by Dennis B. Horne
In 1973 Elder Bruce R. McConkie gave a major devotional
address at BYU that he titled, “Agency
or Inspiration—Which?” I have borrowed the gist of that talk title and two
paragraphs from it to make a point and ask some questions that some might find
worth pondering.
The author of a chapter in a recently
published (free) ebook uses the word “assumptions” frequently, almost
obsessively, when describing how certain past apostolic Church leaders
interpreted and taught the scriptures.[1]
He gave academic names to categories of these alleged assumptions. The ebook itself uses the word “assumption[s]” 87 times and the chapter noticed here uses it some 60 of those; mostly applying it to certain teachings of Pres. Joseph Fielding Smith and Elder McConkie. Some examples follow:
