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Show T DS c IC ohn Dehlin, founder of the MormonStories.org podcast and StayLDS.com , is facing disciplinary action from the LDS church for alleged apostasy, with a disciplinary council currently scheduled for Feb. 8. Mormon Stories' mission statement states that the podcast "is dedicated to exploring, celebrating, and challenging Mormon culture in constructive ways."The podcast has featured discussion with individuals from a broad spectrum of cultural Mormonism about various aspects of the faith tradition. According to a press release from Dehlin (correlated by republished private communication from the LDS church to him, included in the press release), he is facing church discipline for his involvement with the podcast, along with his "public support of same-sex marriage, and of the Ordain Women movement': and his criticism of various aspects of the LDS church. At this juncture, Dehlin deserves a show j - eeds to tape a of solidarity from all communities with ties to cultural Mormonism, including the LDS church itself. As evidenced by his founding of StayLDS. com and openness in confronting critical social issues within Mormonism, Dehlin is embracing a commitment to religious truth, albeit a non-conformist one. A church whose foundation mythos revolves around an idolization of just such an unwavering commitment to religious truth cannot afford to marginalize this voice. When questioned about his alleged apostasy on a recent edition ofTrib Talk, Dehlin said, "I still consider myself a person of faith; I still believe in what I believe are the core tenets of Christianity ... I still hold to many of the LDS church's core beliefs and practices:' He expressed that he had no intent to lead members of the church away from it, but was interested in keeping a space open for discussion of all elements of Mormonism. "I have this hope that Mormonism — the LDS church — can mature like Judaism and Christianity have ... become a bigger tent, and become more willing to tolerate dissenting views, even criticism:' Dehlin is being marginalized within LDS circles for his perceived apostasy. In talking about his story with Mormon and postMormon friends, it has been apparent that character assassination stories are being swapped as they were when Kate Kelly was in the same spotlight. Many within the progressive Mormon community, such as Flunking Sainthood author Jana Riess, feel "...that his excommunication is a foregone conclusion:' Given that Dehlin's unchanged theological positions have been a matter of public knowledge for years, it's readily apparent that this is an attempt by the official and orthodox to ostracize a (perceivably) critical space with growing influence. This is not an attempt to help Brother Dehlin "overcome transgression through repentance," the stated reason for disciplinary councils on the LDS.org website. It is unfortunate that the LDS church insists on such continued attempts at censorship, especially since the target is a space like Mormon Stories, which attempts to provide an independent and objective venue for discussion that is not definitively anti- or pro-Mormon. It seems unfathomable that unquestionable orthodoxy should be the standard for a faith operating in the United States.The LDS church is showing itself to be a radically fundamentalist organization. It is intent on excommunicating human rights lawyers and psychology Ph.D. candidates solely because they support The Daily Utah Chaos Contact Griffin Ada ms at g. a dar hr d ta h.ed DIPLOMATIC COURIER A Global Affairs Magazine the faith's LGBTQ+ community, frame questions within a 21st century political paradigm and openly confront troubling aspects of the faith tradition. This is an attempt to officially police a theological conversation now taking place in venues such as Slate and The New York Times, an approach notably inconsistent with a commitment to proselyting and theological research. The Mormon community and LDS church need to understand that cultural Mormonism is not inhabited solely by the orthodox. Abuse of the marginalized and heterodox only serves to weaken the theological position of the Church. When publicly discussing doctrine on the Internet (without ill intent!) is treated as a crime of heresy, it's hard to believe that the priestly accusers are interested in serving anyone but their own power elite. To LDS church leadership: Try to save an official space in your community for those who have asked questions, even those who do so publicly. People will feel less threatened and will be more likely to take you seriously, especially since they aren't going to necessarily leave the community and/or stop talking just because they've been told to do so. letters@chronicle.utah.edu The Daily Utah Chronicle Is mow Ming sports writer.. 411 ill pill is hiring new reporters HINCKLEY INSTITUTE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH SUNDANCE SUMMIT CLEAN AIR. CLEAN WATER. CLEAN ENERGY. JANUARY 27, 8 30-2 00 PM THE LEONARDO FREE ADMISSION FOR STUDENTS! Contact Emily Juchau at e.juchazAchroniele.utakefili Voting: no excuses e live in a country where we are able to choose the people who represent us in government. However, voter turnout is never 100 percent. So many people who have the ability to vote don't. Why? Is it because it's hard to register, or because it's difficult to make it to polling places during elections? Well, thanks to modern technology, these problems have become extremely weak excuses. You can now register to vote online, and even register to become a remote voter, meaning you can cast your ballot by mail. You don't even have to leave your house. Many people feel they shouldn't vote because they don't know enough about politics or the people running. And they feel W voting for these third-party candidates (say the American Communist party, or the Libertarian party) is essentially throwing away your vote. So you are left with two choices: Democrat or Republican. The role of the voter can then be understood as a responsibility not to vote for the right person, but to