Hugh Nibley
Encyclopedia
Hugh Winder Nibley was an American author, Mormon apologist
, and professor at Brigham Young University
(BYU). His works, while not official positions of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), mainly attempt to demonstrate archaeological, linguistic, and historical evidence for the claims of Joseph Smith
, and are highly regarded within the LDS community.
A prolific author and professor of Biblical and Mormon scripture at BYU, he was fluent in numerous languages, including Classical Latin
, Greek, Hebrew
, Egyptian
, Coptic
, Arabic
, German
, French
, English
, Italian
, and Spanish
. He studied Dutch
and Russian
during World War II. He also studied Old Bulgarian
and Old English, and his fluency in Old Norse
was reportedly sufficient to enable him to read an entire encyclopedia in Norwegian
.
Nibley wrote and lectured on LDS scripture and doctrinal topics, publishing many articles in LDS Church magazines. His An Approach to the Book of Mormon was adopted in 1957 as a religious lesson manual by the LDS Church.
a son of Alexander Nibley and his wife Agnes Sloan. Alexander Nibley was the son of Charles W. Nibley
and his wife Rebecca Neibaur. Alexander served from 1906-1907 as president of the Netherlands Mission of the LDS Church. Rebecca was the daughter of Alexander Neibaur
a Jewish native of Alsace
who had moved to England and converted to Mormonism. She later joined the LDS church and emigrated to America. Nibley married Phyllis Draper in September 1946 and the couple had eight children.
At age seventeen, Nibley became an LDS missionary
in Germany, and served for two-and-a-half years, from 1927 to 1930.
Nibley began his studies at University of California, Los Angeles
, graduating summa cum laude, and earned a doctorate
as a University Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley
in 1938. He wanted to explore the phenomenon of the mob in ancient Rome for his thesis, but his graduate committee rejected it as irrelevant to modern civilization. Kristallnacht
occurred at about the same time in Germany.
During World War II
he enlisted as a private, but eventually became a Master Sergeant
working in military intelligence for the 101st Airborne Division
of the United States Army
, the famed "Screaming Eagles". He drove the first jeep ashore on Utah Beach
during the D-Day
invasion, landed by glider at Eindhoven as part of Operation Market Garden
, and witnessed the aftermath of Nazi
concentration camps.
At the request of Apostle
John A. Widtsoe
he became a professor at Brigham Young University
in 1946, teaching history, languages, and religion. Nibley served as a faculty member at the LDS Church owned school until his official retirement in 1975, but he continued teaching until 1994. During his final years as a professor emeritus, and prior to his last illness, Nibley maintained a small office in the Harold B. Lee
Library at BYU, where he worked on his magnum opus
titled One Eternal Round, which focuses on the hypocephalus
("Facsimile 2") in the Book of Abraham
. He turned over the materials for his last book to FARMS
in the late months of 2002. It was published in March 2010 in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of his birth. Never one for the spotlight, Hugh gave authorization to have his biography written only late in his life, and it was published just two years before his death. This was followed in 2006 by a detailed account of his World War II years, edited by his son Alex Nibley.
After being confined to bed by illness for over two years, Nibley died on February 24, 2005 in his home in Provo, Utah
at the age of 94.
and an ardent conservationist
, and often criticized Republican
policies. He was strongly opposed to the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War
during an era "when it was very unpopular in LDS culture to do so." He authored "Approaching Zion", an indictment of capitalism
and endorsement of the law of consecration
.
Nibley was also bothered by what he saw as the unthinking, sometimes almost dogma
tic application of some portions of Brigham Young University
's honor code
. Nibley had no objection to requirements of chastity
or obeying the Word of Wisdom
, but he thought the often intense scrutiny directed at grooming (hairstyles and clothing) was misguided. In 1973, he said, "The worst sin
ners, according to Jesus
, are not the harlots and publican
s, but the religious leaders with their insistence on proper dress and grooming, their careful observance of all the rules, their precious concern for status symbol
s, their strict legality, their pious patriotism
... the haircut becomes the test of virtue in a world where Satan
deceives and rules by appearances."
