Why did ordinary men like Brigham Young leave everything behind to walk over 1,000 miles under brutal conditions to help the Saints in Missouri?

How did Joseph Smith demonstrate remarkable leadership and patience while leading a group of exhausted, complaining men on Zion’s Camp?

What can we learn from the extreme sacrifices of the early Saints—and the women left behind—when facing trials that don’t turn out as expected?

The post Becoming Brigham Episode 21: Zion’s Camp — Rescue or Ruin? first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

In this episode of Conversations with Interpreter, Avram and Thora interview one another, discussing their education and research interests. They also talk about their most recent project together, a paper presented at “For a Wise Purpose in Him” The 2026 Small Plates of Nephi Conference In Honor of President Jeffrey R. Holland. This paper looks at evidence that there was a gradual loss of knowledge of the full name and mission of Jesus Christ between Jacob and King Benjamin, because Benjamin receives this information from an angel.

The post Conversations with Interpreter: Avram and Thora Shannon — The Loss of Jesus in the Small Plates of Nephi first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Abstract: The Book of Mormon presents a wealth of important information related to how we should understand our lives and relationship with God. Frustratingly, it leaves unwritten a large body of information that we would like to know. This note tries to read between the lines to suggest the reason Nephihah became chief judge after Alma2 abdicated that position.

The post A Proposed Kinship between Alma2 and Nephihah first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

In the June 11, 2026, 2026 episode of The Interpreter Insights Podcast, our host Terry Hutchinson continues his survey of Interpreter Journal volumes with a brief review of Volume 6 from 2013. He is then joined by guest Tom Grover, an attorney from Las Vegas who discussed his presentation at the current Mormon History Association conference titled “Las Vegas Estate Litigation over Howard Hughes’s ‘Mormon Will’: Litigation, image & Institutional Restraint.”

The post Interpreter Insights Podcast — June 11, 2026 first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Welcome. I’m Daniel Peterson, president of the Interpreter Foundation and executive producer of the Becoming Brigham series. If you’re not yet familiar with this series, you can find it on this website at https://interpreterfoundation.org/study/series/category/becoming-brigham, at the Becoming Brigham channel on YouTube, or at BecomingBrigham.com. Join us as we visit with experts and scholars regarding the […]

The post Becoming Brigham Interviews: Sam Weston first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

What does it reveal about Joseph Smith that even he sometimes didn’t get immediate answers from God during moments of crisis?

How can the experiences of the Missouri persecutions help us better understand and empathize with refugees and displaced people in our world today?

The post Becoming Brigham Episode 20: Peace or Violence? Part Two first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Abstract: Members of the 1834 Zion’s Camp expedition inspected a large mound along the Illinois River where a skeleton was uncovered and Joseph Smith had a revelatory experience identifying the individual as Zelph. Recent archeological excavations place the revelation in a chronological and ancient cultural context that now allows additional verification and interpretation of this revelatory event. In addition, with this new information, it is possible to determine whether the individual and location can be interpreted as being a part of the Book of Mormon culture and geography.

The post A Scientific Evaluation of the Zelph Revelation first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

In the June 4, 2026, episode of The Interpreter Insights Podcast, our host Martin Tanner discusses Becoming Brigham, Interpreter’s web video series debunking misconceptions and misunderstandings about Brigham Young.

The post Interpreter Insights Podcast — June 4, 2026: Brigham Young first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Why does Brigham Young’s complicated legacy—full of both remarkable achievements and difficult decisions—still inspire deep reflection and admiration 225 years later?

In this special birthday episode of the documentary series, hosts Camrey Fox, John Wilson, and Professor Daniel Peterson gather at Brigham Young’s winter home in St. George, Utah, to celebrate his 225th birthday. The hosts highlight his profound devotion to building of the Kingdom of God, particularly through temple construction. They share stories that show the human Brigham: his temper and self-control as a father, his hands-on leadership style, his care for individual Saints, and his unexpected support for the arts and theater. This episode paints a nuanced portrait of Brigham Young—not as an infallible icon or harsh autocrat, but as a dedicated, practical, and very human figure whose legacy continues to shape the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 225 years after his birth.

The post Becoming Brigham Episode 19: Another Birthday! Celebrating a 225 Year Legacy first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Abstract: This study reinterprets the political and military upheavals of the book of Alma through the lens of dynastic competition among Nephite, Mulekite, and Jaredite lineages. It builds on the work of Hugh Nibley, John Sorenson, Noel Reynolds, and more recently, Val Larsen and Lyle Hamblin, among others. Their research suggests that hereditary legitimacy and rival bloodlines shaped later Nephite history as deeply as did religious conviction or moral struggle. The merger of the Nephite and Mulekite peoples appears to have produced a fragile political order that fractured when traditional royal authority was replaced by the reign of judges. Alma2’s abdication, the apparent weakness of Nephihah and Pahoran as executives, and the appointment of Captain Moroni are examined as deliberate efforts to stabilize a government suffering from dynastic instability. Tracing the intersection of lineage, legitimacy, and divine favor illuminates how the Book of Mormon frames its wars not merely as moral conflicts but as struggles to preserve righteous authority amid inherited divisions.

The post Dynastic Dynamics: Competing Bloodlines and Political Legitimacy in the Book of Mormon first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.