Category Archives: faith again

Discussions, faith again

Have Mormons Come to Believe in Divergent Gospels?

Orthodox and progressive Mormons are expressing the gospel differently in their private lives and the public square. This evening we will have a conversation that might just help us communicate better in the coming year.

This Faith Again event is in association with the Utah Citizen Summit, Village Square, and Living Room Conversations

Time:

Friday, January 5, 2018  |  7:30-9:30 pm

Location : 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late.

The Discussion: 

Recently, two prominent Mormons spoke in the national media. Senator Orrin Hatch was quoted as saying, “Mr. President, I have to say you’re living up to everything I thought you would. You’re one heck of a leader. We’re going to keep fighting to make this the greatest presidency we’ve seen not only in generations but maybe ever.”

The very same week, Stephenie Larsen, a founder of Encircle LGBTQ+ Resource Center in Provo, said the following in a national interview: “I grew up Mormon—learning that that’s the #1 thing that Christ wants us to do—is to love others. And so I think that when we put that first, all the other problems fall out of the way.” About the work at Encircle, she added, “People get to be who they are, and they’re honored for who they are—and I think that’s the basis of spirituality.”

While Brother Hatch’s statement is baffling (if not offensive) to many left-leaning Mormons—as well as never-Trump conservative Mormons, Sister Larsen’s statement is also baffling (if not confusing) to many right-leaning Mormons. In both cases, we might ask: Is that really in line with what Jesus taught or would teach today?

That’s a hard conversation to have, given the depth of our different feelings about Christ and his message. Is it okay that we disagree and believe different things about the gospel? Can thoughtful, good-hearted people reach different conclusions about the degree to which the gospel message can or should evolve?

If so, can we at least have a conversation about this? (And if not, to what degree has the larger American polarization reduced our ability to have these conversations as brothers and sisters of the same faith?)

This evening we will give it a try—not attempting to convert—but to understand more deeply. Inquiry into different conclusions and feelings will be welcome. Contrary to the perception of dialogue “not making anyone uncomfortable,” often the most crucial dialogues make everyone a little uncomfortable. If we’re going to successfully be members of the same faith family then we dearly need to make space for challenging conversations about our honest disagreements.

About Jacob

Jacob has been involved in red-blue dialogue for nearly 15 years, and has relished his opportunities to work with disagreeing collaborators at the Village Square and Living Room Conversations. He is currently on the board of the National Coalition of Dialogue and Deliberation. Like many, Jacob is increasingly concerned that the conditions are deteriorating in which civil dialogue is even possible, with a civic-social ecosystem arguably threatened as our physical ecosystems. His work is dedicated to promoting conditions where we can re-engage the conversations we desperately need to be having a human family (for more on Jacob’s work, see his blog.

Stuff to explore:

faith again

A Faith Again Adventus

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darknesscomprehended it not.
-John 1: 4-5

A Christmas Carol Advent Gathering
Sunday, December 3, 4:00 pm
At the Mostert-Ott Home
928 S Windsor St,  (850 E) SLC, UT 84105

img_7414

Operatic Tenor and Cellist, Brian Stucki will grace us with Christmas Carols as well as leading us in song. Thanks to Zendina Mostert and James Ott for sharing Brian and their home with our Faith Again group. And Thanks to Brian for sharing his talents with us.

Please bring a vegetarian savory or sweet hors d’oeuvres to share. 

While we are greatly blessed, many others are struggling. There are many worthy causes to give to and you likely have your favorites. Below are some of the remarkable organizations that we have had represented at our Faith Again and Think Again groups the past several years.

Liahona Children’s Foundation

Interweave Solutions

The International Rescue Committee

Breath Utah

New Light

LDS Earth Stewardship

Fern Foundation

Fahodie for Friends

 

We look forward to enjoying your love, light, and fellowship one last time this year. Blessings to you and yours.

faith again

Fiona Givens: Escaping the False Traditions of Our Fathers

For Latter-day Saints, the Jesus Christ revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith is, in some very significant ways, a different kind of Christ than the Jesus of mainstream Christianity. But current members of the LDS church may also be worshiping a different Christ than Joseph Smith revealed.

Time:

Saturday, November 18, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Chair & Share: 

Those who can, please bring a chair to sit on. Those who wish, please bring some food to share.

