Mormons In The Middle - Conference

[Scott Lloyd]

Am I a prophet? Here is a prophecy

No matter what I say - people here will complain.

I object to that remark.

[DBMormon]

I object to that remark.

Thank you

[volgadon]

I am speaking as well.

What are you speaking on?

[Tacenda]

What are you speaking on?

I think he mentioned one of the topics was on Grace. I'm looking forward to that.

[Tacenda]

It's official, my flights are booked, here we come, so excited to be at the conference and visit all the church sites!!

[Buckeye]

It's official, my flights are booked, here we come, so excited to be at the conference and visit all the church sites!!

Yeah!

[DBMormon]

What are you speaking on?

Not exactly sure yet, but certainly a mix of Grace and faith Crisis

[rameumptom]

I don't think I can go this year. My wife and I went last year, and I spoke. Most of the topics were very left leaning (nothing really "middle" about it at all). They would like to see more conservative views at the Sunstone Conferences, but few attend because it is a bastion of liberalism and apostates. My wife felt very uncomfortable in some of the sessions. In my session, where I discussed ascension themes in the BoM, there were some clearly antagonistic attitudes by some, while others loved it. So, it was a mixed bag.

There were some good sessions, including one on the history of the Palmyra Pageant. The one panel discussed the accounts of the First Vision, and the panel (including Dan Vogel) concluded that the 1832 account is the only valid one. However, there were no strong, conservative LDS on the panel, who believed the First Vision actually occurred, either.

The CoC visitor's center is nice, but very small, with little room for a second session going on. We had a Sunday service in the Kirtland Temple with members of the LDS, CoC and others in attendance. Even Dan Vogel was quietly respectful in the service, which I appreciated from a nonbeliever. The key speaker (from Sunstone) however gave a lackluster philosophical pep talk that could have been given anywhere, and did not focus on the event or place - as the original intent led us to believe. Fortunately, the testimonies by several in attendance rescued the experience.

If any of you drive, passing through Indianapolis, let me know. Maybe you can stop and say hello..

Here is my review of the sessions I saw: http://www.millennialstar.org/kirtland-temple-sunstone-symposium-review/

Here is my presentation: http://www.millennialstar.org/book-of-mormon-as-an-ascension-text-kirtland-sunstone-presentation/

[Alan]

I don't know about Mormons in the Middle, but I have just watched 2 episodes of Malcolm in the Middle.

And I have to say, that with the possible exception of the Book of Mormon, it is the best thing to come out of America....... ever!

[DBMormon]

Registration has finally come.....

https://www.sunstone....com/symposium/

Hope to see you there.

I can tell you this year's will be more conservative - I am speaking. nuff said

Kirtland conference: April 26-28, 2013

Join us in beautiful Kirtland, OH for a conference on Mormons in the Middle.

Kirtland pre-registration options:

Full advance registration $35

Student advance registration $25

Half day registration – morning sessions only $20

Half day registration – afternoon/evening sessions only $20

Edited March 22, 2013 by DBMormon

[Tacenda]

My husband and I are building a whole trip around the conference. We're planning overnight stays in Kirtland, Nauvoo and Idependence, Chicago and possibly Amish Country in Ohio, if time. I thought 9 days was almost too much but rethinking that. We start off in Independence and leave in Cleveland. I'm starting to get cold feet about it being a fun trip for hubby. He isn't as hooked as I am on all things Mormon. I hate the hotel feel, but can do it if I have to. Hate B & B's because of some bad experiences. Would like a condo type but understand that there are few. Checked out the cabins but not too sure of them.. Therefore just wondering if any on here have suggestions. Sorry to use this thread DB, I'm unable to post a topic.

[DBMormon]

Tacenda. If in Amish Country - check out Simple Blessing Cabin - It is a 3 unit Cabin. Two small units Downstairs and one large unit upstiars. Cost Should be about $99 - $150.00 It is awesome and the Amish Lady next Door makes you homemade Peanut Butter Whoopee Pie Cookies complimentary!!!!!!! scrumdidlioucious

Edited March 23, 2013 by DBMormon

[Brenda]

This is all very confusing. What/who are all these groups? I've only recently heard of Mormon Stories and have listened to some podcasts (with mixed feelings) and only have the vaguest idea what Sunstone is. Mormons in the Middle? What is that? And the feminists ... new to me! How many groups are there, and what is their purpose?

