The Temple: Symbols, Sermons, and Settings

Stephen D. Ricks and Jeffrey M. Bradshaw (eds.)

Stephen D. Ricks

Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

Proceedings of the Fourth Interpreter Matthew B. Brown Memorial Conference
“The Temple on Mount Zion,” 10 November 2018

Temple on Mount Zion Series 5

Published by The Interpreter Foundation, Orem Utah in cooperation with Eborn Books, Salt Lake City, Utah

The temple is central to Latter-day Saint worship. Through modern revelation Joseph Smith restored the ancient tradition of temples and the ordinances performed therein. Studies of ancient temples can shed much light on latter-day temples and temple worship.

Several years ago Latter-day Saint scholar Matthew Brown planned a conference entitled The Temple on Mount Zion and began to invite the participants. Matthew Brown loved the temple and temple worship and studied and published on ancient and modern temples. His interests and knowledge were vast. When Matthew passed away very unexpectedly in 2011, his friends decided to organize a series of conferences in his memory. This volume, the fifth in the series, contains proceedings from the fourth conference held in his memory 10 November 2018 and reflects many of the topics that Matthew loved, centered on the theme of the temple: symbols, sermons, and settings.

The purpose of the book series is to increase understanding and appreciation of temple rituals and doctrines, and to encourage participation in the redeeming work of family history and temple worship.

Videos of the presentations at the conference are available here.

Eborn Books

Hardcover: $25.95

Table of Contents

Jesus’ First Visit to the Temple – S. Kent Brown
On Earth When It Was in Heaven: Sacred Time and its Protection in Egyptian Temples – Kerry Muhlestein
Recovering the Language of Purity after the First Revolt – Thomas Wayment
“They Shall Be Joined unto Thee”: Levi, Levites, and the Importance of Joinings in Temple Settings – Matthew L Bowen
Truth and Beauty in the Book of Moses – Jeffrey M. Bradshaw
Bearing Testimony in Hebrew – Ryan Davis
The Symbolism of the Cupped Hand in Ancient Egypt and Israel: Iconography, Text, and Artifact – Stephen O. Smoot
Consecration and Sacrilege in Early Rabbinic Judaism – Avram Shannon
“Fixed and Immovable”: Joseph Smith and the Eternal Nature of the Priesthood – Matt Roper
““Put Off Thy Shoes from Off Thy Feet”: Sandals and Sacred Space – John Gee

Stephen D. Ricks

Stephen D. Ricks completed his BA in Ancient Greek and MA in the Classics at Brigham Young University, and then received his PhD in ancient Near Eastern religions from the University of California, Berkeley and the Graduate Theological Union. While completing his doctoral work he spent two years studying at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is now professor of Hebrew and Cognate Learning at Brigham Young University where he has been a member of the faculty for nearly thirty years.

Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

Jeffrey M. Bradshaw (PhD, Cognitive Science, University of Washington) is a Senior Research Scientist at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) in Pensacola, Florida (www.ihmc.us/groups/jbradshaw. His professional writings have explored a wide range of topics in human and machine intelligence (www.jeffreymbradshaw.net). Jeff has been the recipient of several awards and patents and has been an adviser for initiatives in science, defense, space, industry, and academia worldwide. Jeff has written detailed commentaries on the Book of Moses, Genesis, and on temple themes in the scriptures. For Church-related publications, see www.TempleThemes.net. Jeff was a missionary in France and Belgium from 1975 to 1977, and his family has returned twice to live in France. He and his wife, Kathleen, are the parents of four children and sixteen grandchildren. From July 2016-September 2019, Jeff and Kathleen served missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo Kinshasa Mission office and the DR Congo Kinshasa Temple. They currently live in Nampa, Idaho. As a church service missionary for the Church History Department, Jeff is writing histories of temples in Africa, and for Interpreter is documenting selected episodes in the history of the Church in Africa on film (www.NotByBreadAloneFilm.com).

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All journal publications and video presentations are available for free by digital download and streaming. The price of hard copy versions of journal articles covers only the cost of printing; books are typically priced to help cover both upfront pre—publication expenses and royalties to authors when applicable. In some cases, the Foundation may subsidize publication costs to keep retail prices affordable.