Internet vs. Chapel Mormon - UPenn Doctoral Dissertation

Doctor CamNC4Me · **Joined:** Mon Jun 15, 2009 5:02 am **Posts:** 15212

Wow. Shades was really onto something when he set the narrative that a divide exists within the LDS church between Internet Mormons and Chapel Mormons. This hasn't gone unnoticed:

https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewco ... sertations

Quote:

CONSTRUCTING RELIGION IN THE DIGITAL AGE:

THE INTERNET AND MODERN Mormon IDENTITIES

Rosemary Avance

A DISSERTATION in Communication Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

2015

Quote:

This dissertation explores the discursive construction of identity among members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or Mormons) in the digital age. Religious identity emerges at the intersection of multiple and often conflicting voices with varying amounts of normative power to speak for and about the group. The polyphony of the internet during this digital age makes it increasingly difficult to identify the boundaries of acceptable belonging within religious groups, particularly traditionally firmly-bounded and authoritarian ones such as the LDS Church, in part because the internet itself provides an unprecedented platform for conflicts and discourses that shift these boundaries. Particularly during the “Mormon moment” in 2012-2013, as media and the public scrutinized the LDS Church, mediated platforms gave voice to competing narratives that challenged traditional notions of what it means to be Mormon. Employing participant observation, in-depth interviews, and discourse analysis, this dissertation uses a case study approach to consider the ways that modern Mormon identities emerge dialogically from multiple, often conflicting sources: normative authorities, faithful members, the secular media, and heterodox and former Mormons. This multi-vocal rendering is a negotiation of structural and agential processes often emerging from internecine conflicts on the internet, and resulting in pressure on the institution to accommodate new forms of Mormon life. In particular, nuanced, highly visible, and wide-ranging communities of heterodox Mormons extend unprecedented challenges to traditional understandings of authority in the LDS context, dismantling views of Mormons as monolithic and providing a window into processes of institutional change.

Here's a little background on the author:

http://www.rosemaryavance.com/about/

I spent a fair amount of time reading the dissertation last night and this morning. It's a little disconcerting to go through it because I wonder if she spent time here since the observations are so spot-on and nuanced.

Anyway. If you have time I encourage you to skim through it, especially the parts where she shares her observations with regards to Mormon apologists and their behavior. It's, as Plagiarizin' Pasterson might say, psychologically fascinating.

Oh, and Dr. Shades! You are a man ahead of your own time!

- Doc

Jesse Pinkman · **Joined:** Sat Oct 05, 2013 7:58 pm **Posts:** 2692

This is pretty cool. Shades should put some kind of copyright on his Internet vs Chapel Mormons.

I will read this author’s dissertation. It sounds interesting.

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

Thanks Doc. This is a fascinating dissertation.

It not only documents the cultural meme of "Internet vs Chapel Mormons" but it also does a great job of documenting the numerous foibles of Mopology.

And BIG kudos to Dr. Scratch and Cassius for having their scholarship cited.

Excerpts regarding the John Dehlin hit piece:

Quote:

36 These discussions took place in many forums, most notably the message boards at http://www.mormondiscussions.com and http://www.exmormon.org, and in closed Facebook groups.

But the article was never published with FARMS. Within weeks of rumors of its existence leaking online, more news spread that the article’s publication had been suddenly halted.Speaking anonymously out of fear for their jobs, two employees of the Maxwell Institute explained in interviews that the article was suppressed personally by Cecil O. Samuelson, president of BYU and an emeritus General Authority of the LDS Church, as well as another unnamed General Authority after Dehlin reached out to the latter and pleaded for an intervention. Throughout the ensuing debacle, Smith remained unconvinced whether Church leaders were involved at all and wondered whether the story of General Authority involvement was fabricated to justify a purely political decision on the part of BYU.

