A recent "Single Mormon Twenty Something" column by McKay Coppins looked at a controversial talk given in 1967. Mormon Times staff writer adds an opinion about the characterizations in that column.

I first read Richard D. Poll's talk "What the Church Means to People Like Me" while I was investigating the LDS Church in 1981. He divided the church membership in two: those who are "Iron Rod" Mormons and those who are "Liahona" Mormons.

It seemed wrong to me. Although some may have felt comforted that there was a place for them in the church as "Liahonas," I couldn't imagine anybody who wanted to fall under his definition of "Iron Rod." It was a decidedly one-sided justification that, instead of healing, had a hint of arguing for the superiority of "people like me."

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