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23 September 2012
President Packer Dedicates Brigham City Utah Temple
September 23, 2012
Boyd K. Packer, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dedicated the newest temple in the Church in Brigham City, Utah.
A native of this northern Utah Mormon pioneer-settled city, President Packer dedicated the 139th temple in the Church and the 14th in Utah after having broken ground on the Brigham City Utah Temple 31 July 2010.
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/president-packer-dedicates-brigham-city-utah-temple
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A New Twist on the Spalding Theory-And Sidney’s Amazing Voice Trick
September 23, 2012
FAIR Blog
Robert W. Thurston’s Unlocking the Great Mormon Mystery: A Radically New Approach to Deciphering Mormon Origins (New York: iUniverse, Inc., 2008) is actually one of the “best” and most responsible anti-Mormon books that I have read-”responsible” in the sense that it actually acknowledges the existence of pro-Book of Mormon scholarship from people such as Stephen Ricks and Daniel Peterson of BYU rather than just alleging that there is no serious evidence of any kind for ancient origins. Thurston has seen the evidence, recognizes that some of it can be quite impressive, and has to conclude that the Book of Mormon could not have been authored by the likes of Joseph Smith. In that sense, he’s actually ahead of many Latter-day Saints in appreciating the richness of the Book of Mormon text. And I’ll also credit him for a generally enjoyable and readable style in his writing.
His imaginative solution takes an old, tired theory and gives it an interesting new twist. Thurston argues, as a number of others have, that the Book of Mormon is far too sophisticated to have been written by Joseph, so it must have come from-you guessed it-Sidney Rigdon with the aid of Solomon Spalding, well educated men with access to scholarly resources, men who were able to put years into their masterpiece of deceit (Hebraisms! Arabian Peninsula details! even the Narrative of Zosimus!). Their carefully drafted manuscript only had to be dictated by an alleged prophet who would claim to be “translating” a text from gold plates. This man would be their partner in crime, Joseph Smith, Jr. The scheme was designed to bring Sidney access to religious power and fame, and would give Joseph a chance to introduce polygamy so he could party with lots of wild Mormon women (when he wasn’t being jailed or tarred and feathered, that is).
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Mormon with outspoken blog posts on church says may face excommunication
September 23, 2012
Yahoo News
A Florida-based Mormon blogger has said he is facing discipline and possible excommunication by church officials over posts they perceive to be anti-Mormon.
David Twede’s posts offer his account of the history of the church’s political involvement, criticism of fellow Mormon and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and the author’s take on Mormon beliefs about the nature of God and temple ceremonies.
http://news.yahoo.com/mormon-outspoken-blog-posts-church-says-may-face-031620312.html
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Mormon with outspoken blog posts on church says may face excommunication
September 22, 2012
Chicago Tribune (Illinois)
A Florida-based Mormon blogger has said he is facing discipline and possible excommunication by church officials over posts they perceive to be anti-Mormon.
David Twede’s posts offer his account of the history of the church’s political involvement, criticism of fellow Mormon and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and the author’s take on Mormon beliefs about the nature of God and temple ceremonies.
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David Twede, Mormon Blogger, May Face Excommunication For Criticism
September 23, 2012
Huffington Post
A Florida-based Mormon blogger has said he is facing discipline and possible excommunication by church officials over posts they perceive to be anti-Mormon.
David Twede’s posts offer his account of the history of the church’s political involvement, criticism of fellow Mormon and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and the author’s take on Mormon beliefs about the nature of God and temple ceremonies.
Twede, a 47-year-old fifth-generation Mormon and the managing editor of MormonThink.com, told Reuters on Saturday he was confronted over his posts and advised of the possible discipline at a meeting with local church leaders this week.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/23/david-twede-mormon-blogge_n_1907124.html
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Romney’s conservative roots may lie in Mormon faith
September 23, 2012
Kansas City Star (Missouri)
The bishop “was really open and loving,” Liz recalled. But it was tough love. “We’re not going to pay bills. We can’t pay your mortgage,” she recalled him as saying. He offered food assistance and a blessing.
The Andersons said it never occurred to them to seek government assistance, although with two young children and a monthly income that had dwindled to $1,200, they surely would have qualified for food stamps.
That worldview, focused on church and not government, is part of the culture of American Mormonism, paradoxically rooted in both self-reliance and communitarian idealism. It may help explain the roots of Mitt Romney’s conservatism, which in many ways mirrors the beliefs of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
http://www.kansascity.com/2012/09/23/3829291/romneys-conservative-roots-may.html
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Mormon blogger who criticized Romney claims he faces excommunication by church
September 23, 2012
Daily Mail (United Kingdom)
A Mormon blogger has said he is facing discipline and possible excommunication by church officials over posts about Mitt Romney.
