The Dead Sea Scrolls provide fascinating insight into Second Temple Judaism. Curiously, the scrolls include fragments from the Book of Ezra—but there’s no actual mention of the scribe. That leads to some interesting questions. For example, was Ezra a real person? And, if he was, why don’t the Dead Sea Scrolls mention him? In this interview, biblical scholar Charlotte Hempel explains the most popular theories.
If you’ve ever wanted to take a deep dive into the cultural, intellectual, and historical implication of Joseph Smith, you may want to consider Sam Brown as your muse. A physician and scientist by day, Brown dives deep into the esoteric metaphysics of the early Latter-day Saint prophet in his Oxford University Press publication, Joseph Smith’s Translation: The Words and Worlds of Early Mormonism.
The story says a group of Jewish rebels committed mass suicide at Masada, Israel, 2,000 years ago during the Jewish Second Temple period. But what does archaeology reveal about what actually happened? Join archaeologist Jodi Magness as she discusses her book, Masada: From Jewish Revolt to Modern Myth.
Latter-day Saints celebrate 1820 as the year in which Joseph Smith first saw and conversed with God the Father and Jesus Christ. To mark the bicentennial of Joseph Smith’s First Vision, the Joseph Smith Papers Project has released a six-episode podcast, The First Vision: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcast hosted by Spencer McBride.
Richard Bennett is a professor of Church History and Doctrine and BYU, the author of Temples Rising: A Heritage of Sacrifice, and president of the Mormon Trail Center at Winter Quarters.
A recent book by Philip Jenkins looks at a tumultuous time in history that contains lessons for believers trying to navigate today’s religious landscape.
Dr. Gabriele Boccaccini discusses the Enoch Seminar, a group devoted to studying the common roots of early Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.