BYU professor: BYU turned FARMS into "Sunstone South"

[NeuroTypical]

Wow - BYU professor Bill Hamblin launches two scorching broadsides against BYU.

 

  How BYU Destroyed Ancient Book of Mormon Studies

 

  Goodbye to all that

[Guest]

Is he still a BYU professor? 

 

Drama is everywhere, isn't it?

[Average Joe]

How did I survive NOT attending BYU,,,or living in Utah, and still turn out to be an active, believing Mormon? 

[RMGuy]

How did I survive NOT attending BYU,,,or living in Utah, and still turn out to be an active, believing Mormon? 

It may be BECAUSE of those things that you did  

[Crypto]

Simple solution, scholars who are interested in doing ancient book of mormon studies band together and once again form a separate entity.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Crypto

[Vort]

Simple solution, scholars who are interested in doing ancient book of mormon studies band together and once again form a separate entity.

 

As Peterson, Hamblin, and others have done.

[Guest]

Wow - BYU professor Bill Hamblin launches two scorching broadsides against BYU.  How BYU Destroyed Ancient Book of Mormon Studies   Goodbye to all that

So I wonder what it means? Does the professor have a legitimate complaint? Does the administration historically prefer that the BYU be more about protecting the testimonies of the Church’s students than focusing upon what universities are typically about? Is the professor merely a malcontent, or is there more to it? Do you have a position on the issue?

 

 

 

Edited September 8, 2015 by UT.starscoper

[mirkwood]

Ummm....if I go to work tonight and do something other then what I am told to do I am probably going to get talked to by my "dean" as well.  Duh.

[Crypto]

As Peterson, Hamblin, and others have done.

I was unaware that that is how Interpreter was started. Cool.

[Crypto]

Does the administration historically prefer that the BYU be more about protecting the testimonies of the Church’s students than focusing upon what universities are typically about? Is the professor merely a malcontent, or is there more to it? 

It could simply be that the university wants to be accepted as scholarly among it's peers. It is hard to do that when you publish papers which others likely disagree about your premise. (the premise being the book of mormon is anciently historical)

Which is a good, and bad thing. 

 

[Traveler]

BYU  is my alma mater.  There are many outstanding professors there.  There are some astonishing bad ones as well.  One of the bad ones was the dean of electrical engineering while I was there majoring in that discipline.  It was his class and his grade of “D-“ to me that cost me my scholarship.  My class work was graded as “A” but I was penalized for being late for class.   The reason I as late for class was because I worked in the university Engineering Analysis Center (on the center’s super computer the “Librascope” – one of 3 computers developed exclusively for the defense department) where he was in charge (the boss) and would not let me leave work on time to be on time for class.  I changed my major that semester to math and physics.  I suspect the real reason was because he did not like me.  It may be a big shock to the forum to learn that there are academic intellectuals that I do not get along with very well.

 

 One year after my class room outburst over my grade I was called to testify before a review board that ended in this professor being fired.  Trust me on this – his being fired was not because of me.  But it is interesting how good can come from such things.  This was the final straw that inspired (along with encouragement from a former missionary companion and Native American and extremely un-technical friend of mine) me to walk into the wilderness on a 40 day fast to reconnect to my spiritual roots.

 

As much as I love BYU – I realize that sometimes politics there get out of control – generally I do not think the university does well outside of the classroom.  LDS historical and Book of Mormon studies are not shining example of how to fund and do research.  Outside of law and business – I am not impressed with graduate programs at BYU – they appear to me to be too political. 

 

To be honest I think the church emphasis is in developing institute curriculum rather than focus on the rigors of secular education – especially technical and scientific disciplines (which includes archeology).  I think BYU  is becoming a proverbial square peg in a round hole.

[Just_A_Guy]

Simple solution, scholars who are interested in doing ancient book of mormon studies band together and once again form a separate entity.

They did that once. It was called FARMS. Then BYU wheedled its way in, took control, forced the entity to quit doing what it was founded to do, and muscled out the holdouts.

Edited September 9, 2015 by Just_A_Guy