While negative meanings are often attached to the words rite and ritual, these terms simply mean ''with correct religious procedure; in the manner required, properly, duly, correctly, rightly, fittingly.'' Thus, the term perfectly describes an array of practices within our church, including baptism, the laying on of hands, and temple ordinances. This book explores the relationship between the performance of priesthood ordinances (or rituals) and the power of godliness that is mentioned in Doctrine and Covenants 84. Just as in biblical and Book of Mormon times, rites are an essential part of God s plan for his children. The mes- sages in this book help us understand ritual and its profound role within the Church so that we are able to recognize the trans- forming power of our rites of worship.

By Our Rites of Worship: Latter-day Saint Views on Ritual in Scripture and Practice

Daniel L. Belnap

Deseret Book Company

Christians around the world look to the Sermon on the Mount for encouragement and guidance in developing the attitudes and behavior the Lord admonished us to have. The 2010 Sperry Symposium focuses on the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, Luke, and 3 Nephi. It will discuss in depth specific passages and textual variations in the different accounts of the Sermon, as well as the social and cultural context of the Sermon. Chapters will review the contributions that the Joseph Smith Translation makes to our understanding, as well as the use of the Sermon in later biblical and Book of Mormon teachings. Contributors include Richard D. Draper, Matthew J. Grey, Daniel K Judd, Jennifer C. Lane, Eric-John K. Marlowe, Robert L. Millet, Thomas A. Wayment, and John W. Welch.

The Sermon On the Mount in Latter-day Scripture: The 39th Annual BYU Sydney B. Sperry Symposium

Thomas A. Wayment

Gaye Strathearn

Deseret Book

A dark and dreary waste, a man in a shining robe, a rod of iron, and a tree of life these symbols evoke powerful images in our minds and deepen our appreciation for the Book of Mormon. The 2011 Sperry Symposium volume explores the rich symbolism of Lehi s dream and Nephi s vision, placing such symbols as the mists of darkness, the great and spacious building, and the church of the Lamb of God in the context of the last days. By introducing profound, new perspectives to a familiar account, this volume offers Latter-day Saints a stirring reminder of the meaning and implications of Lehi s dream and Nephi s vision.

The Things Which My Father Saw: Approaches to Lehi's Dream and Nephi's Vision

Stanley A. Johnson

BYU RSC/ Deseret Book

This is a new volume from the Book of Mormon Academy at Brigham Young University. This volume explores the relationship between the Nephite and the Jaredite records culturally, politically, literarily, and theologically. The first approach is a cultural-historical lens, in which elements of Jaredite culture are discussed, including the impact of a Jaredite subculture on Nephite politics during the reign of the judges, and a Mesopotamia perspective as seership and divination, and the brother of Jared's experience as a liminal one. The second grouping looks at the book of Ether through a narratological lens, all three papers exploring different aspects of Moroni's construction of the book of Ether. The third grouping explores the book of Ether's depiction of women, as it contains one of the most descriptive, yet ambivalent female figures in the Book of Mormon, both historically and in our contemporary era. Finally, the book of Ether is reviewed via a teaching lens. In Alma 37, Alma the Younger explained the teaching value of the Jaredite records, these last two studies examine ways in which the book of Ether in particular can be taught to a modern audience.

Illuminating the Jaredite Records

Editor)

Religious Studies Center/Deseret Book Co

For some, the Old Testament is a difficult volume to read, much less understand. The language, symbolism, and history depicted within it can be challenging and at times frustrating. Modern biblical research and the methodologies used in that research have opened up this book of scripture to greater understanding. So too has the restoration of the priesthood and continuing revelation, which have revealed that the Old Testament patriarchs are not simply literary examples of righteous behavior in the past but living beings who have engaged with the Saints in this dispensation. This volume incorporates both academic insights and restoration revelation, thus demonstrating the way in which both can be used to gain greater insight into these pivotal narratives.

From Creation to Sinai: The Old Testament Through the Lens of the Restoration

Aaron P. Schade