- Kent Larsen on A “Great Work” in our Meetings (Or What Did Church Lead You to Think About Yesterday), 8/2: “Here’s a few of my thoughts in reaction to what I experienced in Church yesterday (8/2): I’m on vacation and attended an unfamiliar ward, and I was surprised to see that the deacons were sitting on the stand. At first I wondered if this was some kind of ‘’ Unnecessary Spiritual Hierarchy’’, as Stephen C. recently discussed here. But then I also remembered my own experience as a deacon, and thought it might also help parents and others keep an eye on them. Even for those who are usually on the stand, its harder to spend the entire meeting watching videos on your phone if everyone can see you. A couple of the speakers in Fast and Testimony meeting had quite a lot of personality. That undoubtedly makes the meeting more entertaining, but I’m not sure that’s always good. Are we there for the entertainment? Or for spirit? Of course you can have both, but I worry when you don’t. Another speaker mentioned running into a friend who asked him, “do you really like going to church?” The assumption that seemed to be behind this, as far as I could tell, was that there was something wrong if you didn’t like going to church. I’m not sure it’s that simple. While in these posts I’m suggesting that you can get something out of, and even enjoy, church even when its not as we expect, I also don’t want to put all of the responsibility on the attendee. Those who give talks or lessons, or plan the meetings have a responsibility as well, and they don’t always put the effort in that they should. An RM of a couple of years said that “coming home from my mission was the hardest thing I’ve done.” By chance I asked another recently returned missionary about that later in the day, and was told that the transition home was not a problem at all. And that matched my experience also (of many years ago). This is something specific to each individual — like church — and IMO we should realize that there are a wide spread of experiences, all of which are valid. ” Aug 3, 12:46
- on The “Irascible Old Pepper Box”: Kerry William Bate on Pioneer John Steele: “Dr. Evil McFiendish was aware of the metaphor. “Sooner than I would be driven I would let them all have all the steel that was in me,” he wrote of the Illinois mobbers,” Aug 3, 09:33
- on The “Irascible Old Pepper Box”: Kerry William Bate on Pioneer John Steele: “Steel yourself, Jonathan. The truth is often stranger then fiction.” Aug 2, 18:16
- on The “Irascible Old Pepper Box”: Kerry William Bate on Pioneer John Steele: “Oh, come on. A rigid enforcer, sent to the Iron Mission, and you name him “Steele”? That’s like calling the villain of the story “Dr. Evil McFiendish.” Who comes up with these names, anyway?” Aug 2, 15:34
- on A Review: The Deseret Alphabet: A Fixed and Unalterable Sound: “Hey, Shosted was my home teaching companion in Urbana, lo these several decades ago!” Jul 30, 14:32
- on Second Nature Reactions (Or What Did Church Lead You to Think About Yesterday), 7/26: “Anonypup: I like your reaction to the A/C issues in the building. No one can easily control things like that, so you might as well find a way to see what you can get out of it anyway. Maybe learning to live without A/C on occasion has a value. jader3rd: Your talk sounds great. I’m glad your talk was a response to the assigned GC address instead of a summary. That’s valuable!” Jul 30, 10:50
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, July 2026: “That’s a good point about the Dominican Republic, at least in regards to the natural disasters. Two very different backgrounds and contexts, if a natural disaster affects both of them in a similar way that’s reasonably strong evidence for the Durkheimian hypothesis. (Although of course the DR isn’t a control for political turbulence).” Jul 30, 08:47
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, July 2026: “The Haiti study seems problematic in a variety of ways. For example, who the mission president was and what areas he was emphasizing (reactivation, baptism numbers, baptism quality) affects baptisms. Because of Haiti’s social and political instabilities, and its susceptibility to natural disasters, the study’s conclusions would not be particularly relevant in other locations. To compare yearly baptism without considering retention seems of questionable value. I wonder if a more useful study might be to compare baptisms (and retention rates) in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. They share an island. On the subject of aid to Indonesia, there’s an obvious solution to Christian aid. Take the labels off. Are we providing humanitarian aid or are we in a PR campaign?” Jul 29, 20:06
- on A Review: The Deseret Alphabet: A Fixed and Unalterable Sound: “I agree that this is a terrific book, scholarly yet approachable. I was astonished to learn how complex the story is and how rooted in Mormon utopianism. Great review!” Jul 29, 16:21
- on Second Nature Reactions (Or What Did Church Lead You to Think About Yesterday), 7/26: “My thoughts about church on Sunday: I gave a Sacrament Meeting talk. I was asked to talk about Elder Chi Hong Wong’s Remember, Remember General Conference talk. Instead of focusing on the five Book of Mormon Remember, Remember’s (they did get honorable mention), I talked about how Elijah and Elisha performed many super natural miracles, yet they didn’t lead to conversions, but if we study scriptures and remember our personal experiences, it gives the Holy Ghost opportunity to teach and convert us. There were many compliments afterwards.” Jul 28, 22:36