Nibley further criticized LDS culture for what he saw as its acceptance of folksy kitsch
art over good art; favoring trade-journal jingles over doctrine in sermons; and tearing down pioneer structures in favor of trendy new buildings.
, to Hebrew
and early Christian
histories, and he often took his notes in a mix of Gregg shorthand
, Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, and Egyptian. Nibley "insisted on reading the relevant primary and secondary sources in the original and could read Arabic, Coptic, Dutch, Egyptian, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Latin, Old Norse, Russian and other languages at sight." In a perceptive critique, William J. Hamblin
, a colleague of Nibley's at BYU, remarked that "Nibley's methodology consists more of comparative literature than history." Douglas F. Salmon has examined in depth Nibley's comparative method, focusing on the latter's work on Enoch.
Among other topics Nibley wrote about were LDS Temples
, the historical Enoch
, and similarities between Christian Gnostic and Latter-day Saint beliefs, and what he believed were anti-Mormon works. He wrote a brief and somewhat emotional response to Fawn M. Brodie's
No Man Knows My History, which was titled No Ma'am, That's Not History. Nibley also published scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals on topics without direct reference to Mormonism. One such article that is still cited in works in the field of Roman Studies was on sparsiones. His Berkeley dissertation was on Roman Festival Games. He published in such journals as Classical Journal, Western Political Quarterly, Western Speech, Jewish Quarterly Review, Church History, Revue de Qumran, Vigililae Christianae, The Historian, The American Political Science Review, and the Encyclopaedia Judaica. His essay, "The Passing of the Church: Forty Variations on an Unpopular Theme," which was published in the peer-reviewed journal Church History, touched off a short but furious debate within the journal's pages in 1961.
He turned away from scholarly publications in favor of LDS publications in the mid-nineteen sixties. Significantly his Mormon publications often drew more attention than many of his peer-reviewed works; for example, a lengthy discussion in the pages of Catholic Biblical Quarterly
that ran in 1950-51 about his Improvement Era article, "Baptism for the Dead in Ancient Times". Nibley has also received praise from prominent non-LDS scholars such as Aziz S. Atiya, David Riesman
, Robert M. Grant, Jacob Neusner
, James Charlesworth, Cyrus Gordon, Raphael Patai
, Margaret Barker, Matthew Black
, George MacRae, Joseph Fitzmyer
, David F. Wright, and Jacob Milgrom
.
and Ronald V. Huggins have made similar assessments of Nibley's use of sources.
Nibley has also been criticized for his use of evidence drawn from widely disparate cultures and time periods without proper qualification. More specifically, Douglas F. Salmon finds Nibley guilty of "parallelomania" (defined as "overuse or improper use of parallels in the exposition of a text") in his effort to connect the Book of Mormon to various ancient texts. Salmon notes:
Nibley's methodology draws inspiration from the work of the Myth and Ritual School centered at Cambridge University, most notably represented by J. G. Frazer in his famous work The Golden Bough
. He also took inspiration from the work of University of Chicago
professor Mircea Eliade
, who likewise allegedly expressed approval of Nibley's ability. He was at the same time critical of the work of Joseph Campbell
, although the latter was arguably a kindred spirit of sorts. As most of these other scholars date from the early 20th century, Nibley's methodology is thus arguably dated, although like the works of the Myth and Ritual School, his work continues to be a source of inspiration to younger generations of LDS scholars for its breadth and depth of learning, insights, and poetic imagination.
, is an American sociologist, therapist, and life coach in Arizona. Beck is also a best-selling author and holds an A.B. in East Asian Studies, and an A.M. and a PhD in Sociology from Harvard University in Massachusetts. She also had at one time in the 1990s taught in the Sociology Department at LDS Church owned Brigham Young University during the time five faculty members were excommunicated from the LDS Church for their scholarly public writings that were deemed critical of the LDS Church. In 2005, Beck received national attention after publication of her best-selling book, "Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith" in which Beck alleges sexual abuse by her father, and details the circumstances of how she left the LDS Church. Hugh Nibley's family, including Beck's siblings, have responded by claiming that the book's accusations against their father are false and have expressed "outrage" at the book and accusations. Beck currently lives with her life partner, Karen Gerdes and her three teenage children.
