Dear Reader,
When I started covering faith and spirituality at The Tribune in 1991, Utah had one mosque, one main synagogue, no Hindu temples, some tiny Buddhist groups, a smattering of evangelical churches and hundreds of Latter-day Saint meetinghouses.
It is, after all, the Vatican of Mormonism, where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has its headquarters. Newcomers have had to navigate that dominance, both religiously and politically.
Through the decades, I have seen my role as something of a translator — helping Latter-day Saints understand their neighbors and helping others understand their Mormon friends.
I’ve covered tensions between Latter-day Saints and others — including contributing to a special section, titled “The Unspoken Divide,” that the paper published just before the 2002 Winter Olympics. I’ve also reported on differences within the Mormon community among fellow believers, along with a range of institutional pronouncements and policies.
Today, Utah’s faith community is more religiously rich than ever — multiple mosques and Hindu temples, for example — but the need for sharp, balanced reports on what is happening in the dominant faith as well as all the others, has never been more urgent.
As a guide, a watchdog, an independent observer, and an explainer, The Trib is an invaluable resource.
We need your continued support as the only outlet that can write authoritatively about the Utah-based faith and its national and international reach. To make a donation, scan the QR code below or click here.
And I’ll be here to keep it lively and up to date,
Peggy Fletcher Stack
Senior religion reporter
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