By D. Jeff Burton D. Jeff Burton is the author of For Those Who Wonder and a former member of the Sunstone board of directors. This column shares the story of “Ryan,” a Church employee stationed in Guatemala. (Names, locations, and details have been changed to protect identities.) A few years ago, he found …
Tag: D. Jeff Burton
Coming Out of the Closet to Your Spouse
By D. Jeff Burton D. Jeff Burton is the author of For Those Who Wonder and a former member of the Sunstone board of directors. I exchanged thoughts and experiences with “James” (not his real name) who has a “closet doubter” story similar to many I’ve heard over the years. First, here are his …
Being Thoughtfully and Lovingly Honest
By D. Jeff Burton Jeff Burton is the author of For Those Who Wonder and a former member of the Sunstone board of directors. In previous columns, published in 2005 and 2010, we explored the important issue of honesty.1 At the 2015 SLC Sunstone Symposium, Dan Wotherspoon2 and I shared the podium to further …
A Successful Borderlander’s Story
By D. Jeff Burton Jeff Burton is the author of For Those Who Wonder and a former member of the Sunstone board of directors. In this column, I relate the story of a Borderlander through edited emails we exchanged over a few months. Trevor (not his real name) seems to be making his Borderland …
An LGBTQ Borderlander
By D. Jeff Burton D. Jeff Burton is the author of For Those Who Wonder and a former member of the Sunstone board of directors. In this column I share the story of a gay/bisexual man I’ve become acquainted with over email. Names and details are changed to protect his privacy (and …
Imagining Changes that Benefit Borderlanders
By D. Jeff Burton In this column I share some edited communications I had with a fellow Borderlander, “Ron,” (names and details changed) who lives in northern Utah and works in education. Ron: I count myself mostly still in the Borderlands, attending and participating only when I feel the need, but I miss …
Braving the Borderlands: Crisis of Faith vs. Crisis of Belief
By D. Jeff Burton Or right-click here to download the audio file: “Crisis of Faith vs. Crisis of Belief” Articles, podcasts, blog posts, and books about the “faith crisis” phenomenon have abounded during the past few years, providing Borderlanders with a lot of interesting material to consider.1 Reading through these offerings, …
Staying in the Church and Making it Work
By D. Jeff Burton IN APRIL OF 2014, I participated in a Sunstone-sponsored conference called “Navigating the Borderlands.”1 My assigned topic was “Staying in the Church and Making it Work.” I covered ten principles and action items that I (and others) have found useful. In this column and the next, I will provide and expand upon …
Experiences of a Borderlands Bishop
By D. Jeff Burton This column collects some emails I exchanged with “Bishop Thomas,” who is responsible for a large ward outside Utah. (Names and some details have been changed to protect identities.) I’ve communicated with “Borderland” bishops in the past but this is the first time one has agreed to share his story. …
Braving the Borderlands: Are the Borders Shifting?
By D. Jeff Burton IN THE EGG-LIKE image we use to illustrate the three types of Church membership, a Borderland member is one who, for various reasons, does not fit comfortably within the borders of Group 1 but has not yet migrated into Group 3.1 From the beginning I have said that, in addition to …