There have been 19 volumes released so far, all published through Deseret Book
:
Mormon apologetics
Mormon apologetics is the systematic defense of Mormonism against its critics. Notable Latter-day Saint apologists include early church leaders such as John Taylor, B. H. Roberts, James E. Talmage and modern scholars such as Hugh Nibley, Orson Scott Card, and Jeff Lindsay...
, and professor at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
(BYU). His works, while not official positions of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), mainly attempt to demonstrate archaeological, linguistic, and historical evidence for the claims of Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith was founder of what later became known as the Latter Day Saint movement or Mormons.Joseph Smith may also refer to:-Latter Day Saints:* Joseph Smith, Sr. , father of Joseph Smith...
, and are highly regarded within the LDS community.
A prolific author and professor of Biblical and Mormon scripture at BYU, he was fluent in numerous languages, including Classical Latin
Classical Latin
Classical Latin in simplest terms is the socio-linguistic register of the Latin language regarded by the enfranchised and empowered populations of the late Roman republic and the Roman empire as good Latin. Most writers during this time made use of it...
, Greek, Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, Egyptian
Egyptian language
Egyptian is the oldest known indigenous language of Egypt and a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. Written records of the Egyptian language have been dated from about 3400 BC, making it one of the oldest recorded languages known. Egyptian was spoken until the late 17th century AD in the...
, Coptic
Coptic language
Coptic or Coptic Egyptian is the current stage of the Egyptian language, a northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century. Egyptian began to be written using the Greek alphabet in the 1st century...
, Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
. He studied Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
during World War II. He also studied Old Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
and Old English, and his fluency in Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
was reportedly sufficient to enable him to read an entire encyclopedia in Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
.
Nibley wrote and lectured on LDS scripture and doctrinal topics, publishing many articles in LDS Church magazines. His An Approach to the Book of Mormon was adopted in 1957 as a religious lesson manual by the LDS Church.
Biography
Hugh Nibley was born in Portland, OregonPortland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
a son of Alexander Nibley and his wife Agnes Sloan. Alexander Nibley was the son of Charles W. Nibley
Charles W. Nibley
Charles Wilson Nibley was the fifth presiding bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1907 and 1925 and a member of the church's First Presidency from 1925 until his death....
and his wife Rebecca Neibaur. Alexander served from 1906-1907 as president of the Netherlands Mission of the LDS Church. Rebecca was the daughter of Alexander Neibaur
Alexander Neibaur
Alexander Neibaur was one of the first Jewish persons to join The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
a Jewish native of Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
who had moved to England and converted to Mormonism. She later joined the LDS church and emigrated to America. Nibley married Phyllis Draper in September 1946 and the couple had eight children.
At age seventeen, Nibley became an LDS missionary
Missionary (LDS Church)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...
in Germany, and served for two-and-a-half years, from 1927 to 1930.
Nibley began his studies at University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, graduating summa cum laude, and earned a doctorate
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
as a University Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1938. He wanted to explore the phenomenon of the mob in ancient Rome for his thesis, but his graduate committee rejected it as irrelevant to modern civilization. Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht, also referred to as the Night of Broken Glass, and also Reichskristallnacht, Pogromnacht, and Novemberpogrome, was a pogrom or series of attacks against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria on 9–10 November 1938.Jewish homes were ransacked, as were shops, towns and...
occurred at about the same time in Germany.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he enlisted as a private, but eventually became a Master Sergeant
Master Sergeant
A master sergeant is the military rank for a senior non-commissioned officer in some armed forces.-Israel Defense Forces:Rav samal rishoninsignia IDF...
working in military intelligence for the 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
of the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, the famed "Screaming Eagles". He drove the first jeep ashore on Utah Beach
Utah Beach
Utah Beach was the code name for the right flank, or westernmost, of the Allied landing beaches during the D-Day invasion of Normandy, as part of Operation Overlord on 6 June 1944...
during the D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
invasion, landed by glider at Eindhoven as part of Operation Market Garden
Operation Market Garden
Operation Market Garden was an unsuccessful Allied military operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany in the Second World War. It was the largest airborne operation up to that time....
