Last week, the Church History Department published online the missionary journals from two of the very first single sister missionaries ever to be called. The two women, Eliza Chipman and Josephine Booth, served in Scotland as companions 125 years ago. Being able to contrast the two journals gives a fuller picture of the lives they led and the struggles they endured. It adds an interesting layer of insight into their service that we would not receive from two unconnected sisters.
LDS History
Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 3 – Seer Stones: Post-Biblical Folk Magic
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In this episode, Jennifer, Sarah, and Zach take us through the history of folk magic through post-biblical times. Throughout this 6 part series, Me, My Shelf, & I will tackle and refute claims about the seer stones head-on using facts from the historical narrative. [Read more…] about Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 3 – Seer Stones: Post-Biblical Folk Magic
Cornerstone: A FAIR Temple Preparation Podcast – Episode 6: Temple Sealings with Brian Hales
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On this episode, Brian Hales joins us to discuss the history and significance of the crowning ordinance of the temple.
Brian C. Hales is the author or co-author of several books dealing with Joseph Smith and plural marriage, and runs the website JosephSmithsPolygamy.org. He is also the author of several articles dealing with the origin of the Book of Mormon.
Jacob Crapo was born and now resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. He served his mission in Upstate New York and was an ordinance worker in the Las Vegas Temple. One of Jacob’s dreams is to help build a temple. He is an electrician by trade but his real passion is helping others access the powers of heaven.
Rejoicing and Mourning: Context for Selling the Kirtland Temple
By David W. Smith
On March 5, 2024, Community of Christ and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints jointly announced that, after years of discussion, Community of Christ had sold to the Church of Jesus Christ the iconic Kirtland Temple, several historic sites in Nauvoo, and many historical documents and artifacts.
This announcement was met with joy by many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or Latter-day Saints) and with sorrow by many members of Community of Christ. As Latter-day Saints celebrate receiving ownership of these important historical assets, we can also “mourn with those that mourn” (Mosiah 18:9) in Community of Christ who are devastated at having to part with these cherished pieces of history. [Read more…] about Rejoicing and Mourning: Context for Selling the Kirtland Temple
Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 2 – Seer Stones: Ancient Use
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In this episode, Sarah, Jennifer, and Zach go through ancient uses of seer stones and other objects seen as sacred. In this 6 part series, Me, My Shelf, & I will tackle and refute these claims head-on using facts from the historical narrative. [Read more…] about Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 2 – Seer Stones: Ancient Use
Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 1 – Seer Stones: Questions & Criticisms
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In this episode, Zach, Sarah, and Jennifer go through an overview of the most common criticisms of Joseph Smith’s Seer Stones from all sides. They introduce direct claims from faithful members who dispute the use of Seer Stones as well as critics who attempt to use the seer stones to explain away the Book of Mormon. In this 6 part series, Me, My Shelf, & I will tackle and refute these claims head-on using facts from the historical narrative. [Read more…] about Me, My Shelf, & I – Episode 1 – Seer Stones: Questions & Criticisms
Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 26: DNA
I know I literally just said I was going to be better at making these posts a weekly feature again and then missed a few weeks, so I apologize for that. My dad was back in the hospital for a bit and there was holiday business. I also filmed an episode of the Come Back podcast, which should be out this coming weekend. And I was actually doing a lot of work a few weeks ago on another project for FAIR that I am very excited about. I am starting a new, investigative podcast series with two other FAIR faces you may be familiar with, Jennifer Roach and Zachary Wright. It’s going to be a podcast composed of multiple miniseries on different controversial topics in Church history and culture.
I admire and adore both of my co-hosts, and we’re already having such a great time working together. We met up before Christmas and laughed and planned and ate and filmed a few trailers, which should be out soon. We’re doing a bunch of filming this weekend, in fact. Our first miniseries should launch in early-to-mid February, and will consist of six episodes. I’ll have more to say on this soon, but we’re all very excited. The entire crew working on this project is amazing, and I couldn’t ask for a better group of people to work with.
[Read more…] about Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 26: DNA
Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 25: Prophecies
Okay, guys, the topic this week is on failed prophecies from the latter-day prophets, but only one of these four quotes he gives is actually a prophecy, and it didn’t fail.
The author, Thomas Faulk, also uses an incorrect word as the title, so I corrected it. I won’t correct his usage going forward in the portions I quote from him, but I will be using the correct word myself. So, just to clear up any confusion this flipping between spellings may cause for those who don’t know the difference, “prophecy” and “prophesy” are two completely different words. A “prophecy” is a prediction from an oracle of God that has already been given, such as those given by Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. To “prophesy” is to give that prediction in the present tense. It’s an action, something somebody is currently doing. There’s only one letter’s difference between them, but they have different meanings and different pronunciations. I’m not trying to beat up on him for the error, because Heaven knows I’ve made my fair share of typos in this series. But in this case, I think the distinction is important. Also, I really don’t want to confuse anybody by constantly flipping back and forth between the two words.
[Read more…] about Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 25: Prophecies
How One Woman’s Scholarship Helps Us Better Understand Church History
The following is from LaJean Purcell Carruth’s presentation at BYU Education Week 2022 as part of the series presented on what can be learned from the Wilford Woodruff Papers.
She also gave a presentation at the 2023 FAIR Conference, which is available to watch on our YouTube channel.
Introduction
When she was eleven years old, LaJean Purcell Carruth found an old Improvement Era in her parents’ basement open to an article on the Deseret Alphabet.1 She was instantly, completely fascinated. She taught herself to read and write the Deseret Alphabet and decided that she would be a Deseret transcriber when she grew up. Little did she know where that early passion would lead. [Read more…] about How One Woman’s Scholarship Helps Us Better Understand Church History
Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 24: Blood Atonement
Hey, guys. Long time, no see! This week should hopefully mark the return of weekly segments of this blog series. My life has been insane this summer, and I apologize for being so absent. My dad was dying of pulmonary fibrosis, and then miraculously, got a new set of lungs a few weeks ago that saved his life. He just came home from the hospital a week ago, and is still very weak. During that same time period, I also had to move, and there were two FAIR conferences, work and family obligations, and boy drama to wade through. Some of you have asked why I’m still single—it’s because I’m a magnet for Crazy. Things do appear to finally be settling back down, though, thankfully.
Speaking of the two FAIR conferences, the digital one on the Book of Mormon was a lot of fun. The talks from that one will be put into a book which should be coming out soon. The videos are being released on the FAIR YouTube channel every other Wednesday, alternating with the talks from the main conference this past August.
We’ve already begun planning next year’s main conference, and it’s shaping up to be a great conference. We’re talking about changing things up a bit with some interesting new ideas, and I will be presenting for the first time. I think I’ll be speaking on ways to navigate a faith crisis, or helping loved ones work through theirs. This will probably include subtopics like responding to anti-LDS material, studying with the Spirit, evaluating sources, and reputable resources you can turn to help you find answers to your questions. It’s a topic I’m passionate about, and unfortunately, it needs to be addressed often. It’s still very much up-in-the-air, though, as I’m still praying about what to say. I hope all of you can either come to the conference in person or catch it online afterward, because there are always some excellent talks at those conferences.
[Read more…] about Letter For My Wife Rebuttal, Part 24: Blood Atonement