My general assumption is that the Universe is stranger — and far richer — than we commonly suppose.  And this little item (which might perhaps be read in conjunction with my earlier post titled “Is Earth Alive?”) does nothing to weaken that assumption:   https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/biocentrism/201703/are-plants-aware   Posted from Falls Church, Virginia   Read more

    A good piece on Mormon views of exaltation and the afterlife by one of the folks who comment on my blog:   http://www.jrganymede.com/2013/10/08/11195/   I know his name, and I would give it here except that I don’t know (since his handle is given above merely as “Brother KB”) whether he wants it publicized.  (If he authorizes it, I would be more than happy to supply his name.  Really, I would like to do so.)   Anyway, I... Read more

    “A beautiful city is Richmond, seated on the hills that overlook the James River. The dwellings have a pleasant appearance, often standing by themselves in the midst of gardens. In front of several, I saw large magnolias, their dark, glazed leaves glittering in the March sunshine.” William Cullen Bryant, American poet and editor (1794-1878)   Posted from Falls Church, Virginia     Read more

    Thanks to Gabriela Walther-Bleck for bringing this fine piece to my attention:   At Global Summit, Elder Soares Advocates for Peace Through Religious Freedom   I’ve spoken and written on multiple occasions about Krister Stendahl’s wonderful concept of “holy envy.”  (Here, for example.)  Far from the hyper-legalistic object of gentle/gentile mockery that it occasionally was when I was growing up, devout Jewish Sabbath practices and attitudes have become, for me, a matter of “holy envy.”  We could learn... Read more

    If you’re along the Wasatch Front or in Idaho’s Magic Valley, you should probably save the following dates — so that, according to your preference, you can either attend one of my lectures or make alternate plans that will enable you to avoid them like the plague:   1.   On the evening of Friday, 7 April 2017, I’ll be speaking in the Twin Falls, Idaho, area on the subject of Islam.  I’ll have more details on that... Read more

    http://www.livescience.com/56300-gate-shrine-excavated-in-israel.html   This might helpfully be read in conjunction with my 15 February 2017 Deseret News article:   “Biblical ‘minimalists’ and the historical record”   Posted from Richmond, Virginia     Read more

    When, back in 1997 or 1998, we learned that the Southern Baptist Convention was planning to hold its 1998 annual national meeting in Salt Lake City — a place that has been blessed with relatively few Baptists — and that it was planning a massive attempt to convert Latter-day Saints to Christianity© — we at what was then called the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormons Studies (FARMS) decided to proactively prepare some materials for that event.   Here’s... Read more

    “Here is the cosmological proof of the existence of God — the design argument of Paley — updated and refurbished.  The fine tuning of the universe provides prima facie evidence of deistic design.  Take your choice: blind chance that requires multitudes of universes or design that requires only one. . . .  Many scientists, when they admit their views, incline toward the teleological or design argument.” Edward Robert Harrison        Read more

    Some, I hope, will find this short piece by Taylor Halverson helpful:   http://www.ldsliving.com/Why-Do-We-Suffer-Here-s-One-Important-Reason-We-Hardly-Ever-Talk-About/s/84733   Posted from Richmond, Virginia     Read more

    “It seems to me people tend to forget that we are to love our enemies, not to satisfy some standard of righteousness but because God their Father loves them.” Marilynne Robinson, Gilead   Posted from Richmond, Virginia     Read more