The Leadership of Elder Joseph F. Merrill | An Interview with Casey Paul Griffiths

Casey Paul Griffiths is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Church
History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University. He served a
mission in Fort Lauderdale, Florida before returning home to
complete a B.A. degree in History at BYU, an M.A. in Religious
Education, and a PhD in Educational Leadership and Foundations.
Casey served in Seminaries and Institutes for eleven years as a
teacher and a curriculum writer. Casey's research focuses on the
history of religious education among Latter-day Saints, the history
of the Church in the Pacific, and diverse movements associated with
the Restoration. He is the author of numerous books and articles on
Latter-day Saint history, including Truth Seeker: The Life of
Joseph F. Merrill, Scientist, Educator, and Apostle. He is married
to Elizabeth Ottley Griffiths and they live in Saratoga Springs
with their three children. Highlights 2:00 Introduction to Casey
and his new book 5:10 The background of Joseph Merrill 8:50 Joseph
Merrill’s faith journey 19:00 Joseph’s wife had very progressive
and feminist views. They had a very powerful partnership together.
They were both leaders and innovators. 21:20 The Church then and
now 22:55 Different political views within the leaders of the
church. They were all able to get along. We shouldn’t be afraid of
different views. 26:15 The setbacks in Joseph Merrill’s life led
him to what he was really supposed to do. He was called by the
church to be the church commissioner of education. He created an
institute program to help students reconcile their faith with
science and other things they were learning at school. 32:15
Joseph’s life didn’t go as he expected but just as God planned it
to be. Casey talks about Joseph’s marriages. 37:00 Joseph Merrill
was the founding father of the Institute and Seminary programs that
we have today. However, in the beginning there were a lot of
obstacles and push back to get it started. 48:00 As a leader you
have a dynamic vision for something but there's so much pushback
from others. It can feel like maybe it’s not meant to be but keep
going! Small changes can bring about big results in the end. 50:45
Education is a spiritual activity. Learning and growing are
consecrated activities in the church. 52:15 When Joseph was an
apostle he was also called as a mission president in Europe. He was
very innovative in his church service. 54:20 Joseph Merrill was
Gordon B. Hinckley’s mission president. Joseph mentored Gordon.
Because of them, the Church started creating new media. 57:00 It’s
important to be innovative in the church. How can we use technology
to our advantage? Push the possibilities. 59:55 Revelation comes at
all levels. Joseph wasn’t an apostle when we came up with the idea
for Seminary and Institute. Revelation doesn’t always come from the
top down. 1:01:20 The truths of the gospel don’t change but we can
go about doing things or teaching things in different ways.
President Nelson is a great example of this. He changed up the way
we do home teaching and women can now be witnesses. 1:02:30 We are
so lucky to have the journals of Joseph Merrill. His writings show
his frustrations and inner feelings that really humanize him.
1:04:20 Joseph tried his whole life to find solutions. He always
tried to mix science and religion. In the end, after he lost his 2
wives and daughter, he learned that sometimes things are in God’s
hands. Faith is vital and reason cannot fix everything. 1:07:30
Faith is the first principle of the gospel because there are so
many things that are beyond our control. 1:08:30 The story of
Richard Lyman. He was the last apostle to get excommunicated in our
dispensation. Joseph was a great friend of Richard. 1:18:30 The
messiness of our history makes it genuine instead of manufactured.
Sincerity is more important than eloquence. Links Truth Seeker: The
Life of Joseph F. Merrill, Scientist, Educator, and Apostle Read
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