Note Different Location This Time: 

Home of Ed and Kristen Iversen
3582 Oak Rim Way Salt Lake City, UT 84109

We encourage all who can walk one block to leave their cars in the “park & ride” lot next to Wasatch Blvd. See Google map pict below. There is little parking available near their home.  

The Discussion: 

In our research for the latest book we have discovered that Mormon theology tracks much more closely with the Eastern variant of Christianity than it does with the Western.  We trace the loss of the “plain and precious things” in Western Christianity and how they were recuperated by Joseph at the beginning of the Restoration but have, to a great measure, been subsumed by the Protestant “traditions of our fathers” which have saturated our vocabulary and mindset with negative conceptions of the relationship between The Father and the Son and, henceforth, humanity.
 We focus, in particular, on a reconceptualization of “creation,” “sin”, “fall”, “judgment”, “salvation” and “perfection.”   We explore how the understanding of this vocabulary deviated quite sharply from the original Christian comprehension of these terms.  For the Greek Christians the mantra was and continues to be: “For as in Adam all die; even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”  In the early Christian tradition death not sin was the result of eating the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil.  Mortality was a necessary education to enable mankind to develop the attributes of the Godhead.
By reframing the new and everlasting covenant as originating in premortal councils, Joseph Smith redefines Christ’s role as ennabler of our eternal progression, rather than repairman of an Edenic catastrophe, and as healer of a wounded humanity, rather than rescuer from sin.

About Fiona:

Fiona Givens was born in Nairobi, educated in British convent schools, and converted to the LDS church in Frankfurt-am-Main. She earned undergraduate degrees in French and German, followed by a graduate degree in European History while co-raising six children. Fiona has worked as a lobbyist, a translator, and as chair of a French language program. She is a frequent speaker on podcasts and at conferences, including Sunstone and Time Out for Women. She is currently working as an independent scholar, having published in Exponent II, LDS Living, The Journal of Mormon History, Dialogue, Kofford Books and other venues. In addition to co-writing The God Who Weeps (Ensign Peak, 2012), she is the joint author of The Crucible of Doubt: Reflections on the Quest for Faith (Deseret 2014). Fiona and her husband, Terryl’s most recent book, The Christ who Heals (Deseret) is due out the end of October, 2017.   Fiona currently resides with her husband and Andrew’s dog, Zoe, in Montpelier, Virginia.

Stuff to explore:

 

 

 

 

faith again

Journal writing for growth and healing during personal transitions

When it comes to life transitions, coach Leia Francisco writes, “Journaling during your transitions restores self-trust. … The journal counteracts the social and cultural pressures to move through change too quickly for fear of looking “weak” or self-pitying. In fact, this pressure to fix it fast and move on is one reason people get stuck emotionally in transitions … Your journal gives you permission to define your transition according to your own timeline.” Allison Pond will help us explore the many methods for realizing the benefits of journal writing in ones personal journey.

Bring a journal and a pen or pencil!

 

Time:

Friday, November 3, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Location: 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late.  

The Discussion: 

What do Ernest Hemingway, Courtney Love, David Sedaris, and Emma Watson have in common? Journal writers, all of them.

Many people keep diaries to record life events, but that’s just one way to use a journal. There are countless techniques for different purposes, such as creative expression, healing or personal growth, business management, or working through difficult life transitions.

When it comes to life transitions, coach Leia Francisco writes, “I believe that journaling during your transitions restores self-trust. … The journal counteracts the social and cultural pressures to move through change too quickly for fear of looking “weak” or self-pitying. In fact, this pressure to fix it fast and move on is one reason people get stuck emotionally in transitions … Your journal gives you permission to define your transition according to your own timeline. … Journaling helps you trust yourself in dealing with the dark unknowns of transitions.”

Research shows that journal writing offers both psychological and physical benefits. During this evening together, we’ll talk about some of these benefits and then try several specific journal prompts together, with time built in to reflect on the experience and share insights.

Bring your journal, computer, or a notebook — whatever you like to use to write.

About Allison:

Allison Pond is an award-winning journalist known for her coverage of vulnerable populations. She is Senior Editor of In-depth and Special Projects at the Deseret News and previously worked as a research associate at the Pew Research Center. Allison has an MPP from Georgetown University and a BA from Brigham Young University. A lifelong journal-keeper and a certified Journal to the Self® Instructor, Allison is an engaging teacher, writer and facilitator.

