Drop Bill Simmons?
Adam Greenwood | December 30, 2008
In which I crowdsource my conscience.
Reviewing News about Mormonism for the Year
Kent Larsen | December 29, 2008
OK, now that we’re looking at the Mormon of the Year, I’d also like to look at what the big news stories were for the year. In a lot of ways its been a very busy news year, with, by my count, three big stories dominating:
Mitt Romney’s presidential candidacy
The confusion of the LDS Church with [...]
Who Should Be Mormon of the Year?
Kent Larsen | December 27, 2008
Its that time of year. The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is traditionally the media’s time for reflection on the past year — the time when we see story after story on the best or most important stories of the year, or the most important person of the year (as Time magazine just [...]
Notes From All Over
Adam Greenwood | December 26, 2008
Comment on the week in sidebar links.
Merry Christmas
Marc Bohn | December 25, 2008
God be thanked for the matchless gift of his only begotten.
Merry Christmas everyone.
A Christmas Story
Julie M. Smith | December 24, 2008
If a story about football brought tears to my eyes, you know it’s gotta be good.
Is the pudding done?
Kathryn Lynard Soper | December 24, 2008
As far as holiday food goes, Thanksgiving tends to steal the spotlight. At our home Christmas Eve dinner is a true feast rivaling the best turkey-centered spreads our table has seen:
One Christmas, Everlasting
Adam Greenwood | December 23, 2008
Merry Christmas from Christmases past!
The True Meaning of Christmas
Adam Greenwood | December 22, 2008
The Church has put together a web page on the true meaning of Christmas. Please give it a look and pass on the link.
The Slaughter of the Innocents
Adam Greenwood | December 22, 2008
After the wise men came,
behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
Get thee behind me, Santa!
Kathryn Lynard Soper | December 22, 2008
I know, I know. There’s so much to love about the jolly fella. But he keeps getting in the way. Or not.
Should My Prayers Be Whinier?
Julie M. Smith | December 21, 2008
The psalms are prayers. And some of them are real doozies.
Christmas and the Sacrament
Adam Greenwood | December 21, 2008
There is only one Christmas. Each year it comes slightly more into view.
Nature and Cities
Nate Oman | December 19, 2008
I often find walking in nature a spiritual experience, for want of a better term. Growing up, I think that I found my testimony in part by tramping through the Wasatch Mountains and watching thunder storms roll across the Great Salt Lake. Today, I am likely to have real moments of reverence and [...]
Notes From All Over
Adam Greenwood | December 19, 2008
Comment on the week in sidebar links
The First Annual Times & Seasons Sentence Diagramming Contest
Julie M. Smith | December 17, 2008
Your challenge: diagram the sacrament prayers.
Elder Porter of the Seventy, in Newsweek
Adam Greenwood | December 16, 2008
Elder Porter of the Seventy has a column in Newsweek responding to a recent Newsweek opinion piece claiming that opposition to gay marriage was unbiblical. There are several unusual features about the column
Haunted and Blessed Lives
Adam Greenwood | December 15, 2008
Ross Douthat believes in angels and devils. Me too.
Hugs and Kisses
Craig H. | December 15, 2008
It’s holiday season, which means more friends and family and greetings, in person or otherwise, than usual. Add to that a few weddings receptions and you can get downright sore from all the hugging and hand-wrenching. Not to mention confused by the vast array of possibilities for saying hello or goodbye or Merry Christmas or [...]
The Carnival of Ward Choirs
Adam Greenwood | December 14, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Grace, Works, and the Meritocracy
Adam Greenwood | December 12, 2008
Ross Douthat explains why meritocrats feel like they deserve their success. He says that you probably won’t succeed without the luck of good brains and good upbringing, but that then you have to follow that luck with lots of determination and hard work. Since the hard work and determination is closest to your [...]
Notes From All Over
Adam Greenwood | December 12, 2008
Here’s your chance to comment on the week in links.
The “All Notes” link is now working, so you can go back to look at links that have been pushed off the sidebar.
This may be as good a time as any to remind you that if you hold your mouse pointer over a link on the [...]
Tithing Settlement 2008
Adam Greenwood | December 11, 2008
Tithing Settlement is a great part of the Christmas season.
Of Courses
Kent Larsen | December 11, 2008
I recieved one of those continuing education catalogs in the mail today (from Lehman College, not BYU), and glancing through it, I began to wonder why the courses are all very basic. The courses are all introductory, and seem to be for those looking to start a career in relatively low-skill professions. I suppose there [...]
Holding the Messiah
Adam Greenwood | December 10, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Relics
Jonathan Green | December 9, 2008
The Book of Mormon is a reliquary in prose. In some extensive sections and at some critical moments, what drives the narrative is the question: how did a set of golden plates, a steel sword, a ball of curious workmanship, a breastplate, and two translucent stones end up inside a stone box buried in a [...]
Christmas Devotional 2008
Adam Greenwood | December 7, 2008
President Uchtdorf said that the angels came to the shepherds, the poor, not to the rich. At one point in my life that would have bugged me. Today I realized that the rich should want it that way. If you’re wealthy and still looking for something, you don’t want to be told [...]
Men at Work — site will be weird for a bit
Frank McIntyre | December 5, 2008
So we’re switching hosts this weekend. This means things are going to act funny for a while. Since we’ve been having recurring outages for weeks, this should be nothing new to our loyal fans. Hopefully, in the new world order our mindblowing traffic will stop bringing down our server.
Release Time v. Early Morning Seminary
Marc Bohn | December 4, 2008
Below is a forward I recently received about a perceived effort to eliminate the release time seminary system in an Idaho school district. The email is from a CES employee to parents of students in the school district encouraging them to oppose one of several proposed schedules currently under consideration that apparently would restructure the [...]
Dancing the Doctrines: Theology in Motion
Ben Huff | December 3, 2008
A call for papers, panels, movement sessions and choreography
Sponsored by the Department of Dance with support from the BYU Museum of Art
July 17 and 18, 2009 at the Brigham Young University Museum of Art and in the BYU Richards Building dance studios.
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin Has Passed Away
Marc Bohn | December 2, 2008
Elder Wirthlin died at 11:30 p.m. last night in his home. He was the oldest living apostle at 91. We invite you to share your memories and thoughts about Elder Wirthlin as we mourn his passing.
Past and Present
Nate Oman | November 30, 2008
It’s an intellectual banality to point out that how one thinks of the present structures how one thinks about the past. The cliché, however, is useful when thinking about Mormon history.
A More Fortunate Ensign Article
Julie M. Smith | November 30, 2008
Since I was rather critical of an Ensign article on the Word of Wisdom earlier this year, I feel obligated to point out that this month’s article on the Word of Wisdom is a much better piece.
What the Smith Boys Said This Year
Julie M. Smith | November 29, 2008
Previous installments can be accessed through this link.
Home
Kathryn Lynard Soper | November 27, 2008
Any minute now, it will begin: first one car, then another, then another will drive into our cul-de-sac and park in front of the house across the street. As they do on every holiday, the Bishop’s children are coming home.
Thanksgiving Proclaimed
Adam Greenwood | November 27, 2008
Our Chief Magistrate has proclaimed that today be a National Day of Thanksgiving, to acknowledge those blessings of liberty, family, and friendship we receive at the hands of the Almighty God.
Each in his Own Language
Kent Larsen | November 25, 2008
BYU’s Religious Studies Center recently announced that it had begun publishing books in Spanish, Portuguese, and German, an encouraging development, given how little is being produced outside of English. In his blog post about the news, Richard Neitzel Holzapfel writes:
Today, it is estimated that there are nearly 7,000 spoken languages in the world, of which [...]
Millennial Vegetarianism
Kylie Turley | November 24, 2008
Enjoy that Thanksgiving turkey . . . while you can. You may be a vegetarian during the millennium.
Hymn 95
Adam Greenwood | November 23, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Go Cougars!
Adam Greenwood | November 21, 2008
Now a glorious dawn is breaking
Jonathan Green | November 19, 2008
What will it be like for a marriage to continue past death into the eternities? What does it mean to have a perfected body, or to love an eternal being? Stephenie Meyer has an answer. Breaking Dawn, the last novel in her Twilight series, presents a sustained and vividly imagined view of one of the [...]
Why Conservatives Should Support Same-Sex Marriage Legislation
Nate Oman | November 17, 2008
Rod Dreher, I think, has a it right. Conservatives ought to support same-sex marriage legislation.
The Gospel and Immigration
Kent Larsen | November 17, 2008
A High Priest I know is in crisis. He is an immigrant who, like many other Church members, came to the US without a visa, according to what I understand of the situation. After arriving here he joined the Church, and eventually fell in love and married a U.S. Citizen, a wonderful, faithful Church member. [...]
Pardon our appearance…
Kent Larsen | November 15, 2008
We’ve just completed upgrading the software that runs Times and Seasons. The upgrade requires us to also update the files that control how the site looks. It may take a while for us to get Times and Seasons to the way we want it to look, so please be patient.
Rhetoric, Ideology and Prop 8
Marc Bohn | November 14, 2008
In the run up to and in the wake of Prop 8, Latter-day Saint proponents of the measure have often tried to parse their words carefully when discussing their support for it in order to avoid charges of bigotry and hate for opposing the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry. Echoing a refrain [...]
Bones
Jonathan Green | November 13, 2008
One of the subterranean threads running throughout the Book of Mormon is the mystery of whose bones are heaped upon the land northward.
What Should Mormons Do?
Kent Larsen | November 12, 2008
The Associated Press reported yesterday that Mormon employees at the University of Phoenix benefited from discrimination based on religion, according to a lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The University settled the suit, paying $1.9 million to 52 employees (an average of more than $36,000 each!) and agreeing to a “zero-tolerance” policy to [...]
Vets
Adam Greenwood | November 11, 2008
Today is a good day to celebrate the soldiers I have known and 9 years of marriage.
The Raft-Builders
Adam Greenwood | November 11, 2008
By Lord Dunsany:
That’s Trillion with a ‘T’
Julie M. Smith | November 11, 2008
Is anyone else just the teeniest bit bothered that the government wants to lend two trillion of our dollars but will not tell us to whom they are lending it or what kind of collateral they have?
