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Letter from President Bateman

For more than eighteen years, scholars and electronics experts at Brigham Young University have furnished independent support for research and publication of a growing body of LDS-related and other texts through the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS). As a result of its remarkable contributions to the preservation and publication of the Dead Sea Scrolls on CD-ROM, and the intensified requests for its scholarly and technological capabilities, FARMS saw the necessity for a subsidiary that would specialize in projects similar to the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Thus, in 1997, the Center for the Preservation of Ancient Religious Texts (CPART) was established. It is assigned to assist in the scholarly advancement and preservation of ancient religious materials not specifically connected to Mormonism. Through the Dead Sea Scrolls project and the Islamic Translation Series, CPART has won credibility and recognition internationally, and requests for its services in digitizing, preserving, and publishing ancient and other religious texts are steadily increasing. I see a bright future for CPART and for BYU as we make our expertise and services available to the world to broaden and deepen knowledge of ancient religious doctrines, cultures, languages, and histories.

Merrill J. Bateman, President
Brigham Young University