Tag Archives: Tree of Life

The Tree of Life as Mother, Son, and Love of God in 1 Nephi

By David Larsen | Published: July 15, 2010
As I was pondering over the book of 1 Nephi, chapter 11, just recently, so much of the ancient Near Eastern symbolism regarding the Tree of Life motif came flooding back into my mind. I’m grateful for the time I’ve been able to spend studying these ideas, especially since I’ve gone back to reread the [...]
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Temple Studies Symposium III: Margaret Barker

By David Larsen | Published: November 2, 2009
Dr Margaret Barker: The Holy Oil in the Temple Tradition The following are my notes from Dr Margaret Barker’s presentation, which served as an introduction to the use of the holy anointing oil from the time of the First Temple period. Please excuse the incompleteness of the notes, and my apologies to Dr Barker if [...]
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The Tree of Life as Nurturing Mother

By David Larsen | Published: July 12, 2009
Before moving on further into the contents of the Orphic Gold Plates, I would like to look with more detail into a motif touched upon in my last post in this series.  I described how the Orphic inscriptions instruct the soul that they are to pass by the guardians in order to be able to [...]
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The Orphic Gold Tablets: Arriving in the Afterlife and the Importance of Memory for Salvation

By David Larsen | Published: June 26, 2009
The writing of this post has been delayed a bit, but I’m excited to share more specific details about the Orphic Gold Tablets. Chapter One of Instructions for the Netherworld: The Orphic Gold Tablets, by Bernabé and San Cristóbal is entitled “Arrival in the Subterranean World.” In this chapter, the authors concentrate on four of [...]
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Apocalyptic Paul?

By David Larsen | Published: April 19, 2009
As I was looking through some old notes taken in my Apocalyptic Literature class (last semester), I found some brief details I took down from our class discussion of the Apostle Paul.  The point of the lecture was that Paul is considered by some to have a very apocalyptic background/perspective.  The following are the notes [...]
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Baptism or Temple Initiation? Part II

By David Larsen | Published: July 2, 2008
The Ancient Temple Initiation of the High Priesthood As I stated in my last post, Margaret Barker shows some interesting similarities between Christian baptism and the initiatory rites of the ancient royal high priesthood which generally took place at the temple. While she makes some good points, I think some caution is required. Barker herself states that [...]
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