Movie/Book Reviews
John Hamer Interview-Part 1
In January 2010, John Dehlin Interviewed John Hamer on the Succession Crisis following Joseph Smith’s death. I posted part of this a few days ago when I posted about dissolving the First Presidency. One of the things I love was the discussion of the Presiding High Council. JD, “Today we’re going to be discussing a brief history of […]
Why the First Presidency Dissolves
Back in 2010, John Dehlin interviewed John Hamer on Mormon Stories. Â It was a fascinating interview, discussing LDS and RLDS church history. Â One of the interesting points that John Hamer made was his discussion on why the LDS Church dissolves the First Presidency after the death of the prophet. Â (Incidentally, in the RLDS, the First […]
Word of Wisdom in First Decade
For the most part, discussions of the Word of Wisdom on the Bloggernacle tire me out. While I agree that the modern church’s stress on abstinence from alcohol isn’t what the Word of Wisdom actually says, and it should be noted that saints in Nauvoo were encouraged to grow grapes for making wine in Nauvoo, […]
Confronting Racism-Part 2
I’ve already posted Part 1 of the Mormon Matters episode 80: How Can we Confront Racism within Mormon Thought and Culture? Here is part 2. I have previously posted excerpts from this panel discussion when I asked if 1978 was the right year, and whether the Church should apologize. The transcript below continues after Part […]
Should the Church Apologize for the Temple/Priesthood Ban?
Following up with the conversation on whether the timing of the 1978 revelation was correct, Brad Kramer and Marguerite Driessen disagreed on the necessity of whether the LDS Church should repent for the previous restrictions on black church members. Â You might be surprised at their stances. Â Here’s more of their conversation on whether an institution […]
Was 1978 the Right Year?
The priesthood and temple ban was lifted in a 1978 revelation given to President Spencer W. Kimball and the Twelve Apostles. With Civil Rights being a big issue in the 1960’s, there are many who criticize the church for taking so long in lifting the priesthood ban on black men, and the temple ban on […]
Confronting Racism with the Church-Part 1
I’ve previously posted part of this transcript when I talked about Misunderstanding Racism.  Here is the entire transcript of Mormon Matters episode 79:  See How can we Truly Confront Racism Within Mormon Thought and Culture—Part 1 at Mormon Matters.  I plan to post Part 2 as well when I complete it.  (These transcripts take quite […]
Routine Prophecy in a Church
In the lifetime of Joseph Smith, there were more than 100 revelations recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants. Â In the past 120 years, we’ve had only the vision of Joseph F. Smith (section 138), and 2 Official Declarations added–the Manifesto, and the elimination of the ban on black members to receive the priesthood. Â There are […]
Bill Russell: Nephi is Dangerous
The following comments were recorded at the 1993 Sunstone Symposium. Bill Russell spoke on the recurring theme as Sunstone called “The Pillars of my Faith”. He is a past president of the Mormon History Association. I don’t know who introduced him, but this is what the person said when he introduced Bill Russell. Introduction, “William […]
Misunderstanding Racism
With Randy Bott’s comments in the Washington Post a few weeks ago, the subject of the Priesthood Ban has become a hot topic of late. Â Jeff Spector at Wheat and Tares feels that racism is the wrong word to describe the Priesthood Ban. Â He says, “To me, there is a difference between been a racist […]
Mormon Heretic 