SMPT Conference October 13-15th, 2016: “Christ, Our Forerunner”

The Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology will hold its 2016 Annual Meeting on October 13-15th at BYU, with the theme, “Christ, Our Forerunner.” Below is the text of the call for papers (adjusted for blog format), or click here for a printable PDF version.

The Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology invites paper proposals on any aspect of Mormon belief, including its philosophical ramifications. We particularly encourage submissions on this year’s theme.

Jesus Christ stands at the center of Mormon belief, understood through many roles, as co-creator of the earth, as the Jehovah of the Old Testament and the bringer of the new covenant, as redeemer from sin and forerunner into the presence of the Father (Hebrews 6:20, 9:24), among others. In some ways the Mormon understanding of Christ aligns closely with that of other Christians, while in other ways it differs dramatically. Who is this Jesus, and why is it vital for us to know him?

Topics falling under this theme might include but are not limited to:

  • Son of Man and Son of God
  • Christ as teacher
  • Christ as mediator
  • Christ as redeemer
  • Christ as exemplar
  • The lamb without blemish
  • The relationship between the Father and the Son
  • Christ in the Bible and the Book of Mormon
  • God in the Old Testament and the New
  • Prophecies of Christ
  • The premortal Christ
  • The resurrected Christ
  • The condescension of Christ
  • The Word made Flesh
  • Continuing from grace to grace (D&C 93:13)
  • Fulfilling the old law
  • Taking up his/our cross (Matthew 16:24)

Submission deadline: August 15th, 2016

Papers on the conference theme are particularly encouraged, but proposals on any aspect of Mormon belief will receive full consideration.

Authors may submit either (a) a full paper, or (b) an abstract:

(a) Papers should be suitable for a reading time of 25–30 minutes (3500 words maximum). Longer papers (up to 9,000 words) may be submitted in full, with the understanding that they will be revised for presentation.

(b) An abstract should be about 500 words in length, and summarize the claims and reasoning of the paper.

Please send submissions in PDF, RTF, or MS Word format, to SMPT Secretary Joe Spencer at stokiejoe at gmail, by email attachment. The email should include the author’s full name and contact information, and title and word count for the paper or abstract.

Presenters are not required to be members of SMPT, or of the LDS church. The Society welcomes submissions by students. Students should indicate their student status in the submission email.

Authors will be notified of acceptance on or about September 5th.