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Posted by: elderolddog ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:17PM

This is from another board and deserves note and commentary. The resource being offered is to combat a basic problem, as seen from the apologist POV:

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The following resources are meant to assist ward leaders as they minister to members of the church who are struggling with issues of doubt, “intellectual” concerns, or the complexities of church history.

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The use of quotation marks around "intellectual" is very galling. Intellectual is both a noun and an adjective, but obviously the quotation marks are needed because it is not the true definitions that are being used here. Those are:

in·tel·lec·tu·al
ˌin(t)əˈlek(t)SH(əw)əl/

adjective
1. of or relating to the intellect.
"children need intellectual stimulation"

synonyms: mental, cerebral, cognitive, psychological; possessing a highly developed intellect. "you are an intellectual girl, like your mother" intelligent, clever, academic, educated, well read, lettered, erudite, cerebral, learned, knowledgeable, literary, bookish, highbrow, scholarly, studious, enlightened, sophisticated, cultured, donnish; informal: brainy, "an intellectual man"


noun: intellectual; plural noun: intellectuals
1. a person possessing a highly developed intellect.

synonyms: highbrow, learned person, academic, bookworm

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What are your guesses as to the definition the apologists are trying to attach to the word?

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As to the resource itself, the link on the other board is to a chrome extension that appears to be an editable page. It says that edits made to the page will not be automatically saved. I certainly don't want to attempt any changes to their work or be accused of promoting alteration of the work, so I'm not copying the link. But here's the document:

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Resources for Dealing with Difficult Issues

Springville Utah Dry Creek Stake
January 2015

The following resources are meant to assist ward leaders as they minister to members of the church who are struggling with issues of doubt, “intellectual” concerns, or the complexities of church history. This list of resources is not comprehensive, but it provides an introduction and starting point on a variety of issues important to many members of the church. As ward leaders strive to understand these topics and different perspectives, they will better be able to work with others who are struggling with these issues. In addition to becoming acquainted with these resources themselves, ward leaders can share them (and read through them together) with members of the church who express their concerns. There are often no easy answers for many of these issues, but as members feel from their local leaders a sincere, open, honest, sympathetic, and informed desire to work through their concerns, they will often overcome their anxieties and emerge with a more mature commitment to the Gospel.


Dealing with Doubt, Uncertainty, and Belonging
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “Lord, I Believe,” April 2013 General Conference. (https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/04/lord-i-believe?lang=eng)

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Come, Join with Us,” October 2013 General Conference. (https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/come-join-with-us?lang=eng)

Elder Bruce C. Hafen, “On Dealing with Uncertainty,” Ensign (August 1979). (https://www.lds.org/ensign/1979/08/on-dealing-with-uncertainty?lang=eng)

Elder Bruce C. Hafen, “Love Is Not Blind,” BYU Speeches (1979). (http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=651)

Terryl L. Givens, “Letter to a Doubter,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 4 (2013): 131-146 (http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/letter-to-a-doubter/)

Terryl and Fiona Givens, The Crucible of Doubt: Reflections on the Quest for Faith (Deseret Book, 2014). (http://deseretbook.com/Crucible-Doubt-Terryl-L-Givens/i/5125923)

M. Sue Bergin, “Keeping the Faith: What Can You Do When A Child Expresses Doctrinal Doubt?” BYU Magazine (Spring 2014). (http://magazine-stg.byu.edu/keeping-the-faith-what-can-you-do-when-a-child-expresses-doctrinal-doubts/)

Eugene England, “Why the Church is as True as the Gospel” (http://www.eugeneengland.org/why-the-church-is-as-true-as-the-gospel)

Mormon Scholars Testify Website (http://mormonscholarstestify.org/)


Difficult Issues in Church History, Scripture, and Teachings (General Resources)
Elder Steven E. Snow, “Start with Faith: A Conversation with Elder Steven E. Snow,” Religious Educator 14.3 (2013): 1-11. (http://rsc.byu.edu/archived/volume-14-number-3-2013/start-faith-conversation-elder-steven-e-snow)

