This perennially well-received Sunstone session features the stories of those who have chosen to remain active, dedicated Latter-day Saints even in the face of many difficult challenges to traditional faith. How have these members wrestled with their faith and yet emerged more determined than ever to be a part of the Latter-day Saint community? JALYNN …
Event: DC Symposium 2009
DC09010: The Mormon Place in the American Religious Landscape
In 2008, the Pew Forum released the US Religious Landscape survey, the largest study of American religious life ever conducted, including a statistically significant sample of Latter-day Saints. What does it tell us about Mormons and other religious groups in America? This presentation will focus on three areas, with a particular focus on the Mormons: …
DC09011: “We Are All Going to Have to Live It Someday” Is Polygamy Really a Higher Law?
Some women attempting to escape from polygamy have complained that LDS bishops they consulted advised them to return to their husbands because “We are all going to have to live polygamy someday.” LDS theology distinguishes between “higher” laws–what God really wants us to do–and “lower” laws, which we have to settle for because the higher …
DC09012: Obedience Culture Churches and Their Impact: From Guantanamo to California’s Proposition 8
Obedience Culture values conformity over competence, unflinching faith over critical thinking, and institutional loyalty over human dignity. I examine the ascendancy of Obedience Culture among LDS and other US religious communities and explore its recent extension into public policy. I argue that Obedience Culture influences have deteriorated America’s moral leadership and that the particularly organized …