On the firing of DCP:

Quote:

The apologetic efforts to remain would be solely "pastoral" and "faithpromoting," rather than "polemic," one employee told me. Rather than simply redrawing lines for appropriate and inappropriate University behaviors, the firing of Peterson et. al. suggested censure of aggressive apologetics as a rhetorical style befitting Mormons. Indeed, the firing of Peterson was a form of institutional discipline. In a scathing letter40 in which he resigned from his position of Director of Advancement at the Maxwell Institute, Peterson referred to the event as "my public crucifixion" (Peterson 2012) and in August, during a question-and-answer session at FairMormon's annual conference, he expressed disappointment with the involvement of General Authorities in the debacle, saying it had felt like he, rather than Dehlin, "was the one being disciplined" (Daniel Peterson, FairMormon conference remarks, 3 August 2012)-- a term implying ecclesiastical sanction emanating directly from Church leadership.

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

The author on personally witnessing Louis Midgley confront and yell at John Dehlin. The author personally witnessing Scott Gordon's disdain for John Dehin, and personally witnessing a General Authority call John Dehlin about the hit piece:

Quote:

39 As an ethnographer, my own role in this unfolding story was an interesting and complicated one. I first met Dehlin in late
March 2012 when we, along with FairMormon President Scott Gordon, spoke on a panel at an academic conference at
Utah Valley University. The tension between Gordon and Dehlin was palpable, and a strong contrast to the general
affability I had always sensed in my public interactions with Mormons. After the panel, I watched as Louis Midgley, an
apologist with FARMS, confronted Dehlin; and although I did not hear what was said, I saw him shake his finger in
Dehlin's face and yell angrily. Later that day I had lunch with Dehlin, and during that lunch he took a phone call from a
General Authority (which I later learned concerned the article). In August, I spoke at the annual conference of FairMormon
(then FAIR), and was approached afterward by several different men who claimed "insider" knowledge of the article. I
received unsolicited personal emails (including an advance copy of Smith's article, before even Dehlin had seen it) and
even a phone call from different sources who wanted to tell their side of the story (anonymously of course). It was clear
that both sides saw me as a potentially "unbiased" outsider who could help them publically construct their narrative to
their advantage. Piecing together the actual happenings became less important (and virtually impossible anyway) than
understanding the ways the two communities constructed history for their own ideological purposes.

On DCP's leaked resignation letter:

Quote:

40 The letter of resignation was "leaked" online on various Mormon interest message boards; it was unclear if the source of
the leak was the same source that leaked news of Greg Smith's article, another party at the Maxwell Institute, or perhaps
Peterson himself.

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

Interesting observation about DCP's firing as a form of Church discipline:

Quote:

The timing of Dehlin's investigation coincided with another high
profile case-- the controversial excommunication of feminist activist and Ordain Women founder
Kate Kelly (discussed in the following chapter), which together with Dehlin's case drew national
media attention. After months of postponements, in February 2015 Dehlin was excommunicated
by local leaders on charges of apostasy42. Though certainly this extreme ousting from the
community is not on par with Peterson's firing, both highly mediated instances worked to maintain
strict boundaries on Mormon identity and to keep marginal members cognizant of their always
precarious place in a bureaucratic faith.

And

Quote:

Practically, the LDS Church attempts to head off schisms by censuring extremist voices, catering
to the more moderate middle ground. Ritually, the institution reinforces boundaries. The
dissolution of FARMS and the ouster of Daniel Peterson from his priestly academic role and the
two year-long discipline and ultimate excommunication of John Dehlin both point to an
authoritarian system in which limitations on acceptable speech are tightly policed.... But where there are parallels between his situation and that of FARMS and Daniel Peterson, they support a reading of the Mormon institution as invested in policing
even its most ardent and loyal supporters to ensure that even they do not detour from the
approved discursive course. Daniel Peterson's punishment was not ecclesiastical, but because it
came as it did in the context it did, it served the same function.

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

Wow!

Quote:

For Daniel Peterson and John Dehlin, public censuring acted as visible discipline for their
overt Mormon machismo, reigning in dangerous displays that challenge institutional authority.
The scale and type of discipline varied, with the culturally heterodox excommunicated and the
conservatives publicly humiliated and brought to heel. But in both cases, the institution asserted
its ever-watchful eye and ultimate disciplinary power over all participants in its cultural system.

