Well . . . what did you think?
Month: April 2007
“The Mormons” on PBS
We have never suffered a shortage of outside experts who would explain us to ourselves and the world.
One possible solution, Julie
Bribery.
–snap–
That was me. Snapping. Wanna know why?
Modesty and culture
How much do ideas about modesty, decency, and obscenity depend on cultural context? Consider that recently, actor Richard Gere was widely criticized in India for publicly engaging in a vulgar, lewd, obscene, immodest, and indecent act. He was burned in effigy, and a warrant issued for his arrest; he was called a sign of decaying morals, and of the erosion of values. What was his crime? He kissed a woman, on the cheek, in public.
Essential texts in Mormon Studies by non-Mormon authors
I haven’t a clue.
Protest Days
Only only time I’ve ever been arrested for civil disobedience, or held up a sign during a protest, or marched and chanted in the name of a political cause, was when I was an undergraduate at BYU. Go figure.
The Man Nephi
Is Nephi an eponymous ancestor? Well, clearly, yes.
Justice for Peggy
It may not have been the worst thing I ever did, but I regretted it the longest.
Economics and the Vicious Dating Scene
Diminishing Returns: Once things start going downhill, bail. Increasing Returns: It can only get better.
Arrayed in Light
Our hymnals show changing themes through time, and the themes in older hymnals are a window into the concerns of the age. One striking theme from older LDS hymnals is the large number of funeral hymns, including several hymns for bereaved parents.
Book Your Vacation
Destination reading.
God in the Elements and God in the Market
I recently had a theological epiphany while reading a case about conditions precedent in crop insurance contracts.
What Women Need
In the article announcing the new Relief Society Presidency, the reporter writes that President Beck’s “primary concerns are the lack of self-worth and sense of identity that plague too many women, she said, adding that Relief Society functions under inspired leadership and can help counter such feelings.”
A Sermon from My Past
I recently came across a talk delivered in church by a missionary in 1994 who was about to depart for Pusan, Korea via the MTC. It was interesting (and a little mortifying) to read the words of my past self. Here is what I said:
Legal and Religious Irony on the BYU Website
I recently ran across the “Education for Eternity” website put together by the BYU Faculty Center, which collects materials on Mormonism and higher education. It is not a bad collection, and given that William & Mary has no comperable collection, I appreciate that it is online. I couldn’t help but laughing, however, when I clicked to the section on law only to find a picture of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. staring at me. Holmes is a rightly iconic figure in the law, and I assume that he was added to provide a bit of jurisprudential ambiance. On the other hand, as an avowed and articulate atheist with a streak of moral skepticism amounting at times to nihilism, there is something a bit ironic about having his bewiskered mug presiding over a list of articles by J. Reuben Clark, Dallin H. Oaks, and Bruce Hafen.
Martha’s funeral
When Martha died, I had to arrange the funeral. “A joyful exit, she had asked, and have the children sing.”
Two Quotations
Two quotations on divorce, from church leaders of different eras:
You Can Go Home Again—Maybe
Perhaps Thomas Wolfe was right, but I’m skeptical.
The Stake Conference Experience
Today we had stake conference. It was our turn for one of those newfangled and (I hope) still evolving “multistake conference broadcast” experiences; at least some of you living in the Midwest and Great Plains must have caught it also. I think this is the fourth time we’ve been part of one of these over the past five years or so in four different states. Of course, the language of our having “had” stake conference, or being “part” of it, is rather misleading; what I really mean is, we joined twenty or so others in a cacophonous side room, sat on folding chairs, alternately hushed our kids in vain or supplied them with snacks and crayons and paper, and strained to hear and see what was being relayed to us from Salt Lake City on an 18-inch TV screen. As far as meetings go, it’s not my favorite format. Still, I managed to take a few notes. Here they are, irreverent as they may be.
Kurt Vonnegut
There was a time, during my senior year in high school, when I listened to the Doors and Pink Floyd for the sake of their lyrics, and memorized modern poetry, and read Kurt Vonnegut.
Ronald Davis Bitton, 1930-2007 (Updated)
“He had dedicated his life – his time, his energy, his talents – to the greatest cause of all, the work of God on earth.†The evaluation with which Davis Bitton closed his award-winning biography of George Q. Cannon tells us what Davis considered to be the highest and best use of a lifetime, and it serves equally well as Davis’s own epitaph.
Mission Call 2.0
Called to serve—on YouTube.
Markets and Consumer Activism
With fair regularity, one hears someone talking of efforts to buy less of some commercial product, either out of a desire for global conservation or because he doesn’t like how it is produced or whatever. Invariably, he comments that his own effect on the market is small, but he wishes to “send a message” or help along some broader movement. Within a plausible model of markets. there are easily understood conditions under which this small effect is actually zero, and remains zero even if he is joined by many like-minded individuals. At which point one wonders if the “message” being sent is “I don’t understand how markets work”.
Mitt Romney, commencement speaker
Misinformation about Mormonism is nothing new, so the bloopers in Kenneth Woodward’s editorial about Mitt Romney’s upcoming speech at Regents University in today’s New York Times don’t disturb me much. What annoys me is Woodward’s argument about how Mormons should talk about themselves.
Paragraph Seven, Subpart J, Clause Twelve
WHEREAS, the living room contains Easter eggs (including eggs of the chocolate, caramel, and peanut butter varieties); and
Easter Weekend, by Eugene England
Gene England (1933-2001), Mormonism’s greatest personal essayist, wrote “Easter Weekend,” his greatest personal essay, twenty years ago. I reread it every Easter, usually on Holy Saturday. The following are only excerpts. It was originally printed in the Spring 1988 issue of Dialogue, was reprinted in the Autumn 2001 issue of Irreantum, and is available in full in The Quality of Mercy, a collection of his essays long out of print. I didn’t know Gene well. But even many of those who didn’t know him well miss him, and look forward to someday hearing his voice again.
God’s “plaiting” of evil
This will not be a commentary but a question. And I really do want some answers. I’m posting it on T&S, but I hope bloggers from all over will add insights. I want a deeper understanding and recognize that people like Jim Faulconer, Kevin Barney, Julie Smith, and others who have studied the scriptures better than I and looked at the etymology of the words can help me understand.
The Three Trees: a Folktale for Good Friday
Once upon a time, three little trees stood in a forest high on a mountain, dreaming of what they would be when they were grown.
Fallen
“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!” The real problem with Holy Week celebrations, Kristine, isn’t Nate’s theory about high versus low church and liturgy and ritual. The real problem is falling deities. Just ask any resident of San Pablo.