Stuff to explore:

 

faith again

A Gay Mormon’s Perspective on Faith and Family

1 Comment

Tom Christofferson, author of the newly released “That We May Be One: A Gay Mormon’s Perspective on Faith and Family”, published by Deseret Book, will share his thoughts on bringing both his gay and LDS identities into congruence. Bring your curiosity and questions to discuss.

Time:

Friday, October 6, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Note Different Location This Time: 

Home of Ed and Kristen Iversen
3582 Oak Rim Way Salt Lake City, UT 84109

We encourage all who can walk one block to leave their cars in the “park & ride” lot next to Wasatch Blvd. See Google map pict below. There is very little parking available in the  

The Discussion: 

Our discussion will focus on ideas of a Zion community where diversity is a critical component, congregations that learn to welcome all who seek to come closer to Christ with acceptance and without judgement, and families that focus on unity, loyalty and love.

About Tom Christofferson

Tom has enjoyed a global career in financial services, and has authored a new title published by Deseret Book aimed at all who seek to love their LGBTQ brothers and sisters.  He teaches gospel doctrine in his Salt Lake City ward. (This is all that Tom gave me so I’m going to give a little more taken from a recent lengthy Deseret News article.”

Christofferson first recognized he was different around age 5. Raised in an LDS family, he went on to serve a full-time LDS mission and was married to a woman in the Los Angeles California Temple. Despite hours of prayers, days of fasting and years of service, he was still gay, he wrote in the book’s introduction.

Having no concept of how to reconcile being gay and Mormon, the couple’s marriage was annulled and Christofferson asked to be excommunicated from the church. He began a long relationship with a partner and was happy, he said.

“I was a very happy non-Mormon and now I’m a very happy Mormon again,” Christofferson said. “I think we oversimplify if we simply imagine there is no happiness outside the structure that we understand. There are friendships and the enjoyments of life and everything else, and still a desire to be a good, moral person, to make the world a better place. Happiness comes from all those things.”

Stuff to explore:

 

 

faith again

Compassionate Conversations

The bright and indefatigable Lindsay Hansen Park will join us Faith Again—again. Which is quite remarkable and appreciated since, as Acting Director of Sunstone, Lindsay just spent months of intense preparation for last weeks symposium.

Time:

Friday, August 4, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Location: 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late. 

The Discussion: 

Lindsay will share how she has developed the trust and respect of diverse individuals and groups by having thoughtful and compassionate conversations with them. From some of the most infamous fundamental polygamists to Community of Christ leadership, to exMormon scholars, to orthodox Mormon scholars, Lindsay has sincerely and tirelessly worked to understand people where they stand. She does this by building bridges and then walking across those bridges to meet people where they are.

About Lindsay

Lindsay Hansen Park is the Acting Director for the Salt Lake City non-profit Sunstone and blogs for feministmormonhousewives.org about women’s issues inside and outside of the LDS Church. She is the main voice behind Feminist Mormon Housewives Podcast, which has been recommended by New York Times Religion Reporter Laurie Goodstein. Her work and voice have been referenced in The Wall Street Journal, Prevail, The Salt Lake Tribune’s Trib Talk, City Weekly, and Quartz Magazine. As the Assistant Director of Sunstone, Park has been credited with expanding the Sunstone audience to be more diverse. The 2015 Sunstone Symposium was described as having “many contributors from the millennial generation, racially diverse communities, and non-Americans,” along with “the sea of white, gray-haired presenters and participants” that have frequented Sunstone’s events throughout its history.

In 2014, Park started the Year of Polygamy podcast, where she details the history of Mormon polygamy from the viewpoint of women. The podcast was referenced in a New York Times article on Leslie Olpin Petersen’s Forgotten Wives series of paintings.

Stuff to explore:

Mormon Matters: Improving Our Conversations about Important and Emotional Topics

The Let’s Go Eat Show

faith again

More Letters to a Young Mormon

Miller has a unique and fresh way of looking at traditional concepts in the Mormon Faith. They speak both to the heart and the mind, using the current culture and language as currency to communicate gospel ideas and ideals to his teenage daughter. Scholars, adults, and teens all find his approach accessible and powerful.

Time:

Tuesday, July 11, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Location: 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late. 

The Discussion: 

Adam Miller’s second edition of Letters to a Young Mormon will be published by Deseret Book—a sizeable upgrade, greater legitimacy, and of course a much larger audience. Adam will share two of three new  letters he has written, seeking feedback and critique. One is on science and one is on the environment. A third essay on women, was mutually decided between he and Deseret Book, not to be included.