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

And finally, kudos to Cassius and Professor Scratch for having his scholarship cited in an Ivy League dissertation:

Quote:

“Doctor Scratch.” (2012, June 16). DCP responds to getting fired from the Review. Mormon
Discussions. Retrieved from viewtopic.php?f=1&t=24378

DrW · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 10:22 am

Everybody Wang Chung wrote:

And finally, kudos to Cassius and Professor Scratch for having his scholarship cited in an Ivy League dissertation:

Quote:

“Doctor Scratch.” (2012, June 16). DCP responds to getting fired from the Review. Mormon
Discussions. Retrieved from viewtopic.php?f=1&t=24378

Absolutely. Many here have mentioned that they are taking the time to write their MormonDiscussions.com contributions, to some extent at least, for the benefit of lurkers. Looks as though those efforts are paying off. Mention of the fine work of Dr. Scratch in the dissertation is appropriate and adds credibility to the author's research efforts and conclusions.

The ratio of guest (or lurker) to registered user (or board member) visits, as this is being written, is approximately 10:1.

Similarly, for OPs that garner any significant discussion, a very rough approximate 10:1 ratio is also commonly seen in the number of page views to the number of comments, with more popular threads sometimes reaching a 20:1 page views to comments, or more.

Thank's for finding this and linking to it, Doc Cam.

Gadianton · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 10:43 am

Wow Dr. Cam, what an incredibly scholarly find! No doubt you stumbled upon it during your own post-doc work. A doctoral dissertation finds that Dr. Shades was right all along, and proves the the Mopologists are Internet Mormons. Fantastic!

How much do you want to bet that linking to this scholarly essay in the future will get you banned at MDD/FAIR?

Everybody Wang Chung · **Joined:** Sat Apr 09, 2011 8:53 pm **Posts:** 3133

Gadianton wrote:

Wow Dr. Cam, what an incredibly scholarly find! No doubt you stumbled upon it during your own post-doc work. A doctoral dissertation finds that Dr. Shades was right all along, and proves the the Mopologists are Internet Mormons. Fantastic!

How much do you want to bet that linking to this scholarly essay in the future will get you banned at MDD/FAIR?

There is a rumor floating around in the student cafeteria of Cassius that Dr. Cam's dissertation is going to be called "Paul H. Dunn's Lies, Nibley's Fabricated War Record and Peterson's Plagarism: An Ethno Study Why Mormon Culture Forces Unethical Behavior".

Doctor CamNC4Me · **Joined:** Mon Jun 15, 2009 5:02 am **Posts:** 15212

Gadianton wrote:

Wow Dr. Cam, what an incredibly scholarly find! No doubt you stumbled upon it during your own post-doc work. A doctoral dissertation finds that Dr. Shades was right all along, and proves the the Mopologists are Internet Mormons. Fantastic!

How much do you want to bet that linking to this scholarly essay in the future will get you banned at MDD/FAIR?

Well, had it not been for Lemmie's diligence in outing plagiarizers (let's not forget she nailed MG's ass to the wall a few times, too) I would've been sorely tempted to copy and paste Ms. Avance's work as my own in order to further my own reputation within Cassius. So you can thank Lemmie for keeping ordinary folks like myself and Mr. Peterson honest and held to accepted academic standards.

I'm also glad Dr. W reminded us that many of the contributors over the years have stated that they're not necessarily posting to just the participating board members, but to the many hundreds, if not thousands of lurkers that come and go on this forum. Believe you me, Dr. W is 100% correct in surmising mormondiscussions.com is one of, if not the premier Mormon-related repositories of truthful discussion about, research of, and analysis of Mormonia.