Or do I really want to know ....? I want to understand differing viewpoints, yet am leery about divisiveness.

[Tacenda]

Tacenda. If in Amish Country - check out Simple Blessing Cabin - It is a 3 unit Cabin. Two small units Downstairs and one large unit upstiars. Cost Should be about $99 - $150.00 It is awesome and the Amish Lady next Door makes you homemade Peanut Butter Whoopee Pie Cookies complimentary!!!!!!! scrumdidlioucious

I'm gonna check that out! Thank you, so much.

[DBMormon]

This is all very confusing. What/who are all these groups? I've only recently heard of Mormon Stories and have listened to some podcasts (with mixed feelings) and only have the vaguest idea what Sunstone is. Mormons in the Middle? What is that? And the feminists ... new to me! How many groups are there, and what is their purpose?

Or do I really want to know ....? I want to understand differing viewpoints, yet am leery about divisiveness.

The LDS community is very diverse and as one would expect thrives on community

Each subgroup has formed communities.

Those who've had faith struggles & want to make it work and want to hold onto faith in some form - Staylds

Those who have lost faith in some or all but want to stay at least culturally tied - NewOrderMormon

Those whose family or friends are struggling - FacesEast

Amateur apoligists who want to discuss & diatribe over issues - MormonDialogue

exmormons with a beef - exmormon.org

exmormons staying connected - postmormon.org

there are lots of Podcasts that serve these communities

- Mormon Stories

- Mormon Matters

- Mormon expression

- MormonDiscussion <------- mine - deals with difficult issues while asking people to choose faith

- athoughtfulfaith

So yes there are many diverse communitites and I likely am missing some as well.

Edited March 23, 2013 by DBMormon

[Brenda]

The LDS community is very diverse and as one would expect thrives on community

Each subgroup has formed communities.

Those who've had faith struggles & want to make it work and want to hold onto faith in some form - Staylds

Those who have lost faith in some or all but want to stay at least culturally tied - NewOrderMormon

Those whose family or friends are struggling - FacesEast

Amateur apoligists who want to discuss & diatribe over issues - MormonDialogue

exmormons with a beef - exmormon.org

exmormons staying connected - postmormon.org

there are lots of Podcasts that serve these communities

- Mormon Stories

- Mormon Matters

- Mormon expression

- MormonDiscussion <------- mine - deals with difficult issues while asking people to choose faith

- athoughtfulfaith

So yes there are many diverse communitites and I likely am missing some as well.

Thank you. This is very helpful. Clarity is good. I used to just think of us all as fellow LDS, aka family. I think, for the most part, I'll choose to continue doing so.

[Tacenda]

Just wanted you to know DB, that I'm not going to make it to this conference. My husband and I will just be visiting the Nauvoo area. He'll be mad when reading this (makes him look mean and he's not ) but I don't think my husband is okay with going to the conference since it's taking about 3 days more to add to our trip. I hope so much that I will be able to listen to it sometime via your podcasts or Sunstones! My need to visit Nauvoo is trumping the conference, darn.

Edited March 27, 2013 by Tacenda

[DBMormon]

This Conference is next week end - just a reminder.

The schedules is as follows

Tacenda- no biggie - have fun

[Tacenda]

This Conference is next week end - just a reminder.

The schedules is as follows

Tacenda- no biggie - have fun

I would be there if I could have. Will it be videotaped?

[DBMormon]

I will try to audio record my talk

[DBMormon]

PROGRAM

WELCOME TO KIRTLAND! FRIDAY 26 APRIL 2013 Opening Potluck SOCIAL

5:30-7:15 PM AT THE Kirtland Temple Visitor Center 7809 Joseph Street,Kirtland, OH

We’ll meet in the classroom of the visitor center for a potluck meal and socializing with other conference attendees.

Please bring delicious treats to share—entrees, salads, side dishes, or desserts. Conference organizers will provide plates, cups, utensils, and napkins.

