From Deseret News archives:

Psychologists apologize for criticizing LDS Church

Published: Friday, Aug. 19, 2005 6:40 p.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
After months of communication with two Utah psychologists and their local professional organization, the American Psychological Association has formally apologized for negative characterizations about the LDS Church.

Meeting this week in Washington, D.C., the APA's formal convention program contains an apology for statements made in last year's program regarding The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its missionary program.

The statements were printed in reference to a documentary film that was shown during that convention, titled, "Get the Fire." The film followed a pair of LDS missionaries in Europe and included interviews with former missionaries who had left the LDS Church after returning from their missions.

Advertising for the film in the APA program characterized the church's methods of retaining members and motivating its missionaries as "brainwashing" and "mind control" using "powerful psychological techniques."

Such language is often used by groups seeking to characterize religious organizations outside historical Christianity as "cults." Drs. Chauncey Adams and Gary Groom of St. George learned of the characterizations last year and contacted the national association to complain.

Story continues below
Months of letter-writing between the two men and APA officers failed to elicit a formal apology, so the two created a Web site, www.biasfire.com, to document their communications and ask for public feedback.

Earlier this year, the Utah Psychological Association became involved, and the APA sent a board member to Utah to discuss the concerns. Barry Anton, professor of psychology at the University of Puget Sound, told several UPA members earlier this year that such an incident "won't happen again."

He took feedback from his discussions to the APA board of directors, and a formal apology was crafted and placed in this year's APA program.

In part, the statement expresses the board's "sincere apology for the offensive description of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. . . . The board rejects the characterization of the church used in the program and regrets any harm this has caused. The language used in the film's description does not in any way reflect the policies of the association."

Contacted about the apology, Adams said: "Basically we're calling it a day in terms of what we asked for. We wanted them to apologize. We wanted an apology and a retraction to begin with," and for several months "we got all this convoluted sort of response."

Comments

You can be the first to comment on this story.

previousnext

Latest comments

To summerize all the soccer hater comments "Blah, Blah, Blah, My life stinks"

Okay, I think its ridiculous how people get on these comment blogs and say...

Letters: Scrap Utah's flat tax

when the chips are down to try raising the food tax but come up with excuses...

KSL: Purses dirtier than bathrooms

My purse is no more nasty and filthy and full of objectionable and disgusting...

Time for big matchups in WAC, MWC

Dude, it's "bowl" games, not "bowel" games. A "bowl" is a round object...

Letters: Gays' parades offensive

12:29 p.m You make it sound like I mis-represented what happend at the GL...

If you didnt see this show, you missed out! Some of the sickest fights I have...

Plenty on line for rivalry game

BYU players have NO PASSION for winning and it all starts with their head...

Reagan much-beloved in Utah

Following Graduation in 1980 the USA was in the largest depression since the...

Advertisements