Does Apologetics Drive People Away From The Church?

[canard78]

My point was that the ability to discuss openly the problems, since one cannot in SS and with believing members/apologists instead of angry ex mormons is better for someone who needs to stay in the faith. I can't think of another board like it! If it weren't for this board my life would have been much worse. But canard, I see where you're coming from. People are now going to run into this problem, they need to discuss in the open or they'll just be an angry ex mormon possibly. I had days that I was ready to resign. But glad I didn't and it was because of, well you know...this board and other places that openly discuss like Mormon Stories, I said it. That's why they all (FAIR, Mormon Interpreter, and Mormon Stories) need to unite, lol!

Now that I would pay to see. Like one big, awkward family reunion with everyone brewing for a fight. FAIR, Interpreter and Mormons stories.

Called...

FIMS

FAIM

FAMINS

Famins, that'll do. For 'FAir Mormon Iterpreter Stories.'

[Senator]

I can't speak to whether or not apologetics drives people away from the church. I can speak towards the fact that certain venues of apologetics can drive people away from apologetics.

[Daniel Peterson]

Mormon Interpreter

Correction: Interpreter.

[Mola Ram Suda Ram]

I can't speak to whether or not apologetics drives people away from the church. I can speak towards the fact that certain venues of apologetics can drive people away from apologetics.

Your mom.

[Tacenda]

Correction: Interpreter.

So leave out Mormon?

[Senator]

Your mom.

My mom?

[Scott Lloyd]

So leave out Mormon?

The correct title is Interpreter: a Journal of Mormon Scripture. I imagine an acceptable shortened form is Interpreter. It is incorrect to call it "the Mormon interpreter."

I suppose people get confused because the website address is mormoninterpreter.com. But a website URL does not comprise a title.

Edited February 28, 2013 by Scott Lloyd

[Scott Lloyd]

I can't see why anybody would think it is a good idea to turn away from Elder Maxwell's clarion call to end uncontested slam dunks by enemies of Christ and his Church. I can understand why some may not want to do this personally, since not everybody has the same gifts and interests. But I praise God for those who are willing to stand up against those who fight against the Apostles of the Lamb. I thank them for their attempts to help and bless lives. They have indeed made a difference in my life for which I will be eternally grateful.

Thank you apologists both great and small. Thank you defenders of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as revealed through his prophet Joseph Smith. Thank you forever. God bless you. God sustain you. May your attempts -- even though given through imperfect people -- be multiplied by the Holy Ghost. I love your efforts. Keep on fighting the good fight of love against hate and truth against error.

Amen, Michael.

And you'll see by the rep points your post garnered that people do indeed read you on this board. (Michael has expressed to me some insecurity on that point.)

[Calm]

He has almost as many rep points as posts, he need not fear he is not being paid attention to...

[Scott Lloyd]

He has almost as many rep points as posts, he need not fear he is not being paid attention to...

Yeah, rep points-to-posts ratio must be taken into account.

Edited February 28, 2013 by Scott Lloyd

[Stone holm]

Hate to pop anybody's bubble here, but I consider myself a fairly well read Mormon -- and I had never heard of the prominent people on either side of this divide, and my guess is that there is one other person in our Ward that has ever heard of either of them -- and my only reason for suspecting that he has is because he introduced me to this board. If you mentioned "apologetics" to members of our Ward you would get a blank look in return. We have plenty of people leaving the Church out here and there are a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the conservative political aura that the Church seems to project whether it intends to or not. Having read some of Dehlin's talks, I think some of them would perhaps have kept some people in the Church who have now left. The gay marriage political activism wars that were fiercely waged out here were probably the biggest reason for stagnating our membership growth and causing people to question the validity of the Church. It will take decades for us to overcome the alienation they caused amongst people who raised in a live and let live tradition. But infighting amongst academics? Nah, not much impact.