What books do you most like for doctrinal scripture study help

crazymom5 · Senior Member

What books do you most like for doctrinal scripture study help

Jen · Senior Bucketkeeper

I've been reading Jesus the Christ a little bit again (okay, I've never finished it. . .). It's kind of an obvious answer, but it really does bring the New Testament to life for me.

Roper · Senior Bucketkeeper

Because this year is the NT for Gospel Doctrine, I've been concentrating my studies there. Here are two resources I really like:

Basics of Biblical Greek by William D. Mounce. It's used in many first-year Greek courses in colleges and seminaries.

Synopsis of the Four Gospels edited by Kurt Alend. It's a side-by-side comparison of each event recorded in the Gospels. I find it interesting how many "holes" there are.

And for a thoroughly enjoyable read that gives a lot of interesting insights from a non-LDS perspective on our understanding of the premortal life and Satan's role in this world, I recommend "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis.

Hoss Cartwright · Senior Member

"True to the Faith" is pretty good. It is an offical church publication. It is sort of like Mormon Doctrine, without the need to add "not necesarily" to the beginning of the title.

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

I'm currently reading "Understanding Isaiah", which is pretty decent... very thorough...I haven't actually bothered with the ancient languages thing... it just seems... like one of those unending things that is too big to bother with, and has the serious ability to help you completely miss the point of the scriptures you're trying to understand. Jesus the Christ is the only other commentary I consistently return to...

I also like to simply listen to the scriptures on CD a lot... nothing helps you understand the scriptures better than, say, the scriptures themselves... :)

--Ray

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

Personally, I don't get into the commentaries/study helps too much. I find it sort of distracting when I'm pulled into someone else's way of thinking if I'm truly out for my own personal revelation and growth. I guess I look at the scriptures themselves as a means to personal revelation.

John 5: 39
39 ¶ Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

To me, this means the scriptures are not the "ultimate" spiritual experience, they are the way to the mind of Christ. It's just a personal thing, I guess. I find additional commentaries less than helpful. And yes, I've read Jesus the Christ, Doct. Comm. on the NT, etc... but I don't use them as a scripture study aid, as it were. To me there's studying the scriptures and then there's reading other stuff.

fear of shiz · Profuse Pontificator

How do you feel about non-LDS sources?

arbilad · Head Chef

Roper wrote:

Because this year is the NT for Gospel Doctrine, I've been concentrating my studies there. Here are two resources I really like:

Basics of Biblical Greek by William D. Mounce. It's used in many first-year Greek courses in colleges and seminaries.

Synopsis of the Four Gospels edited by Kurt Alend. It's a side-by-side comparison of each event recorded in the Gospels. I find it interesting how many "holes" there are.

And for a thoroughly enjoyable read that gives a lot of interesting insights from a non-LDS perspective on our understanding of the premortal life and Satan's role in this world, I recommend "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis.

The screwtape letters are surprisingly accurate in their portrayal of how the adversary works. Of course, there are major flaws, but CS Lewis got close to the truth more often than not.

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

I utilize non-lds sources.

Falls under "other stuff" like McConkie, etc...

-- Edited by Cocobeem at 12:50, 2007-08-06

mirkwood · Senior Bucketkeeper

rayb wrote:

"Understanding Isaiah"

I've been looking for a good commentary, I'll have to check this one out.

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

I utilize only Sunstone Magazine. In fact I don't even read the scriptures anymore just the magazine. I've even been thumbing through some Watchtowers recently for info for a Sacrament meeting talk.

PollyAnna · Senior Bucketkeeper

Jase... have you been talking to my hubby...??? That is JUST the kind of comment he would make to get the same point across...

Euphrasie · Senior Bucketkeeper

Mirk...another one you might look for is "Prophet, Poet, Seer" by Victor Ludlow

PollyAnna · Senior Bucketkeeper

Jen, I too re-read Jesus the Christ this year to accompany the New Testament lessons in SS. I appreciate the Savior's atonement more each year...

I just got done with my yearly reading of the Book of Mormon as well... Reading all three books some what together was enlightening...

Roper · Senior Bucketkeeper

fear of shiz wrote:
How do you feel about non-LDS sources?

I use them often. While the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ may contain a fulness of truth, Deseret Book does not. I always gain new insights when I look at the Gospel from perspectives outside of mainstream Mormonism.

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

I find outside sources often to be trite and unchallenging, myself. I don't know that I know why this is... perhaps I'm just biased, but there always seems to be something missing that leaves me feeling like I need to say, "Yeah, but..."

--Ray

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

What have you read, ray?

