In an interesting study that was released today, researchers at Vanderbilt University report that it appears that people who really have problems with presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s religious beliefs cover that problem by saying that they believe he is a “flip-flopper.” Apparently, ingenious Americans are finding the flip-flopping charge to be more socially acceptable than just saying ‘Mitt’s a Mormon, and that disqualifies him from being president.’
Blog
Nephite money and “coinage”
For years, critics of the Church have attacked the Nephite “coinage,” mentioned in Alma 11:3-19, claiming that this in itself makes the Book of Mormon fiction [See Allen Wyatt’s blog, “Coins in the Book of Mormon.”]. Really, I don’t see what the fuss is about. [Read more…] about Nephite money and “coinage”
The Kirtland Safety Society’s collapse is significant!
To many people, the collapse of the Kirtland Safety Society is a “deal breaker” for Joseph Smith’s Prophetic calling. After all, wouldn’t God make sure a bank set up and run by a Prophet won’t fail? Not necessarily. God uses things (and people!) to accomplish His purposes, and, when His purposes are accomplished, those things (and people) must necessarily wane from the spotlight. When John the Baptist’s job as harbinger for the Saviour was complete, God didn’t even spare his life. Why should He then spare a bank when its job of financing the Kirtland Temple was complete? [Read more…] about The Kirtland Safety Society’s collapse is significant!
A Refreshing Sorta-Mormon Celebrity
An interesting article from GetReligion.org came across the wires today. I know there are lots of people who play the “which celebrity is Mormon” game. This is a celebrity I never knew about; seems Katherine Heigl spent a good part of her youth in the Church.
Thomas Alexander’s Arrington Lecture on the MMM
In September of 2006 I had the exhilarating experience of attending Dr. Alexander’s coverage of Brigham Young’s post Mountain Meadows Massacre investigations. Furthermore, I got to break the news of the event to Bloggernacle as Clark Goble and the rest of the crew at the Millennial Star allowed me to do a guest post. In the interest of balance, I will share two excerpts from Dr. Alexander’s now published paper, that paint contrasting pictures of Brigham Young’s response to the Massacre.
[Read more…] about Thomas Alexander’s Arrington Lecture on the MMM
Ad-Hoc Book of Mormon Geography
I can’t tell you the number of times over the past five years that I have heard critics (and some Mormons) say something along the lines of “Mormons have always believed that the Book of Mormon took place in all of North American and South America, with the Isthmus of Panama as the ‘narrow neck of land.'”
Lawrence O’Donnell’s Charges of Rape
Graph by Gregory L. Smith. Used with permission.
Getting Into Heaven
What does it take to get into heaven? Interesting question.
Every six months I join thousands of others going to General Conference. Every April and October that means that I get to visit with the street preachers, who (in the name of Christianity) are more than happy to consign people to hell. After seeing them every six months however, they’ve gotten a bit used to me and I’ve gotten a bit used to them. We aren’t sending Christmas cards to each other, but it’s not unusual to wish each other well. (Other than the going to hell thing, of course.)
Preparing for Your Temple Tour
In an earlier post on this blog I referenced an article published by Mormonism Research Ministry (MRM), a professional anti-Mormon organization. The article, entitled Preparing for Your Temple Tour, presents the reader with questions to ask during an open-house tour of a temple. In the comments to my earlier blog post, Marc asked the following:
“Is there a rebuttal of the points made on the ‘how to prepare for a tour of the temple’ site anywhere? It would be interesting to read responses to it.”
Good question, Marc. I wasn’t able to find any single document that address this particular page on MRM’s site. However, there are responses to the criticisms that Bill McKeever, the article’s author, raises. I thought it might be interesting to examine the article and provide a few answers.
Temples in the Book of Mormon
Some critics, particularly Evangelical Christian critics, have pointed out in the past that it is inconceivable that the Nephites could have built temples in the New World because “real Jews” would never do that in violation of their law.
