LDS Media Talk

More than 1,400 Brigham Young University-Idaho graduates were urged to make their influence felt in the digital world in an address given by Elder M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at winter commencement exercises held Friday, April 11.

“Your experience here is not the end of your quest for knowledge,” Elder Ballard told the graduates. “We are blessed as Latter-day Saints to view the acquisition of knowledge from an eternal perspective… Of all the things you have learned at this institution and during your life so far, the most important is that you know the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith and you know that the Church is true. Your knowledge and testimony of this will always be your foundation and your polar star throughout your life.”

Elder Ballard told the graduates their strength and knowledge is needed in a world torn between good and evil. The evidence of this battle is apparent in popular media, including the Internet. “While there is so very much good, informative information on the Internet, one of Satan’s most seductive efforts is the increasingly present pornography appearing in all kinds of media,” he said.

Along with the terrible effects of pornography, the Internet and other media are often used to spread falsehoods, Elder Ballard said. “Every month there are 60 billion searches for information on the Internet. Many are seeking information about the Church; and while some are finding the truth, others find anti-Mormon sites that mislead them and defame the Church,” Elder Ballard said.

With all the falsehoods and misconceptions about the Church found online, Elder Ballard urged the graduates to use their knowledge and testimony of the gospel to influence seekers of truth. “Today I want to encourage you to reach out to others in the world to help change the perception and even the hearts of millions of our Heavenly Father’s children by correcting misunderstandings by sharing with them the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said.

Elder Ballard suggested that graduates join in conversations on the Internet to share the gospel and to explain the message of the Restoration in simple, clear terms. As they participate in these new media, Elder Ballard continued, the graduates should remember first and foremost that they are followers of the Savior Jesus Christ.

Read the entire BYU-Idaho News Release

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There is an interesting article in today’s USA Today about religious podcasts.

• “…podcast technology is opening the doors to a wider variety of religious teaching than ever before, available on demand and delivered automatically to the computers of a growing number of Americans hungry for spirituality.”
• Even small churches can use podcasts to reach large audiences. More than 1 million sermons are accessed monthly from SermonAudio.com, a site that small churches can use to distribute their sermons. The site is now branching out to allow people to access their sermon library of nearly 170,000 sermons by iPhones and iPods.
• “A survey last year by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that more people used the Internet to look for religious and spiritual information than to download music, participate in online auctions or visit adult websites.”
• GodTube, a Christian alternative to YouTube, has about 2 million users a month. It plans to launch a program that will allow churches to set up their own social networking home pages and post slide shows and audio.
• Experts expect that the easy access to religious teaching from podcasts probably won’t keep people from church, just as TV and radio didn’t hurt church attendance.
• In some cases, a good podcast might be better than a traditional passive church experience. If a person goes to church and passively listens to a talking head give a sermon, then leaves, a podcast experience might be more engaging.
• WorshipIdeas offers tips for contemporary church worship leaders.

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I am often asked whether individuals should update entries about the Church on Wikipedia, or if the Church will take care of it.

Wikipedia is written collaboratively by volunteers from all around the world. It is not intended that an entry about the Church be written and updated only by the Church. In fact, Wikipedia will only accept a certain amount of updates by the official organization that relates to an entry.

We encourage everyone to routinely review entries for accuracy and update them as individuals.

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A computer-animated video featuring the March 2008 special issue of the Ensign and Liahona is now available on the new Web page SpecialMagazine.lds.org.

The video testifies of the Savior Jesus Christ and visually outlines the contents of the March 2008 magazine issue, which is focused exclusively on Christ. It describes the messages and testimonies included in the magazine and emphasizes the central position of Jesus Christ. The video can be linked to or downloaded and e-mailed to those who may be interested in the message or in obtaining a copy of the magazine for themselves.

SpecialMagazine.lds.org provides information on accessing the magazine or its contents in several different ways. To obtain the special issue, visitors can download the issue in PDF format, order a copy or subscription at ldscatalog.com, or visit the Web site JesusChrist.lds.org, which includes the full text of many of the articles from the magazine.

After this initial focus on the March 2008 special magazine issue, we will use SpecialMagazine.lds.org to highlight the other special issues of the magazines.

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BYU NewsNet has published a great article with ideas on sharing the gospel online. It also mentions the great work of the More Good Foundation.

