The 26th of this month will mark the 183rd anniversary of the publication of the Book of Mormon. Since the Book of Mormon was published in 1830, Latter-day
Saints have been producing studies about it. For the first 100-plus years, much
of those studies were done by amateurs who lacked any sort of professional
training; even for those who did have professional training, many of the
scholarly disciplines during that time were too underdeveloped to help lead to
any useful, long-standing conclusions. But over the last 70 years or so, Book
of Mormon scholarship has been making some huge strides, and there are
promising signs for the future of such work.
In celebration of the progress that has been made, I would
like to highlight here the Book of Mormon scholars who have been most
significant over that time period. This is, of course, a very subjective
exercise, and I by no means see myself as creating the definitive list. Others
(who may very well be better versed in Book of Mormon scholarship than I am)
may disagree with the five I have chosen for the top spots, or feel that some
have been snubbed. I would love to hear the opinions of others in terms of who
should have been on the list, and who shouldn’t have been on the list, or any
different order they should have ranked.
Top Five
1. Huge Nibley: The
father of Book of Mormon scholarship, Hugh Nibley pioneered and laid the
groundwork for much of the scholarship on the Book of Mormon that has since
come forth. While much of his work has now been superseded or fallen out of
date, some of it remains relevant. Many of his more lasting contributions were
nicely complied and highlighted in a condensed format in the 2002 volume Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon,
among which are observations about
Lehi’s poetics and Nephi’s oath. The full breadth of his work on the Book of
Mormon spans four volumes of The
Collected Works of Hugh Nibley (Vols. 5, 6, 7, 8). Despite its datedness,
due to its continuing influence, the student or aspiring scholar of the Book of
Mormon would do well to be familiar with Nibley’s work.
2. John W. Welch: The
founder of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) back
in the late 1970s, an organization originally intended to focus on producing
scholarly perspectives on the antiquity of the Book of Mormon, few have done as
much as John W. Welch (or “Jack” as he is sometimes called by his friends) to
build on the work of Nibley and push Book of Mormon scholarship to new heights.
He has been an editor (or co-editor) and compiler of several volumes pertaining
to Book of Mormon scholarship, including (but not limited to): Reexploring the Book of Mormon, Pressing Forward with the Book of Mormon,
King’s Benjamin’s Speech, Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon,
Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem, Charting the Book of Mormon, and The Allegory of the Olive Tree. More
than simply facilitate Book of Mormon research, through the founding of an
organization and the editing of volumes, Welch has produce an endless array of
substantial contributions in his own right. It was Welch who made the
groundbreaking discovery of chiasmus in the Book of Mormon just about 45 years
ago. He has continued to contribute and advance the study of literary structures in the Book of Mormon, as well in other fields of Book of Mormon
study. Welch has also done pioneering work on the Sermon at the Temple (the
Book of Mormon version of the Sermon on the Mount), and on Hebrew law in the Book of Mormon. These are only a few highlights – Welch has truly proved to be
a “Jack of all Trades” in terms of Book of Mormon studies. And on many
subjects, including chiasmus, Hebrew law, and the Sermon on the Mount, Welch
has published in prestigious non-LDS venues for non-LDS scholars. All this, and
Welch is far from finished. He continues to be active in Book of Mormon studies
today.
3. John L. Sorenson: Latter-day
Saints have long been fascinated by American archeology and what it might tell
us about the peoples in the Book of Mormon. Few, however, have taken the time
to seriously investigate the matter like John L. Sorenson has. With many LDS
scholars following Nibley’s pioneering footsteps into the Old World to study
the Book of Mormon, Sorenson blazed a new trail in the New World understanding
of the text. First published in 1985, his An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon has long since been the
benchmark for any and all Book of Mormon geographies that follow, and is only
to be surpassed by Sorenson’s magnum opus
titled Mormon’s Codex, due out later
this year. As an anthropologist, Sorenson did more than just try to physically
situation the lands of the Book of Mormon on the map; he strived to understand
the text within both the geographical and
the cultural context of ancient Mesoamerica. His Images of Ancient America: Visualizing Book of Mormon Life helps
bring the text to life, while his Mormon’s Map lays out the methodology that should
be followed by all those interested in working on Book of Mormon geography.
Sorenson also put out The Geography of Book of Mormon Events: A Source Book, which provides a synopsis of Book of
Mormon geography work up to that point, thus proving to be a must have resource
for any student of Book of Mormon geography. Along with those volumes are a
number of articles Sorenson has published on Book of Mormon life and culture. In
non-LDS venues, Sorenson has published numerous articles related to pre-Columbian Old World/New World contact, and the eminent Dr. Michael D. Coe has even
acknowledged Sorenson as a pioneer on the subject.
4. Royal Skousen: For
my entire lifetime, basically, Royal Skousen has been working on the Book of
Mormon Critical Text Project. Meticulously scouring the Original and Printer’s
Manuscript and over a dozen printed editions of the Book of Mormon, Skousen has
examined every single variant in the text, analyzed them, and determined, as
best as possible, what was probably the original reading. The ultimate fruit of
this labor was The Book of Mormon: The Earliest Text, published by Yale University Press in 2009. The full
analysis of every variant is in Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon, which spreads across 6 volumes.
