| John Dehlin | |
|---|---|
| Born | Boise, Idaho, U.S.A. |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Brigham Young University Utah State University |
| Occupation | Director of the OpenCourseWare Consortium |
| Website | |
| http://johndehlin.com/ | |
John P. Dehlin is the creator of several Mormon-themed podcasts, blogs and web sites. John worked for several years in various positions at Microsoft, and served for a few years as the Director of the OpenCourseWare Consortium for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was an influential early participant in the Mormon blogging scene (often called the Bloggernacle). John is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical/Counseling Psychology from Utah State University.
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Dehlin was born in Boise, Idaho and raised in Katy, Texas.[1] As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), he served as a missionary in Guatemala in the late 1980s.[2] He then attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, where he graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in political science in 1993.[3]
Dehlin briefly dated Renee Zellweger in high school.
After graduation, Dehlin worked for five years in software and as a consultant for Bain & Company, Arthur Andersen, Citicorp, Heidrick & Struggles, and the LDS Church. He then worked at Microsoft for seven years in programs for developers, marketing, speech technologies, and product demos.[3]
Dehlin's brother, Joel Dehlin, also worked at Microsoft, and became the CIO of the LDS Church in 2004.[4]
In 2004, Dehlin moved to Logan, Utah to begin work under Dr. David A. Wiley at Utah State University (USU) on OpenCourseWare-related projects.[5] Dehlin would serve as USU's OpenCourseWare Consortium Coordinator and Director of Outreach for the Center for Open and Sustainable Learning Director of Outreach for two years, where he promoted OpenCourseWare to other universities.[3] While at USU, Dehlin also completed a Master of Science degree in Instructional Technology in 2007.[6] In January 2007, MIT hired Dehlin as the Director of the OpenCourseWare Consortium.[5]
John is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Utah State University.[7]
As an LDS missionary in Guatemala from 1988 - 1990, Dehlin's mission began baptizing up to 700 "converts" per month. To accomplish this, many missionaries were using deceptive methods which were taught and supported by some mission leaders. Dehlin was disturbed and reported these activities to his mission president who did not share Dehlin's concern and sent him home early (normally a disciplinary action). After reporting on this to a sympathetic Apostle Dallin H. Oaks and completing his two-year missionary term in the Arizona Tempe mission, Dehlin remained an active, faithful member of the LDS Church for the next 20 years, but began to study church administration, history, doctrine and theology more in depth.[2]
While living in the Seattle area, Dehlin was called to be an early-morning LDS Seminary teacher. In preparation for the next year's class, he began studying LDS Church history in greater depth which led to his discovery of several controversial issues such as Joseph Smith's practice of polyandry, DNA and archeological issues with the Book of Mormon, etc. With shaken faith, he didn't find many informed or sympathetic local church members and therefore contemplated leaving the church. On the Internet he found communities antagonistic toward the LDS Church which didn't encourage him to stay either. Eventually he discovered publications such as Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought and Sunstone Magazine which acknowledged LDS controversies but provided thoughtful responses/solutions to the problems. These resources helped Dehlin decide to stay in the church for several years after his initial discoveries.[8]
Finding limited internet presence for constructive Mormon intellectual sources, Dehlin approached the Sunstone Education Foundation and presented to its Board of Directors about the importance of participating in developing internet communities through blogging and podcasting. The Board accepted his offer to initiate these programs[8] and, in September 2005, Dehlin joined the Board of Directors and began a Sunstone podcast as well as SunstoneBlog.[9] In July 2007, he also became executive director of the Sunstone Education Foundation, in which he was to focus on strategic initiatives to strengthen Sunstone's position as an open forum for Mormon issues.[10] In that role, he tried to increase the organizational focus on its longstanding motto, "faith seeking understanding", and to attract new and younger membership.[11] Dehlin resigned from Sunstone in January 2008.[12]
In September 2005, after finding reasons to stay a member of the LDS Church, Dehlin created the Mormon Stories podcast as an open discussion of Mormon issues with the intention of giving listeners reasons to remain in the church.[2] Through interviews, Mormon Stories focused on varying Mormon experiences and perspectives, including antagonistic, apologetic, intellectual, gay, black, fundamentalist, feminist, and dissenting. Several notable Mormon figures were guests on Mormon Stories, including Gregory Prince, Todd Compton, Grant Palmer, Darius Gray, Margaret Blair Young, Richard Bushman, and Margaret and Paul Toscano. To date, listenership at times exceeds 25,000 downloads per episode. Mormon Stories has been featured in many venues, including being broadcast on KVNU in Logan, Utah.[13] In June 2007 John Dehlin was quoted for stories by The New York Times and Good Morning America, discussing Mitt Romney and Mormonism.[14][15]
At times personally conflicted about continuing Mormon Stories, Dehlin stopped and restarted the project a few times. [16][17] In January 2010 Dehlin resumed the blog and podcast, focusing on faith crises, mental illnesses, and notable guests,[18] beginning with interviews of Joanna Brooks and John Hamer.[19][20] Two other regular hosts joined Dehlin in conducting interviews for the podcast: Dan Wotherspoon, former editor of Sunstone magazine; and Natasha Helfer Parker, a licensed clinical marriage and family therapist.
In 2011 Dehlin reported going "inactive" from the LDS church for a period of months, citing an inability to believe some of the church's fundamental truth claims.[21][22] After being exonerated from a series of investigations into his Internet activities (led by his LDS bishop and stake president), Dehlin has returned to the LDS church as a semi-active member, attending approximately once or twice a month [23]. Today, Dehlin refers to himself as an "Unorthodox Mormon," "Uncorrelated Mormon," and an "Open Mormon" [24].
In June 2007, Dehlin started Mormon Matters as a blog and weekly podcast, with the intention of eventually becoming a radio show.[25] The format was a discussion panel on events, culture, politics and spirituality within Mormonism. Panelists were to represent different sides of each issue, although the show later struggled to retain regular conservative LDS panelists.[26] In early 2008, Dehlin converted Mormon Matters into a group blog and lessened emphasis on new podcast episodes,[27]. Dehlin resumed the Mormon Matters podcast on March 5, 2011 with Dan Wotherspoon as the host, and Joanna Brooks as a frequent co-host.
Dehlin is also the co-founder of the Mormons for Marriage website [28] (a pro-gay marriage site) and Stay LDS,[29] a community dedicated to helping unorthodox Mormons stay in the LDS church if that is their desire.[30]