Now this is joyous news! Ho ho ho! “Two of the biggest US earthquake faults might be linked: Provocative analysis of sea-floor cores suggests that quakes on the Cascadia fault off California can trigger tremors on the San Andreas.” But it’s not as if geological or seismic factors can affect human life in any significant way! “How a volcanic eruption helped create modern Scotland” *** Some quotations from Tim Keller, Making Sense of God: An Invitation... Read more
A fun note from our attendance at the Salt Lake Temple yesterday: When I was given the little slip bearing the name of the person for whom I was to officiate — a man who was christened on 1 April 1877 in Fritton, Suffolk, England — I was pleased to see that it had been submitted for temple ordinances by one “Wendy Watson Nelson,” whose address appeared on the slip at 47 East South Temple in Salt Lake... Read more
One of the more frivolous forms of the complaint to which I’ve been responding here points out that, unlike today’s Latter-day Saint leaders (who tend to wear suits and ties), Jesus (who seldom if ever wore either a suit or a tie) never bought stocks or invested in a shopping mall. Of course, maybe those who like to intone this particular criticism may mean it seriously; in an age of bumper-sticker polemics and tweeted political philosophy, who knows? But,... Read more
My wife and I attended a session at the Salt Lake Temple this afternoon. It was great. We’ve long been trying to schedule this, since the temple will be closing for approximately four years on 29 December 2019. We were married there, as were my wife’s parents and grandparents, and, although I grew up in southern California and my wife in Colorado, it’s where both of us received our endowments. Understandably, the Salt Lake Temple holds a very... Read more
A parenthetical comment or aside: The Bible is certainly not opposed to sound fiscal principles, prudent management, and saving. Take this passage from Proverbs 6, for example: Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little... Read more
We’re just a few days past Thanksgiving, and, already, some critics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are rolling out their annual claim that Mormons celebrate “Smithmas,” the birthday of the Prophet Joseph Smith (23 December), with more enthusiasm and vigor than they celebrate the mainstream Christian holiday of Christmas. For many, I think it’s just a rather bitter and not particularly funny joke. Some, though, seem to take the claim seriously — or,... Read more
My anonymous but indefatigable Malevolent Stalker has just posted a condemnatory analysis of the way I spent my time on Thanksgiving Day 2019. Based on his careful study of my blog posts for that day, last Thursday, he concludes that I neglected and ignored my family on Thanksgiving. This is important to him. He cares. He cares about me. He cares about my family. He’s been closely monitoring me for fifteen years now, and commenting continually about... Read more
As I observed at the end of “LDS Inc. (Part Three),” when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invests money that has come into its possession in stocks or bonds or real estate, it isn’t really spending it. It’s simply storing those funds for future use. Thus, to say that the Church “spends” more on investments than it spends on the poor, as certain critics like to say, is to commit a logical fallacy of equivocation.... Read more
The Light the World Giving Machine is one of the best ideas that I’ve seen in my lifetime: Light the World Giving Machines Open at University Place in Orem “‘Giving’ vending machine in Las Vegas racks in more than $140,000 before Thanksgiving” *** The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has issued this statement on refugees following recent media inquiries: As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of... Read more
When we last left off, in “LDS Inc. (Part Two),” we had established that spending money on such things as daily excursions to Starbucks or the latest electronic gadgets is very different than spending money on investments. In a very real sense, though, to spend money on investments isn’t really to spend money at all. It’s simply to find a means of storing, for future use, the value represented by that money. If you were given $5oo... Read more
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