Terryl Givens on Mormon Universalism

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The following is a partial transcript I made of an excellent Mormon Stories podcast interview with Terryl Givens, one of the most intellectually interesting and thoughtful Mormons I know of. His strong literary background and thoughtful nature provide him a unique perspective and ability to express himself. Givens lays out the case for Mormon universalism, or how a minority religion often viewed as exclusionist and triumphalist actually contains the elements for salvation for the entirety of the human race as opposed to just God’s favored people.

Illegal Immigrants: Gambling on the Goodness of Americans

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Now that a couple of states have signed into law their notoriously strident anti-immigration legislation, we’re starting to see the fruits of such labors. And what a heartwarming story it is. Unintended consequences are stacking up, and we’re hearing legislators admit they may have “overlooked” the collateral damage of certain provisions. But didn’t these illegal immigrants welcome the risk in the first place?

Dismantling the Rose

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I’ve heard an analogy that compares people’s personal religious beliefs to a beautiful rose. Some people’s intellectual curiosity drives them to dismantle the rose in order to see how it’s put together. Petal by petal they gently pull it apart to learn how the individual parts work or to examine its raw biology under a microscope.

Mormon Prayer Taboo

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For those who witness Mormon prayers, it’s easy to catch many language patterns and conventions. Even more specifically, you can find oddly worded phrases or curious word usages that are commonplace.

Greg Prince on Trying to Bring People Back to Church

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The following is the second half of my partial transcript of the Greg Prince interview. Here, the question posed to him is if he can make the case to those who have deliberately left church activity and persuade them to return to participation. Greg Prince gives an interesting answer that would be useful for anyone seeking to do the same in their own congregation.

Greg Prince on Dealing with Tough Religious Issues and Appreciating Other Faiths

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The following is a partial transcript of a Mormon Stories podcast interview with Greg Prince, whom I find absolutely fascinating. At this point in the conference, the interviewer, in front of an audience very well educated in all the most problematic areas of the history of the LDS Church, poses what is unarguably a very difficult question: Can he explain how he maintains his faith despite being extremely familiar with all the issues that often cause others to struggle in their own faith? Greg Prince gives about as good an answer as I’ve ever heard to such a question.