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Author: Blog Administration
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.
Guest Blogger: Alison Moore Smith
We are delighted to welcome Alison Moore Smith as a Times and Seasons guest blogger!
Notes from all over.
The week in notes, belatedly.
Notes from all over.
Comment on the week in sidebar links.
Notes from all over.
The week in sidebar links.
Notes from all over.
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!
Resolution No. 2
The Primary “Hello” song:
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:
Mission Thanksgiving Meals
Here’s a post for your afternoon stupor. What were your mission Thanksgiving meals like? Tell us in the comments.
Resolution No. 1
It is the sense of Times and Seasons that the bowl system for college football makes no sense and that there ought to be a proper tournament of some sort.
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.
An unsolicited plug
Yesterday, Akismet caught its 10,000th spam since its installation less than four months ago.
Filter hiccough
We’ve been very pleased with the Akismet spam filter.
Guest blogger: J. Stapley
We’re happy to announce our latest guest: J. Stapley, a true bloggernacle fixture.
Guest blogger: Geoff Johnston
We’re pleased to announce that Geoff will be guest blogging.
Yet another tech support bleg
An SQL problem of sorts has arisen, that is beyond our limited capabilities. Bryce to the rescue, once again. I say we double his T&S salary.
Credit where credit is due
We have regular cause to be grateful to our tech-savvy readers who provide us with technical advice. Most recently, we’ve gotten some helpful tips from the blogger otherwise known as Miranda Park Jones David King Landrith.
WordPress 1.5
WordPress 1.5 appears to be running. We’ll probably have to make little tweaks in the next few days, but I don’t anticipate any major changes.
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).
An Announcement for DC-Area Bloggernaclites
Former T&S guestblogger, Naomi Frandsen has started a semi-formal discussion group for Capital-area Mormons. There first meeting will be this Saturday. Here is the announcement from Naomi:
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.