Posts Tagged ‘ Bloggernacle ’

In Praise of Elder Packer: ‘Let Them Govern Themselves’

September 28, 2009
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In Praise of Elder Packer: ‘Let Them Govern Themselves’

It might just be the posts that I read, but Boyd K. Packer is not the most popular of Apostles in the Bloggernacle (or perhaps among liberal Mormons more generally).  I acknowledge that this is a speculative impression.  At the very least, I have heard Elder Packer criticised at Sunstone and on the Bloggernacle on a few occassions at least.  I was therefore surprised to find one of his sermons published in full in an issue of Sunstone.  The talk was insightful, challenging and thought-provoking.  As a result I wanted to reproduce some of his comments here that I found most interesting…

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“Moderation in All Things”: A Poll

September 25, 2009
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The phrase, “moderation in all things” is a euphemism usually (but not exclusively) associated (by Mormons at least)with the Word of Wisdom.  It usually means that we should not go too far, one way or the other, in abstaining to the point of becoming an ascetic or in indulging to the point of becoming an addict.  Of course, that leaves lots of room for interpretation and individual opinion, as well as plenty of opportunity for members to judge one another uncharitably.

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‘I really think it would be best if you ended your remarks at this point?’

September 24, 2009
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John Remy posted an interesting blog/video where a man, speaking about his concern with the Church’s practice and policy during the Prop 8 debate, was asked by the Bishop to stop.  The man protested and was allowed to finish but the Microphone was turned off.  What would make you ask someone to sit down?

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Belief vs. Action

August 13, 2009
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Belief vs. Action

Which is more important – belief or action?  Is faith without action better than action without faith?  Is belief without action better than acting despite disbelief?  Which leads to the better outcome or are both fraught with their own dangers?

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Church Doctrine is Like the Bloggernacle

July 15, 2009
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Bloggernacle aficionados have been trying to define our little corner of the internet for years now. Everyone has a vague idea of what the term encompasses, and some stand ready to provide a concise definition, but it somehow resists pinning down. In this way, the bloggernacle is quite like Mormon doctrine* itself.

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Voting — 2008 Niblet Awards

July 6, 2009
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And the nominees are . . .

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Bloggernacle Rankings: BCC is #1!

June 23, 2009
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According to alexa.com, By Common Consent is currently the top ranked site in the Bloggernacle.  Congratulations to our esteemed colleagues; you have earned the distinction of “top blog”!  Not to toot our own horn, but Mormon Matters is also on the rise in the Bloggernacle (at #3), coming in behind #2 bloggernacle perennial favorite Times & Seasons. 

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Bloggernacle Personality Survey

May 23, 2009
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The bloggernacle seems to attract a specific subset of Mormon culture, and as a result, opinions and comments are often different from those we hear expressed at church.  One reason for this could be that some personality types thrive in organizations while others are prone to be disenfranchised.  A popular metric to determine personality type is the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or the simplified version of this, the Kiersey Temperament Sorter.  These psychometrics are based on the psychology of Carl Jung.  Many have already taken this instrument and know their MBTI type or their Kiersey Temperament.  If not, you can…

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MM Poll: Your Favorite Scriptures

May 19, 2009
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Mormon Matters has installed a new polling feature, so  thought I’d get the ball rolling with a fairly simple one, so here goes.

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In Praise Of Good Bishops

March 18, 2009
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Here’s the one lesson I learned from my 3.5 year stint as an Elders Quorum President:  never, ever aspire to be a Bishop.  Seriously, it is a thankless job. To put a finer point on it, being a Bishop is an honest-to-goodness, up-to-40-hours-per-week, full-time thankless job.  Not to mention the fact that the pay (-10%) is really lousy. An evergreen subject here in the Bloggernacle, it seems, is the outing of “bad Bishops.”  I cannot begin to count the number of posts and comments I have read over the past few years in which people have complained about all forms…

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Lessons Learned (aka Thanks, Bloggernacle!)

August 1, 2008
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Unfortunately, a confluence of factors — vacation, increased tasks at work trying to make up for said vacation, shuttling daughters to and from various summer activities — has kept me out of the Mormon Matters community over the past few weeks. This isn’t the first time this sort of thing has happened to me. In every long-distance friendship, I’m the one who forgets to make the phone call, who doesn’t return the e-mail, and who eventually drops out of communication altogether, leaving the other party to the friendship wondering, “I wonder what happened to that dude.” Long story, short: don’t…

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From the Great Wall to the Bloggernacle With Love

April 23, 2008
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Clay Whipkey and I are in China — and visited the Great Wall 2 days ago. As we contemplated what to discuss on top of the wall — there was only one real option. We hope you enjoy. All the best to our long lost friends. We miss you.

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Liberal Mormonism III: Prognosis

April 10, 2008
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Count up all the liberal Mormons you know. Now, compare that number to the number you knew ten years ago. Now multiply the difference between the two by the number of liberal General Authorities, then subtract from that number the number of anti-intellectual General Conference addresses you have heard in the last three years.

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