Book Review: The Expanded Canon, Perspectives on Mormonism and Sacred Texts
Edited by: Blair G. Van Dyke, Brian D. Birch, and Boyd J. Peterson

This is the first in a planned series of volumes, looking to expand our understanding of the LDS canon and related documents. For those familiar with the Joseph Smith Papers Project will understand, the development of modern scripture is quite complex – even in Joseph Smith’s day. We often do not know the underpinnings that create or influence the documents we hold sacred, including the Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, Doctrine and Covenants, and the proclamations and official statements made by the First Presidency and Twelve over the almost 200 years of the Church’s existence. We will see that the Expanded Canon, vol 1, takes a hearty stab at expanding our understanding of events and actions that impacted our perception of sacred scripture today. Continue reading →

On Monday the Church will release the full text of Volume 1 of Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days.[ref]At this moment, the Church History page leads with links to Saints content, as well as videos and articles.[/ref]

The initial few chapters have been rolling out in the Ensign and Liahona since February this year, and those with the Gospel Library app have been able to download these chapters under the “Church History” heading.

Elder Snow has championed this effort to make an accurate narrative history available. Saints is accessible, but the content reflects history rather than faith-promoting folklore (apologies to all the well-intentioned but inadequate storytellers of the past).

For those who desire solid history that won’t destroy your faith, I strongly recommend you read Saints.

I obviously haven’t had a chance to read all of Saints yet, but the opening chapters have clarified points that critics twist to try to destroy faith.

Volume 1 covers the history of matters affecting the Church from 1815 through 1846. This is a fascinating timeframe, where all modern beliefs and practices of the Church were introduced. I look forward to seeing how this volume discusses the events leading up to Joseph Smith’s death and the flight of most Church members from Nauvoo.

Until Monday, I challenge you to read the first seven chapter of Saints and share what “A Ha!” moment you experienced. Continue reading →

This is a guest post by Jacob Hess, PhD, author of A Third Space: Proposing Another Way Forward in the LGBT/Religious Conservative Impasse. Jacob is also on the board of the National Coalition of Dialogue & Deliberation.  He blogs at Unthinkable.cc

Standing in the middle of 30,000 people, it’s hard – even impossible – to imagine that something could be wrong with what’s happening.  It’s even more difficult to imagine that such passionate work may, in lasting ways, make things worse for the very teens we’re all worried about.   

But, for reasons outlined below, that’s exactly what I believe is happening with Dan Reynolds’s Love Loud festival  – an initiative so the rage that Utah businesses and political leaders, Mormon celebrities, and increasing numbers of millennials have come to rally behind it, with messages like this:

“Love is love. Stop hate. Spread kindness and acceptance. Prevent suicide. Start saving lives” 

How could anyone possibly be concerned with such a cause?  What kind of a heart of darkness is required to question a call to love more loudly?

Our non-conversation.  The terms of our prevailing “conversation” about love, sexuality, faith, suicide and identity these days don’t leave much space for disagreement:

• “Are you going to be a loving person?”  
• “Are you compassionate, inclusive, and accepting?”
• “Do you care about civil rights and equal justice?”
• “Are you willing to discriminate and hold onto bigotry?”
• “Do you really care about gay kids taking their lives?”

Yes…or no?  

I’ve begun calling this conversational frame what it most fundamentally is:  dishonest. Continue reading →

At times we here at Millennial Star compose posts or publish guest posts that provoke firestorms of controversy.

The most exceptional post of this sort was published during the attempt by some to coerce the Church to ordain women. I think the title was “OW: Thanks for Nothing!” For myself, I was disappointed to learn that the author was using a pseudonym, unwilling to put their own name to the biting commentary they asked us to publish.

Others are willing to put their name to biting commentary. If you don’t know which posts might fit into that category, I’m not going to bother pointing them out. The commentary tends to devolve to “How could you be so wrong!?!” versus “I/He/She was obviously right!!!”

Social media and the internet provide us an unprecedented opportunity to advocate for our particular worldview. As we become enveloped in our micro-universe, we can lose track of the fact that reasonable people might disagree with us. As we drift further and further into our isolation from respectful dialogue, we begin to denigrate those who are so ignorant and hurtful as to not think like we do.

There is no ideology whose adherents are immune from falling into this sort of bubble universe.

It is easy for the conservative Christian to presume that all advocacy for LGBTQIA individuals is hateful and destructive.

Similarly, it is easy for the non-heteronormal aka non-cis-gender individual to presume that all conservative religionists are similarly hateful and destructive.

Whatever our point of reference, it can become tempting to do whatever it might take to strip individuals of their hateful and destructive behaviors or thoughts. And this is the point when we start “lovingly” doing hateful and destructive things to the persons we claim are so hateful and destructive.

This is emotional abuse. And it can be accomplished by all walks of people. Continue reading →