Sunday Sermon Restoring Eve to her rightful place Latter-day Saints can’t wait to give Mother Eve a big hug, and thank her for her courage and her vital role in the plan of happiness. She selflessly chose death, pain, suffering, and the struggles of mortality, over the never-ending peace and beauty of Eden. Thus, Eve … Continue reading “Eve and the Choice Made in Eden”
"Sunday Sermon" “The scriptures do not say how old the earth is, and the Church has taken no official stand on this question. Nor does the Church consider it to be an issue for salvation.” (Encyclopedia of Mormonism, “Age of Earth,”) The belief that the earth is only 6,000 or 13,000 years old In 1650, … Continue reading The Age of the Earth – “Science vs Religion”
Symbolic and Figurative Use of Numbers One of the challenges of understanding the Bible is knowing which words and verses were meant to be interpreted literally and which verses were to be interpreted figuratively. When I studied ancient literature (Greek, Roman, Medieval English, Old Norse) I learned that certain colors, body parts, and numbers were … Continue reading Symbolic Numbers in the Bible: 7, 8, 40, 3 1/2?
HappyThanksgiving Flour Sack Dresses Decorative Cotton Flour Sacks In the heart of the 1930’s Great Depression people were desperate. Millions were out of work. Thousands were on the verge of starvation. Nothing was allowed to go to waste. Everything was repurposed and recycled. The national slogan became: “Make Do or Do Without.” Parents couldn’t afford … Continue reading Corporate Kindness: Depression Era Flour Sack Dresses (Thanksgiving Story)
We can, and should, learn from other religions “The great religious leaders of the world such as Muhammad, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher … Continue reading Great Lessons from Other Religions – Symbol of the White Lotus
2018 January: Becomes the 17th President of the Church. April General Conference: Announces the ministering program (replacing home and visiting teaching). Announces 7 new temples . June: Begins a historic global ministry tour (visiting 8 countries in 11 days). October General Conference: Announces a 2-hour Sunday schedule (home-centered, Church-supported learning). Announces 12 new temples. 2019 … Continue reading Timeline of President Russell M. Nelson’s Key Accomplishments
"Fun Facts Saturday" The story is told of the billionaire who suddenly died. Someone asked his accountant what the billionaire left behind. The accountant replied, “All of it.” Brannan's conversion The Brooklyn Samuel Brannan was born in Maine in 1819. As a teenager, his family moved to Ohio, where Brannan became a printer. There, he joined The … Continue reading Brigham Young vs. Sam Brannan – Zion vs. Babylon
Orrin Porter Rockwell (1813-1878) Porter Rockwell is one of the most colorful characters in Utah and LDS Church history. He is memorialized in biographies, novels, articles, ballads, and monuments. Childhood protector, lifelong friend, and bodyguard of Joseph SmithBaptized June 9, 1830, just 2 months after church organizedTried and exonerated for attempted assassination of Gov. Boggs“No … Continue reading Porter Rockwell and the Utah Mormon War
"Great Quotes" Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) is an American hero and role model. Raised in slavery, he became the leading advocate for former slaves and their descendants. He devoted his life to fighting Jim Crow discrimination and championing civil rights. Washington worked in the brutal coal mines and salt furnaces in West Virginia in … Continue reading Booker T. Washington: Truth and right are not determined by a majority – Booker T. Washington
"Sunday Sermon" After the murder of Joseph Smith, several men claimed they should be the next president of the church. Sidney Rigdon made the most vocal claim. He was First Counselor Presidency. He returned from Pittsburgh, where he had gone into self-imposed exile contrary to the counsel and revelation of Joseph Smith. (Sidney seemed to … Continue reading Brigham Young -“Transfiguration” and Succession to Lead the Church
The London Edition 