BYU Professor Daniel Peterson and Scott Gordon FAIR have launched a new website with the testimonies of Mormon scholars: Mormon Scholars Testify. Bro. Peterson explained his rationale to the Church News:
“I hope to gather up testimonies from, well, Mormon scholars,” Brother Peterson said. “I’m trying, thereby, to comply with a request made about a year ago by Elder M. Russell Ballard and reiterated by other authors in the October Ensign that we use the Internet as a way of sharing our testimonies of the gospel.” (via LDS Church News)
Bro. Peterson suggested this could be one of many “vertical” websites highlighting the testimonies of Church members:
“I think there ought to be similar on-line collections of testimonies from athletes, executives, farmers, housewives, morticians, retirees, chess players, stamp collectors, everybody. The possibilities are endless, and I hope many others will take to the Web with their expressions of faith.” (ibid.)
More Good Foundation’s website Mormons Believe, or the yet-to-be-built Why I Believe, announced at the Boston singles conference, could be the home for these many testimonies, organized by profession, location, interest, or some other attribute.
Mormon.org itself has a few select testimonies and could conceivably offer a repository of testimonies someday.
24 Hour Fitness has a website with the stories of members whose lives have improved through fitness. It includes categories such as life improvement, recovery, athletic, and social. Imagine a similar website for the stories of people whose lives have been blessed by the Gospel in even broader and more lasting ways.
CORRECTION (Jan 18, 2010): As Daniel Peterson mentions in the comment below, this website is not affiliated with FAIR.
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
This is more general, but we are trying to do something like that with Mormon women.
I’m really pleased to hear it. A site for testimonies from Mormon women is enormously important and much needed.
I should have begun my comment by saying that we are happy to hear about the site you have started. Elder Ballard’s talks have been a huge motivating factor for us, too. In fact, his first talk was what spurred me to create Mormon Women.
We’ll be linking to your site, to be sure.
Thank you for all you are doing.
p.s. We’ll try to send some people your way to contribute to the site as well.
~Michelle, editor at MW
Thanks. I’m very interested in including women’s voices on “Mormon Scholars Testify.” And I’ll suggest to my cohorts that we link to “Mormon Women.”
Incidentally, I hadn’t even noticed the article’s suggestion that
“Mormon Scholars Testify” is affiliated with FAIR.
This is incorrect. Although I’m affiliated with FAIR, as is Scott Gordon, “Mormon Scholars Testify” is an independent, private venture. It belongs to no organization.
Dr. Peterson, my mistake. I’ve corrected the post to indicate the independence from FAIR.