I no longer go very often to the LDS church. This post partially explains why.

One: J

When I was dating the woman who would become my wife, she struggled to tell me something. It took her a while before she eventually said, “my brother J is gay.” I wasn’t bothered at all but Rebecca was scared it would scupper our relationship. After all, if her brother was gay, the idea that I — a Returned Missionary — might contemplate marrying a woman from anything less than the perfect Mormon family was in danger. It seems silly now but that’s what she thought. I’m not sure why it didn’t bother me. I am no font of tolerance and charity . . . I just didn’t care. Plenty of other Mormons don’t either but she had this idea from somewhere, I suppose. Perhaps it was from some of the people in our branch whose virulent homophobia was on display in Sunday school? And where did that come from? At the time, I would have absolved the church. Bigots are everywhere, I thought. It’s not the church’s fault. [Read more…]

Mormons in my neck of the woods first saw live General Conference broadcasts around 1993. A few members of the church had satellite receivers powerful enough to pick up a very poor reception of conference. It got better over the next few years. By the end of the 90s, most stake centres had dishes. Now everyone watches it on the internet.

Prior to the 90s, conference here was not a big thing at all. Sometimes we watched taped versions but without a huge amount of zeal. There was, of course, the printed version in the Ensign.

We knew that there were prophets leading the church but they were distant. The big stuff got through — like President Benson’s talks on pride and the Book of Mormon — but mostly the leaders who mattered were local. No-one hung on every jot and tittle of every word of every speaker of conference as if it were all big stuff. This was ok. We were still Mormons.

Elder Holland has it right: “It is not our purpose ever to demean any person’s belief or the doctrine of any religion. We extend to all the same respect for their doctrine that we ask for ours.”

It is therefore a shame to have this statement appear a few sentences before: “We agree with our critics on at least that point—that such a formulation for divinity [an unflattering amalgam of the doctrine of the Trinity] is incomprehensible.”

It is also to be regretted that the full context of Serapion’s lament — “Woe is me! They have taken my God away from me, … and I know not whom to adore or to address” — is not given, either by Holland, Paulsen, or Robinson). The Anthropomorphite heresy Serapion clung to had its crux in the veneration of icons. As an iconoclastic religion, Mormonism would no doubt also have frowned on Serapion’s use of icons in prayer and sought to take them away.

If one characteristic of Zion is that there are no poor (Moses 7:18), and if one means to improve the lot of the poor is to place fewer financial burdens on them (Isaiah 3:15), then the law of consecration and tithing as given in D&C 119 seems to be perfectly aligned with that vision.  [Read more…]

Loyal readers,

BCC is branching into photo-blogging and going beyond our Mormon neighbourhood at the same time. Please visit This Christian Life where we aim to capture a small visual essence of the Christian world we come across day-to-day. You can also follows us on Twitter (@TChristianL), Instagram (this_christian_life), and Facebook (facebook.com/TChristianL).

Please feel free to send us your own photos via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The best will be posted on the TCL blog (see also the sidebar here at BCC).

The content is Mormon but the pattern is inspired by the Book of Common Prayer, which has been preparing people to receive the Lord’s Supper for 450 years. Scroll down for a version without the BCP headings (I have initially given the headings to show the order’s methodology). The intent is to place the sacrament in the centre of sacrament meeting, to bring greater focus to our prayers and talks, and to better offer due praise to God.

The Gathering

Prelude music is sung or played.

Announcements are given by the relevant quorum and auxiliary leaders.

The Greeting

The presiding officer greets the congregation.

Opening hymn. [Read more…]

How does God speak to us? Let us say he speaks in our minds and we must worry no more about it. Except I will worry because that is me.

I am speaking in my own mind right now as I form these words and type them. Somewhere in my Wernicke’s area, some chemical magic is doing something that I perceive as language. Does the Holy Spirit enter my brain and stir that soup? [Read more…]

There has been an awakening. Have you felt it?

[Read more…]