M. Scott Bradshaw

Scott Bradshaw is an attorney and an author who lives in Europe. Bradshaw has a gift for finding fresh perspectives on old topics and for unearthing new material. His writing is meticulously documented and cites recognized scholars, foreign-language materials, rare books, and primary sources.

Since 2014, Bradshaw has been studying Eastern Orthodoxy, with a focus on Russian Orthodoxy. One of the main goals of his project was to identify topics for respectful, faith-enriching dialog between the leaders, hierarchs, clerics, scholars, and rank-and-file faithful of both churches.

Equipped with a nose for research, fluent Russian and a bit of Church Slavonic, Bradshaw hardly left any stone untouched in pursuit of this aim. His research led him to Orthodox bookstores and libraries, including digital collections of rare materials; remote monasteries in Russia; archives where he studied liturgical calendars from centuries past; and even to Rome, where he visited the burial spot of St. Cyril who, with his brother St. Methodius, created the first written Slavic language and alphabet (ninth century AD).

After logging over 2,500 hours on this project, Bradshaw published his research in 2019, under the title of "Unexpected Parallels: Eastern Orthodoxy and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." The book was updated in April 2020 and is available on Amazon.

Bradshaw’s book identifies a wide range of parallels and similarities in the teachings and experiences of the two churches and their respective leaders and saints. The book "Unexpected Parallels" also explores the life stories (hagiography) of numerous Orthodox saints, finding in their lives the fulfillment of prophetic scripture contained in revelations received by the Prophet Joseph Smith (1823-1844) as recorded in The Doctrine and Covenants (“D&C”). These verses of holy scripture include D&C sections 49:8; 113:10; and 133:26.

Bradshaw has been hailed as a “pioneer” for his research on Eastern Orthodoxy. In a 2016 article based on Bradshaw’s early material, Russian author Sergei Antonenko praised him in these terms:

"Among Mormons there are outstanding specialists in Russian literature and music, but until recent times, hardly any religious studies dedicated to Russian Orthodoxy have emerged among Latter-day Saints. Today, we introduce for our readers one of the pioneers of works in this area, Scott Bradshaw. The theme of his research is parallels and “correlations” (as he himself calls them) between the spiritual heritage of Orthodox saints and Mormon prophetic revelation."

Bradshaw and his wife, Brenda, live in Europe.