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The FAIR Journal

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THE FAIR JOURNAL                                             July 2003
----------------------------------------------------------------------
        The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research
----------------------------------------------------------------------

   Apologetics: The branch of theology that is concerned with
   defending or proving the truth of Christian doctrines. (The
   American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth
   Edition, 2000.)


INSIDE THE JOURNAL
----------------------------------------------------------------------
   * SPECIAL CONFERENCE EDITION. An overview of the fantastic array
     of Conference presentations highlighted in this issue of the
     FAIR Journal.

   * GET YOUR TICKETS NOW! Conference is less than two weeks away.
     Information on how to get your tickets so you won't be left
     out.

   * NEW ON THE WEBSITE: CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 2001. Highlights of
     five conference presentations that are newly available on the
     Web site.

   * NEW ON THE WEBSITE: CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 2000. Great
     information on six conference presentations from 2000 that can
     now be read on the Web site.

   * NEW ON THE WEBSITE: CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 1999. Titles, authors,
     and links to seven presentations from the 1999 FAIR Conference.

   * FAIR LDS BOOKSTORE. Reminders about the resources available
     through the FAIR LDS Bookstore.

   * ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS. Interested in writing for FAIR? Learn how
     you can have your apologetics work published.

   * PUBLISHING NOTES. Learn how you can become more involved in FAIR
     and how you can reuse the material we publish.
      
   * FAIR JOURNAL ARCHIVES


------------------------------
SPECIAL CONFERENCE EDITION

In honor of this upcoming conference, we have posted the conference
talks from prior years on the FAIR Web site. We have also highlighted
many of the articles in this month's FAIR Journal. We are only
highlighting those talks that have not previously appeared in the
Journal. See the full list of these excellent articles here:

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/

If you like what you see, please don't forget to include FAIR in your
list of charitable donations this year. Donations from people like you
are what allow us to put on our conferences.

Donate here: http://www.fairlds.org/cgi-bin/site.pl?s001


------------------------------
GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!

The deadline for ordering conference tickets that include the catered
luncheons is July 31--less than a week away!

After that time, you may continue to order tickets to go to the
conference right up until the conference start date, but it won't
include lunch.

To order your tickets to this year's FAIR conference, click here:

   http://www.fairlds.org/cgi-bin/site.pl?b101

If you would like more information on the conference itself, click
here:

   http://www.fairlds.org/conf03a.html


------------------------------
CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 2001

   THE DIVINE SOURCE OF THE BOOK OF MORMON IN THE FACE OF ALTERNATIVE
   THEORIES ADVOCATED BY LDS CRITICS

   In this fascinating talk given at the 2001 FAIR conference, Daniel
   C. Peterson explores the many theories of the origins of the Book
   of Mormon, discussing their plausibility. This talk is certainly
   one you won't want to miss.

   Read his talk here: http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2001_Divine_Source_of_the_Book_of_Mormon_in_the_Face_of_Alternative_Theories.html


   -----------------
   SCHOLARSHIP IN MORMONISM AND MORMONISM IN SCHOLARSHIP

   John Tvetdnes says it best in his 2001 conference talk as he says,
   "The opportunity to discuss LDS topics in scholarly venues has
   prompted me to discuss with you the status of scholarship in
   Mormonism and of Mormonism in scholarship. In doing so, it will be
   necessary to discuss the recent history of LDS scholarship and how
   it has fared in both the scholarly world and with critics of the
   Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I will not be
   discussing LDS scholarship in general, which is rather extensive.
   Rather, we will be looking at scholarly work on LDS topics that
   have published in non-LDS publications."

   Read his talk here: http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2001_Scholarship_in_Mormonism_and_Mormonism_in_Scholarship.html


   -----------------
   ARABIA AND THE BOOK OF MORMON 

   "Whenever students who are interested in the ancient world and want
   to pursue a career in the study of antiquity ask me about a
   direction that they might take, I say, "Think Arabia." There are
   literally thousands of inscriptions on temples and other buildings
   that are still preserved in southern Arabia and have never been
   read or studied. People who work archaeologically in other Near
   Eastern places would love just a couple of small inscriptions. In
   contrast, scholars of ancient Arabia enjoy access to hundreds and
   hundreds of unread lines." In this talk from the 2001 FAIR
   conference, BYU professor of Ancient Scripture S. Kent Brown
   discusses the journey of Lehi and Sariah in the desert.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2001_Arabia_and_the_Book_of_Mormon.html


