Studio et Quoque Fide

The title of this post is not in reference to the LDS doctrine of deification (that men can become gods), but rather an interesting trend in the Book of Mormon.
A couple weeks ago, my wife, McKall, was sharing some thoughts with me on Helaman 9, where Nephi has given (as a sign to the apostate Nephites) a revelation of the King's murder by his brother. As the events of this chapter play out, some of the people start to recognize Nephi as a prophet, while others come to believe that he is a god (See Helaman 9:40-41).
As my wife mentioned this (that some people started to think Nephi was a god), a realization began to hit me. This is a common theme in the Book of Mormon. After Ammon defends the Lamanite King’s flocks and servents, and fulfills all his other responsibilities, Lamoni becomes convinced that Ammon is the “Great Spirit” – even after Ammon tells him that he is just a man (See Alma 18:4, 11, 18). King Benjamin had to explain to his people that he was just a mortal man (Se…

I know you are probably growing tired of introductory material. Don’t worry; we are getting ready to dive into some of the underlying themes of LDS apologetics and criticisms. However, since the vast majority of this blog will be dedicated to my intellectual insights on the Book of Mormon and LDS teachings, I want to make it clear here, at the beginning, that the Book of Mormon and the LDS Church are more than just academic fascinations for me.
In my last post I explained a little bit about my purpose. I explained that although I can’t “prove” to you that the LDS Church’s claims are true, I feel it is my duty to defend them. The words of one of my favorite progressive metal bands sums up my message from the last post quite well: “I may never find all the answers, I may never understand why; I may never prove what I know to be true, but I know that I still have to try.” [1]
Although I can’t prove it to you by any man made methods, I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Sa…

I would now like to take a moment to explain in greater detail just what I hope to do with this blog. By helping you understand just what my purpose is, I think we could avoid some major misunderstandings down the road.
My Motive
Some of you may be asking “What motivated you to start this blog?” or “What motivated you to get involved in LDS apologetics?” As I explained in my “About Me” post, I come from a strong, active LDS family which is proud of its Pioneer heritage. While on my mission in Virginia, as I previously mentioned, I encountered a great deal of hostility toward the LDS Church (after all, I was in the Bible Belt). Due to my great love for my Pioneer heritage, and my strong testimony in the restored Gospel, this hostility greatly disturbed me; and I had a great desire to refute the misconceptions and distortions of truth to which I was being exposed to. And, at times, I did. Thanks to my training in debate, so long as discussion was focused on doctrines and scripture, I cou…

This is where I get to tell you all about myself! Don’t worry, I’ll try and be as brief as possible and only talk about the important stuff.
I recently married the most wonderful young woman in the world: McKall Lynn Brewer Rappleye! I am currently attending Utah Valley University (UVU) and working towards a degree in Political Science, with a minor in Religious Studies. I’m hoping to eventually transfer to Brigham Young University (BYU) and continue towards my degree. Ultimately, I hope that one day I can teach for the LDS Church Education System (CES), as well as teach Political Science in High School and College.
I love football and basketball and try to watch every BYU football game and as many of their basketball games as possible[1]. I also enjoy listening to music. My favorite band is a progressive metal group called Savatage. I currently have more than 6,000 songs on my iPod, which could play for 19 and a half days non-stop! As you can tell from my major, I love politics, and…

Welcome to my blog, and thank you for visiting! As you can tell from the title, this blog is primarily going to be an outlet for me to express my thoughts and insights on several issues involved in LDS scholarship and apologetics.
What’s in a Name?
Some may wonder what is meant by “Reason and Revelation: Insights into LDS Scholarship and Apologetics.” First, let me explain what I mean by “Reason and Revelation” in the context of my blog title.
Reason: The practice of using logic, rational thinking, evidence, and argument to gain knowledge and learn truth and evaluate truth claims to determine their validity.
Revelation: Knowledge and truth given by God. There are two forms of Revelation, general revelation and personal revelation. General revelation is given to the world through God’s chosen servants (i.e. Prophets and Apostles) and personal revelation is given to an individual through the Holy Ghost (or Spirit of God) according their faith.
While my full purpose for this blog will be …