7:30—9:00 PM OPENING KEYNOTE

1. Mormon Muscle: Shifting Understandings of Masculinity from Polygamy to Monogamy

Dr. Sara Patterson will explore the shifting gender expectations for men during the transition from a polygamous to a monogamous system. Examining how gender expectations were created and reinforced, she will investigate how sexual roles were and are tied to gender and religious beliefs in Mormonism. As she does so she will compare the gender expectations for Mormon men to those for Protestant men during the same period. Patterson will argue that Mormons fashioned a masculinity that would distinguish them from other Americans while at the same time claim a stake in American identity.

SATURDAY 27 APRIL 2013

Kirtland Temple Visitor Center

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

8:30—9:30 AM

2. Willard Richards and Nauvoo Polygamy, 1841-42

Shortly after Willard Richards returned arrived in Nauvoo for the first time in August, 1841, he became Joseph Smith’s closest confidant, assuming a role once enjoyed by John C. Bennett. Bennett’s departure from Nauvoo and Mormonism was not a quiet one, and as he toured the country exposing and sensationalizing Mormon secrets, most notably, polygamy, Richards followed him, doing damage control. Yet Richards was a polygamy insider, who had been introduced to the practice by Joseph Smith, had performed one of Smith’s plural marriages, and may have even begun practicing it himself, all while Richards’s wife, Jennetta, endured a lonely year in Massachusetts, where he’d left her while he got settled in Nauvoo. This paper will examine Richards’s role as a polygamy insider, confidant, and public relations man during the tumultuous period of 1841-42.

3. Paul and Joseph: Comparing Joseph Smith’s First Vision to the Apostle Paul’s Encounter with the Risen Christ

LDS prophets and theologians, following Joseph Smith’s own lead, often compare Joseph’s “first vision” encounter with the Father and the Son to the experience of Saul of Tarsus (Paul) seeing the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. The comparison forms the basis of several arguments defending the historical authenticity of the First Vision—suggesting that criticisms of the First Vision, if applied consistently, would also call into question the historicity of the resurrection of Christ. This paper engages these arguments and presents a case for de-coupling the two historical questions.

9:45—11:00 AM

4. Panel. A Sea Change Ahead? Examining Developments in Mormon Feminist Advocacy

Between Wear Pants to Church Sunday, the letter writing campaign to Let Women Pray in General Conference, and the recent launch of the I’m a Mormon Feminist and Ordain Women websites, there’s a lot happening in Mormon feminism! This panel will discuss past and current trends in Mormon feminist advocacy and ponder what the future may hold.

5. The Angel, the Cross, and the Spiral: When Mormons Experience Other Faiths

Although the LDS Church sees other faiths as lacking truths and authority necessary for salvation, many Mormons engage with other religions, some while maintaining their membership and activity with a local ward or at least retaining some sense of LDS identity. In this panel, several “bi-religious” Mormons will answer the following questions: What motivates your participation in the other faith community? How do you experience God and community through that community? Does the experience shed new light on your perception of Mormonism?

11:15—12:15 PM

6. PANEL. Author Meets Critics on Devery Anderson’s The Development of LDS Temple Worship: A Documentary History 1846-2000

Over the years, the LDS Church has struggled with how best to convey information about the temple to its members. “We are very concerns that our people [who are] going to the temple for the first time have a better introduction to the temple,” said Apostle Mark E. Petersen to regional representatives in 1969.

In that spirit, historian Devery S. Anderson brought together a comprehensive collection of official documents on temple ceremonies, limited only by what would be inappropriate to discuss publicly. What does this documentary history illuminate about temple worship, changes over time, and the experiences of Church leaders and members who participate? Can a thorough history create a deeper, thoughtful understanding of temple ritual? How might this work impact longtime Church members or those contemplating their first temple experience? Our panel will explore these and other questions in dialog with the editor.

7. The Easter Experience, the Belief Gene, and the Why/What/How/Who of Religious Experience

This presentation is an interactive meditation on Easter, belief, and the need for religious people from all backgrounds to have a redemptive experience.

LUNCH BREAK 12:15 – 2:00 pm

There are several restaurants and sandwich shops along Chillicothe Rd in Kirtland or a short drive to the north in Mentor, OH.

A Kirtland Temple tour has been arranged for conference attendees starting at 12:30 pm and lasts approximately one hour.

A $3 preservation fee (not included in registration) is payable at the Visitor Center info desk, where you will meet your tour guide.

Be sure to return from lunch in time for our afternoon sessions starting at 2:15 pm!

