This session will survey the development, justification, and ultimate rejection of baptisms for the dead in Community of Christ over a span of 150 years through the lenses of scripture, history, and theology. Brittany Mangelson, Lachlan Mackay
Event: Salt Lake Symposium 2018
Stormy Weather: Chaos Theory and The Book of Mormon
The Romantic movement, contemporary with Joseph Smith, was fascinated by storms and chaos—their spontaneous self-organization, complexity, destruction, and unpredictability. Similarly, the Book of Mormon makes much use of chaos, with its many instances of catastrophe, the reappearance of robbers and outlaws, its apparition of Jesus, and the twisted fates of its Nephites and Lamanites. Using …
Own Your Religion
As PBS producer Helen Whitney was finishing her monumental, 2007 documentary, “The Mormons,” she said to me, “I have interviewed hundreds of Mormons for this documentary. You have a good religion, but you need to own it. Most of its members are borrowing it.” Many—perhaps most—church members treat membership as if it were a stamp …
Incorporating Progressive Polygamy into Mormon Cosmology
Have you ever considered the connections between the polygamous and polyamorous communities? What kind of connection can be made between the queer and non-monogamous communities? This panel explores these questions and more to discover ways non-monogamy intersects with the queer community through a Mormon lens. Blaire Ostler, Joseph West, Brady Williams
Radiant Mormonism: Conversations about the Influence of Mormonism in Today’s World
In his essay “Radiant Mormonism,” Richard Bushman argues that Latter-day Saints have a disproportionate influence for good in the world. He cites examples in scholarship, education, philanthropy, politics, humanitarian service, and the arts, but feels the influence is much broader. This session begins a series of annual interviews with Latter-day Saints who are part of …
What Mormons Can Learn from . . .
As a New-World, restorationist religious movement, Mormonism has much to teach the world, but it also has much to learn from teachers, prophets, visionaries, artists, scientists, movers, and shakers from other traditions. This session includes seminal lessons for Latter-day Saints from the world’s great teachers, texts, traditions, and creative expressions. Bob Rees, Clifton Jolley, Phil …
Lucifer: A Misunderstood Deity
In this session, I propose that we turn our traditional interpretation of the Fall on its head. In pre-Christian times, it was taught that Lucifer was a beautiful young man: a Tom Bennett
The Gifts of a Faith Crisis
As individuals grow and develop, it is common for their spirituality and beliefs to be challenged and subsequently change. This experience, often called a “faith crisis,” can feel disorienting, traumatic, and isolating. This session honors those challenges but also highlights the unexpected gifts a faith crisis can offer. Sara Hughes-Zabawa, Anthony D. Miller, Jana Spangler
God as an Answer to Fermi’s Paradox
In 1950 at a lunch in Los Alamos, Enrico Fermi asked his famous question, “Where are they?” The “they” in question were intelligent extraterrestrials, for which there was no evidence, then or now. But what if people are imagining extraterrestrial contact all wrong? What if God is an extraterrestrial? This idea will not seem so …
Artist to Apostate, Homemaker to Heathen; Approaches in Transitioning
In November of 2015, Craig Stapley received an illustration contract for cover art in the Craig Stapley, Crystal Burrell Stapley