We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.  Martin Luther King, Jr.     Read more

    I’m very pleased to announce an exciting new competition for readers of Sic et Non.   Over the past month or two, Latter-day Saints have been rocked by unexpected revelations of sordid truths about the leadership of their church — for example, that people called to abandon their careers and give their full time to ecclesiastical service are not expected to forage in dumpsters or go door to door with begging bowls in order to support their families;... Read more

    I can sum up all the arguments used against Joseph Smith and “Mormonism” in a very few words, the merits of which will be found in “OLD JOE SMITH. IMPOSTOR, MONEY DIGGER. OLD JOE SMITH. SPIRITUAL WIFE DOCTRINE. IMPOSTURE. THE DOCTRINE IS FALSE. MONEY DIGGER. FALSE PROPHET. DELUSION. SPIRITUAL WIFE DOCTRINE. Oh, my dear brethren and sisters, keep away from them, for the sake of your never dying souls. FALSE PROPHETS THAT SHOULD COME IN THE LAST DAYS. OLD... Read more

    I’m just a bit unhappy with the indispensable Jeff Lindsay on this one, because my Thursday Deseret News column for the coming week will cover rather similar ground.   But this is really good and important news, and people need to be aware of it:   http://mormanity.blogspot.com/2017/01/many-great-new-resources-at-ldsorg-and.html     Read more

    The continuation of social and family ties into the world to come was of the utmost importance to ancient Egyptians:   http://www.plonialmonimormon.com/2017/01/social-deification-in-ancient-egyptian.html       Read more

    Some treat science as if it were a sort of infallible oracle, like a divine revelation–or if not infallible, at any rate such that when it comes to fixing belief, science is the court of last appeal. But this can’t be right. . . .  science doesn’t address the topics where we most need enlightenment: religion, politics, and morals, for example. Many look to scientists for guidance on matters outside of science, matters on which scientists have no... Read more

    It is, to coin an absolutely original metaphor, very easy to miss the forest for the trees.  Do General Authorities receive living stipends?  Are they bigger than I think they ought to be?  Is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir going to Donald Trump’s inauguration?  Does the Church spend less on charitable activities as I personally define charity than I think it should?  Has the Church not spoken out on socio-political issues I think it ought to address?  Has the... Read more

    Character, not circumstances, makes the man. Booker T. Washington (1856-1915)     Read more

    Well, strictly speaking, he’s actually just slightly beyond the biblical era.  But this is still interesting:   http://www.livescience.com/57182-hebrew-tablet-reveals-biblical-ruler-of-judea.html     Read more

    http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/mormon-apostles-2017-us-presidential-inauguration   I think that Elder Christofferson’s description of the quadrennial presidential inauguration as “a civic ceremony that transcends the person being inaugurated” and as “an act of state, not of politics,” is precisely correct.     Read more