay priestly agency in narratives about women

Cory Crawford

[mormontreasures]

Further complicating the issue, what came to be understood as the major division in LDS priesthood orders, Melchizedek and Aaronic, is nowhere visible in the Bible. To be sure, it was out of a combination of revelations based on close reading of the Bible and social developments in the early LDS church that the division evolved, but no biblical scholar concludes from biblical evidence that anciently there were two priesthood orders as Latter-day Saints understand them

Cory Crawford

[mormontreasures]

She (Wisdom) is the source not only of righteous- ness and creativity, but of power, wealth, knowledge, foresight, and justice: “I have good advice and sound wisdom; / I have insight, I have strength. / By me kings reign, / and rulers decree what is just; / by me rulers rule, / and nobles, all who govern rightly. . . . Riches and honor are with me, / enduring wealth and prosperity. I walk in the way of righteousness, / along the paths of justice” (Prov 8:14–16, 18, 20). Many scholars see this chapter as the reflex of a once vibrant tradition of goddess worship in Ancient Israel that was suppressed as strict monotheism became entrenched, or as an originally Egyptian or Canaanite goddess translated into a post-exilic Israelite context.

Cory Crawford

[mormontreasures]

In 1975 President Spencer W. Kimball famously softened the language of the KJV to “preside” instead of “rule,” which change now links Gen 3:16 to the Family Proclamation statement that fathers are to “preside” in the home “by divine design.”

Cory Crawford

[mormontreasures]

Any interpretation of this utterance [Genesis 3:16] —as a curse, aetiological statement of fact, blessing or otherwise—is largely dependent on the reader’s gender position and may vary considerably

Athalya Brenner, The Intercourse of Knowledge: On Gendering Desire and “Sexuality” in the Hebrew Bible [Leiden: Brill, 1997], 53

[mormontreasures]

Genesis 3:16—sometimes called the most misogynistic text in the Bible—has been a battleground of gender relations for centuries but it takes on a particular importance in LDS theology of gender for the reasons described above. In LDS commentary Gen 3:16 has commonly been read as a curse and used as evidence for the male right of rule in Church and home. In the 1973 Ensign, Brent Barlow used it to argue for the need to strengthen the patriarchal order in the family. In 1975 President Spencer W. Kimball famously softened the language of the KJV to “preside” instead of “rule,” which change now links Gen 3:16 to the Family Proclamation statement that fathers are to “preside” in the home “by divine design.” Others, like Jolene Edmunds Rockwood, have read the verse similarly to Paul as expressive of a temporary state: “the fact that [Adam ruling over Eve] is mentioned at all presupposes that man did not rule over woman before the fall.” Boyd Jay Petersen has recently shown that nineteenth-century LDS women and even some male leaders assumed the verse to be temporary and frequently thought that the curse could be lifted in their lifetimes.

Cory Crawford - The Struggle for Female Authority in Biblical and Mormon Theology, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, 48, no. 2 (Summer 2015)