Sunday School Redux 2
Frank McIntyre | November 10, 2008
The Joseph Smith manual had one of my favorite quotes in it this week:
“I say to all those who are disposed to set up stakes [limits] for the Almighty, You will come short of the glory of God. To become a joint heir of the heirship of the Son, one must put away all his [...]
The Canonization of the Book of Mormon?
Nate Oman | November 10, 2008
Penguin Books has just published a “Penguin Classics” edition of the Book of Mormon edited by Laurie F. Maffly-Kipp. Penguin Classics, of course, are the paperback editions of literary staples like Jane Austen or Charles Dickens. They are printed and marketed largely as texts for college classes. The assumption is that [...]
How the Other Half Preaches
Julie M. Smith | November 9, 2008
A pool in our area had a free admission day this summer and I’m nothing if not cheap so there we were. Imagine the delighted looks on my kids’ faces when they saw not only a FREE pool, but FREE inflatable bouncers, FREE snowcones, FREE hot dogs, FREE chips, and FREE games with prizes.
Just Say No (to members)
Kylie Turley | November 7, 2008
A few months ago, a sister in our ward asked my daughter to babysit. On a Monday evening. That’s right. Monday Evening. We try to be diligent with family home evening on Monday night, so the answer needed to be “no,†but I was a bit confused about how to convey that message.
Hum together, right now
Kathryn Lynard Soper | November 6, 2008
While the candidates have been talking the talk about cooperation and unity, a few humble LDS editors have been walking the walk.
What of the Mormons (in Congress)?
Kent Larsen | November 5, 2008
The results are in, and the Mormon officials in congress is facing some changes as a result. From what I can tell, the new congress will include either 5 or 6 Mormons in the Senate and 9 in the House of Representatives. [FWIW, outside of the U.S., I only know of 1 LDS Church member [...]
Prop 8 Likely to Pass
Matt Evans | November 5, 2008
I haven’t found a news organization that’s called Prop 8 yet, and CNN’s exit polling showed it failing 48%-52%, but my county-by-county analysis shows that it will likely pass. With 93.6% of precincts reporting state wide, Prop 8 is leading by 406,519 votes (4.1%), and almost all of the precincts yet to be tallied [...]
Simple ideas to be a better missionary
Adam Greenwood | November 5, 2008
A horrible, no-good, very bad blog can still run a great series on missionary work. Read it, take it to heart, recommend it to others.
Part I
Part II
Part III.
***
Bumped.
An Historic Night
Marc Bohn | November 5, 2008
In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let’s resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.
Let’s remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to [...]
Christmas Gifts for Kids
Julie M. Smith | November 5, 2008
Let’s take about Christmas.
All opposed, by the same sign
Jonathan Green | November 4, 2008
On the issues I care about (and therefore not including the topic addressed from various perspectives so eloquently by my esteemed colleagues), I prefer the positions of the Democratic Party platform and candidate. I directly benefited from Barack Obama’s work as a state senator while I lived in Illinois, he seems to know what he’s [...]
Abortion, Obama: Extreme Deeds, Meaningless Words
Adam Greenwood | November 4, 2008
People who want to vote for Obama labor mightily to get around his extreme pro-choice/pro-abortion record.
Counterpoint: Abortion, Obama
Marc Bohn | November 4, 2008
Barack Obama has sought to bring pro-lifers and pro-choicers together to find a middle ground on the issue of abortion. With the help of noted conservative legal scholar, pro-life activist, and former Romney supporter Doug Kmiec
Prop. 8 Cometh
Adam Greenwood | November 4, 2008
Abortion, Obama
Adam Greenwood | November 4, 2008
Barack Obama is the most pro-choice/pro-abortion candidate to ever run for President in any major party.
Collateral Damage: Missionaries and Prop 8
Marc Bohn | November 3, 2008
An anti-Prop 8 organization has released a new commercial drawing Mormon missionaries into the fight over Proposition 8. To say the ad is inflammatory is putting it lightly.
2009 LDS Law Students Conference at Harvard Law School
Nate Oman | November 3, 2008
The J. Reuben Clark Society’s annual student conference will be held this year at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Registration is now open, and I urge LDS students, lawyers, and interested laypersons to attend. FYI.
An Open Letter to Michelle Obama
Nate Oman | November 2, 2008
Dear Michelle,
First, let me say how much I’ve enjoyed getting to know you over the last couple of months.
The Case Against John McCain
Julie M. Smith | November 2, 2008
Here are a few reasons why you should not vote for John McCain:
12 Questions for the LDS Newsroom, Part Two
Dave Banack | November 1, 2008
This is Part Two of responses provided by representatives of the LDS Newsroom to a set of questions submitted by T&S permabloggers. See Part One for the first six questions and responses.
The Fall Makes Righteous Pride Possible
Adam Greenwood | November 1, 2008
Man is hungry for status like he is hungry for food (and they say the public schools don’t teach you anything!).
A Marvelous Work and a Cacophony
Kent Larsen | October 31, 2008
Last week’s sacrament meeting was unique. While on the surface it was just the annual Primary Sacrament Meeting program, the room was packed and the overflow took up most of the cultural hall. But the best part was the congregational hymns, a joyful cacophany that mangled the hymns, making them hard to understand, but communicating [...]
Halloween treat
Kathryn Lynard Soper | October 31, 2008
Strangely enough, I didn’t catch the irony until just now, as my first- and sixth-graders ran outside to catch the carpool.
First grader=John McCain
Sixth grader=jihadist Afghani
Proposition 8, the American mainstream, and the unspeakable
Jonathan Green | October 30, 2008
Most online discussions of gay marriage are not worth the effort, because no actual discussion takes place
12 Questions for the LDS Newsroom, Part One
Dave Banack | October 30, 2008
Representatives from LDS Public Affairs who manage and direct the Newsroom site at LDS.org agreed to respond to a dozen questions submitted by the T&S permabloggers. We are pleased to post the first six questions and answers below, with the second set of six to follow shortly. We appreciate the time and effort [...]
Marriage University
Adam Greenwood | October 30, 2008
The Lovely One and I were lazing in bed and got to talking about life expectancy. Barring mishap, we figured we’d reach our 50th wedding anniversary, no problem.
Girls, Are You Hip Enough?
Kathryn Lynard Soper | October 29, 2008
I kissed a girl and I liked it
The taste of her cherry chapstick
I kissed a girl just to try it
I hope my boyfriend don’t mind it
It felt so wrong
It felt so right
Don’t mean I’m in love tonight
Porn increases infidelity?
Adam Greenwood | October 28, 2008
The New York Times has an interesting write-up on the latest infidelity research. Among other morceau, researchers have found a rise in infidelity among young couples and speculate that increasing porn use may be responsible.
Vote Early, Vote Often
Kylie Turley | October 27, 2008
Just kidding about the “often†part. Are you an early voter or a procrastinator? Here’s why I voted early:
Mormon Halloween: Its Origin and Destiny
Kent Larsen | October 27, 2008
I’m not sure whether or not Halloween is actually “Mormon” to any significant degree. Mormons generally participate in the holiday here in the U.S., of course. And we even have a few requirements of the holiday in a Church setting — for example, we don’t allow masks at Church-sponsored Halloween events. But I don’t think [...]
What a day for a daydream
Kathryn Lynard Soper | October 26, 2008
A few days ago, Russell passed around this quote backstage (yes, T&S has a backstage–that’s where the permabloggers hang out, fight, and make fun of you):
Lunar Lander Challenge Today and Tomorrow
Adam Greenwood | October 24, 2008
One competitor’s vehicle exploded on camera already. The next attempt is at 2:30 Mountain Time. You can watch a live webcast here. The challenge t is being held in Las Cruces, NM, but is not open to the public.
Power to the Parents
Kathryn Lynard Soper | October 24, 2008
Naysayers regarding Sarah Palin’s promise to be an advocate for children with special needs can stand down for now rant all they want, but I’m still excited.
Subject unto Man
Adam Greenwood | October 24, 2008
It behooveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh . . . that all men might become subject unto him.
-2 Nephi 9:5
Two-headed Hydra
Kathryn Lynard Soper | October 22, 2008
Thirteen-year-old son: Mom, can I watch “The Sarah Connor Chronicles”?
me: No.
son: Why not? There’s nothing bad about it.
me: I disagree.
son: Well, I disagree with you.
me: That’s okay.
We’re suckers for internet memes, God love us.
Adam Greenwood | October 22, 2008
This is a post about a new intertubes meme I’ve noticed–your mileage may vary–and whether it has minor moral implications. This is just my $.02. Heh.
Calendar Guy indicates he’ll sue BYU for degree he earned
Matt Evans | October 21, 2008
BYU recently chose to rescind the diploma of Chad Hardy, the missionary calendar guy, because he was excommunicated from the church between the time he earned his degree and the graduation ceremony.
President Hinckley and J. Edgar Hoover
Marc Bohn | October 20, 2008
The FBI released its files on Gordon B. Hinckley last week in response to a FOIA request from the Salt Lake Tribune. Apparently the FBI conducted a background check on President Hinckley in 1951 in order to ensure he wasn’t a communist and clear him for a potential position with Voice of America. [...]
Confirm or Deny?
Julie M. Smith | October 20, 2008
The following is making the email rounds with lightning speed. It claims to be talk given recently by President Packer. Can anyone confirm or deny?
Teaching the Reformation
Craig H. | October 19, 2008
Just as I went to publish this post, I saw Ben’s post about the conference on Mormons and Evangelicals. It’s a nice coincidence. As are the recent posts by Kent and Marc on labeling and categorizing.
I was already scheduled to attend another conference this week, an annual conference for historians of the Reformation (surely you [...]
National Student Dialogue Conference II
Ben Huff | October 18, 2008
Standing Together and the Religious Studies Program at Utah Valley University are hosting a conference of Latter-day Saint and evangelical Christian students and scholars this coming Friday and Saturday, October 24-5, 2008, on topics including, “Was a Restoration Necessary?,” “Authority and Scripture,” and “The Nature of God: Finite or Infinite?” Directly addressing some of the [...]
