Faith in Doubt
A historian offered a more liberal view of the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Sept. 19 at the 19th-annual Leonard J. Arrington lecture.
Gregory Prince’s lecture was titled “Faith and Doubt as Partners in Mormon History” in reference to the first lecture by LDS historian Leonard J. Arrington in 1995, “Faith and Intellect as Partners in Mormon History.” Drawing from Arrington’s life, Prince discussed the role doubt plays in advancing both scholarly research and faith.
“Faith and doubt are two sides of the same coin,” Prince said. “The interplay between the two is essential to a complete religious life, and scholars are uniquely qualified to leverage the inherent value of doubt.”
Historical research began as a hobby for Prince, who has a doctorate in pathology. He published two books and is working on the third, a biography of Arrington, who died in 1999.
During his lecture, Prince discussed the two controversial pieces Arrington published in his life, “Great Basin Kingdom” and “An Economic Interpretation of the Word of Wisdom.”
“Great Basin Kingdom” researched the economic activities of Mormon settlers in the West. In particular, the book covers the sugar factory, the iron struggles and the Las Vegas lead mines, all of which resulted in failure.
“Of these and other failed economic ventures of the church, he gave a brutally candid analysis,” Prince said.
Arrington suggested these enterprises would have succeeded if there had been better leadership from the church. The book was received with mixed reviews from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the second-highest governing body in the church, Prince said.
Likewise, Arrington’s “An Economic Interpretation of the Word of Wisdom” caused controversy and was banned from being published for a year after it came out. The article refers to the temperance wave – a movement of abstaining from drinking alcohol – going through the United States in the 1820s and 1830s as another source for the principles in the Word of Wisdom, Prince said.
The Word of Wisdom refers to the church’s outline of health practices followed by church members.
Arrington points out for a church trying to gather funds, there were economic benefits of avoiding wasteful commodities like tobacco, tea, coffee and other products as prescribed in the Word of Wisdom, Prince said.
Arrington did not criticise everything about the church, Prince said.
“There were other important aspects in Mormon history that he chose not to doubt, instead accepting conventional wisdom uncritically, while letting other do the doubting,” he said.
One such issue Arrington avoided debating was the historical legitimacy of the Book of Mormon. His struggle was more internal than external, Prince said.
“For many, perhaps most Latter-day Saints, then and now, the personal encounter with the Book of Mormon is foundational to one’s religious life and even the possibility of a paradigm shift can be existentially unsettling,” Prince said.
Prince explained how Arrington’s internal conflicts led him to believe the Book of Mormon was either a literal work or a metaphorical work. Throughout the years, Arrington read the works of other historical researchers, eventually settling his mind on the matter of the Book of Mormon’s historical legitimacy.
As Arrington neared the end of his life, he wrote to his children on doubt and the role it had played in his life.
“Having doubts, having fears, having reservations about counsel is not necessarily an opening wedge towards loss of faith,” Arrington said. “Indeed, it might be the avenue to renewed faith, deeper faith, greater understanding. But do not forget the sun for the sunspots. We must also reaffirm the good, that with which we have no problem.”
In his closing speech, Prince addressed the need for more research on the controversial topics of today, such as polygamy, LGBT issues and women in priesthood. He called for research from a variety of angles, people and sources to address these issues.
After the lecture, Prince took questions from the audience. An attendee asked what role he thought church classes have in accommodating different viewpoints.
Prince said this was a difficult thing to accomplish, but he believes the Internet will play a role. He believes questioners will be able to “harness the power of the Internet” and find material to suit their needs.
He went on to describe the “self-selecting nature of the Internet.”
“The Internet is an assistant and an adversary in what we’re trying to do,” Prince said.
Once data is on the Internet, the church cannot control it. The church has to put out smarter material that will provide the necessary argument, he said.
“It’s going to be the quality of the content, not the identity of the author that carries the day on the Internet,” Prince said. “The best answers will rise to the top.”
An audience member asked how Prince made his best argument to those who are unable to view the Book of Mormon as historical record that the church is still worth affi
liating with.
In answer, Prince said to judge the Book of Mormon for what it is and what it does. He gave the example of the importance of the Book of Mormon to converts.
“In the 180 years since it was published, it has represented the event that has transformed people’s lives,” he said.
In attendance at the event were Elder Steven Snow, current LDS church historian, two of Arrington’s children, Susan Madsen and James Arrington and USU President Stan Albrecht and his wife.
Several USU students also attended, including Matthew Connelly, a first-year graduate student studying marriage and family therapy.
“I was glad he brought up some of the controversial elements of Mormon history and Mormon intellectual life,” Connelly said. “I’m a very committed Mormon. At the same time, I don’t feel like the Orthodox narrative is as compelling to some church members as it used to be.”
Students who attended the event can enter an essay contest for a cash reward. Essays must be 2,500 words on a topic related to the lecture. The deadline for essays is 5:00 p.m. Dec. 6.
The cash awards are $1,000 for first place, $500 for second place, and $250 for third place.
-mburnett@aggiemail.usu.edu