Rethinking Revelation and the Human Element in Scripture: The Prophet's Role as Creative Co-Author

by Michael R. Ash

Are scriptural narratives “true” and “accurate?” Do they depict actual historical characters and events? Why do Joseph Smith’s scriptural translations contain some material that seems more at home in nineteenth-century America than in the ancient Old and New Worlds?Scriptures contain the “mistakes of men” (Book of Mormon Title Page) because humans are fallible, because God communicates to His “servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language” (D&C 1:24), and because all of us—including prophets—process information according to preconceived assumptions and expectations.Rethinking Revelation illustrates that prophets rely on inspiration and intellect when called to co-author scripture. While a prophet’s contributions may include personal assumptions, expectations, and cultural beliefs, God’s influence ensures that scripture serves as Consecrated Narratives that can help bind us to Him and to His Covenant People.“Wow…just wow…it is not often that I am speechless, but I am at this moment. My head is swirling with the concepts and constructs you have shared with me…Your book is amazing. It is sure to cause very strong responses from those who read it… You are a gifted writer. You have the ability to take a complex topic, and clearly and logically break it down into understandable component parts…Thank you for the intellectual and spiritual feast.” —Dr. Raymond Hurst (Assistant Chair, Department of Curriculum and Instruction at La Sierra University)

728 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 21, 2021

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covers numerous subjects related to the interaction of God with humans, proposing that scriptures, while still the word of God, don't represent the mind of God directly transcribed onto our printed pages. Rather, prophets are subject to all that comes with humanity: biases, mental limitations, faulty memory, personal worldviews, etc. Despite that, God achieves his purposes.

He doesn’t reject the selection of scriptures even when they contain myths, historical errors, and scientific inaccuracies any more than he rejects a sacrament that uses potato peelings. He accepts the imperfect offering—a narrative that was written by human hands, human memories, and human misperceptions—and bestows them with the power to transform humble truth-seekers into Christ-like beings.

The author also proposes a few categories that active, believing members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can fall into as to how they view scripture. The "literalists" believe that everything recorded in scripture happened exactly as written. The "mythicalists" believe that there's little historical fact in the scriptures, but still meaning and truth in the principles. The "extensibilists" fall somewhere in between, believing generally that ancient prophets were real people, but adapting beliefs and assumptions when presented with new information, and the author suggests that this perspective is least likely to lead to a faith crisis.

There were a lot of fascinating ideas that I had never considered.

There were, however, some times where things seemed to wander a bit and where I lost the thread of the point being made. Occasionally the author would rescue me with a "this is why I'm talking about this" comment, but other times I didn't get the connection.

[Jared · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Ash has written a powerful book that addresses how we should approach understanding scripture and revelation. He explores fundamental psychology, science, history, and linguistics to help us put things in proper context. he does so in a faithful way that allows us to see the the context that ancient and modern prophets worked in when fulfilling their spiritual role. At the same time, we see them as humans who were exposed to the knowledge of their day and were capable of making mistakes. Ash gives the reader lots to think about and consider. This has changed how I read and study scripture and given me greater appreciation for what we have in scripture.

His writing is expansive and he explores tangents thoroughly and completely. He dives into a lot o technical details and history that may seem tedious, but they help with context. Very academic in his approach, this is not a casual, inspirational book on revelation, but rather a serious study on the realities of revelation and scripture.

[Ferren · Rating 3 out of 5]

whew! This book is full of so many ideas and thoughts and tangents and it could go on and on and on and on. lots of good things to think about and lots of references and really good points but he repeated himself a lot! not sure if this would have been better as a book series.