Skousen has also published photos and transcripts of the original and printer’s
manuscript, and there remains a forth coming volume on the Book of Mormon’s
textual history. Skousen has also published other articles on the coming forth,
translation, and publishing history of the Book of Mormon text. While his
contributions are focused specifically on textual analysis, few other scholars
have done work that will have such a long-lasting and wide-spread impact. The exact
reading of the text is crucial to many studies of the Book of Mormon. All other
Book of Mormon scholarship, of any kind, will need to take Skousen’s work seriously,
and will likely even be dependent on it. Some may argue that Skousen ought to
be at the top of this list, and they may very well be right.
5. Brant A. Gardner: John
L. Sorenson laid the ground work for understanding the Book of Mormon in an
ancient Mesoamerican context. Brant Gardner has become its new torch-bearer.
Although he has only be publishing on the Book of Mormon for about a decade,
Gardner has produced the best and most comprehensive scholarly commentary on
the text, his 6 volume Second Witness: Analytical and Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon. Therein, Gardner
adopts Sorenson’s geography model (with some adaptations here and there) and
then proceeds to see how that informs his reading of the text. What Gardner
finds is that the Mesoamerican setting is remarkably productive in explaining
the various oddities of the text. Gardner has also produced a pioneering work on the translation of the Book of Mormon, and has published a handful of articles and book reviews. His forth coming book on the Book of Mormon as and in history will no doubt prove that he has a lot more great insights on the
way.
Other Great Book of
Mormon Scholars
In addition to my top five, I’ve added this list of
“honorable mentions” to give some due respect to others who have made important
contributions. These will be only roughly
or generically in any sort of order
(from greater to lesser), but not necessarily given definite ranks (i.e., the
first person listed will not necessarily be, in my view, a greater scholar than
the second, or third, or even fourth and fifth persons listed, but the first
five will generally be those whom I view as being greater than the last five, etc.). Even that loose ordering shouldn’t
be taken too seriously, since I was faced with numerous challenges.
Honorable Mentions
S. Kent Brown: Brown
has produced a string of studies on Book of Mormon insights, with particular
focus on the Arabian journey of Lehi and company. One of his most important
contributions is the suggestion that Lehi and his family endured bondage in thelast leg of their trek, just before reaching Bountiful.
Warren P. Aston: Though
an amateur, Aston has done ground breaking work on Lehi’s trial, being the
first to discover was remains the best candidate for Nephi’s Bountiful, and
doing the some of the earliest and by far the most thorough research on Nahom
(NHM). Aston even presented on the NHM tribal territory in non-LDS scholarly
venues.
Matthew Roper: A
researcher for the Maxwell Institute, Roper has made various contributions to
both Old and New World studies of the Book of Mormon. His most substantial
work, however, has been on nineteenth century understandings of the text. Roper
has traced the geographic and population conceptions of the Book of Mormon back
through to Joseph Smith’s day, finding precedent for the Limited Geography Theory
and presence of others (during Book of Mormon times) going back to the 1840s.
Roper has also complied every nineteenth century reference to the Book of
Mormon.
John E. Clark: A Mesoamerican archaeologist, Clark has published on the broader trends of archaeology and the Book of Mormon, noting that while there are still a number of problems, the trend is moving a favorable direction. Clark has also frequently provided critical reviews of Book of Mormon geographies, and worked out one of the best and most detailed internal maps to be used an a comparative tool when studying Book of Mormon geography proposals.
John E. Clark: A Mesoamerican archaeologist, Clark has published on the broader trends of archaeology and the Book of Mormon, noting that while there are still a number of problems, the trend is moving a favorable direction. Clark has also frequently provided critical reviews of Book of Mormon geographies, and worked out one of the best and most detailed internal maps to be used an a comparative tool when studying Book of Mormon geography proposals.
William J. Hamblin: Has
contributed various studies on the Old World setting of the Book of Mormon, has
identified the methodological problems of comparing Old World and New World
studies relative to the Book of Mormon, and as a historian of ancient warfare
his most important work has been on Warfare in the Book of Mormon.
Randall Spackman: Spackman
is currently engaged in some groundbreaking work on the chronology of the Book of Mormon. His preliminary work on the Nephite calendar was published in the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies.
John A. Tvedtnes: A
Hebrew scholar, Tvedtnes has produced a seemingly endless array of short studies highlight various tidbits about the Book of Mormon. Tvedtnes was a pioneer on Hebraisms in the Book of Mormon. He also has some impressive studies on how the coming forth of the Book of Mormon fits ancient patterns.
Stephen D. Ricks:
Ricks has contributed a variety of studies on the Old World culture and linguistics
reflected in the Book of Mormon. Some of
his best work is on coronations in the Book of Mormon, and Book of Mormon
names.
Terryl L. Givens: Givens
By the Hand of Mormon, an
intellectual history of the Book of Mormon published by Oxford University Press,
was the first to start to bring the Book of Mormon scholarship into the
mainstream. Givens has also made an important contribution to understanding the
Book of Mormon as “dialogic revelation.”
