This Week in Latter-days

Greetings from the South!

Robin Williams' death leads us to think about the way depression affects many of us. Did Williams sin by killing himself? Do we need more compassion toward those who suffer from depression? YES. Great discussion.

Does Mormon tradition fail women? Al loves this stuff.

A wily minx lady at BYU has decided to change the Honor Code to allow sexual relations. She will not be deterred!

Mormon temples are worth a lot of money. It's true!

So what's up with the pornography-that's-not-pornography on HBO and Netflix shows and how many Mormons are OK with it? We seriously want your input on this!

Ordain Women changes its six "discussions" into "conversations." It's all in semantics, people.

The Church sends aid to Iraqi Christians fleeing ISIS and also sends aid to residents of Gaza.

...and your listener mail! Send us more!

 

Links:

* Did Robin Williams sin?

* Mental Health Anonymous Facebook group

* Mormon traditions failing women

* Mormon temples are worth money

* Fighting BYU's horrible sex ban

* Ordain Women loses "discussions"

* Church sends aid to Iraq

* Stop the boobs

 

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Post by Jamis Buck.

 

 

Why is there such a stigma around early returned missionaries? Do we have a cultural problem with relegating early RMs to a lower caste, even if they came home for completely valid reasons?

Al has to give a talk on hope, belief, and knowledge. We'd love your input and experiences, particularly with the whole "I know that..." cliche that is so common in the Church. Why are we so averse to proclaiming a belief, as if that is weak and something about which to be ashamed? When can believing be just as good as knowing?

Let's talk about when Church leaders age, go senile, etc. Should a prophet be "released"? Are we fine with the current way of doing things? Interesting discussion.

BYU is now the fourth least-gay-friendly school in America. That's up from #6 last year. Why? Aren't we making inroads with our LGBT brothers and sisters?

A BYU-I teacher resigns from the Church after being let go from his teaching position in the religion department. There's more to this than it seems, but it's worth a mention.

Random news: Mormon-con is happening, oh yes! A strip club advertises on a church building. Missionaries in Sierra Leone and Liberia transferred elsewhere due to Ebola. Elder Nelson to speak at BYU commencement. LDS Tools receives an update. And the Mormon Bachelorette chooses 5 different bachelorettes. Because we care.

Links:

* Mormon-con

* Letter from "Dumbledore" to Cassidy Stay

* BYU fourth least-gay-friendly school

* Church leadership and dementia

* BYU-I religion teacher quits church

* The stigma of early RMs

* Strip club on a church

* Missionaries in Sierra Leone and Liberia transferred

* Elder Nelson speaking at BYU commencement

* Updates to LDS Tools

Are you happy? How do we measure long-term happiness?

Israel and Gaza are having a firebomb party. Is there a moral obligation within Mormonism to support Israel? Why do Mormons not support Palestine?

Kate Kelly writes her letter of threat appeal to her bishop and stake president. She is none too pleased. Nor should she be.

Also, the amorality of Friends.

Does Mormonism need to do more in the area of international aid? We're great at sending crates of goods, but what about functioning as a legitimate NGO?

What's up with our morality around R-rated moves? Jana Riess doesn't like it, but she does love The Talented Mr. Ripley.

Other stuff: Sunstone Symposium is underway; Affirmation encourages gay Mormons to read the Book of Mormon; Church growth in Cambodia; Cliven Bundy's Hawaiian spiritual heir; FamilySearch indexing records; Manti Tabernacles. And much more!

Links:

* Do "thinking Mormons" need to support Israel?

* Cliven Bundy's true hero

* Jana Riess and R-rated fare

* Sunstone Symposium is for real

* Kate Kelly's appeal

* FamilySearch indexing record

* Affirmation Book of Mormon reading plan

* Philadelphia Temple condominium tower meets review. Geoff is unhappy.

* Church growth in Cambodia

* Manti tabernacle

* Ogden Temple ticket demand

Do you need to "relearn" your testimony after attending a Church-run school? How easily do we go beyond the mark sometimes? Does the Honor Code hurt too many people?

Jon Huntsman Sr. argues that paying tithing is not a charitable contribution, even if the IRS disagrees. What defines charitable giving to you as a Latter-day Saint?

Rexburg floods. God is listening.

The third temple film is hitting a temple near you. Be there for the midnight show!

