One of the great things about my father-in-law’s funeral on Friday was the gathering of the clan, not only from Utah but from both coasts, that it occasioned. Some were unable to attend, but it was good to have so many together. (A personal joy was seeing two little granddaughters meet for the very first time and instantly begin to play together as if they had known each other all of their short lives.) I expect that our mortal... Read more
A new article appeared earlier today in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: “Small Hinges, Great Doorways: How Some Descendants of an Enslaved Youth Unexpectedly Became Prominent Utah Citizens,” written by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw Abstract: A vivid illustration of how “the doorways of history turn on small hinges” is found in the Howell family tradition about Wilford Woodruff’s short stay at the home of slaveholders in the South, where it appears he may have taught a... Read more
I’ve just begun reading a new book by the Catholic New Testament scholar Brant Pitre, entitled Jesus and Divine Christology (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2024). Thus far, I like it very much and find it quite persuasive. I’ll write later, probably in a column, about his overall argument. Right now, though, I would like to share some amusing examples that he mentions of efforts to dispense with the purported miracle of Jesus walking on the water. The most obvious... Read more
I delivered relatively brief remarks at the August 2024 FAIR conference under the title “Appreciating Brother Brigham.” (Including the short Q&A session that followed, they lasted just slightly more than thirty-three minutes.) A video of my presentation has now been posted on the FAIR website, where you can watch and listen to those remarks if you’re brave enough to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE_zYtiKB_4 And, speaking of FAIR, they have put a very useful collection of links up on their website... Read more
A dominant (and gleefully received) narrative among some critics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that the Church is in severe long-term demographic decline and, in particular, that it is hemorrhaging its youth. In this brief interview Elders D. Todd Christofferson and Clark G. Gilbert suggest that that dominant narrative cannot be sustained: “Video: Elder Christofferson challenges narrative, says Spirit working in youth: In new video, Elder D. Todd Christofferson and Elder Clark G. Gilbert discuss... Read more
It turns out that weather conditions in Utah and Nevada, where a great many Latter-day Saints live, help to generate the Santa Ana winds. And it is those strong, dry, and often warm winds that bear some significant degree of responsibility for the wildfires that are currently destroying substantial portions of Los Angeles: “What Utah has to do with Santa Ana winds — and California wildfires: Winds formed in the Great Basin blow toward the West Coast.” Which probably means... Read more
The other day, I saw myself characterized over at the Peterson Obsession Board as a very lonely and unpleasant old man. Curiously, though, I don’t actually feel old. However, I do admit to having published a column in Meridian Magazine the other day about a man who, some on the Obsession Board might contend, was an apparently kindred spirit — and who is undeniably quite ancient: “A Tear for King Herod” I haven’t watched American Primeval, and I very... Read more
I’d be safe and warmIf I was in L.A. California dreamin’On such a winter’s day Even at this distance, it’s excruciating to see what’s happening to Los Angeles. The sheer human suffering is awful. Several have died thus far, and thousands are homeless. A woman whom we’ve known since she was a little girl playing on the floor during sacrament meetings at her parents’ home in Cairo escaped with her family and the clothes on their backs; their large... Read more
My wife’s remarkable father turned ninety-eight at the end of December. Up to just a few months ago, he had been living on his own, in the house that he had shared with my mother-in-law until her death in 2013. He died at 9:30 this morning. He was ready, in fact he was eager, to go. But we will miss him very, very much. Posted just today, a new article in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and... Read more
Jonn Claybaugh kindly (and regularly) provides notes on the website of the Interpreter Foundation for teachers and students of the Church’s Come, Follow Me curriculum. This is the latest installment in his series: Come, Follow Me — D&C Study and Teaching Helps (2025): Joseph Smith—History 1:1–26 January 13–19: “I Saw a Pillar of Light” Also: Our friends at Scripture Central have created a new video that many, I think, will enjoy. Here is an initial glimpse at it, which... Read more
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