86305 - Faith crisis

[TheBlackSheep]

http://theboard.byu.edu/questions/86305/

Hey wait, whaaaaaat?

I thought Luciana gave great advice. And, as the (I think) first person to even attempt to cover faith crises on the Board, I know the bravery it takes to admit to struggling with your testimony. But can writers seriously advise other people that they may just need to step away from the Church now? I mean, if so, awesome, because sometimes that really is what people need, whether they come back or not. But as my best friend got her head chopped off for even hinting that she was struggling with her testimony (which led me to some actions which I, let's say, would not undertake again) I can't believe that this is kosher.

Still, go you, Luciana and editors!

[yayfulness]

I know that Pilgrim et al. wrote a couple answers along the same lines, but I'm not sure if they directly said what Luciana did. Either way, it's something that doesn't get discussed much. I can't think of any other writers during my tenure (except maybe Watts, and to a tiny extent me) who wrote on the topic.

[TheBlackSheep]

Oh yes, there have been several since me (Mico, Queen Alice, Pilgrim, etc.) who have addressed it. I just didn't expect to see an answer that was straight up, "Maybe you need to try taking a break from the church." That's what surprised me.

[Zedability]

Personally, it's the sort of answer that I think needs to be approved on a case-by-case basis, rather than having a blanket policy. Which makes alumni week difficult because there are just so many cases in so little time.

[Cognoscente]

Also, it depends on the questions. For some reason I feel like alumni weeks encourage readers to ask about faith crises as well, to get a perspective of the post-BYU experience. Which makes it awkward for both former writers who want to be truthful, and editors who are trying to maintain tone according to policy.