David Twede’s posts offer his account of the history of the church’s political involvement, along with criticism of fellow Mormon and Republican presidential candidate Romney.
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Mormon writer critical of Mitt Romney says he faces excommunication
September 22, 2012
Kingsport Times News (Tennessee)
The Orlando-based editor of MormonThink.com, a website that challenges the church’s teachings, said he faces excommunication because of his writings — including some critical of Republican presidential nominee and fellow Mormon Mitt Romney.
David Twede, 47, has been summoned to the disciplinary council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Orlando on Sept. 30 and could face “disfellowshipment or excommunication,” according to a letter he posted on his blog.
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Mormonism
September 23, 2012
Bend Bulletin (Oregon)
Among my horribly overeducated and hugely liberal friends, expressions of racism are completely out of the question, Islamophobia is greeted with a slow shaking of the head and anti-Semitism is a memory associated with distant places that one sometimes visits — like France.
But anti-Mormonism is another matter. It’s really fine to say totally uninformed things about Mormonism in public, at dinner parties or wherever. “It’s a cult,” says one. “With 13 million followers and counting?” I reply. “Polygamy is disgusting,” says another. “It was made illegal in Utah and banned by the church in 1890, wasn’t it?” I counter. And so on. This is a casual prejudice that is not like the visceral hatred that plagued the early decades of Mormonism — lest it be forgotten, Joseph Smith was shot to death on June 27, 1844, by an angry mob who broke into a jail where he was detained — but a symptom of a thoughtless incuriousness.
There is just something weird about Mormonism, and the very mention of the Book of Mormon invites smirks and giggles, which is why choosing it as the name for Broadway’s most hard-to-get-into show was a smart move. As a scholar of Mormonism once remarked, one does not need to read the Book of Mormon in order to have an opinion about it.
http://www.bendbulletin.com/article/20120923/NEWS0107/209230308/
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‘Mormons’ Are Coming to the Aronoff
September 23, 2012
Cincinnati City Beat (Ohio)
The Mormons are coming! The Mormons are coming! No, not the one running for president (although he’s showing up pretty often). It’s the award-winning irreverent musical The Book of Mormon, which Broadway Across America announced this morning will be part of its 2013-2014 season at the Aronoff Center. The winner of nine Tony Awards (including the best musical of 2011) is a satirical look at two naive and idealistic Mormon missionaries who are sent to a remote Ugandan location where a nasty warlord is oppressing the villagers. Their clueless devotion, good-hearted but misguided — with a lot of very off-color humor — has made The Book of Mormon an unusual hit.
http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/blog-3962-mormons_are_coming_to_the_aronoff.html
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Book of Mormon presentation Sept. 30 in Rockford
September 22, 2012
Rockford Register Star (Illinois)
The public is invited to a free presentation on the Book of Mormon from 6 to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 324 University Drive.
Jerry D. Fenn, President of the Illinois Chicago Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ois the presenter.
Light refreshments will be served following the meeting.
http://www.rrstar.com/updates/x1217098950/Book-of-Mormon-presentation-Sept-30-in-Rockford
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Mormon with outspoken blog posts on church says may face excommunication
September 22, 2012
South Bend (Indiana)
A Florida-based Mormon blogger has said he is facing discipline and possible excommunication by church officials over posts they perceive to be anti-Mormon.
David Twede’s posts offer his account of the history of the church’s political involvement, criticism of fellow Mormon and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and the author’s take on Mormon beliefs about the nature of God and temple ceremonies.
http://www.southbendtribune.com/sns-rt-us-usa-mormon-disciplinebre88m012-20120922,0,2767299.story
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Packer dedicates Brigham City temple in cornerstone ceremony
September 23, 2012
Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)
The family was among more than 100 people who watched from outside the temple as Boyd K. Packer, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, presided over the ceremony, placing mortar around the cornerstone on the southeast corner of the sparkling white church. His wife, Donna, and other Mormon leaders also took their turns.
Following the ceremony, the group returned inside the temple where Packer, a Brigham City native, offered the dedicatory prayer. Packer, speaking from his wheelchair, noted that he was surprised three years ago when Church President Thomas S. Monson, announced that a temple would be built in Brigham City, where he was born, attended school and served on the City Council. In fact, the temple is built on a site where Packer once attended elementary school.
Packer, now 88, said he prayed he would live long enough to see the temple in his hometown dedicated. He said he was grateful that prayer was granted.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/lifestyle/54951383-80/temple-brigham-church-packer.html.csp
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Decide for yourself
September 23, 2012
North County Times (California)
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. A Mormon, if you will.
I am offended by reports of and reviews of the production, “The Book of Mormon.” I suppose many others of our faith feel the same way. It apparently makes light of our tenets, our prophet and our God.
