[greyfoxx39]

You’re being too smart by half, Greyfoxx. I guess I’m still waiting for my call from Salt Lake to “mobilize.” We’re passionate, not organized.

LAIE, Hawaii 15 December 2007 Two hundred graduating students at Brigham Young University-Hawaii were urged today to use the Internet — including blogs and other forms of “new media” — to contribute to a national conversation about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Elder M. Russell Ballard, an apostle in the Church, told the mostly Mormon student body that conversations about the Church would take place whether or not Church members decided to participate in them.

Elder M. Russell Ballard’s speech given at Brigham Young University-Hawaii’s graduation ceremony on 15 December 2007.

“We cannot stand on the sidelines while others, including our critics, attempt to define what the Church teaches,” he said.

“While some conversations have audiences in the thousands or even millions, most are much, much smaller. But all conversations have an impact on those who participate in them. Perceptions of the Church are established one conversation at a time.”

Church leaders have publicly expressed concern that while much of the recent extensive news reporting on the Church has been balanced and accurate, some has been trivial, distorted or without context.

Elder Ballard said there were too many conversations going on about the Church for Church representatives to respond to each individually, and that Church leaders “can’t answer every question, satisfy every inquiry and respond to every inaccuracy that exists.”

He said students should consider sharing their views on blogs, responding to online news reports and using the “new media” in other ways.

But he cautioned against arguing with others about their beliefs. “There is no need to become defensive or belligerent,” he said.

[greyfoxx39]

Forgot

Link

to #68

[colorcountry]

Just go to the home site. http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=e419fb40e21cef00VgnVCM1000001f5e340aRCRD

You’ll see “Elder Ballard Urges Students to Use New Media.” right on the very home page. This means all good mormons with internet access should be following his admonition to “use new media” (the internet).

I think we see a good portion here on FR. How many new sign-ups have you and I seen on the Romney/Mormon threads?

[tantiboh]

Hmmm.... Which brings back the question... If Ballard was encouraging students to defend their faith, why did you see fit to put this thread in News/Activism instead of Religion? Such a choice seems to infer that you think they were being called on to become political advocates. Nothing in this article indicates that they were being mobilized to such ends. Perhaps I’ve misinterpreted?