UPDATE: The final program for Sunstone SymposiumWest is now available. This symposium is co-sponsored by the Claremont Graduate University School of Religion and the Claremont Mormon Studies Student Association.

–> SUNSTONE SYMPOSIUMWEST - Final PDF <–

14–15 MARCH 2008
CLAREMONT, CALIFORNIA

This event is co-sponsored by the
CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF RELIGION
and the
CLAREMONT MORMON STUDIES
STUDENT ASSOCIATION
WELCOME TO THE 2008 SUNSTONE WEST SYMPOSIUM!
Our great thanks to Claremont School of Religion Dean KAREN JO TORJESEN for hosting our symposium once again, and also for the welcome and assistance offered by the CLAREMONT MORMON STUDIES STUDENT ASSOCIATION. We also really appreciate LISA MALDONADO in the Religion and Culture Office. Lisa has once again been a fantastic liaison for us in dealing with scheduling, facilities, and all the other occasionally stressful details of putting on a conference.

Thank you, as well, to Sunstone Board of Directors Symposium Committee members LAURA COMPTON, MATT THURSTON, and DOE DAUGHTREY, for their great help. We are also very thankful to ELISE EGGETT JOHNSON for her great help as part of this year’s organizing committee! What a great friend!
—DAN WOTHERSPOON, editor, SUNSTONE magazine
—ALLEN HILL, Sunstone symposium coordinator

PROGRAM
FRIDAY, 14 MARCH
6:00–7:30 PM
REGISTRATION, VENDORS
Ticketing Admission to sessions is by name tag or ticket only. Badges and tickets are available at the conference registration table. A selection of LDS books and periodicals is available for purchase.

7:30 PM
PLENARY SESSION
Film Discussion / NOBODY KNOWS: THE UNTOLD STORY OF BLACK MORMONS
Chair DAN WOTHERSPOON, Tooele, Utah; editor, SUNSTONE
Invocation To be announced
Abstract We are very pleased to be able to screen the long-awaited documentary, Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons, and to be able to discuss it with DARIUS GRAY, one of the driving forces behind the film and a noted author and historian about Black Latter-day Saints.
The film tells the story of the involvement of African Americans in the early Church, including being part of the early pioneer companies. It deals forthrightly with the priesthood and temple ban and how those issues played out during the Civil Rights Movement. It looks at the lifting of that ban and its lingering effects on today’s Black Mormons. The film also includes never-released footage and many rare archival photographs, as well as interviews with renowned scholars, historians, Black Mormons, and with Martin Luther King III and Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray, the retired pastor of the First AME Church of Los Angeles, which was founded by a former slave of Mormon pioneers.

Discussion DARIUS GRAY, Midvale, Utah, served for more than twenty years in the presidency of the Genesis Group, the Church’s official support organization for Black Latter-day Saints. He is the co-author, with Margaret Blair Young, of the “Standing on the Promises” trilogy, which chronicles the history of Blacks within the Church.

Benediction To be announced

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

SATURDAY, 15 MARCH
7:30–8:30 AM
REGISTRATION, VENDORS
Ticketing Admission to sessions is by name tag or ticket only. Badges and tickets are available at the conference registration table. A selection of LDS books and periodicals is available for purchase.

8:00–8:30 AM
DEVOTIONAL
2. Devotional GRAPPLING WITH THEODICY: WHY DOES AN ALL-KNOWING, ALL-LOVING, AND ALL-POWERFUL GOD PERMIT EVIL AND OTHER BAD THINGS TO HAPPEN?

Presenter MICHAEL VINSON, Star Valley, Wyoming; M.A. degrees in history and history of the book; currently studying New Testament at Cambridge University; bookseller; long-time Gospel Doctrine teacher

Abstract Here’s your chance to start your day by flexing your intellectual and spiritual muscles in response to one of the most vexing issues in all theological discourse: the problem of evil. Guided by the speaker, this devotional will be based largely on audience participation and reactions to LDS scriptures on this theme.