Essentials in Church Categorization
Kent Larsen | October 17, 2008
Marc Bohn’s post yesterday on how Mormonism is classified became a legal issue reminded me that the issue of how Mormonism is classified is anything but clear, especially when non-Mormons are doing the classifying. We say we are Christian, and evangelicals claim we are not. We don’t want to be called Catholic or Protestant (or [...]
Prop 8
Frank McIntyre | October 17, 2008
In response to the FP request to “do all you can to support the proposed constitutional amendment by donating of your means and time to assure that marriage in California is legally defined as being between a man and a woman”, I’m bringing the widget back to the top of T&S. Actually, it’s a [...]
A New Summer Seminar on Mormonism with Terryl Givens and Matt Grow
Nate Oman | October 16, 2008
From Givens:
Court Finds Mormonism is Not “Protestantism”
Marc Bohn | October 16, 2008
An appellate court in Arkansas last week refused to overturn a lower court ruling which found a woman’s ex-husband in contempt of court for [violating the couple's custody agreement by] failing to raise their minor children “in the Protestant faith” after the ex-husband started promoting his Mormonism to their children. While many Mormons, and [...]
Priesthood Session Online
Julie M. Smith | October 15, 2008
According to this, the priesthood session of conference will be available online starting next year.
Connecticut Judges Require Gay Marriage
Adam Greenwood | October 15, 2008
In a case called Kerrigan, a majority of the Connecticut Supreme Court has ruled that Connecticut must institute gay marriage. As always, you can find good commentary at the Volokh Conspiracy and at Bench Memos. Among other things that Court relied on Connecticut’s civil union legislation as evidence that gay marriage was [...]
Polygamy Poetry
Kylie Turley | October 14, 2008
Polygamy was a topic for persuasive prose, not poetry in nineteenth century Utah.
A Nobel calling
Jonathan Green | October 13, 2008
I’m very happy to see this year’s Nobel Prize in economics going to Paul Krugman, whose columns in the New York Times helped me see the importance of the discipline of economics as nothing else ever had. I think Mormon scholarship could use more scholars like Paul Krugman (quite apart from the Nobel and the [...]
Preserving Marriage Media
Adam Greenwood | October 13, 2008
The saints have put out some good media on traditional marriage and Proposition 8 in California.
Heart Attack
Adam Greenwood | October 12, 2008
Sara called me at work. The first counselor in our bishopric died getting up that morning. He had a heart attack. Church today was full with his family and, since today was the primary program, with the families of the children. His wife sat on the stand with her CTR class, [...]
A Compendium of Mormon News?
Kent Larsen | October 10, 2008
For the past couple weeks I’ve received email reports, forwarded to me from a friend, written by a lawyer who is LDS and who is prosecuting a counselor in a Stake Presidency in a ponzi scheme. The situation is sad, the email messages fascinating and the news that this is a counselor in a [...]
The Difficulty of Theological Interpretations of Mormon History
Nate Oman | October 9, 2008
Providing a theological interpretation of Mormon history is tricky. I’ve argued elsewhere that one of the reasons that Mormons care so much about history is that in some sense they regard it has having a normative force. Part of how we understand God’s will is by offering an interpretation of our past that [...]
“Nobody Knows” Screening
Marc Bohn | October 9, 2008
Heads up for those in the D.C. area. Earlier this Spring I posted a notice about a great series of events that Greg Prince, co-author of David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism, hosted at his house in Potomac, Maryland. After a brief summer interlude, Brother Prince is back at it. The [...]
A Worse Job At Everything…
Marc Bohn | October 8, 2008
Conference this past weekend (and the lengthy list I made during it of all the ways I need to change) got me thinking about a conversation I had with a recent law school grad in our ward who was studying for the bar this summer. He’d been complaining to me about having no [...]
General Conference Open Thread
Marc Bohn | October 5, 2008
It appears as though we’ve neglected an old institution here at Times & Seasons, the General Conference Open Thread. All apologies.
Key to the Culture of Mormons
Kent Larsen | October 3, 2008
Last Saturday I gave a walking tour of Mormon history sites in lower Manhattan, one of the services our stake history committee offers regularly. One stop on the tour is the location where an early LDS newspaper, The Mormon, was published by John Taylor. That newspaper featured an interesting statement in its masthead–what it called [...]
Compassion and Creativity
Kylie Turley | October 2, 2008
Most everyone I’ve talked to loved President Uchtdorf’s talk at the General Relief Society Broadcast. But I have a question (and yes, men, this is for you, too—since I assume that as a son of God, you also get joy in following the Father’s example of creation and compassion):
Mormons Like the Suburbs
Brigham Daniels | October 1, 2008
For my last post as a guest blogger, I have written something a lot more dough headed than the stuff usually posted on this blog. This is a flavor of what I am up to on my own dough headed blog. While I hope you enjoy it, I also want to thank Times [...]
M Gets a Joke
Patricia Karamesines | October 1, 2008
A while back our household sat down to watch an episode of Monk. We like Monk because not only is it funny, it’s also sad and tender and offers good – sometimes very good – cultural satire. As I fed M she kept turning her head to look at the TV, watching whatever it is [...]
Parenting Tips from the Life of Warren Buffett
Frank McIntyre | October 1, 2008
“The deal that Buffett made with [son] Howie concerning the rent for Howie’s farm was … linked with weight; the amount rose and fell with Howie’s poundage. Warren thought his son should weigh 182.5 pounds. When Howie was over the limit, he had to pay twenty-six percent of the farm’s gross receipts to his father. [...]
“Mormonism”: A Perfect Storm
Ben Huff | September 30, 2008
Library Journal this month ran an interesting article offering a big-picture perspective on the world of LDS and LDS-related publishing, highlighting close to 40 books on doctrine, history, sociology, comparative theology and devotional topics, as well as periodicals, video, and internet resources. The article’s aim is to help librarians choose recent, reliable books about Mormonism, [...]
My inner historian smiles
Kylie Turley | September 29, 2008
The little historian in me cheers for small things, such as correct phrasing. At the General Relief Society Broadcast on Saturday, September 27, Sister Barbara Thompson
Family Home Evening Ideas
Julie M. Smith | September 27, 2008
After almost three years, we’ve just about made it all the way through the Bible in felt. These have been great FHEs for us. Now I need something new.
The Great Unity
Kent Larsen | September 26, 2008
Last weekend I went to the penultimate game in Yankee Stadium, and the next night watched the last game on television, complete with its post-game wake. Over nearly 20 years I’ve attended meetings there, letting a place and a culture become an almost religious part of my life. Its a Temple of baseball.
Thoughts for an Uncertain Morn
Julie M. Smith | September 26, 2008
Shame
Jonathan Green | September 25, 2008
Every medium has an inherent vice. While any form of media can be misused, there is a flaw lurking in the fundamental nature of each medium. Television exaggerates fear, as it transmits the worst events or most scandalous entertainment from the outside world into our homes. Movies indulge our self-deluding fantasies of escape or celebrity. [...]
Questions about Personal Responsibility and the Economic Bailout
Brigham Daniels | September 24, 2008
How should we think about personal responsibility in light of the financial bailout currently being debated in Washington, D.C.?
Morality, Legality and Alcohol
Kylie Turley | September 24, 2008
The church issued a statement about alcohol laws in Utah. The last paragraph reads:
“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that Utahns, including those who work in the hospitality industry, can come together as citizens, regardless of religion or politics, to support laws and regulations that allow individual freedom of choice while preserving [...]
When Being Right is Wrong
Craig H. | September 23, 2008
If you’re a teacher of any sort, you know how disruptive a couple of talkative or rude students can be, especially when you’re trying to get a discussion going.
In an effort to regain control, you flash a forced smile in the direction of the goof-offs. You pause and wait until they’re finished before you continue. [...]
BYU in the Memory of the AAUP
Nate Oman | September 23, 2008
Among the other academic spam that I get are regular emails from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), which is always eager to remind me of their fights for academic freedom, higher salaries for professors, and various trendy and hip progressive causes. Today, the AAUP sent out an email commemorating the ten year [...]
Stewardship and Politics
Brigham Daniels | September 22, 2008
With elections coming up and my time as a guest blogger running out, I like to take up the topic of Mormonism and voting. First, what should we make of the many Mormons who seem completely disengaged in politics?
Paper or Plastic?
Julie M. Smith | September 21, 2008
We begin with a quiz.
The Epitome of Not Forgetting
Marc Bohn | September 21, 2008
I linked to an article earlier that I have since decided is to good to leave just to the newsfeed. It’s from a Chicago Tribune religion reporter who is Jewish with Mormon relatives. In it, the reporter describes a rift that formed in her family after her great-uncle Al married a Mormon and [...]
Visions and Enivison
Brigham Daniels | September 17, 2008
I am sorry I have not been posting more regularly. Hurricane Ike slowed me down a bit. However, everything is starting to get back to normal. So…. Here we go.
If the nineteenth century Mormon experiment in planning claimed anything, it claimed to be founded on revelation.
First Things Articles
Julie M. Smith | September 17, 2008
First Things has published two articles about the Church; one by Bruce D. Porter and the other by Gerald R. McDermott.
Are we not funny?
Kylie Turley | September 16, 2008
I freely admit that I’m not the funniest person in the world, but I do think I have a sense of humor. I like a good laugh as much as anyone. Or perhaps I should say, “I like a good laugh as much as anyone who is LDS.â€
Reminder: Alma Conference
Julie M. Smith | September 15, 2008
For those in the Provo area:
Two Texts on a Summer Flood
Rosalynde Welch | September 15, 2008
Apropos of the season and storm.
Missions and the Art of Togetherness
Ben Huff | September 12, 2008
One unique aspect of the missionary experience is the opportunity to focus everything you do, day and night, directly on the goal of serving God. It can be kind of scary to set that as your project, because it is a tall order. Serving God for one day is hard enough; you run out of [...]
Missions, art, and surveillance
Jonathan Green | September 11, 2008
One unique aspect of the missionary experience, quite distinct from life before and after, is the feeling that someone is always watching you. It’s probably the one aspect of my mission that I could have done without, although I wouldn’t say that it was entirely unproductive.
