Thirty years have passed since the collapse of eastern Idaho’s Teton Dam. Its failure released 80 billion gallons of water on the largely LDS population of the Upper Snake River Valley. The event, often referred to as “that day in June,” placed a spotlight on local Mormon leadership as it responded to the death and …
Event: Southwest Symposium 2007
SW07006: Faith Development in Mormonism
Faith Development in Mormonism The model of faith development presented by James W. Fowler in his classic study, The Stages of Faith, has helped many people from a wide variety of religious traditions better understand their own faith journey. This audio features a presenter who is in violation of our code of conduct. For more …
SW07007: Divided Loyalties? Mitt Romney: The First Mormon President?
Divided Loyalties? Mitt Romney: The First Mormon President? In many ways, Mitt Romney is a dream candidate for Mormons: he is handsome, bright, charismatic, and articulate. He has been a successful businessman and politician as well as Church leader. He has a quintessential Mormon pedigree, polygamous ancestors; distinguished genealogy; son of a prominent political, business, …
SW07008: Secrets of Mary Magdalene
Secrets of Mary Magdalene A new book, Secrets of Mary Magdalene, will be discussed by contributing author Maxine Hanks and audience members following a screening (45 minutes) of a filmed panel discussion by seven of the book’s contributors: Elaine Pagels, Jane Schaberg, Susan Haskins, Dierdre Good, Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Katherine Kurs, and Lisa Bellevie. The book …
SW07010: In the Garden and On the Cross, Finding Myself and Finding Jesus: A Mystical View of Core Scriptural Images
In the Garden and On the Cross, Finding Myself and Finding Jesus: A Mystical View of Core Scriptural Images Following a delicious lunch, join Phil McLemore on a journey of spiritual discovery as he searched for himself and for Jesus. This path led him from Orthodox Christianity into Mormonism and then expanded into the study …
SW07011: CIRCLING THE WAGONS AROUND OUR GAY LOVED ONES: HOW ARE WE DOING?
Mormons have an inherited crossing-the-plains instinct to circle the wagons against danger, protecting our loved ones, and we do it very well. But sometimes we don’t, especially when the loved one is a homosexual. Then we often circle the wagons around our fears and prejudice, leaving the gay person outside the warmth, abandoned to the …
SW0712: TRANSFIGURATION: PARALLELS AND COMPLEMENTS BETWEEN MORMONISM AND TRANSHUMANISM
SW0712, Mormon tradition includes diverse teachings and prophecies concerning a future day of transfiguration, humans becoming physically immortal, the renewal of this world, the discovery and creation of worlds without end, and so forth. Yet our scriptures only hint about the human acts that might be needed for such things to come to be. Given …
SW07013: Is Green True-Blue? What Kind of Mormon Are You?
Is Green True-Blue? What Kind of Mormon Are You? Should we as Mormons, with our unique claims to modern revelation and an enhanced understanding of scripture, be more environmentally conscious? What can we do as stewards of the earth to show our respect and gratitude for all of creation and preserve our natural resources for …
SW07014: The Mormons: A Conversation with Helen Whitney
The Mormons: A Conversation with Helen Whitney In its write-up about the forthcoming documentary film series, The Mormons, the PBS website suggests that “Mormons have always had a peculiar hold on the American imagination, but few know who the Mormons actually are, or who they claim to be, and their story is one of the …
SW07001: OBEDIENCE CULTURE: HOW CHURCH-STATE PROXIMITY HAS COMPROMISED AMERICA’S MORAL LEADERSHIP
“Obedience culture,” in distilled, simplified form, values conformity over competence, unflinching faith over critical thinking, and institutional loyalty over human dignity. Using principles from the field of complexity science, this paper argues that obedience culture fosters approaches increasingly prone to failure in complex, challenging, dynamic situations. It examines the ascendancy of obedience culture among certain …