The John A. Widtsoe Foundation recently introduced the Understanding Our Neighbors series to “foster respect and interfaith dialogue.” In this episode Professor Shon Hopkin, Department Chair of BYU Ancient Scripture, discusses the second book in this series Understanding Our Jewish Neighbors co-written with Rabbi Mark S. Diamond. The book presents a comprehensive guide to understanding the similarities and differences between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and leading Jewish traditions. Professor Hopkin explains how listeners can take away a succinct understanding, reverence, and appreciation for both faiths, their traditions, and their members.  

Publications:

• Understanding Our Jewish Neighbors by Rabbi Mark S. Diamond & Professor Shon D. Hopkin, Cedar Fort, 2024

• John A. Widtsoe Foundation website

• “Teaching That Leads to Enduring Conversion,” Religious Educator, 25.3, 2024

• “The Covenant among Covenants: The Abrahamic Covenant and Biblical Covenant Making,”Religious Educator, 23.2, 2022

• “Supersessionism and Latter-day Saint Thought: An Appraisal,” Jared W. Ludlow, Andrew C. Reed, and Shon D. Hopkin, in Understanding Covenants and Communities: Jews and Latter-day Saints in Dialogue, Mark S. Diamond and Andrew C. Reed, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2020

• Opening Isaiah: A Harmony, with Ann N. Madsen, Religious Studies Center, 2018

• Abinadi: He Came Among Them in Disguise, Religious Studies Center, 2018

Click here to learn more about Shon Hopkin

The first witnesses of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ were some of his female disciples. Mary Magdalene witnessed the empty tomb and was the first to encounter the risen Savior. Additionally, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and other unnamed women, who had come to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, saw the empty tomb and reported it to the apostles. In this episode, Professor Gaye Strathearn explores the profound impact of the Easter events through the experiences of the women who witnessed the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. She explains how Luke’s narrative, with support from the other Gospels, connects these women to Jesus’s ministry in Galilee and portrays them as dedicated disciples who ministered to Jesus and followed him to Jerusalem. Further, the discussion underscores the women’s loyalty and sacrifice, emphasizing their presence at the Crucifixion and their discovery of the empty tomb. In exploring these narratives, we can increase our knowledge of the enduring hope and faith that the Easter events inspire and add our own witness that “he is risen” (Mark 16:6).   

Publications:

• “Women Witnesses of the Easter Events” in He Was Seen: Witnessing the Risen Christ, David M. Calabro and George A. Pierce, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2024.

• "The Chosen's Amplification of Women's Voices in Scripture," in Watching The Chosen: History, Faith, and Biblical Interpretation, Robert K. Garcia, Paul Gondreau, Patrick Gray, and Douglas F. Huffman, ed., Eerdmans, 2025.

• “Experiencing the Doctrine of Christ,” Religious Educator, 25.3, 2024.

• Sacred Time: The Sabbath as a Perpetual Covenant, Religious Studies Center, 2023.

• “Discipleship in the Olivet Discourse in Mark’s Gospel,” in “Behold the Lamb of God”: An Easter Celebration, Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Frank F. Judd Jr. , and Thomas A. Wayment, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2008.

• “‘Holiness to the Lord’ and Personal Temple Worship,” Religious Educator, 23.1, 2022.

Click here to learn more about Gaye Strathearn

According to the earliest gospel accounts, on the night before his crucifixion, Jesus dined with his disciples to observe the feast of the Passover and institute what would later become the Christian eucharist (or sacrament). What would it have looked like to sit down with them that night? In this episode, Professor Matthew Grey reassesses the New Testament narratives of the Last Supper, especially its physical setting and manner of dining, by examining modern research on early Jewish dining customs with archaeological data. He challenges traditional views of Jesus and his disciples dining in an affluent upper room with a Roman triclinium (banquet hall), as the event is often depicted in art. Instead, he argues that the meal likely took place in a modest, non-elite home and reflected the lower-class dining practices of the time: sitting on reed mats, sharing cooking pots in clusters of 3—4 individuals, dipping their hands or bread into the shared vessels, and passing around a shared cup of wine. Professor Grey details how examining these new perspectives might help us envision and experience a more accurate understanding of the Last Supper’s historical and social setting as described in the synoptic gospels.

