If the universe had not been made with the most exacting precision we could never have come into existence. It is my view that these circumstances indicate the universe was created for man to live in.  John O’Keefe     Read more

    Robert Boylan responds to a rather surprising argument leveled by some against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:   http://scripturalmormonism.blogspot.com/2014/10/latter-day-saints-and-religious-images.html     Read more

    http://www.getreligion.org/getreligion/2016/7/6/attacks-in-lebanon-the-new-york-times-gets-it-right-the-targets-were-christians     Read more

    http://www.firstthings.com/article/2016/08/donald-trump-man-of-faith     Read more

    Thanks to Eric Lopez for calling this very nice story to my attention:   http://www.12news.com/news/nation-now/inmates-break-free-from-cell-to-help-ill-jailer/267694436   I hope that these inmates receive some sort of reward for their action.   I think that the satisfaction that they’ve already received for doing something truly good could even be life-changing for them.     Read more

    “The obvious is the hardest thing of all to point out to anyone who has genuinely lost sight of it.” Owen Barfield         Read more

    http://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2016/07/06/venus-not-earth-may-have-been-our-solar-systems-best-chance-at-life/#31ab88ec764d     Read more

    It appears that, prior to approximately 4000 BC, the Arabian peninsula was considerably wetter and greener than it is today:   http://www.realclearscience.com/articles/2016/07/09/a_wetter_arabia_clues_from_ancient_rock_art_109685.html   This is interesting in itself.   I also note with interest, though, how the archaeologists are piecing this prehistory together:  They haven’t, as a matter of fact, found the animal bones that would confirm their thesis — though their argument seems pretty solid without such tangible paleobiological evidence.  Rather, they’re extrapolating from other kinds of... Read more

    The 2016 Religious Freedom Annual Review sponsored by BYU’s International Center for Law and Religion Studies (ICLRS) concluded early last evening.  It was an exceptionally rich set of meetings, and I really enjoyed my attendance at it.   Owing to some pre-existing conflicts, I was unable to attend all of the conference, but I did enjoy hearing the remarks of Elder Lance B. Wickman (“Defending Religious Freedom in a Secular Age: Fundamental Principles, Practical Priorities, and Fairness for All”),... Read more

    Every other week, Bill Hamblin and I publish a column in the Deseret News devoted to some subject or other in world religions.  Although these biweekly Saturday columns inescapably reflect our background and interests as Latter-day Saints, they’re deliberately devoted to topics drawn from religion beyond Mormondom (which we also find fascinating).   The most recent of our columns appeared this morning:   http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865657716/How-the-Father-and-the-Son-were-depicted-in-early-Christian-art.html     Read more