Dave's Mormon Inquiry

LDS.org: the Blog

The latest press release at LDS.org (on the highly anticipated PBS documentary on the Church) sure sounds like a blog entry — as noted at A Soft Answer (which also posted media quotes on the upcoming PBS film). That, plus the new look of the beta site with a banner, two sidebars, and a center column. All they need is comments — and an "about" link sharing something about the nameless, faceless junior bureaucrats who actually draft the posts from their desks somewhere in the basement of the COB — and LDS.org could get an official listing at MA!

A Broader View of Faith

Here's another attempt at an upbeat Sunday post (not that I specialize in cynicism on weekdays or anything). I've been reading Marcus Borg's The Heart of Christianity and quite enjoying it. In Chapter Two, "Faith: The Way of the Heart," he discusses faith in a way that illustrates it differently than one generally hears the term used in Mormon discourse, where it is usually taken to mean belief in the modern version of the main historical claims and central doctrinal tenets of Mormonism and the Restoration. Borg's discussion helps broaden that view. He discusses four meainings of faith.

PoD: Faith and Fundamentalism

Post of the Day: Fundamentalism and Historical Criticism (from a few days back) by TT at FPR, arguing that fundamentalism (or, more generally, the conservative approach to religious belief and practice) is as much a product of the Enlightenment rationality project as are higher biblical criticism and liberal Protestantism. It's true that religious conservatives reject the priority of rationalism while religious liberals try hard to incorporate it, but they are both doing battle on Enlightenment turf. Of course, there is dispute over which of TT's five propositions actually apply to both fundamentalism and critical biblical studies (I'd say only 2 and 5).

Unwittingly following the same theme, a much more freewheeling discussion pitted personal revelation as a trump card (a conservative technique) against careful reading and exegesis of canonized texts (a critical studies approach). The debate started first at ZD in Women as Possessions (the relevant text being D&C 132; the post garnered 243 comments), then jumped to NCT in Of Course Personal Revelation Is Our Ultimate Trump Card (with 410 comments), then migrated back to ZD with What Sort of Trump Card Is Personal Revelation? (getting a mere 47 comments). Anyone who reads all 700 comments deserves a special prize. It's worth noting that the terms of the extended discussion are very much set by the Enlightenment rationality project that is the focus of TT's FPR post from the first paragraph.

Here are my one-sentence responses to each of the three posts in the Mother of All Comment Threads: (1) Of course women aren't possessions; who cares what it says in D&C 132? (2) Until you can give an objective definition of "personal revelation" there is no real substance to the proposition that it is an epistemological trump card. (3) It's not an epistemological trump card, it's just a way of saying "I'm right because God told me so" using fancier terminology.

Two Kinds of Christians

There are Iron-Rod Christians and Liahona Christians. Or so one would think reading Marcus J. Borg's The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith (1989). He's a big-time Liahona Christian scholar, previously an active participant in the Jesus Seminar. Of course, he doesn't use those labels for his two kinds of Christians. He even rejects "conservative" and "liberal," instead opting to call the two approaches to Christian practice and doctrine the "earlier paradigm" and the "emerging paradigm." I'll summarize, then disagree.

Pope on Faith and Doubt

I'm reading Introduction to Christianity by Joseph Ratzinger, better known as Pope Benedict XVI. He was a theologian before he became Pope. This book was first published in 1968 — in German. It is a surprisingly readable and enlightening book. I say surprising, as many of the Catholic blogs I stumble upon and read seem to be in their own separate world, talking about different issues using different concepts and different vocabulary. But B16 has a direct and engaging style. Take his first chapter, "Doubt and belief — Man's situation before the question of God."

PoD: Faith and Doubt

Posts of the Day: Faith and doubt are B'nacle perennials. Here are a few recent examples: Standing Outside the Fire at Either/Or ("The experience of the liminal is not easy."); Faith, Doubt, and Certainty at Within the Bubble ("Uncertainty is an element of faith."); and More Thoughts on Faith and Doubt, also at the Bubble ("I like this idea that doubt is not the enemy of faith."). And Aaron's BCC post Joining the Church, Leaving the Church is close enough to the topic to get a mention.

