Laurie Maffly-Kipp has taught university courses on Mormonism off and on for over a decade. During that time she also edited the Penguin Classics edition of the Book of Mormon. She's currently working on a book on international Mormonism. Though not a member of the LDS Church herself, she brings a wealth of experience, understanding, and sensitivity to her work.Maffly-Kipp reflects on her experiences in the latest volume of the Mormon Studies Review:
'As I tell the students in the first week, my goal is not to convince them that the Mormon faith is good or bad, right or wrong. I do seek to help them become better informed about the tradition and, by extension, about their own religious beliefs (if they have any) and the dynamics of religious communities, broadly conceived. What they do with that knowledge has varied. I have taught inactive LDS students who decided after graduation to go on missions, evangelicals who continued to divinity school, atheists who read further in the Book of Mormon, and Muslims who found new conversation partners in local wards. Their journeys never fail to surprise and delight me.'
You can read Maffly-Kipp's full essay here. It's part of MSR volume 2's forum on 'Teaching Mormon Studies.' You can subscribe to the digital edition of this volume for only ten dollars.See here for more details.