Author: Blog Administration

Times and Seasons has finished moving

We have moved servers this weekend, and during the move the site was temporarily not able to accept any comments, nor did we have any new posts until after the move was finished. If you can see this post, then the move is complete and you can make comments normally. New posts should start appearing shortly.

Otterson: Context Missing from Discussion about Women

Below is a letter from Michael Otterson, Managing Director of Public Affairs for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that the Mormon Newsroom asked Times & Seasons to consider publishing. Comments on various blogs over recent months about what Church leaders should or should not think and do about women’s roles in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints prompt me to provide some context from an insider perspective that may be helpful. Recently a woman posted this comment on a blog: Please understand that not [all] women who wish to be seen in all their worth are seeking to be ordained to the priesthood…. What I am finding…. is that most of these women have been demeaned and marginalized by one (and usually many more) of the brothers of our faith. They have been told their ideas won’t work. They have been told they are not important. They have been told they are lesser. The point is a noteworthy one, namely that LDS women who describe themselves as feminists don’t necessarily seek ordination, but rather to be genuinely valued and given a voice that is respected and welcomed. There are three specific criticisms that have been raised on various blogs that will be addressed here: Criticism 1: The Church doesn’t want to hear from women about painful experiences, doesn’t talk to them or only wants to hear from women who are “blindly obedient.” This is untrue. I…

BYU to Announce New Honor Code!

At Times and Seasons, we’ve been given an exclusive sneak peek of the new Honor Code, and it promises exciting changes at our favorite university. Some of the changes include: 1. All men must wear a full beard at all time. Those unable to do so will be considered to be honoring the rule if they were an acceptable attire to offset the lack of beard. Such as: 2. To avoid controversy, all male/female clothing guidelines have been merged into one. Pants, tunic, and robe are required clothing at all times outside of dorm rooms. Example: 3. It has been determined that the Holy Ghost is getting old and goes to bed earlier than in the past. However, the Holy Ghost also sleeps in a lot later than was once believed. Consequently, the curfew has been moved from midnight to 9:30 and no classes will begin before 10:00am. 4. In order to more fully appreciate church history, all students will be required to adopt and go by D&C code names. Smiths, you are now Gazelam. Folks from Ogden may be Baneemy or Mahaleel. Football players are all Shalemanasseh or Shederlaomach, which should make for entertaining broadcasts. Idahoans will be called Spudleyites. No, that one’s not in the D&C, but it should have been. 5. Students must comply with the entire Word of Wisdom, not just the alcohol, coffee, tea, and tobacco restrictions. Therefore, no meat will be permitted to be…

Best of 2010

Times and Seasons wishes all of our readers a happy and rewarding 2011. Here at T&S, we have some new 12 Questions features and the usual array of talented guest bloggers lined up for 2011. But first a look back at T&S 2010, with favorite posts from most of our permanent bloggers.

A New Blogger

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!

If I were Mitt Romney

We recently surveyed a bunch of politically savvy bloggernacle types — including some of our own T&S crew — and asked them to answer in a few paragraphs this question: “What would you say tomorrow (in the much-anticipated “Religion Talk”) if you were Mitt Romney?” Here are replies we’ve received:

A Note to Our Readers

A post recently appeared on Times and Seasons which we regret. While each post reflects the views of the individual writer and is not vetted by the group before posting, we acknowledge that each post also reflects upon Times and Seasons as a whole. Each of us bears some responsibility for the tenor of discussions here. We particularly regret that J.W. Marriott became the target of personal insult. It is specifically against our policy to question the worthiness of any church member. We would like our readers to join us in recommitting to conduct discussions in a manner that meets the standards we have previously established and that reflects our shared values as members of the Church.

So how exactly does this work with polygamy?

Apparently more men are taking their wives last name on marriage (hat tip: Stephen Thurston). And hey, this sounds like a great idea. I’m just wondering how to make it work with polygamy. Pity the poor membership clerk who has to update the records of that new member, Brigham Work Angell Decker Beaman Huntington Partridge Snow Rollins Pierce …

An Open Letter from Richard Bushman

Dear LDS Bloggers: Many you are aware of the conference for LDS Religious Studies and Divinity School students to be held at Yale University on February 16-17. The aim of the conference is to address issues that create problems for LDS students in religion and to ask what can a Mormon contribute to the debates that go on in these fields.

Ben Huff

My childhood was split between northern Virginia, outside of DC, and the international community in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. I went to high school at The Cate School near Santa Barbara, CA. I met Kristine during a year at MIT, took a great class on scripture study from Jim at BYU, and just missed Melissa in the Japan Tokyo South Mission, finishing my service a little before she arrived. I met Adam at the University of Notre Dame and completed my PhD in Philosophy there in 2006. I specialized in ethics and wrote my dissertation on happiness and friendship in neo-Aristotelian virtue ethics. I now live in a log cabin just outside of Ashland, VA, where I teach philosophy at Randolph-Macon College. I enjoy classic jazz, cooking, mountain biking, and playing ultimate frisbee. (Edit this post).

Quick technical note

Our spam filter has been on drugs lately. Several legit comments got held up as spam for a few hours until the admins let them out. Apologies if this was you. Hopefully, the problem won’t last. If it does, we’ll look into our options on the technical side.

Technical Note

I’m going to be doing a few things on the back end. I’ll try not to crash the site. At least, not for too long of a time. (And no, RJ, we’re not upgrading to slashcode. Sorry. I know, you’re going to give this post a -1).

London Calling

We are commanded to mourn with those that mourn, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort. And so, in the aftermath of tragedy and terror in London, we all join together in saying “I am a Londoner.” Our thoughts and prayers at this time are with the brave citizens of London and of England, and in particular with the many victims of the attack.

Admin Note

At the request of a father, we have taken down the two other posts that were here earlier today so that his daughter can be the center of attention on her birthday. The posts will be back up tomorrow.