, and witnessed the aftermath of Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
concentration camps.
At the request of Apostle
Apostle (Mormonism)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, an Apostle is a "special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others." In many Latter Day Saint churches, an Apostle is a priesthood office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles...
John A. Widtsoe
John A. Widtsoe
John Andreas Widtsoe was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1921 until his death. Widtsoe was also a noted author, scientist, and academician.-Early life:...
he became a professor at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
in 1946, teaching history, languages, and religion. Nibley served as a faculty member at the LDS Church owned school until his official retirement in 1975, but he continued teaching until 1994. During his final years as a professor emeritus, and prior to his last illness, Nibley maintained a small office in the Harold B. Lee
Harold B. Lee
Harold Bingham Lee was eleventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from July 1972 until his death.- Early life :...
Library at BYU, where he worked on his magnum opus
Masterpiece
Masterpiece in modern usage refers to a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or to a work of outstanding creativity, skill or workmanship....
titled One Eternal Round, which focuses on the hypocephalus
Joseph Smith Hypocephalus
The original of the Joseph Smith Hypocephalus or Hypocephalus of Sheshonq, was found in the Gurneh area of Thebes, Egypt around the year 1818. From translation of the text, its owner's name was Sheshonq. Three hypocephali in the British Museum are similar to the Joseph Smith Hypocephalus both in...
("Facsimile 2") in the Book of Abraham
Book of Abraham
The Book of Abraham is a 1835 work by Joseph Smith, Jr. that he said was based on Egyptian papyri purchased from a traveling mummy exhibition. According to Smith, the book was "a translation of some ancient records....purporting to be the writings of Abraham, while he was in Egypt, called the Book...
. He turned over the materials for his last book to FARMS
Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies
The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies is an informal collaboration of academics devoted to Latter-day Saint historical scholarship. The group is formally part of the Neal A...
in the late months of 2002. It was published in March 2010 in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of his birth. Never one for the spotlight, Hugh gave authorization to have his biography written only late in his life, and it was published just two years before his death. This was followed in 2006 by a detailed account of his World War II years, edited by his son Alex Nibley.
After being confined to bed by illness for over two years, Nibley died on February 24, 2005 in his home in Provo, Utah
Provo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
at the age of 94.
Social and political viewpoints
Nibley's viewpoints marked him as atypical of Mormon stereotypes. He was an active DemocratDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
and an ardent conservationist
Conservation movement
The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental and a social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal, fungus and plant species as well as their habitat for the future....
, and often criticized Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
policies. He was strongly opposed to the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
during an era "when it was very unpopular in LDS culture to do so." He authored "Approaching Zion", an indictment of capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
and endorsement of the law of consecration
Law of Consecration
In the Latter Day Saint movement , the term law of consecration was first used in 1831 by Joseph Smith, it was a doctrine of covenanted Christian communalism....
.
Nibley was also bothered by what he saw as the unthinking, sometimes almost dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
tic application of some portions of Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
's honor code
Honor code
An honour code or honour system is a set of rules or principles governing a community based on a set of rules or ideals that define what constitutes honorable behavior within that community. The use of an honor code depends on the idea that people can be trusted to act honorably...
. Nibley had no objection to requirements of chastity
Law of Chastity
The law of chastity is a moral code defined by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . According to the church, chastity means abstinence from sexual relations before marriage, and complete fidelity to one's husband or wife during marriage...
or obeying the Word of Wisdom
Word of Wisdom
The "Word of Wisdom" is the common name of a section of the Doctrine and Covenants, a book considered by many churches within the Latter Day Saint movement to consist of revelations from God...
, but he thought the often intense scrutiny directed at grooming (hairstyles and clothing) was misguided. In 1973, he said, "The worst sin
Sin
In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...
ners, according to Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, are not the harlots and publican
Publican
In antiquity, publicans were public contractors, in which role they often supplied the Roman legions and military, managed the collection of port duties, and oversaw public building projects...
s, but the religious leaders with their insistence on proper dress and grooming, their careful observance of all the rules, their precious concern for status symbol
Status symbol
A status symbol is a perceived visible, external denotation of one's social position and perceived indicator of economic or social status. Many luxury goods are often considered status symbols...
s, their strict legality, their pious patriotism
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
... the haircut becomes the test of virtue in a world where Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
deceives and rules by appearances."
