- Stephen Fleming on Ark Steadiers and the Priesthood Ban: “I guess for me I was thinking about how church leaders use the “ark steadier” metaphor generally to mean not making suggestions to church leaders about making changes to church policies It seems to me that not only did Bennion and Bush respectfully make suggestions but that the leaders did make those changes and we now teach a theology on the topic in line with Bennion and Bush and not with Clark and other leaders. Dave K. I’ve also heard of a number of other people claiming to making such prayers, but I see ark steadiers more like Bennion and Bush and taking respectful action.” Jan 21, 10:55
- on 17 Thoughts About Resistance: “Thanks for all the comments. Tune in tomorrow for a guest post from a different perspective.” Jan 21, 10:01
- on Ark Steadiers and the Priesthood Ban: “I think perhaps we mis-read the story. Did God kill Uzzah for his ark-steadying sin, or for David’s sin? There are parallel stories. Didn’t God kill 70,000 innocent Israelites for David’s sin in ordering a census? And didn’t God kill us and Bathsheeba’s innocent baby for David’s sin of adultery and murder?” Jan 21, 08:51
- on Ark Steadiers and the Priesthood Ban: “Another data point / example you could include is Elder Holland. In his segment for the PBS 2009 documentary The Mormons, Holland said he actively prayed both that the restrictions would be lifted and for strength to sustain the brethren.” Jan 21, 08:40
- on Ark Steadiers and the Priesthood Ban: “I should have been more clear in reiterating what I’d said in my previous post. https://timesandseasons.org/index.php/2025/11/steadying-the-ark/ I see ark steadiers as a VERY GOOD thing. Uzzah did a very good act, and I see our church’s metaphor as those proposing help to the church as bad as being a problematic use of the story. As I said in the previous post, I feel quite certain that God did not kill Uzzah for steadying the ark. I am open to other labels for the kind of actions Bennion and Bush took. ” Jan 21, 08:37
- on Ark Steadiers and the Priesthood Ban: “We need to be very careful about labelling people “ark-steadiers”. The original ark-steadier (Uzzah) was stricken dead for his efforts and in the current environment, we cannot lend any support to such extreme outcomes. But consider what Uzzah did compared to what the folks you mention above did. Uzzah actually laid his hands on the ark to steady it. Most people today who are labeled as ark steadiers have done nothing more than point out that the ark is in a precarious position and suggest that it be steadied by somebody with the authority to do so. The only true ark-steadier that I can think of with regard to the priesthood ban (and he was just excommunicated for his efforts, not stricken dead) was Douglas Wallace, who ordained a black man on his own authority in 1976. As for Lowell Bennion, even if he taught that the ban would be lifted “soon”, he was only repeating what the Church taught (i.e., that the ban would be lifted eventually)–adding “soon” should be no more problematic than when that adverb is used to refer to the second coming. Not a message the Church wanted taught, but not objectively undoctrinal either. So I suggest that you abandon the “ark-steadier” language entirely. (To be clear, I make the same suggestion to those who use the term in an accusatory fashion.)” Jan 21, 07:39
- on Mormon Studies Books in 2026: “Seth, not really. The Clayton manuscript has been complete for a while. With the pivot to publishing through Yale (something that feels weird, given that they’ve published so many other books as a press), it’s whenever the university press finishes their reviews, editing, and preparations. My guess would be a release towards the end of the year.” Jan 21, 06:59
- on Your Reactions to Church Yesterday, 1/18: “We had Stake Conference this past weekend. While I was really looking forward to “feeling the spirit”, sitting quietly and thinking about more spiritual things – unfortunately, it didn’t turn out that way. Our Stake President is a CEO of a rather large (successful) company along the Wasatch Front. His meetings tend to take on the tone of a “Sales Meeting”; with a great deal of Rah, Rah and over the top narrative. Honestly, it was more exhausting than anything else. More and more these days, I wish we’d simply hear about and discuss the basic doctrines of Christ. I get so tired of the never – ending drumbeat of “Covenant Path”, “Gathering of Israel”, “Blessings of the Temple” and “The Last Days are Here”. The spirit becomes a punching bag….and remains unfed.” Jan 20, 16:51
- on Mormon Studies Books in 2026: “Any idea on when the William Clayton Journals will be released?” Jan 20, 13:20
- on Your Reactions to Church Yesterday, 1/18: “This year I did something I’ve never done before: I read Genesis without any reference to modern science. (I’m the son of a biology professor who grew up in the waning days of the evolution wars, so that was in my mind from an early age.) I pretended I was an ancient Israelite who thought the world was flat and the sky was a transparent dome with water above it (that’s why it’s blue, duh), and God didn’t have to correct any of that before I could understand his message–any more than he needs me to know what “dark energy” is before I can understand it now. And it was great! The poetry was beautiful, the ordering made sense, and I was able to feel God’s message more strongly than ever: I made this world, I made it for you, and I made it good because I love you. By the end of this week’s reading we’ll know why he made it, what we’re here to accomplish, and that being here won’t be pleasant, so starting with that message of love is important. Fortunately, my Sunday School class supported my approach. Our teacher is a creative writing professor, so we started by talking about origin stories: why we tell them and what we learn from them. Then we applied what we discussed to the world’s origin story, and came to the same kinds of conclusions I had arrived at on my own, including some I hadn’t considered. The question of *how* the world was created never came up. It’s not very important, so God is happy to let us try to figure it out on our own.” Jan 20, 12:40
