Mormon Heretic
From Awkward to Awesome Compassion
My sister died of a brain tumor in 1998, and my brother died in a car crash in 2006. This past summer, my other brother had hearing and balance problems, and has learned he also has a tumor growing in his ear canal. His prognosis is pretty good–the tumor is easier to remove than my […]
Are Cops in Schools a Good Thing?
With the recent school shootings, many have called upon armed police officers to be stationed in schools as a protection measure for students from school shooters. Of course nobody wants mass shootings. Many of the people calling for police officers don’t seem to address the issue of how much extra tax money it will take […]
Bednar: “Priesthood is not Male”
Elder and Sister Bednar recently addressed temple workers in Utah County. I received some notes from the address in which Elder Bednar talked about keys of the priesthood. I was told he spoke quickly, and often said “put your seatbelts on.” These notes are from someone trying to write as fast as possible, and some […]
Lester Bush Looking Back 40 Years
Lester Bush gave the McMurrin Lecture at the University of Utah on Oct 8, 2015. These are my notes from his lecture. He discussed the changes over the last 40 years since he wrote his groundbreaking article Mormonism’s Negro Doctrine. Paul Reeve introduced Bush. (I tried to make this as readable as possible–some parts may […]
White Dudes Talk about Race
I attended Black, White, and Mormon, “A CONFERENCE on the EVOLVING STATUS of BLACK SAINTS WITHIN the MORMON FOLD” at the University of Utah a few days ago. I took a lot of notes from the speakers, and had planned to give an overview. Lester Bush gave an outstanding speech Thursday evening. I should have started with his […]
Church for Saints and Sinners
I really enjoyed an interview a few weeks ago with Nadia Bolz-Weber. She is a Lutheran Pastor who founded The House of All Saints and Sinners, and she prides herself on literally welcoming the outcasts to her church. These people include junkies, drag queens, and transgender. Here are some excerpts from the interview. How is she […]
Sanders Appeals to Conservatives
Bernie Sanders is a socialist. Yup, I said it. Apparently Karl Marx thought that Socialism leads to Communism (as is the USSR – Union of Soviet Socialist Republic) or Naziism, which was headed the the National Socialist German Workers’ Party. But the opposite seems to be true. Both Naziism and the Soviet Union have died, although certainly […]
Why They Don’t Need Heavenly Mother
“Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose”, so states the Proclamation on the Family. “ALL HUMAN BEINGS—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents.” Many feminists want to talk about her. The funny thing about this, […]
Your Thoughts on Kim Davis
Kim Davis, county clerk in Kentucky, has made headlines with her refusal to issue marriage licenses to both gay and straight couples applying for marriage licenses. I was surprised to learn that (1) she is a democrat (I’ll bet she has more republican supporters and Democratic haters than any other person in America), and (2), even […]
Birth of the Devil
Abraham is known as the father of monotheism. Growing up in a culture of polytheism with both good and bad gods, Abraham declared that there was only one god, YHWH. Egyptologist Kara Cooney has narrated a Discovery Channel series (now on Youtube) has said that archaeological evidence has shown that ancient religions have always been […]
Mormon Heretic 