“The Virtue of the Word of God”

These new items just went up on the never-changing website of the Interpreter Foundation:

Hugh Nibley Observed: “Family Reminisces at the Funeral of Hugh W. Nibley”: Zina Nibley Petersen, Rebecca Nibley, Alex Nibley, Michael Draper Nibley, Thomas Hugh Nibley, Christina Nibley Mincek, and Paul Sloan Nibley”

Part of our book chapter reprint series, this article originally appeared in Hugh Nibley Observed, edited by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, Shirley S. Ricks, and Stephen T. Whitlock. For more information, go to https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/hugh-nibley-observed/.

Nibley Lectures: Come, Follow Me Book of Mormon Lesson 29“The Virtue of the Word of God” Alma 30-31

This week for Come, Follow Me lesson 29 covering Alma 30-31, we only have lectures 54 from Hugh Nibley’s Book of Mormon classes at Brigham Young University, covering Alma 30 and 31.

During 1988, 1989, and 1990, Hugh Nibley taught Honors Book of Mormon classes for four semesters at Brigham Young University. The lectures were video-taped and audio cassettes and printed transcripts were made of the lectures. We believe these recordings will be interesting to listen to and valuable to your Come, Follow Me study program this year. Each week, we will include the lectures covering the Book of Mormon chapters being studied that week.

All 112 lectures are immediately available in PDF, audio, video, and electronic formats, as well as in paperback books that are available for purchase. Links for all of the available online sources can be found in the Complete Bibliography for Hugh Nibley at https://interpreterfoundation.org/bibliographies/hugh-w-nibley/lectures/.

The Book of Mormon in Context Lesson 29: “The Virtue of the Word of God”: Alma 30 and 31

For the 23 June 2024 Come, Follow Me segment of the Interpreter Radio Show, Steve Densley and John Thompson discussed Book of Mormon lesson 29, “The Virtue of the Word of God” covering Alma 30 and 31.

Their discussion, recorded and then liberated from commercial and other interruptions, has now been archived and made available for your edification and delight.  The other segments of the 23 June 2024 radio show can also be accessed, free of charge, at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreter-radio-show-june-23-2024.

The Interpreter Radio Show is broadcast live every single week of the year along the Wasatch Front in Utah (principally in the Salt Lake Valley) on Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640.  Alternatively, if you are unable to tune in on the radio, you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com.

While absent-mindedly rummaging around in the Christopher Hitchens Memorial “How Religion Poisons Everything” File™ earlier today, I happened across this venerable article:  Paul S. Mueller, MD; David J. Plevak, MD; and Teresa A. Rummans, MD, “Religious Involvement, Spirituality, and Medicine: Implications for Clinical Practice, Mayo Clinic Proceedings (2001) 76:1225-1235.”  I share its abstract with you.  The bolding is mine, for emphasis:

Surveys suggest that most patients have a spiritual life and regard their spiritual health and physical health as equally important. Furthermore, people may have greater spiritual needs during illness. We reviewed published studies, meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and subject reviews that examined the association between religious involvement and spirituality and physical health, mental health, health-related quality of life, and other health outcomes. We also reviewed articles that provided suggestions on how clinicians might assess and support the spiritual needs of patients. Most studies have shown that religious involvement and spirituality are associated with better health outcomes, including greater longevity, coping skills, and health-related quality of life (even during terminal illness) and less anxiety, depression, and suicide. Several studies have shown that addressing the spiritual needs of the patient may enhance recovery from illness. Discerning acknowledging, and supporting the spiritual needs of patients can be done in a straightforward and noncontroversial manner. Furthermore, many sources of spiritual care (eg, chaplains) are available to clinicians to address spiritual needs of patients. 

And here, while we’re at it, is yet another gratifyingly terrible item from the Hitchens File:  “Thousands of Women and Children in Central America Participate in Nutrition Effort: President Johnson attends screening event in Guatemala”

The release of the Interpreter Foundation’s newest film, Six Days in August, is rapidly approaching and, candidly, we’re really excited to share it with the public.  Our tentative release date is the Thursday following this year’s semiannual general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is 10 October 2024.  That’s not yet chiseled into stone, but it’s the likely date.  Please feel free to pencil that in on your calendar.

My wife and I spent much of today looking at cars.  We’re down to one vehicle for, currently, four people and three drivers in our house.  That situation has been pretty much workable up until now, but there is suddenly a fairly urgent need for a second vehicle.  Besides which, our present car is approaching 300,000 miles.

I’m not an automobile buff, although I found shopping for cars today almost infinitely more enjoyable than I have ever found  shopping for clothes.  (I’m sure that there must be a scientific basis for this: Based on decades of experience, I believer that clothing stores emit some sort of subtle chemical gas that makes me sleepy whenever I approach within ten to fifteen yards of them.)  Still, I hate the thought of spending so much money — and it will be a lot of money whatever we ultimately choose to do — on a mere means of getting from Point A to Point B.  Looking for a second car is pretty depressing but, under current circumstances, it’s unavoidable.  Stupidly, though, as a budding movie mogul, I failed to include any language in any of the contract materials related to Six Days in August that will pay me or my wife or any of my children or heirs or assigns so much as a single penny.  (What was I thinking?)  So if anybody out there would like to kick in a few thousand bucks to my new Wheels for Apologists program, please contact me.