Other temple news: groundbreaking announced for the Meridian, ID temple and rededication dates announced for the Ogden, UT temple. Yay!

It turns out Mormon pioneer children were actually healthier than non-migrating kids of their age. It also turns out Mormon pioneers on the whole were better off than previously thought. Except Martin and Willie, who skew all the stats in a bad way. Jerks.

Want to support the incredible movie Reign of Judges: Title of Liberty? Don't.

Did you know Brigham Young helped devise a new alphabet for Deseret? Geoff keeps out on all the geopolitical ramifications and Al mocks him, just as one in the Great and Spacious building is wont to do.

Mark Shurtleff goes to jail, but his losing rival in an election becomes a temple president. Wild!

It turns out pioneers actually knew how to cook something more than roadkill. Go figure.

Please let us know how you like the show!

 

Links:

* Giving to church is not charity, it's a membership due

* Groundbreaking for Meridian, ID Temple

* Dedication of Ogden, UT Temple

* Pioneer children sang as they walked

* Reign of Judges movie

* Mormon alphabet

* 100-year-old woman baptized

* Relearn your testimony after BYU

* Third temple film hits theaters!

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Have the origins of the Book of Abraham caused you or someone you know to question your faith? The Church has published another in its series of "hard issues" articles, this time dealing with that famed papyri translation. We discuss its components and our own thoughts on the Book of Abraham. What are your thoughts?

Two former attorneys general of Utah are brought up on all sorts of charges. What exactly are John Swallow and Mark Shurtleff accused of? And more importantly to many who cry foul over Kate Kelly's excommunication, should Swallow and Shurtleff also receive disciplinary counsel?

We get cited in an article about whether City Creek is analagous to Solomon's palace being larger than the temple. Interesting thoughts.

A Utah State student murders family members. A crazy guy in Texas murder ties up a Mormon family and executes them. Terrible news.

Is the Mormon Moment REALLY over? Like, for realz? We thought a nice New York Times piece might elucidate the situation, but it's really just an op-ed from an Ordain Women supporter.

William Atwood, an Albertan from Canada's Alberta, returns from his mission to the Philippines and tackles his mom. This isn't just a tackle. This is a weird canoodle-fest on the airport floor. We've seen that carpet. Bad idea. Even in Canada. Where it's a worse idea. Because Canada.

Have you noticed an extra push on temple work lately? We've had multiple home teaching messages on it, the FamilySearch tree app is now out of beta and live on iOS and Android, and the youth of the Church even now have a temple challenge, courtesy of Elder Neil L. Andersen. Interesting how things not-so-coincidentally fall together, eh?

Building on that, Manhattan missionaries make a big family tree in Union Square for all to enjoy and amend. Cool times.

Mormons really don't like Obama's job as president. This isn't altogether shocking, but speak up, silent minority!

The World Congress on Families plans to hold its 2015 meeting in Salt Lake City. This is a difficult area. The Church likes pro-family groups and Elder Dallin H. Oaks is even an honorary member of WCF's board, but WCF has also played a big role in discriminatory legislation against gays in other countries, such as Uganda. Should we reassess our choice in bedfellows?

And Strangers in Zion aims to eradicate excommunication. Because Kate Kelly was framed, we tell you. FRAMED!

 

Click for love:

* Swallow and Shurtleff are naughty boys

* Book of Abraham per LDS.org

* City Creek anger

* Mormon family murdered

* Utah State killer

* New temple website for youth

* Missionaries do family tree in Manhattan

* Mormons are loath to not loathe Obama

...

A discussion on where the proverbial line is for Mormons and the sort of industries and professions they should or can support. How do we reconcile our spiritual standards and morals with the need for employment? This is actually a pretty interesting discussion.

Many Mormon women at BYU are victims of sexual violence. Are acts of sexual violence against women any worse among Mormons than the overall populace? While we dislike the notion that the onus is upon women to prevent men from thinking evil thoughts, we also believe that every little bit helps.

Missionary numbers are set to cap at about 88,000 later this year, then will decline and plateau. Also, all missionaries in North America and Western Europe will now get iPads to do the work. Because technology!

How do we fix testimonies? LDS Living has a how-t0 guide that we don't really love. We offer our own list.

Google bans porn ads in its ad network, which is a big moral stand. There is no economic benefit for doing this.