vote against the person you don't want to hold office, or the person whose beliefs and platform are farthest from your own. Voting becomes even simpler with the idea of party loyalty. Any given candidate must first be elected within their own party (as only one party member will be available for the public to choose at a time). And if they do win, they have an obligation to uphold the axioms of their party's platform, or they will not be supported in future elections, by party or public. And we all know that the politician just wants to be in office. They are usually "party puppets:' But the party has a responsibility to maintain an image, as well as a loyalty to their platform points, in order to please the public and influential constituents. This is why you usually wouldn't see a Democrat voting to end all affirmative action, or a Republican voting to ban civilian gun rights. So the responsibility of the voter becomes simply to understand the basic difference between a Democrat and a Republican, and choose a side. Of course, it would be nice to think that our role in government is more nuanced than that, but it's usually not. If you choose to be uber informed and politically active, then more power to you. However, exemplary activism is not necessary in order to uphold your obligation to the functionality of democracy. We still operate under a system where every vote actually counts, and if everyone actually voted, our representative government would more accurately reflect the opinions and needs of our country. If you're still not sure about the difference between a Democrat and a Republican, just Google it. letters@chronicle.utah.edu Teachers deserve your R-E-S-P-E-C-T BY TRICIA FOSTER /COLUMNIST ou've heard the saying, "Those who can, do; those who can't, teach." This idiom has been around far too long, demeaning the profession of teaching. It exists in direct contradiction to our society's participation in the global race for technology, innovation and advancement. Higher education is sought after as a commodity to springboard members of the population into profitable careers. The necessity of going beyond a bachelor's degree is prevalent in an increasingly competitive world. Although our world of collegiate academia is highly esteemed, primary and secondary education is dragging behind, left to battle with unchanged systems of the 1950s. Oldfashioned gender roles and ideas will never disappear as long as it is still applied to the teaching industry. Despite the fact that one cannot get y 1320 F 200 S. 582-0195 for more information. they simply don't have the time to become politically involved enough. Surprisingly for some, these "problems" are also easy to remedy. We reside under a system known as "first-past-the-post," meaning that the person who receives the most votes wins the position, and only one person can win each electoral category. This essentially ensures that the candidate from either one of the two dominant parties (Democrat or Republican) will win every time. This is different from something like proportional representation, where parties are awarded a certain number of seats in government based on the proportion of people who voted for that party in any given election. If the US were set up like this, perhaps it would be necessary to know a little more about who you are voting for. But since it's not, well, it's not. In any given election, a Democrat will run and a Republican will run, along with many other third-party candidates who will most likely not win. Many people understand that www.thepie.com Downtown Delivery 300 S.1300 E. 582-5700 into a good university without a sufficient secondary education, the latter is still minimized and educators treated as though they could not cut it in the real world and have thus "resorted" to teaching. Clearly, there is a double standard. We expect primary and secondary education to prepare young adults for collegiate education and yet support the idea that their teachers are at the bottom of the totem pole. Is it any wonder males, traditionally viewed as society's bread-winners, generally do not want to be teachers? The starting salaries for teachers are often equivalent to entry-level jobs, and the highest salary, which requires an average of 15 years' experience, is the same as the beginning salary for other fields of study, such as computer science. From a financial standpoint, the payout of almost any other industry with the same level of educational requirements is higher than the educational field. Searching even further into the conditions of educators reveals legislation suppressing educators and outrageous employment conditions. Then there is a world of frustration battling with local and state bureaucracies, including superintendents who are paid between $100,000 and $300,000, who micromanage the teachers who make $24,000$50,000. If the pay and conditions of secondary educators were not enough to deter males from teaching, the low esteem and frequent legal accusations from students and parents surely put the nail in the coffin. In many Asian countries, education is viewed as the most important aspect of life. High school students are at school by 7 or 8 a.m. and usually do not get home until 10 or 11 p.m., depending on how much effort VOTED BEST PIZZA By the Standard Examiner g City Weekly Reader they put into their education. Most stay up until 1 or 2 a.m. doing homework before going to bed. They do this Monday through Saturday and almost year-round. Because education is so important, educators are treated with high respect, are paid well and receive good benefits. This results in 50:50 male-to-female teacher ratios in in most Asian countries. The United States is falling lower and lower on international rankings for primary and secondary education, especially in science and math. This will not change if teacher pay and prestige continues to be belittled. We are damning the rising generation by demeaning the source of their education and obstructing those who may have changed their lives as teachers. letters@chronicle.utah.edu 4c.,(wc\ r |