Am I offended? Yes. But am I joined by thousand of other members in storming theaters with fire bombs and other instruments of destruction and murder? No. Will you come to our chapels and hear hate speech against the writers, producers and actors? No.
What you will hear is the invitation, as printed in the theater playbill, to read the book. Decide for yourself.
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Romney’s Ungenerous Donations
September 23, 2012
The Nation
It’s also worth noting that, while running for president Romney seems to have suddenly found his inner philanthropist. As George Zornick reports (quoting Romney’s trustee, Brad Malt), “Over the entire 20-year period period [of 1990-2009, the Romneys gave to charity an average of 13.45 percent of their adjusted gross income.” To be a Mormon in good standing one must donate 10 percent of one’s gross income to the Mormon church. If Romney did so, that means he gave only 3.45 percent of his vast fortune to all other charities.
Finally, there is the question of whom Romney gives his money to. Business Insider ran the numbers: “The answer appears to be primarily one organization: The Church of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, more commonly known as the Mormon church. According to tax documents viewed by Business Insider, the vast majority of the money Mitt Romney gave away in 2009 and 2010–80 percent of it–went to the church.”
http://www.thenation.com/node/170105
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Brett Buckner: A book by any other name
September 23, 2012
Anniston Star (Alabama)
“Daddy, don’t forget my ‘Book of Mormon.’”
Actually, she calls it her “Book of Norman,” but for clarity’s sake, let’s call it what it is: a worn-out, hardback version of the “Book of Mormon” that I picked up in a used bookstore that smelled suspiciously like cat pee. But for whatever reason, Jellybean is obsessed with it.
It’s strange to hear a 4-year-old request such reading material (unless she’s Mormon, or a political whack-ado looking for hidden plans for world domination lurking behind Mitt Romney’s faith … although the aforementioned whack-ados tend to be old enough to brush their own teeth and don’t worry about being eaten by “wooves”).
http://annistonstar.com/bookmark/20234407-Brett-Buckner-A-book-by-any-other-name
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A gaffe to make Pa Romney weep
September 24, 2012
The Australian
As a child George Romney lived in Mexico in Mormon colonies, only for the family to be chased by locals back to the US. There they subsisted for a while on refugee relief from the federal government. Throughout much of his childhood Romney was in a family just scraping by. To make matters harder, he was sent as a Mormon missionary to Scotland, not the most fertile territory for a religion free of alcohol and caffeine.
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Bishop talks about Catholicism to crowd of Latter-day Saints students
September 23, 2012
Catholic Sentinel
More than 1,000 students at the Orem Institute of Religion at Utah Valley University packed a lecture hall Sept. 18 to hear Bishop John Wester of Salt Lake City speak about the Catholic faith.
Bishop Wester’s visit was at the behest of the university’s LDS Student Association Interfaith Committee, which was formed this year.
“One of the purposes of the Interfaith Committee is to form those bridges between religions and let the students come and learn more about those religions because there is a lot of ignorance when it comes to other faiths,” said Spencer Bennett, co-chairman. “This is a way that we can come together and to ask questions that we’ve had and to learn about them.”
http://www.catholicsentinel.org/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=34&ArticleID=19283
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On Our Radar – The War on Women. What Are You Wearing?
September 23, 2012
New Civil Rights Movement
Googling “Modesty Matters” gave me a jolt of deja vu. Could I be closing in on that Salt Lake City time tunnel? “Modesty Matters” has long been a term used to designate a much discussed “value” of the Mormon Church. As Ann Romney still has a (long) shot at becoming our First Lady, I thought I’d check out what the Mormons were up to, modesty-wise. Did you know they hold modesty fashion shows? I also found a Mormon version of the word game Taboo, in which adolescent girls compete to get their team members to guess “values” words. (This concerned me because one of the game’s “values” words is “white”.) But my favorite find is a play aimed at the elementary school set, reforming those slutty Disney princesses. For instance, Snow White is told by the bishop to move out of the house with the seven dwarves and into a house with seven dwrafettes. (I had no idea she was even gay!) And when the wicked witch tempts her with a strapless gown instead of a poison apple, she outfoxes her by covering her shoulders with a jacket! What a hero! (Yes, I am aware of the gender inconsistency but I refuse to use the feminine form of hero as long as it is the same word we use for an addicting life-ruining drug.)
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My Turn: Utah’s sameness contrasts with L.A.’s rich diversity
September 22, 2012
Daily Breeze (California)
A teacher from the theater department at Weber picked me up and drove me to Ogden’s Marriott Hotel — the chain is incidentally owned by a Mormon family. Along the way he pointed out different ward houses that dot the cities and towns of Utah. “That’s where we go to church,” a Mormon student told me later. “They know all about us, and representatives come to our homes to see that we have all we need.” Well, that’s nice.
