Boylan the Beggar

[malkie]

You really captured the essence of Boylan's "work."

In fairness to Boylan, that's actually the essence of most Mormon apologetics in terms of trying to retrieve traces of Mormonism from antiquity and/or the Christian tradition (minus the use of Logos). It's almost all vague "bullseyes" and comparisons that contextually don't hold up (like Holland invoking Karlstadt at the last fall General Conference ).

Real exegetical historians make fun of that "history of ideas" sort of approach.

What surprises me is Boylan's complete disdain for Protestantism as a whole. I took two religion classes on non-LDS Christianity in undergrad at BYU, one on general church history and one on American church history. Both taught that the Protestant Reformation was a necessary forerunner to the Mormon Restoration and a step in the right direction; both professors showed respect and fondness for Protestant theologians. I have no doubt those professors would have been appalled at Boylan's antics.

(Logos has not made much effort to cater to Mormons, so I'm not surprised few Mormons use it, but it is a powerful resource for doing historical theology and biblical research, at least to start out with.)

I remember (Scotland, 1970s) being taught in church: "No restoration without reformation".

[Kishkumen]

So, I don't begrudge any person who produces online content the right to seek donors. It is a tough gig. Also, Boylan does seem to know stuff. For people who are motivated to promote LDS apologetics, you could do worse than Boylan on the knowledge front, certainly. The only problem I have had with him is his attitude and behaviors. If he were to moderate his political views by leaving the further reaches of the alt-right and hue more toward the center, drop his swipes at other Christians, and stop doing things like making up Black LDS apologists, I would be a lot less concerned about his contribution to apologetics.

All of that said, I don't wish severe migraines on anyone. They can be positively debilitating from what I have seen of the sufferings of friends and family. I hope he gets effective treatment to bring him relief. Seriously. Maybe some of his other psychological issues would iron themselves out if he got some help on the health front.

[Bill_Billiams]

So, I don't begrudge any person who produces online content the right to seek donors. It is a tough gig. Also, Boylan does seem to know stuff. For people who are motivated to promote LDS apologetics, you could do worse than Boylan on the knowledge front, certainly. The only problem I have had with him is his attitude and behaviors. If he were to moderate his political views by leaving the further reaches of the alt-right and hue more toward the center, drop his swipes at other Christians, and stop doing things like making up Black LDS apologists, I would be a lot less concerned about his contribution to apologetics.

All of that said, I don't wish severe migraines on anyone. They can be positively debilitating from what I have seen of the sufferings of friends and family. I hope he gets effective treatment to bring him relief. Seriously. Maybe some of his other psychological issues would iron themselves out if he got some help on the health front.

I agree. My issue is also with his behavior. It makes me wonder if he is self-aware when he simultaneously mocks people for their income while begging for money himself. I would say he is more knowledgeable than most mopologists I've found online. But I don't think he is nearly as knowledgeable as his fans make him out to be.

I would think that prolonged physical suffering might make him more empathetic. It appears instead to have made him bitter. I think a seriously inflated ego is the root of his behavioral issues although I'm sure the migraines don't do anything to improve his mental health.

[drumdude]

So, I don't begrudge any person who produces online content the right to seek donors. It is a tough gig. Also, Boylan does seem to know stuff. For people who are motivated to promote LDS apologetics, you could do worse than Boylan on the knowledge front, certainly. The only problem I have had with him is his attitude and behaviors. If he were to moderate his political views by leaving the further reaches of the alt-right and hue more toward the center, drop his swipes at other Christians, and stop doing things like making up Black LDS apologists, I would be a lot less concerned about his contribution to apologetics.

All of that said, I don't wish severe migraines on anyone. They can be positively debilitating from what I have seen of the sufferings of friends and family. I hope he gets effective treatment to bring him relief. Seriously. Maybe some of his other psychological issues would iron themselves out if he got some help on the health front.

I agree. My issue is also with his behavior. It makes me wonder if he is self-aware when he simultaneously mocks people for their income while begging for money himself. I would say he is more knowledgeable than most mopologists I've found online. But I don't think he is nearly as knowledgeable as his fans make him out to be.

I would think that prolonged physical suffering might make him more empathetic. It appears instead to have made him bitter. I think a seriously inflated ego is the root of his behavioral issues although I'm sure the migraines don't do anything to improve his mental health.

If he didn’t engage in his weird combative behavior, his blog would be completely unknown instead of just virtually unknown.

[Kishkumen]

You have a point there, drumdude. The desire to be seen may explain *some* of his aggressiveness.

[TwoCumorahFraud]

You have a point there, drumdude. The desire to be seen may explain *some* of his aggressiveness.

He should rename his blog as BoylanBoylanLand and dress up as Daffy Duck, then teach fake geography for The Book of Mormon because he’s a quack like DCP.

Then Parker and Boylan can wear their costumes on Halloween.

[Bill_Billiams]

If he didn’t engage in his weird combative behavior, his blog would be completely unknown instead of just virtually unknown.

That is probably true. He may also have some pent up anger if he thinks he should be more popular than he is. So lashing out probably feels cathartic and gets him the attention he wants.

[malkie]

If he didn’t engage in his weird combative behavior, his blog would be completely unknown instead of just virtually unknown.

That is probably true. He may also have some pent up anger if he thinks he should be more popular than he is. So lashing out probably feels cathartic and gets him the attention he wants.

He believes that he is very popular:

I know many like my blog ...

As many appreciate my blog and other online activities ...

[both quotes from the screencaps in the OP]

One may hope that, although he is starting off in a small way, his audience and rewards might reach a level that is commensurate with his abilities and his production volumes and quality.

[DrStakhanovite]

The content of Boylan’s work conforms to the standards of Mopologetics as closely as his behavior mimics the uncouth nature of the Mopologetic Vanguard. The Mopologetic perspective views scholarship not as an end unto itself, but rather as a means to a rhetorical end. Usually scholarship is entangled with notions about what exactly a “Life of the Mind” is and how one goes about living it, but Mopologists are first and foremost polemicists.

Boylan doesn’t study the Early Church because he loves the history, culture, and theology of early Christianity, but because it serves as an artificial battleground for him to challenge and embarrass rival Christian apologists in a public spectacle. If there was no one he could argue with online about the topic, he wouldn’t blog about it at all.

If Boylan was actually enthusiastic about ancient Christianity, it would be plain to see in his content and it would make him a million times more watchable/readable. Instead the topic is just a thin pretense to go after people he has deemed worthy of his scorn.

[drumdude]

The content of Boylan’s work conforms to the standards of Mopologetics as closely as his behavior mimics the uncouth nature of the Mopologetic Vanguard. The Mopologetic perspective views scholarship not as an end unto itself, but rather as a means to a rhetorical end. Usually scholarship is entangled with notions about what exactly a “Life of the Mind” is and how one goes about living it, but Mopologists are first and foremost polemicists.

Boylan doesn’t study the Early Church because he loves the history, culture, and theology of early Christianity, but because it serves as an artificial battleground for him to challenge and embarrass rival Christian apologists in a public spectacle. If there was no one he could argue with online about the topic, he wouldn’t blog about it at all.

If Boylan was actually enthusiastic about ancient Christianity, it would be plain to see in his content and it would make him a million times more watchable/readable. Instead the topic is just a thin pretense to go after people he has deemed worthy of his scorn.

Contrast his work with that of James White. I’m not a Calvinist but I really enjoy White laying out arguments and demonstrating he has at least put in some work to make a coherent argument and lay it out in a comprehensible way.