About Adam Miller

Adam S. Miller is Honors Institute Director and a professor of philosophy at Collin College in McKinney, Texas. He is the author of seven books, including Speculative Grace, The Gospel According to David Foster Wallace, Letters to a Young Mormon, and Grace Is Not God’s Backup Plan. He is the director of the Mormon Theology Seminar and co-edits, with Joseph Spencer, a series of books for the Maxwell Institute called “Groundwork: Studies in Theory and Scripture.” He and his wife, Gwen, have three children.

Stuff to explore:

Read Letters to a Young Mormon (Better yet, buy it from an independent bookseller.)

 

 

faith again

Science, The Key to Theology

“I want a theology that allows both prayer and pterodactyls. A faith that is dynamic and readjusts to the ever-changing findings of science. A science that does not look askance when I experience something deeper and bigger than the biological processes that keep my material body ticking and tocking.”

Time:

Friday, June 2, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Location: 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late. 

The Discussion: 

A couple of times a year I receive a letter from a worried parent whose child has decided to leave the church—purportedly over science. The parent is dumbfounded, because typically the parent loved science and perhaps even raised their child sitting in front of colorful and informative documentaries. And yet in many of these cases there has been a tendency for parents to downplay science even while praising its discoveries. They hold science in suspicion and communicated that to their children. This is especially true of my field, evolutionary ecology. I don’t think this suspicion of science is healthy and we should not find science threatening to Mormonism. I’ll argue that even Mormon theology can be informed by science in productive ways—in particular by evolutionary biology. I can’t think of another religion that should hold evolution in higher regard. Join me for a discussion on the joys of science.

Who is Steve Peck?

Steve Peck is Associate Professor in the Biology Department where he teaches the History and Philosophy of Biology and Bioethics. He did his undergraduate in Computer Science and Statistics at BYU, a Masters in Biostatistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and his Doctorate in biomathematics and entomology at North Carolina State University. He is a mathematical modeler who specializes in the simulation of ecological and evolutionary systems. He has been academically involved publishing in philosophy of science, especially in exploring how computers are used as representational devices to generate scientific knowledge; his work in this area has appeared in a number of philosophical journals. He has also published widely on the relationship between religion and science. His publishing history includes lots of academic work—over 50 scientific articles, including publications in American Naturalist, American Entomologist, Biological Theory, Biology & Philosophy, Newsweek, Evolution, PNAS, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Agriculture and Human Values, and other scientific and philosophical journals. He blogs at ByCommonConsent. com.

What’s especially unexpected is Steve Peck is an accomplished fiction writer and poet. Creative works include three novels. His magical realism novel, The Scholar of Moab (Torrey House Press), won the Association of Mormon Letters highest honor, the Best Novel of 2011 (given to a book by or about Mormons. His novella A Short Stay in Hell (Strange Violin Editions) has received 1,206 Ratings and 318 Reviews with an average of 4.16 out of 5 stars. Wandering Realities, a book of speculative short fiction was just published by iconoclastic Press and was nominated for the AML best story collection published in 2015, and it contains a number of short stories, four award winners (including the AML Best Short Story of 2014, ‘Two-dog Dose.’ A collection of speculative stories based on A Short Stay in Hell, called Windows into Hell was just released by Curiosity Quills Press. In September London-based iconoclastic Books will publish his fourth novel Gilda iconoclastic: Shepherdess of Rats.

A collection of speculative poetry called Incorrect Astronomy was recently published by Aldrich Press, and includes his Science Fiction Poetry Association’s 2011 Rhysling Award nominated poem, The Five Known Sutras of Mechanical Man. A long, magical realism poem is scheduled for publication in the literary journal Prairie Schooner. Other publications in Analog, Abyss & Apex, Bellowing Ark, Daily Science Fiction, Dialogue, Nature Futures, Pedestal Magazine, Red Rock Review, and many others.

Maybe of most interest to this group are two of his most recent books that dive into Mormon theology with enthusiastic iconoclastic musings that are not to be missed.  Evolving Faith is is a collection of technical, personal, whimsical essays about Mormon theology, evolution, human consciousness, the environment, sacred spaces, and more. Science The Key to Theology asks if science has anything to contribute to Mormon theology. Peck argues that it does, and offers this book as an attempt to start a conversation on that notion. But fair warning: The theology ahead will be chaotic, emergent, ecological, and evolutionary. There will be few answers and much with which to argue. If you find yourself arguing with the book as you read it, the book’s purpose will have been fulfilled. Peck hopes the questions you are left with will leave you curious, excited, or angry enough to keep the conversation going.

