Mormon Heretic’s blog post this week, Comparing Correlation with the Supreme Court, inspired me to find out, or try to find, exactly what the manuals …
Comparing Correlation with the Supreme Court
As I mentioned before, I am enjoying Greg Prince’s biography of David O McKay. Under the McKay Administration, correlation of LDS church materials made a …
the Authority of Paul
For some reason, I was thinking about the structure of the New Testament Church after the ascension of the Savior. What is clear is that …
If They Tarry…
D&C 137 records a vision of Joseph Smith “in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, January 21, 1836. HC 2: 380–381. The occasion was the administration …
Free Will vs. Determinism…FIGHT!
One of the most basic and fundamental premises of Mormonism is the idea of free will. While we take this for granted in Mormonism, in …
Eastern Orthodoxy: Theosis/Deification
Covenant Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian Seminary. They have online courses that you can listen to for free! If you pay tuition, you can get …
Wandering Mormons as Nephites
More than two years ago, the Holy Spirit began insisting that I re-read the Book of Mormon. Of course, I didn’t immediately recognize the impulse …
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 …
The Doctrine of Grace: After all we can Do?
The doctrine of grace is one of those things not very well understood within Christianity. While most traditional Christian denominations accept the doctrine of “Salvation …
Does God Squash ETs: How Human is Human?
Distinctly Mormon doctrines relating the physical appearance of humanity to God’s own “preferred” form grew gradually in early Restoration history rather than springing forth in …
Church history and our quest for the Great Mormon Novel
About two years ago, Carter Hall wrote an article on this very site comparing and contrasting the types of heroes that Superman and Spiderman represent, …
The Death of McConkie’s Mormon Doctrine
Last night on KUTV in Utah, an announcement was made which signals the end of an era. It was reported that Bruce R. McConkie’s Mormon …
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 …
Pharisaical Observation
I wrote a post some time ago on whether they Pharisees were given a bad rap in the New Testament. It can be found here. …
Church Vernacular and the Magical Worldview
It is Sunday, and Mike and his new bride, Valerie, are up visiting Mike’s family for the weekend. Mike is a physics major and has …
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 …
Giving Back His Name
“Have they not read the scriptures, which say ye must take upon you the name of Christ, which is my name? For by this name …
Mormon Myths as Transferable Charisma
Richard Bushman has recently given a presentation on ‘Joseph Smith and the Routinization of Charisma’. One of Bushman’s arguments seems to be that Charisma was …
Brothers: A Review
What if — as well as a description of birth order and an indicator of hierarchy — the appellation “firstborn” was also a title? Could …
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. …
The Relational Definition of Sin
One of my favorite experiences at the BYU Studies Symposium was listening to a set of two talks on the subject of sin. That might …
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 …
Jacob’s Ladder: More on Faith Vs. Works
OT SS Lesson #10 Though it’s only an “additional teaching idea” in Lesson 12, Jacob’s ladder has captured my imagination due to some conversations I’ve …
Bad, Worse and Worst
I would like to use Genesis 12 (and an interesting post by Aaron B from BCC) to examine the inverse of Elder Oak’s famous talk …
Putting an Edge on Abraham
OT SS Lesson #9 This story is so very, very familiar to us that I think it’s important to look at it with a fresh …
Time to Study the Old Testament Again Part 6 – Symbols, Signs, Types and Shadows, and Tokens
“Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses …
The Sacred Made Real: Mormonism, Iconography and the Passion of Christ
A few weeks ago I attended an exhibition entitled ‘The Sacred made Real’ at the National Gallery in London. The collection was focussed on Spanish …
Joseph Smith Didn’t Believe in Watchers
OT SS Lesson #6 Hidden in our scripture reading for this week is a strange little passage which many modern Biblical scholars say was originally …
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 …
Interfaith Marriages by guest Madam Curie
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 …
Squaring the Circle, balance and ideals
A discussion of Squaring the Circle, a geometric puzzle.