Mormons, Politics, and Morality
Brigham Daniels | September 9, 2008
Some of the thoughts of a commenter on my last post, got me thinking about Mormons, politics, and morality. My observation is that the issues that set off moral alarm bells for most Mormons are those that deal with issues relating to what I would consider “freedom to sin†or “prohibitions of obvious sins.†[...]
Kindness and Technology
Kylie Turley | September 9, 2008
“I seriously doubt whether there will be anyone in the celestial kingdom who is not kind.â€
“An important measure of our efforts for the celestial kingdom is how we treat others.â€
(Elder Jensen, Regional Conference meeting, September 7, 2008).
Changing Conceptions of Zion
Brigham Daniels | September 8, 2008
The Mormon conception of Zion has changed dramatically over the past century. Today’s members of the church are likely to define “Zion” as wherever the members of the church are: LDS homes, congregations, and stakes. While the conception of Zion in the 19th century may have included these elements, these Saints were [...]
Returning to Zion
Brigham Daniels | September 8, 2008
Given all that might be said of Mormonism, it should not come as a surprise that a lot of interesting topics sit pretty much neglected. One of these, I would argue, is the Mormon contribution to building settlements in the United States.
Brigham Daniels on deck
Frank McIntyre | September 8, 2008
We’d like to extend many thanks to Kent Larsen for a variety of interesting and thoughtful posts.
We also would like to welcome our newest guest, Brigham Daniels. Brigham works as a law professor at the University of Houston Law Center, where he teaches environmental law. He has been involved with LDS community, [...]
Doctrines of Localization
Kent Larsen | September 6, 2008
In April, 1998, President Hinckley visited New York City to speak at a special fireside held in Madison Square Garden, and our stake provided a 100+ voice choir for the event. I remember thinking at the time that with all of the talented Church members in New York City, the choir should be permanent.
New Mormon Studies Clearinghouse: MormonConferences.org
Ben Huff | September 4, 2008
Have you been wondering where to go to find out what all is going on in Mormon Studies? Now you know:
MormonConferences.org, just launched today, keeps track of all the major public events in Mormon Studies and lists them all on one calendar
Only a Clerk
Kent Larsen | September 4, 2008
Soon after I was made a ward clerk 20 years ago this month, I walked into the clerk’s office to find a xerox copy of an article posted there. The article was the text of a letter, sent by one of my predecessors, to the Church’s membership department, and had somehow found its way to [...]
Special Feelings (more on Mormon Language)
Kylie Turley | September 3, 2008
This morning I heard a member of Utah’s delegation to the Republican National Convention tell a radio talk show host that “there is a really special feeling among the Republican delegation.†Could you run that by me again?
Moderation in all Salt
Kent Larsen | September 2, 2008
Like in many Mormon families, my siblings and I helped fix dinner. On Sunday’s I loved to fix the mashed potatoes. It was in making mashed potatoes that I learned early that though a little is good, a lot is not necessarily better.
Early on, I served a large bowl (there were 8 of us) of [...]
Three Million Strong (and Growing)…
Marc Bohn | September 2, 2008
A little more than a year ago, Russell wrote a post commemorating Times and Seasons 2 millionth hit. A feat he said wasn’t bad “for a blog that doesn’t feature kittens or porn.” Looking back, he also noted that while “We’ve weathered storms and squalls, and some people have gone overboard… Still, old Times [...]
Mormon Language
Kent Larsen | September 1, 2008
I can’t resist telling this one again. Last May in priesthood meeting the photographers collecting photos for the ward directory suggested that the photos might end up on the “Blogosphere.” After they mentioned the word “Blogosphere” three times, I replied: “In the Church, we call it the “Bloggernacle.”
To my surprise, this drew gaffaws from the [...]
What of the BYU?
Kent Larsen | August 31, 2008
Several years ago a returned missionary acquaintance was told, on applying to BYU, that he needed ‘academic repenting’ before he could be admitted.
The War Chapters
Julie M. Smith | August 31, 2008
And a great sleep did come over the land; yea, verily, there was much dozing and nodding of heads in all of the sabbath schools.
The Way to Translation
Kent Larsen | August 29, 2008
Several years ago bookseller Curt Bench put together an annotated list of the 50 most important Mormon books published before 1980. While I won’t claim that everyone will agree with his assessment, I’ll be very surprised if anyone objects to more than 25% of the list.
New Nursery Manual
Julie M. Smith | August 27, 2008
The new nursery manual is available.
What to do about Deseret Book?
Kent Larsen | August 26, 2008
For the past decade, I’ve suggested that Deseret Book is one of the significant impediments to the growth of Mormon culture outside those elements involving worship. LDS books, music, film, art and other cultural products, especially innovative ones, are hampered by Deseret Book’s size, focus and control of the market for LDS materials.
What can we [...]
Sunday School Redux
Frank McIntyre | August 25, 2008
Three excellent quotes from this week’s Sunday School lesson:
Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can.
Unsubstantiated Rumor #2
Kaimi Wenger | August 25, 2008
Over at MAD-Board, there is rumor about a policy change, to the effect that women may now be sealed to more than one (deceased) husband (just as men may now be sealed to more than one deceased wife).
Can anyone confirm or un-confirm this one?
What is an Association Worth?
Kent Larsen | August 24, 2008
This past week I received a card in the mail from the BYU Alumni Association, asking for my help in “editing” my biographical information in an “Alumni Directory” in preparation. While I’ve certainly given the Alumni Association biographical information in the past, for some reason this time I started asking myself “is this worth my [...]
Evil Speaking
Nate Oman | August 21, 2008
In the Old Testament God likens his relationship to the House of Israel as that of a bridegroom to his wife. In the New Testament, the Church is described as the bride of Christ. The choice of the image of marriage, it seems to me, is hardly accidental. It provides, I think, [...]
Salvation or Happiness?
Kent Larsen | August 21, 2008
During the last few years, I’ve noticed that less often is “the plan of salvation” used in General Conference, and more often we hear “the plan of happiness.”
Anyone know why?
Mourning with Those Who Mourn
Julie M. Smith | August 21, 2008
So I’m at the pool last week with someone I really like but don’t know all that well and we’re kvetching about grocery prices, etc., when out of nowhere she says, “So I know you lost a baby daughter last winter. How are you doing with that?”
Garden Fights
Kylie Turley | August 21, 2008
Between loving fresh vegetables and an assumption about gardens being “doctrine,†I find myself planting every spring and harvesting what the bugs didn’t nibble in the summer and fall. Except for a few condo-living years when dirt was a scarce commodity, I have planted religiously. But
Why Visit Mountain Meadows?
Kent Larsen | August 20, 2008
A week ago I visited Mountain Meadows for the first time.
I was surprisingly hard to find. While the site does appear on maps of the area, there aren’t any signs until you get within a mile of the entrance. That is a shame.
Hot Mormon Gossip
Marc Bohn | August 20, 2008
Has the Church really made an unsolicited offer to buy Facebook (see here which spun off to here)?
What We Didn’t Discuss
Kylie Turley | August 20, 2008
The gospel doctrine lesson on Alma 43-52 proposed four principles of war as waged by the righteous:
The Bridge from Theological to Political
Julie M. Smith | August 20, 2008
Yes! Another SSM post!
What Model for Spreading Mormon Culture?
Kent Larsen | August 19, 2008
Ever been in one of the few LDS stores outside the United States? or in countries that don’t speak English?
The selection can be quite discouraging.
My Williamsburg Discrimination Story
Nate Oman | August 19, 2008
Adam’s post about the California Supreme Court’s recent decision, and the resulting brawl in the comments got me thinking about the basis of discrimination. In 1998, while I was a senior at BYU I spent a semester in Williamsburg, Virginia doing research in the archives at the College of William and Mary. The [...]
The Race-Orientation Comparison
Kaimi Wenger | August 19, 2008
It comes up often enough, doesn’t it: People compare race to sexual orientation, when discussing questions of marriage, medical access, and so on. Is this comparison legitimate?
California Judges Require Religious Doctors to Artifically Conceive a Child for a Gay Woman
Adam Greenwood | August 19, 2008
The title says it all. The California Supreme Court has required that doctors with religious objections to lesbian households must nonetheless assist a lesbian women in artificially conceiving a child.
The Reality of Satan
Marc Bohn | August 19, 2008
I heard a story on This American Life a couple of weeks ago that has had me thinking about the reality of Satan and just what that means for us in our lives.
Jacob and Esau, We and Christ
Adam Greenwood | August 18, 2008
We were driving to a wedding Friday morning so naturally we started talking about Jacob and Esau.
Notes from all over.
Blog Administration | August 18, 2008
The week in notes, belatedly.
Welcome to Guest Blogger Kent Larsen
Dave Banack | August 17, 2008
Times and Seasons is thrilled to have Kent Larsen as our latest guest. Kent has been very busy in book publishing in New York City for twenty years and has followed LDS publishing closely for ten years. He has also been posting on arts and media for over three years at A Motley [...]
Reverence Practice
Kylie Turley | August 16, 2008
The bishop is worried about ward reverence. He should be, truth be told.
Global Warming, Redefining Marriage, and Risk Aversion
Frank McIntyre | August 15, 2008
I think we can all agree that, from a risk analysis perspective, global warming and gay marriage share a lot of characteristics.
A Bad Reason for A Good Policy
Julie M. Smith | August 15, 2008
Let me remind everyone that I support the Church’s position opposing same sex marriage.
For Our Central Texas Readers . . .
Julie M. Smith | August 14, 2008
An Adult Religion Class will be offered this Fall in the Primary room of the Pflugerville Building on Thursdays from 8pm-9:30pm beginning on August 28th. The class will cover Psalms 1-89 and will be taught by me. The class fee is $16.25. Questions? Email me at my first name AT timesandseasons [...]
Revelation 3:14-22
Julie M. Smith | August 14, 2008
Previous posts in this series are available here.
Eve
Kylie Turley | August 13, 2008
(I hope you haven’t discussed this before, at least not in this way.) At the height of national debate over the Equal Rights Amendment, Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained that all LDS women should look to Eve: “Eve, the mother of all living, is truly the perfect pattern for all her daughters. Oh that all [...]
