“A Reason for Faith” Interview with Laura Harris Hales

A few weeks back, the BYU Religious Studies Center sent me a copy of “A Reason for Faith” to review. My review should come out this next weekend, but in the meantime, I talked with editor Laura Harris Hales about the book, her motivations behind it, and the topics.

It looks like the book is gaining some momentum – as of this morning, the book is ranked #6 in LDS Kindle downloads, and #18 in LDS Books.

Brandt Malone: What was the impetus for the book? It seems like faith and doubt are popular topics within Mormon publications right now. Was it due to this current trend we are seeing recently, was it due to the circumstances in your family you mentioned in the prologue, or was it something more?

Laura Harris Hales: My motivation for compiling this book had everything to do with my personal desire to have access to better information like the kind found in A Reason for Faith and nothing to do with the popularity of the topics of faith and doubt.

One day I listened to a podcast featuring James McConkie, a nephew of Elder Bruce R. McConkie. He mentioned how he and his wife, Judith, had taken it upon themselves to educate their children as they became teenagers on the lesser-known topics of church history and controversial church doctrine.

This activity helped them to build an atmosphere of trust and openness in their family. In fact, at one point Jim and his son, who is now serving as a mission president, explored “anti-Mormon” literature together. This one-on-one teaching had the added value of giving them a forum to transmit their thoughts regarding church history and doctrine. Another benefit was that their teenagers became accustomed to diversity of thought and uncertainty at a young age, which is spiritually healthy.

I decided that I wanted to emulate this parenting practice in my life, and, hopefully, build that same kind of trust with my children. But I couldn’t find the type of resource I wanted to accomplish this task, so I decided to create one myself.

“Faith” and “doubt” books are popular right now, but I wouldn’t place this book into either category despite the title. A Reason for Faith would be more accurately labeled as a book for the curious. My suggestion of Seventeen Controversial Topics Addressed in 25 Pages or Less by Scholars You Can Trust was rejected by the publisher, but it is more descriptive of the contents than the current one. Personally, I find extended discussions on faith unhelpful when someone is look for facts.

BM: In the prologue, you mention that this collection of essays does not intend to “avoid or gloss over” any of the issues, but also that the book is not intended to provide “space for them to be fully explored.” Why did you choose to go that direction? 

LHH: People are busy. Most of the information in this book has been floating around the academic community for years and studied in detail for decades, so it can be found in multiple scholarly journals or already existing books.

Few people have the time or the interest to explore those detailed treatments. It would be like taking a sip of water from a fire hydrant.

Thick books rarely get finished. I would rather that readers be exposed to a broad collection of topics and finish the book (and I really like the last chapter) then set it down before completion because of time constraints and boredom. This doesn’t mean that these chapters are superficial treatments but rather that verbosity and commentary has been kept to a minimum.

BM: Who do you feel this book is geared to? Those who have questions? Those who know people who have questions? Those who want to get a feel for the “issues” out there from a faithful perspective? 

LHH: All of the above. I am pretty sure most members could come up with a question or two on one of these topics if given a minute. This book has been reviewed by highly informed lay members, academics, and those unfamiliar with the topics, and all have mentioned they have found the chapters valuable on some level.

My primary intent with this book is to provide a tool for spiritual inoculation. Over the last couple of years, I have counselled with many members in the midst of faith crises. It is difficult to convince these individuals after they have learned something disturbing through a non-traditional channel (such as church and family) that added context and perspective from faithful sources, while not making history change, can provide a reason to maintain faith—not in church history or any one individual necessarily—but in Christ. And isn’t that where our focus needs to be?

If as members we accept a larger responsibility for the exploration, explanation, and dissemination of information about our collective church history, then maybe we can lessen or eliminate the pain and feelings of betrayal that many with pressing questions are experiencing as they learn about subjects such as the early practice of polygamy, multiple first vision accounts, and the theological problems associated with the priesthood and temple ban.

And I hope members will accept this challenge to be agents of change by sharing what they learn. This Monday evening my 83-year-old mother taught concepts from the Book of Mormon translation chapter to her empty-nesters Family Home Evening group. I helped her gather visuals such as several of Anthony Sweat’s drawings of the translation process, a picture of the seer stone published in the Ensign magazine, Joseph of Egypt’s silver cup, and a dowsing rod.

She reported that her lesson had gone really well, and to her surprise “not a single person new about the rock in the hat.” My husband was not surprised: “They grew up with different artwork.” Whether one is eight or eighty, it’s the right time to start talking about these topics.

BM: One of the concerns I have about the book isn’t the book itself, but how it might be utilized. I can see a well-intentioned parent, spouse, family member, or church leader referencing the book as the “final answer” to a question that someone might have. What are your feelings on this? 

LHH: If the“final answer” were that the earth is 4.4 billion years old, Cane’s curse was not passed down through his posterity in the form of black skin color, or that folk magic was a common element of rural, nineteenth-century Yankee culture, I don’t think I would have a problem with that. Declaring absolute conclusions regarding the Book of Abraham or the presence of verses from Deutero-Isaiah in 2 Nephi would make me nervous.

