I’m doing another two-hour radio show this Sunday evening on K-Talk Radio (AM 630 in Salt Lake City), 5 PM Mountain Time, also available online. I have some flexibility in selecting topics to discuss, so let me know what would you think I should bring up. I’m considering dealing with either science and the Book of Mormon, for example. But there are so many interesting topics I’d love to chat about. Your thoughts?
What LDS Issues Would You Like Discussed in a Talk Show?
Great, looks like people can listen online, too. I’d love to just hear your thoughts/reflections on running such a huge amount of apologist content online – your interactions with others, what you’ve learned, what you wouldn’t do again, etc. I think this is one area where you definitely have unique experience.
As a…(I’m trying to decide what to call myself)…former Mormon, Mormon in transition, confused Christian…anyway, as a whatever, I’d like to hear Mormons talk more about Grace. Also about worshiping Christ. 2 things that are a part of the Mormon faith, but are also topics that are largely overlooked or maybe just not talked about enough. At least that’s what I hear from Evangelicals that I’ve had conversations with. Mormonism sometimes becomes too “churchy” and not enough “worshipy”. Does that make sense? Anyway, just a thought. I’m glad to hear about this talk show.
Andrea – I know what you mean. I wonder if it is a product of Utah being isolated from the rest of the world for a couple of generations. Discussions of grace, the atonement, and sanctification were common in the “mission field” but once you were “gathered” to utah, the discussion invariably went on to things other than the stuff “everybody knows.” Once correlation started it was written by those living in Utah. So you can imagine how that turned out.
But Pres. Hinkley did a great job of getting back to the basics of the Gospel, which is where we should have been focused all along. Today if you ask someone what the most important principles of the gospel are, I’m sure the answers will be centered around the atonement of Jesus Christ.
Good luck on the show, Jeff! Sounds like fun. Something on the Book of Mormon would be nice.
Andrea, grace and the atonement of Christ are really important to me. I spent a lot of time as a teenager, and then on my mission, and sometimes even now, feeling frustrated with my inadequacies and imperfections. I feel like I know a little of what Nephi was saying when he wrote “O wretched man that I am!” But through it all, I’ve remembered the day my Dad showed me the scripture in Moroni 10:32 that talks about becoming perfect in Christ through his grace. That’s a message that really resonates with me—that even now, as inadequate as I am, Jesus can reach down and lift me up and change my nature so that I can be perfect in Him and be with Him someday. And I think that we could stand to talk about that message a lot more.
Being a Mormon that is not and has never lived in the “Motherland”. I rarely hear a Sunday that goes by that doesn’t center around Christ. Grace is a topic that is wonderful and stressed by may Evangelicals. We are saved by Grace. I don’t think any Mormon would argue that. Mormons usually use the forbidden Evangelical word “Works” to go with “Grace”. Meaning after all we can do, we are saved by Grace. No matter how many of our imperfections are worked out in this life, we are still imperfect beings and therefore unprofitable servants. Christ’s Atonement comes in and saves us.
Jeff, I would love to hear you talk about science and the BoM. I think you’re rather uniquely suited to speak about this topic and would bring a lot of insight to the discussion. I think that could be a good conversation with great participation.
Interesting comments…I agree with most of what was said, and I know that Mormons worship Christ. But I guess in my journey I’ve just come to know and understand Him better, and I have a deeper desire to worship Him. One thing I don’t agree with is that “Works” is a forbidden Evangelical word. Evangelicals sometimes get a bad reputation regarding the term “Born Again” or “I’m saved”. Mormons often look at those as “Cheap Grace”. But I believe true Evangelical Christians believe in Works. Once they are truly saved they begin to walk with Christ and while Grace is a gift, changes are made in their lives for the better and to truly be saved they know and understand that it’s necessary to work and serve and strive to be better. Ephesians 2:8-10 says, “For it is by Grace that you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Mormons are more prone to Works and Evangelicals are more prone to Grace, however saying Works is forbidden in the Evangelical world is simply not true.
*side note* Dr. Robert Millet, a BYU professor wrote a great book, called ‘Grace Works’. Also, ‘Bridging the Divide. The Continuing Conversation Between a Mormon and an Evangelical.’ Which was written by Dr. Millet and Rev. Gregory Johnson, a former Mormon who lives here in Utah.
Hey Jeff!
I can’t wait to hear from ya!
You should discuss the Book of Abraham, IMO, if you have the time or whatever. I am always interested in that issue and would love to hear you talk about it!
Thanks,
Steve Smoot
Andrea,
With regard to works and grace, I think the difference is that the Mormon perspective is that grace is a response to our works “after all we can do.” For the evangelical Christian, works are our response to God’s grace in our lives. The difference is subtle but important.
Andrea, I’d love for you to participate in the smaller conversation (along with an evangelical christian) about grace and works at http://latterdayspence.blogspot.com/2008/06/upon-further-review-faith-and-works.html
Jackg, I’m not quite sure that I believe what you’re saying, or that you should believe it either. I’ve discussed that “all you can do” scripture on my blog at
http://latterdayspence.blogspot.com/2008/05/works-based-gospel-youre-badly-mistaken.html
With your permission, Jeff, I’d like to provide the links. (You can take them off if you’d like.)
http://latterdayspence.blogspot.com/2008/05/works-based-gospel-youre-badly-mistaken.html
http://latterdayspence.blogspot.com/2008/06/upon-further-review-faith-and-works.html
With such a cute family photo on your blog, I have no choice but to leave the links in place. Thanks!
hmmm…I’d be interested in…
1) top apologetic arguments the average member should know
2) why is apologetics necessary? why did you get in it?
3) has apologetics helped you understand the gospel better or just defend it better?
4) the tone of apologetic arguments – what interplay do you have with the tone of people like Jan Shipps or Richard Bushman or Teryl Givens, etc, who discuss topics in a more neutral tone? which is better? or is there a role for both?
(both have helped me personally, but I’d be interested in your perspective. could you link to an audio recording when it happens?)
thanks Jeff!
Jeff,
You said that you are doing this talk show ‘again’. When did you do it last and is there a recording of it online somewhere for me to listen to?
Hopefully I can tune in on Sunday night, it should be great. Good luck!
James
I said the forbidden word because of my experiences. Many discussions that I have had persons of other faiths have kringed when this word was mentioned. I think we do have similar beliefs as many other in this area, but terms are often used to mean different things.
I would love to hear a discussion about how Mormons view and use the Bible. Particularly, I would like explained how LDS Teachings are found in the Bible. I am tired of hearing the rhetorical “Mormon teachings aren’t Biblical” or that Mormonism isn’t a “Biblical” religion. Stress that all that means is that Mormons don’t interpret the Bible the same way other Christians might. For reference, I think Rudy Guiliani’s answer to the question about the Bible as the Word of God should have been Mitt Romney’s.
And I second posting the radio address, both of them, for us to listen to or read.