A Song to Scope: Black Metallic
Maybe some of you remember the song Black Metallic, released in the 90s by British alt rock group Catherine Wheel? Well, an indie shoegaze band called Hammock recorded an absolutely stunning cover.
The Finger Pointing at the Moon
There is a simple proverb from the Zen school of Buddhism that compares the relationship between spiritual instructors and the ultimate truth to a finger pointing at the moon:
“Truth has nothing to do with words. Truth can be likened to the bright moon in the sky. Words, in this case, can be likened to a finger. The finger can point to the moon’s location. However, the finger is not the moon. To look at the moon, it is necessary to gaze beyond the finger, right?”
A Delicate Dialogue: Henry Eyring and Joseph Fielding Smith
Henry Eyring, father of current apostle Henry B. Eyring, was a world-renowned chemist who became the Church’s unofficial spokesman on scientific matters. The following segment is a good example of the excellent tact and patience that Brother Eyring exhibited when disagreeing with Church leaders.
President McKay on the Importance of Agency
President McKay was a tireless advocate of free agency and intellectual liberty and insisted that the Church be a space where the exercise of those principles was tolerated.
No Other Success in Life Can Compensate for Failure in the Home
I love the mantra, “No other success can compensate for failure in the home”, attributed to President David McKay. This counsel has been at the heart of many of the key decisions I have made so far in my life.
An Open Letter to Al Gore
I want to thank you for your efforts over the last several years to draw attention to a pressing problem that’s facing our planet: global warming. Your time, your campaigning, your organizing, I think it has been honorable. However, that’s not the purpose for this letter. I’m concerned that you’re the de facto spokesman for scientific community on the matter of global warming.
Good Music: Anuhea
Last winter when I got to visit Kaua’i and Maui with Emily, we listened to a lot of local radio. One of the artists that caught my ear was young Maui native Anuhea, whose smooth, sassy Island sound fit the feeling of trekking across Hawai’i perfectly.
A Temple to Sail the Waters
The following is taken verbatim from Greg Prince’s impressive biography David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism. In the 1960s, LDS Church membership was just beginning to flourish outside the U.S., and this brought with it the challenge of catering to Latter-day Saints living in dispersed numbers across the globe. McKay was the first Church president to instigate the policy of discouraging new converts from immigrating to the United States, and providing the opportunity to visit a temple was key in this effort. At this time there were only 13 temples operating worldwide (5 of these dedicated during McKay’s term).
Let’s Enlarge the Tent of Zion
The following is pulled from a talk given by the President of the Oakland Stake in California in Fall 2010, as reported by Carol Lynn Pearson, a member of that stake, in a talk she gave in the recent Mormon Stories Conference entitled “No More Us Vs. Them”. Our purpose is to enlarge the tent of Zion by showing an increase in charity, both as individuals and as congregations.
God Works in Mysterious Ways
I recently attended a conference in Salt Lake City about exploring Mormon identity. My main motive for attending is that I’m a big fan of anything Joanna Brooks or Carol Lynn Pearson have done, not to mention that some of my friends were the ones who put the conference together in the first place.