Publications:

• “‘Where May I Eat the Passover with My Disciples?’: Reassessing the Urban Setting, Furnished Room, and Dining Practices of Jesus’s Last Supper,” in Pushing Sacred Boundaries in Early Judaism and the Ancient Mediterranean, Brill, 2023
• A Place Called Gethsemane: Seeing the New Testament Story and Site in its First-Century Context (with Richard Holzapfel), Deseret Book, 2025

• “Simon Peter in Capernaum: An Archaeological Survey of the First-Century Village,” in The Ministry of Peter, the Chief Apostle, Religious Studies Center, 2014

   

Click here to learn more about Matthew Grey

Contemporary views on marriage and family have changed significantly over time. How much of our understanding of marriage and family is shaped by societal norms versus prophetic guidance? In this episode, professor of Church history and doctrine Michael A. Goodman examines the secular and spiritual context surrounding “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.” He discusses how the rise of expressive individualism, the sexual revolution, divorce rates, cohabitation, and other factors have played into the cultural and legal shifts in marriage norms. As he delves into the spiritual context of the proclamation, Professor Goodman outlines how it serves as more than a mere policy statement but a reaffirmation of eternal truths and doctrines. 

Publications:

• “The Family Proclamation: The Secular and Spiritual Context” by Michael A. Goodman and W. Justin Dyer (Religious Educator, 24.2, 2023)

• “Religion and Perfectionism” (BYU Studies Quarterly, 63.4, 2024) 

• “Individual, family, peer, and religious community predictors of adolescent religious deidentification” by Sam A. Hardy, Russ Amelang, and Michael Goodman (Applied Developmental Science, 2024) 

• “Religion and LGBTQ Suicidality: A Systematic Review” (Archive for the Psychology of Religion, 2023)

• “Constancy amid Change: Latter-day Saint Discourse on Gender and Sexuality” by Michael A. Goodman and Daniel Frost (BYU Studies Quarterly, 61.3, 2022)

• “‘Oh Say, What Is Truth?’: Approaches to Doctrine” (BYU Studies Quarterly, 60.3, 2021) 

• “‘Line upon Line’: Joseph Smith’s Growing Understanding of the Eternal Family” (Religious Educator, 20.1, 2019)

• “The Influence of Faith on Marital Commitment” in By Divine Design (Religious Studies Center, 2014)

Click here to learn more about Michael A. Goodman

On the day after his Resurrection, the Savior appeared to those who knew him best during his mortal ministry—Mary Magdalene, Cleopas, ten of the apostles, and many other followers. While they saw him physically, they did not recognize him. Instead, they mistook him for a gardener, stranger, passing traveler, and even another prophet, as they misunderstood his role as the Redeemer of Israel or the promised Messiah. Rather than rebuking them, the Savior and ministering angels worked to correct their mistaken expectations by teaching them the true identity of Christ. In this episode, Professor Krystal V. L. Pierce describes how the Resurrected Savior opens the spiritual eyes and minds of his followers and disciples, in ancient and modern times, through visual, audible, and tangible signs and teachings. By learning to identify the spiritual nature of the Savior, we can prepare to see him physically in the Second Coming.  

