Studio et Quoque Fide

I would like to announce to all my readers (if there are any out there at all) that I have become an official subscriber of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute periodicals (which includes the FARMS Review, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture, and Studies in the Bible and Antiquities)! With that, I will likely draw on the content of the recent issues more frequently in my postings.

One thing I plan to do is to start the semi-annual series, “Reviewing the Review,” in which I will be doing just that: reviewing each issue of the FARMS Review after I have received it and read through it. This project may also extend to the other periodicals, but I primarily plan to do it with the Review. These will not be lengthy, extensive, or rigorous reviews; just short, brief summaries of thoughts and impressions regarding that particular issue.

Each review will follow this format:
Overview: A brief paragraph describing my general thoughts on the content of that issueRecommended Read…

In his recent article in the Salt Lake Tribune, “The case for Book of Mormon socialism,” Troy Williams states that, “At their most righteous, the Nephites presented in the book were benevolent socialists; at their most depraved, they were greedy free-market capitalists.” According to Williams, this is true “Whether one accepts the historical or theological claims” made by the book or not.
Williams then makes it clear that “socialism” for him (as it is for me) is equivalent to “redistribution,” stating that “Having ‘all things in common’ suggests a society invested in public infrastructure and welfare for the whole.” He then explains that “Redistribution is not an anomaly in Mormon scriptures,” and calls “redistribution” the “highest economic order in Mormon scripture.”

The following are some thoughts I have had bouncing around in my head for quite some time. I finally wrote them out (albeit rather quickly) as a comment on another blog. Since I feel like the point being made here is important to understanding Mormon thought for the member and non-member a like, I thought I would share them here as well. I have made some minor changes and additions: While I understand where people are coming from when they say that there is no official Mormon “doctrine,” I must disagree. Things like the physical nature of God, our being his literal children, salvation being through the atonement of Jesus Christ, and many other things are clearly official tenets of doctrine in the LDS Church. What frustrates people, and makes them think that no such “official” doctrine exists is the lack of an official, systematic theology that ties all of those doctrines together.