We’ve explored some of the answers members have posted on the mormon.org site in the church’s new profiles campaign. So far, we’ve discussed member answers …
The Blog that Ate Religion
“The Blob” was one of those horror movies from the 1950’s that I, as a young boy, found right on the boundary of “too scary …
Mormon.org FAQ: Homosexuality
We’ve explored some of the answers members have posted on the mormon.org site in the church’s new profiles campaign. So far, we’ve discussed member answers …
Mormon.org FAQ: Prophets
We’ve explored some of the answers members have posted on the mormon.org site in the church’s new profiles campaign. So far, we’ve discussed member answers …
Mormon.org FAQ: Role of Husbands & Wives
We’ve explored some of the answers members have posted on the mormon.org site in the church’s new profiles campaign. So far, we’ve discussed member answers …
Mormon.org FAQ: Political Parties
We’ve explored a few of the mormon.org profiles’ answers to tough questions on polygamy and women & the priesthood. Today let’s take a look at …
Mormon.org FAQ: Women & Priesthood
Last week we looked at some of the cool profiles on mormon.org that are part of a new effort to make members real and accessible …
Mormon.org FAQ: Polygamy
The church has initiated a new online profile campaign on mormon.org in which those interested in the church can “meet” actual members who’ve posted pictures …
Why Do People Struggle? (With Poll!)
Through my time in the church, I’ve known many who have left the church, many others who have seemingly never had an issue, and a …
Pyramids-R-US
Last week I spent a supper hour (it took that long) reading an article called “America’s Ruling Class – And the Perils of Revolution” by …
Facebook and Marital Fidelity
A Salt Lake City news report in early 2009 shared some troubling statistics. One in 5 divorces in Great Britain cited Facebook in the contributing factors that …
Uplifting Non-LDS Music
I really like music. I like just about every kind of music. I like to choose it according to my mood to help me achieve …
Understanding the Atonement
The atonement is to Christianity what enlightenment is to Buddhism: the foundational concept. How do you feel about the atonement? I admit to some mixed …
Ward Cliques
Does your ward have cliques? Are cliques a good or bad thing?
Song Practice: Not Music to Our Ears
“We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all Song Practice Ladies, as soon as they get a …
Priesthood as a Puberty Rite
A unique aspect of Mormonism is that all males over age 12 can hold an office of the priesthood, and that they are expected to …
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 …
Faith, Knowledge, Belief and Stochastic Theory Part 3: Putting It All Together
In part one I introduced the problem I see with our current understanding of faith, introduced some basic statistics, and weakly drew a comparison to …
Mormonism: Nature Religion or Social Religion?
“God against Man. Man against God. Man against Nature. Nature against man. Nature against God. God against nature–very funny religion!” ~Dr. D. T. Suzuki. Is …
How Many Mormons Does It Take to Screw in a Lightbulb?
Today’s post is by Matt Workman. I waited backstage with my small troupe of comedians. One more act to go, then it was our turn …
Faith & Doubt
Today’s guest post is by Glenn. When I was at BYU, I got interested in the study of folklore – the way that traditional culture …
Equal Parenting: Feasible or Not?
There was an interesting article in NYT about the parenting equality in Sweden. Sweden’s practices are probably the most advanced in terms of creating parental equality, …
Mixed Belief Marriages
What should a church member do if their spouse is a non-believer? This is something that many couples encounter, either because one spouse ceases to …
Facebook Declarations
Today’s guest post is by Matthew Workman. I lived a few blocks from Venice Beach for many years, so I thought I’d seen quite a …
A Control Freak’s Lament
I’m a control freak. Yep, both professionally, by training, and naturally. I like to be in control of machines, robots, airplanes, my life, my spirituality, …
Eternal Progress vs. Eternal Increase: A Poll
One of the distinct LDS doctrines is that of eternal progression: the idea that we continue to grow and develop as individuals throughout eternity unless …
The JST of the Bible and Early Christianity
Early Christian Theological Differences I recently read Misquoting Jesus by Bart D. Ehrman. One of the interesting realities on which Ehrman elaborates is that early …
AZ Immigration Law vs. LDS Interests?
A recent article in the Arizona Republic highlights the negative impacts to the LDS church of the new Arizona law that steps up enforcement of …
Church History: Principles
There has been a lot of discussion in the b’nacle about what the church can do from a practical standpoint to address the thorny issues …
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 …
Mormonism and Catholicism: Who Can Mock This Church?
There was a great article in the New York Times this week: Who Can Mock This Church? While it was about Catholicism reeling in the …
Putting Things on a Shelf
People like to talk about putting things that bother them about the church on a shelf. Of course, the problem is that for some, the shelf …
Raising the Bar: The Honorably Excused
The church decided to “raise the bar” in 2002 on entry requirements for missionaries, effectively preventing those with a history of serious sin from repenting and …
Kudos to the Church!
