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Book Review: A Case for the Book of Mormon

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Available from the FairMormon Bookstore

[A interview of the author can be found here.]

Tad Callister is an emeritus member of the Seventy and was the Sunday School General President until his release in the recent April General Conference. He has previously written books on the atonement and the apostasy. He has degrees in accounting and tax law and was a lawyer professionally. He is scheduled to speak at the 2019 FairMormon Conference in August.

This book presents both a spiritual and intellectual case for the Book of Mormon, drawing on previously published and unpublished books and talks by the author. In fact, the last chapter (which is a summary of the book) is a slightly modified version of his October, 2017 General Conference talk, “God’s Compelling Witness: The Book of Mormon,” and chapter two is from a talk he gave at a BYU Devotional on November 1, 2016, “The Book of Mormon: Man-Made or God-Given?” Much of the research cited is from FairMormon, Book of Mormon Central, and FARMS (now the Neal A. Maxwell Institute), along with classic scholarship from B. H. Roberts, Richard Lloyd Anderson, and Hugh Nibley.

The book has five parts, starting with an introduction stating that the Book of Mormon must be either true or false, a divine work or a fraud, and explaining why. And we are reminded why all this is important, with a quote from Anglican theologian, Austin Farrer: “Though argument does not create conviction, lack of it destroys belief. What seems to be proved may not be embraced; but what no one shows the ability to defend is quickly abandoned. Rational argument does not create belief, but it maintains a climate in which belief may flourish” (page 9). [Read more…] about Book Review: A Case for the Book of Mormon

Book Review: The Joseph Smith Papers Documents, Volume 8: February-November 1841

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Available from the FairMormon Bookstore

This volume consists of 544 pages (including the usual introductions, reference material, and index) but covers only ten months of 1841. My first impression from reading the volume introduction was that a lot of things happened during that time, and yet this volume is being said to cover a relatively quiet period, before things really get busy. Indeed there are seven more volumes to come in the Documents series, which will presumably cover the rest of 1841 through mid 1844.

During this time, Nauvoo was growing, with revelations having just been received about building the temple and the Nauvoo House, and the Saints were being gathered. Some of the important documents included relate to the Nauvoo City Council and Nauvoo Legion, land and financial transactions, Orson Hyde’s trip to Jerusalem, three revelations, and fifteen sermons given by Joseph Smith. The following are some examples. [Read more…] about Book Review: The Joseph Smith Papers Documents, Volume 8: February-November 1841

FairMormon Conference Podcast #27 – Taunalyn Rutherford, “‘For We Shall See Him as He Is’: Understanding Mormon Women in India”

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This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. Please join us for the 2019 FairMormon Conference coming up August 7-9! You can attend in person or purchase the video streaming.

Taunalyn Rutherford, “For We Shall See Him as He Is”: Understanding Mormon Women in India

Transcript available here.

Taunalyn Ford Rutherford was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. She earned a BA in History and an MA in Humanities from Brigham Young University and served an LDS mission in Stockholm Sweden. Recently she received her PhD in History of Religion at Claremont Graduate University. Her dissertation and her current book project focus on the growth of Mormonism in India. Her work has been published in academic journals and books, but her favorite works are her five children co-authored by her husband Jim Rutherford. She currently resides in Draper, Utah, and is an adjunct professor of religion at BYU.

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.

A Tale of Two Sealings (The Kinshasa DR Congo Temple: A Personal Perspective, Part 5)

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Jocy and Athanase Ngandu

Description of the Series

Over the next several weeks, we will trace the temple’s history from its announcement to the completion of the temple building. And from its completion as a sacred building to its dedication and use as a House of the Lord by the Latter-day Saints in this choice part of the world.

Those interested in a more details about the Church in the DR Congo and its new temple may consult or download an in-depth history that is posted at the Southeast Africa Area website:

Many of the video supplements in this series will complement and personalize the written history and the main feature for a given week: early members will tell fascinating stories of the challenges and blessings of the coming of the Church to the country, some will talk about their roles in temple construction and operation, and others will describe how having a temple in Kinshasa will bless their lives.

