GUEST POST: Ganesh Cherian of Wellington, New Zealand is currently a Stake High Counsellor and has served as a bishop for five and a half years. Feel free to address comments to Ganesh on this site or visit his own blog LDS Essays. Last month our Stake Presidency selected President Uchtdorf’s renowned talk ‘Come join with us’ from the October 2013 conference for our fourth Sunday ‘Teaching for our Times’ lesson. President Uchtdoft gave an impassioned plea to those who... Read more
Once again the church releases an ‘Official Statement’ that makes the hearts sink. My first thought when I read the latest was, ‘lets watch and see how many members will bail’, and then over the ensuing hours the exit narratives in the social media began; ‘I’ve had enough’, ‘I can’t do this anymore’, ‘I’m out’. We could trust the moral high ground proclaimed in this latest declaration if it didn’t produce more questions than it answered, if it softened more... Read more
And yet there is more that could be said and done. Call me cynical but the timing of the Race and the Priesthood statement from the LDS Newsroom; the PR department; the First Presidency, or wherever it came from appears to be an effort, in light of Mandela’s death, to mitigate for the church being positioned on the bad side history. Or perhaps it’s just a coincidence. Either way, as a church we have no right to effuse over Mandela’s... Read more
On Sunday I was asked to give a sacrament talk on Official Declaration Two, which is the Church’s 1978 statement extending the Priesthood do all ‘worthy males’. The subtext of this declaration was obviously that at one time not all worthy males were eligible for the priesthood with the restriction being placed on those with Sub-Saharan Black ancestry. I told the Bishop that he’d taken a punt on me speaking on the subject but he responded with a characteristic jolly... Read more
Firstly, let me point out that this post isn’t really about my husband or his snoring – its allegorical – which means I’m talking about something else. Let me preface this essay by saying that I am confident that many Mormon men are quietly aware that a change is on the wind. Not that they’d say anything in Elders’ Quorum or High Priests’ Group, where they have been quietly socialised into embodying a state of semi-consciousness. But I firmly... Read more
I used to be that girl. Devout, unquestioning, orthodox, loyal, safe. But I’m not now, and there is no going back. I spent time at the beach last night chatting with a good friend who was also, that girl. But in recent unbidden flashes of knowing, sudden critical insights, and the lifting of heavy lidded eyes upon the great scene of the churched patriarchy, she too has changed. Her ground has tilted and notwithstanding she has done everything, and more... Read more
I belong to a very diverse ward which includes Maori, Pakehā (Haolies or Palagi), Canadian, Tongan, Samoan, American, English, Zimbabwean, Iranian, Nepalese, and Ghanaian to name a few. Yesterday at church we were offered the chance to take Samoan language lessons. Quite a few members of the congregation registered their interest with some enthusiasm in understanding both the language and culture of those with whom we share a religion. In our congregation prayers, testimonies, talks etc. are offered in any... Read more
Thousands and thousands of Mormons all over the world attend temple services on a daily basis, and thousands and thousands will watch a metaphorical reenactment of the creation story. Included in this drama is an exchange between God and Satan. In a rage with God for cursing him, Satan threatens to overcome the will of the ‘children of men’ and cause them/make them/and take them as his followers. God counters by declaring that in his human design he will include... Read more
I only recently became sold on the importance of Family Home Evening. Orthodox husband has always been a stickler, and I can’t think of a single week in our entire 20 years of marriage when we haven’t had Family Home Evening. It’s been the scene of our funniest moments, such as this four years ago: Finn: ….so Jesus was crucified on the cross like this (holding his arms out to the side while his head lolls). Me: And then what... Read more
It’s a beautiful Winter’s day in Christchurch today. Clear blue skies, cool temperatures in the shade but warm in the distant sun. Travelling past Travis Wetlands on our way to church this morning our son Finn asked, “Mum, why do Pukekos have red beaks?” We’d been observing the flocks of Canada geese and pukeko congregating, and strutting about on the verge of the road. “Its cause God made his greatest artists responsible for colouring the animals.” Was my reply as... Read more
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