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THE FAIR JOURNAL                                            May 2007
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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
----------------------------------------------------------------------

     * MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT. Scott Gordon reflects on the ways
       that Mormonism has been portrayed in society and the media.

     * 2007 FAIR CONFERENCE. The lineup for the 2007 FAIR Conference
       has been finalized, and time is running out to register at a
       reduced price.

     * ASK THE APOLOGIST. Got a question you are dying to ask? Here's
       how.

     * 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.

     * FAIR JOURNAL ARCHIVES. All of the FAIR Journal issues since
       October 2001 are on the FAIR web site.


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MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

PBS, Mitt Romney, Harry Reid, movies, DVDs, and bigotry--this is a
busy year for Mormons. We've been in the spotlight, and not all of
that spotlight has been favorable.

PBS put on a big four-hour special on Mormonism. There was much
anticipation leading up to the event, and lots of disappointed people
after they saw it. I liked parts of it a lot and parts of it not at
all. I am thankful PBS did this special. I certainly don't like
everything in it. I really didn't like the out-of-context quotes and
comments, but from a non-believer's perspective, I can understand why
much of it was made. One of the best things to come out of the special
is the PBS Website which contains many full interviews:

   http://www.pbs.org/mormons/interviews/

There is also a page about Church history on the PBS site:

   http://www.pbs.org/mormons/history/

Hollywood has come out with a movie titled "Georgia Rule" (rated R)
that includes Jane Fonda as an LDS character. You can read the reviews
at these two locations:

   http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809731840/parentsguide
   http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809731840/critic

A new movie on the Mountain Meadows Massacre titled "September Dawn"
(rated R) is about to be released and can best be described as a
fictionalized account of a tragic historic event. Here is one negative
review of the film:

   http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=2925

With Mitt Romney's run at the presidency and Harry Reid in the top
spot of the US Senate, there is an article in the Washington Post
about the Mountain Meadows Massacre here:

   http://www.fairlds.org/cgi-bin/site.pl?ea01

I especially like the end of the article where it quotes non-Mormon
historian Jan Shipps:

   Some observers suspect a rising tide of anti-Mormonism accounts
   for today's intense focus on Mountain Meadows.
   Jan Shipps, professor emeritus of religious studies and history at
   Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and an expert on
   Mormonism, doubts that Young was involved in the massacre.

   "My sense is that Brigham Young was not that dumb as to order
   people to kill a wagon train" and stir up more ill feelings toward
   Mormons, she said. Nevertheless, she said, the prospect of
   implicating Young and his church in a historic tragedy appeals to
   modern-day critics.

   "The important thing is, why is all this coming up right now?"
   Shipps said. Mormons used to live largely in the West, she says,
   but now "Mormons are everywhere. They are making converts that the
   evangelicals would like to make, so evangelicals are saying Mormons
   aren't Christian. All of a sudden you get this [attitude of]: We're
   going to look at Mormon history, and we're going to find out what's
   really there."

And speaking of Mormons not being considered Christian, the reverend
Bill Keller emailed 2.5 million people with his message that a 'vote
for Mitt Romney was a vote for Satan.' Even though FAIR endorses no
political candidates, I accepted an invitation to be on the Alan
Colmes radio show (http://www.alan.com/show/) to talk about this type
of attitude. I had the mistaken impression that Mr. Keller was there
to discuss. Instead, he repeatedly attempted to launch a one-sided
diatribe against Mormons. I tried to respond, but it was difficult.

I don't like all of the answers that I gave in the heat of the moment,
but I did the best I could under the circumstances. You can listen to
that radio program here, on Mr. Keller's Web site:

   http://www.liveprayer.com/fox1.cfm

The year isn't over. (It isn't even half over.) We had the anti-Joseph
Smith DVD release, a new documentary on Joseph Smith was just
announced, and new books, films and TV shows are being produced with
Mormon characters. 

My words of advice? Don't get upset; get involved. There are many ways
to do that; a few of them are listed here:

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

Want another idea? Plan on attending this year's FAIR Conference. It
will help you learn the answers you need while talking with friends
and family. The deadline for registering at a reduced rate is fast
approaching. You can find more information later in this issue of the
FAIR Journal.

-Scott Gordon
 FAIR President


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2007 FAIR CONFERENCE

This is your last chance to purchase tickets to the FAIR conference at
a discounted price. While we will continue to sell tickets online
though July, we will only keep the price at $49.95 for the two-day
conference until May 30, and this is a conference you won't want to
miss!

We are pleased to announce that we've finalized our lineup for the
August 2-3 event at the South Towne Exposition Center in Sandy, Utah.
Speakers can be heard beginning at 9:00 am each day.

The following is the list of our speakers, along with a very brief
introduction and title of their talk. The schedule shown may be
subject to change.

For a more complete description of the speakers' backgrounds, go to:

   http://www.fairlds.org/conf07b.html

For more information about the conference, go to:

   http://www.fairlds.org/conf07a.html

You can find registration information on either of these pages.


=== THURSDAY SCHEDULED SPEAKERS ===

   * Steven L. Olson, Ph.D.
     Associate Managing Director of the Family and Church History
     Department.

     Presentation: Are the Church Archives Closed?

   * Terryl Givens, Ph.D.
     Professor of Literature and Religion, James Bostwick Chair of
     English at the University of Richmond, Author of "By the Hand of
     Mormon."

     Presentation: When Souls Had Wings: What the Western Tradition
     Has to teach Us About Pre-Existence.

