Bio: John S. Thompson obtained his BA and MA in Ancient Near Eastern Studies (Hebrew Bible) from BYU and UC Berkeley respectively and completed a PhD in Egyptology at the University of Pennsylvania. He has been a full-time employee of the Church’s Seminaries & Institutes of Religion for more than 25 years, most recently as the Coordinator and Institute Director for the Boston/Cambridge, MA area. His research interests and publications focus primarily on early Egyptian religion (Pyramid Texts; non-royal tomb iconography; and conceptions of deity), ancient & modern temple ritual (sequencing; spacial/architectural context; and meaning), ancient & modern covenant theology (concepts of covenant fulfillment in time (vs. eternity); inheritance laws relative to covenant promises of land and priesthood), ancient & modern priesthood function and organization (contrasting roles of high priest, priest, patriarch, prophet, elder, apostle in antiquity and implication for understanding modern restorations of priesthood), and the Book of Abraham (Joseph Smith’s syncretization of Abrahamic details with ancient Egyptian iconography; racial misuse of). He is married to Stacey Keller from Orem, Utah, and they have nine children and four grandchildren.
