Posted in children Family gender Gospel of Jesus Christ LGBTQ Policies politics Prophets Social Issues

The Church Announces Support for a Bill Supporting Same-Sex Marriage

The Church has spoken in favor of a federal bill supporting same-sex marriage, while still maintaining the position that homesexual activity is inconsistent with the teachings of the Gospel. Here…

Continue Reading...
Baby jumps for joy
Posted in abortion children freedom health Social Issues

A Glorious Day for Life: The Courage of the Supreme Court in Rejecting the Bad Law and Bad Science of Roe v. Wade

One of the darkest chapters of American history, one that has caused the unnecessary deaths of millions of the most vulnerable and innocent among us, has just become a little brighter with a genuinely courageous Supreme Court ruling today that overturns one of the most egregious examples of bad law and bad science in recent decades. This doesn’t make abortion illegal, though. It just leaves the decision to the states. It’s not a huge change for the right to life, but an important decision nonetheless.

Continue Reading...
Posted in Critics freedom government health politics Society

Zeal Without Data: Blaming the Church for Utah’s Allegedly Low Vaccination Rates

Romans 10:2 speaks of those who “have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.” Psalm 19:2 in the NET (New English Translation) tells us that “It is dangerous…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Business COVID freedom health Society

Medical Tyranny? When Your Government Tells You to Abandon Freedom and Personal Choice, It’s Time to Speak Out

Victory Boyd The mainstream media has largely ignored a chilling story about disrespecting the religious beliefs of a black woman, Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Victory Boyd. After being hired…

Continue Reading...
Posted in China Communism freedom Media politics Social Issues

Embracing C3ns0rsh1p: A Survival Guide with Helpful Input From China

I marvel at the shock and outrage of some conservative voices as their posts, tweets, and entire websites are progressively downgraded in search visibility, flagged as “fake news,” demonetized, deplatformed,…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Business Critics Leadership Policies Provident Living The Church Tithing

The “Hoarding” Church

Hordes of critics are wringing their hands, often gleefully, about the uncharitable “hoarding” of the Church, based on shocking claims that the Church has been saving some of the money…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Book of Mormon Books freedom Social Issues Society

Review of Dr. David Charles Gore’s The Voice of the People: A Valuable Approach to Dealing with Political Divides

David Charles Gore, The Voice of the People: Political Rhetoric in the Book of Mormon (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute, 2019). 227 pages. As one interested but perpetually disappointed…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Book of Mormon Critics General Leadership Scripture Social Issues The Church

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…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Antiquity Book of Mormon politics Social Issues Society

The Town of Palmyra vs. the City of Helam: A Subtle but Meaningful Contrast in Communities and Culture

A couple days before Christmas when it was Joseph Smith’s birthday, I reflected briefly upon his life in rather small towns in New York and elsewhere prior to publication of…

Continue Reading...
Posted in Uncategorized

Democracy in the Ancient Americas? Maybe Not So Ridiculous After All

The Book of Mormon has often been criticized for its introduction of a form of democracy during the rule of judges era starting around 90 BC. Instead of a potentially…

Continue Reading...