I lived in Simi Valley when my wife and I joined the church. My cousin in Phoenix gave me a copy of a tape by Br. Erickson.  I was fascinated and found out how to contact him.  I was a councilor in the Elders Quorum and our president authorized me to set it up.  Br. Erickson flew down in his own plane and stayed at our home.  He spoke to our Stake Saturday and in our ward on Sunday.  One of our Seventies received permission to tape it.  Mike O'Keefe taped him after that whenever he was close enough and as a result of his work, became an accepted "taper" when Church authorities visited.  He sent over 5,000 (the last I heard) copies of Br. Erickson's lectures all over the country and overseas.

We so enjoyed having him visit.  Our oldest son was about 2 at the time and Br. Erickson had a son about the same age at the time, as I recall.  This would have been about 1975 or 1976.  As a result of the tapes going all over, he began speaking more often, or so it seemed.  He once credited me for that but he was just being gracious.  I invited him to speak and he knocked their socks off.  And I really don't know that he was any busier than he had previously been.  But I was thrilled to look him up on line and see that he was so well read.  Great guy.

After sending my previous email, I went to look at the home page and I read the section on tapes. I was thrilled to see that the taping in Simi Valley was indeed a significant event.

I stumbled onto a cassett tape many years ago in a flea market while living in Los Lunas, New Mexico. I had an interest in Dead Sea Scrolls since hearing Hugh Nibley lecture at Utah State University when I first entered college in 1957. This tape popped out at me from a stack of many.  I had not previously heard of Einar Erickson, but after just one hearing of that tape, I started watching for more of his materials, watching for other books, and talked with an LDS archeologist about what Erickson was discussing.

That original tape has been heard by all of my immediate family and others with whom I shared relationships.  I've personally listened to that tape about 15 times and now find that it is beginning to loose audio quality.  The case and labels have all disintegrated by now but I know the cassette tape by it's gray color.  I'm truly grateful that someone decided to work with Dr. Erickson to get recordings of his lectures.  Just this one tape has opened an entire new world of ancient manuscripts and other sacred writings that I never even dreamed of.  Dr. Erickson absolutely ignited a fire under me.

I am so excited to find this website, I had searched for Dr. Einar Erickson on the web several years ago hoping to find a way to purchase some of his tapes that I had worn out. I have listened to them so many times and I truly learned to think in the vocabulary of his research...

This is a short and probably silly story but recently my daughter was speaking to a man that she met on an LDS singles site and he truly looked interesting. However after much prayer and thought... several spiritual communications that ranged from positives to absolute no's, I was sitting on my couch praying about the matter (she had not met him in person yet). All of a sudden the thought presented itself to my mind that he was a 'son of belial'. A throwback to Dr. Erickson's tapes. Once I heard that answer, the discussion was pretty much finished. I related this revelation to my 22 year old son who asked what is a son of belial... he has never had the privelege of hearing Dr. Erickson. So this prompted me to do a search on the internet.

I love Dr. Erickson's voice, his enthusiasm, and his testimony. I look forward to sharing these things with my children who were quite young when I used to listen to his tapes. I learned enough from Dr. Erickson that we must certainly avoid 'the sons of belial'... (yeah, that's supposed to be humorous).

Bro. Erickson perhaps might remember the Judkins family who lived next door on Sunnyside Lane in the Jensen subdivision in Orem - he bought a Lincoln from my father.  Bro. Erickson befriended and mentored me when I was 12 years of age, insipring me to a life of the mind as well as of the spirit... starting by registering me for a home study course at BYU at that unlikely age.  On my bookself at home I still have the two geology books he gave me at that time.  I graduated from BYU and completed a doctorate at Cornell University, and am now an anthropology professor (Iroquois studies) at SUNY Geneseo in western NY, a high counselor (and past Branch President) in the Rochester NY Stake, married to childhood sweetheart from Orem (a professional midwife with a large hospital-based OB practice) and father of seven amazing & wonderful sons.  Much of my ability to overcome parental divorce and having been on my own since age 15 has to do with Bro. Erickson's inspired concern and mentoring - and being, most truly, a "good neighbor," as well as my life-long model and ideal.  Thanks, continuing admiration & gratitude... and love, across the years and the miles.  Best wishes always, Russ Judkins

I had a number of Dr. Erickson's tapes while on my mission.  I (with approval of the mission president) would listen to them over and over. They have had a profound influence in my life.  I have lost them over the years and some just wore out.  I am so glad that you are sharing this information online.  It strengthened my testimony and helped me become a stronger member of the church.

As a newly baptized member of the church in 1978, I was hungry to learn more about the church and church doctrine. My grandparents had been given copies of lectures that Brother Erickson had given on the Dead Sea Scrolls. I used to listen to them often. I was recently listening to one of the tapes and decided to look up Brother Erickson's name on the internet. Please pass on my sincere gratitude to him for having stimulated my lifelong study of the scriptures and these ancient texts.