The Martian Rose
Adam Greenwood | August 13, 2008
God willing I will be giving a presentation on making the desert blossom as the rose and Mars settlement, tomorrow, August 14th, at 4:30 PM at the Mars Society conference. I would love to hear from any of you who might be attending.
Sex, blah, blah, blah.
Adam Greenwood | August 13, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Wish I’d Been There
Kylie Turley | August 12, 2008
Need a smile? Then you might wish you’d gone to sacrament meeting on March 15, 1857 in the Salt Lake Thirteenth Ward:
Pioneers and Indians in Utah Valley
Dave Banack | August 11, 2008
Just last week I heard a familiar comment at church: Brigham Young’s policy was to feed the Indians rather than fight them. The actual record of relations between Pioneers and Indians was a bit more complicated, especially in Utah Valley, the watery jewel of early Utah.
Single Purpose
Julie M. Smith | August 11, 2008
I thought Ardis’ comment deserves a bigger audience:
MMM for Youth?
Kylie Turley | August 10, 2008
I don’t want to debate the ins and outs of the tragedy at Mountain Meadows. It was horrific no matter how you cut it. My more immediate problem is personal
“Mothers Who Know” Still Spurring Debate
Dave Banack | August 9, 2008
Georgia isn’t the only place with skirmishing this weekend: “LDS leader’s address still causing controversy,” a long article at the Deseret News, recounts the comments of five Sunstone panelists (and one unfortunate commenter) to LDS Relief Society President Julie B. Beck’s October 2007 Conference talk “Mothers Who Know.”
Yesharah
Kylie Turley | August 8, 2008
Did you know that BYU had a combined-gender missionary club in the early 1920’s named the Y.D.D.? It took me a month to discover the secret of the initials: “Young Doctors of Divinity.â€
Notes from all over.
Blog Administration | August 8, 2008
Comment on the week in sidebar links.
Vampires
Kylie Turley | August 7, 2008
You are probably too erudite to discuss this, but I’m bringing it up anyway: vampire books. You know what I’m talking about.
Chesterton and the Sweetness of Mormon Life
Adam Greenwood | August 7, 2008
Some of you will have noticed the posts on the sweetness of Mormon life.
Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog: a Review
Adam Greenwood | August 7, 2008
I really liked Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog, a short musical internet film in three parts. Perhaps you think this is a shameful admission, like my fondness for the Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. And perhaps you’re right. But there it is. I liked the superhero goofiness. I liked Dr. Horrible’s [...]
Teas
Kaimi Wenger | August 6, 2008
It’s a lot more complicated than just “tea” these days, isn’t it?
Upcoming Conference on Alma 32
Julie M. Smith | August 6, 2008
For those in the Provo area:
Interesting P.R. Approach
Marc Bohn | August 6, 2008
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve encountered an interesting banner link in my gmail account:
Posts You Might Have Missed 5
Dave Banack | August 6, 2008
If you’ve been on a cross-country trek visiting in-laws or golf courses (or both) instead of reading new blogs posts, here are a few good posts you might have missed.
Socialism and United Order
Kylie Turley | August 5, 2008
I stumbled across a few LDS socialist stories when I was writing my MA thesis.
Pioneer Reenactments
Adam Greenwood | August 5, 2008
We saints do pioneer reenactments a lot. Dress up, pull a handcart, dance a little to “whoa, haw, Buck.” I’ve been thinking about that and I need your help.
Political Remembering
Kylie Turley | August 4, 2008
Fascinating Utah history factoid:
Solzhenitsyn dies
Adam Greenwood | August 4, 2008
Rest in peace.
Christianity by Continent
Dave Banack | August 3, 2008
I recently read Martin Marty’s The Christian World: A Global History (2007). The subtitle is slightly misleading, as Marty recounts Christian history on a continent-by-continent basis. The last two chapters, covering the modern return of Christianity to Africa and Asia, raise issues of particular interest to the LDS experience: correlation and assimilation. [...]
Falcon 1 Launches Live Tonight
Adam Greenwood | August 2, 2008
Falcon 1 is going to try for orbit this evening. The launch will be broadcast live. This is groundbreaking first. If it succeeds, the Falcon 1 would be the first rocket from the new space industry to make orbit.
Death and Doctrine, II
Kylie Turley | August 1, 2008
Can you help me a bit more with this topic? . . . Since LDS funeral sermons were given exclusively by men before 1900, they make an interesting comparison with LDS women’s death poetry of the same time period.
Notes from all over.
Blog Administration | August 1, 2008
The week in sidebar links.
Meet Your Inner Fish
Dave Banack | July 31, 2008
I recently read Your Inner Fish: A Journey Into the 3.5-Billion Year History of the Human Body (Pantheon Books, 2008) by Neil Shubin, a paleotologist and professor of anatomy at the University of Chicago. By coincidence, Jared at LDS Science Review had posted the same book in his “Currently Reading” list. Here is [...]
The Wine of Creation
Adam Greenwood | July 31, 2008
A vineyard of red wine.
I the Lord do keep it;
I will water it every moment:
lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.
Isaiah 27:2-3
Why Bread and Water in the Sacrament?*
Adam Greenwood | July 31, 2008
Why does “communion sweet” in the sacrament require both bread and water?**
Blossom as the Rose
Adam Greenwood | July 30, 2008
Lately I’ve got interested in the idea of the desert blossoming as the rose.
Braden on Bishops
Adam Greenwood | July 30, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Death and Doctrine
Kylie Turley | July 29, 2008
I have an uneasy relationship with death.
Welcome to Guest Blogger Kylie Turley
Dave Banack | July 29, 2008
Let’s have a big round of applause for Craig Harline’s busy two weeks as a guest blogger, then roll out the red carpet for our next guest, Kylie Turley. Kylie teaches honors writing at BYU (so watch those errant commas and inscrutable relative pronouns in your comments!) and is also on the staff of [...]
iTunes Gospel
Marc Bohn | July 29, 2008
So my colleagues have caught on to my secret plan to convert them all.
The Acme of Geeky
Adam Greenwood | July 28, 2008
The Lovely One and I were idly chatting Sunday afternoon when we accidentally figured out what would be the geekiest possible activity, probably the platonic ideal of geekdom.
Revelation 3:1-13
Julie M. Smith | July 28, 2008
Previous posts in this series are here.
Audience of One
Adam Greenwood | July 27, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Christ’s nativity: a solution
Jonathan Green | July 27, 2008
From Steven Vanden Broecke, The Limits of Influence
A Final Thought
Craig H. | July 25, 2008
I’ve enjoyed the chance to post and thank those who invited me and those who commented. I already promised that my previous post was also my last “real” post, and I’ll stick to that. But I did have one last mini post in mind, a question spurred by a recent event.
God As a Longshoreman
Julie M. Smith | July 25, 2008
Without meaning to, this story (you can read it, but it is better to listen to it–it’s only a minute or so long) does a better job of explaining the nature of our relationship with God than almost anything else I have encountered.
Notes from all over.
Blog Administration | July 25, 2008
Pioneer Day
Adam Greenwood | July 24, 2008
Happy Pioneer Day. Time to break out the Nauvoo legion lapel button.
What is Our Marvelous Work Today?
Ben Huff | July 23, 2008
The development of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has always been marvelous, but our sense of just what it is doing has changed quite dramatically from one decade to another. When Joseph Smith first went to (what in hindsight we call) the Sacred Grove,
Carl and Mathilda
Craig H. | July 23, 2008
Let us praise pioneers. Of all sorts, but today especially the traditional sort. I myself am thinking of Carl and Mathilda, whom I came to know through one of those wholly unexpected spine-tingling unbelievable fantastic experiences.
Massacre is Just Around the Corner
Dave Banack | July 22, 2008
The Deseret News just ran a lengthy article giving some details on the long-awaited but soon-to-be-released book Massacre at Mountain Meadows, by three LDS historians.
What’s Your Master Status?
Craig H. | July 21, 2008
No, it’s not the same as Master Race, so banish that association from your head. Instead it’s a useful sociological concept (imagine that!) which not only has come in handy for writing my current book, but goes a long way toward explaining why we get along, or not, with liberals, reactionaries, gays, homophobes, gun-nuts, gun-controllers, [...]
Call for Papers
Julie M. Smith | July 21, 2008
Woe, Revised
Julie M. Smith | July 20, 2008
Revelation 2:12-29
Julie M. Smith | July 20, 2008
Previous post in this series here.
Book Review: The Host
Dave Banack | July 20, 2008
by Stephenie Meyers (Little, Brown, 2008). 617 pp.
WARNING: major spoilers
Stephenie Meyer’s foray into science fiction is a well-deserved best seller, and a great piece of Mormon literature. The romantic interaction between Bella and Edward and Jacob—wait, I mean between Jared and Melanie/Wanderer and Ian—uh, hold on a second…
Modern Responses to the Problem of Evil
Dave Banack | July 19, 2008
In a previous post I summarized biblical explanations for the problem of evil or the existence of suffering in the world as presented in Bart Ehrman’s latest book, God’s Problem. In this post I’ll continue with additional explanations from modern and LDS sources.
Cycling Through Mormon History
Dave Banack | July 18, 2008
For you, summer might be a succession of beaches, barbeques, and baseball games, but for one young man this summer is an extended bicycle tour of American religious sites. He has posted excellent photos of his visits to the Smith family farm and the Hill Cumorah Pageant that I’m sure you’ll enjoy. If [...]
Quorum Fun
Craig H. | July 17, 2008
A few months ago this was the calendar, word for word, sent out to a nearby quorum in a sleepy suburban ward (hint: it’s in the US).
March 15th: Concealed Weapons Class, 1pm at the [deleted] home. Joint activity with the High Priests. Punch and cookies served. (Okay I added the punch [...]
Girls’ Rules
Craig H. | July 16, 2008
My older sister was a great athlete in the old days (before Title IX), and just retired as the athletic director at a high school. Talking with her the other day gave me the idea for this post, so blame her if you don’t like it (isn’t that just like a little brother?).
I thought I [...]
Posts You Might Have Missed 4
Dave Banack | July 15, 2008
In case you were too busy celebrating Bastille Day to keep up with your required blog reading, here are a few posts to notice.