The Joseph Smith Papers (The Church Historian’s Press, 2008–) (http://deseretbook.com/search/search#q=joseph%20smith%20papers&page=1&sort=score&facets=)

The Joseph Smith Papers Website (http://josephsmithpapers.org/)

Richard Lyman Bushman, Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling (Knopf, 2005). (http://www.amazon.com/Joseph-Rolling-Bushman-Richard-Hardcover/dp/B00DWWSAVY/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0N0D7WJ2M05G200GZX8W)

“Church Provides Context for Recent Media Coverage on Gospel Topics Pages,” Church Newsroom (November 11, 2014). (http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-provides-context-gospel-topics-pages)

Gospel Topics Essays (https://www.lds.org/topics?lang=eng)

FAIRMormon: Critical Questions, Faithful Answers Website (http://en.fairmormon.org/Main_Page)

Robert L. Millet, ed., No Weapon Shall Prosper: New Light on Sensitive Issues (Deseret Book, 2011). (http://rsc.byu.edu/recent-books/no-weapon-shall-prosper-new-light-sensitive-issues)


Difficult Issues in Church History, Scripture, and Teachings (Specific Topics)

Mormonism and Traditional Christianity
Gospel Topics Essay: “Are Mormons Christians?” (https://www.lds.org/topics/christians?lang=eng)

Stephen E. Robinson, Are Mormons Christians? (Deseret Book, 1991). (http://www.amazon.com/Are-Mormons-Christians-Stephen-Robinson-ebook/dp/B004CFBL9I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418942137&sr=8-1&keywords=are+mormons+christians)


Different Accounts of the First Vision
Gospel Topics Essay: “First Vision Accounts” (https://www.lds.org/topics/first-vision-accounts?lang=eng)

The Joseph Smith Papers Website: “Primary Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision of Deity” (http://josephsmithpapers.org/site/accounts-of-the-first-vision)

Steven C. Harper, “Suspicion or Trust: Reading the Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision,” in No Weapon Shall Prosper (ed. Millet; Deseret Book, 2011). (http://rsc.byu.edu/archived/no-weapon-shall-prosper/suspicion-or-trust-reading-accounts-joseph-smiths-first-vision)


The Book of Mormon (Translation Process and DNA)
Gospel Topics Essay: “Book of Mormon Translation” (https://www.lds.org/topics/book-of-mormon-translation?lang=eng)

The Joseph Smith Papers Website: “The Gold Plates and the Translation of the Book of Mormon” (http://josephsmithpapers.org/site/the-gold-plates-and-the-translation-of-the-book-of-mormon)

Gospel Topics Essay: “Book of Mormon and DNA Studies” (https://www.lds.org/topics/book-of-mormon-and-dna-studies?lang=eng)


The Book of Abraham and the Kirtland Egyptian Papers
Gospel Topics Essay: “Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham” (https://www.lds.org/topics/translation-and-historicity-of-the-book-of-abraham?lang=eng)

The Joseph Smith Papers Website: “Book of Abraham and Egyptian Material” (http://josephsmithpapers.org/site/book-of-abraham-and-egyptian-material)


Joseph Smith, Polygamy, and Post-Manifesto Polygamy
Gospel Topics Essay: “Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo” (https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-marriage-in-kirtland-and-nauvoo?lang=eng)

Gospel Topics Essay: “Plural Marriage and Families in Utah” (https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-marriage-and-families-in-early-utah?lang=eng)

Gospel Topics Essay: “The Manifesto and the End of Plural Marriage” (https://www.lds.org/topics/the-manifesto-and-the-end-of-plural-marriage?lang=eng)


The Mountain Meadows Massacre
Gospel Topics Essay: “Peace and Violence among 19th Century Latter-day Saints” (https://www.lds.org/topics/peace-and-violence-among-19th-century-latter-day-saints?lang=eng)

Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley, and Glen M. Leonard, Massacre at Mountain Meadows (Oxford University Press, 2011). (http://www.amazon.com/Massacre-Mountain-Meadows-Ronald-Walker/dp/0199747563/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1418939226&sr=1-2&keywords=mountain+meadows+massacre)


