Elder M. Russell Ballard gave a talk in October 2016 General Conference entitled “To Whom Shall We Go?” where he said the following: Some disciples struggle to understand a specific Church policy or teaching. Others find concerns in our history … Continue reading →
Most Mormons know the general details of how Joseph Smith said he first learned about and found the gold plates: on September 21, 1823, Joseph Smith went to bed. After praying for forgiveness of his sins and asking for a … Continue reading →
I remember sitting in sacrament meetings as a kid flipping to “The Pearl of Great Price” in my scriptures to look at the interesting Egyptian drawings known as the Book of Abraham facsimiles. To me, these drawings were extremely fascinating. … Continue reading →
My son will be turning 19 in the hospital tomorrow. He’s been sick for years with a god-forsaken disease known as ulcerative colitis. All around us are kids sicker than he is, but that’s little comfort when it’s your son … Continue reading →
Religions often cherry-pick verses from the Bible to prove their point of view, without also acknowledging others that disprove their point of view. Here’s an egregious one I just noticed in the new LDS seminary manual for the New Testament, … Continue reading →
Last year I first learned of the word epistemology, which is “the branch of philosophy concerned with the theory of knowledge.” How do we obtain knowledge? For secular learning, we go to school, or we take a class, or we … Continue reading →
Tell me if this sounds familiar: a man says he’s a prophet by virtue of visions he’s had. He believes the original church of Jesus Christ needs to be restored, and that people need to be re-baptized in order to … Continue reading →
Music has an ability to touch me in very profound ways. I can hear a song popular from my youth and the nostalgia can sometimes be overwhelming. As I started going through my faith transition, my ears perked up for things that I … Continue reading →
I have been reading Dan Vogel’s “Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet”, which is a skeptic’s look at Joseph Smith and the creation of the Book of Mormon. I have been impressed with how many new (to me) and … Continue reading →
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles recently spoke at a devotional in Tempe, Arizona. He had some harsh words for those who choose to leave the church (https://youtu.be/MacLy_mvVIs?t=2m12s): Don’t you dare bail. I’m so furious … Continue reading →
