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 …
Coke, Rum Cake, and President McKay
I just started reading Greg Prince’s book, David O McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism. It’s been a great read so far. Prince tells …
Elder Brown Defines Political Extremism
There are a large majority of Mormons (especially here in Utah) that think the Church is wedded to the Republican Party. A very interesting letter …
The Fallibility of Infallibility
The Prophet Joseph Smith said “ … a prophet was a prophet only when he was acting as such.” (History of the Church, Volume 5:265). …
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 …
Nepotism in the Church – 2010 Update
To follow on with my post for the past two years, here is this year’s Nepotism in the Church installment. To find the original post, …
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 …
Bombshell at the BYU Studies Symposium
A small crowd at the BYU Studies Symposium yesterday was on hand to receive Richard Holzapfel’s self-proclaimed Mormon history “bombshell.” He presented the morning plenary …
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 …
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 …
For God’s Sake, Blog!
I wish I could claim credit for the title of the post, but it actually comes from this MSNBC article. Apparently the Pope is encouraging …
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 …
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 …
Have you ever received a Christmas card from the First Presidency?
This year I received a Christmas card from the First Presidency. I have heard that Church employees get one, but it has not been my …
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 …
Pres Monson Accepts Honor From “School of the Prophets”
I saw this interesting photo in the Deseret News today, and just had to share. In the paper edition of the Deseret News, President Monson …
How to Provide Critical Feedback to Church Leaders Church Without Getting Excommunicated
If you didn’t happen to read the February issue of Ensign Magazine in 1987, you missed some valuable instruction about how to provide critical feedback …
So you want to be an improver?
There are two types of people who try to improve organizations from the outside of hierarchies. Those who volunteer and those who are asked for …
Did Elder Holland Denounce or Carefully Avoid the “Inspired Fiction” Theory?
If someone can find something in the Book of Mormon, anything that they love or respond to or find dear, I applaud that and say …
Feminist Conference Matching Game–Updated with Answers
Do you know your Apostles’ wives? Bonus points if you can give first/maiden names in the comments. (Don’t cheat–only make a guess if you didn’t …
Great Expectations: What Are Your Hopes and Predictions for General Conference?
“It’s the MOST WONderful TIIIME of the YEARRRRRR.” The leaves are starting to change color. The evenings and mornings are a bit crisper. Even the …
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 …
A Personal Interpretation of Elder Hafen’s Remarks
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 …
Is The Church Sacrificing Principle for Profit With Hunting Preserves?
“To what degree should the principle of ‘respect for life” be extended to bird and animal creations? What do the scriptures, Joseph Smith, and other …
Understanding General Authorities, Part Three
So assume you were called as a general authority and said yes. What do you think you would do? What would be your concerns?
What’s good in a Bible Translation?
In the church, it seems to be a written rule (or perhaps it’s just one of those pesky unwritten orders of things) to use the …
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 …
Taking the Fun Out of Funerals
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 …
Best and Worst of Mormonism: Quotes!
A Zen Buddhist/Freemason friend of mine has put together some great posts of “Best and Worst Bible Verses.” I have been trying to convince him …
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 …
Worship or Whine?
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 …
April 2009 General Conference – Word Stats
Based on word count, what was the focus of April 2009 General Conference? Before you scroll down, see if you can guess the top 3 …
Temples Unbuilt
I happen to be cruising around the LDS Temple website the other day and I was looking at the Temples under construction. I was wondering …
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 …
Nepotism in the Church: 2009 Update
Last time, I did a lengthy post on Nepotism in the Church, which you can find here. This is an update for this year so …
Faith vs. Doubt
“Faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other.”
LDS Worship
David Stout, Disciples of Christ minister who wrote a very thought-provoking post for us a few weeks ago, has agreed to write a short series …
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 …
Why Mormon Doctrine Is NOT Mormon Doctrine
Many people both within the Church and outside the Church think that Bruce R. McConkie’s book, Mormon Doctrine, is the official declaration of LDS church …
Filtered Visions by guest Reuben Collins
I’ve been thinking about Levi Peterson’s The Backslider lately (SPOILERS AHEAD).
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 …
President Thomas S. Monson: First Year in Review
Today, February 3, 2009 is the 1-year anniversary of the calling of President Thomas S. Monson as the 16th President of the Church of Jesus …
There Are Too Many Books about the Church
As I sit at the computer in my office, my back is to the 400 or so books I have about the Church in my …
“Never Lead Us Astray.” And Dissonance.
“So powerful is the need for congruence that when people are forced to look at disconfirming evidence, they will find a way to criticize, distort, …
What is Good Church Leadership?
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? …
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.
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 …
Should we have listened to BH Roberts?
BH Roberts predicted that if church leaders did not address the historical problems of church origins and possible anachronisms in the Book of Mormon, these …
When Is Your Ox in the Mire?
You probably know the Primary song about Sunday observance by heart: Saturday is a special day It’s the day we get ready for Sunday We …
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 …
This Won’t Make It Past Correlation!
Hi everyone, Welcome to my new series where I provide you, the reader, with an excerpt from an LDS church manual, uncited, which I LIKE. …
The Book of Mormon: A 20th Century Text
There are many positions on which century the Book of Mormon originated in, but most seem to fall into two general camps: the book was …
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 …
Remember Dieter Uchtdorf?
Today’s post is by Wade Nelson. Remember Dieter Uchtdorf?
How Active Are You? How Orthodox Are You? A Self-Assessment
Take this assessment and find out: (Taken from D. Jeff Burton’s For Those Who Wonder : forthosewhowonder.com. Similar to a Correlation Department survey on Religion …
Understanding General Authorities
Most people who are aware of the LDS Church are aware that we have “general authorities” and that they share some characteristics, but in my …
Prophetic Smackdown: Moses vs. Joseph Smith
Today’s post is from an anonymous guest blogger. The critics of the church like to point the finger at Joseph Smith, citing polygamy, concealing polygamy, …
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 …
The Proper Focus of Leadership: Organizational or Individual?
This perhaps will be the only post I write that simply is a series of questions, but these questions have enormous implication for the Church …
For Pioneer Day, a Prophet of Peace
Prophet of Peace This is why I love President Monson! He has the common touch and appears to love people. If you watch the video …
Proof Texting for Fun and Prophet
Recent articles got me thinking about the practice of Prooftexting, which Wikipedia defines as follows: Prooftexting is the practice of using decontextualised quotations from a …
Evidences and Reconciliations (6/30/08)
And when the priests left their labor to impart the word of God unto the people, the people also left their labors to hear the …
Rock the Gerontocracy!
Larry King described the Mormon faith as a “gerontocracy” (Hello–Pot? Kettle here). Being led by 15 men with a median age of 76 is a …
6 Minutes 44 Seconds
This could be the most meaningful six minutes and 44 seconds that you spend today.
Mormon Miracles: Seeking for a Sign
How much does God intervene in our lives? More than we give credit to Him or less than some would like to believe? Why do some require evidence of God’s …
Nepotism in the Church
As I watched the press conference last week between the Sunday sessions of General Conference, I found out that the new 2nd Counselor of the …