Article

“Narrating Religious Heritage”

By Miranda Wilcox

Latter-day Saints believe there was an apostasy following the death of the original Apostles called by Jesus Christ and that a restoration began with the call of Joseph Smith as a prophet. In this fascinating article, Miranda Wilcox takes readers on a journey to see what has been taught about the Apostasy and Restoration in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, what is taught today, and how these key doctrines might be taught in the future.

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Article

“Civil Disobedience in Latter-day Saint Thought”

By Nathan B. Oman

“The twelfth article of faith declares, ‘We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law’ (A of F 1:12). On its face, this statement seems to be an unqualified acceptance of legal authority, one that would suggest that Latter-day Saints ought to shun civil disobedience. However, a closer look at Restoration scripture, teachings, and experience reveals a more complicated picture. To be sure, law-abidingness has long been central to the Saints’ identity, particularly in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and like the New Testament, Restoration scripture generally accepts the need to ‘render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s’ (Mark 12:17) and affirms the legitimacy of the ‘powers that be’ (Rom. 13:1). However, there has never been a clear consensus among Latter-day Saint authorities on the precise extent to which the Saints owe deference to secular law. From the beginning, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have insisted that there are limits on the duty of obedience that Latter-day Saints owe to Caesar.”

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Come, Follow Me

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

“The Family Is Central to the Creator’s Plan”

The Family Proclamation is about the plan of salvation as much as it is about the family. Understanding the principles taught helps us see with eternal perspective.

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BYU Studies Podcast

Latest Episodes

This week’s podcast episodes feature a student panel discussion about experiences at the BYU Jerusalem Center and a description of The Annals of the Southern Mission: A Record of the History of the Settlement of Southern Utah, a book that consists of the writings of James Gordon Bleak, collected by editors Aaron McArthur and Reid L. Neilson. Bleak was called by President Brigham Young to be a clerk and historian of the Utah South Mission in St. George.

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