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Trevor Holyoak

Some 2018 FairMormon Conference Transcripts Now Available

October 8, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

Our volunteers have been very busy transcribing the presentations from the conference held in August. The following transcripts are now available:

  • Taunalyn Rutherford, “For We Shall See Him as He Is”: Understanding Mormon Women in India
  • Brad Wilcox, “Have You Been Saved By Grace?” How Do We Respond?
  • Randall Spackman, Chronological Structure and Symbolism in the Small Plates of Nephi (a handout is also available)
  • Elder Kevin W. Pearson, A Sacred and Imperative Duty
  • Daniel Peterson, Apologetics: What, Why and How?

The transcripts for the remaining presentations will be posted here when they are available.

You can also still order the video streaming so you can watch the presentations on your computer, mobile device, or Roku.

Filed Under: Anti-Mormon critics, Apologetics, Book of Mormon, Doctrine, FAIR Conference, LDS Culture, Marriage, News from FAIR, Questions, Resources, Testimonies, Women

FairMormon Conference Podcast #15 – Scott Gordon, “Mormon Temples and Freemasonry”

October 2, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

https://media.blubrry.com/mormonfaircast/www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Scott-Gordon.mp3

Podcast: Download (84.9MB)

Subscribe: RSS

This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. This episode is a presentation from 2017. If you would like to watch the presentations from the conference we had earlier this year, you can still purchase video streaming.

Scott Gordon, Mormon Temples and Freemasonry

Transcript available here.

Scott Gordon is president of FairMormon and as such has been a writer of several articles and a speaker at firesides. He has a master’s degree in Business Administration from Brigham Young University with a bachelor’s in Organizational Communication. He has held many Church callings, including Bishop, and currently serves as the Ward Mission Leader. He is married to Sheri Farnsworth Gordon and has five children.

Audio and Video Copyright © 2017 The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, Inc. Any reproduction or transcription of this material without prior express written permission is prohibited.

Filed Under: Anti-Mormon critics, Bible, Book of Mormon, FAIR Conference, FairMormon Conference, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Masonry, Podcast, Prophets, Temples

Book Review: Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days, Volume 1: The Standard of Truth 1815-1846

September 17, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

Available from the FairMormon bookstore

One of the tactics that critics have used recently to try to destroy faith is to describe a lesser known event in church history in a way that is intended to shock the reader. By sensationalizing and removing it from its context, and often even misrepresenting what actually happened, the victim is left feeling betrayed by the Church, thinking they have been lied to or that the Church has been hiding or whitewashing its history. Sadly, much of this history has been available (though perhaps not readily accessible), but not emphasized in the curriculum that is taught, requiring independent study, which has not been happening as much in recent generations.

The Church has recognized this problem and is producing a solution. The first volume of a projected four-volume series has now been published in 14 languages and is available in paperback and e-book, as well as online text and audiobook formats. It is written in an easy to understand style, which although entirely factual, draws you in like a novel. This was done intentionally by having literary writers on the project, not just historians. For those who want more information, there are extensive footnotes that point you to online resources, including both in-depth essays and videos, as well as original documents from the Joseph Smith Papers.

The book begins with a message from the First Presidency and a preface explaining the purpose of the series. The body of the book continues, contained in four parts, which are broken up by historic periods. There are also maps, but no other illustrations beyond the small ornaments at the head of each chapter. The back of the book has Notes, a Note on Sources, Sources Cited, Acknowledgements, and a fairly good 15-page Index.

The first volume covers the period preceding the First Vision up to two years after the death of Joseph Smith, when the Saints were able to receive the endowment in the Nauvoo Temple. It covers nearly every criticism and puts them in their proper context, where they can be more easily understood. It concentrates on telling stories of the actual men and women involved, rather than just the institutional church, as previous official histories produced by the Church have done. The result is a detailed history of the Church that includes the sensitive issues while building faith, which already has some critics worried that their work will become irrelevant.

An example is the story of how the Word of Wisdom was received: [Read more…] about Book Review: Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days, Volume 1: The Standard of Truth 1815-1846

Filed Under: Anti-Mormon critics, Book of Mormon, Book reviews, First Vision, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Masonry, Polygamy, Temples

FairMormon Conference Podcast #14 – Special Episode on Saints #2 of 2 – Steve Harper, “Making Saints: A Look into the Writing of the New Church History”

September 1, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

https://media.blubrry.com/mormonfaircast/www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Steve-Harper.mp3

Podcast: Download (47.3MB)

Subscribe: RSS

This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. This is a special episode that contains the second of two presentations given at our conference earlier this month about the new book series being published by the Church, Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days. The first volume will be released on Tuesday, September 4. (If you would like to watch the video of this and the other presentations from the 2018 conference, you can still purchase video streaming.)

More information about Saints is available in the April 2018 Newsroom story and at saints.lds.org. A review will be posted here after the book is released.