“Mormons who come up through the church are already proficient performers,” a Weber professor and an official in his ward told me. “Music and dance are a big part of the church.”
“When settlers came through in the 1800s, they were often asked if they could sing or play an instrument,” another Mormon professor told me. “If the answer was yes, they were invited to stay. It the answer was no, they were asked to move on.” That may explain the reason for all the excellent community and professional performances not only in Salt Lake City but all over Utah. Few performers, however, are drawn to Hollywood and New York.
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_21609657/my-turn-utahs-sameness-contrasts-l-s-rich
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The ten most competitive House races of 2012
September 23, 2012
San Francisco Chronicle (California)
Utah Democrat Jim Matheson is at risk of being the only Democratic incumbent to lose because of Mitt Romney’s coattails. Romney is expected to carry Utah by as many as 50 percentage points. Matheson is one of the most conservative Democrats left on Capitol Hill, and he hung on in the 2010 rout. But Republicans think they have a winner in Mia Love, the mayor of Saratoga Springs, who would become the first African American Republican woman ever elected to the House (and the first black Mormon) if she defeats Matheson. Independent polling has the Democratic in the lead, but a massive Romney (and Mormon) turnout could bury the incumbent (who’s also a Mormon).
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2012/09/23/the-ten-most-competitive-house-races-of-2012/
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An Evangelical Is Back From Exile, Lifting Romney
September 22, 2012
New York Times
But the success of Mr. Reed’s turnout-stimulus campaign will hinge on a variety of factors, not least whether those voters so dislike some of President Obama’s policies that they can overcome their mistrust of Mr. Romney’s Mormon faith and reversals on issues like abortion. And in an election dominated by jobs and the economy, it remains an open question whether culture-war hot buttons, like the president’s support for same-sex marriage, will be as potent as in the past.
Mr. Reed began by aligning himself with Mr. Romney during the primary campaign against Senator John McCain, the eventual Republican nominee in 2008, said Mr. Reed’s friend Deal W. Hudson, president of the Pennsylvania Catholics Network. Mr. Reed distributed a film, “Amendment 6,” that linked the idea of religious tolerance to evangelicals’ acceptance of Mormonism.
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Ann Romney Defends Mitt, Loves Beyoncé
September 23, 2012
Time
Newcomer Kate McKinnon nailed it as first lady-hopeful, Ann Romney, this weekend on Saturday Night Live. In a guest appearance on “Weekend Update,” she brought a special blend of crazy eyes, Midwestern sensibilities and blonde perkiness as she explained the hardships and sacrifices she and her husband have faced throughout the campaign. “It’s fall and we’re missin’ apple pickin’ season,” she drawled, wide-eyed. “And we love apple picking, Seth. It’s like Mormon Mardi Gras.”
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Prominent black Baptist preacher Dwight McKissic rejects both Obama and Romney
September 23, 2012
Fort Worth Star Telegram (Texas)
But to vote for President Barack Obama will advance the same-sex marriage agenda and affirm the Democratic Party platform endorsing it. To vote for Gov. Mitt Romney is to not hold him accountable for racist teachings in the Mormon “Bible.”
When faced with the choice of two evils, my philosophy is to choose neither.
I cannot stand by President Obama and his beliefs on same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage is evil, and as it did with Rome, it will lead to the destruction of this great nation.
I cannot stand by Mitt Romney, who when asked by Tim Russert in a 2008 interview about the racist history of the Mormon church said he stands by the faith of his fathers.
http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/09/22/4280815/prominent-black-baptist-preacher.html
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Nevada concerned about more than the economy
September 23, 2012
Los Angeles Times (California)
As for the election, Joseph, 30, is more focused on social issues — especially women’s health — than the economy. She is “a super-supporter of Planned Parenthood” and also troubled by Romney’s stance against abortion. “I was raised a Mormon, so I see where he’s coming from,” said Joseph, a political independent. “But it’s completely wrong not to allow a woman to control her own body.”
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Please, No More Apologies For Free Speech
September 23, 2012
National Review
Second, Muslim outrage over an amateurish trailer for a probably non-existent video coincides with an ongoing hit Broadway play ridiculing the Mormon Church, the reappearance of the once government-subsidized Piss Christ photos, and so on. When the administration apologizes for the excess of a private individual, but ignores condemnation of far more widely disseminated similar venom, some of it sponsored by the U.S. government, it is making a policy statement — we dare not tamper with free speech unless it touches upon Islam, not out of principle but because of sheer cowardice.
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/328312/please-no-more-apologies-free-speech-victor-davis-hanson
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