Nibley further criticized LDS culture for what he saw as its acceptance of folksy kitsch
Kitsch
Kitsch is a form of art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an extant style of art or a worthless imitation of art of recognized value. The concept is associated with the deliberate use of elements that may be thought of as cultural icons while making cheap mass-produced objects that...
art over good art; favoring trade-journal jingles over doctrine in sermons; and tearing down pioneer structures in favor of trendy new buildings.
Scholarship
Nibley, along with B. H. Roberts, is one of the most influential apologists within Mormonism. He was praised by Evangelical scholars Mosser and Owen for his ability to draw upon historical sources to provide evidence for Latter-day Saint beliefs. Nibley's research ranges from EgyptianAncient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, to Hebrew
Hebrews
Hebrews is an ethnonym used in the Hebrew Bible...
and early Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
histories, and he often took his notes in a mix of Gregg shorthand
Gregg Shorthand
Gregg shorthand is a form of stenography that was invented by John Robert Gregg in 1888. Like cursive longhand, it is completely based on elliptical figures and lines that bisect them. Gregg shorthand is the most popular form of pen stenography in the United States and its Spanish adaptation is...
, Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, and Egyptian. Nibley "insisted on reading the relevant primary and secondary sources in the original and could read Arabic, Coptic, Dutch, Egyptian, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Latin, Old Norse, Russian and other languages at sight." In a perceptive critique, William J. Hamblin
William J. Hamblin
William James Hamblin is a Mormon apologist and associate professor of history at Brigham Young University . He is a former board member of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies at BYU.- Biography :...
, a colleague of Nibley's at BYU, remarked that "Nibley's methodology consists more of comparative literature than history." Douglas F. Salmon has examined in depth Nibley's comparative method, focusing on the latter's work on Enoch.
Among other topics Nibley wrote about were LDS Temples
Temple (LDS Church)
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...
, the historical Enoch
Enoch (ancestor of Noah)
Enoch is a figure in the Generations of Adam. Enoch is described as Adam's greatx4 grandson , the son of Jared, the father of Methuselah, and the great-grandfather of Noah...
, and similarities between Christian Gnostic and Latter-day Saint beliefs, and what he believed were anti-Mormon works. He wrote a brief and somewhat emotional response to Fawn M. Brodie's
Fawn M. Brodie
Fawn McKay Brodie was a biographer and professor of history at UCLA, best known for Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History, a work of psychobiography, and No Man Knows My History, an early and still influential non-hagiographic biography of Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint...
No Man Knows My History, which was titled No Ma'am, That's Not History. Nibley also published scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals on topics without direct reference to Mormonism. One such article that is still cited in works in the field of Roman Studies was on sparsiones. His Berkeley dissertation was on Roman Festival Games. He published in such journals as Classical Journal, Western Political Quarterly, Western Speech, Jewish Quarterly Review, Church History, Revue de Qumran, Vigililae Christianae, The Historian, The American Political Science Review, and the Encyclopaedia Judaica. His essay, "The Passing of the Church: Forty Variations on an Unpopular Theme," which was published in the peer-reviewed journal Church History, touched off a short but furious debate within the journal's pages in 1961.
He turned away from scholarly publications in favor of LDS publications in the mid-nineteen sixties. Significantly his Mormon publications often drew more attention than many of his peer-reviewed works; for example, a lengthy discussion in the pages of Catholic Biblical Quarterly
Catholic Biblical Quarterly
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly is a refereed theological journal published by the Catholic Biblical Association of America....
that ran in 1950-51 about his Improvement Era article, "Baptism for the Dead in Ancient Times". Nibley has also received praise from prominent non-LDS scholars such as Aziz S. Atiya, David Riesman
David Riesman
David Riesman , was a sociologist, attorney, and educator....
