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25 July 2012
Commentaries
July 25, 2012
The purpose of commentaries on MormonNewsroom.org is to deepen conversations surrounding the Church, explain Latter-day Saint teachings and practices, and contextualize Mormon interactions with the broader society. These official commentaries are intended for a variety of audiences, including journalists, academics, opinion leaders and Church members in general.
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/commentaries
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Mormon FAIR-Cast 98: John Welch on Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon
July 25, 2012
FAIR Blog
In 1967, an ancient form of Hebrew poetry, called “chiasmus,” was discovered by a young Mormon missionary named John Welch, while he was serving in Germany. When Hugh Nibley learned of the discovery, he told Welch, “Young man, I think you have made the first significant discovery to come out of the BYU.” In this episode of Religion Today that originally aired on July 22, 2012, Martin Tanner talks with FARMS founder John Welch about what chiasmus is, how he discovered it in the Book of Mormon and some of the implications of that discovery.
Professor Welch is one of the presenters at the 2012 FAIR Conference. For more information about the conference, and to purchase tickets, go to FAIRlds.org.
http://www.fairblog.org/2012/07/25/mormon-fair-cast-98-john-welch-on-chiasmus-in-the-book-of-mormon/
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Fundamentalist or Fundamentals? Get a Grip on Your Faith
July 25, 2012
FAIR Blog
Some people cling to elements of their faith as if any threat to it would serve as a death blow to their eternal lives. Like proverbial sand in their hands, they hold it so tight that their grip presses the precious granules through their fingers, and they watch their shifting cargo slip grain-by-grain through their grasp until they finally consider there is not enough to hold, and they let go completely. They are left to wonder how quickly it was lost when they had held on so tight.
A cute animated video series that pokes fun at major Hollywood movies once did a satire of the Blair Witch Project. A famous line from that video is often repeated by my children. In a desire to seek safety, one character implores”Quick, back to the tent!” Another responds sarcastically “Yea, the tent is safe. Nothing can penetrate the NYLON!” My boys always follow such quotes with hearty laughter, unaware of the profound realities exemplified in this humorous poke at a famous horror film. Like those who cling to the sand of faith in their hands, some of us put too much trust in the nylon fabric of some simple element of our faith. We trust in a child like perspective that is thin yet unsustainable under any real threat, seeking the sense of security it once represented for us, unaware that it provides no real protection but only hides from us from what scares us outside.
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Mormon teens wowed, energized
July 26, 2012
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Pennsylvania)
Though Kirtland’s suburban Cleveland hometown became headquarters for the Latter Day Saints Movement from 1831 to 1838 and site of the country’s first Mormon temple, most Mormons moved much further west than northeast Ohio.
One of just 10 Mormons in her high school, Best says she always felt outnumbered — perhaps as did Romney, who spent his childhood in Michigan and his adult life in Massachusetts, states with small Mormon populations.
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Thursday’s letters: Mormon skeletons in the closet
July 26, 2012
Tampa Bay Times (Florida)
Columnist Michael Kinsley wrote that, instead of downplaying his religion, Mitt Romney should “make Mormonism a key part of his campaign.” I disagree.
Mormons have a lot of commendable attributes, such as their sobriety and their reputation for honesty. But the Mormon church also has a lot of skeletons in its closet, such as polygamy; the massacre of approximately 120 innocent travelers at Mountain Meadows, Utah, in 1857; and the facts that for 150 years the Mormon church taught that all black people were cursed and that, until 1978, no black man could become a bishop of the church.
http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/letters/thursdays-letters-mormon-skeletons-in-the-closet/1242156
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The world according to Romney
July 26, 2012
The Hindu (India)
A ‘Mormon foreign policy’ would actually be good for America and great for the world, but it won’t happen
As the world prepares to face another United States presidential election — one in which President Barack Obama is the front-runner but not a shoo-in by a long-shot — governments and analysts across the globe, including in India, must ask themselves what the likely foreign and national security policies of America’s first ‘Mormon’ White House under Mitt Romney might look like.
Widely derided as either weird or a cult, a foreign policy true to Mormon beliefs would likely see radical shifts — a massive rollback of American military forces from Afghanistan, decline in the threatening attitude to Iran, a reversal of blanket support and aid to Israel, and slashed military spending. America would “come home” and experience a real peace dividend that so patently failed to materialise after the end of the Cold War.
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/article3683347.ece?homepage=true
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Romney flies in – but why isn’t he going to Preston?
