This week the Come Follow Me curriculum omits a few chapters in Genesis. Ben and Christopher discuss these anyway since they touch on important themes. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah in turn all make choices that put their legitimacy as heirs in question. Jacob returns to Bethel to establish a mode akin to temple worship. Isaac dies, and the presence of both Esau and Jacob hints at final reconciliation between the brothers. Joseph’s story begins, interrupted by the narrative of Judah’s impropriety. This contrasts with Joseph’s character and legitimacy as the heir of the birthright of Israel. Joseph is sold into Egypt and the Lord is with him through it all. Joseph’s story is a fundamental narrative underpinning the story of the Nephites in the Book of Mormon and the development of the Latter-day Saint ethos.
Shiloh and Ben open up about their experiences in studying the Constitution as BYU students and their journey into peace studies. Section 98 is a type of bridge in their life between the Lord’s justification of his people to follow the principles in the Constitution that protects the rights and freedoms of all people and the Lord’s command to “renounce war and proclaim peace.” How often do we really “renounce war,” and does it mean to “proclaim peace.” How often do we unwittingly assume that “peace” is what naturally follows when everyone finally agrees with us? How often do we think that “peace” is what Jesus Christ brings when he returns to violently kill all of the violently evil on the earth? Are there no tools that God has given us to preach and establish peace during times of contention and warfare? Are we to only “renounce war and proclaim peace” in times of “peace”? What does it mean and what would it look like to “renounce war and proclaim peace” during wartime, and how popular would that be? There are always justifications for war. There are always reasons that we can deem the justice and rightness of our particular cause. War is rarely lacking for initial supporters. What answers, if anything, can the Sermon on the Mount provide us to answer these questions? ...
Ben and Christopher begin this year’s LDPS Presents: Come, Follow Me podcast on the Old Testament by introducing themselves and their background for Old Testament studies. They cover where they’re coming from, how they’ll be approaching the Old Testament, and where they’re going with their approach. This wide-ranging discussion deals with many of the questions on the minds of Latter-day Saints approaching the Old Testament such as: What is the Bible, or even scripture, in general, and the Old Testament in particular, and what do we do with them? How does revelation work? Who were the authors and what are the genres of the books that make up the library we call “the Bible” and what was the context and purpose of those authors in writing the texts? Who later chose which books would be included in the Bible and which would be excluded and why? What role did manuscripts and translation play in this process of canonization and continue to play in ongoing reading and interpretation of the Bible? What are apocryphal and pseudepigraphical texts and what do we do with them? What assumptions are made by ancient interpreters of the Bible that were carried forward in Christian history and are still with us today in the Church? How will Christopher and Ben read and interpret the Old Testament applying nonviolent hermeneutics to deal with “the angry violent God of the Old Testament”? How does Ancient-Near-Eastern thought differ from modern Western thought and what does that mean for reading and interpreting the Bible? What are the major themes of the Bible? And finally, what do we do with modern critical Biblical scholarship in faithfully reading the Bible? ...
1 Kings 12-22 Elijah ...
