Scott Gordon speaks out about events involving Mormonthink
Posted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 10:40 pm
For those who've been following events surrounding Mormonthink and David Twede, Scott Gordon published a statement about the Mormonthink events in the Sept. Fair journal. I thought some here might be interested in reading it.
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
A pending church disciplinary council for the editor of the MormonThink website created a media uproar these past couple of weeks and my name and FAIR shows up in several of those articles.
MormonThink is an anti-Mormon website that claims to be balanced. But, it hosts temple content and the editors have stated that they hope to lead people out of the Church. We have an extensive discussion of the MormonThink website here:
A FAIR Analysis of MormonThink
Many people have asked how I got involved in the media articles. I thought I should share those details with you.
David Twede, the new managing editor of MormonThink, announced that he was going to go back to church to give MormonThink more credibility. Twede wrote, “Going to church, as current managing editor … is for me to both build perspective…and to increase [MormonThink's] credibility.” An earlier MormonThink editor also stated, “So that is one of the reasons I remain in the church. It gives me greater credibility when I speak about my own religion instead of it being my former religion. By subtly mentioning things in meetings I may raise some doubts.” Twede stated his intent was to go back to church and to blog about it.
My friend Dan Peterson once quipped, “When you write on the Internet, you are sharing your private thoughts with a few thousand of your closest friends.” I, along with everyone else, was able to read what David Twede was writing. He started blogging under a pseudonym, but then he, or someone who used a Twede family e-mail address, announced his real name on another Internet message board.
I hoped that his going back to church might soften his heart and bring back some of those feelings he had in the past. But from what he wrote on his blog, I didn’t see that happening. Instead he wrote about getting close to one ward member and providing information to him to cause doubts. He wrote, “We’ve exchanged phone numbers and were talking about many other issues. Pat shared some of these with the spouse and now they might both be having serious doubts. I will have to be careful on Sunday not to give them or myself away.” Twede writes further, “There is also a possibility that the woman I talked with at the end of the meeting might be open to discussing some issues.” From what he wrote, Twede appeared to be secretly engaged in a deceptive campaign to destroy the faith of members and lead them out of the Church.
I forwarded the links of that public blog to some of my friends. The New York Times reporter who called said my email was forwarded to Twede’s stake president. I have no way of knowing if that is true or not. I did not speak with any of his local leaders, nor did I send an email to them. I told the reporter it was more likely one of his local ward members had read his public blog and told the stake president, but she insisted I was the source as she heard that from David Twede himself.
Twede was called in by his stake president to discuss the appropriateness of his actions. Then David Twede called the press. His claim was that he was being excommunicated because he had written negative things about Mitt Romney. He admitted to the reporters that his stake president had not actually said anything about Mitt Romney, but stated in his press release, “I felt in my gut that the Romney pieces were a part of why this happened.”
Because my e-mail that linked to his public blog was reportedly forwarded, I have received e-mails with several colorful expressions describing my actions. Most of those comments I cannot repeat. It has also been a point of discussion on several Internet message boards. On one I was called a “rat fink pool of vomit.” One of my Catholic co-workers laughingly suggested I should make that title a new name plate for my door. On another message board, Twede’s supporters posted information and negative comments about me, my work, and my wife. They made disparaging comments about the community college where I teach and claimed that FAIR was housed at the Institute of Religion across the street. I’m not sure where they got that idea, but it is false.
It would be easy to make negative comments about this whole process. But, I want to wish David Twede the best. I hope at some point he finds peace. My advice about faith, which I give to everyone, would be to make your choice and move on. Maybe that would allow for some healing.
Here are links to some of the many articles.
New York Times, “Editor of Web Site May Face Mormon Excommunication” By Laurie Goodstein
Orlando Sentinel, “Mormon writer critical of Mitt Romney says he faces excommunication” By Stephen Hudak
CNN, “Mormon blogger says he faces church slap-down, possible excommunication” By Jessica Ravitz
NPR, “‘Mormon Moment’ Marked By Mischief And Meanness” By R.B. Scott
Salt Lake Tribune, Disciplinary hearing delayed for Mormon blogger By Peggy Fletcher Stack
Deseret News, “LDS Church says disciplinary claim is ‘patently false’” By Joseph Walker
Huffington Post, “David Twede, Mormon Blogger And Romney Critic Threatened With Excommunication, Will Have To Wait To Hear Fate (UPDATE)” By Jaweed Kaleem
–Scott Gordon President of FAIR