The recent excommunications of prominent members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints got us wondering about the practice of excommunication, and related practices like shunning and ostracizing. Does excommunication have different meanings across various religions and cultures? Why are some individuals cut off and others not? How should religious institutions respond to unorthodox opinions and beliefs among their members?
On Thursday's AU we'll consider these questions within the context of Catholicism, Mormonism, the FLDS experience, and Amish and Mennonite cultures. Our guests include USU Professor of Religious Studies and History, Philip Barlow; USU Lecturer of Philosophy, Harrison Kleiner; and Donald Kraybill, Distinguished College Professor and Senior Fellow, Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College.