Mormon Neo-Orthodoxy, Chs. 3-5

I used to avoid weekend blogging, but as weekdays have gotten busier, I find myself doing meatier posts on the weekend and sliding by with quickie "link and comment" posts during the week. So here I am on Saturday afternoon writing a post on (1) why I think the second half of Mormon Neo-Orthodoxy misses the mark rather badly; and (2) why any book trying to address LDS doctrine faces similar difficulties. My two earlier posts on the book are here and here; the book is available online here.

Civilization As We Know It

Well I've milked Dutchergate for all it's worth — now back to our regularly scheduled blogging. First up: Civilization: A New History of the Western World (2006), by Roger Osborne, an Englishman. That's all you need to know. Not much of a cuisine, but England can do history. I can't really summarize anything as sweeping as the history of the western world in one humble blog post, but I'll try and highlight a few of the interesting events and themes Osborne covers. My post is a mix of summary and reader response, so if you really want the story as told by Osborne, buy the book. I'll also note five or six of the more intriguing references from the bibliography, mostly for my own benefit in case my reading queue ever dries up.

New Bloggers Sneak In by the Back Door

BCC announced M. Norbert as a new permablogger, a Californian transplanted to Finland. Top that, T&S! I have noticed that new bloggers increasingly just pop up at group blogs rather than serving an initial apprenticeship as a solo blogger. Others taking this fast lane to permablogger status recently include Tagore at Mormon Mentality, Mike Wilson at Purim Blog, and Anneke and Eric at AMV. Even M-Star signed up a newbie: Sarah, an aspiring LDS law student with Unitarian roots.

Bad News is Good News for LDS Cinema?

Suddenly everyone's talking about LDS cinema. Could it be that Richard Dutcher's kiss of death is really the prelude to ... a rebirth? Like me, perhaps you are suddenly wondering what you've missed and are considering actually viewing one of Dutcher's movies. So I set up an LDS movie page at the DMI Bookstore so you can easily buy your very own Dutcher movie (they're the three titles on the top row). Of the nine LDS titles I have posted, I've only seen two: New York Doll (liked it) and Other Side of Heaven (not so much). Any other recommendations? I can add more titles, I'm just not sure what's worth posting.

PoD: On Nibley

Post of the Day: Reaching back a couple of days (hey, taxes have been ... taxing), JNS posted Hugn Nibley: Mormon Dissident at BCC, depicting the multifacted Nibley as a defender of LDS orthodoxy and BoM historicity; as an advocate of social reform typified by Approaching Zion; and as a critic of "the governing ethos of Mormonism." I'm not sure how you separate Mormonism from its governing ethos — I would almost argue that the essence of Mormonism is its governing ethos. Doctrines come and go, but a successful corporation is (theoretically) eternal. But JNS obviously thinks it can be done and that Nibley is for one and critical of the other.

If you need a little bit more Nibley in your day, go read Science and Traditions: A Nibleyesque Musing by Liz at SC, praising Nibley's favorable view of evolution (back when that was a risky view for a BYU religion prof to take; I suppose maybe it still is). And an authentic blogging Nibley posted Chivalry's Purpose at FMH and garnered 95 comments. The post defies summarization but is a fun read.

Merrill on Dutcher

The first volley fired in response to Richard Dutcher's controversial comments on Mormon cinema and his own relationship to Mormonism was fired by Kieth Merrill, in a Daily Herald opinion piece published on Saturday April 14 entitled "Dutcher comments showed arrogance." Merrill was responding in a defensive mode to Dutcher's critical comments about the LDS films Merrill produced for viewing at the Legacy Theater. Here's a taste: "The condescending tone and pretentious arrogance of this guy is unbelievable. No self-image problem here. Or is it in fact the opposite? Dutcher's reaction to his own failure and rejection by the Mormon audience has obviously prompted him to take the stance that everybody is out of step but him."

