PBS Mormons Part 2 Thread

[_Roger Morrison]

Good AM Gaz, you said:

I'm sorry Roger that you have lost all faith in God. I assume this left around the same time you stopped praying.

Your sympathy is appreciated but, it is ill founded & ill placed. I'm not sure how You assess (judge?) my spirituality or my relationship with "God"?

But be assured, my "faith in "GOD"" is stronger and more firmly based in fact and practice than it ever was as a Mormon. I am sorry that You cannot understand how that can be.

I wonder as well, what makes You think I "stopped praying"? Because i don't "fold yer arms"?

(A personal word about that stance: As the BP of the largest Branch in Canada, many years ago, upon sitting in on my first Primary Service and observing the Primary Pres instructing the little children to "fold your arms", i was taken aback, and suggested she drop that bit of ritualism. That was my first exposure to what seems to be indoctrinated Pavlovian conditioning, totally irrelevant to communications...)

Actually had two Missionaries--"visiting members"--drop by last week. Very cordial discussion in which they told me everything i already knew, and i shared with them what i know, and think, that was new to them... On leaving they asked to have "a word of prayer" ... "of course". Followed by the usual format. Then i said i'd like to pray as well. And proceeded, with my eyes wide open, to express gratitude (which fills me for life) and asked for nothing ("God" knows our needs) but to help "US" bring peace (it's in our hands) and help enemies "love" enemies... To which they said "Amen". Nice young men...

Sethbag, you exactly made my point! Thanks! Warm regards, Roger

[_Jason Bourne]

I agree wholeheartedly with this view. To my mind, the Brethren allowed Rough Stone Rolling simply because they had to. Pioneering work such as that of Quinn and Meg Toscano and other "dissidents" had basically laid the ground work for Bushman's tome. I think it's interesting to note that it took so long for Rough Stone Rolling to appear in bookstores. It's as if Church leaders are thinking to themselves, "Well, the information is already out there, thanks to those antis like Quinn. We may as well put out a scholarly book of our own, so that it doesn't look like we're trying to hide our history."

I am curious as to wether you have any thing to back your random speculation that Bushman wrote his book by Church leadership directive.

[_gramps]

I am curious as to wether you have any thing to back your random speculation that Bushman wrote his book by Church leadership directive.

I have heard from somewhere, but forgotten at the moment, that he was invited to write the book by Alexander, I believe it was, at BYU. Why that invitation came through Alexander to him, I don't have a clue? I would like to know how the whole process played out.

Now that I think about it, as to the above, I believe I heard that story on Dehlin's podcast with Bushman. Can't remember which one, sorry.

[_Runtu]

I have heard from somewhere, but forgotten at the moment, that he was invited to write the book by Alexander, I believe it was, at BYU. Why that invitation came through Alexander to him, I don't have a clue? I would like to know how the whole process played out.

Now that I think about it, as to the above, I believe I heard that story on Dehlin's podcast with Bushman. Can't remember which one, sorry.

I believe that Rough Stone Rolling is a calculated inoculation against some of the more damaging stuff in the life of Joseph Smith. Bushman repeatedly walks right up to the edge of the whole truth and then steps away, essentially saying, "Move on, folks. Nothing more to see."

It's good to see you, gramps. I haven't seen much of you lately.

[_SatanWasSetUp]

Hopefully the sequal will focus on theology instead of social and historical subjects.

According to the disclaimer that used to appear at the top of the old FAIR Boards, the LDS have no systematic theology. The LDS church is a church of "continuing revelation." It is not tied down to any theology. Revelation flows from god to his mouthpiece on earth, the living prophet. Whatever the living prophet says is church doctrine until new doctrines come down. In Mormonism, obedience to the latest commandments of the living prophets is the only doctrine that is set in stone, and I think the PBS documentary portrayed that very well.

[_Who Knows]

Hopefully the sequal will focus on theology instead of social and historical subjects.

According to the disclaimer that used to appear at the top of the old FAIR Boards, the LDS have no systematic theology. The LDS church is a church of "continuing revelation." It is not tied down to any theology. Revelation flows from god to his mouthpiece on earth, the living prophet. Whatever the living prophet says is church doctrine until new doctrines come down. In Mormonism, obedience to the latest commandments of the living prophets is the only doctrine that is set in stone, and I think the PBS documentary portrayed that very well.

I actually heard they were going to do a spot on Mormonism's main doctrine - a.k.a. becoming gods - but when they contacted GBH, all he could say was 'we don't know very much about that'.

[_gramps]

I have heard from somewhere, but forgotten at the moment, that he was invited to write the book by Alexander, I believe it was, at BYU. Why that invitation came through Alexander to him, I don't have a clue? I would like to know how the whole process played out.

Now that I think about it, as to the above, I believe I heard that story on Dehlin's podcast with Bushman. Can't remember which one, sorry.

I believe that Rough Stone Rolling is a calculated inoculation against some of the more damaging stuff in the life of Joseph Smith. Bushman repeatedly walks right up to the edge of the whole truth and then steps away, essentially saying, "Move on, folks. Nothing more to see."

It's good to see you, gramps. I haven't seen much of you lately.

Good to see you, too. I wonder what the fall out really will be from that book? Whether it was worth the gamble to get it all out there? Time will tell.

But, calculated, yes. I would love to know the behind the scenes story of how they decided to do it.

[_Sethbag]

I'm not convinced the Brethren had to ask Bushman to do it. It's possible he decided to do it and got some kind of tacit go-ahead or something. I do doubt he would have written it without some kind of approval. And I totally agree with Runtu that one of the primary aims of the book is to give people just a taste of the things Joseph Smith did so that whenever a member encounters those things again "in the wild", their first reaction will be "oh yeah I read that before - it's no big deal" and stop listening. with respect to "Rough Stone Rolling" I'd say fine, read it, but read "By His Hand Upon Papyrus" by Larson, and "In Sacred Loneliness" by Compton first.

[_Gazelam]

Heres a start:



Sure, we have an open cannon. But there are unique viewpoints we have on many foundational principles. Viewpoints that make our faith distinct.

[_Gazelam]

You, without a doubt, are a good man. But how can you tell me you pray when yopu don't believe in anything? Who are you praying to?