   -----------------
   BENJAMIN OR MOSIAH? RESOLVING AN ANOMALY IN MOSIAH 21:28

   At Mosiah 21:28 of the Book of Mormon, both the Printer's
   Manuscript and the 1830 edition reads Benjamin, while all
   subsequent editions read Mosiah. Why was this change made, and was
   it warranted? In this talk from the 2001 FAIR conference L. Ara
   Norwood discusses this unusual change.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2001_Benjamin_or_Mosiah.html


   -----------------
   NEPHI AND GOLIATH: A REAPPRAISAL OF THE USE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IN
   FIRST NEPHI

   In this talk from the 2001 FAIR conference, Ben McGuire talks about
   the literary aspects of the writings of Nephi in the Book of Mormon
   by comparing First Nephi with the Old Testament story of Goliath.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2001_Nephi_and_Goliath.html


------------------------------
CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 2000

   MORMONISM--SHADOW OR REALITY?: HISTORY OR PROPAGANDA? JOSEPH SMITH
   AS A CASE STUDY

   This article by Danel W. Bachman explores the objectivity of this
   book. If you are a fan of the Tanner's work, you should certainly
   take a look at this.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_History_or_Propaganda.html


   -----------------
   AN INCIDENT CONCERNING PAGE 81 OF "MORMONISM--SHADOW OR REALITY?"

   Robert Vukich gives a second look at the Tanner's book.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_Mormonism_Shadow_or_Reality.html


   -----------------
   A REAL PEOPLE, TIME, AND PLACE: CONTEXTUALIZING THE BOOK OF MORMON

   Brant Gardner writes, "Perhaps the best illustration of a popular
   tactic in the on-going polemic against the Book of Mormon was
   encapsulated in a question Abraham Lincoln reportedly asked of some
   in the crowd who were disputing him. He asked, "If you call a
   sheep's tail a leg, how many legs does a sheep have?" After many
   answers of "five," he replied, 'A sheep has four legs. Calling a
   tail a leg doesn't make it one.'"

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_Contextualizing_the_Book_of_Mormon.html


   -----------------
   BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS WITH WRECKING BALLS OF FALLACY

   Kevin C. Hill writes, "Some critics of The Church of Jesus Christ
   of Latter-day Saints have claimed that Joseph Smith changed his
   doctrine regarding the nature of The Godhead. They claim that in
   the early period of The LDS Church the teachings on The Godhead are
   more Trinitarian in nature and follow a classical theistic
   approach. Indeed, they claim that the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and
   Covenants and other non-canonical sources teach a concept of God
   similar to that found in the Protestant world and that up until
   approximately 1838 the LDS Church taught this concept of God. The
   purpose of this paper is to illustrate that the claim that Joseph
   changed his view of God is incorrect."

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_Breaking_Down_Barriers_with_Wrecking_Balls_of_Fallacy.html


   -----------------
   NEHORS IN THE LAND: A LATTER-DAY VARIATION ON AN ANCIENT THEME

   L. Ara Norwood writes, "The Book of Mormon records descriptions of
   many peoples and their religious beliefs. Some of these beliefs are
   holy and others are evil. This is reflective of Lehi's teaching
   that there must needs be an opposition in all things or else the
   very purposes of creation itself would have been compromised. The
   Book of Mormon tells of other champions of righteousness, Nephi and
   Jacob, Benjamin and Mosiah, Captain Moroni and Teancumur, Alma and
   Amulek, to name a few. It also records various villains, such as
   Korihor and King Noah, Sherem and Amlici, Zemnarihah and Giddianhi.
   We learn of noble deeds as well as ignoble deeds done in Nephite
   society." Read this year 2000 conference paper to learn about
   modern day Nehors.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_Nehors_in_the_Land.html


   -----------------
   EASIER THAN RESEARCH, MORE INFLAMMATORY THAN TRUTH

   Daniel C. Peterson gives us the rules for dealing with other
   religions and then identifies how those rules are broken.

   http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/2000_Easier_than_Research_More_Inflammatory_than_Truth.html


------------------------------
CONFERENCE TALKS FROM 1999

The following talks were given at the 1999 FAIR conference. All of
them are excellent. The titles are very descriptive so we have opted
not to include a paragraph on each one. All of these articles fall
into the "must read" category.