A Portrait of the Artist as a Former Mormon

For your surprise of the week, go read Richard Dutcher's farewell to Mormon cinema — and to Mormonism [hat tip: Pilgrim Girl]. It has to be one of the nicest "I think I'll try heading down another path" letters I've come across by a departing Mormon. [Update 4-18: Dutcher subsequently posted additional comments at BCC.] Ususally such letters are a variation on "I've been lied to all these years and it's all about money, not God, and I am now full of rage, but none of it is my fault." Dutcher is obviously a quality act if he can maintain his sense of equilibrium while negotiating his exit from institutional Mormonism, a difficult process for most folks who give it a try. [The most charming metaphor I've run across for this process is "going over the wall." I'm sure there are others.]

PoD: Back From the Grave

Post of the Day: A Soft Answer has sprung back to life, most recently with posts on Kenneth Woodward's NYT editorial on Romney, then another on Hugh Hewitt's on-air interview of Woodward. Once a blogger, always a blogger. From the looks of the sidebar blogrolls, I'd say ASA is gearing up to be a politics and religion blog. Just in time for the fireworks.

Also back from the grave: This Mormon Life, which peppers its posts with eye-catching graphics. Anyone notice any other newly reactivated blogs?

Romney's Evangelical Problem

It looks like Romney's Mormon Moment might be just over the horizon, according to GR's latest post, Romney goes to Regent, and the linked media story. It's there at Regent Univeristy that Romney will probably attempt the impossible: make a crowd of über-Evangelicals happy with a Mormon candidate. I've been reading about Romney's "Mormon problem" for months now, without a single reporter pointing out this very obvious fact: He doesn't have a Mormon problem.

PoD: Culture of Poverty

Post of the Day: The Culture of Poverty and Retention by Melissa at BCC, helping all us educated middle-class blogging types understand what life is like for the other half (bracketing for the moment the Culture of the Filthy Rich). It's really a fine post. It should help us all relate better to correlated LDS Priesthood/RS manuals, which increasingly seem directed to the average Bolivian peasant (no offense to Bolivan readers), emphasizing the sturdy American values of thrift, work, sobriety, and marriage between a man and one woman.

The Great Protest of 2007

That might be what they call the "Cheney demonstration" a few years from now (see Bloggernacle coverage here, with links to MSM coverage, and here, with photos). With signs like "Cheney, are you honest in your dealings with your fellow men?" and, from a supporter, "I support those supporting those who support Cheney," it's clear this is a fairly tame, even humorous, affair. I get the feeling this is just fun and games for the students, sort of like student elections. Given the national press coverage, I have to say I am thrilled they are protesting a conservative figure. If they were protesting a visit by Harry Reid or Barack Obama to campus, I know how the media, both local and national, would spin it.

PoD: Historic Conference?

Maybe, maybe not. Open thread jabberfests crowded out any serious discussion of Conference, but the Diverse Crop of New Leaders post by Devyn at Mormon Mentality gave a nice reflection on that strange list of foreign names read at the beginning of the Saturday morning session. Oh, and there's a new Relief Society President, too. Guy at Messenger & Advocate offered outstanding real-time summaries of all sessions and speakers. Photos too.

Mormon Neo-Orthodoxy, Ch. 1-2

As noted in a prior post, here's a short discussion of the first two chapters of Mormon Neo-Orthodoxy by O. Kendall White, Jr. The first chapter, "The Development of Crisis Theologies," gives a short introduction to the sociology of religion and an interesting analysis of how social and cultural crisis seems to lead to certain theological responses. I'll try creating my first-ever HTML table to display that typology graphically. Chapter Two reviews Protestant Neo-Orthodoxy as a prelude to assessing how Mormonism matches up (an exercise undertaken in chapters 3 and 4, which I'll cover in my next post in this series).