When we speak of scripture study, what comes to mind is having the scriptures open with perhaps a notebook and a pen for taking notes. This is great when we want to ponder and discover the scriptures for ourselves. What if we could get the help of many of the great scriptorians of both our day and the past in understanding the Gospel? An incredible tool, the Scripture Citation Index, serves this purpose efficiently and effectively.
The description provided on the site is:
“Welcome to the LDS Scripture Citation Index. This index links from scriptures to the general conference talks, Journal of Discourses speeches, and writings in Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith that cite those scriptures. So, for example, suppose you want to know who has cited 1 Ne. 3:7 in general conference; click on the Book of Mormon link at the left and scroll down to 1 Ne. 3; there you’ll find the answer. Who has quoted Matt. 5:48? Use the New Testament index to find out.
We have indexed the scriptures cited by speakers in LDS General Conference between 1942 and the present, and those cited by speakers recorded in the Journal of Discourses between 1839 and 1886. The citations in Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith come from the special edition, Scriptural Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, edited by Richard C. Galbraith and published by Deseret Book in 1993 (ISBN 0875796478).”
A potentially useful process of using this incredible tool is offered to you below. In no way is it intended to be the best or most authoritative way of drawing upon this great work. The steps are as follows:
- Log into your Study Journal.
- Open your scriptures to wherever you are in your personal studies. Let’s suppose we are in Alma 13, for example. Read the first verse.
- Visit http://scriptures.byu.edu/. In the left pane, there is a place to click down to Alma 13. There are many citations that include the first verse. Click each of them.
- As you read each citation, you may come upon one or more that shed an incredible amount of light on the meaning of that passage for you.
- When something touches your heart, take a note of it in your Study Journal. Link your new note to whatever scripture reference you are studying. Link in applicable keywords. If appropriate, link it to other entries in your Study Journal.
Consulting the words of Church leaders and authorities can open the scriptures to you in a very uplifting and edifying way. This great tool can help propel your Gospel learning more quickly than otherwise might be possible.
This helpful resource is also available for Apple iOS devices (iPhones and iPads) and Android devices in the respective app store or marketplace.
Here is another helpful article on using the Scripture Citation Index: Enhance Scripture Study with the Scripture Citation Index