Recently I’ve been in contact with a girl by means of the internet. We haven’t met but plan to soon. I like her a lot. …
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 …
The Mormon Therapist on the Color Gray
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 …
A Non-Historical View of the Book of Mormon
Perhaps the time has come in the church to recognize that some members want to openly espouse a non historical view of the Book of …
Reform Mormonism a Poll
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 …
Increased Civility in Our Conversations
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 …
Radical Retention
Our guest poster, Jason M. Brown is a life-long ‘Niblian’ Mormon who grew up in Southern California. He served an LDS mission from 2001-2003 in …
Charity: Self-Analysis Tool: Do I Vaunt Myself; Am I Puffed Up?
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. …
Prophets, Seers and Bureaucrats
I listened recently to a Mormon Expression podcast with John Dehlin, in which he comments upon the difficult position the Church leaders face. He observes that their are …
Wired World Views: Preserving the Other’s Truth
In a February 2, 2008, cover story in New Scientist, Jim Giles asked whether political leanings were genetic:
“Across the land, liberals and conservatives are slugging it out, trying to convince each other that their way of thinking is right. They may be wasting their breath.”
Church Growth and the Tendency toward Liberalism
Some time ago, as a guest I wrote a post entitled ‘Academic freedom in the Church‘ which tried to explore some of liberalizing tendencies seen …
‘Christmas’ or ‘Winter Festival’: I’m not sure I care!
This must be the the third year that I have heard people bemoan government plans to change the name of Christmas to ‘Winter Festival’ or some …
Secular Learning and ‘Correlation’
In a 1926 Improvement Era the M.I.A. reading course included four books: ‘The Book of Mormon, 50c; by mail, 60c. Prophecies of Joseph Smith and …
Egon Friedell and the Christian ‘Bad Conscience’
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 …
Common Scriptures in Review: Gender & the Sermon on the Mount
I absolutely LOVE the Sermon on the Mount. It is my second favorite passage in all our recorded scripture – right behind the Intercessory Prayer. …
The Fruits of Guru Nanak
I’m not even sure how I got it, surprisingly, but in the short time I lived in Idaho, I received an interesting gem. It’s a …
Alexander Doniphan and the Limits of Dissent
The Story of Alexander Doniphan is well-known and probably does not need to be recounted here (For more information see Mormon Heretics Post – A …
Obama and Elvis are cousins
President Barack Obama met with President Monson on Monday in the Oval Office, thanking President Monson for a thorough history of the first family.
Who is a Cultural Mormon?
First, Happy Independence Day (yay)! …so I was digging through classic Mormon Matters and found Clay’s discussion asking: how much does church activity has to …
Adam and Eve: the First TBM & NOM
There have been several attempts over the years to categorize Mormon “belief-styles”: Orthodox Mormon versus Liberal Mormon, Iron Rod Mormon versus Liahona Mormon, and so …
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 …
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Supreme Court Decision Poll
The US Supreme Court just announced it will not hear arguments regarding the US military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. [poll id=”10″]
Can Love Be A Bad Thing?
The following must not be interpreted as petition to the Church. It’s simply a summary of some thoughts I have had that I would like …
Please Respect the Rules of Common Decency
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 …
The Problem with Tolerance
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 …
LDS worship skills
Today’s post is by The Chorister. I just read a book called In the land of invisible women: A female doctor’s journey in the Saudi …
An Explanation of My Reduction in Participation
[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
OK Paul technically isn’t exactly an international DJ, not unless you consider that you can listen to his interviews on line.
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, …
Who Should Go to Church, Anyway?
So over at T&S they’ve been having this discussion about the recent media report about the majority of America’s drifiting faith issues. And I know, …
More Christ At Church
The mission of the church is to bring people to Christ (it is not the tri-fold mission of proclaim the gospel, perfect the saints and …
Are we going to be Eunuchs after this life?
My home teacher (who is very cool) came by yesterday to drop off some starter cables for my car and as one does in that …
LDS Worship – Part III
David Stout is a Disciples of Christ minister. This is the third and final installment of his insightful commentary on LDS Sacrament Meeting Worship. To …
Faith vs. Doubt
“Faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other.”
Families Forver Naked and Not Ashamed
Mormon Matters Motto is Exploring Mormon culture in a balanced way- so bare with me on this one (excuse the pun).
The Untold Story of Black Mormons by Guest
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 …
Help Wanted: Predicting the Next Apostle
This Thursday or Friday, someone at the Church Office building will get a phone call and make the long walk to President Monson’s office. By …
The Problem with Whistleblowers
A whistleblower is someone internal to an organization who alleges misconduct. So, what if the organization is the church? Does the church handle whistleblowers effectively …
Coming out of the closet
A while back I was reading an article by Seth Payne (and I blogged about it on my personal blog from a slightly different perspective)…and …
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 …
Strange Bedfellows
One aspect of the church that makes me nervous at times is the alliances we form when our interests coincide with other groups, whether this …
When Evil-Speaking Creeps Unawares Among Us
Last week, there was some heated debate here about More Open Mormon History. I don’t want to open that exact same discussion all over again, …
Does Tom Hanks Hate Mormons?
