Todd M. Compton

A Trajectory of Plurality: An Overview of Joseph Smith’s Thirty-three Plural Wives

Preliminary Considerations: Counting Wives Some readers may regard the accompanying chart of Joseph Smith’s plural wives as overly conservative. Fawn Brodie counted forty-eight wives in her biography of Joseph Smith; more recently D. Michael Quinn…

Scripture, History, and Faith: A Round Table Discussion

Participants

Todd Compton: Ph.D., classics, University of California, Los Angeles. Dean, Graduate Studies, Park College, Independence, Missouri; Director, Temple School Center, Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Independence, Missouri. 

Steven Epperson: Assistant Professor of History, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, specializing in American religious history and history of Christian doctrine. 

Mark D. Thomas: Scriptural Studies Editor, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 

Margaret Toscano: Ph.D. candidate, comparative literature, University of Utah, Salt Lake City. 

David P. Wright: Assistant Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Near East, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.

Heaven and Hell: The Parable of the Loving Father and the Judgmental Son

Recently I taught the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) in priesthood meeting and was, as always, impressed by its beauty, simplicity, and profundity. It seemed to me as if this was the central…

Was Jesus a Feminist?

The answer to the question, “Was Jesus a feminist?” depends on how you define feminism. Just as we have come to realize that there was not just one monolithic “Judaism” in Jesus’ time, but many…

Textual Tradition, the Evolution of Mormon Doctrine, and the Doctrine & Covenants | H. Michael Marquardt, The Joseph Smith Revelations: Text & Commentary

H. Michael Marquardt published his early monographs with anti-Mor mons Jerald and Sandra Tanner, but these works exhibited higher scholarly standards than the Tanners’ work. Marquardt co-authored Inventing Mor monism: Tradition and the Historical Record[1]…

A Positive View: Polygamy in Nineteenth Century Manti | Kathryn M. Daynes, More Wives Than One: Transformation of the Mormon Marriage System, 1840-1910

This book has been published to significant acclaim, winning the Best Book award from the Mormon History Association for 2001. I agree with much of this praise, but nevertheless have serious reservations about some aspects of…

John Willard Young, Brigham Young, and the Development of Presidential Succession in the LDS Church

On November 22, 1855, eleven-year-old John Willard Young, son of Brigham Young, received his endowment, undoubtedly accompanied by his father. Brigham Young clearly felt there was something out of the ordinary in John Willard, which…

“Kingdom of Priests”: Priesthood Temple and Women in the Old Testament and in the Restoration

Dialogue 36.3 (2003): 53-80
Compton considers priesthood as portrayed in Old Testament texts and how women are underrepresented in today’s discourse.

A Playwright with a Passion for Unvarnished Depictions: An Interview with Tom Rogers

Becoming a “Messenger of Peace”: Jacob Hamblin in Tooele

The Beginnings of Latter-day Plurality Nauvoo Polygamy: “…but we called it celestial marriage.” by George D. Smith