The FAIR Journal

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THE FAIR JOURNAL                                             June 2002
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        The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research
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   Apologetics: The branch of theology that is concerned with
   defending or proving the truth of Christian doctrines. (The
   American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth
   Edition, 2000.)


INSIDE THE JOURNAL                                    www.fairlds.org
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   * THE FOURTH ANNUAL FAIR APOLOGETIC CONFERENCE. The latest info on
     our upcoming annual conference.

   * ADVERTISING THE FAIR CONFERENCE. You can help get the word out
     about the upcoming FAIR Conference with a free poster you can
     download.

   * FEATURE: ARABIA AND THE BOOK OF MORMON. A review of S. Kent
     Brown's 2001 FAIR Conference Presentation, as he discusses the
     current state of Arabian archaeology and other research that
     provides valuable insight to Lehi's travels and validating names
     and places along the journey. 

   * NEW: ASK THE APOLOGIST. As a new feature of the FAIR Journal, we
     decided to post questions that we receive from a variety of sources.
     FAIR apologists will answer the questions right here.

   * FROM THE FAIR FILES: Do Latter-day Saints Believe Jesus and Satan
     Are Brothers? Learn the shocking truth here.

   * MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT, SCOTT GORDON.

   * JOIN THE FAIR APOLOGETICS LIST. The FAIR Journal isn't the only
     communication forum available to FAIR members.

   * ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS. Interested in writing for FAIR? Learn how you can 
     have your apologetics work published.

   * PUBLISHING NOTES. Learn how you can become more involved in FAIR
     and how you can reuse the material we publish.


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THE FOURTH ANNUAL FAIR APOLOGETIC CONFERENCE
TURNING STUMBLING BLOCKS INTO STEPPING STONES--Responding to
Challenging Issues in Mormonism.

Join us for the FAIR conference on August 9th and 10th at UVSC in Orem
Utah. We have wonderful speakers scheduled such as Dan Peterson
(Chairman of the Board of FARMS), John Tvedtnes (Research Associate
with FARMS), Tim Heaton (Sociologist at BYU), Kathryn Daynes (BYU
History associate professor and accredited geneologist), Royal Skousen,
and many others.

For a full listing and description of the speakers, click here:

     http://www.fairlds.org/conf02b.html

The topics covered will include Blacks and the Priesthood, polygamy,
the 1826 trial of Joseph Smith, changes in the Book of Mormon and lots
more. (All topics are covered from an LDS point of view.)

The Conference price is reasonable, with discounts available for
couples and students. Prices include lunch each day:

   Purchase in Advance:
     $45 per person
     $75 per couple

   Pay at the door:
     $65 per person
     $95 per couple

This year we will sell a single day ticket

   Single Day
     $27.50 ($37.50 at the door)

We will also offer discounted Student tickets, but you must show a
student id at the door. The Student tickets will be:

   Two-day student
     Purchase in advance
       $35 per person
       $55 per couple

     Pay at the door student tickets
       $55 per person
       $75 per couple

   Single-day student
     $22.50 ($32.50 at the door)

For information on the conference (times, dates cost etc.) click here:

     http://www.fairlds.org/conf02.html


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ADVERTISING THE FAIR CONFERENCE

FAIR needs your help to advertise our upcoming annual conference.
Help us to get the word out. Go to the following page:

     http://www.fairlds.org/conf02.html

Scroll to the very bottom of the page. Under the "Publicity"
section there is a link that will give you an 8-1/2 X 11 flyer
you can print out and post wherever Latter-day Saints are likely
to gather. Maybe your local bookstore will agree to put it up
where everyone can see.

Because of its smaller size, the poster also makes a great
handout. If you have someone you want to send it to, feel free
to do so. Help us continue to offer these fabulous conferences at
a discounted rate.


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ARABIA AND THE BOOK OF MORMON
by Cooper Johnson

When one considers the archaeological efforts aimed at learning about
the people, places and events of the Book of Mormon, it is easy to
focus on Mesoamerican studies while forgetting about the origins of
the Book of Mormon peoples. Let’s face it, literally 99% of the Book
of Mormon, which covers more than a thousand years in time (the book
of Ether notwithstanding), takes place in the Americas.

