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Come, Follow Me Week 21 – Doctrine & Covenants 51-57

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by Hanna E. Seariac

One of the amazing elements of the Doctrine and Covenants is the way that the Lord teaches us about personal stewardship and responsibility in the scripture. Many callings are given to the saints and the faithful, where God asks them to stretch and grow to fill the capacity of their calling. While we may think about callings as a way for ourselves to grow, how often do we see them as a privilege?

We read, “And thus I grant unto this people a privilege of organizing themselves according to my laws.” (D&C 51:15). God’s commandments and covenants give us the privilege of becoming more like Him, becoming more good, becoming more loving; they compose the greatest privilege that we have in this life—to grow in the principle of perfection and love like our Savior. With that being said, my mind turns to a verse in Luke 9, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.” (Luke 9:26).

When we frame commandments and covenants as privileges that God grants to us rather than as burdens or hindrances, we can remember the words of our ancestors, “Why should we mourn or think our lot is hard?/’Tis not so, all is right/Why should we think to earn a great reward/If we now shun the fight?” This acts as a guiding principle for us when we consider how the Lord calls us. Edward Patridge was given a great calling and was told, “And whoso is found a faithful, a just, and a wise steward shall enter into the joy of his Lord, and shall inherit eternal life.” (D&C 51:19). We inherit eternal life not merely because the Lord grants it to us, but because we become the type of person who could live eternally with the Lord, who brings souls to Jesus Christ, which is the work and purpose of the Lord. The Lord’s organizational structure allows us to have stewardship in specific areas to learn how to love in the way that the Lord does. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 21 – Doctrine & Covenants 51-57

FAIR Voice #33: Dan Ellsworth on Fowler’s stages

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See his article here: https://publicsquaremag.org/faith/easter-is-reality/

Dan Ellsworth is a consultant and writer living in Charlottesville, Virginia. Dan serves on the Mormon Studies Council at the University of Virginia, and is a contributor to Interpreter and other groups dedicated to improving Latter-Day Saints’ understanding of theology and scripture.

 

 

Hanna Seariac is a MA student in Greek and Latin at Brigham Young University. She works as a research assistant on a biblical commentary and as a research assistant on early Latter-day Saint history. Her interests thematically center around sacrifice, magic, and priesthood as it pertains to ancient Judaism, early Christianity, ancient Egyptian religion, and early Restoration history.

“We Will Still Weep for Zion”:[1] War and Wealth

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Post 7 of 9

by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

For more information on the book, visit https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/

This is the seventh of nine weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed, available in softcover, hardback, digital, and audio editions. Each week our post is accompanied by interviews and insights in pdf, audio, and video formats. (See the links at the end of this post.)

The German class at Camp Ritchie, Maryland. Hugh Nibley is the second person on the left in the last row.[2]

War

In Alex Nibley’s superb documentary history of his father’s wartime years, he shares Hugh’s account of his departure from Claremont Colleges. Having enjoyed a good relationship as a professor with the university president, Hugh rued the arrival of the new pharaoh[3] after the president died: “He didn’t like Mormons. He said, ‘You know, you are not one of us.’ I could feel the tension growing, so I left. I said, well this certainly justifies me in pursuing a patriotic duty.”[4] Elsewhere Alex continues the story:[5] [Read more…] about “We Will Still Weep for Zion”:[1] War and Wealth

Come, Follow Me Week 20 – Doctrine & Covenants 49-50

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The Story Behind the Revelations: Using the Joseph Smith Papers to Better Understand the Doctrine and Covenants

by Matt Grow & Matt Godfrey

(This is from a presentation given at the 2014 FairMormon Conference)

Matthew Grow:

It’s a great privilege to speak to you today about the Joseph Smith Papers and the Doctrine and Covenants. What I want to do is to share some thoughts as to why the Joseph Smith Papers is important to answering questions and to defending the Church, and then to share some recent research which can enlighten Latter-days Saints as they seek to understand Joseph’s revelations.