Ordain Women supporters now live in fear. They are PETRIFIED.

Also - Mormon crickets on the upswing, and the rise of Mormons in the Caucasus region.

Links:

* How to Train Your Testimony

* Ordain Women supporters fear repercussions

* Google bans porn ads

* Mormon crickets making a comeback. Look out, Elko!

* Missionaries get iPads

* Mormons in the Caucasus

* Mormons and sexual violence at BYU

What does the Hobby Lobby ruling actually mean for the lives of women and those seeking healthcare? What does it mean to Mormons? Why does the Church support the Hobby Lobby ruling by the Supreme Court?

Jabari Parker gets drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks but forgoes a Mormon mission in the process. It's not really our place to judge, but what do you think of skipping a mission because of fame or the opportunity to use one's exposure to "be a missionary"?

Speaking of, idiot missionaries in Salt Lake place a flagpole atop Mt. Olympus with concrete and all. They have now been forced to remove it. This is what happens when we send 18-year-olds into the real world unsupervised.

An active, Melchizedek Priesthood-holding man in what we can only assume is Ogden also sells heroin on the side. He even pays tithing on it. Yes, this is real.

Militants in eastern Ukraine take over a meetinghouse. No word on the outcome.

Jamaica gets its first stake ever while Japan loses a stake, so we're on neutral ground as far as net loss/gain.

The Church issues a very clear statement on apostasy, but Kate Kelly and Ordain Women appear undeterred, with Kelly arguing that the statement actually exonerates her. We shall explain all.

Remember that guy who got into a fight a year ago over his pew being taken? Well he's now been convicted, and he's off to the big house for thirty days. We salute you!

Saturday's Warrior is making a comeback in an updated, contemporized form.  We cannot wait. We cannot!

Plus, a third temple movie is coming out this month. Get prepped!

Assorted news: Ordain Janitors - is it time to pay people to clean our buildings again? A missionary dies in Madagascar; a chair enchanted by a Seventy can be yours; 170 years since Joseph Smith's death; and a petition to have local Church leaders screened before being allowed to meet with children.

Click for love:

* Jabari Parker and no mission

* Hobby Lobby makes the Church happy

* Missionaries put flag on Mount Olympus

* Missionaries subsequently remove flag on Mt. Olympus

* Elder Drug Dealer

* First stake in Jamaica

* Stake closed in Japan

* Divorce rates

* Church statement on apostasy

* Convicted over a pew

*

Ordain Women founder Kate Kelly is excommunicated on charges of apostasy. Many are angry. Some seem too jubilant. Isn't there somewhere in the middle for us to meet?

More importantly, we work through the rationale behind Kate Kelly's excommunication without judging whether we think it should or shouldn't have happened. This has been a battle of perceptions and had Ordain Women changed tack a little bit, much of this could have been avoided.

Did Kate Kelly plan on being a self-conceived martyr? What does this mean for the future of Ordain Women? More importantly, are we seeing polarization now in the Church because of this issue?

Should Cliven Bundy be excommunicated? We're not serious about it, but lots of Kate Kelly supporters are.

A farcical site about restoring polygamy goes up. Because, you know, they feel like they are being robbed of something they feel.

Gay marriage cannot be banned in Utah, says the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Get ready, Utah, gay marriage is coming. How do we prepare for this as Latter-day Saints?

Elder Holland visits Cuba and organizes the country's second branch. Now for that Pyongyang North Korea Stake....

Progress on the Paris Temple; crappy temple socks; board game moguls; misquoting Clayton Christensen, and more!

 

Links:

* Neylan McBaine, a sensible voice on the current rancor

* What women think of Ordain Women and Kate Kelly

* Did Kate Kelly's leaders follow the Handbook correctly?

* Was Kate Kelly incorrectly charged?

* Awkward Peggy Fletcher Stack interview with Kate Kelly

* Paris Temple

* Elder Holland in Cuba

* Gay marriage cannot be banned in Utah

* Temple socks

* Convert board games

* Church statement on blogging

* Clayton Christensen misquoted,

John Dehlin and Kate Kelly face potential excommunication for pushing Mormon Stories and Ordain Women, respectively. We break down the facts. Listen in.

Mormons Building Bridges marches for gay rights. Should neckties be banned at church? Oh yes! Do we talk about modesty too much? NPR visits the MTC.