, Robert M. Grant, Jacob Neusner
Jacob Neusner
Jacob Neusner is an American academic scholar of Judaism who lives in Rhinebeck, New York.-Biography:Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Neusner was educated at Harvard University, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America , the University of Oxford, and Columbia University.Neusner is often celebrated...
, James Charlesworth, Cyrus Gordon, Raphael Patai
Raphael Patai
Raphael Patai , born Ervin György Patai, was a Hungarian-Jewish ethnographer, historian, Orientalist and anthropologist.-Family background:...
, Margaret Barker, Matthew Black
Matthew Black
Matthew Black Matthew Black Matthew Black (Kilmarnock (3 September 1908 - 2 October 1994) was a Scottish biblical scholar. He was the first editor of New Testament Studies. Black joined the team of Kurt Aland, Bruce Metzger, and Allen Wikgren to work on the UBS Greek New Testament....
, George MacRae, Joseph Fitzmyer
Joseph Fitzmyer
Rev. Joseph Augustine Fitzmyer, S.J., is a priest of the Society of Jesus and a New Testament scholar.He entered the Maryland Province, made his novitiate in Wernersville, PA, and was ordained on July 30, 1938. His academic studies were done at Loyola University of Chicago; Facultes St-Albert de...
, David F. Wright, and Jacob Milgrom
Jacob Milgrom
Jacob Milgrom was a prominent American Jewish Bible scholar and Conservative rabbi, best known for his comprehensive Torah commentaries and work on the Dead Sea Scrolls.-Biography:...
.
Original Etymology
Nibley proposed new translations of some important words, only a few of which are mentioned here.- AtenAtenAten is the disk of the sun in ancient Egyptian mythology, and originally an aspect of Ra. The deified Aten is the focus of the monolatristic, henotheistic, or monotheistic religion of Atenism established by Amenhotep IV, who later took the name Akhenaten in worship in recognition of Aten...
- Usually translated "disk of the sun". Nibley pointed out that relief illustrations of the AtenAtenAten is the disk of the sun in ancient Egyptian mythology, and originally an aspect of Ra. The deified Aten is the focus of the monolatristic, henotheistic, or monotheistic religion of Atenism established by Amenhotep IV, who later took the name Akhenaten in worship in recognition of Aten...
portray it as a sphere, not a flat disk, concluding that a correct translation would be "globe", "orb", or "sphere".
- Kefa - Nibley pointed out that in Arabic and Aramaic this word refers to a green crystalline stone used for purposes of divination. Its best translation is perhaps "Seerstone". In the Greek New Testament it appears as Kefas, in the English New Testament as Cephas.
- MakhshavaMakhshavaMakhshava is a Hebrew word commonly translated as "thought." Dr. Hugh Nibley, however, maintained that "plan" is a better translation. Biblical passages in which makhshava "definitely should be" translated as "plan" include, according to Dr...
- This Hebrew word is usually translated as "thought", but Nibley made a case for translating it as "plan"; e.g., in the book of EstherEstherEsther , born Hadassah, is the eponymous heroine of the Biblical Book of Esther.According to the Bible, she was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus...
many translations say that HamanHaman (Bible)Haman is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who, according to Old Testament tradition, was a 5th Century BC noble and vizier of the Persian empire under King Ahasuerus, traditionally identified as Artaxerxes II...
"thought" to destroy the Jewish people. Nibley suggests that it is more accurate to say he planned to exterminate them. He did not just think about it, but made a plan.
- ShiblonShiblonAccording to the Book of Mormon, Shiblon was a Nephite missionary and record-keeper. He was the second son of Alma the Younger, who was the first chief judge...
- This Book of MormonBook of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
name, Nibley argued, is almost certainly connected to the Arabic shibl, "lion cub". Nibley's student Benjamin UrrutiaBenjamín UrrutiaBenjamin Urrutia is an author and scholar. With Guy Davenport, Urrutia edited The Logia of Yeshua, which collected what Urrutia and Davenport consider to be Jesus' authentic sayings from a variety of canonical and non-canonical sources...
went on to make the connection with the "Jaguar Cub" imagery of the OlmecOlmecThe Olmec were the first major Pre-Columbian civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco....
people of Ancient Mexico, a theory that has been widely embraced by LDS scholars.
