Dr. Hamblin Resigns From Interpreter?

[The Grimace]

This came across my RSS feed this AM, and comes as a surprise. Dr. Hamblin, I don't expect a comment, as you've said you won't comment on this. I am posting here because this may be of interest to the community at large. Wishing you all the best in your future endeavours.

http://mormonscriptureexplorations.wordpress.com/2013/03/02/why-im-resigning-from-interpreter/

[Duncan]

I got the email as well. I hope Bro. Dr. Hamblin is doing well and all the best to him in his future endeavours!

[Peppermint Patty]

Duncan,

Is that really you?!

You have a Gerard Butler kind of vibe going for you. If you're ever in Utah, I have a niece I would like to set you up with.

I don't want to derail any further, so good luck to Dr. Hamblin. Thanks for all of your hard work and long hours.

[Duncan]

Duncan,

Is that really you?!

You have a Gerard Butler kind of vibe going for you. If you're ever in Utah, I have a niece I would like to set you up with.

I don't want to derail any further, so good luck to Dr. Hamblin. Thanks for all of your hard work and long hours.

hahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah! I have never been called Gerard Butler before! ha! but yes, it's me!!!

[ALarson]

This came across my RSS feed this AM, and comes as a surprise. Dr. Hamblin, I don't expect a comment, as you've said you won't comment on this. I am posting here because this may be of interest to the community at large. Wishing you all the best in your future endeavours.

http://mormonscriptu...om-interpreter/

I wish Bill Hamblin the best and I am sincerely sorry if this has caused him personal pain.

But I do wonder how he knew the emails to BYU were from anti-Mormons if they were anonymous?

I’m tired of the relentless torrent of abuse from anti-Mormons and apostates, including them sending anonymous slanderous email accusations to university administrators.

[Duncan]

I wish Bill Hamblin the best and I am sincerely sorry if this has caused him personal pain.

But I do wonder how he knew the emails to BYU were from anti-Mormons if they were anonymous?

speculating but if your email is something like 333Houstonforme@gmail.com and then you sign it "the Big Snit" something like that

[BCSpace]

1- My department told me today in essence that both my editorial work with Interpreter, and publications with Interpreter will not be considered serious scholarship. They explicitly advised me to publish in other venues. (This has been, by the way, the consistent policy of both my department and college for a quarter of a century. I have consistently been told essentially the same thing about not publishing with FARMS by every administrator. The fact that I’ve published with FARMS in the past has directly led to delayed promotion and sub-cost of living pay raises.) I am tired of receiving poor evaluations on my scholarship because publishing with FARMS and now Interpreter is considered unscholarly by BYU.

So is it that publishing at FARMS/Interpreter takes time away from publishing in officially recognized venues thus reducing output, or is it that the very ACT of publishing at FARMS/Interpreter leads to poor evaluations? If the latter is true at all, then I am truly sorry for anyone who works at BYU. Is there a written policy on this or is it the fear of becoming like a few select examples that keeps everyone in line?

Edited March 2, 2013 by BCSpace

[Kerry A. Shirts]

Why would it matter? A university has complete right to decide what it accepts as scholarly and what it doesn't. If it's described to authors what kind of scholarship is acceptable, then that is what they need to write if they want credit for it from the university. I mean, honestly, that simply makes sense.

[BCSpace]

Why would it matter? A university has complete right to decide what it accepts as scholarly and what it doesn't. If it's described to authors what kind of scholarship is acceptable, then that is what they need to write if they want credit for it from the university. I mean, honestly, that simply makes sense.

It does until it injects itself into one's private life or is an unwritten/undefined policy. But yes, an employee can accept those conditions by choice.

[Teancum]

I feel bad for Bill and this turn of events. It even looks like that his FARMs work was frowned upon.

But also I wonder what this means as far as what the powers at BYU may think of apologetics.

[ERayR]

That universities can proclaim themselves places for the free exchange of ideas and then prohibit and punish those who attempt to practice it has long mystified me. I see it happen in all the universities that I am acquainted with with such frequency that I am sure it is universal to the university setting.

Sorry Will your contributions will be missed.

[The Grimace]

Guys, I'd really like to keep this thread to well-wishes for Dr. Hamblin. The Dehlin affair, departure from the Maxwell Institute, and now this, would be enough to crush most people. So let's keep it to shows of support and appreciation for the work Bill has done.

[Daniel Peterson]

I wouldn't generalize from this instance to any broader statement about the University, let alone the Church.

Deans and department chairs differ, as humans typically do.

[rodheadlee]

I hope BYU loses all of their football games!

[William Schryver]

I hope BYU loses all of their football games!

Hey now! Let's not lose our sense of perspective over all of this.

[Damien the Leper]

I hope BYU loses all of their football games!

Garden Girl and I both agree!

[Damien the Leper]

Hey now! Let's not lose our sense of perspective over all of this.

He's not. At best he is speaking the inspired word of God.

[tyler90az]

That is too bad I genuinely liked Dr. Hamblin from what I know of him online! The google hangouts on Temples him and Bryce Hammond did helped me tremendously. Then you throw in the google hangouts on interpreter and those are great too. He definitely helped me on my faith struggle, yes he did it over the internet.

I am reminded of this scripture

15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one ^asoul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father

6 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the ^akingdom of my Father, how great will be your ^bjoy if you should bring many ^csouls unto me!

Edited March 3, 2013 by tyler90az

[volgadon]

Why would it matter? A university has complete right to decide what it accepts as scholarly and what it doesn't. If it's described to authors what kind of scholarship is acceptable, then that is what they need to write if they want credit for it from the university. I mean, honestly, that simply makes sense.