- Doc

Kishkumen · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 11:59 am

Stunning vindication of the work of Dr. Shades and Doctor Scratch! It is wonderful to see that other scholars are building on their foundation to document and interpret Mormon identities and Mopologetics in the Digital Age. Kudos to these gentlemen and to DocCam and Everybody Wang Chung for bringing the diss and relevant quotes therein to our attention!

Philo Sofee · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 12:03 pm

Utterly incredible find! Shades more prophetic than all the apologists lumped together and saw through the obfuscation more clearly than the Holy Ghost totin prophets. Holy cow, this is H-U-G-E!!! Huge I tells ya! What a message board this is, what a message board! Another perfect example of Shades just doin what is best to do, follow the evidence where it leads.

Doctor Scratch · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 12:40 pm

Enormously gratifying, on multiple levels. Kudos to Dr. Cam for the find, and kudos to Dr. Avance for her superb scholarship, and on earning her doctorate from such a prestigious university. I'd like to note a few things that stand out, such as this:

Quote:

In a scathing letter (40) in which he resigned from his position of Director of Advancement
at the Maxwell Institute, Peterson referred to the event as "my public crucifixion" (Peterson 2012)
and in August, during a question-and-answer session at FairMormon's annual conference, he
expressed disappointment with the involvement of General Authorities in the debacle, saying it
had felt like he, rather than Dehlin, "was the one being disciplined" (Daniel Peterson, FairMormon
conference remarks, 3 August 2012)-- a term implying ecclesiastical sanction emanating directly
from Church leadership.

(emphasis mine)

Wow! Did DCP really say that? This radically contradicts what he has been saying ever since--i.e., he has sworn up and down that there was *NO* G.A. involvement, and yet here we have this UPenn-approved dissertation saying that, no, in fact Peterson himself told *the entire FAIR Conference* that a GA was involved! I guess back then, so close to him getting canned, when emotions were still raw, he was willing to openly tell the truth. Later, though, he re-affixed his Mopologetic hat and the spin-doctoring has proceeded in full ever since.

This bit, from pg. 135, was classic:

Quote:

This paradox -- relying on institutional authority and simultaneously ignoring it-- is part of a deeper paradox at the heart of these groups. In their quest for authority, these communities ooze what I call "Mormon machismo"-- an attempt to surpass and ignore the so-called "feminine" qualities of Mormonism as an affective faith that values spiritualism and sensitivity (that Mormon "burning in the bosom") with the "masculine" qualities of scientific discourse: logic, argument, and debate. But in practice, empiricism in these groups occasionally gives way to affect of another type: their rhetoric enacts violence and evokes war and plunder. In the case of FARMS and Mormon Stories, "personal attacks" and "hit pieces" pitted one side against the other in an ongoing, territorial struggle for control over the narrative of Mormon identity.

Avance presents a very convincing argument supporting what I and other have repeatedly said: that FARMS was dissolved on account of its aggressive rhetoric and tactics--what she terms "Mormon machismo." She also writes, on pg. 137:

Quote:

Of course, any speculation on the relationship between Bott's censuring and his retirement is merely that. But where there are parallels between his situation and that of FARMS and Daniel Peterson, they support a reading of the Mormon institution as invested in policing even its most ardent and loyal supporters to ensure that even they do not detour from the approved discursive course. Daniel Peterson's punishment was not ecclesiastical, but because it came as it did in the context it did, it served the same function.

I was just thinking of Randy Bott the other day--this was the BYU Prof. who was fired after he made embarrassing comments to the press concerning LDS teachings on "the Mark of Cain." I was thinking of Bott in connection with the now-rather-lengthy thread concerning a well-known Mopologist's repeated plagiarism: if that were to go public in the same way as Bott's case, what would happen? Further, how might we analyze this in light of Dr. Avance's scholarship? Maybe the plagiarism would be given a free pass so as to not alienate the Mopologists' "fan club"? (How extensive is that fan club, I wonder?)

