Excerpt from an interview Religion News Service conducted with Cinco Paul, screenwriter of Despicable Me.

In 2008, as my book Shaken Faith Syndrome was getting ready for publication, I contemplated on the fact that most of the book engaged the negative influences toward belief; my book addresses these negative influences and provides specific answers to common anti-LDS arguments. But I was a bit bothered that I hadn’t really included some of the wonderful and exciting evidences in favor of belief. So just a few short months after Shaken Faith Syndrome came off the press, Cedar Published my book, Of Faith and Reason: 80 Evidences Supporting the Prophet Joseph Smith. While the critics cannot prove that God does not exist and that Joseph Smith did not speak to the Father and Son on a hill in Palmyra, neither can believers prove that an angel led Joseph to an ancient Nephite record, or that resurrected beings restored the priesthood to the young prophet. Instead, critics attempt to show that Joseph borrowed teachings and stories from his environment to create a fictional Book of Mormon as well as a man-made Church. These criticisms are addressed in Shaken Faith Syndrome. Believers can show, however, that there are many evidences which support and are consistent with the story told by Joseph Smith. There is evidence consistent with the claim that an ancient family from Jerusalem traversed the Arabian Desert in about 600 B.C. There is evidence consistent with the claim that Joseph possessed actual metal plates with the appearance of gold. There is evidence consistent with the claim that Joseph restored authentic ancient Christian teachings that were no longer practiced and/or taught by Christianity in his day.

God has had a tough time over the past few years. On TV, in newspapers and on the internet, the debate as to whether faith has any relevance in a sceptical modern world has been as ubiquitous as it has been vigorous.

Well, there’s no clear answer to this, but gradually, and over time, we see that this has come to be. We largely put academic and spiritual learning in two separate boxes. Rarely are academics viewed as tools to deepen faith and develop character. And rarely is faith viewed as a vital part of academics.

Learn about some of the ways Billy Graham defended Mormonism throughout his ministry. Read the Church's statement on Billy Graham following his death.

As a lifelong member of the Church who’s lived in a few different geographic regions, I thought I’d heard it all. I’ve fielded questions about polygamy, pioneers, dancing and Donny Osmond. (Have I also mentioned that I’m not Amish?) But then we asked you, our readers, about misunderstandings you’ve encountered about your faith.

What words come to mind when you think about the Lamanites? If you are anything like me, you probably thought of words like wicked, unrighteous, stiff-necked (whatever that means), or maybe even bloodthirsty. But we forget that even though there are Lamanites in the Book of Mormon that fit this description, there are also many Nephites that fit that description, too. If we look a bit closer, the stereotypes we have given the Lamanites and Nephites may not only be untrue but also unhelpful in our efforts to love our neighbor and “liken the scriptures to ourselves.”

I never expected I would be the mother of a child with disabilities, let alone two children with disabilities. But sometimes life detours have a way of teaching us things Heavenly Father knows we need to learn.

Do you have an image that pops into your mind when you hear “judgement day”? Does that image maybe invoke a little nervousness—or even some fear? This week we dig into Alma 5–7, specifically Alma’s “test” in Alma 5, to learn comforting truths about what God requires and expects of us, and to discover that He, and Christ, are always on our side.

Did you know that there was a period when the Relief Society was disbanded? While Latter-day Saint women continued to serve in many capacities, the official Relief Society structure did not exist in the Church between 1844 and 1867. It was then that Eliza R. Snow helped reorganize this vital Church organization under the direction of President Brigham Young. As we study Doctrine and Covenants 124, we’ll talk about what led up to the disbandment of the Relief Society and how it grew into the worldwide organization it is today.