Dijon Butler and Elder J. Humpty Dumpty

Last night I listened to this Ward Radio episode with Dave Butler:

Butler has some ingenious readings of the Bible and Book of Mormon, some more plausible than others. The host, Cardon Ellis, is someone who didn’t make a great first impression when I first encountered him, but recently he’s becoming increasingly based.

Near the end, Dave Butler says;

We have neglected the Book of Mormon, and we do it lots of ways, by not reading it, by not preaching with it, okay? I would love to see us stop quoting the thoughts of Elder J. Humpty Dumpty on every subject and just read the Book of Mormon instead.

To Mormons, “Elder J. Humpty Dumpty,” though a novel expression invented on the spot by Butler, is immediately understandable as a dismissive reference to the stereotypical “general authority” (high-ranking church leader): a stodgy, self-important, bald old man who uses an initial. I’m not sure how it started (perhaps with the need to distinguish the Prophet’s nephew Joseph F. Smith from his illustrious predecessor), but initials are de rigueur for GAs. Referring to “Russell Nelson” or “Dallin Oaks” without the initial will be perceived as slightly disrespectful and will mark one as a “blue shirt” Mormon.

First initial plus middle name is a particularly iconic pattern, and recasting any name in that form will give it a GA aura. When I was a missionary, it was a running joke to quote rock and roll lyrics in a solemn tone of voice and attribute them to Elder J. Douglas Morrison, Elder D. Patrick MacManus, etc.

After listening to the podcast, I was sufficiently intrigued to look up Butler’s book In the Language of Adam. I was surprised to discover that, though he seems to go by Dave in real life, he had published it as D. John Butler. Given the Humpty Dumpty comment, I have to think this use of his “GA name” was deliberate, the author’s little private joke.

D. John sounds very similar to the way many Americans pronounce Dijon, a city in France but for Americans primarily a variety of mustard, one made with wine rather than vinegar. Butler comes from the same root as bottle and originally referred to the person in charge of a household’s wine.

William Wright’s August 1 post “Faith as a bottle of mustard” has bottle in the title, emphasizes the use of wine in the mustard-making process, and has a lot to say about the city of Dijon.