Charity - Mormon Matters

Sorrowing for Korihor

FireTag September 12, 2010abuse, Charity, christianity, Devil, faith, fear, grace, Holy Ghost, love, prayer, spirituality, violence 14 Comments

Mormon Heretic’s post on forgiveness from a few weeks ago touched me deeply, but I needed time to get my thoughts together about it before …

The Mormon Therapist on the Color Gray

John Dehlin June 13, 2010book of mormon, Charity, christ, christianity, church, Discrimination, diversity, doctrine, grace, Jesus, LDS, Mormon, mormon, Mormons 101 Comments

Natasha Helfer Parker is a Licensed Clinical Marriage and Family Therapist and a member of the Church with 13 years of experience working with LDS …

Reform Mormonism a Poll

James May 4, 2010Charity, church, diversity, doctrine, doubt, faith, families, feminism, LDS, liberal, Mormon, mormon, religion, testimony, theology, thought, Utah 59 Comments

I have recently come across a group called Reform Mormonisim. I thought their views were interesting and as I mentally answered some of their questions …

What the Golden Rule Does NOT Say: or, “Jesus wouldn’t recognize that rationalization.”

Ray April 28, 2010Bible, Bloggernacle, Charity, christ, gay, homosexuality, inter-faith, Jesus, LDS, love, meekness, mercy, Peace, religion, resolutions, Sermon on the Mount 24 Comments

One of my monthly New Year’s Resolutions last year was taken from Matthew 7:9-12, a slight change in my original plan. (See here.) These verses state: …

What if the “Sunday School Answers” were:

Bored in Vernal April 22, 2010Charity, christianity, Mormon, religion, social justice 11 Comments

First, do no harm Be kind Help others I see nothing but good coming from praying, reading the scriptures, and keeping the commandments. But it …

Increased Civility in Our Conversations

Ray April 2, 2010Bloggernacle, Charity, christ, christianity, cross, diversity, Happiness, Jesus, LDS, love, meekness, Mormon, Peace, Sermon on the Mount 27 Comments

On this Good Friday, I want to make a request based on a wonderful post I read over at By Common Consent by one of …

Charity: Self-Analysis Tool: Do I Vaunt Myself; Am I Puffed Up?

Ray March 20, 2010Bloggernacle, Charity, Culture, diversity, doctrine, love, meekness, mercy, Peace, resolutions, spirituality 20 Comments

My New Year’s Resolution this year is taken from I Corinthians 13:4-7. In a nutshell, it is to become a little more charitable this year. …

Home Teaching the Mentally Ill

Mormon Heretic February 21, 2010abuse, Charity, christ, depression, Mormon 28 Comments

I posted a longer version of this on my blog. Last month I had the most unusual experience I have ever had in regards to …

A Tribute to Charity

Ray February 13, 2010Charity, children, christ, faith, families, Happiness, LDS, marriage, Mormon, resolutions, service 11 Comments

My father had a stroke on Wednesday. The artery in his neck is 95% blocked, and he will have surgery to try to correct that …

Interfaith Marriages by guest Madam Curie

guest January 30, 2010accountability, apostasy, apostles, Bloggernacle, Charity, children, christianity, Culture, curiosity, doctrine, doubt, faith, Happiness, inter-faith, LDS, love, marriage, Mormon, mormon, questioning, salvation, women 30 Comments

A recent post by Cr@ig on Main Street Plaza caused me to reflect on the strength of interfaith marriages. I had hoped to generate a …

The Fourth Purpose: Haiti, and Who is My Brother?

FireTag January 26, 2010Charity, christ, community of christ, media, missions, Mormon, pacifism, Peace, RLDS, theology, thought 19 Comments

An article from the Salt Lake Tribune listed in the Mormon Matters sidebar sometime ago noted the official elevation of “care of the poor and …

Think for yourself or not – that is the question .Cognitive Dissonance 1

James January 9, 2010accountability, apostasy, apostles, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, Charity, Culture, curiosity, doctrine, doubt, faith, General Authorities, history, LDS, Leaders, Logic, Mormon, Mormons, obedience, ordinances, questioning, revelation, Scriptural translation, tesimony, thought 70 Comments

Is a “believing heart” really a positive attribute?

