Last night — Friday night — Elder M. Russell Ballard, of the Council of the Twelve, delivered a fireside address to the seminary and institute teachers of the Church.  What he had to say was striking, and very welcome.   He said, flatly, that earlier Church Education System curriculum was not adequate to today’s challenges from critical materials on the Internet, etc., and that it left our young people unprepared.  They are no longer “sheltered.”   He repeatedly... Read more

    A sinner died, and, as his coffin passed, A man who practiced every prayer and fast Turned ostentatiously aside — how could He pray for one of whom he knew no good? He saw the sinner in his dreams that night, His face transfigured with celestial light. “How did you enter heaven’s gates,” he said, “A sinner stained with filth from foot to head?” “God saw your merciless, disdainful pride, And pitied my poor soul,” the man replied.... Read more

    This is the second article published by Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture today:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/joseph-smith-the-book-of-mormon-and-the-american-renaissance-an-update/     Read more

    I want to acknowledge a problem in a short essay of mine that was published in Interpreter this afternoon:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/cloud-illusions-and-the-perfect-day/   When I went looking for statistics on the size and mass of the Sun while I was thinking about the essay, I found an online item by Tim Sharp entitled “How big is the Sun?”   http://www.space.com/17001-how-big-is-the-sun-size-of-the-sun.html   I copied some notes from it that were relevant to my point, stuck them among some other thoughts that... Read more

    It being Friday, Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture is in publishing mode:   http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/cloud-illusions-and-the-perfect-day/   I notice, by the way, that there are two errors in scientific notation appearing in the third paragraph of the article proper.  Those will be fixed shortly.     Read more

    Today’s chapter, Jacob 3, is relatively short, but hardly without interest.   The promise of ultimate victory, vindication, and comfort given in verse 1 to innocent victims of treachery or betrayal is a comforting one, for example. If you’ve ever felt betrayed by someone you had considered a friend, you know how horrible it is.   But I’ll focus on verse 5.   That verse is striking for its flat declarations that at least some of the Nephites actually “hate”... Read more

    New Jersey Governor Chris Christie endorsed his neighbor Donald Trump today:   http://www.politico.com/story/2016/02/chris-christie-endorses-donald-trump-219861   Governor Christie’s personal style (brash, outspoken, sometimes insulting and crude, very much in the “Strong Man” mode) resembles that of The Donald, and neither is a serious “movement” conservative, to put it mildly.  And, of course, Mr. Trump’s gambling casinos are important features of Atlantic City, New Jersey.   But — thanks to Cody Quirk for alerting me to this — Mr. Trump has also picked... Read more

    As everyone knows, Utah is a full-blown theocracy — essentially, it’s Iran West — in which the state’s alleged government does nothing without first gaining the approval of the leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   This proves how evil and oppressive Mormonism is.   The Utah State Senate has just passed a bill regarding the medical use of marijuana that was expressly opposed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:  ... Read more

    https://www.newscientist.com/article/2078851-when-will-the-universe-end-not-for-at-least-2-8-billion-years/   Relax!  You’ll sleep better tonight, I hope.     Read more

      As long as Mr. Trump faces two serious competitors and two other hopelessly marginal but nonetheless vote-draining alternatives — it’s inconceivable that many genuine Carson or Kasich supporters would go to Trump if those candidates withdrew — he’s likely to continue to win with pluralities of the vote, and he will almost certainly be the Republican nominee for president.   For the good of their country, Gov. Kasich and Dr. Carson need to quit the race, and... Read more