Latter-day Saint Perspectives

    The Interview: In this interview, Laura Harris Hales interviews Dr. Thomas A. Wayment about modern Bible translations and the lasting heritage of the King James Bible. For the majority of English-speaking Latter-day Saints, the King James Bible is both a cultural symbol of participation in American Christianity as well as a signifier of activity in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But as recent polls have demonstrated, Americans are less likely today to purchase and read a KJV Bible than at any time in our history. Increasingly, LDS missionaries are faced with speaking a foreign Bible language when they read from the words of their KJV Bibles. They wrestle with trying to understand an older form of English in order to make sense of the primary canonical texts of their religion. Many Latter-day Saints and other Christians too often venture into the unfamiliar territory of exploring other translations of the Bible. One reason for this is the interest to understand this important relig