Dr. Stephen D. Ricks:
"Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord?"
Ancient Temples, presented October 2018 in SLC
In summary:
- Dr. Ricks covered many aspects of ancient temples and temples in general.Here's the youtube recording of his presentation: at the B'nai Shalom channel.
- Sister Ricks accompanied him. She is an editor and an author in her own right, as described on this page.
- Pictures: We have a few
- Daniel Rona and Author Jeff Bradshaw were welcomed.
- As always, incredible amount of food.
- Many visited Daniel Smith with his many artifacts of the ancient times, including his replica of the clothing of the ancient high priest.
- Always, much love, many new friends introduced.
By examining aspects of the ancient temples of Israel and relevant Psalms, Dr. Ricks opened greater insight into the temple on a more spiritual level.
This has added to understanding and appreciation of current temples and the connection from Judaism and restoration of spiritual aspects of temple worship. Stephen and Sister Shirley Ricks have attended sessions in over one hundred temples, including all the temples in the United States and Canada.
The Psalms are a mirror of the ancient Israelite religion. Creation is central to the worship of ancient temples and other sacred places. “Ancient temples,” writes Hugh Nibley, “rehearsed the story of the creation, and the establishment of mankind and the royal government of God upon this earth.” The Psalms reflect an interest in 1) temple; 2) kingship (of God and man); 3) Messiah; 4) creation; and 5) priesthood. Psalm 24 provides a brief compass, a wonderful example of those themes in the Psalms.
Sister Ricks was present in the audience. She was not part of the program, but deserves mention. She is an editor and an author in her own right. Shirley S. Ricks is a senior editor at BYU’s Religious Studies Center, having transferred in 2017 from the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award in Editing and Design.
While at FARMS, she edited and prepared for publication half of the 19 volumes in the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, thirty other volumes, and hundreds of articles. The following video is Shirley conversation with Jasmin Gimenez Rappleey about Hugh Nibley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWIjN8x78Nw
She served as the first production editor for the FARMS Review, the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, and Studies in the Bible and Antiquity. Shirley served a mission in the Germany South Mission. Shirley also lived in Jerusalem for three years and has assisted with BYU Study Abroad programs in Vienna and London.
Daniel Smith displayed many artifacts of the ancient times, including his replica of the clothing of the ancient high priest. The outfit was hand-loomed, and includes the breastplate with 12 engraved stones, the ephod, the golden crown, and other pieces of clothing as described in Exodus 28. The replica is one of only a handful in the United States that is actually hand-loomed. Brother Smith has worked with the BYU department which has created what is said to be the most accurate replica of Solomon''s temple.
Audiences have enjoyed his many firesides on those subjects.
Testimony and Summary of Background
Dr. Stephen D Ricks has been the section head of the Hebrew section of his department. In his Hebrew classes he has included discussion about Book of Mormon names, something that provides additional enrichment of the students’ understanding of Hebrew but also gives them an appreciation of Book of Mormon names as demonstrably ancient.
This is a link to Dr. Ricks' testimony as recorded on FairMormon: https://www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/testimonies/scholars/stephen-d-ricks.
Articles and notes on the Interpreter Foundation are listed here: https://interpreterfoundation.org/author/stephen/
Dr. Stephen D Ricks has been author, coauthor, contributor or editor of several books and articles. He co-authored with LeGrand Baker on the book which LeGrand presented at B'nai in 1998: "Who Shall Ascend Into the Hill of the Lord? The Psalms in Israel's Temple Worship In the Old Testament and in the Book of Mormon". He currently is a professor of Hebrew at BYU, currently teaching in Dept of Asian and Nar Eastern Languages. He has been involved in promoting positive relations between the LDS Church and Jewish groups. Ricks served as a missionary for the LDS Church in Switzerland.
Academic Background, Titles Relevant to this Discussion
From 1988 to 1996 Ricks was the president, and then Chairman of the board, of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS). He was the founding editor of the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies.
There is a long list of his writings at https://www.librarything.com/author/ricksstephend. Here are some of the most relevant.
- Ancient Temple Worship - Proceedings of the Expound Symposium - The Temple... (Editor; Contributor)
- The Temple in Time & Eternity (Temples Through the Ages, No. 2) (Editor; Introduction; Contributor)
- The Temple: Ancient and Restored
- Temples of the Ancient World: Ritual and Symbolism (Contributor)
- Hagion Temenos II: Essays on Temples and the Sacred in the Ancient.
- The Old Testament and the Latter-day Saints: The 14th Annual Sidney B.... (Contributor)
- A Bibliography on Temples of the Ancient Near East and Mediterranean... (Author)
- King Benjamin's Speech: "That Ye May Learn Wisdom" (Editor; Introduction; Contributor)
- King Benjamin's Speech Made Simple (Editor)
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