This post, by Ardis E. Parshall, has gotten some play recently, here at MSP and elsewhere. Since numerous people linked to it, I thought I’d stop by to see what all the fuss was. Basically she talks about her awful mission experience and then concludes that there is nothing that can convince her that the ...
According to the philosopher Mircea Eliade, of whose work I learned at BYU, every community, tribe, or nation requires an origin myth. The account of a community’s or practice’s origin has far reaching consequences because it implies how they relate to the cosmos, which is necessary for human beings to imbue their world with shared ...
On the occasion of Ronan’s remembrance of the Coventry bombing, I am exploring theodicy with Jon and Right Trousers. I would agree with Right Trousers that the choices of the survivors can give meaning to the suffering of the victims. At least, we are taking responsibility for our actions. But since our choices cannot undo ...
Some of you might have seen the Tribune’s report about return missionary Micah Wilder who is a member of a band of Mormon converts to evangelical Christianity. Reading the Bible more closely, Wilder says, that he has discovered that the Mormon God is too vengeful rather than forgiving. Naturally, orthodox Mormons disagree. The latter emphasize ...
John Dehlin raises the question what we can do to stop the suicides of our children. Our children commit suicide because we deny them the love and respect that every human being requires to prosper. Unable to reconcile the Mormon idea of goodness and their gender, self-destruction appears to be the only way out. Views: ...
In disfellowshipping or excommunicating scholars (like Michael Quinn, Grant Palmer, and others) Church leaders create a theological paradox. Assuming that such actions are eternally binding implies that, regardless of researchers’ choices, it becomes impossible for them to obtain the benefits of the Savior’s atonement. Views: 791 ...
To Lutherans Good Friday is the most important day of the year. I always regretted that Mormons do not properly celebrate Easter. Thank heavens for Johann Sebastian Bach whose Passions relate God’s suffering like no other. Good Friday is the day that God died and if there is a redeeming feature in Christianity, it has ...
If you spend a lot of time over on the exmo side of the Internet, you’ve probably heard all sorts unflattering stories about Joseph Smith, and you probably have a good idea of what kind of evidence these stories have to back them up. (My own most famous family history as church history figure — ...
Or is this picture as disturbing and offensive as I think it is? (Click on the image to see a larger version.) Views: 910 ...
DOCTRINE[1], GUIDANCE, Or Dilution of Doctrine, or Lip service? In the last session of LDS General Conference, both Elder Oaks and Elder Faust gave talks that mentioned divorce. Views: 712 ...
I can’t sleep again. I got home late (10:30 LOL) and I was so exhausted I thought I was going to pass out. Well, I did, relishing the thoughts of sleeping in until…6 or 7 or something. But no. Four am on the dot. I keep thinking of the eulogy I’m to give on Friday ...
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect (Matthew 5:48) I stumbled across Kermit the Frog’s disturbing cover of Johnny Cash’s poignant, profound cover of Hurt by Nine Inch Nails while I was thinking about perfection yesterday. These videos affected me. Am I not laboring over an empire of ...