Need a book recommendation for someone who is beginning on the journey. The request is for a book by a Bible scholar who is a believer--and being a Mormon author isn't specified.

So far they've begun on the journey by reading some of Bart Ehrman.

I'm thinking Karen Armstrong's A History of God, but I don't know if she qualifies a as a believer. Or Elaine Pagels either. It's been a long time since I've read the History of God, but this seems a good place to start for smart, educated Mormons to start.

Any suggestions?

I think they are believers but very liberal.Bruce Chilton, John Dominic Crossan and Spong are also believers although Spong and Crossan are extremely liberal and reject a lotmof Christian ideas.Philip Yancy is another.

Someone who explicitly requests a book by a (Christian) "believer" author might be expecting an author who follows a more "traditional" Christian belief.

I highly recommend Kenneth Hagin, Jerry Sevile, Kenneth Copeland, Jesse Duplantis and Creflo Dollar. They are extremely knowledgable teachers.

They are the crazy guys on TV who want your money. Avoid at all costs.

Probably, but that is why I qualified. I cant recommend conservative religious books if I havent read them. Phantom Shadow can decide if the ones I mentioned are worth the time.

I've read some Crossan (and attended a fantastic all-day program where he spoke--maybe 6-7 years ago. I also have some of Spong's books. I'll check on the other two you mention, bona idea.

My problem is finding a serious Biblical scholar who qualifies as what I think they mean by "a believer." I checked the names offered by "interested" and these wouldn't fill the bill at all. We're talking about books for people who have Ph.D.s themselves, albeit not in humanities, religion or social sciences.

My reading on the subject is academic so I dont ordinarily read stuff by conservative believers. Sorry.Yancy or Chilton might work for you,but you probably should google them and see if they fit your bill

I've read a lot of Spong, Ehrmann and Crossan and if a belief in the resurrection defines a "believer" they do not define themselves as such in the works I've read.

Personally, I enjoy all three of them.

Ehrman is not a beliecer. He is agnostic leaning toward atheism. Spong is an Episcopalian priest who thinks the resurrection may have been a vision.He is unsure. Crossan considers himself as a believer of sorts.Conservative Christians would probably not consider Spong or Crossan as Christians.

For a Mormon who is a conservative "chapel Mormon", I would recommend:

David Bokovoy. Authoring the Old Testament: Genesis–Deuteronomy. Salt Lake City: Greg Kofford Books, 2014.

It is held by Deseret Book:
http://deseretbook.com/Authoring-Old-Testament-Genesis-Deuteronomy-David-E-Bokovoy/i/5123915

This is written by an "internet" Mormon scholar who will blow any idea about the OT being history totally out of the water, and puts the BoM on very shaky ground. DB is a genuine scholar, and his faith in the Church is "nuanced" to say the least. While he and the mopologists can apparently stay faithful in spite of what they know, this will be a solid chunk of meat for a conservative TBM.(I wouldn't call DB a "mopologist", he doesn't use the shady tactics we associate with the mopos, DB is a genuine scholar)

You can get an idea of the book from an excellent series of podcasts on Mormon Matters here (David Bokovoy was one of the panelists):
http://mormonmatters.org/2013/10/01/194-197-genesis-part-1-creation-garden-expulsion-cursing/

The whole series takes over 4 hours, and it is fascinating. But respectful of traditional believers without pulling punches.

That it is sold by Deseret Book and written by a faithful scholar should allow a TBM to read it in good conscience. But it is a book like Rough Stone Rolling and Mormon Enigma - going to rattle a few faith cages!

Having said all that, DB has further books planned; I am really interested to see how he handles the deutero-Isaiah issue - a critical flaw in the BoM.

Thank you for the this. I actually get intellectual stimulation from RfM, something unavailable from TSCC's Sunday meetings.