Movie/Book Reviews
My Perspective on Polygamy
I have long avoided talking about polygamy on my blog. It is a source of tremendous discomfort for me, but it keeps coming up, so I want to give my impressions about this early practice in Mormonism, as well as my beliefs and reconciliations.
A Constitutional Theocracy
The Faithful Dissident asked a very interesting question in my last post. Back to Joseph Smith and theocracy, there’s something that puzzles me about Quinn’s claim. If JS truly intended on establishing a theocracy in America, wouldn’t that be in complete contradiction to what his religion proclaimed (i.e. that the US Constitution was a God-inspired […]
The Nauvoo Expositor – A Different Perspective
So, in reading The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, the author D Michael Quinn makes a very interesting claim. While most people think the publication of polygamy was the reason that Joseph Smith ordered the destruction of the printing press, Quinn makes a more startling reason–that Joseph was attempting alliances with foreign nations, and he […]
Women and the Melchizedek Priesthood
I was first introduced to the idea of women holding the Melchizedek Priesthood in the book called Sidney Rigdon: Portrait of Religious Excess by Richard Van Wagoner. Sidney claimed that Emma Smith was the first woman to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood (as I blogged about in Part 5). The current book I’m reading, The Mormon […]
My 2nd Scoop: A Curious Verse
I recently made the acquaintance of Morgan Deane, who runs a blog called Warfare and the Book of Mormon. Morgan is a scholar in Military History, and has used some of his expertise in analyzing some passages in the Book of Mormon as related to warfare. Here’s what he says about himself on his website.
When was the Melchizedek Priesthood Restored?
First of all, I have to point to the Teacher, at Gospel Doctrine Underground, for introducing this topic to me. Previous to his discussion, I had not given much thought to when the Melchizedek Priesthood (MP) was restored. I just finished a book called “The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power” by D. Michael Quinn which […]
True Stories that Impacted You
Ok, I have a tendency to get into some pretty deep stuff here, and so every once in a while, I need to take a break. Over the weekend, our local PBS affiliate broadcast Hotel Rwanda, with Don Cheadle. It is the true story of the Rwandan Civil War of around 1994, with Don portraying […]
Debunking the Spaulding Manuscript Theory
In part 5 of my Sidney Rigdon series, I wrote that I thought I was done writing about Sidney Rigdon. But alas, I have been given a challenge to refute the Spaulding Manuscript theory by Doug G, so it looks like I’m temporarily back to talking about Sidney Rigdon.
Joseph Smith’s Presidential Platform
So, I came across an interview of Richard Bushman at the Pew Research Forum, about both early and modern Mormon politics. I’ve also been reading a book called The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power by D Michael Quinn on the early leadership of the church. I want to combine the 2 sources, and talk about […]
My First Scoop!
I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the number of positive responses of the Malay Theory in my previous post. In discussing the post with Ralph Olsen, the author of this theory, he has given me permission to post his unpublished manuscript! Ralph is looking for a sort of “peer review”, where people give honest feedback about […]
Mormon Heretic 