Asides

The Fallout Story

May 29, 2008
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The Fallout Story

The Fallout Story is a rule of etiquette (that I made up) that I hold sacred for discussing breakups.  The rule is:  the dumpee owns the fallout story.  The dumper is prohibited from making any disparaging remarks (henceforth and forever) about the dumpee, as a matter of courtesy.  As a friend put it:  “She keeps the ring; she tells the story.”  This is where we get the phrase:  “It’s not you; it’s me.”  We all know that’s not true (c’mon, if it wasn’t them, why are you dumping them?), but it is good etiquette.  The Fallout Story rule applies...

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Evidences and Reconciliations 5/19/08

May 19, 2008
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I intend this to be the first entry in a regular series, something you can look forward to on a Monday afternoon. Like all series, we can shift the air time around if necessary, like if I’m competing with American Idol or something. Here’s the idea: I post two contradictory passages from scripture or statements by authoritative LDS folks (that’s the evidences part) and you suggest how they can be harmonized, or were never in conflict in the first place, etc. (that’s the reconciliations part). The title is taken from John A. Widtsoe’s regular column in the Improvement Era...

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Give Said the Little Revenue Stream

May 13, 2008
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Give Said the Little Revenue Stream

Do Mormons do less charitable giving due to the commitment of paying tithing? Three months of the year, you can rest assured there will be garage sales popping up like mushrooms all over Utah. Why do Mormons enjoy selling their own castoffs and searching for “bargains” among other castoffs rather than donating these items to charity?

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The Mormon Urge to Glurge

May 1, 2008
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The Mormon Urge to Glurge

glurge (GLURJ) n. A sentimental or uplifting story, particularly one delivered via e-mail, that uses inaccurate or fabricated facts; a story that is mawkish or maudlin; the genre consisting of such stories. 

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Men: The Weaker Sex?

April 28, 2008
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Men: The Weaker Sex?

There is a common belief among LDS that wonderful women are sometimes saddled with mediocre men or sometimes no man at all, which will result in a surplus of women in the Celestial Kingdom.  So, are Mormon women really so much better than men?

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God’s Hit List in the Book of Mormon

April 26, 2008
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God’s Hit List in the Book of Mormon

One of the most unseemly and disturbing images in the Book of Mormon is when Nephi is commanded to cut the head off of Laban who lies drunken at his feet.  So, what did Laban do to get on God’s hit list?  Did he deserve it?  Was it necessary?  And how did some of the other deserving baddies (such as Laman & Lemuel) escape with their heads intact? 

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“What Children Know”: A Children’s Rebuttal to Elder Ballard’s Conference Talk

April 7, 2008
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“What Children Know”: A Children’s Rebuttal to Elder Ballard’s Conference Talk

Late last night as I was putting the finishing touches on my Monday morning blog post, I heard a faint knocking on the front door of my home. When I opened the door I saw no one there, but heard the pitter-patter of little feet fading off in the distance. Something caught my eye on the doorstep. It appeared to be a manifesto of sorts, scrawled on the blank insides of a flattened cereal box with crayons of assorted colors. I have no idea who wrote the message, but whoever did was pretty upset about the talk that Elder...

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What is Jesus’ Personality Type (MBTI)?

March 31, 2008
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What is Jesus’ Personality Type (MBTI)?

For the unindoctrinated, MBTI (Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator) is a psychometric that classifies people into one of 16 profiles.  It is primarily used to help people get along better at work (along with staples like Wacky Bowling and Ropes courses).  So, what is Jesus’ MBTI type?  Does Jesus’ personality type create a subtle bias against religious leaders (or even followers) with different personality traits?

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The Parable of the Elephant

February 28, 2008
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The Parable of the Elephant

Sometimes I recall nuggets of spiritual wisdom but cannot remember when or where I picked them up. One in particular has increasingly taken on new meanings for me as I’ve wrestled with some of life’s tougher questions. You might call it the “Parable of the Elephant.” This is how it goes, as best I remember, with a few adaptations of my own:

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