Stuff to explore:

Radio West interview with Doug Fabrizio

Summerhays Lecture

Mormon Matters on Evolution

 

faith again

Walking One Another Home: Why I Continue to Stay

The landscape of Mormonism has changed dramatically since the first volume of Why I Stay was published. The horizon now looks and feels both urgent and complex, causing many who never before wondered—why they, or should they—stay in the church.

Time:

Friday, May 5, 2017, 7:30-9:30 pm

Location: 

Home of Elizabeth and Mark England
1194 S. 500 E., SLC, UT

Please come in the back door if you arrive late. 

The Discussion: 

In spite of denials to the contrary, Mormonism is currently in the throes of a faith crisis. It is safe to say that many more Latter-day Saints than at any other time in the modern Church have left, are in the process of leaving or are contemplating leaving—or at least struggling with that question. While there has been no comprehensive scientific study of the Mormon faith crisis to date, informal studies, reports and signs suggest that it is both real and growing. Jana Riess’s new study, The Next Mormons gives important insights into where Mormonism is at present in terms of faith crisis issues.

This presentation is based on Bob’s forthcoming second volume of Why I Stay: The Challenges of Discipleship for Contemporary Mormons. It includes material from some of the essays in that volume, including Bob’s personal essay, “Walking One Another Home.”

What about Bob?

Bob has taught at the University of Wisconsin, UCLA, UC Santa Cruz and at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Lithuania, where he was also a Fulbright Professor of American Studies (1995-96). Currently he teaches Mormon Studies at Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley and at the University of California, Berkeley. He was recently appointed Director of Mormon Studies at GTU. Bob blogs on LGBT issues at www.nomorestrangers: LGBTMormonForum.

Bob is well known in the LDS community for his explorations of other LDS-related issues, from the Book of Mormon to a broad array of subjects relating to Mormon culture and religion. The former editor of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Bob continues to make significant contributions to Mormon scholarship in such journals and presses as Dialogue, Sunstone , The Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Brigham Young University Press, Signature Books, and other venues.

Bob Rees is currently completing the second volume of Why I Stay: The Challenges of Discipleship for Contemporary Mormons, a collection of poetry, a musical on the American Dream, and various articles and essays on Mormon religion and culture.

Bob is the author or co-author of a number of publications relating to LGBT issues, including: Supportive Families, Healthy Children: Helping Latter-day Saint Families with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Children, (co-authored with Dr. Caitlin Ryan of the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University);  “A Failure of Love,” in Michelle Beaver, The Gay-Mormon Decade: Changing a Church from Within (2013); “Forward” to Carol Lynn Pearson’s No More Goodbyes: Circling the Wagons around Our Gay Loved Ones (2007); A Guide for Latter-day Saint Families Dealing with Homosexual Attraction (2002); The Persistence of Same-Sex Attraction in Latter-day Saints Who Undergo Counseling or Change Therapy (2004); “Requiem for a Gay Mormon” (2007); “’In a Dark Time the Eye Begins to See’: Personal Reflections on Homosexuality among the Mormons at the Beginning of a New Millennium,” (Dialogue 33:3 [Fall 2000]) (winner of the Lowell Bennion Award); No More Strangers and Foreigners: A Mormon Christian Response to Homosexuality (1998), trans. Into Spanish by Hugo Olaiz, “El Amor y la Imaginación Cristiana.”

For the past twenty years Bob has been active in humanitarian and interfaith work. Currently he serves on the Advisory Board of S.A.F.E. (Save African Families Enterprise), a non-profit organization providing antiviral drugs to HIV-positive pregnant women in Zimbabwe. He is a founding member and Vice-President of the Liahona Children’s Foundation, an organization that provides nutrition and education to children in the developing world.

Worthwhile writings by Bob:

Bob’s essays and poetry are mindful and soulful. You will be grateful and enlightened by them.

Forgiving The Church
Repairing the Church
The Goodness of the Church
Heisenberg
Somewhere Near Palmyra
Some additional essays
A podcast interview

 

Here is a recording of the evening. Not great quality but you’ll get the gist of it.