   * Brian M. Hauglid, Ph.D.
     Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture at BYU. Co-general
     editor of "Studies in the Book of Abraham" series.
     
     Presentation: Whence the Book of Abraham? A Case Study for
     Re-Thinking LDS Apologetics.

   * Larry E. Morris
     Writer and editor with the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for
     Religious Scholarship. Author of "Oliver Cowdery: Scribe, Elder,
     Witness."

     Presentation: The Cowdery Controversies.

   * Jeffry N. Walker, J.D.
     Series manager and co-editor for the legal and business volumes
     of the "Joseph Smith Papers."
     
     Presentation: A Change of Venue: Joseph Smith's Escape from
     Liberty Jail.

   * Wendy Ulrich, Ph.D.
     Psychologist, author, corporate trainer and a past president of
     the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists

     Presentation: Seeing Our Blindness: Personal History, Religious
     Experience, and the Need for Story.

   * John L. Sorenson, Ph.D.
     Professor emeritus of anthropology at Brigham Young University
     and author of more than 200 publications including "An Ancient
     American Setting for the Book of Mormon."

     Presentation: The Trajectory of Book of Mormon Studies.

=== FRIDAY SCHEDULED SPEAKERS ===

   * Richard E. Turley, Jr.
     Managing Director of the Family and Church History Department,
     recently involved in a major study on the Mountain Meadows
     Massacre

     Presentation: Reflections on Mountain Meadows.

   * Craig L. Foster
     Research specialist and author of "Penny Tracts and Polemics: A
     Critical Analysis of Anti-Mormon Pamphleteering in Great Britain,
     1837-1860," as well as several articles.

     Steven L. Mayfield
     Documentation collector

     Presentation: Demonstrations, Protests, and Pamphleteering in
     the Heart of Mormonism.

   * David Bokovoy
     Doctoral candidate in Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East at
     Brandeis University

     Presentation: Isaiah in the Book of Mormon: The Things of Joseph
     and the Things of the Jews.

   * Blake Ostler, J.D.
     Author and widely published LDS philosopher.

     Presentation: Spiritual Experiences As The Basis For Belief And
     Commitment.

   * John F. Hall, Ph.D.
     Professor of Classical Languages and Ancient History, editor of
     "The BYU New Testament Commentary," and noted author
     
	 Presentation: As Far as It is Translated Correctly: The Problem
     of Tampering with the Word of God in the Transmission and
     Translation of the New Testament.

   * William Hamblin, Ph.D.
     Associate Professor at BYU where he specializes in Near Eastern
     Studies and the Crusades

     David R. Seely, Ph.D.
     Professor of Religion and One of the team of editors of the Dead
     Sea Scrolls

     Presentation: Solomon's Temple: Myth and History.

   * Daniel Peterson, Ph.D.
     Professor of Islamic Studies and Arabic at BYU, author of several
     books and articles, and editor of the "FARMS Review"

     Presentation: God and Mr. Hitchens

Every year we have to make difficult choices as to whom we invite to
speak at our conference and I know there are some disappointed
potential speakers. We appreciate the willingness of all those who
speak and who apply to speak at the conference.


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

FAIR is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, so if you are in the United
States, your donation is tax deductible. Without your donations, FAIR
would cease to exist. Thank you for your support.

     http://store.fairlds.org/bi071.html

You can also contact FAIR via the U.S. Postal Service using the
following address. (NOTE: This is a new mailing address for FAIR.)

     FAIR
     P.O. Box 491677
     Redding, CA 96049-1677


------------------------------
ASK THE APOLOGIST

FAIR invites the public to submit questions relating to LDS beliefs,
practices, and history. Some questions are asked sincerely by members
and investigators, others are clearly hostile questions challenging
the veracity of the Church and its teachings. Many of these responses
may end up on the Web site as a FAIR paper or brochure. If you have a
question, you may submit it through the FAIR web site.

     http://www.fairlds.org/contact.php

Questions sent to FAIR will be shared with members of FAIR, so it is
not uncommon to receive several responses that approach the issue from
different angles.


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

We welcome article submissions for the FAIR Journal and 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, Paul McNabb,
by going to

     http://www.fairlds.org/contact.php

An appropriate article would be one that affirms the truthfulness of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

While LDS apologetics involves refuting critics of the Church, its
doctrines, and its leaders, articles don't necessarily have to deal
with anti-Mormonism. FAIR will consider articles that deal with new
evidence of the Book of Mormon, scriptural passages that involve a
unique LDS interpretation, a viewpoint or quote from the early
Christian Fathers or other historical figures, an inspiring missionary
story, Church history, a view on a current event related to the
Church, or a piece from an 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 "Join &
Support FAIR" link.

If you are interested in apologetics and would like to participate
actively in FAIR you should consider joining our apologetics e-mail
list. Visit www.fairlds.org and click on the "Join & Support FAIR"
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 by going to

     http://www.fairlds.org/contact.php

We have a fairly liberal policy of using our material as long as you
contact us first to gain permission, clearly identify that your source
was FAIR, and add a link to the FAIR Web site (www.fairlds.org).


--------------------------------
FAIR JOURNAL ARCHIVES

For past issues of the FAIR Journal, go to

     http://www.fairlds.org/pubs/journal

--------------------------------
Copyright (c) 2007 by The Foundation for Apologetic Information and
Research (FAIR). All rights reserved.

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.

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Last Updated July 16, 2007
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