First, a brief introduction to the Joseph Smith Papers. We sing in the Church that “millions shall know Brother Joseph again.” It is our hope at the Joseph Smith Papers that we have a role in helping millions upon millions to become acquainted with Joseph.

The goal of the Joseph Smith Papers is to publish – either in print or on our website – everything that is a Joseph Smith document – that is, documents that he wrote, that he dictated, that he authorized, documents that were written to him, business records, legal records, and other things. It’s a massive undertaking.

On the day the Church was organized, the Lord declared, “Behold there shall be a record kept among you.” The early Saints took that commission seriously. We’ve now published eight volumes out of a projected two dozen. The Joseph Smith Papers is a documentary editing project that’s sponsored by the Church History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as the Larry H. and Gale Miller Family Foundation. [Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 20 – Doctrine & Covenants 49-50

Kindling the Fire of Faith

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As anyone knows who has been camping, it takes a lot of work to kindle a fire and to keep it burning brightly, especially when confronted with the challenges of wind or rain. Likewise, it takes constant spiritual effort to kindle and maintain the fire of faith in the face of criticism and doubt. Just as blocking wind or rain alone cannot kindle a fire, it is impossible to kindle the fire of faith by responding to criticism and doubt alone. Elder M. Russell Ballard related an interesting story to demonstrate this point:

When I was a mission president, a fine elder came to me. I asked, ‘How can I help you?’

‘President,’ he said, ‘I think I’m losing my testimony.’

I asked him how that could be possible.

‘For the first time I have read some anti-Mormon literature,’ he said. ‘I have some questions, and nobody will answer them for me. I am confused, and I think I am losing my testimony.’

I asked him what his questions were, and he told me. They were the standard anti-Church issues, but I wanted a little time to gather materials so I could provide meaningful answers. So we set up an appointment ten days later, at which time I told him I would answer every one of his questions. As he started to leave, I stopped him. ‘Elder, you’ve asked me several questions here today,’ I said. ‘Now I have one for you.’

‘Yes, President?’

‘How long has it been since you’ve read from the Book of Mormon?’ I asked.

His eyes dropped. He looked at the floor for a while. Then he looked at me. ‘It’s been a long time, President,’ he confessed.

‘All right,’ I said. ‘You have given me my assignment. It’s only fair that I give you yours. I want you to promise me that you will read in the Book of Mormon for at least one hour every day between now and our next appointment.’ He agreed that he would do that.

Ten days later he returned to my office, and I was ready. I pulled out my papers to start answering his questions. But he stopped me.

‘President,’ he said, ‘that isn’t going to be necessary.’ Then he explained, ‘I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know Joseph Smith is a prophet of God.’

‘Well, that’s great,’ I said. ‘But you’re going to get answers to your questions anyway. I worked a long time on this, so you just sit there and listen.’

And so I answered all of those questions, and then asked, ‘Elder, what have you learned from this?’ And he said, ‘Give the Lord equal time.’

(M. Russell Ballard, How to Find Safety and Peace)

[Read more…] about Kindling the Fire of Faith

“One Peep at the Other Side”: What Did Hugh Nibley’s Near-Death Experience Teach Him about the Purpose of Life?

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Post 6 of 9

by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw

For more information on the book, visit https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/

This is the sixth of nine weekly blog posts published in honor of the life and work of Hugh Nibley (1910–2005). The series is in honor of the new, landmark book, Hugh Nibley Observed, available in softcover, hardback, digital, and audio editions. Each week our post is accompanied by interviews and insights in pdf, audio, and video formats. (See the links at the end of this post.)

Besides those who actively oppose the idea that that a loving, personal God exists in heaven, there have also always been others to whom questions of this sort never even occur. Elder Neal A. Maxwell, quoting Walter Bagehot, described such “disbelievers[, who] do not necessarily deny the great truths but are simply too preoccupied with other concerns”:[1] [Read more…] about “One Peep at the Other Side”: What Did Hugh Nibley’s Near-Death Experience Teach Him about the Purpose of Life?