Chair PAUL CLARK, Los Angeles, California

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

8:45–9:45 AM
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
3. Paper THE MORMON QUEST FOR THE PRESIDENCY

Presenter NEWELL G. BRINGHURST, Visalia, California; Ph.D., emeritus professor of history at the College of the Sequoias; author or editor of numerous books on Mormonism, including Scattering of the Saints: Schism within Mormonism and Black and Mormon

Abstract With Mitt Romney’s run for president, many have been asking whether America is truly ready for a Mormon president. But Romney is actually only the latest in a long series of Mormon presidential candidates stretching back more than 150 years. In recent decades, eight other Mormons have run for the presidency, including the major candidacies of George Romney in 1968 and Morris “Mo” Udall in 1976. And in 1844, Joseph Smith made history by being the first clergyman to run for president, as well as the first candidate to be assassinated during his campaign. In this session, Newell G. Bringhurst, co-author with Craig L. Foster of the book, The Mormon Quest for the Presidency, will share stories and insights into the presidential campaigns of these Mormons and explore how their religion has shaped their political ambitions.

Respondent Audience discussion

Chair CHUCK SCHOFIELD, Claremont, California

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

4. Paper “WHAT HAS ATHENS TO DO WITH JERUSALEM?” A PLACE FOR THEOLOGY IN MORMON STUDIES

Presenter BRIAN BIRCH, Draper, Utah; Ph.D., religion; director, religious studies, Utah Valley University; currently teaching the class, “Mormonism and the Christian Tradition,” at Claremont Graduate University

Abstract From its very beginnings, Mormonism has had an uncomfortable relationship with theology. The term itself has a notorious place in the LDS lexicon and is conscientiously avoided in reference to the study of Mormon doctrine. Theology vs. revelation, theology vs. prophetic teaching, and theology vs. historical narrative are now embedded in the literature. This paper is an effort to challenge these traditional assumptions and to show the breadth of theological studies and some potential applications to LDS scholarship.

Respondent R. JOHN WILLIAMS, Irvine, California; currently completing his Ph.D. in comparative literature at the University of California, Irvine; author of several articles published in Dialogue, Postmodern Culture, and Comparative Critical Studies

Chair ROBERT LARSEN, Moraga, California

Room STAUFFER 106

5. Paper CONFESSIONS OF A KNIGHT ERRANT: THE POETRY OF A FAITHFUL REBEL

Presenter ROGER ROBIN EKINS, Paradise, California; Ph.D., teaches creative writing and the history of ideas at Butte College in Northern California.

Abstract Though better known to Mormon audiences for his non-fiction (his Defending Zion received the Mormon History Association’s Best Documentary History Award) and even his fiction (his first short story was published in Sunstone way back in 1976) Roger Robin Ekins has written—though seldom attempted to publish—poetry and creative non-fiction throughout his career as a professor of English. Confessions of a Knight Errant and Other Tales will mark his emergence from the literary closet as he reveals, in both poignant and humorous detail, what it means to him to be a Mormon.

Respondent Audience discussion

Chair LAEL LITTKE, Pasadena, California

Room STAUFFER 110

10:00 AM–11:00 AM
CONCURRENT SESSIONS

6. Paper PURPOSEFUL STRANGERS: A STUDY OF THE EX-MORMON NARRATIVE

Presenter SETH R. PAYNE, New Haven, Connecticut; pursuing a master’s degree in religion at Yale Divinity School; also working on an MBA at New York University

Abstract The presentation focuses on the narratives of so-called Mormon apostates and the burgeoning ex-Mormon movement, placing them within an appropriate sociological framework and identifying common trends and structures for these narratives as a literary sub-genre. My research illustrates that there may be little difference between a “liberal” Mormon and an ex-Mormon in terms of knowledge of difficult historical, doctrinal, and cultural issues. Therefore, I also assert that liberal Mormons need to “come out of the shadows” to dispel the myth of Mormon doctrinal and cultural homogeny and more effectively reach out to those who would become ex-Mormon.

Respondent ELISE EGGETT JOHNSON, Mission Viejo, California; happily married accountant; member, 2008 Sunstone West organizing committee

Chair MATT THURSTON, Corona, California; member, Sunstone board of directors

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

7. Paper SCRIPTURAL LITERALISM AS THE NEW PAGANISM

Presenter GLENN CORNETT, Palo Alto, California; M.D., Ph.D., founder and CEO of Navitas Pharma, a biotechnology firm focused on cardiovascular and metabolic diseases; musician; marathoner

Abstract Terms such as “pagan” and “heathen” are used as (usually derogatory) labels for people adhering to older, non-normative, “superstitious” beliefs (e. g., “witchcraft”). Originally, however, these were denigrations used to describe the unsophisticated country dwellers who had not yet accepted the tenets of Christianity then normative among city dwellers. This paper will suggest that “paganism” in this sense of the term should now apply to the scriptural literalism that is still existent today and which is decidedly more common among people who dwell in rural or other less-densely-populated areas. In this context, I ask whether Mormonism might be one of the more intransigently pagan cultures in the U.S. and indeed the developed world.

