There is a bi-directional “social contract” of sorts between individuals and the Church, not just a one-way commitment from the member to the Church. This paper asks what changes of attitude and actions of Church members are needed to restore a respectful balance of power between the individual and the Church. Francis Nelson Henderson, Sonja …
Event: Salt Lake Symposium 2005
How Much Does It Matter If The Book Of Mormon Is True?
What exactly are the consequences in assuming that the Book of Mormon is “true”? Does it matter if it is not? What are the strengths and weaknesses of arguments for a compromise? If the only real test for Book of Mormon historicity lies in the nebulous realm of spiritual authentication, how much of the discursive …
Not Just A Question Of Numbers: Defining Mormonism Yesterday And Today
In her 1985 book, Mormonism, Jan Shipps describes the movement founded by Joseph Smith as a “new religious tradition.” Since then, some have confused her ideas with Rodney Stark’s claim that Mormonism is a “new world religion” and most recently with Douglas Davies’s claim at the Library of Congress symposium on Joseph Smith that Mormonism …
Twenty-Year Reflections On The Mark Hofmann Bombings
October 2005 will mark the twentieth anniversary of the Mark Hofmann murders, a tragedy that claimed two innocent lives and that has continued to impact Mormon history, the Church’s national profile, and the world of document dealing and forensic science ever since. What has happened in the past twenty years? Where are the key players …
Telling Stories, Taking Sides, Breaking Bones, Or Saving Lives?: Personal Disclosure, Conflict, And Faith In Martha Beck’s ‘Leaving The Saints’
The publication of Martha Beck’s Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith, has generated intense controversy and conflict, not only for its treatment of Mormonism, but also regarding issues of consistency, disclosure, memory reliability, and the intersection between personal integrity and faith. This panel composed of LDS and non-LDS feminists …
Advancing Feminist Sensibilities Among Mormon Men
Why aren’t there more visible and vocal male feminist voices within the Mormon community? The all-male panel will talk about their journeys toward becoming feminists, the challenges they face in maintaining feminist sensibilities in Mormon culture, and ideas they see for encouraging other Mormon men to take more active feminist stances. Michael J. Stevens, Paul …
Joseph Smith As Egyptologist
On first blush, Joseph Smith’s interpretations of the facsimiles in the Book of Abraham appear to contradict what Egyptologists say they are and what they mean. But are they really all that wrong? A broader understanding of ancient Egyptological religion explains the contradictions quite well. Kerry A. Shirts
The 1950 Priesthood Split And Fundamentalist Mormons Today
The two largest fundamentalist Mormon communities today are the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) and the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB). They were one group until the death of their leader, John Y. Barlow, in 1949. What issues and actions caused their split? How have these events affected the two groups’ distinctly …
Is The Book Of Mormon Scripture?
This paper examines various definitions of scripture to determine if the Book of Mormon adequately fits. Do Latter-day Saints treat the Book of Mormon as scripture, a vehicle of the holy, or more like a scientific text? Franz Bibfeldt, G. St. John Stott
When Talking About God With Those Of Other Religions, Do We Mean The Same Thing?
When traditional Christians and Mormons talk about God, are they talking about the same being and disagreeing with each other, or are they merely talking past one another? This panel will explore the philosophical issue of how we can refer to God and what implications this has for interreligious discourse between Mormons and those of …