- Stephen C. on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, March 2026: “RL: I don’t see where it says that in the article, it looks like the lifers and leavers have a similar racial profile. Maybe I’m missing something? Gary Bergera: Agreed. It’s probably making them miss out on readership. Sometimes the titles are descriptive enough one can kind of tell what they’re about by often not, and in today’s low attention span environment you’d think abstracts would be a no-brainer. Jack: Some of that is a function of that new Journal of Mormon Polygamy. I’ve heard whispering about that Journal but nothing solid enough to repeat here in public, so I’m not sure what’s motivating a whole journal on that subject.” Apr 1, 18:19
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, March 2026: “A lot of stuff on polygamy. That seems to be all the rage right now–especially during the Nauvoo period.” Apr 1, 17:10
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, March 2026: “Thanks again, Stephen. It looks like the Journal of Mormon History may want to consider including abstracts for its articles.” Apr 1, 09:24
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, March 2026: “OK the Demographics article is enjoyable, I love anything sociology of religion. One thing I want to understand is why Whites are overrepresented in exiters? Interesting it can’t be explained generally by SES.” Apr 1, 08:11
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, March 2026: “The Demography article is more interesting to me and is available here: https://www.ryantcragun.com/the-demography-of-exiting-retention-and-conversion-among-members-of-the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-in-utah/amp/” Apr 1, 06:53
- on What Was Revealed to You In Church (Or What Did Church Lead You to Think About Yesterday), 3/29)?: “Our sacrament meeting was also essentially a musical Easter service. I think it might take us a while to figure out what to do with Palm Sunday, but I think it has a lot of potential as a holiday. We regularly have a Sacrament meeting stream, which is important for ward members who live far away (at least half of them) on Sundays when the weather is bad (most of the winter, which isn’t over yet). The stream is also useful for grandparents in another state who want to see their grandchildren’s musical numbers. I can see organizational advantages to having quorum meetings and Sunday School every week. It will require some additional tinkering with the Come Follow Me and quorum/Relief Society curriculum to make it work. Spread a talk/lesson over two weeks? Focus on one thing?” Mar 31, 19:24
- on How Many Latter-day Saints Have Ever Had An Elective Abortion? How Did They Feel About It?: “Chip, I feel sorry for you. Yes, you quoted one sentence from Elder Oaks from a long-ago 1999 address, but you omitted the very next sentence: “Our members are taught that, subject only to some very rare exceptions, they [meaning our members] must not submit to, perform, encourage, pay for, or arrange for an abortion.” Can you explain the limiting words “counsels its members” and “possible exceptions for its members” in the church’s current official statement? Please remember the old adage that we listen to living prophets, not dead prophets, or something like that. You are desperately recalling the past, but I invite you to consider the present in the form of the church’s official current statement at https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/official-statement/abortion. You may have the last word, however outdated or uncharitable it might be. I have brought the horse to water, so to speak, but I cannot and wouldn’t want to force you to drink. Best wishes.” Mar 31, 19:18
- on How Many Latter-day Saints Have Ever Had An Elective Abortion? How Did They Feel About It?: “You are using a statement that says “the Church’s position on this matter remains unchanged,” and arguing that it means that the Church position on this matter HAS changed. The Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience. To support this statement I will cite Dallin H. Oaks, who said in 2001: “The Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience.” (https://bit.ly/3NZW2tb) The Church’s position on this matter remains unchanged. And we should be teaching this doctrine in our Relief Society and Elders Quorum meetings.” Mar 31, 18:57
- on A Review: Changemakers: Women Who Boldly Built Zion: “*Louis and Eunice (1 Timothy 1:5) *Lydia (Acts 16) *Emma Hale Smith *Aurelia Spencer Rogers *Adele Cannon Howells *Chen Lin Shu-liang *Ada Davis and Mercedes Amparo *Priscilla Sampson-Davis *Ardeth Kapp *Olga Kovarova *Melissa Wei-tsing Inouye” Mar 31, 18:28
- on What Was Revealed to You In Church (Or What Did Church Lead You to Think About Yesterday), 3/29)?: “Our sacrament meeting was all musical numbers to celebrate Palm Sunday (and basically Easter since we won’t meet next week). It went well, despite yours truly singing. My wife is a convert and she misses the Holy Week rituals she grew up with, so it was fun to see the Primary children waving palm leaves while they sang, even if they were paper. It seemed a little odd not to have any speakers at all, but it reminded me that what we know about Jesus isn’t nearly as important as how we feel about him, and music conveys that well. I’m cautiously optimistic about the upcoming change to second hour. Only having 25 minutes of class time should prompt teachers to pick a single objective, hopefully by revelation, and focus the entire lesson on accomplishing it. Two short, tightly-focused lessons a week could be a good thing.” Mar 31, 14:54