July 26, 2012
The Independent (United Kingdom)
Earlier this month on the banks of the river Ribble in Preston more than 1,000 Mormons gathered in faltering sunshine to celebrate the anniversary of an event which come November could have far reaching implications for the future of the United States and the rest of the world.
One hundred and seventy years ago a mission was dispatched from America by Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to bring word of a new religion to the teeming slums of Victorian Britain.
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Dr. Mark Silk Lectures On The LDS Church And Society
July 25, 2012
Salt Lake City Weekly (Utah)
Focusing on the new restorationism in the context of national religious politics and showing how it epitomizes the arrival of the Mormon community in the political mainstream, Dr. Mark Silk of Utah Humanities Council will be hosting a lecture about Mormonism and society. The lecture will examine the LDS Church in ties with political situations including Proposition 8, its founding have helped imbue the Republican Party with a new restorationist political religion, and electing senator Mitt Romney in the presidential campaign. This lecture is free and open to the public.
http://www.cityweekly.net/utah/event-124402-dr-mark-silk-lecture.html
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Scott D. Pierce: Who hid Jef Holm’s Mormon roots on ‘Bachelorette’?
July 25, 2012
Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)
According to Jef Holm — now engaged to “Bachelorette” Emily Maynard — he didn’t try to hide his Mormon background while he was on the show.
He also has no idea how his on-air statement that his parents are on “a mission” was somehow removed and replaced on air by “charity work,” adding that he didn’t know who decided to dub that in.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/lifestyle/54550181-80/holm-maynard-bachelorette-jef.html.csp
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Philly Mormon temple groundbreaking set for fall
July 25, 2012
Sacramento Bee (California)
Work is expected to begin soon at the site of a $70 million Mormon temple in Philadelphia that would be Pennsylvania’s first.
Architects handling to project say excavation at the site just off the city’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway should start in early fall. Construction is expected to start in the spring and take two years to finish.
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/07/25/4658264/philly-mormon-temple-groundbreaking.html
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Fall groundbreaking expected for Philadelphia’s Mormon temple
July 25, 2012
Philadelphia Inquirer (Pennsylvania)
When tents went up on a vacant parking lot near Logan Square and leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hoisted ceremonial shovels, the rise of Pennsylvania’s first Mormon temple seemed imminent.
That was last September. Today, the asphalt remains undisturbed at 1739 Vine St.
“We thought groundbreaking would be in April, then July,” said church spokeswoman Corinne Dougherty.
Architects now expect excavation for the 53,000-square-foot, $70 million temple to start in early fall and construction in the spring, with two years to completion.
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Philly Mormon temple groundbreaking set for fall
July 25, 2012
Beaver Times (Pennsylvania)
Work is expected to begin soon at the site of a $70 million Mormon temple in Philadelphia that would be Pennsylvania’s first.
Architects handling to project say excavation at the site just off the city’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway should start in early fall. Construction is expected to start in the spring and take two years to finish.
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Philly Mormon temple groundbreaking set for fall
July 25, 2012
WFMJ (Ohio)
Work is expected to begin soon at the site of a $70 million Mormon temple in Philadelphia that would be Pennsylvania’s first.
Architects handling to project say excavation at the site just off the city’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway should start in early fall. Construction is expected to start in the spring and take two years to finish.
While the surrounding area already has a number of churches, called wards, The Philadelphia Inquirer (http://bit.ly/MWbmfR ) reports the 53,000-square foot building will be the state’s first temple.
http://www.wfmj.com/story/19107682/philly-mormon-temple-groundbreaking-set-for-fall
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Top Romney foreign policy adviser endorses Bachmann’s anti-Muslim witchhunt
July 25, 2012
America Blog
Here’s the problem. Some have expressed the concern that Romney will toe the Mormon line and do what his faith wants if he wins the presidency. That would be the same thing Romney adviser Bolton, and Bachmmann (and Limbaugh and Beck) are accusing Muslims of.
So, if Romney adviser Bolton thinks it’s okay to ask government agencies to make sure that Muslims in government aren’t secretly following the orders of Islam-central, wherever that may be, does Team Romney think it’s okay to ask government agencies to do the same with Mormon federal employees?
http://www.americablog.com/2012/07/top-romney-foreign-policy-adviser.html
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Doc sheds light on little-known history of Mormons in El Paso
July 25, 2012
El Paso Inc. (Texas)
In 1912, 4,500 Mormons, who had been migrating from Salt Lake City to northern Chihuahua and Sonora since 1882, hightailed it back across the border to the shelter of El Paso, violence nipping at their heels.