It makes sense, but as a good friend once described someone's argument, the logic is flawless except for one thing- it is all wrong...

An incredibly myopic decision on his department's part, to put it mildly.

[Robert F. Smith]

Why would it matter? A university has complete right to decide what it accepts as scholarly and what it doesn't. If it's described to authors what kind of scholarship is acceptable, then that is what they need to write if they want credit for it from the university. I mean, honestly, that simply makes sense.

Universities don't decide anything. People do. Anthropomorphizing an institution is always a fallacy.

So, if a pharaoh arises who no longer knows (or appreciates) FARMS, policies can change. That is what you have witnessed, Shirtmaster, a change in policy at the local level.

[Stargazer]

It does until it injects itself into one's private life or is an unwritten/undefined policy. But yes, an employee can accept those conditions by choice.

I think I understand it this way, for example: if an otherwise-respected university scholar publishes papers on Bigfoot in some disrespected journal, the university may worry that their reputation among serious institutions will suffer. And like Kerry says, this make sense, and it's their right.

That being said, however, I am rather perplexed that publishing in FARMS or Interpreter would be so considered.

Things that make you go Hmmm.

[mfbukowski]

So is it that publishing at FARMS/Interpreter takes time away from publishing in officially recognized venues thus reducing output, or is it that the very ACT of publishing at FARMS/Interpreter leads to poor evaluations? If the latter is true at all, then I am truly sorry for anyone who works at BYU. Is there a written policy on this or is it the fear of becoming like a few select examples that keeps everyone in line?

There is a reason I did not end up going into academia. At least I can do whatever I like even if people do not take non-academics seriously in these fields. If arguments cannot be judged on their own merits, regardless of who makes them, none of it matters anyway.

Edited March 3, 2013 by mfbukowski

[Bill Hamblin]

Yea I feel the same about just about every bit of despicable drivel that comes from your mouth as well.

And I actually do feel bad for Bill. Were this you, not likely. And you are not forgiven.

Don't feel bad for me. I just spent my first Saturday in six months without doing 12 hours of work for Interpreter. It was glorious.

Edited March 3, 2013 by Bill Hamblin

[Daniel Peterson]

I think I understand it this way, for example: if an otherwise-respected university scholar publishes papers on Bigfoot in some disrespected journal, the university may worry that their reputation among serious institutions will suffer. And like Kerry says, this make sense, and it's their right.

That being said, however, I am rather perplexed that publishing in FARMS or Interpreter would be so considered.

Things that make you go Hmmm.

BYU is an upwardly mobile school. It has aspirations. And one of the ways that a school advances its reputation is via faculty research and publications.

Whatever their quality may or may not be, in-house publications -- that is, publications aimed at the Mormon community -- do relatively little to advance BYU's reputation in the world at large. They're not read beyond the membership of the Church and a small handful of "Mormon-watchers."

I'm not at all unsympathetic to these aspirations. One of the things that I'm most proud of regarding my own career at BYU is my launch of the Middle Eastern Texts Initiative, which has, I think it's safe to say, considerably enhanced BYU's reputation (which was, previously, nonexistent) among those, worldwide, who concern themselves with pre-modern Islam, ancient and medieval philosophy, the history of medieval science and medicine, Islamic philosophy and theology, and similar fields.

The trouble is that faculty members have finite time and energy, so that effort given to X is effort no longer available to devote to Y. Doing Mormon studies almost inevitably cuts into what might simply be lumped together and called "non-Mormon studies." I don't blame a department chairman for finding that situation worthy of discussion, but I do worry that, if Mormon studies are effectively altogether penalized by certain administrators at BYU, such studies will languish at the Church's flagship university, which seems distinctly odd and which will then effectively cede the entire field to people at Claremont, Durham, Virginia, Utah State, UVU, and etc. And we may or may not always appreciate what those people do, but, if we've turned the field over to them, we'll have no grounds for complaint.

[Bill Hamblin]

BYU is an upwardly mobile school. It has aspirations. And one of the ways that a school advances its reputation is via faculty research and publications.

Whatever their quality may or may not be, in-house publications -- that is, publications aimed at the Mormon community -- do relatively little to advance BYU's reputation in the world at large. They're not read beyond the membership of the Church and a small handful of "Mormon-watchers."

I'm not at all unsympathetic to these aspirations. One of the things that I'm most proud of regarding my own career at BYU is my launch of the Middle Eastern Texts Initiative, which has, I think it's safe to say, considerably enhanced BYU's reputation (which was, previously, nonexistent) among those, worldwide, who concern themselves with pre-modern Islam, ancient and medieval philosophy, the history of medieval science and medicine, Islamic philosophy and theology, and similar fields.

The trouble is that faculty members have finite time and energy, so that effort given to X is effort no longer available to devote to Y. Doing Mormon studies almost inevitably cuts into what might simply be lumped together and called "non-Mormon studies." I don't blame a department chairman for finding that situation worthy of discussion, but I do worry that, if Mormon studies are effectively altogether penalized by certain administrators at BYU, such studies will languish at the Church's flagship university, which seems distinctly odd and which will then effectively cede the entire field to people at Claremont, Durham, Virginia, Utah State, UVU, and etc. And we may or may not always appreciate what those people do, but, if we've turned the field over to them, we'll have no grounds for complaint.

Dan has understood the situation exactly.

Those who think this situation has to do with a repudiation of apologetics have completely misunderstood. It is ALL about publications that will enhance BYU's academic prestige.

Edited March 3, 2013 by Bill Hamblin