Scholarly criticism
Nibley's harshest critics charge that he misused or misrepresented many of his sources. His daughter recalls being told by "one of the flunkies who checked his footnotes" that "conservatively, 90% of them" were bogus. "Sometimes what he [Nibley] said was exactly the opposite of what the author meant," the man recalled. "Sometimes a quotation he'd footnote just wasn't there. My team leader told me your dad's gift was that he could see anything on any page that needed to be there." Although some of Nibley's colleagues regard this account as fictional, Kent P. JacksonKent P. Jackson
Kent P. Jackson is a professor of Ancient Scripture at Brigham Young University who has written on Joseph Smith, Jr.'s translation of and commentary on the Bible....
and Ronald V. Huggins have made similar assessments of Nibley's use of sources.
Nibley has also been criticized for his use of evidence drawn from widely disparate cultures and time periods without proper qualification. More specifically, Douglas F. Salmon finds Nibley guilty of "parallelomania" (defined as "overuse or improper use of parallels in the exposition of a text") in his effort to connect the Book of Mormon to various ancient texts. Salmon notes:
The number of parallels that Nibley has been able to uncover from amazingly disparate and arcane sources is truly staggering. Unfortunately, there seems to be a neglect of any methodological reflection or articulation in this endeavor.
Nibley's methodology draws inspiration from the work of the Myth and Ritual School centered at Cambridge University, most notably represented by J. G. Frazer in his famous work The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer . It first was published in two volumes in 1890; the third edition, published 1906–15, comprised twelve volumes...
. He also took inspiration from the work of University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
professor Mircea Eliade
Mircea Eliade
Mircea Eliade was a Romanian historian of religion, fiction writer, philosopher, and professor at the University of Chicago. He was a leading interpreter of religious experience, who established paradigms in religious studies that persist to this day...
, who likewise allegedly expressed approval of Nibley's ability. He was at the same time critical of the work of Joseph Campbell
Joseph Campbell
Joseph John Campbell was an American mythologist, writer and lecturer, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work is vast, covering many aspects of the human experience...
, although the latter was arguably a kindred spirit of sorts. As most of these other scholars date from the early 20th century, Nibley's methodology is thus arguably dated, although like the works of the Myth and Ritual School, his work continues to be a source of inspiration to younger generations of LDS scholars for its breadth and depth of learning, insights, and poetic imagination.
Students
Students influenced by Nibley include:- Krešimir ĆosićKrešimir CosicKrešimir Ćosić was a Croatian professional basketball player who represented Yugoslavia internationally, a member of FIBA Hall of Fame and Basketball Hall of Fame...
, international basketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
star and diplomat. - Avraham GileadiAvraham GileadiAvraham Gileadi is a religious historian and former university professor. A Latter-day Saint Hebrew scholar and literary analyst, Gileadi specializes in the Book of Isaiah. He is also one of the September Six, who were excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1993...
, writer and scholar; one of the September SixSeptember SixThe September Six were six members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were excommunicated or disfellowshipped by the LDS Church in September 1993 for speaking against Church doctrine and leadership. The term "September Six" was coined by The Salt Lake Tribune and the term was...
, later rebaptized - John GeeJohn GeeJohn Laurence Gee is a prominent Mormon apologist, and Egyptologist at Brigham Young University who is known for his writings in support of the Book of Abraham.-Background:...
, Egyptologist. - Benjamin UrrutiaBenjamín UrrutiaBenjamin Urrutia is an author and scholar. With Guy Davenport, Urrutia edited The Logia of Yeshua, which collected what Urrutia and Davenport consider to be Jesus' authentic sayings from a variety of canonical and non-canonical sources...
, writer and scholar.
Family controversy
Nibley's daughter Martha BeckMartha Beck
Martha Nibley Beck is an American sociologist, therapist, life coach and best-selling author. Beck is the daughter of deceased LDS scholar and apologist, Hugh Nibley...
