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2022 FAIR Conference videos are now available to watch!

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Defamation Down Under: Responding to the Aussie Allegations

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by Paul W. Hess

In late October 2022, a writer named Ben Schneiders published an article in The Sydney Morning Herald, followed by a 60 Minutes Australia broadcast he produced one day later in a coordinated media campaign that paints a dark and accusing picture of finances in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Australia. Jana Riess of the Salt Lake Tribune and RNS Religious News Service then references the Australian articles in her own piece dated October 31, 2022.  For much of the article, she appears to sound objective and open to waiting for the truth to come out, but in her heading and in the last paragraph, she seems to be fully onboard with the baseless Aussie allegations. Others, like KUER, Axios, and Fox-13, are now passing along the same claims as objective “findings,” along with similar claims relating to church donations in Canada. Questions are raised about the Church’s “morality” since even the Canadian reporter interviewed on KUER acknowledged there is no evidence that any tax laws have been violated. [Read more…] about Defamation Down Under: Responding to the Aussie Allegations

Come, Follow Me Week 45 – Daniel 1–6

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Keep the Commandments of God Regardless of the Consequences

by Maddie Barzee

“Keep on the covenant path” was President Russell M. Nelson’s first message to the Church after he was sustained as the prophet, and it has been his continued anthem ever since.1 In the short term, it may feel difficult to fully obey the commandments and keep our covenants, but in the long run we will be blessed both spiritually and physically by obeying the word of God. This principle of obedience is prevalent in the Book of Daniel. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 45 – Daniel 1–6

Come, Follow Me Week 44 – Ezekiel 1–3; 33–34; 36–37; 47

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True Prophets Call Us to Repentance

by Daniel Ortner

Ezekiel’s Prophetic Call to Cry Repentance

Chapters 1 and 2 of the Book of Ezekiel feature Ezekiel’s prophetic call. Just like the prophet Isaiah and Ezekiel’s contemporaries Isaiah and Jeremiah, Ezekiel is called as part of a vision where he sees the throne of God and feels the overwhelming presence of God. From each of these calls we can learn something significant about the role of a Prophet. For instance, from Jeremiah we learned a few weeks ago how God knew Jeremiah before he was born and foreordained him to be a prophet. But from Ezekiel we learn about a prophet’s mission to people to repentance whether or not that message is popular. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 44 – Ezekiel 1–3; 33–34; 36–37; 47

President Harold B. Lee Testifies about Revelation in Book of Mormon Translation

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by Dennis B. Horne

In late 1973, only two months before he passed away, President Harold B. Lee visited Rick’s College (now BYU-Idaho), where he attended a luncheon and then gave the college devotional address. As President of Rick’s at that time, Henry B. Eyring was present with President Lee and described the events in his journal. These journal notations ended up in his biography, where they portray an unusually intense spiritual outpouring among those present. [Read more…] about President Harold B. Lee Testifies about Revelation in Book of Mormon Translation

Come, Follow Me Week 43 – Jeremiah 30–33; 36; Lamentations 1; 3

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Are There Some Things That Can’t Be Cured?

by Jennifer Roach, LMHC

Jeremiah, true to his nickname of “The Weeping Prophet,” wants to talk to us about some hard things this week. And it’s a little uncomfortable.

In my day-job as a mental health therapist I sit with people in pain every week. They’re tired of their pain and therapy is a great place to start. And as a society we’ve done better in recent years at giving people the message that sometimes really bad things happen to them that are not their fault. And it’s true. But both modern-therapy, and the prophet Jeremiah, know that we can’t stop there. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 43 – Jeremiah 30–33; 36; Lamentations 1; 3

Come, Follow Me Week 42 – Jeremiah 1–3; 7; 16–18; 20

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by Christopher D. Cunningham

The motivational speaker Wayne Dwyer popularized a story about two babies in a mother’s womb.

While chatting, one asked the other if they believed in life after birth.

The second one said they did, and they were likely preparing for something greater later on.

But the first didn’t agree, it seemed like nonsense. What would that life look like?

The second suggested that perhaps they would eat with their mouths and walk with their feet. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 42 – Jeremiah 1–3; 7; 16–18; 20

Come, Follow Me Week 41 – Isaiah 58-66

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Isaiah and  Approaching God on the Day of Atonement

By Kerry Muhlestein

This week is the celebration of Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement. It takes place from sundown on Tuesday, October 4th, until sundown on Wednesday, October 5th. It is the holiest celebration in all the festivals the Lord commanded Israel to observe. You can read about it in Leviticus 16. This is the day where sacrifices were made to cleanse the tabernacle, everything in it, and all of Israel. One goat was sacrificed, and another had the sins of Israel symbolically transferred to it, and then that (scape)goat was driven into the wilderness. After these rituals and more, the high priest, representing all of Israel, could enter into the Holy of Holies and symbolically be reunited with the presence of God. This once-a-year ritual was the most significant event in the year. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 41 – Isaiah 58-66

FAIR’s Countdown to Conference – 1 Day!

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General Conference starts tomorrow! It will be held October 1-2, and will have morning and afternoon sessions on Saturday and Sunday, along with an evening session for everyone on Saturday. More information is available here.

In preparation, we are doing a daily countdown with posts from different people explaining how they feel about General Conference, how they prepare, tips for getting the most out of it, how to deal with associated social media posts, etc.

Download FAIR’s General Conference workbook here!

We are going to end our countdown the same way we started, with a video from Jennifer Roach about listening for your own revelation during General Conference:

 

Jennifer Roach earned a Master of Divinity from The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology, and a Master of Counseling from Argosy University. Before her conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints she was an ordained minister in the Anglican church. Her own experience of sexual abuse from a pastor during her teen years led her to care deeply about issues of abuse in faith communities.

FAIR’s Countdown to Conference – 2 Days!

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General Conference is now just 2 days away! It will be held October 1-2, and will have morning and afternoon sessions on Saturday and Sunday, along with an evening session for everyone on Saturday. More information is available here.

In preparation, we are doing a daily countdown with posts from different people explaining how they feel about General Conference, how they prepare, tips for getting the most out of it, how to deal with associated social media posts, etc.

Musings on General Conference

by Trevor Holyoak

My earliest memories of General Conference are of me and my siblings playing with Legos while our parents tried to watch (and listen) in the same room. I knew it was our church leaders and prophet speaking, but to me it was just an opportunity to not have to go to church in person. As I got older, I paid a little more attention – particularly when my dad would take me to the stake center to watch the Priesthood session, and the times I took a date to Temple Square to watch it – but I didn’t start fully appreciating it until my mission. As a missionary, I fell in love with General Conference. I watched all the sessions all the way through for the first time in my life. Part of it may be that I realized how special this was for the members I watched it with – they spent the entire day at the church, and had a picnic together between sessions – but I think it was the first time I realized just what it was that I was watching: that these leaders were called of God to lead His church, and they were telling us what we needed to hear at that moment. [Read more…] about FAIR’s Countdown to Conference – 2 Days!