Keith Erekson
Bio: Keith Erekson is an author, teacher, and public historian who has published on topics including politics, hoaxes, Abraham Lincoln, Elvis Presley, and Church history. He grew up in Baltimore, served a mission in Brazil, and earned advanced degrees in history and business. He works for the Church History Department in efforts to encourage outreach and historical engagement.
Title: Real vs. Rumor: How to Dispel Latter-day Myths
Abstract: “Rumors, hoaxes, conspiracy theories, forgeries . . . our culture is currently awash with misinformation and disinformation about everything from politics to health care to religion. How can we recognize rumors? Are Latter-day Saints particularly susceptible to them? How can we discern and embrace what is “real” (Alma 32:35)?”
Dan Peterson
Bio: Daniel C. Peterson is the president of the Interpreter Foundation, which publishes the online periodical Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship, produces books, convenes conferences, and sponsors a weekly radio program: https://interpreterfoundation.org. He and his wife were the executive producers of the 2021 theatrical film Witnesses and have served in the same capacity for its 2022 docudrama sequel, Undaunted: Witnesses of the Book of Mormon.
A native of southern California who earned his doctorate at UCLA after study at BYU, in Jerusalem, and in Cairo, he retired on 1 July 2021 as a professor of Islamic studies and Arabic at Brigham Young University, where he had taught since 1985.
Formerly director of research and chairman of the board of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS), now BYU’s Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, he is also a former president of the Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology and is currently a member of the board of the Foundation for Religious Diplomacy.
Dr. Peterson served in the Switzerland Zürich Mission (1972-1974), and, for approximately eight years, on the Gospel Doctrine writing committee for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He also presided for a time as the bishop of a singles ward adjacent to Utah Valley University.
He is married to the former Deborah Stephens, of Lakewood, Colorado, and they have three sons and three granddaughters.
Title: “The Decision Tree of Life, or, Why I Can’t Unbelieve.”
Abstract: The logical possibilities regarding the truth or falsity of the Book of Mormon aren’t infinite. In fact, they’re few in number and quite simple. And clearly laying them out is a useful exercise—an exercise that, when the evidence is taken into account, seems to point us in one unmistakable direction.
Ugo Perego
Bio: Dr. Ugo Perego has a PhD in Population Genetics from the University of Pavia. He has been a Senior Research for the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation and a Coordinator for S&I in Italy. He is currently teaching sciences at the Southeastern Community College in Keokuk, Iowa. With his wife and three of his five children, they currently live in Nauvoo, Illinois.
Title: DNA and Book of Mormon Studies
Abstract: This presentation will cover key issues surrounding the use of DNA to support or to attack the historical nature of the Book of Mormon. In layman terms, topics related to the peopling of the Americas and general populations and ancestral genetics principles will be addressed in a Book of Mormon context.
Jennifer Roach Lees
Bio: Jennifer Roach Lees holds a Master in Divinity as well as a Masters in Counseling Psychology. She is best known for her research into how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints handles cases of sexual abuse. She has spoken at the annual FAIR conference on this topic, as well as on the dynamics involved in Bishops interviewing teenagers alone. Jennifer is a licensed mental health therapist and lives in Utah.
Title: Responding to Sexual Abuse Cases in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Abstract: In recent years a number of shocking cases of abuse involving members of the church have come to light. These cases are reported in the media as evidence that the Church is a haven for sexual predators. Accusations are made that the church knowing puts children in danger to protect their own reputation. But is this true? In this lecture I will present research demonstrating that the church is not a hot-bed for abuse as has been portrayed.
Norma Calabrese Salerno
Bio: Born in Italy, partly raised in England and currently living in Germany, Norma is always dreaming of discovering the world with the purpose of building bridges between people and apparently clashing cultures. In order to achieve this, she is always ready to learn a new language and bear her testimonies in the seven languages she has already studied over the years: Italian, English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew and more recently German.
She graduated Summa Cum Laude in Oriental Studies from the Sapienza University of Rome, with a major in Cultural Mediation and Arabic, and a minor in International Relations.
She is currently working for the Church as an Assistant in the Office of General Counsel in Frankfurt, Germany and studying Peacebuilding, Cultural Synergy and Religious Engagement at USIP Global Campus.
In her very little spare time, she reads widely and wildly, practices patience with her four (lively) children and cultivates the art of slow writing.
Title: Atonement, Empathy and Women
Scott Gordon
Bio: Scott Gordon serves as President of FAIR (Faithful Answers, Informed Response) which can be found online at www.fairlatterdaysaints.org. FAIR is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping members deal with issues raised by critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has an MBA and a BA from Brigham Young University. He is currently an instructor of business at Shasta College in Redding, California and teaches business classes online at BYUI. Scott has held many positions in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints including serving as a bishop, ward mission leader, seminary teacher, and member of the elder’s quorum presidency. He is married, has five children and 14 grandchildren.
Title: I Learned it on the Internet: Maintaining Faith in Today’s Online World
Abstract: It used to be that criticisms of the Church were discussed by those few people who read the books written by professional critics. Now with the Internet, those old criticisms have been resurrected and repackaged into engaging videos consumed by our youth. Internet influencers now drive the discussion. What is to be done?