Cook’s quote refers to the open arms, charity and safe haven this group received from the people of El Paso.
To celebrate the event’s centennial anniversary – 100 years to the day from the first exodus of 350 women and children (and a handful of men in disguise) – the City will hold a conference, museum exhibit and commemoration on Saturday, July 28.
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U.S. Christian groups press agenda in Africa
July 24, 2012
Arizona Republic
Kaoma’s report identifies groups belonging to a loose network of right-wing charismatic Christians. They include Robertson’s American Center for Law and Justice, the Catholic Church’s Human Life International and the Mormon-led Family Watch International. All have launched or expanded offices in Africa over the past five years.
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Mormon Beck’s ‘Restoring Love’ Mocks the Real Jesus of the Bible with Help of High Profile Christians He Has Bought and Paid For
July 25, 2012
Christian News Wire
Bill Keller, the world’s leading Internet Evangelist and the founder of LivePrayer.com, with over 2.4 million subscribers worldwide reading the Daily Devotional he has written every morning for 13 years on the issues of the day from a Biblical worldview, says that Mormon cult member Glenn Beck’s upcoming rally in Dallas makes a mockery of the real Jesus Christ of the Bible with the help of some of the top names in Christendom!!!
In his recent Devotional emailed each morning to his 2.4 million subscribers worldwide, Keller said, “Sadly, this week, many high profile and well known Christians will sell out the faith to stand with a known cult member who denies the Bible as the only Truth and propagates a false gospel that is leading millions of souls to hell! It is difficult to see so many Christians taken in by this wolf in sheep’s clothing that has exploited so many good people simply looking for hope in these difficult times!”
http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/1270020255.html
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Gathering brings 900 Mormon church members to Duluth
July 25, 2012
Duluth News Tribune (Minnesota)
The gathering of 900 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints at the University of Minnesota Duluth this week has been in the works for 2½ years.
The regional conference where 800 young women ages 12 to 18 and 100 adult leaders come together happens every six years, and Duluth was chosen after local leaders volunteered to organize it.
Members came from as far as Thunder Bay, Ontario, and Michigan and are spending time doing service projects and crafts, taking classes with a spiritual focus, playing sports, gathering for music as one group nightly and visiting the Tweed Museum of Art and the Planetarium.
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/238008/
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Local Church Joins in ‘Pioneer Trek’
July 25, 2012
Tucker Patch (Georgia)
More than two hundred youth ages 14-18 from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Atlanta area, along with more than 50 adult leaders, commemorated the Mormon pioneer trek west first held during the mid-1800s. They pushed handcarts and hiked 20 miles over horse trails, through meadows and across the Etowah River.
The church has multiple locations around the Atlanta area. Kids who participated included some from the Brockett Road location in Tucker.
The Pioneer Trek was held in the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area from July 17 until July 19. Everyone dressed in full pioneer clothing including long sleeved shirts or blouses, long pants or skirts, aprons, bloomers, bonnets or straw hats. They left modern day conveniences and electronics behind exchanging them for swaddled bags of rice representing infants, camping in tents and cooking meals outdoors.
http://tucker.patch.com/articles/local-church-joins-in-pioneer-trek#photo-10757138
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Chick-fil-A is not the only company that puts its faith first
July 25, 2012
11 Alive (Georgia)
Marriott International – John Willard Marriott, founder of the international hotel conglomerate was a devout Mormon who held positions of leadership while building the empire bearing his name. In 2011, the chain made headlines when they announced they would no longer offer pornography among the pay-per-view in-room movie selections. The chain also has a history of sometimes placing the Book of Mormon in hotel rooms alongside the Gideon’s Bible.
JetBlue – Founder and CEO David Neelman is a devout Mormon who says his faith has led him to make certain he serves his customers, much in the same way he learned to serve others as a full-time Mormon missionary at the age of 19. Neelman says in Jeff Benedict’s book, “The Mormon Way of Doing Business,” that at least once a month, he works as a flight attendant on a JetBlue flight to get in touch directly with his customers and workers and to receive feedback that he uses to make his business better.
http://www.11alive.com/news/article/249667/40/Other-faith-based-companies-across-the-nation
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Faiths creating an Australia marked by postcodes of piety
July 26, 2012
The Australian
Australia also has two little-known Mormon hot spots, Riverview, in southwest Brisbane, and Claymore, in southwest Sydney, where 5 per cent of each population follow the 19th-century US-founded faith.