Censoring Strict Mormons
Adam Greenwood | July 15, 2008
J. Max Wilson is a bogeyman.
Church halts sending North American missionaries to Russia
Marc Bohn | July 14, 2008
Last week BYU Newsnet posted and then pulled offline an article announcing that North American missionaries were no longer being called to serve in Russia. The move left many wondering about the state of the missionary program in Russia with some tempered hope that perhaps the Newsnet article had jumped the gun on a [...]
How Sacred is Conscience?
Craig H. | July 14, 2008
Any guest or new blogger obviously runs the risk of repeating topics that have been worn into the ground. Apologies in advance if that is the case here, but it seemed to me that possibly missing in the current debate, er, discussion, over a certain issue in California and how church members ought to respond [...]
Welcome to Guest blogger Craig Harline
Nate Oman | July 14, 2008
We’re pleased to welcome Craig Harline as a guest blogger at T&S. Craig was born and raised in California, then started moving around. He has since lived, for various periods, in Belgium, New Jersey, Utah, Idaho, France, The Netherlands, Sweden, and England, suggesting that he was either in the military, in the diplomatic [...]
Gay Marriage in Space
Adam Greenwood | July 13, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Webster’s is dead, long live Google!
Adam Greenwood | July 13, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
It Begins
Kaimi Wenger | July 13, 2008
Date: Thu, 10 Jul 2008
From: [redacted]
Subject: MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT MONSON
Foundation and Apostasy
Jonathan Green | July 12, 2008
What if the historical evidence for the foundation of the early Christian church is indistinguishable from evidence for its apostasy? What if the early church and its scriptures only arose through processes of decay?
Reading Psalm 137 as a Microcosm of Discipleship
Nate Oman | July 11, 2008
Psalm 137 is one of those wonderful and paradoxical passages of scripture that contains within itself a universe.
When The Prophet Speaks
Marc Bohn | July 11, 2008
Dave’s Mormon Inquiry has a post up about a new article in Meridian Magazine today that likens the brewing battle over gay marriage in California to the War in Heaven. The comments of the post link to an editorial from the Daily Universe editorial board this week that I found pretty shocking. The [...]
Notes from all over.
Adam Greenwood | July 11, 2008
Your week in links.
Going for Gold | Olympic Moments
Dave Banack | July 10, 2008
Mormon Times posted a list of LDS athletes who are headed to the Summer Olympics. An impressive group — I hope they all make their respective teams and countries proud in coming weeks.
FTA: Dating, Jane Austen, and the Virtues of Chastity
Nate Oman | July 8, 2008
Like most rugged and red-blooded American men I have long enjoyed the work of Jane Austen.
Posts You Might Have Missed 3
Dave Banack | July 7, 2008
While the Bloggernacle was ablaze with commentary on the June 29 First Presidency letter to California Mormons (see interesting updates here and here) plenty of posts on other timely topics were zipping through cyberspace.
Why We Suffer
Dave Banack | July 6, 2008
I recently finished Bart D. Ehrman’s latest book, God’s Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question–Why We Suffer (HarperCollins, 2008). Like all Ehrman’s books, it is both informative and troubling.
Jesus Said . . .
Julie M. Smith | July 5, 2008
I’m reading a commentary on Psalms and in the section on the authorship of the Psalms, the writer has this to say:
Resurrection B.C.
Jonathan Green | July 5, 2008
According to an article in the New York Times today, evidence of Jewish belief in a resurrected Messiah decades before Christ’s birth may have been discovered.
The Glorious Fourth
Adam Greenwood | July 4, 2008
Let the eagle scream.
How to be American and Mormon
Adam Greenwood | July 3, 2008
The anniversary of Shelby Foote’s death has just passed us and the Fourth of July is almost upon us.
Go Ye Up to Mons Olympus and Prepare a Sacrifice There
Adam Greenwood | July 2, 2008
From the Archives– -more-
Korihor and the United States Reports
Nate Oman | July 1, 2008
Let’s read the Book of Mormon as a commentary on American constitutional law and vice versa. Alma 30:7-10 reads:
The Temple in European Mormon Sociality
Jonathan Green | July 1, 2008
The temple plays a role in the social life of European Mormons that is significantly different in a couple of ways from the usual American experience.
Send in the Casseroles
Julie M. Smith | June 30, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life, with apologies to Adam:
What causes the birth dearth?
Adam Greenwood | June 30, 2008
Do two posts: an intro to the demography problem, and a second post on causes of the birth dearth. Do a third on my unique explanation for the birth dearth–countries that are more conscious of the importance of demography have more kids, and that correlates with countries that had a more active eugenics movement.
The [...]
Literally Bearing Another’s Burdens
Adam Greenwood | June 30, 2008
The Inklings has introduced me to Charles Williams, who was an odd sort of Christian.
Blood on the Doorposts
Julie M. Smith | June 29, 2008
Let’s call her Sister Jones. We both taught seminary in Northern California a few years ago. I liked her from day one: faithful, funny, and willing to lend out anything from her complete collection of Sunstone back issues. (This was in the days before full Internet access, you see.)
Is There Another Approach?
Julie M. Smith | June 29, 2008
So asks Ronan. Here’s my polygamy theory–and it is worth every penny you paid for it:
An Unfortunate Ensign Article
Julie M. Smith | June 28, 2008
The July 2008 Ensign has an article titled “Cancer, Nutrition, and the Word of Wisdom.” I think it is ill-advised for several reasons.
From my Missionary Journals
Nate Oman | June 27, 2008
I was recently rereading my missionary journals.
Notes from all over.
Adam Greenwood | June 27, 2008
Here’s your chance to discuss the week’s links.
3:10 to Salt Lake City
Dave Banack | June 26, 2008
They still make Westerns because the harsh, unforgiving West of the 19th century was a land of stark moral choices. 3:10 to Yuma is just the latest example.
McCain and the Revelatory Economist
Frank McIntyre | June 26, 2008
Bloomberg reports the following from McCain about economists who criticized his (lunatic) summer gas plan:
Norman Rockwell Beyond the Veil
Adam Greenwood | June 25, 2008
The Lovely One and I went to our ward’s temple sealing assignment last night.
In Praise of the Elders Quorum Moving Service
Jonathan Green | June 23, 2008
Unless I’m carrying boxes, I’m probably not actually helping anybody.
Uncomfortable in Stake Conference
Adam Greenwood | June 22, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life.
Revelation 2:1-11
Julie M. Smith | June 21, 2008
Read the previous post in this series here.
Posts You Might Have Missed 2
Dave Banack | June 21, 2008
From the hundreds of posts that flow through the Bloggernacle each week, here are a couple of recent gems you ought to read.
Alyssa Peterson
Julie M. Smith | June 20, 2008
I kinda vaguely remember hearing about that LDS woman who was killed in Iraq awhile back.
Water on Mars!
Adam Greenwood | June 20, 2008
We have probable confirmation of water on Mars.
Notes from all over
Adam Greenwood | June 20, 2008
Here’s your chance to comment on the week in sidebar links.
Mississippi Rising
Dave Banack | June 19, 2008
CNN reported yesterday that 83 out of 99 counties in Iowa have been declared disaster areas — the scale of the flooding is tough to grasp. Those flood waters are now spilling into the Mississippi and moving south. Another service opportunity for the MIY (missionaries in yellow), who are out filling sandbags in [...]
Resolved
Julie M. Smith | June 19, 2008
“The Church is happier with doubters who go on missions and accept ward callings than with the vocally orthodox who find ways to shirk.” Discuss.
Thank you, Dr. Ulrich
Kathryn Lynard Soper | June 19, 2008
A good thing now comes to an end. We thank Wendy Ulrich for her fantastic guest posts, and wish her the very best.
I’ve just begun reading her book, Forgiving Ourselves, and I can already tell that it will be a life-changing experience. Here are some of the chapter titles:
The Spiritual Basis for Self-Forgiveness
Defining [...]
Mormonism for me, but not for thee
Jonathan Green | June 18, 2008
Comments are now open
Is a Mormon universalism possible? Or in other words, is it possible for Mormons to envision their faith as one of many efficacious paths to God? I have my doubts, but maybe there is an argument to be made
Is it okay to forgive ourselves?
Wendy Ulrich | June 17, 2008
I had an interesting conversation the other night with a man in my ward. He is a wonderful human being with a wonderful wife raising a wonderful family… one of those people you are delighted to see called as the Gospel Doctrine teacher because you know things are going to get interesting and real, [...]
Searching for a Sense of Place in Viriginia (a bleg)
Nate Oman | June 17, 2008
I am at a stage in life when I think a lot about place. After a decade or so of moving every 1 to 3 years, our family has arrived on the banks of the James and there is a very good chance that this is where my children will grow up. My [...]
Sunday School Inequality
Frank McIntyre | June 17, 2008
This week I went to an excellent lecture on inequality. Clayne Pope, retiring economist, pointed out that while income inequality in the U.S. has been pretty close to the same for the last 200 years, leisure-time is now concentrated more heavily among the poor, while education inequality and lifespan inequality have both dropped like [...]
The One True Church of God’s Love
Ben Huff | June 17, 2008
In Fuchuu, Japan, I taught a young woman who had attended a Christian school and church for some years, but had become a bit turned off. She asked us why we were out trying to teach the gospel.
The Leader of the Band
Marc Bohn | June 15, 2008
A song that is synonymous for me with Father’s day is Dan Fogelberg’s Leader of the Band.
Last Night in Suwon
Russell Arben Fox | June 15, 2008
I wrote this–the only sustained essay I’ve ever produced about my mission–about seven or eight months after I came home, while I was a student at BYU.
Making Peace with Missionary Work
Russell Arben Fox | June 15, 2008
Tweny years ago today, June 15, 1988, I entered the Missionary Training Center and began my 24 months as a missionary assigned to the Korea Seoul West Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’d like to take this moment to offer all my mission companions, every missionary I knew, both my [...]
You can’t leave home again
Jonathan Green | June 14, 2008
At the end of my junior year of high school, I caught a glimpse of my graduating student body president one last time
‘So many roads lead to a wet wipe’
Julie M. Smith | June 13, 2008
More grist for the mill here. Please read, return, and report.
