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Showing posts from December, 2024

Ex-Mormon Sues Over Joseph Smith’s Purported Translation of Egyptian Papyri

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The study of Ancient Egyptian civilization of course intersects with modern doings – think of how it’s inspired architecture of our time, or how it’s informed any number of pop culture creations . And yet, decorative use of hieroglyphs aside, it seems like it’s relatively uncommon for this aspect of reception history to involve the linguistic side of Egyptology. That’s part of why an ongoing class action lawsuit against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is so interesting. Legal stuff can be complicated to parse for the untrained, and this U.S. case seems both particularly quixotic and particularly unruly. That said, it’s basically a 2019 class action lawsuit started by ex-Mormon Laura Gaddy and attorney Kay Burningham that’s expanded and shifted a bit over time and even suffered dismissal , although they’re now appealing so that they can file a third amended complaint. Nonetheless, amidst all of this thicket of procedural detail, one constant drumbeat is that ...