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Read the Newsroom story about the new Church Web site JesusChrist.lds.org.

But sure to watch the video by Elder Russell M. Nelson explaining why we are using the Internet today to spread the message of the Gospel.

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The Church’s new Web site about the Savior Jesus Christ has been recognized at Best Web Gallery, which is an inspirational gallery site that features quality Web sites (Quality Design = Visual + Technical + Creativity).

If you would like to link to the Church’s new Web site from your blog or Web site, there are some attractive images (and code) you can use at lds.net. Two examples are below. This is a great way to share teachings of the Savior with your readers and visitors.

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The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life just released an extensive new survey about religious affiliations of the American public and explores the shifts taking place in the U.S. religious landscape. There are some cool interactive maps on that site. It was also summarized in a USA Today story.

Here are a few interesting facts:

• Mormonism is one of the strongest religions in the West.
• Mormons share the tradition of Black Protestants with large young families.
• Mormons also have one of the highest percentages of women members.
• Mormons have a higher percentage of Black members than American Catholics and mainstream Protestant churches.
• Mormons top the middle class income range (50-75K) and are in no way richer than other religious affiliates.
• Mormons have the highest level of post secondary education with over 32% attending at least some college.
• Mormons have the highest level of married status (next to Hindus) and the lowest % of “never married.”
• Mormons have the lowest percentage of families with no children and the highest percentage of families with 4 or more children.

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See the new Web site about the Lord Jesus Christ and His essential role in our lives. JesusChrist.lds.org is the newest Web site sponsored by the Church.

Using the words of latter-day prophets and apostles as its foundation, the site focuses solely on the life, teachings, and mission of the Savior and how we can come unto Him and invite others to do the same. In addition to the teachings of Church leaders, the site provides links to the scriptures, additional articles, and multimedia presentations.

We invite you to share this information with your friends and to link to the site from your personal blogs and Web sites.

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The two fastest-growing churches in the United States and Canada are Jehovah’s Witnesses and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to the National Council of Churches’ 2008 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches.

Although Jehovah’s Witnesses currently rank 25th in size with over 1.06 million members, they reported a 2.25 percent increase in membership in a year. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints grew 1.56 percent and is listed as the fourth largest “church.”

The following are the largest 25 churches in the US and Canada (ranked by membership):

1. The Catholic Church – 67,515,016
2. Southern Baptist Convention – 16,306,246
3. The United Methodist Church – 7,995,456
4. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – 5,779,316
5. The Church of God in Christ – 5,499,875
6. National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc. – 5,000,000
7. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America – 4,774,203
8. National Baptist Convention of America, Inc. – 3,500,000
9. Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) – 3,025,740
10. Assemblies of God – 2,836,174
11. African Methodist Episcopal Church – 2,500,000
12. National Missionary Baptist Convention of America – 2,500,000
13. Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. – 2,500,000
14. The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS) – 2,417,997
15. Episcopal Church – 2,154,572
16. Churches of Christ – 1,639,495
17. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America – 1,500,000
18. Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc. – 1,500,000
19. The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church – 1,443,405
20. American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A. – 1,371,278
21. United Church of Christ – 1,218,541
22. Baptist Bible Fellowship International – 1,200,000
23. Christian Churches and Churches of Christ – 1,071,616
24. The Orthodox Church in America – 1,064,000
25. Jehovah’s Witnesses – 1,069,530

Read more at The Christian Post.

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The March 2008 issue of the Liahona and Ensign is focused entirely on the Lord Jesus Christ. In this issue, General Authorities teach vital doctrines about the Savior, and members from around the world share testimonies of the power of the Atonement in their lives.

This issue was created specifically to help readers better understand Jesus Christ, receive a witness of His divinity, and feel a desire to follow Him. It will also give members an opportunity to share with others restored truths about the Savior.

Until June 30, 2008, special pricing is available within the United States and Canada for those who want to purchase extra magazines to share. The price is U.S. $33 for a box of 30 magazines. (At this bulk rate, magazines may be ordered only in boxes of 30.) Smaller quantities and copies ordered after June 30, 2008, will cost $1.50 per copy, shipping included.

Please share copies of this magazine with less-active members and those not of our faith. You can order copies online.

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