Teachings on Deification
Gospel Topics Essay: “Becoming Like God” (https://www.lds.org/topics/becoming-like-god?lang=eng)


The Temple
“Temple Garments,” Church Newsroom. (http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/temple-garments)

Matthew B. Brown, The Gate of Heaven: Insights on the Doctrine and Symbols of the Temple (Covenant Communications, 1999). (http://www.amazon.com/Gate-Heaven-Insights-Doctrines-Symbols/dp/1621088081/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418943021&sr=8-1&keywords=the+gate+of+heaven)

Donald W. Parry, ed., Temples of the Ancient World: Ritual and Symbolism (Deseret Book, 1994). (http://www.amazon.com/Temples-Ancient-World-Ritual-Symbolism/dp/087579811X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1418943083&sr=8-2&keywords=the+ancient+temple)

Matthew B. Brown and Paul Thomas Smith, Symbols in Stone: Symbolism on the Early Temples of the Restoration (Covenant Communications, 2003). (http://www.amazon.com/Symbols-Stone-Symbolism-Temples-Restoration/dp/1591562503/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418943219&sr=8-1&keywords=symbols+in+stone)


Women, the Priesthood, and the Church
Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “The Moral Force of Women,” October 2013 General Conference
(https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/the-moral-force-of-women?lang=eng)

Elder Dallin H. Oaks, “The Keys and Authority of the Priesthood,” April 2014 General Conference. (https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/the-keys-and-authority-of-the-priesthood?lang=eng)

The Joseph Smith Papers Website: “Nauvoo Relief Society Minute Book” (http://josephsmithpapers.org/paperSummary/nauvoo-relief-society-minute-book)

Sheri L. Dew and Virginia H. Pearce, The Beginning of Better Days: Divine Instruction to Women from the Prophet Joseph Smith (Deseret Book, 2012). (http://deseretbook.com/Beginning-Better-Days-Divine-Instruction-Women-Prophet-Joseph-Smith-Sheri-L-Dew/i/5078230)

Maureen Ursenbach Beecher, Janath Russell Cannon, and Jill Mulvay Derr, Women of Covenant: The Story of Relief Society (Deseret Book, 1992). (http://www.amazon.com/Women-Covenant-Story-Relief-Society-ebook/dp/B004BDOZV2/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1418939363&sr=1-1&keywords=women+of+covenant)

Sheri L. Dew, Women and the Priesthood: What One Woman Believes (Deseret Book, 2013). (http://deseretbook.com/Women-Priesthood-Sheri-L-Dew/i/5112810)

Neylan McBaine, “To Do the Business of the Church: A Coorperative Paradigm,” FAIRMormon Conference, 2012. (http://www.fairmormon.org/perspectives/fair-conferences/2012-fair-conference/2012-to-do-the-business-of-the-church-a-cooperative-paradigm)

Neylan McBaine, Women at Church: Magnifying LDS Women’s Local Impact (Greg Kofford Books, 2014). (http://www.amazon.com/Women-Church-Magnifying-Womens-Impact/dp/1589586883/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1418589694&sr=8-4&keywords=the+crucible+of+doubt)

The Mormon Women Project Website (http://www.mormonwomen.com/)

David L. Paulsen and Martin Pulido, “‘A Mother There’: A Survey of Historical Teachings about Mother in Heaven,” BYU Studies 50.1 (2011): 71-97. (https://byustudies.byu.edu/PDFViewer.aspx?title=8669&linkURL=50.1PaulsenPulidoMother-482bf17d-bbc5-4530-a7cc-c1a1b7e5b079.pdf)


Race and the Priesthood
Gospel Topics Essay: “Race and the Priesthood” (https://www.lds.org/topics/race-and-the-priesthood?lang=eng)

“Race and the Church: All Are Alike Unto God,” Church Newsroom (February 29, 2012). (http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/race-church)

Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “All Are Alike Unto God,” BYU Speeches (August 18, 1978). (http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1570)


