The February issue of the Liahona magazine hosts an article I wrote about finding answers to questions.
What a great opportunity to join Hank Smith and John Bytheway on the Follow Him Podcast to talk about Joseph Smith and Brigham Young!
Part 1 – Joseph Smith (D&C 135) video and show notes
Part 2 – Brigham Young (D&C 136) video and show notes
Today I participated in a panel discussion about how to make peace with challenging questions in Church history. I joined Claire Haynie Brown and Aly Conteh who shared personal wisdom and personal experiences. A writeup in the Deseret News quoted me as follows . . .
On resources for studying Church history:
People are typically suspicious when they hear Erekson works in church history, he said. Someone will say, “Oh, I’ve heard of you guys. You hide the church’s history. You don’t want people to know about the church’s history.”
“And I usually answer with a big ‘yes, that’s exactly our goal. And I’m going to tell you where we hide things so that no member will ever find them. … We found this place called the gospel library app.’”
Erekson went on to reference and describe resources readily available in the app, along with the recently completed Joseph Smith Papers project.
On dealing with difficult topics:
“We don’t know everything,” Erekson said, encouraging people to “not feel surprised or disappointed or betrayed” when challenging things come up in church or world history.
“These are people that God is dealing with,” he said — citing the revelation introducing the Book of Mormon as containing “a record of a fallen people and the fullness of (the) gospel of Jesus Christ.”
“It’s both of those. I can’t just have the Book of Mormon without the war chapters. I can’t see the miracles of Jesus without comprehending the woman who had an issue of blood for 12 years.”Report ad
This is a pattern he says goes “all the way back to the Garden of Eden, where God tells us that’s how you’re going to learn you are going to taste the bitter, so that you know how to prize the sweet.”
The Easter issue of the Liahona magazine features an article I wrote about “the main character” in Church history–Jesus Christ. Here are a few quotes:
Church history is not just names and dates. If we look for the Lord’s hand, Church history reveals the modern ministry of the living Christ.
Jesus Christ has been ministering to God’s children for thousands of years, including the past 200 years. He is at the center of the story. Church history is His history.
Our modern history can reveal Jesus Christ as the central figure and can teach us the ways of God and help us draw closer to Him.
Today it was my privilege to join Ben Lomu and Kimberly Matheson as a special guest on BYUtv’s Come, Follow Up. I spoke about my experience learning from the Restoration Proclamation and finding answers to questions about difficult aspects of Church history.
Episode Information: This week, the “Come, Follow Me” program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints takes us to the bicentennial proclamation on the Restoration. Come Follow Up host Ben Lomu leads the discussion with gospel scholar Kimberly Matheson and special guest Keith Erekson on the following topics: “The Restoration Began with an Answer to a Question” and “The Heavens Are Open”.
Today leaders of two churches announced the transfer of the Kirtland Temple and other historic sites and artifacts to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For many months, I have had the singular privilege to assist with this project in several ways:
- Served as historical adviser during contract negotiation. This involved visiting the sites, meeting with leaders, and evaluating historical significance.
- Served on the 8-person strike team responsible for the announcement and transfer. My specific assignments involved planning for the historic documents and artifacts as well as overseeing communication, which led to my writing the FAQ released with the announcement, authoring a brief summary published with the artifact display, and a preparing more detailed summary in BYU Studies.
- Authenticated and transported the historic documents and artifacts. I traveled to Independence before March 5 to prepare to transport the Liberty Jail door and paintings of Joseph and Emma. On the morning of March 5, I authenticated all of the acquired documents and then drove them across country under armed guard.
- Trained missionaries in Nauvoo on how to answer difficult questions. Visitors to Nauvoo now learn about the history of the temple endowment (in the Red Brick Store) and plural marriage (Mansion House), two topics never before addressed at the Church’s historic sites.
- Served as historian for the project by gathering records, conducting interviews, and preparing an internal history.
