Category: Cornucopia

In the last few weeks, Chris Bigelow and I have been putting the finishing touches on MORMONISM FOR DUMMIES, which is part of the ubiquitous yellow-and-black Dummies series. It’s been a serious challenge to write a book like this, which aims to present the faith in an accessible, entertaining format whille remaining reverent about sacred…

Thank you all so much for your insightful comments on the question of inclusion vs. exclusion in Mormon theology, and your helpful references to sources and talks. I might have to come to this site for assistance every time I am asked to speak somewhere! As some of you know, this issue is very close…

I’ve been asked to speak at an interfaith gathering next month, and I’d love your help as I prepare my remarks.

I sometimes have a beef with religious art because of the assumptions that the artist must make about the scriptures in order to complete her/his work. This is an interesting corrective. I have a poster-size version of it, framed, and I like it.

Professor Brandie Siegfried has agreed to take time from her busy writing schedule to guest blog for a couple of weeks. She is a professor in the English Department at BYU, teaching Renaissance literature, early modern women writers, gender studies, and Irish literary history. She did her Ph.D. work at Brandies University and has been…

Further proof that some at BYU need serious help in figuring out what is offensive and what isn’t.

There has been a great series of posts at Mirror of Justice about whether Catholics should create, or demand, their own political party — one that incorporates Catholic ideas and rejects the baggage that both major parties bring to the Catholic voter’s table. The discussion starts here with a discussion of Catholic politics and kicks…

Having a Greek word in the title is designed to give this post an auro of intelligence that it doesn’t deserve, but it also points toward an interesting question: Why do we care for the poor? Over at Aurochs and Angels (by the way, what is an auroch?), AA suggests that the alms giving is…

Hello friends, Does anyone else TiVo General Conference, and if so, how much of it do you watch and which parts do you skip? I ask because I just enjoyed the sybaritic pleasure of watching GC from home in my yoga duds, and I must say there’s no comparison between that experience and having to…

Reader Jeff Cook writes in to suggest that we mention Wikipedia. That’s a good idea. Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia which is edited by its readers. For example, if you think that the page on Mormons is inaccurate, you can edit it yourself. Or if you think that something is missing — note the…

BMS: Alma’s Mission MBM: Alma’s Mission

We’re excited to have Jana onboard for the next few weeks. Here’s her bio: Jana Riess is the Religion Book Review Editor for Publishers Weekly magazine, and is also the author of The Spiritual Traveler: Boston and New England and What Would Buffy Do?: The Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide. She is currently co-writing Mormonism…

Hello friends, I hope you’ll be patient with me, as this is my first foray into the nebulous world of blogging. I tend toward the Luddite end of the technology spectrum (and am married to a science guy who is currently getting a doctorate in engineering!), so I’ve shied away from anything more demanding than…

I cleaned the church building the other day, with the other High Priests. My job was to vacuum the chapel. As I was doing so, the organist came in to practice. She plays well, and she played hymns that I like, so it was pleasant. But as she began to play “Jesus, Lover of my…

I’m a little behind here because we took a break from our regularly scheduled Book of Mormon FHEs to have one on using kind words. (Care to imagine why?)

I have a unique opportunity and I need some help taking full advantage of it.

Want to discuss General Conference? Use this thread, but please remember that the T&S Comment Policies still apply.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf and David A. Bednar (President of BYU Idaho) were just called as the new apostles.

Here’s Luke 11:27-28: And it came to pass, as [Jesus] spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God,…

The relatively new LDS blog Nine Moons continues to roll, as Amy discusses the ethical and spiritual issues with Mormons who accept the financial benefits of government “loopholes.” She suggests that this behavior may be particularly common among church members. (I won’t way that she’s wrong). It’s a very interesting question: Is it honest to…

It’s General Conference time, which means it’s also the time for mission reunions in Utah. There’s no rule which says you can’t have a reunion at some other time or some other place, of course, but this seems to be the custom which has evolved. More power to it, I say. That is, in principle.…

The House of Representatives today voted on a Federal Marriage Amendment. A large majority of representatives voted in favor of the amendment, but it did not receive the 2/3 majority necessary to amend the Constitution. In a textbook example of media bias, the AP story on the vote begins, “The House emphatically rejected a constitutional…

Authority is a central concept in Mormon theology and practice. It is an issue that anyone thinking about Mormonism must come to grips with. The well-worn criticism that Mormonism is overly authoritarian or that Mormons place “too muchâ€? faith in their leaders misses the point. Mormonism is inherently authoritarian. Concepts of authority are part of…

Andrew Florence, a friend of mine doing an ER residency, emailed a journal entry to some of his friends. He has given me permission to post it here: This morning I cried for the second time during residency. Neither time has been in the ER.