As I write, it’s that unique night of the year on which the frightening words Some assembly required take on a terrible, terrible reality. *** With his wife, President Russell M. Nelson has sent a personal Christmas card out to the members of the Church and to the world: “President Nelson Shares Christmas Message: Offers blessing to feel of the Savior’s infinite love” *** I also think that you’ll enjoy the message that Elder... Read more
Sister Sharon Eubank wrote the 2016 Interpreter Foundation Christmas message: “The Song I Cannot Sing” Jenny Oaks Baker provided our Christmas message for 2017: “Christmastime: When Our Souls Can Sing” Elder Spencer J. Condie wrote the 2018 Christmas message: “Christmas in Transition: From Figgy Pudding to the Bread of Life” *** Bill Hamblin and I published the column below in the Deseret News at Christmastime several years back: Owing to... Read more
In reading various responses to the controversy engendered by the Washington Post‘s would-be “exposé” regarding the finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I find myself thinking about a statement from St. Thomas Aquinas: “For those with faith,” St. Thomas said, “no evidence is necessary; for those without it, no evidence will suffice.” I also find myself thinking about a famous story from Genesis 41 (given here, partially, in the NIV translation):... Read more
A few days ago, early last week, I gave a brief interview to BYUradio about the “wise men” of the gospel of Matthew, their possible identities, how many of them there were, and so forth. It was broadcast for the first time on Tuesday of last week, and it is now accessible online at your convenience and at no charge. It lasts something like ten minutes. Maybe a bit longer: “Constant Wonder: The Magi” *** ... Read more
Some new pieces have come out in reaction to the Washington Post’s recent “exposé” about the finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This one, for example, is quite positive and comes from a practicing member of the Church: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ finances and honoring the widow’s mite” Another active member of the Church weighs in: “Loyola University Law Professor Sam Brunson On Transparency In The Mormon Church”... Read more
Today marks the 214th anniversary of the birth of Joseph Smith. I think that fact worth noting. Joseph isn’t the Messiah. He isn’t on a par with Jesus, let alone superior. He went into the grove for guidance from the Lord, not to counsel God. He received revelation from God, not the other way around. He was subordinate. Depictions of his First Vision correctly show him kneeling, awestruck, at the feet of the Father and the Son. ... Read more
I published this column in the Deseret News for Christmas 2012: His first wife, Mary, died after a miscarriage. His second wife, Fanny, died in a freak household fire. Trying to save her, he himself was burned so badly that he couldn’t attend her funeral and, for the remaining decades of his life, couldn’t shave. His iconic image, still today, features a long white patriarchal beard. “How inexpressibly sad are all holidays,” he wrote on the first... Read more
On Friday, the Interpreter Foundation published its 2019 Christmas message, by Dr. Kristine Wardle Frederickson: “Musings on the Birth of the Savior Jesus Christ” Our 2015 Interpreter Christmas message was provided by Dr. Clayton M. Christensen, of Harvard Business School: ““He Did It”: A Christmas Message” *** I published this Christmas article in the Deseret News back in 2013 This next week, many will re-read the gospel stories of Jesus’ birth. In... Read more
In the excellent new Latter-day Saint publication Public Square, Aaron Miller has provided a lucid and extremely useful response to the current controversy about the finances of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I recommend it highly: “The $100 Billion ‘Mormon Church’ Story: A Contextual Analysis” However, I offer a quibbling footnote to just one paragraph in Professor Miller’s article, which reads as follows: “Related to this, and arguably the most revealing is... Read more
I published this column in the Deseret News just before Christmas 2014: Jesus wasn’t born on December 25. Pretty much everybody knows that. But the precise date of his birth scarcely matters, compared to the sheer fact that he was, in fact, born. The notion that Jesus is merely mythical, that no historical Jesus ever actually existed, has gained surprising traction among non-scholars over the past decade or two, especially in certain vocally atheist circles. ... Read more
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