In any case, the argument is summed up beautifully on pg. 138:

Quote:

For Daniel Peterson and John Dehlin, public censuring acted as visible discipline for their overt Mormon machismo, reigning in dangerous displays that challenge institutional authority. The scale and type of discipline varied, with the culturally heterodox excommunicated and the conservatives publicly humiliated and brought to heel. But in both cases, the institution asserted its ever-watchful eye and ultimate disciplinary power over all participants in its cultural system.

(emphasis added)

Yes, indeed. I would argue that there were some "flare-ups," most notably the Mopologists' attacks on David Bokovoy, Ben Park, and other members of the "New Guard"/ Mormon Studies crew, but that has pretty much completely died down. I mean, who is left these days? I've heard nothing from Greg Smith in years. Following the thorough butt-kicking he endured from Philip Jenkins, Bill Hamblin has been completely silent (and there have been unsubstantiated rumors that he is no longer attending church). Schryver no longer posts or participates. Gee is pretty much a non-entity. The lone place where you see anything even remotely like the Mopologetics of yore is on Sic et Non, but DCP's style is watered-down and emasculated compared to what he used to do: it's as if the Brethren confiscated his testicles. Midgley pops up occasionally, but I don't think anyone takes him seriously--least of all the Brethren.

That, ultimately, is the greatest support for Avance's argument re: the Mopologists being "brought to heel": they just don't act the way they used to. (I still maintain that, perhaps, the "icing on the cake" moment for all this was Grant Hardy publicly humiliating the classic-FARMS people by saying, at the FAIR Conference, that you don't need to believe in a historical Book of Mormon to get into the CK.)

I will be anxiously awaiting to see if Sic et Non or Mormon Interpreter will muster a reply to this devastating critique. If Avance is correct, then DCP would be so terrified of crossing the Brethren or doing anything to upset the apple cart that no reply (or only a banal and wimpy sort of reply) will be forthcoming.

cwald · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 1:45 pm

There is just a whole lot of good in this paper. It's worth the read.

Quote:

...As we have detailed, Mormon identity is hierarchically structured along lines of masculine Priesthood
authority, deferral to which is mandatory and symbolic of submission to God. Refusal to submit to
one's authorities suggests a contentious spirit. Together, the cohesion impetus and deferral to
ecclesiastical authority tie to a deeply embedded cultural fear of speaking. Structurally, lay
members are not entitled to voice opinions that conflict with the Church's teachings and certainly
not to present these opinions as fact... their violations cannot go unnoted by the institution. These
groups must be punished.

I love this quote, Scratch, and going to quote again.

Quote:

For Daniel Peterson and John Dehlin, public censuring acted as visible discipline for their
overt Mormon machismo, reigning in dangerous displays that challenge institutional authority.
The scale and type of discipline varied, with the culturally heterodox excommunicated and the
conservatives publicly humiliated and brought to heel. But in both cases, the institution asserted
its ever-watchful eye and ultimate disciplinary power over all participants in its cultural system.

cwald · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 1:54 pm

I'm really glad this kind of stuff got documented. Boy this whole paper brings back a lot of memories.

You know there will come a time when the LDS faithful will deny this kind of stuff ever happened.

Quote:

The associate editor of the widely read, largely conservative online Meridian
Magazine, Erin Ann McBride, opined that the "instigators" of Pants Day had "disappointed" her
because Sacrament Meeting "is not the time or place for rebellion or taking a stand… This call to
action is an act of contention"

With one word, McBride communicated to her orthodox audience that wearing pants to church is
a corruption inspired by the devil himself.

Vicious online trolling and threats of violence are par for the course when women dare
speak in cyberspace, and Mormons are no exception. A male philosophy student at Church owned
Brigham Young University posted publicly on the event page that “every person who is a
minority activist, should be shot.. in the face… point blank… GET OVER YOURSELVES….”

...In an interview, one of All Enlisted’s members described being called in for a special
meeting with her bishop to discuss whether she should be permitted to retain her temple
recommend...

...pants-clad women would be asked to leave Sacrament meeting or that
orthodox Mormons would form a human wall outside the ward house to prevent their entry...

