55: Top Ten Books on Mormon History – Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling
Okay so this one breaks the criteria a little bit, well let's just say it bends the rules by being on the longer side of things. Rough Stone Rolling is a hefty little history book but it is an important one. Bushman gives a candid yet sympathetic view of Joseph...
“God Will Provide Himself A Lamb” (An Easter Sermon)
(First, a note on hermeneutics. I make no attempt here to claim authorial intent; in fact, far from authorial intent, I think that any Christianization of the story of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac cannot be what the author(s) intended. Rather, this should be read in...
I Didn’t Watch General Conference
As a Rational Faiths permablogger I have an assigned date each month for my blog. On this month my assigned date is three days after General Conference. So I knew going in that I would need to watch Conference to have something to write about for my post this month....
Polygamy and the Modern Mormon
It should come as no great surprise that many Mormons are troubled by polygamy. HBO’s Big Love, Warren Jeffs, and Mitt Romney’s presidential run have kept the practice on the cultural radar. More recently, the Church released a series of Gospel Topics essays on the...
54: April 2015 General Conference Review
We at Rational Faiths know that only 12, or 11.5, hours of general conference is not nearly enough, and thus we bring you 2 more hours of fantastic commentary for April, 2015. We are joined by Brian Dillman, Brian Kissell, Leah Marie Silverman, Jon Grimes, LaShawn...
Upon The Cross
The cross has a long history in religious culture. Even before Christianity, variations of the cross were used as a symbol of life and consecration. The cross became a popular symbol among Christians a few hundred years after Christ’s death. It has become a symbol of...
Amos, Kushites and the Covenant Relationship with YHWH
“With little connections to modern perceptions of race, it can be said that the concept and reality of race differed in the time of Amos’ prophetic ministry, in that race was not necessary a physical attribute considered by the Assyrians, Israelites, Philistines and Cushite people but rather a concept introduced as clear distinctions were drawn among the human races…” –Janan Graham-Russell discusses race in the time of Amos
In The Beginning…
Absurd Moments in Mormon Art: In The Beginning... In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth Genesis 1:1 “The story so far: In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.”...
Spoken of for a Memorial of Her
“Symbolic language conceals certain doctrinal truths from the wicked and thereby protects sacred things from possible ridicule. At the same time, symbols reveal truth to the spiritually alert.” (1) Women are not allowed to preside over the Sacrament; yet the Sacred...
My First Name is Not “Apologist”
Currently the issue of Joseph Smith and plural marriage is receiving a great deal of attention both in the media and on the blogosphere. As the author of a relevant trilogy, Joseph Smith’s Polygamy: History and Theology, coauthor of the newly released Joseph Smith’s...
53: Priming: You Are Influenced By More Than You Know
Going along with Brian Dillman's previous announcement, this is the first episode from our new series "The Human Mormon Mind." This is a series where we discuss topics related to psychology and self-deception science in general. Many of our topics will be inspired...
Mormonism and the Regeneration of All Things
I'm a big fan of Dr. Who. Yes, big surprise. The nerdy guy likes Dr. Who. I have considered writing out my thoughts of the similarities between Dr. Who and the so-called limited God of Mormonism. However, that will need to wait until another day. Right now I'd like to...
When Having the Answers is the Wrong Answer
Celebrating my son’s ninth birthday this year was extra fun. He decided to have a Star Wars birthday and I was beyond thrilled. While my wife spent the requisite hours searching Pinterest for Star Wars party ideas to entertain a crew of rowdy boys, my contribution to...
The Hitchhikers Guide to Eternity (for and in behalf of Douglas Adams, who is dead)
Adams was an atheist. I don't know if he still is. In the book "The Salmon of Doubt", published after his death, he advises: "If you imagine a puddle waking up one morning and thinking, 'this is an interesting world I find myself in- an interesting hole I find myself...
A March Madness Metaphor
A certain woman was a big fan of her Alma Mater's basketball team. The team had many winning seasons and were regularly invited to participate in the post season. The woman loved the coach. She trusted him completely and supported him, even through the lost games and...
Teach Evolution and They Will Accept
A recent article (here) concluded that “Mormonism is one of the least ‘evolution-friendly’ faith traditions in the United States. ” The conclusion is based off of data from a Pew Forum study from 2009 (here) depicting that only 22% of Mormons agree that evolution is...
LGBTQ Mormon Crisis
Two Printable handout for bishops and stake presidents that talks empirically about LGBTQ suicides:
The LGBTQ Mormon Crisis: Responding to the Empirical Research on Suicide
Youth Suicide Rates and Mormon Religious Context: An Additional Empirical Analysis
The Barker Brothers’ Projects
These videos were created for Latter-day Saint parents and allies to voice their love for their LGBT brothers and sisters, sons and daughters. They want to give a message of comfort and support to other parents who are navigating the difficult conflicts that can arise in families around this issue.
“Cogito!” (“I think!”) follows the intellectual adventures of a recovering academic outside the walls of academia.
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