We spend a lot of time in the bloggernacle analyzing, critiquing, and otherwise discussing the church and its culture. I think there is value in …
Temple Recommend Assumptions
Maybe it was an upcoming family wedding. Or maybe it came out some other way. Have you ever been in a situation when you became …
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 …
What I Learned in Nursery
Many of us have been told that no matter what the calling you have, you will learn from it and grow. I imagine that’s probably …
A Marital Confession
A recent visit at FMH and John Dehlin’s Mormon Stories interview with fmhLisa (Butterworth) has made me realise something about myself that I am not …
You’re the Bishop #6: A Poll
Bishop Bill with a situation that happens to probably every bishop. Read on.
You’re the Bishop #5 (Poll)
Bishop Bill again, folks. Now for one that has nothing to do with the ward.
You’re the Bishop #4 (Poll)
OK, Bishop Bill here again with a really difficult situation.
Church as a Social Network
There are those among the disaffected who would like to reap the benefits of the church as a community although they may no longer share the …
Memorialising the Holocaust: Post-memory and the Latter-Day Saints
According to Arrington and Bitton, “most individual responses of modern Mormons involve a kind of tie with the past”[1] . History is central to the …
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 …
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.”
Is God Still Progressing? (Poll Included)
Last month, one of the RS/PH lessons was about the nature of God. Since the lesson was only about a page and a half long, …
Self-Esteem and Sexuality: Another approach to Chastity
I want to take a lead from Hawgrrrl, who recently posted on the value of Sex Education in trying to reduce the rate of unwanted pregnancies …
You’re the Bishop: Poll #3
Bishop Bill back with more. We’ve had fictionalized situations in the last two installments with a YW and a YM. Now, let’s have a situation …
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 …
You’re the Bishop: Poll #2
Bishop Bill back with your next installment of “You’re the Bishop.” Just to be clear, the examples I am using have been changed enough that …
Abstainers vs. Indulgers
Mormons dig abstinence. Like many other highly committed Christians, we abstain from premarital sex. But, that’s not all; we also abstain from tobacco, alcohol, coffee, …
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 …
True or Bizarre: A Poll
While there are moral truths that all religions tend to share (don’t kill, don’t steal, be nice to people, etc.), religions also include “bizarre” differentiators …
You’re the Bishop: Scenario #1
Welcome to “You’re the Bishop,” a new installment at Mormon Matters. My name is Bishop Bill. Once every few weeks I’ll post a situation that …
Dysfunctional Families or Church?
Exit stories are the tales told when someone leaves the church. The internet is full of these stories, and in many, there is drama in …
On Failed Patriarchal Blessings
Some time ago I spoke to someone I knew about a Patriarchal blessing they had received which seemed to have failed to come to pass. …
Follow the [blank]: A Poll
In the church, we learn how to be good followers. There are many things we are told to follow: the prophet, good examples, our parents’ …
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 …
Top 10 Ways GAs Eat Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup
I was inspired by jmb275’s recent post on the Mormon Cultural Articles of Faith, so I thought I’d post an oldie but a personal favorite. …
Sex Ed: A Poll
Which is more effective at preventing unwanted pregnancies: abstinence education or conception education?
Articles of Faith of Mormon Culture
My only regret is that I cannot take credit for this wonderful bit of humor! They were originally posted by an author found here. Please …
EQ to HPG: Rites of Passage
Whether you are 18 or 88, married, single, widowed, or divorced, with or without kids, and regardless of your socio-economic status, if you are an …
‘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 …
The Church in 20 Years
Where do you see the Church in 20 years? Today’s guest post is by David Heap.
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 …
Twilight Poll: Anti-Feminism or Fanciful Fiction?
Because of the New Moon movie, Twilight is getting a lot of discussion in the media. Since the author, Stephanie Meyer, is LDS, a few …
Mormon Blogs – What’s OK?
What should be acceptable for a blog to be considered a “Mormon” blog? All Mormon content? Only that which is respectful to the church (not …
Anish Kapoor on Spirituality
On the BBC, there is a great series of Art documentaries entitled ‘Imagine’. Alan Yentob, a Television Executive, presents them and in the most recent, …
Is Morality Universal?
Is morality a social construct or is it universal, transcending time and culture? Or is it a little bit of both? Read on to find …
10 LDS Things I’m Thankful for
Thanksgiving is, IMO, the perfect holiday: good food, a day off work, and no presents to worry about. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I wanted …
Musings on Modesty & Mormonism
Today’s guest post is from Reuben Collins who also blogs at Single Speed.
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 …
“Knowing” It All
Mormons love to use the word “know.” We say we know God lives. We say we know that Jesus is the Christ. We say we …
Ghosts: What Are They?
Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had a ghostly encounter? If you do believe in ghosts, what do you think they are doing? …
De-centralising the Spirit: Between Charisma and Bureaucracy
In a lecture entitled ‘A Historian’s Perspective on Joseph Smith’, Richard Bushman shows an interesting trend in religious cultures that surrounded Joseph Smith. This trend centers …
Was Jesus a Buddhist?
The NT doesn’t give much insight into Jesus’ life between age 12 and 30. Did he encounter Buddhism and seek personal enlightenment? Or are these …
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 Consent: Democracy or Prophetocracy?
At 10:00am on a brisk August morning in 1844 Sidney Rigdon addressed the Saints. Brigham Young spoke briefly before the break and at length in the …
Saturday Session Thoughts
These are just a few quick observations from today’s sessions, not every talk, though, nor every observation. I also want to direct attention to the …
“Moderation in All Things”: A Poll
The phrase, “moderation in all things” is a euphemism usually (but not exclusively) associated (by Mormons at least)with the Word of Wisdom. It usually means …
The Genius of Mormonism: Ordinances
This is the next installment in my series about what gives Mormonism staying power and makes it an effective religion at winning and retaining adherents.
Too Much of a Good Thing: A Birth Control Poll
Does the church discourage birth control? Are couples encouraged to breed as quickly and frequently as nature allows? Take this poll to share your feelings …
Prosperity vs. Religion
There was a great article in Newsweek called (Un)wired For God. It was a follow up on a prior article that had talked about the …
Insiders & Outsiders
When it comes to Mormonism, do you feel more like an insider or an outsider?
Belief vs. Action
Which is more important – belief or action? Is faith without action better than action without faith? Is belief without action better than acting despite …
Liars, Damned Liars and Statisticians
Is the church growing or shrinking? Is it even possible to measure church growth accurately? Is this a case of statistical confirmation bias? Read on …
Gender vs. Sex
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? …
Science vs. Religion: A Poll
When there is a seeming conflict between science and religion, people tend to make a mental choice that either favors religion or science. Which is …
Early Mormonism in Context
We tend to view Mormonism in the context of its current contemporaries: Baptists, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhists, and atheists (among many others). But how does Mormonism …
Mormon Dating Sites – What the Heck?!?
In a church that requires chastity but a world in which random hookups are the norm, what about the plight of single adults who are well …
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 …
Groupthink
“Groupthink” is what naturally happens when a group becomes sedentary and sluggish. When change is introduced or new people are introduced, they challenge the “groupthink.” …
Bloggernacle Rankings: BCC is #1!
According to alexa.com, By Common Consent is currently the top ranked site in the Bloggernacle. Congratulations to our esteemed colleagues; you have earned the distinction …
The Genius of Mormonism: Missions
I wanted to do a series of posts on aspects of the LDS church that I consider to be sheer religious genius. These are religous …
Spirituality, Rationality, Mentality, Duality
Today’s guest post is by jmb275. In my first guest post, I talked about intellectualism and faith. A few of the commenters pointed out that …
Bloggernacle Personality Survey
The bloggernacle seems to attract a specific subset of Mormon culture, and as a result, opinions and comments are often different from those we hear …
Thorns in the Side: Villains in the Mormon Mind, Part I
Everyone loves a good villain…the bellowing laugh with hands thrown up in the air utter triumph. As a child, I found Dr. Claw of Inspector …
Righteous Gentiles Part 1
So, in honor of the broad-mindedness that is Mormon Matters, I would like to suggest a list of the top ten “Righteous Gentiles.” In orthodox …
Through the Ears of a “Gentile”
“I’m so glad I was born in this, the one true church of God.” “Please bless the party leaders tonight [of the Republican Party] that …
The Sun Never Sets on the Mormon Empire: Cultural Colonialism
I was talking with a French colleague at dinner about the differences between European politics and American politics, and he made a statement that left …
My Top Ten Non-Mormon Lives
Not long ago I was watching a Tyler Perry movie and found myself applauding an action of one of the characters. This was an action …
My Top Ten Cultural Sins, or Why I Don’t Mark My Scriptures
10. I don’t mark my scriptures. The last time I did was 12 years ago and it was to make it easier to find the …
“Please bless the food that it may change on a molecular level to provide us with additional strength that we would not get otherwise…”
I’m out of the YSA circuit now, but when I was there I often heard the prayer, “Please bless the refreshments, that they may nourish …
What Do Joseph Smith and Gladys Knight Have in Common?
When I was a kid in Southern California, it was obvious to me that there were two kinds of people in the world: Mormons and …
BYU and the Honor Code
As a current BYU student, I am bound by the “honor code,” a document that all students are required to sign in order to enroll. …
“It’s More Than a Religion”: Mormonism as Family
Story 1 From p. 102 of An Abundant Life: The Memoirs of Hugh B. Brown: (Brown addressing a group of 75 LDS servicemen during World …
Culture Shock in Orem
A couple Sundays ago in our singles ward, we were reminded on no uncertain terms that if we were not currently enrolled in a BYU …