More specifically, less than 10 of the roughly 1021 years covered in
the Book of Mormon, from the time of Nephi’s first writings to the
last writings of Moroni, take place outside of the Western Hemisphere.
So, it’s not surprising for the majority of archaeological energies to
be spent in Mesoamerica.

However, turning our attention to that very small amount of time after
Lehi and his family departed Jerusalem and traveled in the wilderness
and desert of Arabia has proven very fruitful in demonstrating the
authenticity of the claims within the Book of Mormon. The research and
resulting finds in the Arabian peninsula have provided absolutely
incredible insight into the lives of Lehi, his family, and the
beginnings of their journey to the promised land.

In addition to providing insight, the findings from Arabian research,
in recent years, have provided some of the most valuable
archaeological evidences to authenticate the claims of the Book of
Mormon. Many significant "direct-hits" have been logged in Arabia. And
considering the information about Arabia (i.e. the landscape, terrain,
geography, botany, names of places, etc.) that would have been
available to Joseph Smith during the 1820s (almost nothing), these
findings become even more amazing and increasingly difficult for Book
of Mormon critics to face.

Read the full article at:  http://www.fairlds.org/Book_of_Mormon/Arabia_and_the_Book_of_Mormon.html


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ASK THE APOLOGIST

Welcome to Ask the Apologist, a new FAIR Journal feature. We have
decided to post questions that we receive from FAIR Journal
subscribers, from the Web site, or from the FAIR Apologetics list.
FAIR apologists will answer the questions, and the results reported
here and on the Web site.

To kick off this new FAIR Journal feature, and considering the
imminent dedication of the Nauvoo Temple, we chose the following
question, asked by one of our FAIR Apologetics list members:

   Q. While visiting Nauvoo I happened to wander into a Christian
      bookstore. The proprietor claimed that Joseph Smith couldn't
      be a true prophet because he didn't even know that Nauvoo
      isn't a Hebrew word. She said that Joseph Smith just made it
      up and it is just one more evidence that he was a fraud. Is
      this true?

Read the answer here:  http://www.fairlds.org/Misc/Is_Nauvoo_a_Hebrew_Word.html


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FROM THE FAIR FILES

Do Latter-day Saints Believe Jesus and Satan Are Brothers?

You've heard it before--the sensationalistic claim that the LDS
believe that Jesus and Satan are brothers. What!  How could
such a thing be? Oh my goodness; the LDS Church must not be Christian,
let alone a Church worth investigating.

At FAIR we have heard this tired old charge so often that we felt it
best to write a FAIR Paper on the topic. If you have Adobe Acrobat
Reader on your system (most systems do these days), you can review
this excellent paper on the topic, written by Michael Hickenbotham:

     http://www.fairlds.org/pubs/JesusSatan.pdf


--------------------------------
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
by Scott Gordon, President

This is not something I usually like to talk about, but FAIR needs
your help. We want to publish the Book "Guess Who Wants to Have You
For Lunch." It is a good book that discusses the tactics used by the
"wolves in sheep's clothing" that are out there in the world. Better
still, it is written in plain English and directed at a non-scholarly
audience. We published the book once before, and it sold out almost
immediately. There continues to be a high demand for the book, but we
need the up-front funding to publish it.

FAIR is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation that has no paid staff, and
we are all trying to do what we can to counter the lies and
distortions spread by the so-called "ministries" whose only goal is to
destroy the Church. We know that they won't succeed in destroying the
Church, but we hate to see even one of our brothers and sisters fall
victim to their efforts.

We see "Guess Who Wants to Have You For Lunch" as a tool that can be
used to counter the lies. In order to publish the book we need to
raise about $3,500. If you are able to make a donation to FAIR, we
really need your help. If just 100 people donate $35 each, we will
meet our goal. Doing the math, it would also work if 35 people each
donated $100, or if one contributor made a major tax-deductible
donation.

To help with this fundraising we have added two new catagories to the
"donations" page in the FAIR online store. You will find these new
donation catagories at the bottom of the Web page. Just visit the FAIR
Web site and click on the "Store" tab at the top of the main page.

The first new link is for a $35 donation. If you make this donation,
we will automatically send you a copy of "Guess Who Wants to Have You
For Lunch" as soon as it is printed.

