Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve. I don’t believe much in New Year’s resolutions, but if you guys can arrive at a consensus for what resolution I should make and keep in the new year, I’ll do it. The way I see it, I know myself worse than the rest of you.

Suggestions, to get the ball rolling:

1. Learn to juggle
2. Stop being so darned sexy
3. Be more curt to trollish commenters.

Failing that, what are your resolutions? What does Mormon culture have to say about New Years’ Resolutions? Is the practice of a ‘resolution’ consistent with the general approach of seeking a Christlike life?

Suppose a couple, having problems with fertility, decides to try IVF as a means of having children. For the sake of the hypothetical, let’s say initial fertilization goes very well and the couple ends up with 30 viable embryos. After 8 pregnancies with three embryos implanted each time, the couple is exhausted and now has 24 children. They are done having kids.

What does the couple do with the six remaining embryos? You make the call. [Read more...]

I had the honor of presenting during the Pillars of My Faith segment at Sunstone Northwest on Sunday. Below are my rough notes. Thanks to Mary Ellen Robertson and Molly Bennion for putting on a great symposium for a good community.

What are the pillars of my faith? My Mormonism is a community of Saints, a Zion of individual souls that come together to worship God and be saved through Christ. As such my fundamental image of faith is the mosaic, the wonderful art of forming a picture composed of countless individual tiles. I have in my mind the picture of God, the master Artist, placing each of us uniquely within his plan, cementing us together, ultimately forming a masterpiece. [Read more...]

Happy Remembrance Day, all.

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If you found out that you were going to die soon, what sort of note would you leave behind? Who would it be addressed to? [Read more...]

If you aren’t already familiar with the writing and performing of Elna Baker, prepare yourself for awesomeness. Baker is a comedian and storyteller living in New York. She is the author of a new memoir, The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance, describing her life as a single adult (a review will be coming later this week). She has written for The Onion and many other publications, and has been featured on This American Life and Upright Citizens Brigade. It is very possible that Baker is the best working comedienne and author in all Mormondom. We asked her some questions in connection with her new book. [Read more...]

Just a brief post to shill for some charity pledges: this weekend I’ll be participating in the local Bike MS Ride, a charity ride to benefit the National MS Society. If you’re not familiar with the effects of multiple sclerosis, ask around; odds are that a family member, friend or colleague is familiar with the sudden disorientation, blurred vision or debilitating pain that accompanies this horrible disease. Nobody is sure what triggers it, and there is no cure.

So, I’ll gladly take on a little pain myself for a good cause: 92 miles on Saturday, 68 on Sunday. Easy-peasy for a sleek biking machine such as myself. But let me provide more incentive. I will send each of my sponsors over $25 a handwritten thank-you card, as well as a “get-out-of-admin-jail-free” card good for one truly trollish comment at BCC (think it over, aloysius!). Sponsors who pledge over $100 get the cards, a guest post on BCC, and I will wear a large sign on my jersey that says “I heart [your name here, moneybags]“. Sponsors who pledge $250 or more get all of the above plus a slowdance mixtape and a signed photo of my wife Eddy Merckx [signed by me].

Here is the link to pledge. Think of it this way — you’re obligated to give 10% and you got nothin’ to show for it. Donate a little for this charity and you will have instant fame and glory.

The Bloggernacle is no stranger to controversy. One of the recurring trends, at least at BCC, is to tackle a tricky topic head-on, to deal with concerns in an open and honest way. This has some real benefits – often we see some positive apologetics, some heartfelt testimonies and some clarifications of long-held misconceptions. When you engage in this often enough over time, there’s a sense of community that develops. These commenters and bloggers become your friends. With increased frequency we read emails and see comments expressing thanks for a discussion and this community. Occasionally people say things like, “thanks — I could never have this kind of frank, open discussion with the people in my ward,” or “finally someone out there understands me!”

As flattering as such comments are, I have to admit they also make me feel a little uncomfortable. [Read more...]

The LDS Public Affairs team is now keeping an LDS Newsroom Blog, which is a very interesting step. Comments on it are closed, but it sounds like an effort to provide additional context and commentary to running news events and press releases. Sort of a director’s commentary track on a DVD, if you will. In my view this is an immensely positive thing for the Church to be doing; it helps to show a human quality to their public affairs efforts, and should make for some fascinating reading.

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A friend finds you at Church, and pulls you into a quiet hallway. His eyes are red, wet with tears. He recently lost his spouse. Now he tries to make sense of the tragedy and looks to you as a confidant and advisor. “How,” he asks, “could this happen to me? How could God do this to me?”

How do you reply? [Read more...]

We’ve talked about this before, and yes it’s not a serious or researched topic, but –

The Bloggernacle is a little community. We’re not an e-ward (yet!), but certainly we have a sense of each others’ personalities and proclivities. So if you’re setting up a Bloggernacle ward, who gets what calling? [Read more...]

Michael Otterson is managing director of Public Affairs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; as such he heads the public affairs activities of the Church worldwide. He graciously agreed to be interviewed for BCC.

BCC: The LDS Public Affairs Department is a crucial arm of the Church, as it bears the bulk of the responsibility for the interface between the church and the media. I’m curious about the day-to-day operations and mechanics of the department. How many people do you work with? Does the Church regularly engage outside PR firms?

Otterson: A few dozen staff work at Church headquarters and in addition we have 13 offices throughout the world that work as part of the support staff for Area Presidencies. We also contract outside counsel from a public relations firm to help handle periods of overload. There is always plenty of work to do. During the past several years interest in the Church has continually increased. That includes the news media but it is by no means confined to that. We are not just waiting for the phone to ring. We are also engaged in proactively building relationships and understanding with those who share our point of view, and with those who don’t. [Read more...]

It is June, and with it the season of barbecue is upon us. How to combine BCC’s two great loves: lording our elitism over others, and BBQ? Why, by hosting a barbecue contest. Read on, weaklings. [Read more...]

M. Night Shyamalan is a frustrating director. Most people believe that he has not made a good movie in some time; more jaded cynics argue that he only made two good movies: The Sixth Sense and the vastly underrated Unbreakable. I, too, am a jaded cynic; I find The Village to be visually interesting and technically well-executed, but otherwise failed, and The Lady In The Water is nearly unwatchable. You’ll note that I say nothing of The Happening. I am crossing my fingers that he does not screw up The Last Airbender. Still I’d like to entertain the case that Shyamalan made a third movie worth viewing and re-viewing: Signs. More particularly, Signs is worth us watching and re-watching as Mormons. It is ostensibly a tale of faith set against the backdrop of an alien invasion. But Shyamalan’s narrative, I believe, fails to depict faith (at least as Mormons perceive it) and instead describes an entirely different relationship with God, one that is distinctly non-LDS but perhaps one we should consider.

If you’ve not seen Signs, be warned: this post contains straight-up spoilers. It’s a fair movie overall, and one worth renting. (Illustration below, courtesy of Matthew Page) [Read more...]

Great country, love the pirate-killinz. But [y]our health care system is messed up. [Read more...]

Good morning! A beautiful crisp morning as Lloyd Newell works his magic. We will continue with our live coverage of today’s conference. Photos and other commentary to come. Sneak peek: two members of the First Presidency will speak this morning. Just a reminder, as Lloyd Newell wraps things up, that you can also join us simultaneously on Twitter. [Read more...]

All, after a great week (and only one magically disappearing post debacle!) of being our guest, Scott B has joined BCC as our newest permablogger. Please join me in welcoming him aboard.

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