A Skeptical Believer

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[Cross-posted from Mike Ash’s personal blog.]

Why my skeptical nature doesn’t thwart my faith.

It’s Who I Am

I’m a skeptic at heart. While this claim might give pause to those who are either critical of my LDS beliefs or are critical of any belief in the supernatural (such as in a God, or a hereafter), I have no other way to understand myself without including a noticeable degree of skepticism.

I wasn’t always this way. Like many (if not most) youngsters, I believed what I was told by my parents, teachers, and adults of authority. Like a number of other people, however, time proved that all people are fallible, are sometimes wrong, and don’t know everything. Maturity taught me that just because someone smart knows something about X, doesn’t necessarily mean they are also an expert on Y. [Read more…] about A Skeptical Believer

Come, Follow Me Week 19 – Doctrine & Covenants 46-48

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by Dell Blair

How is it that a dark and formless void ends up as a holy and glorious paradise? How can something so empty become completely whole? What is the recipe? And what is our personal role in bringing it about? Is there a map? If so where is the big red ‘YOU ARE HERE’ mark on it?

A thought experiment:

Consider the task of drawing a map of something that is dark, empty and formless. You are standing at the easel in your studio staring at an blank surface thinking: what lines do I start with? What information do I have to reference? How do I do this?

Any line or dot or brush stroke you make will establish a kind of form. So how do you proceed? Since the reference doesn’t look like anything, how do you represent it as something? What form can represent the idea of formlessness?

[Read more…] about Come, Follow Me Week 19 – Doctrine & Covenants 46-48

FAIR Voice Podcast #32: Mission Stories

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This week, I briefly talk about the upcoming podcast episodes on the Witnesses film before talking to Monica Moore Smith and Bryce Clark about their movie Mission Stories. Both Mission Stories and Witnesses are fantastic movies to watch with your family. In this interview, we discuss themes of the movie, such as grace and the atonement of Jesus Christ, as well as what it is like to go on a mission.

Hanna Seariac is a MA student in Greek and Latin at Brigham Young University. She works as a research assistant on a biblical commentary and as a research assistant on early Latter-day Saint history. Her interests thematically center around sacrifice, magic, and priesthood as it pertains to ancient Judaism, early Christianity, ancient Egyptian religion, and early Restoration history.

Shaken Faith Syndrome: Early to the Party, But Still Relevant

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Available from the FAIR bookstore

[Cross-posted from Mike Ash’s personal blog.]

My first book attempted to assuage the faith-crisis concerns of struggling Latter-day Saints. The work continues.

The First Step

At the risk of sounding boastful, I’ve authored three books (with a fourth on the way) and hundreds of articles (both in print and on-line) in the hopes of reinforcing and safeguarding the faith of Latter-day Saints. I don’t mention these accomplishments to brag, but rather to lament. Despite hundreds of hours researching and writing thousands of pages of material, I find that through the years, over and over again, members who struggle with their faith fall trap to the same problems I addressed a dozen years ago.

Earlier this year (2020), I received an email from someone who asked if my views expressed in my book Shaken Faith Syndrome (2008 and updated in 2013) have changed since I wrote the book. My answer was that the arguments I made in that book are virtually unchanged and that the cognitive suggestions and observations I made then, are equally applicable now.

As I’ll try to address in future articles, members today stumble over the same cognitive dilemmas (often of their own making) which sets them up for problems when they encounter faith-challenging material. As a people, we haven’t matured in our intellectual approach to gospel topics (despite the fact that even the Church had made attempts to update our thinking with articles such as those included in the Gospel Topics, essays). [Read more…] about Shaken Faith Syndrome: Early to the Party, But Still Relevant