Comments on: “Aviva Levine”: The God of Her Fathers

By: Points of Interest, v2, #7 | Mormon Bloggers

Points of Interest, v2, #7 | Mormon Bloggers — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:25:31 +0000

[...] is nothing on Earth better than a good conversion story, and Mormon historian Ardis Parshall has a magnificent one she found digging through the archives [...]

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:58:25 +0000

Thank you for the clarification, lora. You can follow in the comments our discovery of who “Aviva” really is — the account I worked from originally was written under a pseudonym, making it impossible to check any detail that was ambiguous there, as this one was.

By: lora

lora — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:41:19 +0000

I am familiar with the family and Annette’s mother Mary was certainly Jewish.

By: Points of Interest, v2, #7 « Mind, Soul, and Body

Points of Interest, v2, #7 « Mind, Soul, and Body — Mon, 04 May 2009 17:27:19 +0000

[...] is nothing on Earth better than a good conversion story, and Mormon historian Ardis Parshall has a magnificent one she found digging through the archives [...]

By: lacy

lacy — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:48:22 +0000

Great story, Where did you find it, Ardis ?

By: Steve C.

Steve C. — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 21:19:57 +0000

Simply incredible!!! Wow!

I also liked her connection to the Book of Mormon–To the convincing of the Jews…

By: Martin Willey

Martin Willey — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 21:03:05 +0000

I worked in the US House of Representatives in the mid-80s and knew of Rep. Lantos and his LDS wife. But I never knew her story until now. So interesting. Thanks.

By: Ray

Ray — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:17:12 +0000

I wonder if she felt the alias was necessary in 1964 – when being married to a Mormon would have been much more detrimental to her husband’s career.

By: Raymond Takashi Swenson

Raymond Takashi Swenson — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:15:51 +0000

Timber Dick died from burns suffered in a single vehicle accident in April 2008. He and his wife have 11 children. At the time of his death, he was about to be given an award from NASA for his design for a vehicle engine. A remarkable family all around.

By: Ray

Ray — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:09:12 +0000

The original post is fascinating, and the comments are a real treat.

I love the connections she makes with the feeling of the Book of Mormon. One of my soapbox issues is that we need to stop using it primarily as a doctrinal proof text and more as it was used in the early church (and in this account) as a testament. There’s a difference, and it is profound.