I’m just back from my home chapel, where I attended the broadcast of a conference of the Utah South Area of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   It was a good one.   The speakers were Elder Carl B. Cook of the Seventy; Sister Cristina B. Franco, second counselor in the General Primary Presidency; Elder Juan A. Uceda of the Presidency of the Seventy, who also conducted the conference; and Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the... Read more

    I’m delighted that we’re rapidly approaching the debut of the Lee Groberg film Joseph Smith: American Prophet, which is a substantial revision of the 1999 PBS film, also directed by Lee Groberg, titled American Prophet: The Story of Joseph Smith:   https://vimeo.com/226371146/3599537230   Happily, those who have created this new film were able to retain the original’s narration by the late great Gregory Peck.   ***   Here’s a new blog entry from Matt Roper, formerly a colleague of... Read more

    Some atheists — including Daniel Dennett and Richard Dawkins — have adopted the term Brights to describe themselves.  Although a few deny it, the unspoken implication seems to be that theists are dims.   Well . . .   Addressing Professor Dawkins, John Cornwell writes,   You start by quoting Bertrand Russell again:  ” . . . intellectually eminent men disbelieve in Christian religion,” you quote him as saying, “but they conceal the fact in public, because they... Read more

    A couple of months ago I read a book by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Benz titled Der deutsche Widerstand gegen Hitler (“The German Resistance against Hitler”) that recounted the heroic and often very costly story of those within Germany who opposed the Third Reich.  Many — some of them university students and other young people — died for their resistance to totalitarianism.   With such stories in mind, I can scarcely express my disdain for the coddled children of some... Read more

    My wife is off on the coast of Oregon.  Curiously, I’ve had a song running through my head for the past couple of days.  This one.  The lyrics don’t apply perfectly, but close enough.   ***   Many of my daughter-in-law’s relatives are in Miami.  They live there.  We’re all very concerned.  Fortunately, they’re congregating in one well-built home that’s at a good elevation:  twelve feet above sea level.  We’re all still very concerned.   ***   This... Read more

    A couple of (in my judgment) quite important articles on the largely mythical war between science and religion:   “Why religion is not going away and science will not destroy it”   “Who is to blame for the greatest myth in the history of science and religion?  These two guys.”   I agree with Peter Harrison that militant scientism threatens the future of science.  For the sake of science, those who seek to use it as a weapon... Read more

    For its 268th consecutive week of publishing at least one article every Friday, Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture put this short item up:   “The Power is In Them”   It’s a pretty open and unashamed request, albeit obliquely expressed, for more volunteers and, yes, more donations.   ***   Another passage from Joseph Smith’s impassioned 11 April 1844 sermon to the Council of Fifty on the topic of intolerance and religious liberty:   “In all governments... Read more

    Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Louisiana.  Federal and other resources already strained.   Hurricane Irma hurtling toward Florida.   Hurricane Katia (currently Category 2) just off the eastern coast of Mexico.   Hurricane Jose (currently Category 4) not far from Montserrat, Barbados, and Dominica and headed toward the north northwest.   A massive 8.2-magnitude earthquake off the southern coast of Mexico.   If you were thinking about making a donation to relief efforts after Harvey, please do so now.  Here’s... Read more

    I’ve just finished recording my introduction to the latest volume (Volume 26) of Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture.  Thanks to Tom Pittman for his indispensable help.   Did I manage to hide the quivering anger in my voice?  I tried really hard.   ***   Yet another vicious expression of my perpetual volcanic rage has appeared in today’s issue of the Deseret News:   “‘To Seek the Law of the Lord’ essay collection about scriptures, scholarship”  ... Read more