In the end, I don’t much care where the Book of Mormon story took place.  That’s not to say that the question isn’t interesting to me, but, in my judgment, a definitive answer to it is essential neither to my faith nor to anybody’s salvation.   Much more significant, it seems to me, is the proposition that the Book of Mormon took place.   Some people disagree.   I receive a fair amount of anonymous or pseudonymous hate mail.... Read more

    http://westerndigs.org/giant-triassic-predator-named-for-baby-eating-monster-discovered-in-new-mexico/   And no, it’s not about me.     Read more

    War is peace.   Freedom is slavery.   Ignorance is strength.   These three declarations, together, form one of the slogans of English socialism (Ingsoc) in the Oceania of George Orwell’s dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four.  Along with Newspeak, they are designed to eliminate dissent by eliminating the very possibility of thinking dissenting thoughts.   I couldn’t help but recall those Orwellian words while reading about the student government resolution at Iowa State against admitting Brigham Young University to the Big... Read more

    http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865661994/LDS-Church-launches-Preventing-Suicide-website-during-National-Suicide-Prevention-Week.html?pg=all   Unfortunately, if I wanted to, I could write the critical responses that, in some circles, will inevitably attach themselves to this announcement.   It would be really nice, though, to have none of those on my blog or on my Facebook page.  Wouldn’t it just be wonderful to agree that trying to prevent suicide is a good thing, and that the Church, in putting this website up, is trying to do a good thing?     Read more

    Sometimes, in order to keep our record going — of publishing at least one journal article every week — we at the Interpreter Foundation really have to scrape the bottom of the barrel.  Here for example, with all of the ad hominem nastiness and sheer shameless dishonesty that are the author’s trademarks, is this week’s new piece in Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/three-degrees-of-gospel-understanding/   Warning:  This essay simulates dramatic aerobatics.  It will abruptly accelerate, stop, turn,... Read more

        This is absolutely fabulous stuff:   http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/09/flat-earth-truthers/499322/   It will transform your view of the world around you, of science, of conspiracies, of . . . well, everything.   Have you, by the way, checked out the latest models of tin-foil hats?  They’re better than ever.     Read more

    First of all, I want to say something about the photograph above, which I really like:   Running across the photo are, to the right of center, the Red Sea, with its two antenna-like arms extending toward the left — the upper one being the Gulf of Aqaba (or, if you’re an Israeli, the Gulf of Eilat), and the lower one being the Gulf of Suez.  They enclose the Sinai Peninsula, above which you can see the relatively... Read more

    I’ve lost count of how many stories similar to this one — which is by no means the most spectacular of the lot — I’ve heard and read.  Many hundreds, I expect.   Although there are, no doubt, false memories and outright fraudulent poseurs, I’m strongly disposed to credit these accounts generally:   http://www.ldsliving.com/The-Day-an-LDS-Woman-Saw-Heaven-and-Decided-to-Stay-on-Earth/s/83117?utm_source=ldsliving&utm_medium=email     Read more

    “Massachusetts: Churches may be covered by transgender discrimination bans, as to ‘secular events’”   My thanks to Cassandra Hedelius (herself an attorney) for calling my attention to this Washington Post article by Eugene Volokh, a professor at UCLA’s school of law.   (He’s Jewish, by the way.  I mention that in an effort to forestall dismissals of him as merely a conservative Christian with a persecution complex.)   Please note that the issue I’m raising here isn’t what pronouns... Read more

    A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for Mr. Donald J. Trump’s proposal of “extreme vetting” for immigrants.  I couldn’t help but think, with that in mind, of a funny four-and-a-half-minute video that one of my sons recently shared with me:   “Putting Donald Trump Supporters Through an Ideology Test”   Now, I’m in favor of carefully screening potential immigrants in an attempt to block the entry of terrorists.  And I realize that there’s something uncharitable... Read more