Sister Chieko N. Okazaki, former First Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, once said: “What happens if you try to paddle a boat using only one oar? You go around and around in circles. … It’s the same with trying to make study replace faith or trying to exercise faith but without study. We can often find ourselves just going around in circles. I think that the Holy Ghost cannot give us some answers until we are actively seeking knowledge.”
In an effort to encourage young adults to learn and study when tough questions arise, the Church has announced a brand-new Institute course called Answering My Gospel Questions (Religion 280). The course materials, which include a teacher manual and a quick-start guide, are available under “Institute” in the “Books and Lessons” section of the Gospel Library and will be available in 14 languages in the coming weeks.
According to a new letter from the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion Department sent to stake, ward, and branch leaders, “The course relies on principles and patterns that can help young adults navigate their search for answers and provides a setting of faith for students to:
- Ask gospel questions.
- Practice finding reliable information.
- Learn how to use the scriptures, general conference talks, Gospel Topics, Life Help, the Church Newsroom, and other trusted resources.
- Discuss their learning with each other.
- Choose topics they would like to study and discuss for a portion of the course.
- Develop skills to help them as they ask about, study, and discuss these topics.”
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You can read the full letter from the Church here (make sure you are logged in to your ChurchofJesusChrist.org account to access the letter).