Plenary sessions

2:15—4:15 PM

8. Workshop: LDS Mental Health Issues

In this workshop session, mental health professionals JENNIFER FINLAYSON-FIFE and NATASHA HELFER PARKER will discuss various mental health issues from an LDS perspective.

9. PANEL. Mormons and Easter

Mormons are painfully inconsistent about celebrating Easter. Many Mormons grow up in wards that don't do much to celebrate Easter. LDS General Conference trumps Easter when it falls on the first Sunday in April. Given Mormon insularity, they often aren’t aware of how other churches celebrate Easter and Holy Week. This panel will explore the Mormon Easter experience and ways to connect with the Christian calendar to deepen the Easter experience.

dinner BREAK 5:30 – 7:15 pm

There are several restaurants and sandwich shops along Chillicothe Rd in Kirtland or a short drive to the north in Mentor, OH. We recommend Biga Wood Fired Pizzeria, located at 9145 Chillicothe Rd, Kirtland, OH 44094 (440) 379-7313

Closing Plenary Session

Kirtland Temple

7:30 – 9:30 pm

10. Lead Kindly Light: Finding Illumination and Grace in Godly Service

WELCOME

Bishop Kevin Kloosterman: “The Bishop’s Confession: My Journey as a Mormon LGBT Ally”

Bishop Bill Reel: “God’s Amazing Grace”

Patriarch Karl Ricks Anderson: “The Savior in Kirtland”

Closing hymn: The Spirit of God

SUNDAY 28 April 2013

KIRTLAND TEMPLE SPECIALTY TOUR

8:00 AM

We’ve arranged an early morning Behind the Scenes Specialty Tour of the Kirtland Temple. This tour takes you from the temple’s basement to the bell tower—and every level in between! Your knowledgeable tour guide will answer questions and explain the finer points of Church History during the Kirtland period.

There is a $25 specialty tour fee that is NOT included in conference registration. Tour fees help with the caretaking and preservation of the Kirtland Temple.

------------

Symposium attendees are welcome to attend local Community of Christ or LDS Church services Sunday.

10:00 AM

LDS Church Services at the Kirtland Ward, located at 8751 Kirtland Road, Kirtland, OH 44094, 440-256-8808.

10:45 AM

Community of Christ services at the church located at 9017 Chillicothe, Kirtland, Ohio 44094, 440-256-8338.

AFTERNOON TEMPLE TOURS

Afternoon tours of the Kirtland Temple begin at 1:30, 2:30, and 3:30 pm.

Other local LDS historical sites are open on Sunday. Call 440-256-9805 (Main) for details. Or check here for visitor information: https://www.lds.org/locations/historic-kirtland-visitors-center

 Special thanks to:

RON ROMIG, MICHAEL STEVENS, BRANDT MALONE, BRUCE FEY, MORMONS IN THE MIDWEST planning committee

[Tacenda]

The conference has a buffet of topics that suit my taste exactly. Maybe I'll just go by myself, haha.

[CASteinman]

What are "Mormons in the Middle" -- what are they between? (not counting "two oceans" or "birth and death")

[Scott Lloyd]

What are "Mormons in the Middle" -- what are they between? (not counting "two oceans" or "birth and death")

Asked and answered, CASteinman.

Go back to page 1, beginning with my post.

[Nevo]

While I don't know exactly what will occur or go down, I absolutely expect this to be an uplifting, spiritual conference that any Bishop would be proud to recommend to his ward.

PROGRAM...

3. Paul and Joseph: Comparing Joseph Smith’s First Vision to the Apostle Paul’s Encounter with the Risen Christ

LDS prophets and theologians, following Joseph Smith’s own lead, often compare Joseph’s “first vision” encounter with the Father and the Son to the experience of Saul of Tarsus (Paul) seeing the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. The comparison forms the basis of several arguments defending the historical authenticity of the First Vision—suggesting that criticisms of the First Vision, if applied consistently, would also call into question the historicity of the resurrection of Christ. This paper engages these arguments and presents a case for de-coupling the two historical questions.

I note that this session is by one "Robert M. Bowman, Jr." (link). I suspect you would be the first bishop in the Church to recommend Rob Bowman to his ward (Personally, I find Mr. Bowman scarily persuasive.)

Edited April 23, 2013 by Nevo