Implicit in agency is the need to discern between good and evil. I used to believe that one could get this right simply by listening to the Spirit. That might require faith in the form fasting/prayer, study and other efforts, and a lot of patience. That’s the easy answer, but it doesn’t take much thought > > Read More …

One can hardly have anything to do with Mormonism and not find oneself regularly pondering polygamy, especially when it is the Sunday School topic du jour. As an aside, I skipped out. I’ve been thinking about this “lesson” for two weeks, and just can’t imagine listening to the “narrative.” Nevertheless, as I was in Sacrament > > Read More …

One can hardly have anything to do with Mormonism and not find oneself regularly pondering polygamy, especially when it is the Sunday School topic du jour. As an aside, I skipped out. I’ve been thinking about this “lesson” for two weeks, and just can’t imagine listening to the “narrative.” Nevertheless, as I was in Sacrament > > Read More …

Soon after posting the prior, a rather obvious question that I somehow previously missed came to mind: which church/Church is that? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints? The church/fellowship that I regularly worship with? The group of friends (AME, Baha’i, Christian, Muslim, etc.) with whom I regularly have meals and discuss politics/religion/race? The > > Read More …

There is a certain sublimity in the succinctness of “that voice” that makes it readily identifiable. Rarely has it come with an imperative. Comprehension usually distills over time. Nevertheless, my knee jerk response was to ask, effectively, “what does that mean?” “I gave you a country, own it.” Immediately the mind begins to fill in > > Read More …

Money, money, money, Must be funny,In a rich man’s world. Introduction Anyone who knows me knows that I’ve been struggling with this theme for many years now. But, it just won’t leave me alone. Let me give a couple of examples of questions / issues. World’s Richest Man Forbes compiles the list of the world’s > > Read More …

These last several weeks, I’ve had increasing opportunity to search out God in lunches with a new Muslim friend, while communing and spiritually stretching in a BaHa’i devotional, while offering an invited prayer (on my Birthday, very memorable) at a anti-gun-violence prayer meeting / peace vigil, and having deep theological discussions with disaffected or questioning > > Read More …

Note: herein I choose to reference a different compilation of the scriptures so that nothing Joseph Smith included is left out. Of course we’ve heard a lot of science in the last two decades about confirmation bias and not just how susceptible we are to this, but how those of us who attempt to be > > Read More …

A couple of weeks ago, I read about Karl Popper’s “The Paradox Of Tolerance” in Mark Manson’s MindF*ck Monday newsletter. A couple of key quotes: If everyone is tolerant of every idea, then intolerant ideas will emerge. Tolerant people will tolerate this intolerance, and the intolerant people will not tolerate the tolerant people. Eventually, the > > Read More …

I long for the days when dreams were fun. Flying through the air, luscious foods, swimming in jungle pools, enjoying massive, never-heard-before classical concerts — those were the kind of things that often made sleep a joy. Last night I awoke abruptly after intentionally and selfishly lying to an associate. Why would I do that > > Read More …