Temple
Mapping Elections and Mormonism
“Maps are powerful tools”, said John Hamer at the 2011 John Whitmer Historical Association meetings. His remarks have be published in the latest issue of the John Whitmer Historical Association Journal (Fall/Winter 2012). He goes on to say Beyond their capacity to dazzle, maps allow historians to organize information in a completely different way than […]
The Sacred/Secret Temple
I had the pleasure of attending the closed-circuit dedication of the Brigham City Temple this afternoon. Â My family was able to walk through the temple a few weeks ago. Â While the architecture seems somewhat reminiscent of the Salt Lake Temple, it is one of the newer, much smaller temples that the church now builds. Â Boyd […]
Talking to Angels
Bonnie has written a really interesting post on whether regular people can have access to angels. Â Denver Snuffer was interviewed by John Dehlin on Mormon Stories back in February, and Denver has written a book detailing the steps to go through to receive an angelic visit. Â John introduces Denver as a “A Progressive, Fundamentalist, Non-Polygamist […]
Woodruff's Vision of the Founding Fathers
Stephen Taysom put together a collection of essays in a new book titled Dimensions of Faith: A Mormon Studies Reader. Â Topics include biographies, theory, experience, memory, and media/literature with authors such as Newell Bringhurst, Larry Foster, and Jonathan Stapley (to name a few.) Many of us are familiar with Wilford Woodruff’s vision of the Founding […]
Development of LDS Temple Worship
I received a wonderful surprise in the mail a few weeks ago.  I received an advance copy of The Development of LDS Temple Worship, 1846-2000: A Documentary History from Signature Books.  It will be released on March 24, and I just added it to my Books and Movies page.  If you pre-order, Amazon is offering it […]
Stapley/Wright Discuss Healings by Mormon Women
Last October, I wrote a post titled, Mormon Women Blessing the Sick, as a follow up to my post on Women with Priesthood in Ancient Christianity.  Jonathon Stapley was the first to comment, saying Equating early Mormon female healing with evidence of female priesthood is folly. Kris’ and my paper on female ritual healing is […]
Kirtland Temple History and Worship
There was a fascinating interview about the Kirtland Temple over at Mormon Expression. Â It was so interesting, that I decided to transcribe it here. Â John Larsen interviews historian John Hamer, and Barbara Walden, former Executive Director of the Kirtland Temple. Â Both Barbara and John Hamer give some really cool information about the Kirtland Temple, and […]
Dancing in the Temple, and Other Changes Over the Years
I’ve been reading some of the interesting changes in temple ceremonies (specifically the Endowment ceremony) in the book, The Mysteries of Godliness: A History of Mormon Temple Worship, by David John Buerger. (I talked about this in my previous post as well.) The temple is a place where we are constantly reminded that if we […]
The Mysteries of Godliness
My book club just read this book, The Mysteries of Godliness: A History of Mormon Temple Worship, by David John Buerger. I have to say that while the book is interesting, I had some real discomfort while reading the book. As an active Mormon, we have promised not to talk about the sacred ceremonies outside […]