James December 27, 2009accountability, apologetics, apostasy, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, Charity, christianity, curiosity, Mormon, new order mormon 98 Comments

I would like to introduce Madam Curie which many of you know her by on her replies at Mormon Matters she also has her own …

Temple Wedding Petition

James December 12, 2009accountability, apologetics, apostles, Bible, book of mormon, Charity, children, Culture, curiosity, doctrine, doubt, faith, families, General Authorities, General Conference, Happiness, historicity, Jesus, joseph, LDS, Leaders, liberal, marriage, missionary, Mormon, Mormons, plan of salvation, testimony 161 Comments

A temple wedding petition to is being circulated to promote love and happiness in the family by changing the church’s stance on civil marriages preceding temple …

Brother Brigham Brother Young

James December 6, 2009abuse, adultery, Anti-Mormon, apostasy, apostles, baptism, blacks, burdens, Charity, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, death, depression, Discrimination, doubt, eternity, excommunication, faith, historicity, LDS, Leaders, marriage, media, Mormon, Mormons, obedience, ordinances, polygamy, Priesthood, prophets, race, repentance, salvation, tesimony, thought, Utah, women 6 Comments

Recently I drove up Little Cottonwood Canyon with my brother and nephew. This is the canyon in which many of your ancestors pulled out the …

Egon Friedell and the Christian ‘Bad Conscience’

Aaron R. aka Rico October 18, 2009apostasy, books, Charity, christ, Culture, Discrimination, diversity, meekness, meetings, Mormon, religion 28 Comments

This photograph was taken by Sebastiao Salgado at a gold mine in Brazil. I first saw it in a room at the University I attend. As …

Approaching Isaiah 58: Fasting as a Spiritual Practice

Aaron R. aka Rico October 12, 2009Charity, christ, doctrine, Jesus, mercy, Mormon, spiritual progression, spirituality 13 Comments

Sometime ago Jana Reiss wrote a column for Sunstone entitled ‘Mormonism as Praxis’[1] in which the writers attempted to explore what Mormonism means in terms …

A Personal Interpretation of Elder Hafen’s Remarks

jmb275 September 25, 2009apologetics, apostasy, Charity, christ, Culture, gay, General Authorities, homosexuality, LDS, love, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, orthodox, questioning, religion, resignation, sexuality, spirituality 225 Comments

At the Evergreen conference held September 18-19, 2009, Elder Bruce Hafen gave a talk regarding homosexuality. The talk was reprinted on the official LDS Church …

Wherein I stop being liberal and start standing up for what I believe

AdamF September 14, 2009Charity, children, christ, primary 60 Comments

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 …

How Our Families Can Help Families Around the World Escape Poverty

Andrew September 13, 2009accountability, Charity, children, christianity, families, international, Mormon 17 Comments

A year ago my wife and I were struggling to find ways to teach our children the importance of helping those in need, and lamented …

The Institutionally Unforgivable?

Aaron R. aka Rico July 29, 2009accountability, adultery, baptism, Charity, christ, christianity, church, Discrimination, excommunication, Leaders, Mormon, Mormons, repentance, righteousness, testimony 31 Comments

The message of the Gospel of Christ could be encapsulated in a few adjectives, such as: love (Charity), repentance, forgiveness and service. But how should …

Obama and Elvis are cousins

James July 23, 2009blacks, Bloggernacle, Charity, church, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, doctrine, faith, Folklore, inter-faith, LDS, liberal, Mormon, President Monson, race, racism 17 Comments

President Barack Obama met with President Monson on Monday in the Oval Office, thanking President Monson for a thorough history of the first family.

WHAT THE WORLD THINKS OF GOD

James June 23, 2009apostasy, Bloggernacle, catholicism, Charity, christ, church, curiosity, death, depression, Devil, doubt, faith, fear, God, Happiness, inter-faith, international, jehovahs witnesses, Jesus, Mormon, religion 15 Comments

The ICM poll of 10,000 people in the USA, UK, Israel, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Mexico and Lebanon was carried out for the …

Learning and Understanding Vs. Winning Arguments

AdamF June 17, 2009accountability, Anti-Mormon, apologetics, Charity, christianity, Culture, diversity, evangelicals, faith, fear, grace, inter-faith, Mormon, Peace, politics, questioning, religion 47 Comments

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 …

Taking the Fun Out of Funerals

Hawkgrrrl June 2, 2009Asides, Charity, church, Culture, curiosity, death, doubt, families, General Authorities, LDS, Leaders, love, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, questioning, religion, reverence, thought 77 Comments

What do you want your funeral to be like? Do you care or do you figure you’ll be dead anyway? How do you feel about …

Please Respect the Rules of Common Decency

Ray May 25, 2009abuse, accountability, Anti-Mormon, Beatitudes, Charity, diversity, inter-faith, love, meekness, mercy, Mormon, Peace, questioning, religion 8 Comments

This is an administrative post that is irrelevant to most of you. For that, I apologize. However, we have had a surge recently in comments …

Our Soldiers Need FAR MORE Than Tribute

guest May 24, 2009Charity, love, service, war 3 Comments

This post is from S.Faux: On this upcoming Memorial Day it will be easy to post flags outside our homes and then just enjoy the …

Good Man Gone

Ray May 21, 2009accountability, Beatitudes, burdens, Charity, death, eternity, faith, families, Happiness, love, marriage, Peace, plan of salvation, questioning, righteousness, salvation, Sermon on the Mount, spirituality, temple, testimony 15 Comments