CoC to tackle Major Issues at April Conference: Gay Marriage & Baptism
This is the second guest Post from FireTag, a member of the Community of Christ (formerly known as RLDS). As he mentioned in his previous …
The Creation Accounts — Unharmonized
OT SS Lesson #3 Several years ago I did a study of Joseph Smith’s different accounts of the First Vision. It was fascinating to see …
Chosen or Posin’ ? Abraham, Buffy, and Other Choice Spirits
OT SS Lesson #2 This was an interesting lesson to read after last year’s brou-ha-ha over an alleged “generals in the war in heaven” quote. …
Canonizing Modern Revelation – A Tourist Guide
Over the past year or so, I’ve become blogging buddies with FireTag, a member of the Community of Christ. He has his own blog at …
Richard Dawkins, God and Santa Claus: Belief as a Form of Abuse
Between Christmas and New Year I had the opportunity to meet with some friends and at one point during the evening we began discussing the …
The Word of Wisdom and the Temple: Personal, Political and Prophetic Dimensions
Obedience to the Word of Wisdom, it is commonly known, was not always a requirement for entering the Temple or advancement in the Priesthood. What …
In the Shadow of the Temple by Guest
A close friend of mine who wishes to remain anonymous recently saw in the shadow of the temple his story follows: In October, I was …
Gregory House and Emmanuel Levinas: Finding Meaning in Suffering: Part 2
A few weeks ago I wrote a post on suffering. Resulting from a thoughtful critique of that post, by Andrew S, and a recommendation (in …
‘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 …
Temple Wedding Petition
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 …
Like a Virgin
This post is a response to Aaron Shafovaloff over at Mormon Coffee. If you go to enjoy the lights on Temple Square, you are likely …
Really Elder McConkie? You think Education is Worship!
From an outsiders perspective, Mormon worship services may be perceived as lacking actual worship. We spend two and a half of our three hours in classes …
The Single Mormon Girl and the Priesthood
Everybody blogs, right? Why not me? Looking for my niche, my angle, and the one thing that seemed to make me stand out in my …
Time to Study The Old Testament…Again – Part 2, The Books
In this part 2 of the Studying the Old Testament series, we will discuss the books of the Old Testament, how they were organized, different …
To Those Struggling In Their Faith
There are many within Mormonism who struggle daily with their faith. They have been exposed to historical information they were not aware of, they were …
Time to Study the Old Testament……..Again – Part 1 – Introduction
As part of the four-year LDS Sunday School study cycle, it is time to open up that voluminous book known as the Old Testament. Many …
Vagueness as a Gospel Principle
“For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a …
Approaching Isaiah 58: Fasting as a Spiritual Practice
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 …
LDS Grass-Roots Interpretations of the Eve Archetype
Since Eve is one of the most powerful archetypes for women, it’s not surprising that this story is at the root of many discussions of …
Have you read the Sealed Portion of the Book of Mormon Yet?
Christopher Nemelka has published the sealed portion of the Book or Mormon and has also translated the 116 pages of missing manuscript. His website can …
The Grand Council in Heaven: Re-interpreting an Archetype
As a fan of Mormon Studies I value the opportunity to discuss and, sometimes, disagree. In this regard, I have been particularly inspired by the …
Scripture Inerrancy, Literalism, and Pres Veazey
There are those (especially among Evangelicals) who believe that the Bible is inerrant and literal. For example a scriptural literalist will claim that Noah’s flood …
The New CES Book of Mormon Institute Manual: Part 2
The Church have just published (although I wrote this from a draft that I had access to before it was published) the new CES Book …
What if the Brethren decided to allow gay marriage? by Justin Perry
What if the Brethren decided to allow gay marriage? They’d have to do a lot of back-peddling to explain why they were suddenly in favor …
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. …
Highway 61 Re-revisited: Fear and Trembling before Faith
Oh God said to Abraham, “Kill me a son” Abe says, “Man, you must be puttin’ me on” God say, “No.” Abe say, “What?” God …
Doing Right for the Wrong Reason
Should we still do good things, even if our motives are not perfect and pure?
Apostate = someone who fails to honor his own conscience
The third ward verses the seventh ward. Us verses them. Insiders verses outsiders. My buddies and I were third warders. We were full of ourselves. …
How do we earn our morals?
A while back on my blog, Seth R (usually of 9 Moons fame) posted a lengthy and detailed comment about the deficiencies of liberal religion …
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.
There is only one issue in the Bloggernacle and all other things are only appendages to it.
“The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again …
Church Doctrine is Like the Bloggernacle
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 …