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D&C 89:1 refers to the WoW as: A Word OF Wisdom, for the benefit of the council of high priests, assembled in Kirtland, and the church, and also the saints in Zion—To be sent greeting; not by commandment or constraint, but by revelation and the word of wisdom, showing forth the order and will of God in the temporal salvation of all saints in the last days—Given for a principle with promise, adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints, who are or can be called saints.
Huh? What was the point of the Word of Wisdom? How can we really reap its benefits? Continue reading…
Most people who are aware of the LDS Church are aware that we have “general authorities” and that they share some characteristics, but in my experience, they don’t really understand what General Authorities are or what the term means. I’m going to skip what the phrase means and discuss what they are.
General Authorities (“G.A.”s) tend to share the following characteristics:
- a history of personal sacrifice
- much experience in delayed gratification.
- a set of spiritual skills and experiences.
- a set of social experiences and narratives.
Continue reading…
Last week, I graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems. In an attempt to make this post more than a self-congratulatory indulgence, I’d like to take a moment to represent myself as the “token BYU student” here at Mormon Matters, and offer my thoughts and perspectives about my BYU experience.
I took a fairly typical course: I lived in the dorms (Deseret Towers) as a freshman, took two years off for a mission, came back, got serious about a Major program, and finished it up in 3 additional years (plus some spring and summer classes.)
Overall, I am very pleased with my BYU experience, and look upon it in overwhelmingly positive light. If I may, I’d like to highlight a few of the outstanding parts. Continue reading…
If you haven’t heard by now, Senator McCain has chosen Sarah Palin, sitting Governor of Alaska, as his VP running mate. Her bio is linked here. She defeated an incumbent governor in the primary and a former governor in the general election. She currently has an 80% approval rating in Alaska. I just like the irony of typing “she” when talking about a Republican VP candidate.
Discuss, if you so choose. Ignore, if you don’t care.
While reading History of the Church I came across an incredible story as told by Elder Theodore Turley which I wish to share. Continue reading…
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Who are those Guys?- Quiz!
Most of us old guys saw Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid. A question that kept coming up as they were being chased was: “Who are those guys?” In our church I wonder “who are those guys” all the time! Anyway take the below quiz. I’m not sure the answers, but was hoping you could help me!
Continue reading…
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[NOTE: This post is slightly longer than normal, since I am commenting on multiple phrases and words throughout the verse in question. Please pardon the length; I couldn't shorten it any more than I did - except to delete this disclaimer. *grin*]
Perhaps the most reviled verse among non-Mormon Christians in the entire Mormon scriptural canon is Joseph Smith History 1:19 – the words of Jesus to Joseph Smith at the beginning of the First Vision regarding why he should not join any church. This single verse encapsulates the reason why many call Mormonism arrogant and offensive and blind – and the misinterpretations of this verse by Mormons themselves only add fuel to this fire. So, I am breaking out my parser’s pen and dissecting what Jesus actually said and did not say: word-by-word, sentence-by-sentence, concept-by-concept. It was a fascinating endeavor when I first undertook it, and it changed my perspective on The Restoration greatly.
Continue reading…
What is the Gift of the Holy Ghost? We have a lesson or two about this each year in our Church classes. People have lots of great ideas, but I sometimes feel it doesn’t quite pin down what I observe when I look around me in life. I’m not saying our Mormon answer is wrong, but I think there is more to it than the short answers we discuss skimming the surface of this topic.
Continue reading…
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The term “apologist” is often used derisively like the terms “lawyer,” “statistician,” or “telemarketer.” Why are apologists so derided? Is it warranted or just a bum rap? Continue reading…
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Today’s post is from an anonymous guest blogger. The critics of the church like to point the finger at Joseph Smith, citing polygamy, concealing polygamy, the Kirtland Bank failure, etc. Could Moses withstand the same scrutiny? Let’s take a look. Continue reading…
Do taxes rob people of their free agency and subvert the Great Plan of Happiness?
Some quotes from members around the web:
“[Forcing] me to pay for the upkeep of another is simply the application of Satan’s plan here on earth.” Continue reading…
In a June of 2006 speech, Barak Obama spoke honestly about the uncertainties of belief. “Faith doesn’t mean that you don’t have doubts,” Obama declared. “You need to come to church in the first place precisely because you are first of this world, not apart from it.” Senator Obama laid down principles for how to discuss faith in a pluralistic society, including the need for religious people to translate their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific, values during public debate. Continue reading…
When I started attending school at BYU, political correctness was still recently taking hold in American culture. In high school my English teacher, Mrs. Summers, specifically taught us that if the gender was unknown, we were to use “he” or “his” as the pronoun as these signified both genders. For example:
“Each student in the class opened his book to the page specified.”
And back then we spoke of mailmen, chairmen, policemen, garbage men, etc. A person with a below average IQ was “mentally retarded” and someone that was overweight was “fat.” It was just the way things were.
Old habits die hard. Continue reading…
Today’s guest post is by Joe Geisner. Most bookstores in Utah have sold out of the new book on the Mountain Meadows massacre with a print run of 10,000 copies. Amazingly this happened in less than a week.
The buzz is that the book answers all the questions. This new openness, scholarly approach and availability for the most controversial subject in Mormon history is quite amazing. Continue reading…
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