Same-Sex Attraction
Gospel Topics Essay: “Same-Sex Attraction” (https://www.lds.org/topics/same-gender-attraction?lang=eng&query=same+sex+marriage)

Mormons and Gays Website (http://mormonsandgays.org/)

“Same-Sex Marriage and Proposition 8,” Church Newsroom. (
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/same-sex-marriage-and-proposition-8)

Ty Mansfield, comp., Voices of Hope: Latter-day Saint Perspectives on Same Gender Attraction (Deseret Book, 2011). (http://deseretbook.com/Voices-Hope-Ty-Mansfield/i/5062130)

Voice(s) of Hope Website (http://www.ldsvoicesofhope.org/)

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okay... what a pile of doo doo! It's apologists throwing bullcrap at the walls and hoping some of it sticks. Nobody with a natural questing mind is going to fall for that crap! Only the people who want to be able to say about the church's problems, "Ain't no thang!", will print this out, or scan it, so they can say they read it.

It's all the crap that even a dull Occam's Razor could cut through with zero problem.

Geez, I'm sorry now I even mentioned it. This is freakin' breaking out paddles as the Titanic's deck begins to tilt!!

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Posted by: Elder Berry ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:24PM

Having an intellectual dodo address intellectual doubts is like putting an endangered species in charge of fixing its endangerment.

Packer was right - intellectuals are to be feared in LDS Inc. because they think different.

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Posted by: tig ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:26PM

Intellectuals are feared in the LDS church NOT because they think different, but because they think.

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Posted by: AmIDarkNow? ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:25PM

Great. Now a believer just has to have this list to prove the church is true, with said believer never having read or fact checked one single word. And it will never cross their minds that every "resource" is a highly biased, highly emotionalized source.

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Posted by: ConcernedCitizen ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:31PM

...at least they are admitting that the leadership is clueless on these issues.

"As ward leaders strive to understand these topics and different perspectives, they will better be able to work with others who are struggling with these issues. In addition to becoming acquainted with these resources themselves, ward leaders can share them (and read through them together) with members of the church who express their concerns. There are often no easy answers for many of these issues."

...duh.

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Posted by: Void K. Packer ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:38PM

Au Contraire, the answers are all too easy: it's lies. All of it. It was made up by an alpha conman and perpetuated by more of them.

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Posted by: donbagley ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 06:51PM

Why is it that Mormons are continuously struggling to believe?

By their own admission it's a chore to maintain the facade of belief.

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Posted by: iris ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 08:58PM

+100

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Posted by: 4ofusfamily ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 07:20PM

Eugene England, “Why the Church is as True as the Gospel” (http://www.eugeneengland.org/why-the-church-is-as-true-as-the-gospel)

What a F-ing cruel joke to have the above be one of the resources!!!! I had a copy of that paper of Eugene England's and read it to my children when we were TBM and suffered from how we were treated in our "ward" when I divorced their father to keep them and myself physically and mentally safe.

If any of those who are advised to use Eugene's paper as a basis for counselling or a something for a doubter to read...I hope they are ALSO prepared to have them research on how abominably he was treated by McConkie and others and how he was hounded and denigrated!!!! No doubt that tortured and well intentioned man would be rolling in his grave, to see his essay on a list designed to re-convert.

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Posted by: pathdocmd ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 07:33PM

Rough Stone Rolling is what planted the seeds of doubt in me, but it is listed as a resource. Most of this stuff is putting lip stick on a pig.

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Posted by: saucie ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 07:41PM

I hate apologists crap.

I can't even read it, it gives me a stomache ache, I just

want to gag at their pathetic attempts to polish a turd.

Yuck.

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Posted by: Myron Donnerbalken ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 07:45PM

Kind of an insecure lot, them Mormons. What other church has to deal constantly and persistently with doubt and doubters?

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Posted by: backyardprofessor ( )
Date: May 05, 2015 09:09PM

So long as they continue to ignore their own assumptions, their materials can't possible deal with either the real issues, nor the real problems.

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