Right up there with primary, this is a sacred cow for me – perfect for this series. I’ll list off my own best and worst …
all decisions are emotional
I always have to laugh when people claim we Mormons (or even believers in general) make our decisions based on “feelings.” What they don’t realize, …
What kind of “Mormon” are you?
TBM? NOM? Ex? Post? Orthoprax & Unorthodox? Deist? Liberal? Conservative? Orthodox? Fundamentalist? Faithful? I’m not sure what category, if any, I fit in. Sometimes I …
WHY our meetings are dull for some, and great for others
Okay, so our meetings are dull. Complaining about it is dull. I’ve been wondering though, what about the wards that have better meetings? What makes …
things that scare you
The best advice I ever received was about a month into my mission. I was naturally struggling to learn the first few principles of the …
Marriage Counseling: Waste of Money or Balm of Gilead?
I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that most of you could use some good marriage counseling. Yes, you. “…do ye …
Date Night: When your arguments are always the same…
Do you ever feel like you and your spouse fight the same way every time? Almost like, “here we go again?” Can you predict how …
Date Night: What is your couple sexual style?
I was going to law school. Coming home from a mission in Japan, I was going to get a law degree and take Japanese business …
The constraints of agency: Your neighbor and your neighborhood
Albert Bandura defines agency is “the capacity to exercise control over the nature and quality of one’s life.” We have freedom to make choices, and …
Mormon Marriage Ref: Bikinis, Garments, & Facebook
WARNING: Sophisticated readers have described The Mormon Marriage Ref as a painfully artificial and repellent reality TV way of solving arguments, as using incredibly silly …
Mormon Marriage Ref: The Johansen’s Daughter is Cohabitating!
While the situation described may be common, the names, events, and dialogue etc. are all fictional. Here’s the situation: David and Sue Johansen have been …
Best and Worst of Mormonism: Primary Songs!
*Note: For my Best and Worst series, my intent is not to be negative for its own sake. Rather, I believe in balance, moderation, and …
How Being a LOST Fan and a Church Member is Pretty Much the Same
New Convert: “I watched them all back to back this year on DVD. And I’m very glad I did. And I’d do it again.” Dogmatic: …
What makes a good home teacher?
Nope, not April Fools. 🙂 I have mixed feelings about my experiences with home teaching. My father taught me from an early age about visiting …
What is “sin”?
In my apparently never ending need to define absolutely everything, (e.g. what “bless the food” means or “what is the church?”) I am continuing my …
Wherein I stop being liberal and start standing up for what I believe
A lot of what I talk about in regard to the church is a reaction against something else. For a period of time my wife …
Edward Cullen as Porn Addict
Hear me out. 🙂 I was talking with a friend recently about addictions. Things like alcohol, caffeine, meth, and heroin (among many other substances) all …
doubt
A seminary teacher I had in high school is in some BIG trouble.
mothers really are the primary nurturers
I have long been dismayed by the seemingly arbitrary idea that mothers should be first in charge of nurturing their children, with fathers there to …
Learning and Understanding Vs. Winning Arguments
Why do you read and comment on blogs? What is your goal? Do you want to make points and debate with others? Is it more …
What Bothers Me, and Why I Still Believe
I am an active member of the church, and a believer. I am well aware of most of the controversial issues (Book of Abraham, DNA, …
Best and Worst of Mormonism: Quotes!
A Zen Buddhist/Freemason friend of mine has put together some great posts of “Best and Worst Bible Verses.” I have been trying to convince him …
How do you interpret another’s faith?
The following are four approaches one can take when addressing another’s faith.* Exclusivist – Believe in “the only true church.” Exclusivists may see the church …
Soliciting Opinions for a Marriage Sunday School Class
In the next month or so I will be teaching a six-week Sunday School course based on “Strengthening Marriage: A Resource Guide for Couples” from …
“Never Lead Us Astray.” And Dissonance.
“So powerful is the need for congruence that when people are forced to look at disconfirming evidence, they will find a way to criticize, distort, …
Nature of The Person
As part of my graduate program in counseling I have to write a personal theory, which includes process and goals of therapy, explanations for personality, …
Taxes = Satan?
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 …
Celestial Marriage Amendment
I read this letter in the Salt Lake Tribune this morning, and even though I know it’s a satirical slam, I could not help but …
A letter from my sister…
Perhaps our feelings about tomorrow’s letter were abreacted in last week’s multifarious and sporadically acerbic discussion. My purpose here is to highlight some of the feelings …
all we can do
“We know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” Many of us seem to break out into hives when …
A Child’s Prayer: Are we doing enough?
Are we satisfied just paying tithing and fast offerings?
The Nature of God and Bible Bashing Sharing
Like many members of the church, I believe that humankind is of the same species as God; that our Heavenly Parents are like us only …
A Forever Backward Intelligence
“The idea of a forever forward is not more or less simple than that of a forever backward. Yet, in our culture, one idea is …
Mormons as “Restorationist Christians”
According to the all-knowing Wikipedia, the Latter Day Saint movement (including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) is “Restorationist” (as apposed to Orthodox …
What is “The Church”?
I know the church is true. I love the church. They are disaffected with the church. We go to church. I discovered that the church …
“Please bless the food that it may change on a molecular level to provide us with additional strength that we would not get otherwise…”
I’m out of the YSA circuit now, but when I was there I often heard the prayer, “Please bless the refreshments, that they may nourish …