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 …
Mormon Art – the Good, the Bad and the Ugly
From the misguided and ill-conceived to the hurl-worthy, why is there so much bad Mormon Art? Do Mormons have worse artistic taste than non-Mormons? Or just …
Would This Gay Marriage Compromise Work?
David Blankenhorn and Jonathan Rauch co-wrote an article recently in the New York Times called, “A Reconciliation on Gay Marriage”. I have linked the full …
Filtered Visions by guest Reuben Collins
I’ve been thinking about Levi Peterson’s The Backslider lately (SPOILERS AHEAD).
Go to Church or Die!
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 …
Shipbuilding: Tasks or Vision?
Spending a week in the Pacific Northwest on vacation, surrounded by boats and the vastness of the sea, when I read this quote from Antoine …
Creeds of the Creedless
The restoration was essentially based on a rejection of the creeds of Christendom which were declared “an abomination” and “those professors were all corrupt; that: …
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.* …
The Symbolic Image of Christ
Much has been said in church magazines and the Bloggernacle about the image of Joseph Smith. Do we know what Joseph Smith really looked like? …
Horus Bible Parallels
Recently I saw Religulous here and he touched on Horus here and a few of the parallels between the story of Horus and Jesus. Many …
The Problem with Authority
Mormons are sometimes criticized for their unquestioning obedience to authority. Statements like “When the prophet has spoken, the thinking is done,” and the Primary song …
Nipples, Sexism and Racism
There was an interesting article in Time recently about Facebook’s censorship of pics with nips, specifically eliminating pictures of breastfeeding moms (and, in their defense, a few …
Can you be a Unitarian and a Mormon at the Same Time?
We should gather all the good and true principles in the world and treasure them up, or we shall not come out true Mormons. Joseph …
Temperance Movement and The Word of Wisdom
For almost two centuries the Word of Wisdom is solid proven evidence to many members that the Church is true.
Who’s Winning the War on Christmas?
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
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 …
Twilight and “The Great Mormon Novel”
Many consider The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene to be the quintessential Great Catholic Novel: a book written about faith and doubt with …
“Mormon Fundamentalists” on Law & Order
Did anyone watch Law & Order last night on NBC? If you didn’t, you missed an interesting parody based on the events that transpired in Texas with …
Persecution Complex
Today’s guest post is from The Captain. The urban dictionary defines the term persecution complex as follows: One of the top fifteen factors that can …
What is a Testimony?
Ironically, some of you with “strong testimonies” may think that those struggling with their testimony make only a small percentage of us here today. The …
The Church as a Tool
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 …
Homosexuality, Politics, and Looking to November 5th
On the eve of another election in the United States of America, many historic events are looming, both encouraging and daunting; Whatever happens, we will …
5 Cool Things About the Community of Christ
This post is another installment in my “5 Cool Things” series. Today I’m giving a list, again in no particular order, of some things I …
The Envelope and the Message
Are you ever nervous about turning your friends over to the missionaries? Do you fear you may be subjecting them to a high-pressure time-share sales presentation?
Are Sacrament Meeting Talks Rehashes of General Conference Talks Where You Live?
In my ward in a very LDS-heavy area of Arizona, I’ve been noticing a pattern in the sacrament meeting talks. I’m not sure how far …
Witch-Hunting
Halloween is just around the corner! Have you ever been on a witch hunt? Or have you been singled out by a witch hunter? Here …
5 Cool Expressions of Spirituality Which Might Seem Weird To Mormons
I’m starting a series which I’m calling “5 Cool Things”. It will basically be a list of 5 things, not in any order, that follow …
What is the Point of Religion?
I read an interesting blog site that posed this very question from a Hindu perspective. It was thoughtfully worded, so I thought I would include …
What’s Most Important to You?
We all attend church for various reasons, and in reality, no church can be all things to all people. Plus, what you get out of …
Superman vs. Spiderman
What do Superman and Spiderman have to do with Mormon history? Nothing at all. But maybe something about the two characters relates to the way …
Churches are Made for the Ninety and Nine… What About the One?
Believers and non-believers. The faithful and the doubters. Religious conservatives and religious liberals. TBMs and NOMs. These are ways we describe the differences in our …
An Act of Violence
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God[…] and another book was opened, which is the book of life[…] And whosoever was …
The Other Half of the Circle
I am an over-analyzer. As a musician I listen to music in a different way than a lot of folks. I pick apart each instrument …
Unity Within the Cafeteria
There is regular discussion among Mormon bloggers about the term “cafeteria Mormons” – those who pick and choose what they will and will not accept …
Segregated Sundays
Today’s post is by Rachel Maw. I was scanning through the news stories over at cnn.com when I came across this article, “Why many Americans …
News Matters– A Public Display of Religion
Welcome back to News Matters– a news feature which presents an LDS look at current events with an opportunity for our readers to interact from …
Becoming a Moderate Mormon
We’ve established that there are conservative Mormons (obviously) and there are liberal or “new order” Mormons. Taking the politico-religious rhetoric to its next logical conclusion, …
Wearing Pastel Pantsuits
It was back in the 1980’s, and she wore a pastel pantsuit to Church. It wasn’t just any pastel pantsuit, either. This was a sophisticated lady; …