Answering Gospel Questions

Faith, Family, Facts, and Fruits.

The topic of todays lesson is how to answer gospel questions with our friends, co-
workers, and neighbors. This is a timely lesson. Mitt Romney is turning out to be a
strong contender for the presidency, and with this attention comes a lot of questions and
scrutiny.
Can anyone think of other events during the past decade that have put the church in the
spotlight? - inter !lympics, "ig #o$e, %li&abeth 'mart, internet more per$asi$e, ("'.
%lder "allard, who ser$es on the public affairs committee for the church, in his talk
recogni&ed the dramatic increase in inquiries about the church during the past decade)
Quote 1 - Brothers and sisters, since the sesquicentennial anniversary in
1997, there has been a dramatic increase worldwide in inquiries about the
Church. This growing interest is ueled by our ra!id growth, by events li"e
the #inter $lym!ics here in %alt &a"e City, and by the !rominence in their
chosen !roessions o many o our individual members.
' am sure that these questions come not only to the Church but to you as
individual members.
*nd yet e$en with the surge in interest, the church is still $ery much a mystery to many
people. There was a national sur$ey conducted by the (ew foundation, political
thinktank, in 'eptember of +,,-. This sur$ey focused on Muslims and Mormons .$ery
telling comparison/. 0ey Takeaways)
Most *mericans .123/ say they know little or nothing about Mormonism,
compared to 143 for muslims.
Most *mericans .5+3/ belie$e their own religion has little in common with the
#6' church, compared to -,3 for Muslims.
173 fa$orable opinions of Mormons, +-3 unfa$orable.
o 8ust knowing a Mormon is associated with more positi$e $iew of
Mormons and Mormonism. The large ma9ority of those who know a
mormon e:press fa$orable $iews .5,3/.
o Those acquainted with mormons are 22 points more likely than others to
say that Mormonism and their own religion ha$e a lot in common.
o * slim ma9ority of the public .1+3/ says that Mormonism is a ;hristian
religion, while nearly one-in-three .723/ say that Mormonism is not a
;hristian religion.
< think that historically the culture of the church has kind of been to keep to oursel$es. <n
the early days of the church, members were not only ridiculed, but also physically
persecuted because of their beliefs. =ltimately the saints decided to cut ties with society
and settle in =tah. 'ince then we ha$e become a much more integrated people.
>owe$er, e$en in our personal interactions, someone asks us a question and the tendency
Answering Gospel Questions
is to kind of close up and take the defensi$e and try to change the topic of the
con$ersation. "ut now the church has a great opportunity to set the record straight.
When we note interest or curiosity from friends, co-workers, etc, why is it important for
to answer their questions? Why not just dodge the question and move on?
Quote ( - Those who are curious in this general way deserve clear and
accurate inormation that comes directly rom those o us who are
members so that they do not have to rely on the incom!lete answers, hal-
truths, or alse statements that may come rom the media or other outside
voices. The many misunderstandings and alse inormation about the
Church are somewhat our own ault or not clearly e)!laining who we are
and what we believe.
Why do we sometimes feel awkward or uncomfortable talking about our beliefs? How
can this awkwardness hurt our ability to share the gospel?
'ometimes we feel like an inquiry must be followed with a pass-along card or a book of
mormon, or e$en an in$itation to speak with the missionaries. This can put a lot of
pressure on us and make the situation uncomfortable for both parties in$ol$ed. <ts better
9ust to be oursel$es. Mention ?eil hite and his tactics. 6ont make it a big deal.
Quote * - The most common request we hear is a airly sim!le one that
goes something li"e this+ ,Tell me a little about your Church.- The "ey
word here is ,little.- They are not saying, ,Tell me everything you "now and
then send others to tell me everything else.-
#e, o course, welcome !eo!le.s interest, and many will want to be taught
more about our doctrines and belies. This is why we have over /*,000
ull-time missionaries serving at their own e)!ense throughout the world.
But we need to remember that there is a dierence between interest and
mere curiosity. %ometimes !eo!le 1ust want to "now what the Church is.
oes anyone have an e!perience they would like to share "i#e# opportunity to talk about
the church$? % mention &ndre
!0, now lets talk about how we prepare to answer gospel questions. There are a few
things we need to keep in mind. First, keep it simple.
Quote 2 - Brothers and sisters, in today.s busy world, ' have ound that
most !eo!le will not read or ocus on more than 1ust a ew im!ortant acts
at one time. #hatever you choose to use to inorm your riends and
acquaintances about the Church, write it down, chec" it or accuracy, and
"ee! it sim!le and short.
Answering Gospel Questions
The second thing to remember is be prepared. @enerally, there are a handful of questions
that come up when people are inquiring about the church.
Can anyone tell me what these might be?
e need to ha$e thought and studied out in ad$ance how we will answer these questions.
e need to know the doctrine, and how to e:plain it in a straightforward, simple manner.
e should be preparing during our personal study.
What resources do we have at our disposal?
'ormon#org, good answers to questions
(criptures
)reach my *ospel
+lder ,allard-s talk
Watch Video.
Role Playing
<$e heard that your church isnt really ;hristianA hat are some of the differences
between your church and other ;hristian churchesA
< saw that TB show on >"! the other night. 6o you really ha$e multiple wi$esA
hats this whole mission thing aboutA
<$e seen your temple in !akland. <ts beautiful. hat do you do in thereA
*re you really not allowed to drink alcohol or coffeeA ?ot e$en a littleA hats so bad
about a cup of coffee.
hat do you mean when you say that your church is the only true churchA