Steve Harper, Making Saints: A Look into the Writing of the New Church History

Steven C. Harper is a historian for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who has served as an editor of The Joseph Smith Papers, working on volumes in the Documents series and the Revelations and Translations series. He taught religion at BYU from 2002 to 2012 and religion and history at BYU–Hawaii from 2000 to 2001. He earned his PhD in early American history from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He is the author of Joseph Smith’s First Vision: A Guide to the Historical Accounts (2012), Making Sense of the Doctrine and Covenants (2008), and Promised Land: Penn’s Holy Experiment, the Walking Purchase, and the Dispossession of Delawares 1600–1763 (2006), as well as multiple published articles on early Mormonism and the early American republic. Two of these were awarded the T. Edgar Lyon and Juanita Brooks awards by the Mormon History Association.

Audio Copyright © 2018 The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, Inc. Any reproduction or transcription of this material without prior express written permission is prohibited.

Filed Under: FAIR Conference, FairMormon Conference, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Podcast, Polygamy, Prophets

FairMormon Conference Podcast #13 – Special Episode on Saints #1 of 2 – Scott Hales, “Women’s Stories in Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days”

August 29, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

https://media.blubrry.com/mormonfaircast/www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Scott-Hales.mp3

Podcast: Download (48.7MB)

Subscribe: RSS

This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. This is a special episode that contains the first of two presentations given at our conference earlier this month about the new series being published by the Church, Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days, the first volume of which will be released on Tuesday, September 4. (If you would like to watch the video of this and the other presentations from the 2018 conference, you can still purchase video streaming.)

More information about Saints is available in the April 2018 Newsroom story and at saints.lds.org.

Scott Hales, Women’s Stories in Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days

Scott A. Hales has been a historian/writer for the Church History Department since 2015. He currently works as a writer and story editor for Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days, the new four-volume narrative history of the Church. He has a BA in English from Brigham Young University and an MA and PhD in American Literature from the University of Cincinnati. He has published scholarly articles on Mormon and American literature in several academic journals, including Religion and the Arts and The Journal of Transnational American Studies. He currently lives in Eagle Mountain, UT with his wife and five children.

Audio Copyright © 2018 The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, Inc. Any reproduction or transcription of this material without prior express written permission is prohibited.

 

Filed Under: FAIR Conference, FairMormon Conference, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Podcast, Women

Book Review: 1,001 Facts About the Prophet Joseph Smith

August 27, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

Available at a discount from the FairMormon bookstore

This is a short (151 pages) paperback book that contains 1,001 numbered paragraphs that chronologically narrate the life of Joseph Smith, essentially constituting a simple biography. “One of the main goals of this book is to tell the real story, while making it simple to read and understand. 1,001 Facts about the Prophet Joseph Smith is a history book for this generation. The entire book can be read in one sitting, or readers can jump around to different moments in the prophet’s life and learn about their favorite and the more fascinating events” (page 2). The author also intends the book to combat the anti-Mormon propaganda being spread on the Internet.

Here are several examples from the book that I thought were of interest: [Read more…] about Book Review: 1,001 Facts About the Prophet Joseph Smith

Filed Under: Apologetics, Bible, Book of Abraham, Book of Mormon, Book reviews, Conversion, Doctrine, First Vision, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Masonry, Politics, Polygamy, Prophets, Temples, Women

FairMormon Conference Podcast #12 – Scott Petersen, “Jesus Christ, the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever: A Restoration of Primitive Christianity”

August 14, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

https://media.blubrry.com/mormonfaircast/www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Scott-Peterson.mp3

Podcast: Download (83.2MB)

Subscribe: RSS

This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. This episode is a presentation from 2017. If you would like to watch the presentations from the conference we had earlier this month, you can still purchase video streaming.

Scott Petersen, Jesus Christ, the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever: A Restoration of Primitive Christianity

Transcript available here.

Scott is the Executive Director of the Rollins Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology at BYU. Under his leadership the program has been ranked in the top five of all collegiate entrepreneurship programs for each of the past seven years, ranking #2 in 2016. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Omadi, Inc., a venture backed SaaS mobile CRM platform for workforce management, serving the towing/transportation markets. Scott is a long time entrepreneur having co-founded or partnered in building seven companies (harvesting four), including several current ventures. Additionally, he serves on several business and private foundation boards. In 2005, Scott published a significant work, titled Where Have All The Prophets Gone?, a historical, theological book on early Christianity using the Bible, the Pseudepigrapha, the Apocrypha, the Dead Seas Scrolls, the Nag Hammadi Library, and all of the extant early Christian writings. In 2014 Scott published his second book, Do the Mormons Have a Leg to Stand On?: a Critical Look at LDS Doctrines in the Light of the Bible and the Teachings of the Early Christian Church. Scott and his wife Marilyn are the parents of 5 married children and they have 15 grandchildren. Scott serves as Stake President of the Provo Utah YSA 4th Stake.

Audio and Video Copyright © 2017 The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, Inc. Any reproduction or transcription of this material without prior express written permission is prohibited.

