Welcome to MormonVoices. Our volunteers respond to public discussions and comments from public figures that misrepresent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We encourage and direct Mormons to get involved in online discussions and thereby help shape the public understanding and perceptions of the Church. Please join your voice with ours, and become a member of MormonVoices.
MormonVoices is an independent organization that is supportive of, but not
controlled by or affiliated with, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
search the site
3 July 2012
ABC’s Barbara Walters Discusses Heaven With Church Leader
July 3, 2012
ABC’s “20/20″ program this Friday with Barbara Walters features discussions with religious leaders from various faiths about their views on heaven and the afterlife.
One of Walters’ guests is Elder William R. Walker, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Seventy. Elder Walker talks with Walters about Latter-day Saint temples — particularly the temple’s celestial room, which he says reminds us “that we’re on our way back to God. We’re on our way back to heaven. That’s our objective.”
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/abc-20-20-mormon-temple
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormon Leader Tosses First Pitch at Dodgers Game
July 3, 2012
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), threw out the first pitch at a recent Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game.
In what has become an annual tradition, more than 8,000 Latter-day Saints enjoyed a nice evening at California’s Dodger Stadium for Mormon Night with the Dodgers. The more than 25-year tradition was continued Friday, 29 June 2012.
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/mormon-leader-tosses-first-pitch-at-dodgers-game
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Inside One of the Holiest Rooms in Mormon Temple
July 3, 2012
ABC News
It’s a room few get to see, with high ceilings, comfortable furnishings and an ethereal brightness that’s meant to evoke images of heaven.
Called the Celestial Room, it’s one of the most sacred rooms of a Mormon temple.
The purpose of the room is “to remind us that we’re on our way back to God. We’re on our way back to Heaven. That’s our objective,” Elder William R. Walker, a senior leader within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — also known as the Mormon Church — told Barbara Walters in a recent interview.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/07/inside-one-of-the-holiest-rooms-in-mormon-temple/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormon influence in Nevada fading, but still a factor
July 3, 2012
CNN
“Mr. Reid’s performance in Las Vegas could well turn on the Mormon vote,” the correspondent noted, spotlighting Reid’s religion. “Though only some 12% of Nevadans are Mormons, they punch more than their weight. Less than half the state’s eligible voters bother to register, but Mormons almost always do, which gives them about a quarter of the likely turnout.”
Members of the Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints still punch more than their weight in Nevada politics, holding a broad array of elected offices and deep sway within the business community.
But the portrait of Nevada as a sparsely populated desert locale where elections hinge on the Mormon vote now seems quaint.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/03/politics/nevada-mormons/index.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormons invite public to tour new church
July 3, 2012
Auburn Citizen (New York)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will host an open house for the community from 1 to 6 p.m. Saturday in its newly built chapel at 7750 Grant Ave., Sennett.
After nearly 30 years at their previous location on Kearney Street in Auburn, the church constructed the new building to accommodate its growing congregation.
There will be tours of the new building, which will serve members in Auburn, Skaneateles, Marcellus, Cato, Weedsport and Port Byron.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Backstories of LDS Church history in Africa
July 3, 2012
Deseret News
In 1970, President Harold B. Lee of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints asked Darius Gray to report on his findings concerning the LDS Church while visiting Africa. Gray figured he would not find any church members there.
He was wrong.
On Saturday morning at the Mormon History Conference in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Gray discussed his experience as well as other backstories of Latter-day Saints who influenced early church history in Africa.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865558434/Backstories-of-LDS-Church-history-in-Africa.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mormons Turn To Facebook Evangelism
July 3, 2012
Huffington Post
Mormon missionaries are now using Facebook to try to convert new members – and have taken part in more than 1 million online chats in the last year alone.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ex-Mormons shout “Freedom” from the mountaintop
July 3, 2012
Orlando Sentinel (Florida)
Carrying U.S. flags and signs boasting “Finally ExMormon,” “Research the church” and “Transcend Mormonism,” a crowd hiked Ensign Peak on Saturday and chanted “freedom” to the valley below.
Minutes earlier, many of them had signed a “Declaration of Independence from Mormonism” and addressed formal “letters of resignation” to the Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to remove their names from LDS records.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Area Mormon youths re-enacted part of Mormon exodus to Utah last week in LBL
July 3, 2012
Cadiz Record (Kentucky)
Although it was one of the hottest weeks of the year, some 67 Mormon youths from around the region re-enacted part of the Mormon exodus to Utah from for three days last week.
Starting at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, the youths, ages 14 – 18, trekked across 22 miles in Land Between the Lakes while hauling handcarts with limited provisions on board, after assembling said carts, said Christie Wall, one of the coordinators.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
When George Romney Invited The Press To Church
July 3, 2012
BuzzFeed
When Mitt Romney runs for president, the only glimpse of the candidate in a Mormon church setting comes from an enterprising reporter who seeks out the chapel near his vacation home.