Respondent ARMAND L. MAUSS, Ph.D., professor emeritus, sociology, Washington State University; author of numerous books including All Abraham’s Children: Changing Mormon Conceptions of Race and Lineage and The Angel and the Beehive: The Mormon Struggle with Assimilation

Chair MICHAEL VINSON, Star Valley, Wyoming

Room STAUFFER 106

8. Paper LITERACY AND EDUCATION AMONG EARLY MORMON CONVERTS: THE CASE OF MANCHESTER, ENGLAND

Presenter VAL RUST, Irvine, California; Ph.D., professor of education, UCLA

Abstract Latter-day Saints often take for granted that members of the Church are reasonably well educated and find it difficult to imagine them without some basic level of schooling—at least enough to gain personal access to the word of God in the scriptures, hymn books, and personal readings. In this session, I raise a fundamental issue of literacy and basic schooling among early LDS converts, concentrating on the early members of the Church in Manchester, England, and the context of the industrial revolution in England.

Respondent ROBERT BRIGGS, Fullerton, California; J.D., attorney with an avid interest in Mormon studies; member, Claremont Council for the Study of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Chair PHILIP BRADFORD, Corona, California

Room STAUFFER 110

11:15 AM–12:45 PM
CONCURRENT SESSIONS

9. Panel WHY WE STAY
Abstract This session, a Sunstone favorite through the years, features the stories of those who have chosen to remain active, dedicated Latter-day Saints even in the face of many difficult challenges to traditional faith. How have these members wrestled with their faith and yet emerged more determined than ever to be part of the Mormon community?

Moderator D. JEFF BURTON, Bountiful, Utah; SUNSTONE columnist, “Braving the Borderlands”; former member, Sunstone board of directors

Panelists
RUSS FRANDSEN, La Canada, California; J.D., attorney; chair, Miller-Eccles Study Group; member, Council for Mormon Studies, Howard W. Hunter Foundation, Claremont Graduate University
CHARLES SCHOFIELD, Pasadena, California; J.D., attorney; long-time Sunstone supporter
CLAUDIA BUSHMAN, Pasadena, California; Ph.D., historian who has taught at many universities; author or co-author of many books including Building the Kingdom: A History of Mormons in America and Mormon Sisters: Women of Early Utah
MORRIS A. THURSTON, Villa Park, California; J.D., retired attorney; editor, Joseph Smith Papers Project (Legal series); co-author with wife, Dawn, of Breathe Life into Your Life Story: How to Write a Story People Will Want to Read (2007)

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

10. Paper BODY AND IMAGINATION: HEALING BODY IMAGES THROUGH DREAM TENDING

Presenter BARBARA BISHOP lives in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. She has a Ph.D. in English and an M.A. in counseling psychology. She teaches English and dream interpretation at Marymount College.

Abstract This paper explores how paying attention to one’s dreams can provide important personal revelations to help heal the body and spirit. Despite the importance given to dreams in both the Book of Mormon and the early Church, paying attention to dreams is not widely practiced or encouraged in today’s Mormonism. This session explores potential reasons this might be the case, but more important, how paying attention to one’s dreams can provide personal revelations to help heal the body and spirit. As part of this session, the speaker will give a detailed analysis of a young woman’s dream about her relationship to her body. This dream, the dreamer reveals, has continued to guide her on her spiritual and physical journey through life even twelve years later.

Chair ELISE EGGETT JOHNSON, Mission Viejo, California; happily married accountant; member, 2008 Sunstone West organizing committee

Room STAUFFER 110

11. Panel MORMONISM AND CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY: EXPLORING COMPARATIVE THEOLOGY

Abstract A new course is being offered at Claremont Graduate University this spring entitled “Mormonism and Christian Theology.” The class is designed to explore LDS thought in comparison with the broader Christian theological tradition.
A panel of students in this seminar will discuss the curriculum and explore some of the key issues discussed in class. The panel will be moderated by the instructor, BRIAN BIRCH.