The second new link is for $100. We already had a $100 donation link
in the store, but this new one is to donate the money and get a book
in return. If you make a $100 donation we will send you the "Lunch"
book when it is printed, and a complete set of "They Lie In Wait to
Deceive" right now.

I know that not everyone on the list will be able to donate $35. We
have some starving students, and others who are just starving for
accurate and helpful information. I am hoping that some who are able
to pay more will make a larger donation. Any donation of any size
would be appreciated.

If you would prefer to mail a check, make it out to FAIR and mail it
to:

   FAIR
   PO Box 491677
   Redding, CA  96049

If you are not able to donate, I understand completely; it certainly
isn't a requirement to receive the FAIR Journal. However, if we all
pull together and do what we can, we can make FAIR a strong
organization that can help dispell the misinformation and outright
lies that seem so previlant in these last days.

-Scott Gordon
 FAIR President


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JOIN THE FAIR APOLOGETICS LIST

FAIR sponsors two mailing lists. You already subscribe to one of
them--this one, which is used to publish the monthly FAIR Journal. It
is a great tool for those who want to keep on top of the latest in
apologetic efforts here at FAIR.

Our other mailing list, the FAIR Apologetics list, is a different type
of beast. It is an unmoderated list in which FAIR members share their
thoughts and outlooks on points of doctrine and discuss how to respond
to recent and oft-repeated criticisms of the LDS Church. It is a "safe
harbor," so to speak, where those dedicated to defending the restored
gospel of Jesus Christ can meet and discuss matters of common
interest.

It is also a very busy list, with more than 100 messages per day quite
common. Even so, the topics discussed and the viewpoints exchanged are
both fascinating and enlightening.

If you want to be part of the FAIR Apologetics list, we invite you to
apply. You can do so here:

     http://www.fairlds.org/Join_FAIR/FAIR_Apologetics_List_Application.php


-----------------------------------
ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS

We welcome article submissions for the FAIR Web site. If you would
like to submit an article, please review the editing guidelines at:

     http://www.fairlds.org/EdStyle.pdf

Submit your article to the FAIR Journal Editor. An appropriate
article would be one that affirms the truthfulness of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

While LDS apologetics (in the broadest sense) deals with refuting
critics of the Church, articles don't necessarily have to deal with
anti-Mormonism, but may deal with some new evidence of the Book of
Mormon, some interesting scripture interpretation, a viewpoint or
quote from the early Christian Fathers or other historical figure,
an interesting lesson idea, an inspiring missionary story, Church
history, or your view on a current event related to the Church or a
piece from a historical journal.

We may also accept articles from people who are not members of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that may not necessarily
meet the guidelines of supporting the church if it is a topic of
general interest to people involved in apologetics.

A submission may range in length from several pages to a single
paragraph. 


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PUBLISHING NOTES

FAIR is not owned, controlled by or affiliated with the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All research and opinions provided
in the FAIR Journal and on the FAIR Web site (http://www.fairlds.org)
are the sole responsibility of FAIR, and should not be interpreted as
official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.

If someone has forwarded this e-journal to you and you would like to
join you should go to www.fairlds.org and click on the Membership
link.

If you are very interested in apologetics and would like to actively
participate in FAIR you should consider joining our apologetics e-mail
list. Visit www.fairlds.org and click on the Membership link to join
this list as well.

If you manage your own e-mail list, and wish to include some of these
thoughts or articles on your list, contact us through our Web site, at
this page: www.fairlds.org/contact.psp. We have a fairly liberal policy of using our
material so long as you contact us first to gain permission and
clearly identify that your source was FAIR and by adding a link to the 
FAIR website (www.fairlds.org).

If you would like to sign up to receive the FAIR Journal automatically, click here.

To return to the index of past FAIR Journal issues, click here.

FAIR is not owned, controlled by or affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All research and opinions provided on this site are the sole responsibility of FAIR, and should not be interpreted as official statements of LDS doctrine, belief or practice.

If you like what FAIR does and you agree with our mission, we invite you to support FAIR in any way you are able. You can make a donation, or visit our Membership page for additional support ideas. FAIR only succeeds through the efforts of our gracious volunteers.

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Last Updated November 27, 2006
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