Shirley S. Ricks

Shirley Smith Ricks (PhD, family studies, BYU) has worked since 1989 as an editor at the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, and retired from the Religious Studies Center at BYU in 2021. She has helped produce numerous books and periodicals, including several volumes of the Collected Works of Hugh Nibley. Shirley has published a number of articles and reviews. In 2019 she was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award in Editing and Design presented by the Latter-day Saint Publishing and Media Association. Shirley served a mission in the Germany South Mission. She and her husband, Stephen D. Ricks, have attended all the temples in the United States and Canada and enjoy traveling, especially to visit their six children and spouses and their twenty grandchildren.

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Steadfast in Defense of Faith
Reflections on the Genesis and Evolution of the FARMS Review under the Editorship of Daniel C. Peterson (1989–2011)
Shirley S. Ricks

by Shirley S. Ricks | 11-05-2025

“In this essay, I attempt to honor the vision and dedication of our friend Daniel C. Peterson, who brought to fruition a periodical with the intent to publish reviews of all books published on the Book of Mormon in a given year.” Shirley Ricks

Seek Ye Words of Wisdom
Restoration Insights into Barrenness and Divine Intervention
Shirley S. Ricks

by Shirley S. Ricks | 09-11-2025

“The Bible relates several instances in which husbands and wives who were childless sought and received divine intervention to overcome their barrenness. The tension between God’s commandment to “be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth” (Gen. 1:28) and the inability of some couples to bear children seems palpable. Although it might feel natural to blame God for this contradictory state of affairs (which was done in some instances), ultimately, the biblical remedy for infertility often involved supplication to the Lord and a willingness to abide by his timetable. The children resulting from God’s intervention were often seen as children of promise who had an important role to perform. Even so, I do not propose that every instance of barrenness in biblical times resulted in the birth of a child. Rather, I suggest that each of us should turn to the Lord in the face of challenges of any nature and wait in patience for his response.” Shirley S. Ricks

Peace in the Holy Land

by Shirley S. Ricks | undefined 29 | 06-29-2018

Abstract: Living in the Holy Land as a Palestinian Latter-day Saint has created unique challenges and perspective for Sahar Qumsiyeh. In order to attend church meetings in Jerusalem from her home near Bethlehem, Sahar was required to travel under unsafe and stressful circumstances for hours through military checkpoints to cover the few miles’ distance (as […]

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All journal publications and video presentations are available for free by digital download and streaming. The price of hard copy versions of journal articles covers only the cost of printing; books are typically priced to help cover both upfront pre—publication expenses and royalties to authors when applicable. In some cases, the Foundation may subsidize publication costs to keep retail prices affordable.