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Series Title: Real Talk about the Book of Mormon [Part I of IV]

It's time to take a deep dive into what may be a psychologically and spiritually confusing topic for many expanding members in and around the LDS church—THE BOOK OF MORMON. 

In this FIRST of a four part series tackling many complex aspects of the Book of Mormon with prominent Mormon scholars, Valerie begins the conversation with friend and colleague Taylor Petrey (editor in chief of the Dialogue Journal of Mormon Thought) where together they review a myriad of topics that have been addressed over the years in the Dialogue Journal related to the ongoing skirmish between the “naturalist” and the “apologist” camps regarding authorship, authenticity, and historicity (just to name a few!).

They talk about the Isaiah controversy, chiasmus, contemporary doctrines of the early 19th century woven into this text, DNA issues, and the rise and fall of FARMS (Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Study) among other important topics. 

They also address thoughts from religious scholars (LDS and non-LDS) who maintain that regardless of the above complexities, the Book might be (and has been) valuable for many, once it’s genre is better understood and if it were read as scripture rather than history.  

In the second segment of this series, Valerie engages Taylor in a dialogue about the challenging relationship that many people in and around the LDS church have about The Book of Mormon due to their early learnings that were overly simplistic or inaccurate regarding the translation of the Book of Mormon, its origin, meaning, and literalness. 

Links for the lit review referenced in this podcast series: 

• The Dialogue Journal: Dialogue Topic Pages #7: Book of Mormon Topics, Part 1
• The Dialogue Journal: Dialogue Topic Pages #8: Book of Mormon Topics, Part 2

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