A week ago, I attended the viewing and funeral of a man in our stake who died of an unexpected heart attack. He was in …

The Problem with Tolerance

Hawkgrrrl May 19, 2009apologetics, Asides, catholicism, Charity, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, diversity, doubt, General Authorities, inter-faith, LDS, Leaders, liberal, media manipulation, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, obedience, orthodox, prophets, questioning, racism, religion, theology, thought 133 Comments

The church has a history of high level leaders making sweeping pronouncements that are later deemed incorrect, speculative, or unauthorized, yet in each case, church …

An Explanation of My Reduction in Participation

Ray May 14, 2009Bloggernacle, Charity, church, Culture, diversity, faith, LDS, meekness, Mormons, orthodox, questioning, religion, surviving 23 Comments

[Please pardon the personal nature of this post, but I want to take the opportunity to write this personally.] For the past two years (almost), …

Interfaith International British DJ

James May 13, 2009apologetics, Bible, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, books, burdens, catholicism, Charity, children, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, death, Discrimination, diversity, evangelicals, faith, families, fear, Folklore, general, God, Happiness, history, Humor, inter-faith, international, introductions, Jesus, LDS, Leaders, liberal, Logic, love, marriage, media, missionary, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, news, orthodox, parables, Peace, plan of salvation, podcast, polygamy, prayer, questioning, resolutions, scripture, Sermon on the Mount, service, spiritual progression, spirituality, television, theology, thought, women 10 Comments

OK Paul technically isn’t exactly an international DJ, not unless you consider that you can listen to his interviews on line.

Worship or Whine?

Jeff Spector May 12, 2009accountability, Charity, children, christ, church, faith, families, General Authorities, Happiness, LDS, meetings, Mormon, orthodox, Priesthood, sacrament meeting, testimony 85 Comments

This post was inspired by David Stout’s series of posts on LDS Worship, Part II and Part III as well as HawkGrrrl’s post entitled “More …

Mormon Masks

Hawkgrrrl May 11, 2009apostasy, Asides, Beatitudes, Bible, Charity, children, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, doubt, families, fear, Happiness, inter-faith, Jesus, LDS, Leaders, love, marriage, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, orthodox, parables, Peace, questioning, religion, testimony 17 Comments

Often people have a hard time with intimacy (intimacy = “into me see”) because they feel vulnerable. They would rather deal with ideas than people, …

Joseph Smith and Wealth Redistribution

guest April 23, 2009book of mormon, burdens, Charity, christianity, church, Culture, Government, history, LDS, meekness, Mormons, politics, prophets, religion, righteousness, scripture, spirituality 31 Comments

This article by a guest blogger originally appeared at Gospel Doctrine Underground. We want to thank the author for allowing us to re-post it here. …

Faith vs. Doubt

Hawkgrrrl April 9, 2009apostasy, Asides, burdens, Charity, christ, christianity, church, conference, Culture, curiosity, depression, Discrimination, diversity, doubt, education, faith, fear, General Authorities, General Conference, inter-faith, joseph, LDS, Leaders, liberal, Logic, love, mercy, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, orthodox, President Monson, prophets, questioning, religion, restoration, scripture, spirituality, testimony, theology, thought 48 Comments

“Faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other.”

The Untold Story of Black Mormons by Guest

guest April 2, 2009Anti-Mormon, apologetics, baptism, Bible, blacks, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, books, burdens, BYU, Charity, christianity, church, cinema, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, doubt, education, evangelicals, faith, families, fear, Folklore, General Authorities, history, joseph, LDS, liberal, Logic, Mormon, obedience, prayer, Priesthood, prophets, questioning, race, racism, religion, resolutions, restoration, righteousness, scripture, tesimony, theology 33 Comments

When I served a mission in eastern Canada in the early 90s, there were many things I was grateful for (warm boots, wool suits, fairly …

Does Tom Hanks Hate Mormons?

Hawkgrrrl March 11, 2009Anti-Mormon, Asides, Charity, christianity, church, cinema, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, families, gay, homosexuality, inter-faith, LDS, liberal, love, marriage, media manipulation, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, movies, religion, thought 95 Comments

Tom Hanks is a beloved actor to many Mormons for his family-friendly roles and everyman quality. Yet, his recent negative remarks (and hasty retraction) calling …

Big Love -Big News

James March 10, 2009abuse, adultery, Anti-Mormon, apologetics, apostasy, baptism, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, burdens, Charity, children, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, doubt, education, faith, families, fear, FLDS, general, God, Happiness, history, inter-faith, Jesus, joseph, marriage, media, meetings, Mormon, Mormons, movies, news, obedience, ordinances, orthodox, polygamy, Priesthood, prophets, religion, resignation, RLDS, salvation, scripture, spirituality, television, temple, testimony, theology, thought, Utah, women 33 Comments

Faith and Logic: Finding and Navigating an Individual Balance

guest March 3, 2009Charity, christianity, church, Culture, faith, history, inter-faith, Logic, meekness, Mormon, religion, restoration, testimony 15 Comments

NOTE: This is a guest post by David Stout, Disciples of Christ minister. I write from the perspective of a Disciples of Christ minister whose …

Go to Church or Die!