Grant Hardy: Moving
beyond historicity, Hardy has done
some great work on Book of Mormon literary qualities, and has helped bring Book
of Mormon scholarship into the mainstream with his Understand the Book of Mormon: A Reader’s Guide, published by Oxford University
Press.
Joseph M. Spencer: Like
Hardy, Spencer is moving past historicity to make some impressive strides in Book of Mormon theology, a much neglected field of study.
Sydney B. Sperry:
Influential scholar contemporary to Hugh Nibley’s heyday (hence he tends to
live in Nibley’s shadow), Sperry did some of the earliest work on Hebraisms in
the Book of Mormon. Some of Sperry’s more lasting work was complied and republished
in a special honorary issue of the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies.
Paul Y. Hoskisson: Current
editor of the Journal of Book of Mormon
and Other Restoration Scripture and head of the Book of Mormon names
project, Hoskisson has made and continues to make some great contributions to
the field of Book of Mormon names.
Jeffrey R. Chadwick: Archaeologist
Jeff Chadwick has published some interesting studies on the names Lehi and
Sariah, makes some interesting proposals about Lehi’s house and land ofinheritance, and has offered his insights into the travels of Lehi and his
family in 1 Nephi.
Donald W. Perry: A
professor of Hebrew, Perry has taken Welch’s work on literary structures in the
Book of Mormon to a whole new level by reproducing the entire Book of Mormon text in poetic parallelisms.
Noel B. Reynolds: One
time director of FARMS, Reynolds has published numerous articles on the Book of
Mormon.
Daniel C. Peterson:
As editor of the FARMS Review and now
the Interpreter, Peterson has
provided a platform for Book of Mormon scholarship for more than two decades.
Peterson has also been a popular apologists, and in that role he has served as
conveyer or popularizer of much of the work others have done on this list. In
addition to that, Peterson has published a few of his own contributions to the field,
particularly his study of Nephi and his Asherah, and his research on the
Gaddianton Robbers.
David E. Bokovoy: An
up-and-coming scholar of the Hebrew Bible, Bokovoy has already offered a
handful of insights into the Book of Mormon using his expertise in ancient
Israelite theology. This fall, Bokovoy will be teaching a class on the Book of
Mormon as literature at University of Utah, the first class of its kind.
Mark Alan Wright: Wright
is a newly minted PhD in Mesoamerian Studies, and though he has not yet contributed
a lot yet, what he has written and presented is full of several brilliant
insights on how Mesoamerican culture influenced Book of Mormon authors.
Kevin Christensen: Christensen has written some important essays on paradigms and the Book of Mormon, but his most significant contribution was drawing the connection to the scholarship of Margaret Barker and the early setting of the Book of Mormon. While the fact that his hallmark is to draw on the scholarship of someone else might seem to lessen his contribution, that fact is this connection has truly marked a paradigm shift in Book of Mormon studies. It ought not be under estimated.
Kevin Christensen: Christensen has written some important essays on paradigms and the Book of Mormon, but his most significant contribution was drawing the connection to the scholarship of Margaret Barker and the early setting of the Book of Mormon. While the fact that his hallmark is to draw on the scholarship of someone else might seem to lessen his contribution, that fact is this connection has truly marked a paradigm shift in Book of Mormon studies. It ought not be under estimated.
George D. Potter: Potter
is an amateur, and some of his work, especially that trying to tie the Book of
Mormon to South America, is of questionable quality, but Potter has made
important contributions to Lehi’s trial, including finding the best candidatefor the Valley of Lemuel and doing some groundbreaking work on the challenges of
building and navigating a ship like the one Nephi and his brothers built to
sail to the promised land.
Conclusion
There are, of course, many others who could be listed who
have also made some important contributions. No list could ever be
comprehensive, and as I already pointed out, this is hopelessly subjective.
But, if you are new to Book of Mormon studies, then this gives you a list of
good scholars to look up and start getting familiar with. If you are already
familiar with Book of Mormon studies, I would love to have your thoughts on my
list: who is missing that should be here (either in the Top 5, or the honorable
mentions)? Who is on either of my lists that doesn’t deserve to be? Who should
be higher or lower on my lists? As research into the Book of Mormon continues
to roll forth, I look forward to the contributions that these and others will
be making to advance and improve our understanding of this important keystone
scripture.
Off the subject, where do you fit in the Rappleye line? My wife's mother was Lillian Rappleye, daughter of Ezra Tunis Rappleye and Jane Ludinda Black. ET's father was Tunis Rappleye.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Lynn Johnson
Hi there Lynn.
DeleteI would have to double check with my Dad, but I believe Tunis Rappleye has a son named David, and we come through his line. My grandfather was a Foster Drew Rappleye, and I believe his father (or possibly grandfather) was a Edwin Rappleye. I know, I should know my family history better than than that. I talk a little about my roots in an introduction to this blog:
http://ldsreasonandrevelation.blogspot.com/2010/05/about-me.html
Thanks for stopping by.
I would include Kirk Magelby and Richard Huack somewhere on the list
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