Are the United States substantially a moral union–a union on moral questions? This question has bearing on what belongs in the Constitution.
Around the blogs
A few posts that I’ve noticed of late: -Bob Caswell at BnL asks how we tell the difference between doctrine and history. E.g., why is the Word of Wisdom doctrine while polygamy is merely history — and how are these decisions made? -Kathleen at some-other-blog writes on free agency and choices: How does our situation influence our choices and our agency, and how does that combination influence the consequences of our choices? –Lynette at ZD asks what it means to translate Christ’s life into our own actions. “I don’t think the question, ‘what would Jesus do?’ is always all that helpful in this endeavor,” she writes. “A more useful question, perhaps, is ‘what would Jesus want me to do?’”
Church asks members to support specific marriage amendment
Letter from First Presidency of the Church to Church Leaders in the United States We are informed that the United States Senate will on June 6, 2006, vote on an amendment to the Federal constitution designed to protect the traditional institution of marriage.
Expecting Kangaroo Fur
The feel and smell of kangaroo fur is a central part of my understanding of Mormonism.
Living in the Weimar Republic
Weimar Germany was a tremendously sophisticated and creative place.
Peace
It happened last night, around midnight, on a near-empty gym floor, after I took a break from grading exams to go work out for a while. I’ve found that I can’t control these things, really — I just take them where they fall, and sometimes, wonderfully, they fall on me.
Sunday School Lesson #21
Lesson 21: 1 Samuel 2-3, 8
From the Archives: Jello and the Saga of the Restoration
I don’t really believe in coincidences since my last visit to Palmyra, New York, where I learned of the deep relationship between jello and Mormonism
And Who Is My Neighbor?
This morning the five-year-old was first, in the kitchen just before nine.
Utah has the highest percentage of Utahns in the entire country . . .
“Utah has the nation’s highest rate of depression among thirty-seven-year old ambidextrous Battlestar Galactica fans named Zeb.” (That’s based on rock-solid statistical statistickizing.) However, “Utah [also] has the lowest rate of Tuesday afternoon divorce of any mountainous state located west of the Mississippi.”
Peak oil and taxes
On the Urban thread, Jonathan Green pointed out that the major issue with oil scarcity may not be how much oil we have in the ground, but how much we can pump in a given year. If we are maxed out on supply for a year, any oil disaster creates a huge crunch.
Motherhood and Priesthood–Take 57!
I think that motherhood and priesthood are parallel; I know that many of you don’t. And one argument against my position that I see frequently is that you need the cooperation of the opposite sex (not to mention the blessing of fertility) to be a mother but not to be a priesthood holder. I’ve never found that argument persuasive, but until now, I haven’t been able to articulate why.
The Da Vinci Code Movie: Better Than the Book
My wife and I read The Da Vinci Code two years ago. Describing the book on T&S, I used "clumsy," "tedious," and "implausible" in one sentence. When I saw that the film was getting panned by the critics, I was not very excited about seeing it, but Friday is "date day" for my wife and me, and we decided to judge for ourselves. I thought the movie was better than the book. Much better.
Favorite Neglected Scriptures
There are a few passages of scripture that, it seems to me, get surprisingly little play in Mormon discourse, despite the fact that they speak clearly and forcefully about issues of interest.
Mormon History Goes to Court
Earlier this week the Utah Supreme Court issued its opinion in State v. Holm. If you are interested in Mormonism, law, history, or (best of all!) Mormon legal history, you ought to read it.
Sunday School Lesson #20
Lesson 20: Ruth; 1 Samuel 1
Infallibility through finality
Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson once famously remarked, “We are not final because we are infallible, but we are infallible only because we are final.” Does this adage apply to the church as well?
True Neighbors
Suppose that you splurged for the $6 version of the Church’s scriptures on CDROM. It has various ancient language toys that I am in no position to evaluate but am happy to play with. It also has a fun little tool such that when you do a search, you can click on a tab “Sort by Neighbors”. Ever wonder what that did?
Sunday School Lesson #19
Lesson 19: Judges 2; 4; 6-7; 13-16
For a Revival of Mormon Private Law
Yesterday saw an interesting thread at BCC on the question of what sorts of procedures could we imagine for creating better feedback from members to leaders within the Church.
Sunday School Lesson #18
Lesson 18: Joshua 1-6, 23-24
The Opportunity and Tragedy of Immaturity
To a large degree Mormonism is about the recapitulation of the past.
Salting the water
If you’ve had any cooking training, you almost certainly were told to salt the water in which you cook vegetables. It turns out that, objectively/scientifically, it doesn’t matter whether you do.
The why and when of baptism
How prepared should a person be before being baptized? How long should this preparation take? Recently the permabloggers had a brief e-mail exchange on this topic. The participants found it interesting to submit it to our broader forum.