The Proclamation on the Family states: “Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.” What is meant by gender? One’s biological sex? One’s gender identity? The sexual stereotypes and cultural norms associated with one’s biological sex?
Posts Tagged ‘ marriage ’
The Doctor Is IN: An Interview with The Mormon Therapist
Natasha Helfer Parker is a licensed therapist who has counseled the LDS community for 12 years. In 2009, she began a blog called The Mormon Therapist, answering questions from readers from the standpoint of a faithful LDS therapist. We were able to get her to answer a few questions about her site, issues Mormons face, and to get her sound advice.
I Have Seen the Axe
Alice Walker, who wrote about the heartbreak of female genital mutilation quoted an African proverb in the beginning of her book Possessing the Secret of Joy: “I have seen the axe, and the handle is one of us.” Are women our own worst enemy when it comes to reinforcing stereotypes and norms that limit women?
Family First?
In a pro-family church, why doesn’t family always come first? We state that family comes before church, and yet there seem to be many in the church who don’t live as if they believe it. What do we need to do to get people to believe that family (and marriage) comes first?
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, Book of Mormon historicity, polyandry, etc.). Some of them occasionally bother me. Others do not. Although according to statistics I am very educated, I probably could not win an argument defending the church on any of those points. I could not support the church on Prop. 8, (if you want to specifically comment on that, please go here). I will probably never understand in this life why we are discouraged from praying to our Heavenly…
Mormon Masks
Often people have a hard time with intimacy (intimacy = “into me see”) because they feel vulnerable. They would rather deal with ideas than people, and they don’t want others to see who they are. They might feel insecure or care what others think of them. People who feel this way wear what we call social masks to hide who they are and present a facade instead of their true self to others. And sometimes, the mask people wear is the church.
Zero Population is the Answer, My Friend . . .
Thought I’d catch your attention with that line from “Saturday’s Warrior,” the bane (or bastion, if you don’t know what you’re talking about) of Mormon doctrine.* There was an interesting article in NYT about how children can negatively impact marriages. So, what’s the real scoop on these tiny little homewreckers? Read on . . .
Keep Pedaling
One thing that I don’t see very often at Mormon Matters is the bearing of testimony. Some see the bearing of testimony as a form of social control, some may see it as people trying to convince themselves of truth, and so it seems that it doesn’t have much “place” in academic discussions. Yet there is something powerful in the bearing of testimony, and sometimes I feel that it’s all I truly have to offer. Here is a part of mine, and it is a testimony of the Apostles, in the light of Elder Wirthlin’s passing.
10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong (for fun)
1) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.
The Case for Marriage
I’ve enjoyed a book by Linda J. Waite and Maggie Gallagher called The Case for Marriage: Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier, and Better Off Financially. This book is, in large measure, a response to earlier research done by sociologists and family scientists, like Jesse Bernard, that wrote influential books “proving” that marriage was good for men and bad for women. It makes an interesting read to see how one set of “evidence” that seems so overwhelming suddenly appears to be dicey at best and dangerously wrong at worst through a simple re-slice and reapplication of the same set of…
Prophetic Counsel About Sex Within Marriage: A Brief History
Over the years, the LDS First Presidency has made various statements about sexual relations between husband and wife. Unsurprisingly then, Mormons seem to hold divergent views on this topic. But it is unclear which are the prevailing attitudes today because Mormons are typically tight-lipped when it comes to sexual matters.
“Theoconservativism” – Extremism under the Guise of Religion?
Being a latitudarian, I hold the separation of church and state as part of my sacrosanct liberality.
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