Filed Under: Apologetics, Apostasy, Bible, Book of Mormon, Dead Sea Scrolls, Early Christianity, FAIR Conference, FairMormon Conference, Faith Crisis, Homosexuality, Joseph Smith, LDS History, Media, Podcast, Prophets, Science

The 2018 FairMormon Conference in Review

August 8, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

We had another great conference last week (it was our 20th!). This time it ran for 3 days. Some of the topics covered were lesser-known women’s stories in church history, the Gospel Topics Essays, stories of members of the church in India and Africa, the new Saints church history series coming out from the church, grace, the Book of Abraham, homosexuality, horses in the Book of Mormon, and how to help people having a faith crisis. We also had a general authority speak for the first time. Elder Kevin W. Pearson spoke about the good that FairMormon and other organizations are doing to help correct misunderstandings about the church, and that more voices are needed in the effort. Awards were given to Scott Gordon, Louis Midgley, and Michael Hickenbotham for their service, and a painting of “Mary Whitmer and Moroni” in honor of Lynne Hilton Wilson was unveiled.

Each day, one presentation was live-streamed free on Facebook, where you can still watch the recordings. You can also watch them here:

  • Jenny Reeder: “Fire In My Bones”: Women’s Stories on churchhistorianspress.org
  • John Gee: Selling Our Birthright for a Mess of Pottage: The Historical Authenticity of the Book of Abraham
  • Elder Kevin W. Pearson: A Sacred and Imperative Duty

It’s not too late to purchase the streaming and watch the videos of the entire conference. After purchase, they will be available to view on any device with a web browser, as well as on a Roku box. You can buy it here.

We have had several articles published about the conference (this section will be updated as more appear):

  • Church News: FairMormon conference sheds light on impact women have had on the Church, why it needs to be talked about
  • Mormon Newsroom: Elder Pearson Says Independent Voices Are Needed to Sustain Faith
  • Church News: “Your Voice Matters” on Social Media to Share Truth, Clarify Beliefs, Seventy Says
  • LDS 365: Members’ Help Needed to Create Gospel Messages Online

Mike Ash, one of our volunteers who is a great photographer, has posted photos from the conference on our Facebook page.

Transcriptions of the presentations will be posted on our website after they are prepared by our volunteers.

The full conference schedule can be reviewed here.

 

Filed Under: Apologetics, Book of Abraham, FAIR Conference, Faith Crisis, News from FAIR, News stories, Women

FairMormon Conference Podcast #11 – Michael Ash, “After the Manner of Their Language: The Key to Wisdom”

July 30, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

https://media.blubrry.com/mormonfaircast/www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Michael-Ash.mp3

Podcast: Download (81.1MB)

Subscribe: RSS

This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. Please join us for the 2018 FairMormon Conference coming up August 1-3! You can attend in person or purchase the video streaming.

Michael Ash, After the Manner of Their Language: The Key to Wisdom

Transcript available here.

Michael R. Ash is the author of Shaken Faith Syndrome: Strengthening One’s Testimony in the Face of Criticism and Doubt, Of Faith Reason: 80 Evidences Supporting the Prophet Joseph Smith, as well as Bamboozled by the “CES Letter.” A former columnist for the Deseret News’ Mormon Times, he has also been a frequent contributor to the online blogs, Meridian Magazine, as well as the Mormon Hub. Mike has been published in the Ensign, Sunstone Magazine, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, in the FARMS Review, and most recently contributed a chapter to Kofford Book’s Perspectives in Mormon Theology: Apologetics. Joining FairMormon in the year 2000, Mike delivered a paper at the 2nd annual FairMormon conference and has contributed papers to seven additional conferences (including this one) since. Mike and his wife Chris live in Ogden and are the parents of three daughters and the grandparents of six grandchildren.

Audio and Video Copyright © 2017 The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, Inc. Any reproduction or transcription of this material without prior express written permission is prohibited.

Filed Under: Bible, Book of Abraham, Book of Mormon, FAIR Conference, FairMormon Conference, Faith Crisis, Joseph Smith, LDS History, LDS Scriptures, Michael R. Ash, Perspective, Podcast, Prophets, Racial Issues, Science

12 Reasons to Attend the FairMormon Conference (You Won’t Believe Number 10!)

July 19, 2018 by Trevor Holyoak

 

  1. Hear from and meet famous scholars. And not-so-famous scholars.
  2. Learn how to respond to critics in a kind but informative way.
  3. Get a front-row seat to any drama if the conference is crashed by hostile anti-Mormons and the Danites have to be called in.
  4. Hear six female scholars speak.
  5. There will be Red Vines! And possibly York Peppermint Patties.
  6. Dan. Peterson. Is. Speaking.
  7. Enjoy an accessible scholarly experience.
  8. Get the conference discount in the bookstore and get your books signed by their authors.
  9. Come hear what General Authority Seventy Elder Kevin W. Pearson has to say.
  10. See if Steven Harper or Brad Wilcox draws the most people.
  11. Strengthen your testimony.
  12. Red Vines! And Dan Peterson!

Register to attend or stream the conference today!

Filed Under: FAIR Conference

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