This Episode

Main Feature

5: A Tale of Two Sealings (English, 9:35)

In this episode, we trace the unusual courtship of Athanase Ngandu and Jocy Katukumbani and the extraordinary conversion story of Athanase’s parents Souzane BIDILUFIKA and Paul KASONGA — both stories culminating in temple sealings.

Video supplements with more details about the stories included in “A Tale of Two Sealings”

5A: I Was Introduced to My Wife During My Mission (French only, 11:38)

A firsthand account of the unusual courtship and sealing of Athanase and Jocy Ngandu. They were married the day after she completed her mission.

5B: An Accident, a Vision, and a Dream (Tshiluba and French with English subtitles, 5:54)

Paul KASONGA describes how he miraculously survived a train accident, while losing both his legs. During the accident, Jesus Christ appeared to him and made him three promises. He describes the fulfillment of these promises in video supplement 5C. He also tells of how a nurse found where he was staying through an address revealed to her in a dream.

5C: The Name of the True Church (Tshiluba and French with English subtitles, 4:24)

Paul KASONGA tells about the fulfillment of the three promises he was given in vision during his train accident, including the inspiration that led him to discover the Church of Jesus Christ.

5D: A Non-Member Called as Relief Society President (Tshiluba and French with English subtitles, 3:06)

Souzane BIDILUFIKA tells of how she was called to be Relief Society President before she was baptized.

FairMormon Conference Podcast #26 – Matt McBride, “Women of the Global Church: Stories on history.lds.org”

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This podcast series features past FairMormon Conference presentations. This episode is a presentation from our 2018 conference.

Matt McBride, Women of the Global Church: Stories on history.lds.org

Transcript available here.

Matthew McBride is the web content manager for the Church History Department and a graduate student in American history at the University of Utah. He is the author of A House for the Most High: The Story of the Original Nauvoo Temple and coeditor of Revelations in Context: The Stories behind the Sections of the Doctrine and Covenants. Matthew has also published in the Ensign and the Journal of Mormon History. He lives in American Fork, Utah, with his wife Mary and their four 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.

Book Review: The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, Maxwell Institute Study Edition

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Available in the FairMormon Bookstore

I’ve been reading and collecting the Book of Mormon my entire life in one form or another, from the illustrated “Book of Mormon for Beginning Readers” (or whatever it was called in the 1970s) to the official blue copy I handed out as a missionary, to Royal Skousen’s “Earliest Text.” I’ve also collected books written about the Book of Mormon, including much of Skousen’s Critical Text Project. I’ve appreciated being able to learn about the book and read it in these various formats particularly because I don’t usually like reading the same book more than once. This book edited by Grant Hardy gives a fresh new way to read it again, taking the official 2013 text and reformatting it to make for easier reading as well as to more easily identify various aspects, and also adding footnotes and other markers to point out changes gleaned from Skousen’s work, internal consistencies, and other interesting tidbits.

The book begins with the introduction from the 1981 edition “with minor modifications in 2013 (and the substitution of people for men in the third and next-to-last paragraphs),” (page vii) and then has the usual testimonies of three and eight witnesses, but then it also has the testimony of Emma Smith, taken from an interview by Joseph Smith III in 1879. In this, she mentions that Joseph did not have any manuscripts or books, what the plates felt like, that he did it “sitting with his face buried in his hat, with the [seer] stone in it,” (page ix) and that she did not believe her husband capable of composing it by himself.

