When the Gospel Seems Unjust to the Rising Generation | An Interview with Tyler Johnson

Dr. Tyler Johnson is is a medical oncologist, author, and a clinical assistant professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He also serves as a leader of the Stanford inpatient oncology services, including supervising the oncology housestaff service. Tyler has served as Bishop in the Stanford Ward and taught institute. He co-hosts The Doctor’s Art podcast and writes on the intersection of medicine, ethics, and spirituality. Tyler’s writings has been featured by Religion News Service, the Salt Lake Tribune, BYU Studies, Dialogue, and The San Jose Mercury News, where he is a regular contributor. Highlights 02:00 Introduction to the episode and Tyler Johnson 03:30 Tyler’s background as an oncologist and professor 09:30 Teaching experience in the church and at the institute at Stanford 14:00 Many youth are leaving the church. We can do a better job at teaching them. 18:20 Where do we fail to teach the power of the gospel to youth and others? 20:00 Us vs them dynamic when it comes to people who leave the church and those who stay 22:30 As a leader, how do we avoid the us vs them dynamic at church and in our classes 25:45 Tyler breaks down the four parts of America and why it’s important to understanding and helping our youth today Free America Real America Smart America Just (justice) America 36:30 Most youth today belong to “just America.” They value justice and fairness and have lots of concerns. Understanding these values is really important as a leader. 39:30 How can leaders best help and guide the youth (just America)? 41:20 When someone comes to you with a deeply felt question, it’s better to recognize the virtuous impulse behind the question before dealing with the content of the question 47:00 Empathy before certainty or ambiguity. Productive discussions are going to come from showing empathy for people’s concerns. Show them you are on their team. 52:00 The different types of Americans and these mindsets in the church. People that belong to just America don’t feel like they belong in the church. 59:00 Tyler talks to people that feel they are part of just America 1:05:30 We all need space and grace. Even the highest leaders of our church. 1:06:45 We hold back empathy from our leaders because they are the ones in power 1:08:00 Why the past 10 years of American life have been uniquely stupid. Social media makes it so easy for us to shoot people down who value different things than us. 1:13:00 A lot of us grew up with the fairytale version of the gospel when in reality church history was really messy. This is what young people are struggling with today. We need to let go of the fairytale and embrace the messiness. 1:22:00 The defining virtue of the Savior’s atonement is his perfect empathy. We are joining the Savior in His work when we show empathy to those that we lead. 1:23:30 Tyler’s final thoughts and testimony Links How America Fractured into Four Parts, by George PackerWhy the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid, by Jonathan HaidtThe God Who WeepsThe Other Prodigal, talk by Elder Jeffrey R. HollandThe Doctor’s Art podcast Read the TRANSCRIPT of this podcast Listen on YouTubeGet 14-day access to the Core Leader Library The Leading Saints Podcast has ranked in the top 20 Christianity podcasts in iTunes, gets over 500,000 listens each month, and has over 10 million total downloads as part of nonprofit Leading Saints’ mission to help latter-day saints be better prepared to lead. Learn more and listen to any of the past episodes for free at LeadingSaints.org. Past guests include Emily Belle Freeman, David Butler, Hank Smith, John Bytheway, Liz Wiseman, Stephen M. R. Covey, Julie Beck, Brad Wilcox, Jody Moore, Tony Overbay, John H. Groberg, Elaine Dalton, Tad R. Callister, J. Devn Cornish, Dennis B. Neuenschwander, Anthony Sweat, John Hilton III, Barbara Morgan Gardner, Blair Hodges, Whitney Johnson, Ryan Gottfredson, Greg McKeown, DeAnna Murphy, Michael Goodman, Richard Ostler, Ganel-Lyn Condie, and many more in over 500 episodes. Discover podcasts, articles, virtual conferences, and live events related to callings such as the bishopric, Relief Society, elders quorum, Primary, youth leadership, stake leadership, ward mission, ward council, young adults, ministering, and teaching.