   * A TALE OF TWO RESTORATIONS, by Kevin Barney
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Tale_of_Two_Restorations.html

   * MORMONISM IN THE EARLY JEWISH CHRISTIAN MILIEU, by Barry
     Bickmore
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Mormonism_in_the_Early_Jewish_Christian_Milieu.html

   * JOSHUA THE HIGH PRIEST AND THE COUNCIL OF THE GODS IN THE BOOK
     OF ZACHARIAH: A POST-EXILIC JEW IN KING YAHWEY'S COURT, by
     Roger Cook
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Joshua_the_High_Priest.html

   * WHAT HAS ATHENS TO DO WITH JERUSALEM?: APOSTASY AND RESTORATION
     IN THE BIG PICTURE, by Daniel C. Peterson
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Apostasy_and_Restoration_in_the_Big_Picture.html

   * I HAVE SAID, 'YE ARE GODS,' by D. Charles Pyle
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Early_Christian_Doctrine_of_Deification.html

   * SALVATION FOR THE DEAD: A RESPONSE TO LUKE WILSON, by Matt Roper
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Salvation_for_the_Dead.html

   * EARLY CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH RITUALS RELATED TO TEMPLE PRACTICES,
     by John Tvedtnes
     http://www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Conferences/1999_Early_Christian_and_Jewish_Rituals_Related_to_Temple_Practices.html


------------------------------
FAIR ONLINE BOOKSTORE

Our bookstore personnel are busy getting ready for conference and
making sure that everything is in order. This month we are featuring
the following books:

   * Defending Zion: George Q. Cannon and the California Mormon
     Newspaper Wars of 1856-1857, by Roger Ekins. In 2003, Dr. Ekins
     was the recipient of the the Phi Theta Kappa Mosal Award Award as
     well as winning the Steven F. Christensen Best Documentary
     History Award by the Mormon Historical Association. (Dr. Ekins
     is attending and presenting at this year's FAIR Conference.)

   * Lehi in the Wilderness: 81 New Evidences Documenting the Book of
     Mormon Is a True History, by George D. Potter and Richard
     Wellington. A great book for anyone interested in Book of Mormon
     evidences. (Brothers Potter and Wellington are attending and
     presenting at this year's FAIR Conference.)

   * By The Hand of Mormon: The American Scripture that Launched a New
     World Religion, by Terryl L. Givens. This is the new paperback
     edition of this amazing book. This is a must-read for anyone
     interested in LDS scripture and history. As an "Editor's Pick" in
     The FARMS Review, Volume 15, Number 1 (2003), this titled was
     rated as "Outstanding, a seminal work of the kind that appears
     only rarely."

For these specials, visit the FAIR LDS Bookstore:

   http://www.fairlds.org/cgi-bin/site.pl?s002

See you at Conference!

- The FAIR Bookstore Staff


------------------------------
ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS

We welcome article submissions for the FAIR Journal and website. If you would
like to submit an article, please review the editing guidelines at:

     http://www.fairlds.org/EdStyle.pdf

Submit your article to the FAIR Journal Editor, Cooper Johnson
(FAIR contact page). An appropriate article would be one that
the truthfulness of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

While LDS apologetics (in the broadest sense) deals with refuting
critics of the Church, articles don't necessarily have to deal with
anti-Mormonism, but may deal with some new evidence of the Book of
Mormon, some interesting scripture interpretation, a viewpoint or
quote from the early Christian Fathers or other historical figure,
an interesting lesson idea, an inspiring missionary story, Church
history, or your view on a current event related to the Church or a
piece from a historical journal.

We may also accept articles from people who are not members of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that may not necessarily
meet the guidelines of supporting the church if it is a topic of
general interest to people involved in apologetics.

A submission may range in length from several pages to a single
paragraph. 


------------------------------
PUBLISHING NOTES

FAIR is not owned, controlled by or affiliated with the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All research and opinions provided
in the FAIR Journal and on the FAIR Web site (http://www.fairlds.org)
are the sole responsibility of FAIR, and should not be interpreted as
official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.

If someone has forwarded this e-journal to you and you would like to
join you should go to www.fairlds.org and click on the Membership
link.

If you are very interested in apologetics and would like to actively
participate in FAIR you should consider joining our apologetics e-mail
list. Visit www.fairlds.org and click on the Membership link to join
this list as well.

If you manage your own e-mail list, and wish to include some of these
thoughts or articles on your list, contact us through our Web site, at
this page: www.fairlds.org/contact.psp. We have a fairly liberal policy of using our
material so long as you contact us first to gain permission and
clearly identify that your source was FAIR and by adding a link to the 
FAIR Web site (www.fairlds.org).


--------------------------------
FAIR JOURNAL ARCHIVES

For past issues of the FAIR Journal, go to www.fairlds.org/FAIR_Journal/

 

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FAIR is not owned, controlled by or affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All research and opinions provided on this site are the sole responsibility of FAIR, and should not be interpreted as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.

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