In all seriousness, I think those fears are largely ungrounded considering the open-ended nature of the analysis presented in the book. The last thing we want to do is clear up misconceptions and inaccuracies and replace them with supposed new absolutes.

When contributors were consulted, a majority insisted that the words “truth” and “answers” not be included in the title. Not all faithful scholars will agree with all the analysis presented in the book, and all members will not agree with all of the conclusions. What we have here is solid ground on which to start a discussion rather than to end it.

BM: My perception is that while these issues have been debated, discussed, and researched among very competent scholars for 50+ years, the same issues continue to be brought up. Why do you think that is?

LHH: The lifespan of some of these issues is impressive. Richard Bushman addressed whether or not there were religious revivals in Joseph Smith’s neighborhood at the time he claimed one occurred more than 50 years ago. And he did a good job showing that there indeed were. Yet, I still see that issue on lists of complaints. When I approached Richard to write the chapter on money-digging, he voiced his incredulity that this was still an issue. He has also written on magic folklore in nineteenth-century Yankee culture for decades.

The problem is that I just became aware of his work a couple of years ago, and it was at a scholarly conference. Most of this information has not been widely distributed—at least not as widely as church curriculum, the major source of information for most members of the church. So unless you are an historical hobbyist or scholar of LDS history, you likely were not aware of Dr. Bushman’s work fifty, forty, thirty, twenty, and even ten years ago. So until there is a vehicle to drive this information into the consciousness of mainstream Mormons, each generation will likely discover it anew.

BM: Do you think that the church (through the LDS.org essays and the Church History Department) can play a factor in contributing answers and possibly resolving these questions?

LHH: We definitely have more “whats” available at our fingertips now, but “whys” will always remain elusive and subject to various interpretations because that is the nature of things.

Personally, at my stage of study, I am much less concerned with finding answers to some of what I have come to see as unanswerable historical questions than with learning more context and accurate details.

The Church History Department has done a phenomenal job making available online an abundance of information for those seeking deeper insight into church history and doctrine. Now it is the job of members to become more familiar with the materials that are available, so they can utilize them when they have questions.

The Gospel Topics essays are an amazing resource. One great thing they do is allow members to talk about these issues in church forums within the boundaries designated by the essays without being labeled a heretic or an apostate. I can’t imagine having the bravery to share the concepts articulated in the essay “Race and the Priesthood” in Sunday School without having a church-produced article to reference.

BM: While members can individually research some of these issues, it feels that many either don’t know where to begin or get uncomfortable going to non-LDS sources. Is there anything the church can do within the official church programs (Sunday School, Seminary and Institute, firesides, etc) to help people who are struggling with these issues?

LHH: By LDS sources, I think you are referring to official church publications such as manuals, church magazines, and conference talks. I occasionally see a hesitation by some to go beyond these sources as well.

Elder M. Russell Ballard gave an excellent lecture to seminary and institute teachers in February in which he counselled CES instructors to not only consult the scriptures, church manuals, and general conference talks but also information from the “best books,” which include “the best LDS scholarship available.” A Reason for Faith represents relevant and recent LDS scholarship and includes some of the best LDS scholarship available on controversial topics.

But, again, my focus is not what the church can do for members but rather to look in the mirror and ask: “What can I do to learn more for myself and my family?” Elder Ballard has endorsed consulting non-LDS resources. Hopefully, that will make the timid feel more comfortable.

A bigger problem I see is among those who feel betrayed and deceived because what they were taught in church doesn’t always mesh with things they have learned elsewhere. They are often hesitant to accept that believing members are being straightforward or suspect they are brushing aside their distress.

Ty Mansfield addressed this concern to a struggling friend: “I think every one of the contributors, even as we’ve maintained our faith, has a deep sense of empathy and understanding for those who have struggled to do so and addresses the topic from that place. I hope that it can help you and others at the very least explore some of these complex issues within a framework that holds space for belief and hope.”

BM: What was your favorite essay in the book? (My personal favorite was Neylan McBaine’s “Latter-day Saint Women in the Twenty-First Century” or Paul Reeve’s “Race, the Priesthood, and Temples”)?

LHH: Answering that question would be like naming a favorite child at the dinner table. It was my pleasure to work with a team of top-tier scholars for a year: refining chapters, facilitating peer-review, and making sure the material would not only be informative but also interesting to read. I feel invested in every chapter, but the chapter that confronts head-on the topic that my daughter struggled with the most is particularly meaningful to me.

Readers will skip around the book as they pick chapters dealing with matters that concern them or pique their curiosity. It has been enlightening for me to watch friends pick up the book, look at the table of contents, and flip to certain chapters. Their first choice is often a surprise to me; they cover the spectrum.

Your choice of favorite chapters is interesting because their authors both offer practical tools for dealing with twenty-first century concerns. It is one thing to provide accurate data, but often that is not enough. Sometimes we are left thinking, “Now what? How do I proceed in light of this new reality?” Readers may find their insights helpful.

BM: What do you hope those who read A Reason for Faith will take away from the book? 

LHH: I want them to come away having learned something. This is, after all, a book for the curious.