Hawkgrrrl March 2, 2009apostasy, Asides, Charity, church, Culture, curiosity, death, diversity, doubt, faith, families, fear, Happiness, Humor, inter-faith, LDS, meetings, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, prayer, Priesthood, questioning, religion, spirituality, testimony, theology, thought, Word of Wisdom 11 Comments

A recent article in Time discusses several studies about the correlation between faith and health. Does church attendance contribute to a healthier, longer life? Is …

Why aren’t Mormons Green?

James February 23, 2009apologetics, Bible, Bloggernacle, book of mormon, BYU, Charity, children, christ, christianity, church, conference, Culture, curiosity, doubt, education, faith, General Authorities, General Conference, geography, God, Government, Happiness, international, LDS, Leaders, liberal, Logic, media, Money, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, obedience, politics, prophets, questioning, religion, resolutions, reverence, righteousness, sacrament, salvation, service, surviving, testimony, thought, Utah 56 Comments

Does Religion Devalue Human Life?

Hawkgrrrl December 30, 2008Charity, christianity, church, curiosity, Happiness, inter-faith, Mormon, questioning, religion 31 Comments

Answer: Yes. Any questions?

What is Good Church Leadership?

Hawkgrrrl December 28, 2008Charity, christianity, church, Culture, faith, General Authorities, history, joseph, LDS, Leaders, love, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, prophets, questioning, religion, spiritual progression 24 Comments

What is good leadership? How did Joseph Smith envision church leadership? How does that differ from the church today and how is it the same? …

Who’s Winning the War on Christmas?

Hawkgrrrl December 23, 2008Asides, Charity, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, faith, families, Humor, inter-faith, Jesus, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, questioning, religion, thought, war 21 Comments

Peter Brimelow, a British journalist, is credited with coining the term “War on Christmas” in 1999 to describe the politically correct movement in English-speaking countries to …

Unity, Diversity and Conformity

Hawkgrrrl December 21, 2008apostasy, Asides, burdens, Charity, Culture, curiosity, Discrimination, diversity, doubt, education, faith, families, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, new order mormon, orthodox, questioning, service, temple, theology, thought 7 Comments

How do we create and maintain unity at church while valuing diversity and avoiding conformity? Do we have to embrace the diversity of those who …

The Unsung Hero of the Nativity

Hawkgrrrl December 16, 2008Asides, Charity, children, christ, christianity, church, curiosity, doubt, faith, feminism, Happiness, history, Humor, Jesus, joseph, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, obedience, parables, questioning, religion, thought, women 13 Comments

As I was setting up our nativity scene this year, I noticed the wisdom and cultural/racial diversity of the Magi, the docile farm animals (not …

Virtual RS/PH #21: The Second Coming & The Millenium

Hawkgrrrl November 17, 2008Asides, Charity, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, doubt, eternity, faith, fear, God, Jesus, joseph, LDS, Leaders, love, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, questioning, religion, temple, theology, thought, war 30 Comments

To the teachers out there, sorry if this one is coming a day late and a dollar short. Our ward is a month behind on …

Virtual RS/PH #20 – A Heart Full of Love & Faith: The Prophet’s Letters to His Family

Hawkgrrrl November 9, 2008burdens, Charity, children, faith, families, history, Humor, joseph, LDS, love, marriage, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, polygamy, Priesthood, prophets, questioning, religion, smith, women 12 Comments

This lesson discusses the written correspondence Joseph sent to Emma during his frequent absences. IMO, this is a tough lesson for many reasons, so read …

The Church as a Tool

guest November 7, 2008Anti-Mormon, apologetics, apostasy, Asides, Charity, christ, christianity, church, Culture, curiosity, depression, diversity, doubt, education, faith, fear, God, Happiness, history, LDS, mormon, Mormons, new order mormon, obedience, orthodox, parables, Peace, prayer, Priesthood, prophets, questioning, religion, testimony, theology, thought 21 Comments

What is the church to you? A family you must learn to love? A path you must follow? A checklist of items you must do …

Russell October 9, 2008Anti-Mormon, apologetics, apostasy, catholicism, Charity, christianity, church, curiosity, faith, God, grace, inter-faith, joseph, LDS, missionary, missions, Mormon, mormon, Mormons, questioning, restoration, theology 16 Comments

I had an interesting conversation with a woman today. Missionaries would call it a bash. I called it posing and answering meaningful questions. It prompted her …