P.S.–I never wash my floors either.
Notes from all over.
Adam Greenwood | June 13, 2008
Here’s your chance to discusss the week in links.
The Oddity of God’s Promises
Nate Oman | June 12, 2008
I basically pay my mortgage by thinking about contracts and promises. It is a tough job, but someone has to do. Of late, I’ve gotten to thinking about God’s promising. Consider these two quotes:
Our patchwork ward family
Jonathan Green | June 12, 2008
There are advantages to attending a ward too small for fixed wooden benches in the chapel
My Trouble with Apologetics
Adam Greenwood | June 11, 2008
C.S. Lewis said he was never less convinced of the truth of Christianity than when he had been vigorously defending it.
Unhand Me, You Villain.
Adam Greenwood | June 11, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life
Mission Transition Center?
Wendy Ulrich | June 10, 2008
Missionaries spend from two weeks to three months in an MTC learning how to be a missionary. Many have also taken missionary preparation classes, or served mini-missions to help them prepare for their new life in the field.
Returning missionaries preparing for their new life at home receive a half-sheet of counsel that says, in [...]
A Gentile Plat for the City of Zion
Adam Greenwood | June 9, 2008
I’ve just come across an interesting thinker about cities and planning who, like Joseph Smith, believes that once a city reaches around 10,000 or so of population a new city should be started.
Posts You Might Have Missed
Dave Banack | June 8, 2008
If you have been too busy with real life to do more than your required online reading here at T&S, here are a few posts you might have missed.
Growing Up in Utah
Dave Banack | June 7, 2008
I didn’t. But if you read “The Skeleton in Grandpa’s Barn” and Other Stories of Growing Up in Utah (Signature, 2008) you’ll get an informative glimpse of what it was like.
Notes from all over.
Adam Greenwood | June 6, 2008
Here’s your chance to comment.
Brigham Young in Zero G
Adam Greenwood | June 6, 2008
Brother Jonathan Goff at the Selenian Boondocks blog has a great post on what we can learn about space expansion from the Mormon experience settling the West.
“What desirest thou?â€
Wendy Ulrich | June 5, 2008
Several years ago I read a delightful book on creativity, The Artist’s Way, by Julia Cameron. It was full of interesting questions:
“List ten tiny changes you’d like to make for yourself.â€
“What would you do as a career if you had seven more lives to live?â€
“If I didn’t have to do it perfectly I would [...]
FAIR One Ups The Tanners
Marc Bohn | June 5, 2008
Score one for FAIR. Last week, in Utah Lighthouse Ministry v. Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit rejected an appeal by Sandra and Gerald Tanner’s anti-Mormon ministry over its claims of trademark infringement, cyber-squatting, and unfair competition that arose out of a parody website created [...]
Revelation 1:12-20
Julie M. Smith | June 4, 2008
Previous post here
The Mormons: Director’s Cut
Marc Bohn | June 3, 2008
Heads up for those in the D.C. area. Greg Prince, co-author of David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism, hosts a great series of events at his house in Potomac, Maryland, the next of which is coming up on Sunday, June 8th.
Walking by Faith with Popper and Quine
Nate Oman | June 3, 2008
A while ago I was having one of those oft repeated conversations about faith, doubt, and intellectual reconciliation. My thoughtful interlocutor asked, “Is there anything that you could learn that would cause you to abandon your beliefs?” The clear assumption of his question was that there was something distinctly fishy about a set [...]
A New Blogger
Blog Administration | June 3, 2008
We’re pleased to announce that Marc Bohn has agreed to become a permablogger at Times & Seasons. We enjoyed his guest blogging stint, his contributions to the side bar, and look forward to his contributions. Welcome aboard Marc!
Institutional obsolescence, and other tales of romance and intrigue from the history book
Rosalynde Welch | June 2, 2008
Last week Adam cited a widely-shared “conservative case for gay marriage.”
Rock bottom
Kathryn Lynard Soper | June 1, 2008
Today’s Gospel Doctrine lesson: the conversion of Alma the Younger.
Called to leave
Wendy Ulrich | May 31, 2008
My grandmother, mother, and I all served missions, so I was delighted when my firstborn announced her intention to serve, submitted her papers, received her call.
Little did I know.
A Thomas Jefferson Education?
Julie M. Smith | May 31, 2008
For the uninitiated, Thomas Jefferson Education (hereafter TJE) is a method of homeschooling–a method very popular among Mormons.
Notes From All Over
Adam Greenwood | May 30, 2008
The week in links.
Our Hero Discovers His Pelagian Taint
Adam Greenwood | May 29, 2008
I picked up Alan Jacobs’ book Original Sin. Good stuff.
A Post Too Good for the Sidebar
Julie M. Smith | May 29, 2008
Should be of particular interest to our SSM hounds.
Revelation 1:4-11
Julie M. Smith | May 28, 2008
Gay Marriage and Households with Kids
Adam Greenwood | May 28, 2008
A Megan McCardle McArdle guestblogger has a well-expressed version of “the conservative case for gay marriage”.
“We lived after the manner of happinessâ€
Wendy Ulrich | May 27, 2008
The other day somebody sent me a YouTube link for a comedian I’ll call Mrs. Jones. Mrs. Jones was a chubby gramdma with hot flashes – not the kind of person you usually see doing stand-up. Most of the “funny†email forwarded to me makes me sigh and hit the delete button. [...]
T&S welcomes guest poster Wendy Ulrich
Kathryn Lynard Soper | May 27, 2008
Wendy Ulrich, Ph.D., is a former president of the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists, and the author of Forgiving Ourselves: Getting Back Up When We Let Ourselves Down, recently published by Deseret Book. She is the founder of Sixteen Stones Center for Growth in Alpine, Utah, offering seminar-retreats on topics such as [...]
Decoration Day
Adam Greenwood | May 26, 2008
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
A Bastion of Mormonism
Dave Banack | May 25, 2008
Being mildly depressed about blogging at the moment, I decided to go trolling for a “good news” story to post. Here it is, a story about SVU from the SL Trib: “A bastion of Mormonism in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.”
Eurovision’s Mormon Moment
Jonathan Green | May 24, 2008
From the international annals of overachieving singing and dancing Mormons
The Mormon moment for the Eurovision Song Contest came in 1984
Book Review: The Pictograph Murders, by P.G. Karamesines
Rosalynde Welch | May 23, 2008
Murder most foul, in the strange natural world of southern Utah.
Moral Hazard in the Scriptures
Frank McIntyre | May 23, 2008
For those hoping to find more economics in their scripture study…
Notes from all over.
Adam Greenwood | May 23, 2008
Here’s your chance to discuss this week’s links.
Albuquerque Phoenix Bloggersnacker
Adam Greenwood | May 22, 2008
If there is anyone in the Albuquerque area who reads this, you are invited to watch the Phoenix touch-down over at our place at 5 pm this Sunday. If all goes well, this would be the first successful Mars arctic landing and would potentially confirm the presence of water ice in the Martian [...]
Introducing Innocents to the Fallen World
Julie M. Smith | May 21, 2008
Scene One: In the car.
Element Call for Student Submissions (July 15 deadline)
Ben Huff | May 21, 2008
Element: The Journal of the Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology is publishing a special issue dedicated to student articles.
Revelation 1:1-3
Julie M. Smith | May 20, 2008
So much for one post per chapter.
Interpretations: MSH at SVU
Ben Huff | May 20, 2008
This past Friday and Saturday I attended a very enjoyable conference at Southern Virginia University, co-sponsored by Mormon Scholars in the Humanities and the Mormon Scholars Foundation.
Vertical Farms for the City of Zion
Adam Greenwood | May 19, 2008
A while back I tried to imagine what a plan for the city of Zion would be like if we were imagining a great city instead of Joseph Smith’s town of 10,000.
Prince Caspian, a Review
Adam Greenwood | May 19, 2008
This movie was better than the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (reviewed here). Prince Caspian was a good movie.
[SPOILERS]
Platonic hymn-singing
Adam Greenwood | May 18, 2008
We have a sick daughter–so going shifts, the lovely one and I, I went to another ward’s sacrament meeting, where we sang one of my favorite hymns.
God Himself
Kathryn Lynard Soper | May 18, 2008
Lucky me, I got to talk about Mosiah 15 in my Gospel Doctrine lesson today.
You Should Write More Letters
Dave Banack | May 18, 2008
You never know what they’ll be worth someday: “Einstein Letter on God Sells for $404,000.”
Revelation 21:10-21
Julie M. Smith | May 16, 2008
Before we begin, we need to begin at the beginning:
Faith and Fame
Dave Banack | May 16, 2008
Faith and fame aren’t always an easy mix, but Mormons who hit the big time seem to be able to hold it together most of the time. At least that’s the thrust of “How Mormons Deal With Fame” at the LDS Newsroom, discussing, among other names we all recognize, the 17-year-old phenom David Archuleta.
Let’s Prognosticate
Julie M. Smith | May 15, 2008
Gas prices. Food prices. Credit crisis. Recession. Iraq. Iran.
California Judges Order Gay Marriage
Adam Greenwood | May 15, 2008
California’s Court has judicially mandated gay marriage.
Food Storage Idea
Julie M. Smith | May 14, 2008
There’s a really good conversation about food storage over at MMW and I want to throw one more idea out there, because it hadn’t occurred to me until recently that the best place to do my food storage buying was the most expensive grocery store in town.
Love Thy Neighbor … or Not
Dave Banack | May 14, 2008
I don’t read to the end of many online essays anymore — either most writing is dull and pointless or I have developed blog-induced attention deficit disorder, you decide which. But I read “Love Thy Neighbor: The religion beat in an age of intolerance” at the Columbia Journalism Review start to finish (hat tip: [...]
Apostasy and the Dark Ages
Dave Banack | May 12, 2008
Do these concepts have anything to do with each other? Apparently some Mormons think they do, hence Davis Bitton’s corrective essay “How Dark Were the Dark Ages?” (conveniently reposted at Meridian Magazine).
Flour Gravy, Mother’s Day.