Moderator BRIAN BIRCH, Ph.D., religion; director, religious studies, Utah Valley University
Panelists
ROY WHITAKER, Claremont Graduate University
JULIANN REYNOLDS, Alta Loma, California
JACOB BAKER, Claremont School of Theology

Room STAUFFER 106

12:45–2:00 PM
LUNCH BREAK
Those who pre-ordered box lunches should bring their tickets to the hallway table to pick up their lunch. Those who didn’t pre-order, please find something nourishing to eat, and hurry back for the afternoon sessions!

2:00–3:15 PM

PLENARY SESSION
12. Panel THE LEGACY OF PRESIDENT GORDON B. HINCKLEY

Moderator JANA BOUCK REMY, Irvine, California; doctoral candidate, American history, University of California, Irvine; member, Sunstone board of directors

Abstract In this session, panelists and audience members are invited to share both personal and analytical reflections about the life and legacy of President Gordon B. Hinckley, who died 27 January 2008. What will be the lasting legacy of this beloved prophet’s presidency and leadership during his long-time Church service?

Panelists
RICHARD L. BUSHMAN, Pasadena, California; Ph.D., history; newly appointed Howard W. Hunter Visiting Professor of Mormon Studies, Claremont Graduate University; author of numerous books, including Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling and Believing History: Latter-day Saint Essays
ARMAND L. MAUSS, Irvine, California; Ph.D., professor emeritus, sociology, Washington State University; author of numerous books including All Abraham’s Children: Changing Mormon Conceptions of Race and Lineage and The Angel and the Beehive: The Mormon Struggle with Assimilation
DOE DAUGHTREY, Mesa, Arizona; doctoral candidate, religion, Arizona State University; member, Sunstone board of directors
MICHAEL J. STEVENS, McAllen, Texas; Ph.D., professor, management, University of Texas-Pan American; co-chair, Sunstone board of directors

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

3:30–4:30 PM
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
13. Paper STORIES FROM THE BORDERLANDS
Presenter D. JEFF BURTON, columnist, “Braving the Borderlands,” Sunstone; author, For Those Who Wonder: Managing Religious Questions and Doubts; former member, Sunstone board of directors

Abstract Many of us at this symposium are in the LDS “Borderlands” in one way or another, and we’ve all had interesting, funny, or troubling experiences. We’ve also overcome difficulties and challenges (or we wouldn’t be here!). In this session, I will share a few reflections and experiences on Borderlander topics, but I mainly want to hear from audience members about their life in the Borderlands. I want this session to be honest and hopeful, serious but not morbid, fun and enjoyable, adhering to Sunstone’s policies of good taste and the avoidance of blame and recrimination. This session is designed to help us learn better how to be successful LDS Borderlanders.

Respondent Audience discussion

Chair TOM KIMBALL, American Fork, Utah

Room STAUFFER 106

14. Paper MORMONISM AND IMMIGRATION
Presenter KAIMIPONO D. WENGER, San Diego, California; J.D., assistant professor, Thomas Jefferson School of Law; founding member, Times and Seasons, one of the leading Mormon-themed blogs

Abstract Mormons tend to be strongly conservative about immigration matters. But should they be? Is there anything in Mormon theology that requires a hard-line immigration approach? Some hardliners cite the 12th Article of Faith as support for a conservative approach to immigration—is this a necessary conclusion? And are there aspects of Mormon belief, history, and culture that would suggest a different approach to this topic? In this session, I will discuss the relationship between Mormonism and immigration.
Drawing on Mormon belief and history, I will set out a variety of reasons why Mormons should consider adopting more progressive, more forgiving attitudes in the immigration context.

Respondent MARY ELLEN ROBERTSON, McAllen, Texas; M.A., women’s studies, Claremont Graduate School; currently works at the University of Texas-Pan American in research administration and teaches the Gospel Doctrine class in her South Texas ward; organizer of a session on immigration and Christian responsibility at the 2007 Salt Lake Sunstone Symposium

Chair MATT THURSTON, Corona, California; member, Sunstone board of directors

Room STAUFFER 110

15. Paper MORMONS AND THE CROSS
Presenter ROBERT A. REES, Brookdale, California; Ph.D., director, education and humanities, Institute of HeartMath; editor (with Eugene England) of The Reader’s Book of Mormon, forthcoming from Signature Books; former editor, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought

Abstract The cross, perhaps the most potent and ubiquitous symbol in Christendom, has been essentially rejected as a symbol by the LDS Church. Mormons do not wear crosses, and no Mormon chapel or temple is adorned with a cross. For other Christians, who see the cross as the very emblem of Christ’s mission and gospel, this is a scandal and one of the reasons they consider Mormons non- Christian. This session examines the cross in Mormon scripture and history, explores the reasons for the Mormon rejection of the symbolic cross, and considers the implications of this rejection for the Church, especially in light of its wish to be considered a Christian church and to find greater common cause with other Christians.

