Author Archive

Craig H.

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 corps, or never had a real job. It was the latter. By profession he is a historian, especially of religious history, and especially of the Reformation in Europe. Others doubt the jobness of this job because it requires a lot of travel to Europe and frequent restorative visits to cafés. He doubts the jobness of the job because he is also a historian by inclination, as he tends to view just about any question or issue or topic in historical terms, just for fun. This inclination and the frequent travel have convinced him that you see your own world a little more clearly when you leave it regularly, both in time and in space. For other fun he reads a lot of novels and religion (favorites include E. M. Forster, J. F. Power, Anne Tyler, Truman Capote, Peter Brown, and especially, if not very originally, Jane Austen), plays a lot less sport than he used to or than the AMA recommends, follows his kids around, watches foreign films, and talks with willing family and friends. He has made mistakes in life which still make him weep (he won’t discuss these), and he has had fantastic experiences which he never could have dreamed up himself (he might discuss a couple of these). Finally, he holds the distinction of having known Wilfried Decoo for over 30 years, since the time that Wilfried was a young linguist and district president facing inhuman challenges, such as laboring single-handedly to stop missionaries from their nasty habit of slipping from proper Dutch in order to try out outrageously fun expressions they had heard in Flemish dialects—expressions that they rarely understood, and that usually turned out, of course, to be vulgar. But at least it gave Wilfried a lifetime of good stories for T&S.

Just One More Cigarette

Monday, February 8th, 2010
Just One More Cigarette

This story is going to make Wilfried wince, because he’s heard too many like it, but I finally need to tell it to someone besides myself. 14 people like this post.Like  Read More »

Posted in Cornucopia | 42 Comments »

Putting the Sunday in the Super Bowl

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010

Some time ago on T&S, I survived a discussion on the history of Sunday (got no t-shirt though). That knock-down drag-out event included some talk of sports, but overall was pretty general. In light of the upcoming Super Bowl I thought it might be fun(?) to look at the rise of Sunday sport more... Read More »

Posted in Comparative religion, Cornucopia, Mormon Life | 57 Comments »

Creativity as a Religious Virtue

Friday, May 15th, 2009

I usually place empathy at the top of my ladder of desirable religious virtues because I see its presence as the cause of most good and its absence as the cause of most bad. But the more I’ve thought about it, the more it seems that even empathy depends on yet another important quality:... Read More »

Posted in Cornucopia, Mormon Thought | 12 Comments »

Hey, Are Those Real Miracles?

Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009

It happens every year. I’m walking past the library, or some other building loaded with windows, and one of my students bursts out the door and runs toward me with eyes dilating, hair frazzling, nerves fraying, arms waving, and body quaking to ask, out of breath, did these things really happen? “Things” referring to the... Read More »

Posted in Comparative religion | 22 Comments »

Your Easter Sermon: Food Storage

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

Every year on T&S there appears around Easter time a certain amount of Holy-Week envy. I haven’t seen any this year, and so I thought I’d take my turn to express a little. Or better yet, maybe this would be a good opportunity to get a sense of what is going on in Mormon... Read More »

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Posted in Comparative religion, Mormon Life | 45 Comments »

Hugs and Kisses

Monday, December 15th, 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... Read More »

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Posted in Church History, General Doctrine, Mormon Life | 6 Comments »

Teaching the Reformation

Sunday, October 19th, 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... Read More »

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Posted in Mormon Studies, Philosophy and Theology | 34 Comments »

When Being Right is Wrong

Tuesday, September 23rd, 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... Read More »

Posted in Mormon Life | 18 Comments »

A Final Thought

Friday, July 25th, 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. 0 people like... Read More »

Posted in General Doctrine | 21 Comments »

Carl and Mathilda

Wednesday, July 23rd, 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. 0 people like this post.Like  Read More »

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Posted in Church History, Mormon Life | 22 Comments »

What’s Your Master Status?

Monday, July 21st, 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,... Read More »

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Posted in Mormon Life | 57 Comments »

Quorum Fun

Thursday, July 17th, 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 home. Joint activity with the High Priests. Punch and cookies served. (Okay I added the... Read More »

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Posted in Mormon Life | 108 Comments »

Girls’ Rules

Wednesday, July 16th, 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... Read More »

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Posted in Mormon Life | 59 Comments »

How Sacred is Conscience?

Monday, July 14th, 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... Read More »

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Posted in Mormon Life, Mormon Thought | 40 Comments »

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