Adam Greenwood | May 12, 2008
On the sweetness of Mormon life:
From the Archives: My Gifts (Whitsunday Reflections)
Russell Arben Fox | May 11, 2008
Today is Whitsunday on the Christian liturgical calendar, a holiday in honor of the Day of Pentecost. Not quite four years ago, in June of 2005, I wrote something about the gifts demonstrated on that day, and about those–decidedly less spetacular–gifts which I believe I have. I’m somewhat proud of it; I think it is [...]
Mother’s Day is Looming
Dave Banack | May 10, 2008
And for thousands of Latter-day Saints who will be delivering a Mother’s Day talk tomorrow, it is looming large. Expectations are high and scriptural sources are limited.
Heimskringla and historicity
Jonathan Green | May 8, 2008
There’s a reasonable chance that all efforts to situate the Book of Mormon over the last 180 years, geographically, culturally, and chronologically, are based on the Nephite version of the Donation of Constantine. But first, let’s talk about Odin.
IDTM
Julie M. Smith | May 7, 2008
If one more Mormon tells me to see Expelled, I am going to scream.
Shortage and storage
Frank McIntyre | May 7, 2008
With the recent spike in food prices, a three year old post demands new life. Here it is:
Clearly, were there to be a famine, a one year food supply in the basement would look really good. What may be slightly less obvious is that the presence of food storage, even if nobody ever uses [...]
Mormons and Reality Shows
Julie M. Smith | May 6, 2008
Read and discuss.
How Notions of Government Inform Sexual Morality
Adam Greenwood | May 6, 2008
This is my impressionistic take on how ideas about government influence ideas about sexual morality.
That Daguerreotype Again (2 of 2)
Ardis E. Parshall | May 4, 2008
Chapters 9 and 10 of Millions Shall Know Brother Joseph Again deal with purported photographs of Joseph Smith, including the Scannel daguerreotype.
Catholic parish registers belong to humanity
Wilfried Decoo | May 4, 2008
According to various news outlets the Catholic Church has ordered its dioceses to not allow Mormons access to parish registers any more. For decades, our Church has copied and preserved millions of pages of parish registers around the world, as part of the injunction to seek out ancestors and perform ordinances in their behalf. [...]
That Daguerreotype Again (part 1 of 2)
Ardis E. Parshall | May 2, 2008
Jared T. at Juvenile Instructor is posting a formal, detailed, academic review of S. Michael Tracy, Millions Shall Know Brother Joseph Again: The Joseph Smith Photograph (Salt Lake City: Eborn Pub., 2008), Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.
Some Notes on Religious Freedom from the Former USSR
Russell Arben Fox | May 1, 2008
An old friend of mine (a former bishop, for whatever that’s worth) whom I keep in touch with by e-mail has spent much of the past decade working for the U.S. government in different capacities in Russia and Ukraine. In response to some recent news items regarding limits on visas to the former Soviet Union, [...]
Gospel culture and the others
Wilfried Decoo | May 1, 2008
How do ‘we’ as Mormons learn to view ‘others’? We can try to answer this question from the angle of various approaches to the concept of “gospel culture”.
Janos Kalapsza “… went out to the Mormons”
Ardis E. Parshall | April 30, 2008
1848 was a year of turmoil in Europe, with revolutions in France and Italy and Sicily and Germany and Poland and Romania and Moldavia and … and … and … the list seems nearly endless.
Ladies first?
Kaimi Wenger | April 29, 2008
Some bloggernacle women were troubled by the order of the solemn assembly: First, the Priesthood voted (all the way down to the 12-year-olds); they were followed by the women’s organizations. In a comment at FMH, Exponent blog’s Maria notes, “By having women vote after the Aaronic priesthood, it seemed as if the implication [...]
The Largest Spider Web in Utah
Matt Evans | April 29, 2008
Well, probably not. But it’s the biggest web I’ve ever seen, and certainly the biggest web I’ve ever seen in my own front yard.
Bittersweet Sixteen: Part Three
Patricia Karamesines | April 27, 2008
Like many people dependent upon care from others, M can be a tyrant. For instance, sensing my anxiousness during her feedings, when it’s crucial to get enough into her to sustain her plus stimulate her slow growth curve, she’s begun extorting favors. Sometimes she’ll demand to watch her favorite video over and over [...]
The Dennis Wendt Jr. Post*: Undercover for the Lord
Ardis E. Parshall | April 26, 2008
2 August 1888: Elder Alma P. Richards, ten months into his missionary service and working without a companion, stopped at a hotel in Meridian, Mississippi and made arrangements with a porter to keep some books and clothing until the elder’s return, expected to be a few days later. Richards, on foot, left Meridian to visit [...]
Prophets and textual criticism
Jonathan Green | April 25, 2008
The Book of Mormon poses a thorny problem for assumptions about the history of scriptural texts, especially if it isn’t true
The Myth of Evolution and the Myth of the Fall
Adam Greenwood | April 24, 2008
Noah Millman concedes that the science of evolution is not incompatible with the truth of Christianity. But, he argues, the myth of evolution is incompatible with the myth of Christianity.
I think science does have implications for the persuasiveness of specific religious doctrines, simply as a psychological matter. And I think evolution through natural selection [...]
Bittersweet Sixteen: Part Two
Patricia Karamesines | April 23, 2008
So there I was, staring the lavishness of my ignorance. I saw the presence it had in the world, how it could impoverish and destroy as efficiently as the most inspired scientific breakthrough could improve somebody’s standard of living. Before M was diagnosed, I saw my ignorance in a slanted light as I [...]
Orbital Sacrament
Adam Greenwood | April 23, 2008
Kathleen Maughan Lind, Don Lind, Mormon Astronaut, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1985. 171-172:
Changing Mormon Musical Aesthetics?
Nate Oman | April 22, 2008
I didn’t blog about it at the time, although I thought about it. But now it’s up on You Tube, so here goes.
Egyptian Brass Plates and a naming contest
Frank McIntyre | April 22, 2008
If this is common knowledge I completely missed it. So I post this in memory of all those who also slept through indecent chunks of early morning Seminary.
Bittersweet Sixteen: Part One
Patricia Karamesines | April 21, 2008
Many parents with severely disabled children live life underground. Apart from society’s burbling mainstreams, they labor beneath the weight of exigent circumstances, dealing with mortal crises day by day. They monitor their child’s breathing, their sleeping, their every bodily function, often for years, developing a sense for delicate balances in their particular domestic [...]
The Two Problems with Mormon Finitist Theodicies
Nate Oman | April 21, 2008
I have been listening to the papers that were presented at the recent conference of the Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology. At the conference there was a presentation on that perennial favorite, finisitist Mormon theodicies, in this case a nicely nuanced comparison of Mormon thinking with the process theology of David Griffin. [...]
Taking the Lord’s title in vain
Kaimi Wenger | April 19, 2008
The Third Commandment tells us not to take the Lord’s name in vain. And for some reason, this practice has become strongly ingrained in Mormon social norms — I can easily name a dozen Mormons who cuss like sailors and drop “F-bombs” regularly, but who would never dream of injecting a “God” or “Lord” [...]
One Hundred Thousand – WINNER DECLARED
Ardis E. Parshall | April 19, 2008
Within the next few hours, T&S’s spam filter is going to announce that it has spared us from 100,000 offers of recreational pharmaceuticals, links to images of anatomically correct models in morally incorrect situations, promises of guaranteed wealth, solemn pleas from 12,394 persons of good moral character who need your help kindly Christian sir to [...]
Thank you, Raymond
Ardis E. Parshall | April 19, 2008
Thanks to Raymond Takashi Swenson for his slate of intriguing and challenging posts over the past couple of weeks.
BYU Studies Chronology of Joseph Smith’s life
Kaimi Wenger | April 18, 2008
If you’re not a subscriber to BYU Studies (why not?), make haste to the bookstore and pick up a copy of the latest edition. It’s a nearly 200-page chronology of Joseph Smith’s life (transcribing the chronology available online at josephsmith.byu.edu ). In the print version, events are color-coded by category as well as [...]
Is Fiction Inherently Immoral?
Adam Greenwood | April 18, 2008
“The truest poetry is the most feigning.”
A Branch Dies on Easter
Adam Greenwood | April 17, 2008
I’m posting the following from Ray with his permission.
A modest, sensible, reasonable proposal that is certain to fail
Kaimi Wenger | April 17, 2008
Utah’s NBA team needs to change its name, period. The name is silly. There is no jazz in the state of Utah. They should give the Jazz name back to the good folks of New Orleans, for whom the moniker actually makes sense, and pick a new one that actually makes sense [...]
437 Children Taken from Cohab Parents
Adam Greenwood | April 17, 2008
By now you’ll have heard about the Mormon splinter sect in Texas that was accused of a forced, under-age marriage and how, in consequence, the state of Texas raided and took away all 416 437 kids.
The Case of the Missing Pioneer
Ardis E. Parshall | April 16, 2008
Most people with even a general sense of the Mormon pioneers are familiar with their “roadometer,” a set of cog wheels fastened to a wagon wheel, which measured and recorded distance traveled without the need for a human observer to count the revolutions of the wheel.
A T&S feature I just invented in the last three minutes: Sidebar Smackdown
Frank McIntyre | April 16, 2008
Perusing our sidebar this morning, I discovered the same article linked twice, along with each linker’s distinct spin on it. Well if T&S bloggers get to rampantly editorialize in the sidebar, so should you! Feel free to sound off in the comments about the article. Personally, I am opposed to mocking French [...]
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Times and Seasons is a place to gather and discuss ideas of interest to faithful Latter-day Saints.
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Notes From All Over
- Neckties: Vector for infection (Kaimi)
- Surprising news: “The Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Lakers used the play the least in the N.B.A. last season. Only 11 percent of their offensive plays originated with the pick-and-roll.” (Kaimi)
- Judging from the new legislation in Salt Lake City, we can say Mormon leaders appear to understand the need for give and take. (Rory)
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- Ahem. Uh. Yeah. Poor choice of words at the 1:40 mark. (Rory)
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- Meet your new manual: a short history of Gospel Principles. (Dave)
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- Free lecture. Jan Shipps. Religious/Mormon Studies. Tonight. Did I mention FREE? (Rory)
- One advantage BYU has over Paris is that women can legally wear pants. (Frank)
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