Blake Thomas Ostler is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 theologian and writer on the topic of Mormon theology, philosophy and thought.

Background

Ostler was born in 1957 in Murray, Utah. Ostler received his B.A.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 in philosophy

Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...

 and B.S.

Bachelor of Science

A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...

 in psychobiology in 1981 from 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). He received his J.D.

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 as a William Leary Scholar from the University of Utah

University of Utah

The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...

 in 1985. In each of his these degrees, Ostler graduated with honors

Latin honors

Latin honors are Latin phrases used to indicate the level of academic distinction with which an academic degree was earned. This system is primarily used in the United States, Canada, and in many countries of continental Europe, though some institutions also use the English translation of these...

. He is a practicing attorney

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 specializing in commercial litigation; franchise law and litigation, construction law and litigation, property and development law and litigation educational law

Education policy

Education policy refers to the collection of laws and rules that govern the operation of education systems.Education occurs in many forms for many purposes through many institutions. Examples include early childhood education, kindergarten through to 12th grade, two and four year colleges or...

, employment law and intellectual property

Intellectual property

Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...

.

Ostler has published widely on Mormon philosophy

Mormonism

Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...

 in journals such as Religious Studies

Religious Studies (journal)

Religious Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Cambridge University Press. It addresses problems of the philosophy of religion in the context of a variety of religious traditions...

, International Journal for the Philosophy of Religion, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought

Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought

Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought is an independent quarterly journal of "Mormon thought" that addresses a wide range of issues on Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint Movement....

, 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...

 and the FARMS Review of Books.

Ostler accepts 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...

 as an actual historical account, but as edited and expanded in light of Joseph Smith's vocabulary and capacity for expression within his world view. He argues that it is a modern expansion of an ancient document.

Although Ostler adopts the Expansion Theory, he still affirms the Book of Mormon was translated through the gift of God.

Ostler currently practices in Salt Lake City.

Publications

• Exploring Mormon Thought: The Attributes of God (October 1, 2001) ISBN 1-58958-003-6
• Exploring Mormon Thought: The Problems With Theism And the Love of God (March 2006) ISBN 1-58958-095-8
• Exploring Mormon Thought: Of God and Gods (April 2008) ISBN 1-58958-107-5
• Exploring Mormon Thought: Fire on the Horizon (2010)

External links

• Blake Ostler's Mormon Publications Site
• Blake Ostler (MormonWiki.org; evangelical wiki on Mormonism)