Clearly, testimony plays a central role in Mormonism. Does it play an epistemic role? And if so, what is it? Is this role justified? This paper will argue that the primary role for testimony in Mormonism is deference to the testimonies of the Church leadership. I will argue that this role for testimony in religious belief is not justified from a philosophical point of view. To make my case I will give a brief tour of some recent work in the epistemology of testimony.

R. Dennis Potter