Elder Tad R. Callister (Oct. 17): "God's Compelling Witness: The Book of Mormon"

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The Activity:

1.     Begin by pointing out that Elder Callister compares the Book of Mormon to three things in his talk

a.      The keystone of our testimonies

b.     A sword to fight for the hearts of the just

c.      A shield with which to defend the truth

2.     Ask the class members to consider for a moment each of those metaphors and decide which one is most powerful in their minds

3.     Have the class organize into three groups around the three metaphors that Elder Callister uses—they should go to the one they feel is most powerful

4.     In these groups, ask the class members to discuss

a.      Exactly what their chosen metaphor teaches them (for example, how is the Book of Mormon like a keystone when it comes to testimonies?)

b.     How the Book of Mormon fulfills this role

c.      What experiences they have had with the Book of Mormon in their lives that fits this metaphor.

5.     After a few moments, ask a representative of each group report back to the whole class the things that they discussed in their group.



Using the Activity:

For me, the metaphors that Elder Callister makes are powerful teaching opportunities and I wanted to create an activity that would help people to really think about them and how these concepts/principles are manifest in our personal lives. 

I do add a wrinkle into this activity that I haven’t done in many of the others and that is the idea of choice.  Allowing the class members to choose which metaphor seems most powerful and then to spend time focusing on that metaphor can be a good way to help motivate the class members to engage more earnestly with the principles that Elder Callister shares.  Any of the metaphors could lead to a profitable discussion about the Book of Mormon—its roles in our lives and how we can more fully “immerse” ourselves in the Book of Mormon (Pres. Nelson’s word from this conference). 

I pray that this activity will be of use to you as you strive to magnify your calling.  Please send any feedback or additional insights you have.  Thank you and God bless you.

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