Nathaniel Givens discusses the responsibility individual Church members have in determining what is revelation; God does not provide a simple formula or rulebook.

Date
2014
Type
Book
Source
Nathaniel Givens
LDS
Hearsay
Direct
Reprint
Reference

Nathaniel Givens, "Epistemology and Stuff: Everyday Mormon Theology," in Terryl Givens and Fiona Givens, Crucible of Doubt: Reflections on the Quest for Faith (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2014), 77-78

Scribe/Publisher
Deseret Book
People
Nathaniel Givens
Audience
Reading Public
PDF
Transcription

As for the question of what is or is not revelation, the answer is simple. People just don’t like to hear it. . . . D&C 68:4 says: “And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation.” There’s your answer and, in terms of simple language, it’s not hard to understand. The problem is that it doesn’t do what people want. What people want is to be absolved of responsibility. They want a formula, a rulebook, or an oracle to which they can defer tough questions. God says: “If you want to know if it’s scripture or not, you’re going to have to have your own connection to the Holy Ghost sufficient to figure that out.” In other words: “The burden is on you.” People say: “That sounds like hard work. Please give us a cheat sheet." . . . And, when God refuses to give out a cheat sheet, people just invent one. They invent doctrines of prophetic or scriptural inerrancy or sufficiency or infallibility, all of which serve more or less the exact same purpose as the original golden calf: a simulacrum of the divine that doesn’t ask us to do any genuine hard work.

Citations in Mormonr Qnas
Copyright © B. H. Roberts Foundation
The B. H. Roberts Foundation is not owned by, operated by, or affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.