Mormon Bloggers

Greg West has provided me permission to republish this article from the Society of the prevention of Anti-Mormonism (SPAM). If … Continue reading »  Read More →

Sitting in Ward Conference yesterday, learning to fulfill a calling as a ward missionary, the reality is becoming how and … Continue reading »  Read More →

Facing the Future with Faith – Adapted from a sacrament talk given on July 17, 2011   Good morning, brothers … Continue reading »  Read More →

During the Saturday evening Priesthood Session of the 181st Annual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held on April 2-3, 2011, President Thomas S. Monson took issue with cultural pollution in contemporary society. In his address, entitled “Priesthood Power”, President Monson noted the following: “…We have come to the earth in troubled times. The moral compass of the masses has gradually shifted to an ‘almost anything goes’ position. I’ve lived long enough to have witnessed much of the metamorphosis of society’s morals. Where once the standards of the Church and the standards of society were mostly compatible, now there is a wide chasm between us, and it’s growing ever wider. Many movies and television shows portray behavior which is in direct opposition to the laws of God. Do not subject yourself to the innuendo and outright filth which are so often found there. The lyrics in much of today’s music fall in the... Read the rest of this entry »

Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. (John 12:13) Last Thursday evening found my family enjoying the Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant, one of the world’s largest annual outdoor Easter pageants. In Jesus the Christ the story is told of the Savior’s birth, ministry, death, and resurrection through speech, music, dance, and drama. The pageant is not a passion play focusing on the crucifixion but rather a celebration of the resurrection of the Savior. At the pageant: Jill, Rick, Paul, Jake, Sarah, Bryson, Derek Pageant History The Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant, from its beginnings as a sunrise performance on the back of a cotton wagon in 1928, has grown into a full-scale theatrical production involving nearly 1,000 cast and crew and a 9,600-square-foot stage. The presentation was not held during some of the war years but has been held every year since. The pageant is performed on the... Read the rest of this entry »

Carl Bloch: The Master's Hand. When we visited, the exhibition was much more crowded Today Jill and I attended the exhibition Carl Bloch: The Master’s Hand. Featured are five larger-than-life altarpieces. Four of these have come from Lutheran churches in Denmark and Sweden, removed for the first time since they were originally installed in the late 1800s. The fifth is Christ Healing the Sick at Bethesda, which was acquired by the Museum from Bethesda Dansk Indre Mission in Copenhagen in September 2001 and remains a part of the museum’s permanent collection. The paintings, seen in their original size, are detailed and impressive and are a must see. Bear in mind as you view them on this post that the digital images obviously do not do the originals justice. Click on the images to enlarge. The Doubting Thomas But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto... Read the rest of this entry »

James Tissot created a series of 350 watercolors of incidents in the life of Christ. Here I use some of his paintings to illustrate the birth of Christ, along with scriptures from Matthew and Luke. The Betrothal of the Holy Virgin and Saint Joseph Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 1:18) The Annunciation And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. (Luke 1:30-31) The Visitation And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud... Read the rest of this entry »

The Republic of India is the seventh-largest country by geographical area with the most populous democracy in the world. According to Wikipedia, India is home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilization and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires. Four of the world’s major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism—originated in India, while Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam arrived in the first millennium. Gradually annexed by the British East India Company from the early eighteenth century and colonised by the United Kingdom from the mid-nineteenth century, India became an independent nation in 1947. India, a pluralistic, multilingual and multiethnic society, is the second-most populous country with over 1.18 billion people. Traditional Indian family values are highly respected, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm, although nuclear families are becoming common in urban areas. An overwhelming majority of Indians... Read the rest of this entry »

The New Testament is rich in the accounts of courageous, humble, beautiful women. The same is true of the women of the Old Testament. These women shaped history with their influence, faith, and … mistakes. Of the seven women pictured here, five of them we do not know their names. We are left to associate them only with their race, deeds, or condition. The artists I have featured have made the scriptures come alive and added an additional dimension to the New Testament. Mary She Shall Bring Forth a Son, by Liz Lemon Swindle In the New Testament, a virgin chosen by God the Father to be the mother of His Son in the flesh. After Jesus’ birth, Mary had other children (Mark 6:3). She was betrothed to Joseph, Matt. 1:18 (Luke 1:27). Joseph was told not to divorce Mary or release her from the betrothal, Matt. 1:18-25. The angel Gabriel visited her, Luke 1: 26-38. She visited Elisabeth, her cousin, Luke 1:36, 40-45. Mary gave a psalm of praise to the Lord, Luke 1:46-55. Mary went to Bethlehem... Read the rest of this entry »

A recent Gallup Poll which showed that Barack Obama has the lowest approval rating, 24 percent, among Mormons has triggered considerable discussion. One pundit on Mormon Mentality authored a post entitled, “Mormons NOT Fans Of President Obama (really!?)”, and simplistically wrote off the findings as “bias” against the Democratic Party. A follow-up post entitled “Mormon Political Affiliation” acknowledged a combination of theology/practice combined with the demographics of the average U.S. Mormon. But many people who were either not alive or who had not yet reached the age of majority during the late 1960s and early 1970s missed an important sea change — the Democratic Party changed its predominant social values during the early 1970s, and those changes tend to be antagonistic towards LDS values. A brief history lesson is in order. During the New Deal era, Utah Mormons did not vote Republican. Franklin D. Roosevelt actually carried the Beehive State... Read the rest of this entry »

For our 30th anniversary Jill and I spent two days in Cedar City. Our first stop was the play The 39 Steps showing at the Utah Shakespearean Festival. The original was the 1935 British thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on the adventure novel The Thirty-nine Steps by John Buchan. The film stars Robert Donat and Madeleine Carroll. The play was adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel and is directed by Eli Simon. The Utah Shakespearean Festival website has this to say: What do you get when you blend Alfred Hitchcock with Monty Python? A hilarious mystery spoof that will keep you guessing! Murder, betrayal, and espionage intertwine with sly and hysterical nods to many of Hitchcock’s films, resulting in one of the funniest plays to ever hit Broadway. See if you can figure out whodunit as this cast of four transforms into over 150 farcical characters! It took me awhile to catch on but there are only four actors in the play. This is where a lot of the humor is involved... Read the rest of this entry »

Read the rest of this post here: Open Thread Week: Valentines Day. An open thread refers to a blog post where readers may comment and discuss any topic that they choose. Valentines Day is mentioned just to help get you started. Jill (right) and her cousin Terry in Valentines dresses (1954) In a week it will be Valentines Day. In the past I have bought my wife flowers or gone out to eat. One year I bought a new dryer and had it installed without telling her. When she went to use her old worn out dryer it wasn’t there any more. That made her happy. Not very romantic but fun. Do you enjoy Valentines Day? What have you given for Valentines in the past? What have you received? Related posts: Lending Club Open for Loans, Prosper in Quiet Period Top Ten Open Source Applications Caption Competition #3  Read More →