John W. Welch
Encyclopedia
John Woodland "Jack" Welch (born 1946) is an LDS law and religion scholar who currently teaches at the J. Reuben Clark Law School
at Brigham Young University
(BYU).
(FARMS) and is the current editor of the periodical BYU Studies
. He was director of publications for the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History. When a young missionary in Germany, Welch discovered many instances of the chiasmus
literary form in the Book of Mormon. His finding, published in BYU Studies as "Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon" in 1969, and subsequent publications have shaped scholarly inquiry into the linguistic aspects and historical origin of the Book of Mormon
.
Welch received his bachelors and masters degree from BYU (B.A. in History, M.A. in Latin and Greek). He then studied at Oxford University as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow. Welch received his J.D. from Duke University
. He is the Robert K. Thomas
professor of law in the J. Reuben Clark Law School.
In 1979 Welch founded FARMS. He was a member of the board of editors for the Encyclopedia of Mormonism
.
Welch was a co-author of Religion and law: Biblical-Judaic and Islamic Perspectives (ISBN 0931464390)
J. Reuben Clark Law School
The J. Reuben Clark Law School is a professional graduate school located in Provo, Utah at Brigham Young University. Founded in 1973, the school is named after J. Reuben Clark, Jr.—former U.S. Ambassador, Undersecretary of State, and LDS Church General Authority—and its charter dean was former...
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).
Biography
Welch was founding director of Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon StudiesFoundation 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...
(FARMS) and is the current editor of the periodical BYU Studies
BYU Studies
BYU Studies is a multidisciplinary journal dedicated to publishing articles on a broad array of topics related to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
. He was director of publications for the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Latter-day Saint History. When a young missionary in Germany, Welch discovered many instances of the chiasmus
Chiasmus
In rhetoric, chiasmus is the figure of speech in which two or more clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures in order to make a larger point; that is, the clauses display inverted parallelism...
literary form in the Book of Mormon. His finding, published in BYU Studies as "Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon" in 1969, and subsequent publications have shaped scholarly inquiry into the linguistic aspects and historical origin of the Book of Mormon
Book of Mormon
The 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...
.
Welch received his bachelors and masters degree from BYU (B.A. in History, M.A. in Latin and Greek). He then studied at Oxford University as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow. Welch received his J.D. from Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
. He is the Robert K. Thomas
Robert K. Thomas (BYU)
Robert K. Thomas was a professor of English at Brigham Young University as well as the founder of that university's honors program and later the academic vice president of BYU....
professor of law in the J. Reuben Clark Law School.
In 1979 Welch founded FARMS. He was a member of the board of editors for the Encyclopedia of Mormonism
Encyclopedia of Mormonism
The Encyclopedia of Mormonism is a semi-official encyclopedia for topics relevant to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
.
Welch was a co-author of Religion and law: Biblical-Judaic and Islamic Perspectives (ISBN 0931464390)
External links
- Howard W. Hunter Law Library Page of Welch has a listing of at least a portion of Welch's published works.