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News of other religions
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‘Sister Wives’ stars challenge Utah bigamy policy with lawsuit
July 25, 2012
Examiner
In an Associated Press article reporting on the Browns’ lawsuit, those practicing plural marriage in Utah are referred to as “fundamentalist Mormons.”
People who belong to these factions are not Mormons and should not be referred to as any sort of Mormon. Doing so only perpetuates the misconception that Mormons continue to practice polygamy.
Until the media at large understands the fact that any splinter group that claims Mormonism as its genesis is considered apostate by the LDS Church, these misperceptions will continue.
http://www.examiner.com/article/sister-wives-stars-challenge-utah-bigamy-policy-with-lawsuit
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‘Sister Wives’ family back in court to challenge Utah bigamy law
July 25, 2012
Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)
The case could potentially decriminalize a way of life for tens of thousands of self-described Mormon fundamentalists, most of whom live in Utah where bigamy is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
The state, meanwhile, has publicly said it won’t prosecute consenting adult polygamists unless there are other crimes involved, but insists the law doesn’t overreach.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/54557306-78/utah-law-bigamy-marriage.html.csp
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‘Sister Wives’ Family Challenges Utah Bigamy Law
July 25, 2012
ABC News
The polygamous family, stars of the TLC show “Sister Wives,” has sued Utah and the county they fled from, hoping to persuade a federal judge to overturn the state’s bigamy law as unconstitutional.
The case could potentially decriminalize a way of life for tens of thousands of Mormon fundamentalists practicing polygamy, most of whom live in Utah.
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Kramer vs. Kramer vs. Kramer
July 25, 2012
Slate
Polygamous divorce was a somewhat simpler affair among 19th-century Mormons. Church leaders released women from their marriages regularly, and sometimes even granted them the family cow or a sum of money to help them in their new lives. Divorce wasn’t strongly stigmatized in the culture. Ex-wives remarried, often into other polygamous families. In fact, Utah divorce laws were so lax in the early 1870s that people traveled from faraway states just to dissolve their marriages.
Legalizing plural marriage would require some creative changes to state divorce laws. Some U.S. legal scholars have proposed treating polygamous marriages like business partnerships. The parties would jointly own all property during the marriage, new partners would have to win the consent of the existing spouses, and anyone could withdraw unilaterally at any time, taking along his or her fair share of the assets. While this is a tidy solution to the problem, it’s not entirely consistent with the male-dominated polygamy practiced among fundamentalist Mormons in Arizona, Texas, and Utah. Some women who have escaped polygamous relationships claim that their husbands brought in additional wives against their wishes, and had absolute control over all property.
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TV bigamists in court over suit
July 25, 2012
Toronto Sun (Canada)
A judge will hear arguments Wednesday as to whether a famous polygamist family’s lawsuit against the state of Utah should go ahead.
Kody Brown and his four wives, stars of the TLC show Sister Wives, have challenged anti-polygamy laws in Utah, where people can face up to five years in prison for the felony, reports the Salt Lake Tribune.
But the state says the lawsuit should be thrown out because the Browns — Kody, Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn — have never been charged under those laws.
http://www.torontosun.com/2012/07/25/tv-bigamists-in-court-over-suit
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“Sister Wives” Family Challenges Bigamy Law
July 25, 2012
KWTX (Texas)
Kody Brown and his four wives, the polygamous stars of the TLC show “Sister Wives,” are suing Utah and the county from which they fled, hoping to persuade a federal judge to overturn the state’s bigamy law as unconstitutional.
The judge heard arguments Wednesday on a motion to dismiss the case.
He will rule later.
The case could decriminalize a way of life for tens of thousands of Mormon fundamentalists, most of whom live in Utah where bigamy is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
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‘Sister Wives’ family challenges Utah bigamy law
July 25, 2012
Syracuse Post-Standard (New York)
The polygamous family, stars of the TLC show “Sister Wives,” has sued Utah and the county they fled from, hoping to persuade a federal judge to overturn the state’s bigamy law as unconstitutional.
The case could potentially decriminalize a way of life for tens of thousands of self-described Mormon fundamentalists, most of whom live in Utah where bigamy is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
http://blog.syracuse.com/entertainment/2012/07/sister_wives_bigamy_law_mormons_utah.html
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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.
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