, is an American sociologist, therapist, and life coach in Arizona. Beck is also a best-selling author and holds an A.B. in East Asian Studies, and an A.M. and a PhD in Sociology from Harvard University in Massachusetts. She also had at one time in the 1990s taught in the Sociology Department at LDS Church owned Brigham Young University during the time five faculty members were excommunicated from the LDS Church for their scholarly public writings that were deemed critical of the LDS Church. In 2005, Beck received national attention after publication of her best-selling book, "Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith" in which Beck alleges sexual abuse by her father, and details the circumstances of how she left the LDS Church. Hugh Nibley's family, including Beck's siblings, have responded by claiming that the book's accusations against their father are false and have expressed "outrage" at the book and accusations. Beck currently lives with her life partner, Karen Gerdes and her three teenage children.
Publications
The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley seriesThere have been 19 volumes released so far, all published through Deseret Book
Deseret Book
Deseret Book is the largest Latter-day Saint book publisher and also owns a chain of LDS bookstores in the western United States. Over 150 people work in its Salt Lake City headquarters...
:
- Old Testament and Related Studies; ISBN 0-87579-032-1 (Hardcover, 1986)
- Enoch the Prophet; ISBN 0-87579-047-X (Hardcover, 1986)
- The World and the Prophets; ISBN 0-87579-078-X (Hardcover, 1987)
- Mormonism and Early Christianity; ISBN 0-87579-127-1 (Hardcover, 1987)
- Lehi in the Desert/The World of the Jaredites/There Were Jaredites; ISBN 0-87579-132-8 (Hardcover, 1988)
- An Approach to the Book of Mormon; ISBN 0-87579-138-7 (Hardcover, 1988)
- Since Cumorah; ISBN 0-87579-139-5 (Hardcover, 1988)
- The Prophetic Book of Mormon; ISBN 0-87579-179-4 (Hardcover, 1989)
- Approaching Zion; ISBN 0-87579-252-9 (Hardcover, 1989)
- Ancient State: The Rulers & the Ruled; ISBN 0-87579-375-4 (Hardcover, 1991)
- Tinkling Cymbals and Sounding Brass: The Art of Telling Tales about Joseph Smith and Brigham Young; ISBN 0-87579-516-1 (Hardcover, 1991) (includes No, Ma'am, That's Not History)
- Temple and Cosmos: Beyond This Ignorant Present; ISBN 0-87579-523-4 (Hardcover, 1992)
- Brother Brigham Challenges the Saints; ISBN 0-87579-818-7 (Hardcover, 1994)
- Abraham in Egypt; ISBN 1-57345-527-X (Hardcover, 2000)
- Apostles and Bishops in Early Christianity; ISBN 1-59038-389-3 (Hardcover, 2005)
- The Message of Joseph Smith Papyri: An Egyptian Endowment; ISBN 1-59038-539-X (Hardcover, 2006)
- Eloquent Witness: Nibley on Himself, Others, and the Temple; ISBN 1-60641-003-2 (Hardcover, 2008)
- An Approach to the Book of Abraham; ISBN 1-60641-054-7 (Hardcover, 2009)
- One Eternal Round; ISBN 1-60641-237-X (Hardcover, 2010)
Books about Nibley
- Sergeant Nibley, Ph.D.: Memories of an Unlikely Screaming Eagle. A memoir of Nibley's World War II experiences, published in the fall of 2006 by Deseret Book. It is bylined "Hugh Nibley and Alex Nibley," and reflects Nibley's experiences, written and redacted by his son Alex.
- Hugh Nibley: A Consecrated Life - The Authorized Biography of Hugh Nibley. Written by Hugh's son-in-law, Boyd Jay Petersen, and published in 2002 by Kofford Books ISBN 1-58958-020-6. This is the only full length biography of Hugh Nibley to date, and will be the only one he personally authorized.
External links
- IMNO interview: Observer; Possibly Hugh Nibley's Last Interview
- Deseret News interview: Nibley still busy at age 92
- BYU magazine interview: Life sketch
- Nibley explains his comment, "We have met here today clothed in the black robes of a false priesthood", given in a prayer at a 1960 commencement at BYU
- Nibley's publications through FARMS (now the Maxwell Institute)
- More Speeches by Hugh Nibley
- Multimedia speeches
- Hugh Nibley Collection at Brigham Young University