Quote:

In my interviews and observations, I found evidence for a relatively large uptake in the number of
disciplinary meetings held over issues of heterodoxy, particularly in cases where members'
Facebook or blogging activity was reported to a bishop and then those members were called in
for interviews and, less often, disciplinary councils.

Philo Sofee · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 2:20 pm

Quote:

Dr. Scratch
I will be anxiously awaiting to see if Sic et Non or Mormon Interpreter will muster a reply to this devastating critique. If Avance is correct, then DCP would be so terrified of crossing the Brethren or doing anything to upset the apple cart that no reply (or only a banal and wimpy sort of reply) will be forthcoming.

I suspect for damage control sake he might put up something. It probably won't be all that stellar, since, after all, it is public and we can all check on it for context and misquoting, etc. Like the prophets through the ages, the apologists will continue doing about faces and contradicting what they taught earlier, and even said what they taught earlier. It's like a merry go round, ever circling and never able to come to the knowledge of their destination.

Tom · **Joined:** Mon Jun 11, 2007 11:45 am **Posts:** 709

The Q&A session following Dr. Peterson's 2012 FairMormon conference paper can be accessed here: https://www.fairmormon.org/conference/a ... pologetics (beginning at about 56:30).

cwald · **Posted:** Mon Jan 01, 2018 3:23 pm

Wow, this is a really good read. Well written documentation of Mormon history otherwise known as the "Mormon Moment."

Quote:

A secret article. Somewhere in the ether, it circulated among staunch Mormon
defenders, and soon would be published for all to see. This was personal, and it contained proof,
the hard-sought and meticulously cited evidence that might finally be the blow to take down that
wolf in sheep's clothing, so long amassing his forces against the Church while pretending to be a
friend of truth and a shoulder for the wounded. Finally, everyone would learn the truth.

Or so they said.

As with any contentious issue, contradictory narratives surrounded the article. To others,
it was nothing more than slanderous lies. It became known as "the hit piece," a personal, adhominem
attack in the guise of a 100-page social-scientific article, written expressly to take the
focus off the Church's history of obfuscation and put it directly on the personal shortcomings of
one wounded warrior.

As we have seen, Mitt Romney's unavoidably public run focused mainstream attention on
the LDS Church, resulting in competing representations of Mormonism strategically articulated to
control public perceptions. Those representations, of course, were outward-focused, designed to
manipulate a skeptical voting public's perceptions of a controversial church. But while that public
battle raged, behind the curtains conflicts among Mormons themselves revealed other facets and
faces of modern Mormonism, arcane and only comprehensible to insiders. But like public
contestations over the image of Mormonism, these private conflicts also drew lines in the sand,
solidifying who is ultimately in charge of designating -- and policing -- proper Mormon identity

...

The conflict was largely instigated by certain members and
supporters of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (known as FARMS), a
collaboration of LDS apologists at the time working out of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for
Religious Scholarship at Church-owned Brigham Young University. In addition to scholarly
attempts to defend the Church's historical claims, these writers and academics were known for
their work "separating the wheat from the tares," unabashedly calling out what they saw as
disingenuous threats to authentic faith.

Yahoo Bot · **Joined:** Tue Apr 20, 2010 2:37 pm **Posts:** 3185

I want to read it; I've read a bunch of pages. Seems well-researched at the internet level.

This board is cited three? times.

I'm not sure it is accurate to say that Dr. Peterson was "fired."

He was relieved of his duties as editor of FARMS Review. He was asked to retain his Board membership position at MI. He refused and resigned from that.

I think I am correct. Memories fade.

Doctor CamNC4Me · **Joined:** Mon Jun 15, 2009 5:02 am **Posts:** 15212

Yahoo Bot,

If you go to Appendix 1 you'll see a breakdown of her methodologies.

eta for Dr. Shades:

Quote:

but far and away what interested me most was the disconnect between what I experienced in person at the ward and in these homes, and what I learned about Mormon identities on the internet.

- Doc

Internet vs. Chapel Mormon - UPenn Doctoral Dissertation

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