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

Mostly comics by Jack Chick, like this one...

http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0061/0061_01.asp

They really help me see the truth... rolleyes

--Ray

Valhalla · Profuse Pontificator

I will often go to historical sources, though not necessarily scriptural, but to get a perspective of the time or what was taking place at that time. I use Wikipedia a lot for this. While in the OT I read about Solomon and his worship of Molech. Solomon was a very bad man in this regard. I researched out Molech worship and learned a lot, enough to guess that Solomon's goose is pretty well cooked, pun intended. Btw, Molech worship involved...well, read up on it if you want to know.

I also like to watch archeological shows, Biblical archeology shows in particular.

Other books are the Pseudigraphia, Apocrypha, etc.

Like the scripture, these things all need to be studied with the Spirit.

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

rayb wrote:

Mostly comics by Jack Chick, like this one...

http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0061/0061_01.asp

They really help me see the truth...

--Ray

I love Chick tracks! They're so entertaining and educational. I especially love the one on those evil Freemasons. I never realized I was a devil worshiper until Jack Chick told me so with all the Christain love he could muster http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1036/1036_01.asp. Without Jack Chick I would never have known the true evil of Haloween http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0058/0058_01.asp or the Tooth Fairy and Santa Clause http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1033/1033_01.asp or that murderers can get off free in the next life http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0037/0037_01.asp.

-- Edited by salesortonscom at 15:03, 2007-08-07

Organist · Senior Member

I like to read the sealed portion of the plates whenever Moroni stops by. He lets me use some really cool glasses because the font is kinda funny, kinda like wingdings.

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

I'm about 1/2 way through the lost tribes' records.

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

Jase: And who can forget his comic on the evils of Dungeons and Dragons? Imagine having a child like this ...or this one http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0094/0094_01.asp (reminds me of some conspiracy theorists...)

Other Jase: Didn't Moroni sell the copyright to wingdings to Microsoft?

--Ray

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

Ray, I don't know what's more scary, that kid or what those nut jobs will do when the rapture doesn't happen.

fear of shiz · Profuse Pontificator

I have gained a lot from the books of Thomas Cahill, especially The Gifts of the Jews and Desire of the Everlasting Hills.

http://www.randomhouse.com/features/cahill/

Warning: he is Catholic.

-- Edited by fear of shiz at 17:39, 2007-08-07

hiccups · Future Queen in Zion

Ooh, I should make a t-shirt that says:

Warning: Mormon

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

Heheh... that'd make a great tee shirt.

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

"Take this heretic away. Dispose of it, or use it for food."

salesortonscom · Wise and Revered Master

Soylent Green is Heretic!!!!

Those Chick Tracts remind me of the videos they used to show us at the Evangelical Christain Elementary School I went to as a kid. They would show these horrible low budget movies about the rapture and the horrors of the world afterwards. They had people with bar code tattoos on their arms or forehead (mark of the beast) and they were executing people that became saved using a guillotine. It was almost comedic though. When those who had accepted Jesus in their hearts as their personal Savior were "taken" they showed cars going down the road with no driver and lawnmowers moving with no one behind them.

They often showed movies or had assembly's trying to get us to accept Jesus into our hearts so we wouldn't go to heck. I remember asking but about murderers and other really bad folks and didn't think it was fair that they could go to heaven if they accepted Jesus in their hearts before being executed but some little kid was going to hell. Obviously, even at a young age the true gospel of Jesus Christ made much more sense than the load of bull they were selling.

-- Edited by salesortonscom at 11:40, 2007-08-08

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

You know one of the reasons I don't rely upon scholarly experts to understand my scriptures, is precisely because of the understanding gathered by the Restorations. Weak things become Strong, and the Unlearned thrashing the nations... The problem with all the older christian traditions really comes from their understanding of scripture and the whole concept of continuing revelation. Ultimately that misunderstanding colors their reasoning at a very basic level, that IMO is very subtle and can lead us away from relying upon the Gift of the Holy Ghost (a thing they don't have) to intellectualism and logical games like the greeks played with each other... and which forged the Creeds we simply don't accept.

--Ray

Cocobeem · Keeper of the Holy Grail

I think anytime you're relying on someone else's inspiration and revelation to the exclusion of your own is not good, whether they are Bruce R. McConkie or Bart Ehrman. You can usually pick out these people when they give talks in Church because they do a lot of quoting and not so much "original" thought. That was one thing I loved about listening to Hugh Nibley. TONS of original thought.

fear of shiz · Profuse Pontificator

Ray, how then do we apply the intellect to scripture study? Isn't there some advantage to be gained in seeking out learning from whatever source, and then using the Spirit to discern what is of use to us and what is not?

rayb · Hot Air Balloon

My only point is this...

How much doth it profit a man if he is the smartest SOB in the world, but burning in hell?

Intelligence should have a point. If it doesn't bring you closer to Christ, enable you to bear your burdens and help others more, and actually DO Christ's will, then it's profiteth you little.

You can't think your way out of hell... at a certain point you're gonna actually have to get up and walk out.

--Ray