This is followed by the Testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and Brief Explanation about the Book of Mormon, as you would find in a regular edition, although the Brief Explanation has an explanatory phrase inserted about the Plates of Ether. Then there is a Brief History of the Text, which is used as the editor’s introduction. In this, Hardy recounts the translation, printing, and subsequent editing and printing of the second edition. [Read more…] about Book Review: The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, Maxwell Institute Study Edition

Faith is Not Blind – Interview with Elder and Sister Hafen

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Podcast: Download (39.2MB)

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Faith is Not Blind is a book by Elder Bruce C. and Sister Marie Hafen and published by Deseret Book. This book addresses the many ways that individuals encounter the challenges to developing faith or the language of testimony. In preparing to serve missions, while on a mission, or when someone returns from missionary service, we all encounter stages of faith progression. But how do we manage those experiences in such a way to come out the other side with greater faith?

In this book, and with this interview, Elder and Sister Hafen discuss their mission, temple, and personal experiences dealing with difficult issues about how to travel the trials of faith, the challenges of life, and develop a stronger relationship with God as a result. This podcast comes courtesy of Latter-day Saint MissionCast, and carries a missionary slant to the content.

To purchase a copy of Faith is Not Blind, by Elder and Sister Hafen, click here. Purchase the Audio CD click here.

Happy Easter from the DR Congo (The Kinshasa DR Congo Temple: A Personal Perspective, Part 3)

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Rodrigue Kabuya Kabamba

Description of the Series

Over the next several weeks, we will trace the temple’s history from its announcement to the completion of the temple building. And from its completion as a sacred building to its dedication and use as a House of the Lord by the Latter-day Saints in this choice part of the world.

Those interested in a more details about the Church in the DR Congo and its new temple may consult or download an in-depth history that is posted at the Southeast Africa Area website:

Many of the video supplements in this series will complement and personalize the written history: early members will tell fascinating stories of the challenges and blessings of the coming of the Church to the country, some will talk about their roles in temple construction and operation, and others will describe how having a temple in Kinshasa will bless their lives.

This Episode

While working on a recent project, I asked Rodrigue Kabuya Kabamba, a member of the Church in Kinshasa, DR Congo, to help me on some graphic designs. This isn’t the first time he has bailed me and others out — his work has been an important part of several other Church projects during the last few years, including his handsome designs for several visual concepts — large and small — that were needed for the open house and dedication events of the new Kinshasa DR Congo Temple. Nearly all of this time-consuming work has been done cheerfully at no cost as part of Church assignments.

Recently, as he copied the graphics he created for me from his laptop to mine, he included some of his video projects, including a short video he had created for Africa Southeast Area Public Affairs in 2017. It contained a delightful montage of Congolese children describing what Easter meant to them. After seeing it, I asked if he would mind if I asked permission from the Area Public Affairs to add English subtitles, a new and include it as part of a blog post.

With the kind permission of the Africa Southeast Area Public Affairs team, I am posting Rodrigue’s touching video, along with another short extracted from an oral history where he explains his perspective on visual communication and shares his testimony.

Main Feature

Happy Easter from the DR Congo! (French with English subtitles)

Video Supplements

03A: Testimony of Visual Artist from the DR Congo (French with English subtitles)

A Look at the Church’s Change of Policy on Same-Sex Couples and their Children

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Members of the Church and interested outsiders have noted that the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ recently announced a change of its policy regarding same-sex behavior and the blessing or baptism by custodial parents in same-sex relationships.[1]

Such changes in policy are not unexpected. As President Boyd K. Packer taught:

Procedures, programs, the administrative policies, even some patterns of organization are subject to change. The First Presidency are quite free, indeed quite obliged, to alter them from time to time. But the principles, the doctrines, never change. If we overemphasize programs and procedures that can change, and will change, and must change, and do not understand the fundamental principles of the gospel, which never change, we can be misled.[2]

Many sincere members of the Church struggled with the previous policy. For them and many others, we should understand this change as removing a heavy burden, for which we can rejoice.[3]

Some are asking about the First Presidency “flip-flopping.” Tied with this concern is the fact that President Russell M. Nelson (then President of the Quorum of the Twelve) said of the earlier policy: [Read more…] about A Look at the Church’s Change of Policy on Same-Sex Couples and their Children