How is John Dehlin so much smarter than God who knows everything?

[Moliere]

Ouch. That seems terribly cynical.

Do you disagree? I only said it was "a" reason, not "the" reason. And I'd call it skeptical, not cynical.

[YOhio]

Ouch. That seems terribly cynical.

$40K salary isn't anything to sneeze at in these trouble times.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Do you disagree? I only said it was "a" reason, not "the" reason. And I'd call it skeptical, not cynical.

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

[YOhio]

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

Maybe he has an incentive bonus for exceeding his target number of Mormon stories.

[DrumNFeather]

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

It seems like he's saying cash as a secondary reason...but moreover it helps him keep his standing among both believers and non-believers.

[Indy Coug]

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

$40K of supplemental income isn't anything to sneeze at. If I were able to increase my current income by $40K, I could start my own message board.

[Moliere]

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

So you don't disagree. Good, glad we got that cleared up.

I'm not saying that's the only reason, but for anyone to say it's not "A" reason is not defensible.

[wuapinmon]

the church investst thousands of dollars in relieving human suffering and making it so they keep from suffering.

Perhaps this is one of the causes of Brother Dehlin's troubles.

[UtahDan]

I've said it before, but I think part of the reason JD stays Mormon is due to the fact that he maintains his legitimacy in his current project. If he leaves Mormonism, he becomes just another ex-mo, of which there are plenty, however he's positioned himself well as a "fence straddler" (I don't mean that pejoratively) and it's the reason he has a decent following even though his following can have a quick turnover. If he leaves he is sure to not be able to keep his $40K annual salary and free trips to see Broadway shows.

This isn't the only reason, obviously, but it's certainly one of the reasons.

Ouch. That seems terribly cynical.

I spoke to a mutual friend of John and I last night (actually he knows him a lot better than I do) and we were discussing this same talk. I expressed that this message seems very different than what he had said in his interview with John Larsen last year. My friend pointed out that the snippet I had quoted (the one Cardiac posted) came at the end and that Dehlin had pretty methodically set out his non-belief in the first part of the talk (I need to go read it and see). He also said that the last part there was delivered through some tears, particularly at the end when he talked about how much it would hurt him for his family to be sitting in church on Sunday without him.

The upshot of the conversation was that even though many people believe that John is playing some high level chess here (and he could be), that doesn't preclude the idea that he is also sincere in what he is saying/doing. I don't know, just giving another perspective.

[Indy Coug]

Ouch. That seems terribly cynical.

As a general rule, it's hard not to be cynical about people that are cynical.

[Pheidippides]

I spoke to a mutual friend of John and I last night (actually he knows him a lot better than I do) and we were discussing this same talk. I expressed that this message seems very different than what he had said in his interview with John Larsen last year. My friend pointed out that the snippet I had quoted (the one Cardiac posted) came at the end and that Dehlin had pretty methodically set out his non-belief in the first part of the talk (I need to go read it and see). He also said that the last part there was delivered through some tears, particularly at the end when he talked about how much it would hurt him for his family to be sitting in church on Sunday without him.

The upshot of the conversation was that even though many people believe that John is playing some high level chess here (and he could be), that doesn't preclude the idea that he is also sincere in what he is saying/doing. I don't know, just giving another perspective.

I take him at face value, but I am biased because I have the same asterisks. As do many here.

[creekster]

Neither you nor I could possibly know his true inner motivation. Just seems unfair to anyone to chalk it up to cash. Especially for a paltry sum like $40k.

While I agree it is cynical it is no more cynical than much of the similarly speculative comments I read in these fora directed against LDS Church leadership.

[jay santos]

I think Dehlin most likely retains his membership to preserve and enhance his ability to lead the movement he's leading. But I wouldn't say his motivation is money. If he has an ulterior motive, it's most likely fame or status. I'm a pretty cynical person, and I think he might have some ulterior motive, but for the most part I think his motives are pure in that he thinks the church should be something that it's not and he's using influence to push the church in that direction.

[Jeff Lebowski]

So you don't disagree. Good, glad we got that cleared up.

I'm not saying that's the only reason, but for anyone to say it's not "A" reason is not defensible.

That's nonsense.

Unless you can read his mind or have some other sort of evidence, you couldn't possibly know that. Now if you want to turn it around and say that there is a possibility that it might be a motivation, you might have a leg to stand on.

Of course, I could do the same thing and assume that virtually all of the general authorities of the church are in it for the fat paychecks, power, demigod status, and free Toyotas. Any other conclusion is "not defensible", eh?

[Goatnapper'96]

While I agree it is cynical it is no more cynical than much of the similarly speculative comments I read in these fora directed against LDS Church leadership.

That makes me laugh. We all have folks that we really respect and with whose spiritual perspectives or work we strongly identify. The only thing we all have in common is our sudden discomfort when the motivations of those with whose work or movements we identify are scrutinized and/or questioned. It reminds me of politicians. Even politicians distrust other politicians but we all trust ourselves.

The only cool way to be is to believe nothing and nobody but internally we are wired for some type of religion.