Comparative religion

Thinking about the Trinity

October 20, 2005 | 74 comments
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It is hardly news to this crowd that Mormons don’t accept the traditional understanding of the Godhead, the Trinity. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Visions–Medieval and Modern

August 6, 2005 | 31 comments
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I had just completed the oral defense of my admission-to-PhD-candidacy exams, which emphasized the writings of medieval visionaries and mystics. My advisor extended his hand, and with his typical wry smile, said: “Congratulations. You passed. Now, go home and have a vision!” We all had a good laugh, but for different reasons. They all laughed because they don’t believe visions are possible. I laughed because I knew how much it would unsettle them to know that I do. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Caspar Schwenckfeld: Mormon Hero of the Reformation

July 13, 2005 | 11 comments
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As much as we honor the Reformation in general, on closer inspection the individual Reformers have, from a Mormon perspective, some rough edges. Whether or not a given Reformation doctrine is closer to our views than traditional Catholic teaching had been seems about as predictable as a coin toss. One would hope that the Reformers would show tolerance for those of other faiths, but Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin all had their grumpy moments. Is there anyone that we can wholeheartedly embrace as our ideal Reformer? I nominate the Silesian nobleman Caspar Schwenckfeld (1489-1561). Be the first to like. Like... Read more »

Anabaptists II: Diverging Parallels

July 8, 2005 | 17 comments
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Despite the striking resemblance of the Mormon and Anabaptist experiences, significant differences remain. The Book of Mormon and the temple are the most obvious LDS elements without a precise Anabaptist parallel, but I’m more interested in how similar beginnings have not (yet) led to parallel outcomes. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Anabaptists on my Mind

July 7, 2005 | 19 comments
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Mormons are neither Catholic nor Protestant, we often hear, and I see no reason to doubt the basic truth of the statement. Is there any spectrum of Christian religions such that we can say, “Mormonism is one of the X churches”? Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Political versus Theological Friendships

May 31, 2005 | 36 comments
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Are theological friendships possible between different religions? At times I am skeptical. Consider the always fascinating question of which Christian denomination likes Mormons the least? Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Sectarianism vs. Assimilation

April 14, 2005 | 26 comments
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Which should we be more strenuously avoiding, and how? Clark Goble suggests that the Church in “the last decade and a half has focused on building on common ground. But that has also (IMO) had unfortunate doctrinal consequences on the population as well as I believe leading to the decrease in conversions the last 5 – 8 years.” Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Tenebrae

March 26, 2005 | 10 comments
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Yesterday at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, here at Notre Dame, I attended a service of prayer and lamentation called “Tenebrae”, remembering the darkness of the night when Christ suffered in Gethsemane and was arrested, and anticipating his death. It closed with a final candle carried out, leaving us in complete darkness, and the congregation producing a loud noise, like the rolling of the stone to close the grave. Today I had a conversation with some friends, in which we reflected on the meaning of these events, and the difference in the darkness from a Mormon point of... Read more »

Pornography my enemy.

February 11, 2005 | 69 comments
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Who can hate the devil and like pornography? Me, I hate them both. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

The Church and the Tribe

December 15, 2004 | 16 comments
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The church seems to have replaced the tribe as God’s pattern for organizing his people–or has it? When God covenanted with Abraham, the covenant was with Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 17:7-8+). This covenant was to be fulfilled in part through Abraham’s righteous leadership as a father Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »

Catholic Thought

July 6, 2004 | 19 comments
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As Latter-day Saints, we often see the world in the terms given to us by Protestants. That isn’t surprising because they are those with whom we’ve had the most interaction as well as those from among whom most of us have been converted. I’m a prime example; before I joined the Church I thought about studying to become a Protestant minister. But the Protestant view of the world isn’t the only one and it isn’t necessarily the best. We often adopt that understanding of the Reformation without reflection, not only because Protestantism is, for us, a major intellectual inheritance,... Read more »

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