Category: The Church
Discussing Abortion With Your Children and Others: Please Include the Science on the Health of Women
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who understand the Church’s position on abortion or the reasons for its emphasis on the family and the sanctity of human life need to be better prepared to talk to our children and others about the issue of abortion. As we listen gently to sincere questions or concerns, we must also find the right moments to teach based on sound doctrine but also sound science.
A Terrible Time to Be Alive? Helping Our Children Resist One of the Most Harmful Lies of the Adversary
A faithful Young Women’s leader here in Wisconsin was recently teaching some of her young women about the importance of family and the sacred blessings that come from raising children. One girl raised her hand and said she didn’t think she should have any children because her teachers at school had explained that the earth is about to run our of air and water, making this a terrible time to bring more children into the world.
How to Talk to Concerned Church Members Who Are “COVID Policy Doubters” (CPDs)
Some Latter-day Saints, probably only a minority, were frustrated with a recent request from Church leaders. Some of the frustration might be lessened after carefully considering the wording of the…
Further Thoughts on the Nephite Interpreters and Mesoamerican Culture
An important new study on relationships between the Book of Mormon and Mesoamerican culture was just published on Friday by Mark Alan Wright: “Nephite Daykeepers: Ritual Specialists in Mesoamerica and…
Is the Book of Abraham Translation Dependent on the Kirtland Egyptian Papers? Revisiting The Pearl of Greatest Price
A potentially troublesome flaw in the discussion of the Book of Abraham in the generally good book by Terryl Givens (with Brian Hauglid), The Pearl of Greatest Price, is its…
Word of Wisdom Update: Be Cautious with Green Tea Extract
For some past research, I once obtained some pure green tea extract that was 98% EGCG, the widely touted “catechin” from green tea, epigallocathechin-gallate, and used it in a few…
Review of Terryl Givens and Brian Hauglid, The Pearl of Greatest Price: Mormonism’s Most Controversial Scripture
A new book related to the Pearl of Great Price has just been published by two well-known LDS scholars, Dr. Terryl Givens and Dr. Brian Hauglid, both currently associated with…
Rethinking Enemies
One of the challenges for me as I gradually prepare to return to the United States, after my eight years in China, is the animosity here. Too many people treat…
The Twin BOA Manuscripts: A Window into Creation of the Grammar and Alphabet of the Egyptian Language?
While I believe there is significant evidence showing that the twin manuscripts (Manuscript A and Manuscript B) of the Book of Abraham do not represent live dictation from Joseph Smith…
Kirtland’s Rosetta Stone? The Importance of Word Order in the “Egyptian” of the Grammar and Alphabet of the Egyptian Language
There may be an important story hidden in one of the easily-overlooked details in the always puzzling Kirtland Egyptian Papers, especially the Grammar and Alphabet of the Egyptian Language (GAEL)…