Respondent CHUCK SCHOFIELD, Claremont, California

Chair JACOB BAKER, Claremont, California

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

4:45–6:15 PM
CONCURRENT SESSIONS
16. Panel “WHAT WOMEN KNOW”: WOMEN IN DIALOGUE

Abstract Julie Beck, general president of the Relief Society, delivered an October 2007 conference address on the topic of women’s roles and sphere of influence, highlighting the phrase “Mothers Who Know.” As President Beck spoke, the Bloggernacle lit up with discussion on her emphasis on mothers as nurturers and the examples she used to express her ideas. The talk evoked both strong feelings and deep contemplation. Using a variation of President Beck’s theme as its title, the website WHATWOMENKNOW.ORG, was developed by a diverse group of women with LDS backgrounds who participated in the contemplation and discussion described above in an effort to expand the conversation about what it means to “know” something. Panel members will share their reasons for participating in creating the response, their interpretation of both positive and negative responses to the conversation in general and the website in particular, and their insights into diversity in the LDS woman’s experience.

Moderator/Panelist DOE DAUGHTREY, Mesa, Arizona; doctoral candidate, religion, Arizona State University; member, Sunstone board of directors and 2008 Sunstone West organizing committee
Panelists
JANA BOUCK REMY, Irvine, California; doctoral candidate, American history, University of California, Irvine; active blogger at Exponent II, SunstoneBlog, and PILGRIMGIRL.BLOGSPOT.COM; member, Sunstone board of directors
PAULA GOODFELLOW, Encinitas, California; graduate student in speech and language pathology; a founding mother of the Rocky Mountain Retreat for Mormon women
MARY ELLEN ROBERTSON, McAllen, Texas; M.A., women’s studies, Claremont Graduate School; currently works at the University of Texas-Pan American in research administration and teaches the Gospel Doctrine class in her South Texas ward
LORIE WINDER STROMBERG, Los Angeles, California; M.A., humanities; former editor, Mormons Women’s Forum Quarterly

Room ALBRECHT AUDITORIUM

17. Panel DECONSTRUCTING THE “MITT MOMENT”

Abstract This panel will explore various aspects of Mitt Romney’s recent presidential bid, ranging from its impact on outsider perceptions of Mormonism, its doctrines and people, to Mitt’s and Mormonism’s portrayal in political cartooning. In what ways has this campaign been an eye-opening experience for Latter-day Saints? Following the panelists’ comments, we hope to hear your takes, as well!

Moderator NEWELL G. BRINGHURST, Visalia, California

Panelists

KAIMIPONO D. WENGER, San Diego, California; J.D., assistant professor, Thomas Jefferson School of Law; founding member, Times and Seasons, one of the leading Mormon-themed blogs
ROBERT A. REES, Brookdale, California; Ph.D., director, education and humanities, Institute of HeartMath; editor (with Eugene England) of The Reader’s Book of Mormon, forthcoming from Signature Books; former editor, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought
LOWELL BROWN, J.D., attorney practicing in Southern California; founding member of the blog, Article VI (ARTICLE6BLOG.COM), which deals with the current presidential campaign and especially the religious issues raised by the Romney bid

Room STAUFFER 106

6:30 PM

UNTIL WHENEVER YOU’RE FULL!
THE ORCHARD RESTAURANT
555 W. Foothill Blvd., Claremont, California
The official symposium ends at 6:15. Beginning at 6:30 or so, please join friends—old as well as newly made during the day—for continued fellowship and conversation over dinner at the Claremont restaurant, THE ORCHARD. We have the patio reserved and four entree choices arranged for our group to choose from (price range: $8.95 to $16.95 each). Many of the symposium presenters will be among those gathering to deconstruct the day’s events and continue fascinating conversations barely begun.
The Orchard is the restaurant associated with the Claremont Inn, located on the corner of Indian Hill Blvd. and Foothill Blvd. It is easy to find—just a few blocks north and a few blocks east of the symposium site.