Publications:

• “Seeing, Knowing, and Recognizing the True Identity of Christ” in He Was Seen: Witnessing the Risen Christ (Religious Studies Center, 2024)
• Book of Mormon Insights: Letting God Prevail in Your Life, ed. Kenneth L. Alford, Krystal V. L. Pierce, and Mary Jane Woodger (Religious Studies Center, 2024)
• “The Tower of Babel, the Jaredites, and the Nature of God” by George A. Pierce and Krystal V. L. Pierce in They Shall Grow Together: The Bible in the Book of Mormon (Religious Studies Center, 2022)
• Approaching Holiness: Exploring the History and Teachings of the Old Testament, ed. Krystal V. L. Pierce and David Rolph Seely (Religious Studies Center, 2021)
• “The Ger in the Pentateuch and the Book of Mormon: Refugee Treatment under the Mosaic Law” in Covenant of Compassion: Caring for the Marginalized and Disadvantaged in the Old Testament (Religious Studies Center, 2021)
• “Egypt and the Egyptians” in Pearl of Great Price Reference Companion (Deseret Book, 2017)
• “Egypt’s New Kingdom” in A Bible Reader’s History of the Ancient World (Religious Studies Center, 2016)
• “The Brazen Serpent as a Symbol of Jesus Christ: A Dichotomy of Benevolence and Admonition” in I Glory in My Jesus: Understanding Christ in the Book of Mormon (Religious Studies Center, 2023)

Click here to learn more about Krystal V. L. Pierce 

As Professor of Church History and Doctrine Anthony Sweat dropped off a recent painting entitled Jesus of Nazareth, he was met with the response, “That’s not what Jesus looks like.” After a few laughs, Professor Sweat revealed that he intentionally avoided the Euro-centric depiction of Christ. Rather, he implemented elements of Roman Judea men—middle height, honey or olive-colored skin, and shorter black hair and beards. In this episode, Prof. Sweat answers the imperative question that came from this experience, “How do we know the Lord—his characteristics, priorities, doctrines, and commands?” In answering this question, he introduces a four-part study approach from Doctrine and Covenants 19:23 to guide us through our efforts to truly know and understand the Savior. This approach includes the following precepts: Learn of Me (studying the character and nature of Christ), Listen to My Words (analyzing the doctrines, principles, and truths imparted by Jesus), Walk in the Meekness of My Spirit (applying the Savior’s teachings in our lives such as following his commands, directives, and warnings), and Peace in Me (recognizing the peace, comfort, and blessings that come from following him). By using this model in our personal scripture study, we can gain a holistic view of the Savior's character, teachings, commands, and promises, leading us to a deeper and more accurate understanding of him.

Publications: 

• “‘Hear Him!’: The Restored Voice of the Lord” from Doctrine and Covenants Insights: Capstone of Doctrinal Understanding (Religious Studies Center, 2025)
• Repicturing the Restoration: New Art to Expand Our Understanding (Religious Studies Center, 2020)
• “A Method for Evaluating Latter-day Saint History” (Religious Educator, 21.3, 2020)
• Website: https://www.anthonysweat.com/

Click here to learn more about Anthony Sweat 

When BYU professor Casey Paul Griffiths teaches a scripture class, he often concludes the semester by saying, “The end.” But when he finishes a course on the Doctrine and Covenants, he says, “To be continued . . .” This reflects the ongoing nature of revelation in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a living church led by the Savior through his prophets. In this episode, Dr. Griffiths discusses the recently released four-volume work, Scripture Central Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants, and draws on insights from the Joseph Smith Papers project, launched in 2005. The project ushered in a “golden age” of Church history, making a wealth of historical documents readily available and creating a need for updated commentary on the revelations given to the early Saints. The Doctrine and Covenants stands as a testament to God’s ongoing work, revealing his tender guidance and care for individuals and the Church collectively. Griffiths emphasizes how the Lord communicates with his children, stating, “What happened anciently in the Old Testament still continues today. . . . The day of miracles is not past.” It reminds us that ours is an open canon—living scripture still being written, with each of us invited to play a part.

Publications:

• The Scripture Central Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants (Cedar Fort, 2024)
• Restorations: Scholars in Dialogue from Community of Christ and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Religious Studies Center, 2022)
• Truth Seeker: The Life of Joseph F. Merrill, Scientist, Educator, and Apostle (Religious Studies Center, 2021)
• Website: https://www.facebook.com/bro.griffiths

Click here to learn more about Casey Griffiths