When his father, George, ran, he invited the entire press corps to hear his sermon at a Sunday service.
The contrast between how the two men publicly approach their faith came into clear focus Monday, after The AP’s Kasie Hunt visited the Mormon ward in New Hampshire that the Romneys attend on vacation, and published a widely-circulated story advertising a “rare glimpse into his practice of a faith that has permeated every aspect of Romney’s life.” The article describes Romney chatting with congregants, singing hymns, and feeding dry cereal to a restless toddler during the service.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mckaycoppins/when-george-romney-invited-the-press-to-church
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Privately devout Romney worships with his family
July 3, 2012
Atlanta Journal Constitution (Georgia)
Romney, the first Mormon to clinch the presidential nomination of a major party, attended services Sunday with his wife, Ann, five sons, five daughters-in-law and 18 grandchildren. They made up nearly a third of the congregation that gathered inside the small, nondescript building that houses this tiny resort town’s branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/privately-devout-romney-worships-1468531.html
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Mormonizing of America (BOOK EXCERPT, PT 6)
July 3, 2012
Christian Post
Smith’s family was typical of their time, their region, and the prevailing divinity. They were hardworking, untethered, and deeply mystical. His mother, Lucy, had witnessed scenes that might have driven others insane. A sister, Lovisa Mack, had once been near death from tuberculosis and laid in a coma for days. Then, without warning, the woman sat up suddenly, announced that Jesus Christ had healed her, asked her family to gently tug on her feet that she might be well–and she was! Lovisa became something of a celebrity in the area; she later claimed an open vision of Jesus and testified to her “miraculous recovery” for the rest of her life. Not long after, another sister, Lovina, also contracted tuberculosis. Lucy nursed her night and day. Finally, sensing the end, Lovina gathered her family and bid them farewell: “I’m going to rest–prepare to follow me.” She then sang a hymn, closed her eyes, folded her hands, and died. The deathbed
charge sent Lucy into a season of guilt, prayer, Bible study, and tears that still left unanswered for her the great question of the age: “Which church is the right one to join?”
http://blogs.christianpost.com/bookstop/the-mormonizing-of-america-book-excerpt-pt-6-10662/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Visit to Israel gives Romney chance to shore up foreign policy, evangelical cred
July 3, 2012
Jewish Telegraph Agency
Geoff Skelley, a political analyst at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, said recent polls show that evangelicals are still concerned about Romney’s Mormon faith and his moderate gubernatorial record in a liberal Northeastern state.
“Evangelical Christians have a problem with Mormonism and that could create a shortfall,” he said. “And another way of looking at this is that it’s an opportunity to show himself in the role of a statesman — there have been articles written about his lack of foreign policy experience.”
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Love eyes history as first black Republican Congresswoman
July 3, 2012
MSNBC
Mia Love is generating buzz in Utah with a historical run for Congress that would make her the first black Republican female elected to the House of Representatives. NBC’s Craig Melvin reports.
http://video.msnbc.msn.com/the-daily-rundown/48057983#48057983
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
BILL MAXWELL: God goes missing in presidential campaign
July 3, 2012
San Angelo Standard Times (Texas)
First, Romney, the GOP’s presumptive nominee, is a Mormon. He is not a Protestant and certainly is not an evangelical Christian, a member of the GOP’s most reliable voting bloc. As such, he is wary of emphasizing his faith and values bona fides and bringing too much attention to tenets of Mormonism out of synch with Protestant beliefs.
Strategically, Berlinerblau writes, Mormons and evangelicals long have been fierce competitors in efforts to save and recruit souls worldwide. What advantage would Romney gain by reminding the nation’s army of evangelicals of this battle? By default, Obama has little if any reason to stress faith and values when Romney is not doing it.
http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2012/jul/03/bill-maxwell-god-goes-missing-in-presidential/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Business author coming to Palymra
July 3, 2012
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (New York)
Best-selling author, Harvard Business School professor and entrepreneur Clayton Christensen is coming to the Rochester area July 14 to speak about his latest book How Will You Measure Your Life.
Christensen, a Mormon, is scheduled to speak at the Palmyra Stake Center the opening weekend of the Hill Cumorah Pageant . Christensen’s book was co-written with James Allworth, a consultant and Harvard MBA, and Karen Dillon, former editor of the Harvard Business Review. It explores personal philosophy and how to be happy in career and life through business theory, faith and personal discovery.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20120702/BUSINESS/307020054
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NOTE: This is posted for those who are interested in keeping abreast what is being said around the world about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members. MormonVoices cannot and does not guarantee the validity or truthfulness of any information reported. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of this information lies with the reader. As all information comes from other news sources and has not been independently verified, MormonVoices cannot guarantee or be responsible for the security of links in the clipping service. MormonVoices will attempt as much as possible to exclude news articles containing strongly offensive language or which lead to offensive images, but cannot guarantee that some will not slip through.
Journalists
