What better words to end the year with than those of Alfred, Lord Tennyson? Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky, The flying cloud, the frosty light: The year is dying in the night; Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true. Ring out the grief that saps the... Read more
Here is an interesting article by my friend Brian Hales and Michael Peterson (no relation) that was brought to my attention by another friend, Scott Gordon, the president of FAIR: “Doubt in the Digital Age: How a Perfect Storm of Random Forces Inflated the CES Letter Beyond Its Merits: What triggered the wide dissemination of the CES Letter? Examining a perfect storm of tech, naivety, and scholarly silence.” I agree with their analysis. The “CES Letter” is a very... Read more
When I was young, the weeks-long build-up to Christmas was always followed — usually by the afternoon of 25 December — by a severe let-down. After at least a month of mounting anticipation, Christmas was done. The presents had arrived, which was wonderful, but the surprises were past. There was nothing left for me to look toward. (I’ve never cared much about New Year’s Eve.) My relationship to Christmas is substantially different than it once was. I’ve long since... Read more
I’ve had a long and busy day today. I’ve scarcely been home and it’s late, so I think that I’m going to repost something that I originally put up several years ago. I still hold to it: There was considerable buzz back in 2014 about the results of a Facebook survey asking people which books had “stayed with you.” A writer for Salt Lake City’s Deseret News emphasized the fact that both the Bible (which came in sixth) and... Read more
It’s Friday, so a new article has been published in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: “The “Allegory” of Ruth as a Prophecy of Latter-day Gathering,” written by Jan Francisco Abstract: In the historical context of the late fifth century BC, the book of Ruth was a powerful story of hope and redemption for the eventual gathering and restoration of Israel’s covenants. Connecting their golden period of unity under King David to this idyllic tale with... Read more
This article has been newly posted on the website of the Interpreter Foundation: The Temple: Past, Present and Future: “The Messianic Sacred, Not Secret: The Son as a Hidden Name in the Gospel of Mark,” written by Jasmin Gimenez Rappleye Part of our book chapter reprint series, this article originally appeared in The Temple: Past, Present and Future, edited by Stephen D. Ricks and Jeffrey M. Bradshaw. For more information, go to https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/the-temple-past-present-and-future/. For video and audio recording of... Read more
First of all, Merry Christmas to all! I hope that you’ve had a joyous Christmas season and that you will enjoy this day to the full with family and friends and food and music and whatever else will make for a very satisfying and memorable time. On Monday last, Meridian Magazine republished a Christmas-themed column that my late and still sorely missed friend Bill Hamblin and I originally wrote for the 11 December 2015 edition of the Deseret News.... Read more
I think it’s time to share another of my favorite Christmas poems. Curiously, the poem is titled “Christmas.” It was written by Sir John Betjeman (b. 1906), who was British poet laureate from 1972 until his death in 1984: The bells of waiting Advent ring, The Tortoise stove is lit again And lamp-oil light across the night Has caught the streaks of winter rain In many a stained-glass window sheen From Crimson Lake to Hookers Green. The holly in... Read more
Now available at no charge on the website of the Interpreter Foundation: “Interpreter Radio Show — December 15, 2024” Bruce Webster and Kris Fredericton hosted the 15 December 2024 episode of the Interpreter Radio Show. They discussed Come, Follow Me Doctrine & Covenants lesson 2, Moroni’s prophecies about our days, the Church’s disaster relief efforts, and Christmas music. Their conversation was recorded. It has now been edited to remove commercial breaks, archived, and placed online for your convenience. The... Read more
Tomorrow — Monday, 23 December 2024 — will be the 219th anniversary of the birth of the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. Even among faithful and committed Latter-day Saints who revere his memory, his birthday is almost never noticed — which is scarcely surprising, especially given its proximity to Christmas. (Virtually nothing can escape the powerful gravitational pull of the year’s super-holiday.) So far as I noticed, Joseph’s name wasn’t mentioned a single time during my ward’s special Christmas sacrament... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In