“Defending the faith intelligently”

Last updated on: January 30, 2019 at 5:10 pm by Dan Peterson

“Defending the faith intelligently” 2019-01-30T17:10:43-07:00 Dan Peterson

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The Hong Kong China Temple (Wikimedia CC photo by Chamrat Charoenkhet)

Here’s an interesting suggestion from the ever interesting Jeff Lindsay:

“A Subtle Book of Mormon Tribute to Single Mothers?”

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It’s been at least a day since I last proposed an item for your Christopher Hitchens Memorial “Religion Poisons Everything” file, which must by now surely be bursting dangerously at the seams. Feeling guilty about how remiss I’ve been, I now offer you another piece:

“JustServe Helping Silicon Slopes Provide 1 Million Meals to Hungry Children: Volunteer opportunities available January 31 and February 1 at the Salt Palace”

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The overall structure within which the Hong Kong China Temple is housed was originally designed as a multi-use facility that included the temple — which is scarcely surprising, given real estate prices in and immediately around Hong Kong. Many of the functions that were housed in the building, though, have now been moved to a separate complex located right across the street. I expect that this is connected with a new announcement from Church headquarters:

“Asia Temple Will Close for Renovation: Extensive renovation planned for the Hong Kong China Temple”

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I was present on 19 March 2004 when Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles delivered the address from which this passage is taken. He died just four months later:

“In a way, LDS scholars at BYU and elsewhere are a little bit like the builders of the temple in Nauvoo who worked with a trowel in one hand and a musket in the other. Today scholars building the temple of learning must also pause on occasion to defend the Kingdom. I personally think this is one of the reasons the Lord established and maintains this University. The dual role of builder and defender is unique and ongoing. I am grateful we have scholars today who can handle, as it were, both trowels and muskets.”

Elder Neal A. Maxwell, “Blending Research and Revelation”

It makes me think of another comment that was sent out to all of the professors at Brigham Young University back on 6 April 2015 by the BYU Faculty Center, who attributed it to one Jeffrey R. Holland. (He was identified as “President of BYU, 1980-1989.”) Here it is:

“Defending the faith intelligently is only one kind of aid we might offer our far-flung brothers and sisters, albeit surely the most important one.”

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