Two men pull up to a house they’ve never been to before. It’s dark, but a few lights appear on. They slowly get out, not …
Examples of seeing the world through a poor mirror’s reflection
When Paul writes of “through a glass, darkly” he is writing about seeing the world in a mirror, rather than seeing it through a dirty …
The Anti-Marxist View of the LDS Marriage Argument
I’m jumping us back into the shark pool. Please no derogative, homophobic comments, or personal attacks on me—just a warning—I’ll delete you. I’m assuming that …
Open Thread: US Presidential Debate #1
Apparently the debate will go forward, despite McCain’s earlier statement that he would be spending time working on the economy instead, and Obama rejoinder that …
Singing Lies About Your Jesus
Today’s post is by guest Nikki. If you say something true about Jesus, but your Jesus is a different Jesus, is what you said about …
Meetings: Striking a Productive Balance
Mormons often joke about the 14th Article of Faith, and it often is quoted somewhat like this: We believe in holding meetings, and in asking …
How Much Does Church Activity Have To Do With ‘Being Mormon’?
Not so long ago, when I would hear about someone who didn’t go to church at all or have any interest in returning would refer …
First Families: BOM and Restoration
There are some interesting parallels between the first family of the Book of Mormon and the first family of the Restoration (the Smiths). Coincidence? Or …
Through a Glass, Darkly
Following Running on Empty, I am going to write about how even with the Spirit and everything else, we still see “through a glass, darkly.” …
The Book of Mormon: A 20th Century Text
There are many positions on which century the Book of Mormon originated in, but most seem to fall into two general camps: the book was …
Religious Education in the Church–It’s no School of the Prophets!
On January 23, 1833 in Kirtland Ohio, Joseph Smith met for the first time with a select group of members in what he termed the …
Tactical Morality
I revisit an old topic that is becoming increasingly relevant, especially in a culture where not only is bad called good and vice versa, but …
And Their Mortgage-Backed Securities Treasures Become “Slippery”
Witness the almost meltdown of Bear Stearns a few months ago, the nationalization of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the new meltdowns of Lehman Bros. …
Is Pornography Adultery?
The following article is interesting and asks a fascinating question. Is Pornography Adultery? Coincidently, the following is excerpted from a post I wrote independent of …
Running on Empty
Relying on, seeking, finding and responding to the Spirit is much like weightlifting. Not only is it a process that takes a great deal of …
What’s Most Important to You?
We all attend church for various reasons, and in reality, no church can be all things to all people. Plus, what you get out of …
Feeling Guilt: Repentance or Excuse?
Here is an idea that has been kicking around in my head for many years. I thought I would see if I could really articulate …
Superman vs. Spiderman
What do Superman and Spiderman have to do with Mormon history? Nothing at all. But maybe something about the two characters relates to the way …
Using Prayer As A Weapon
Here’s how the bedtime ritual usually goes at my house. After baths are finished, hair is combed and teeth are brushed, my family gathers for …
How should we know? Ask him yourself!
Today’s post is by Wade Nelson. I served my mission in Quebec in the mid 1970’s and hate to admit it but spent more time …
Churches are Made for the Ninety and Nine… What About the One?
Believers and non-believers. The faithful and the doubters. Religious conservatives and religious liberals. TBMs and NOMs. These are ways we describe the differences in our …
Eating Jell-O in the Ivory Tower: Scholarly Adherents and Adhering Scholars
So as one who utterly lacked a life, I did what most good, quality no-lifers do…go to graduate school. Traumatic. The structures that I had …
Children and Testimonies
Today’s post is by Andrew C. This past Sunday, we attended a different ward for a relative’s baby blessing. This particular ward is located in …
Bloggernacle Thought: Brainwashing
This comment is from SilverRain. I found it here. “Brainwashed” is probably ranked with the weakest possible arguments. If I say you’re brainwashed, I can …
A Mormon History Mystery
This week our BYU student daughter called to ask us to help her with an assignment: she was supposed to find a question that could …
Hymn #114: Come Unto Him
Today is a guest post from The Chorister.
Open Thread: Ike Hits Houston
News about Ike on cnn.com gives some up to date information on what is happening there. I wanted to open a thread for those on …
Living in Post Christian World
Greece is a wonderful country. Athens is a great city. In many ways it is the archetype of a polis. At the center is a …
Is Pride the Only Sin?
Can all sins be reduced to just one sin: pride? Is pride essentially the root cause of all sins?
Remember Dieter Uchtdorf?
Today’s post is by Wade Nelson. Remember Dieter Uchtdorf?
“The Glory of Jacob Shall Be Made Thin”: Mormons, Marriage, and the Cold Realities of Physical Attractiveness
Alas, one wanders through the BYU campus and simply cannot escape its pervading influence: romance. One visiting professor from the University of Minnesota‘s renowned family …
Common Scriptures in Review: Mosiah 3:19
Mosiah 3:19 was the subject of a post recently about how we view our children in the Church. I wanted to comment more extensively in …
Pharisees: Bad Guys or Bad Rap?
One of things that bothered me when I joined the church and started studying the New Testament was the way the Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes …
My kind of Evangelical
As a Mormon kid growing up in the area of Southern California largely settled by Dust Bowl migrants from Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri, evangelicals (we …
Ritual, The Husk of True Faith
Tao Te Ching 38 When the Tao is lost, there is goodness. When goodness is lost, there is morality. When morality is lost, there is …
Bloggernacle Thought: The Slippery Slope of Unbelief
I found this comment out on the bloggernacle from someone named Christopher Smith: Most people don’t want to believe less. They want to believe more. …
You’re All Gonna Die: Low, War, and the D&C
“Therefore, renounce war and proclaim peace, and seek diligently to turn the hearts of the children to their fathers, and the hearts of the fathers …
Mormonism and the State of Nature
Today’s post is by Andrew C. As a registered Democrat and a political junkie, it’s difficult for me not to notice politics at church. I’m …
Virtual RS/PH #17: The Great Plan of Salvation
A unique facet of Mormonism is our view of God’s plan for his children, or our purpose in life. Today’s lesson focuses on what JS …
Media in the Bedroom
Beginning as far back as March 2001, the Church has advised members not to locate their computers in a bedroom. William C. Porter, in the …
What is Tolerance?
I wrote an article explaining how I become converted to “political correctness”. I was really talking about “tolerance.” Tolerance: I hear that word a lot. …
An Act of Violence
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God[…] and another book was opened, which is the book of life[…] And whosoever was …
How Active Are You? How Orthodox Are You? A Self-Assessment
Take this assessment and find out: (Taken from D. Jeff Burton’s For Those Who Wonder : forthosewhowonder.com. Similar to a Correlation Department survey on Religion …
The Theology of “Saturday’s Warrior”
Many Church members consider Johnny Lingo to be the zenith of kitschy Mormon culture (for the uninitiated, you can see it here). When I was …
What is Heaven? What is Hell?
We pray. We read scriptures. We go to Church. We fulfill our callings. We obey our Church leaders. As much as we’d like to think …
Merging with God
We talk all the time in our Church about returning to God some day. Everything we do in life is to gain experiences, and then …
What Would You Change?
What if you were given free reign and could change or remove one requirement the church makes of its members — forever? Today’s post is …
Spiritual Poverty vs. Spiritual Destitution: More on Matthew 5:3
Debt is an interesting thing. On one hand, it allows us to acquire things we don’t have but need. On the other hand, it allows …
Does Loyalty Trump Honesty and Integrity?
Does Loyalty Trump Honesty and Integrity?