Author Archive for Michael Nielsen

Sabbatical

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 22, 2008
in Administration
. 0 Comments

The doors to the cultural hall are going to be shut for a while as we vacuum the floor. You can peek inside and see what we’ve been discussing over the past couple of years, but comments are closed for the time being. Why? It is simply time for a break.

We hope and expect to come back, and we might even post an interesting news item from time to time, but you’ll need to find another place to talk. That shouldn’t be a problem, given that there are about a bazillion Mormon-related blogs and bulletin boards. If you are the kind of person who is more comfortable in a stimulating Sunday School discussion, you might try By Common Consent. If you find the cultural hall more comfortable than the chapel, try visiting New Order Mormon for its discussion board. Or if you are on your way out of the building altogether, you might consider Main Street Plaza.

Thanks for visiting.

Real Religion

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 22, 2008
in Christianity, Mormon, Spirituality and religion
. 3 Comments

“Here’s what I think in a single sentence: I think that the real religion is about the understanding that if we can only still our egos for a few seconds, we might have a chance of experiencing something that is divine in nature. But in order to do that, we have to slice away at our egos and try to get them down to a manageable size, and then still work some practiced light meditation. So real religion is about reducing our egos, whereas all the churches are interested in is egotistical activities, like getting as many members and raising as much money and becoming as important and high-profile and influential as possible. All of which are egotistical attitudes. So how can you have an egotistical organization trying to teach a non-egotistical ideal? It makes no sense, unless you regard religion as crowd control. What I think most organized religion—simply crowd control.”
John Cleese, from his interview in The Onion

Certitude

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 20, 2008
in Belief and Mormon
. 2 Comments

One of the more interesting things I heard last weekend at the American Psychological Association convention in Boston was this line, “Absolute certainty and evil are actually the same thing,” from a presentation on the belief systems of religious extremists. It struck me as something that many in the Cultural Hall might agree with. Certitude may give people an enhanced sense of meaning, but it reduces the number of alternatives one perceives to be available. The result is increased extremism, both in attitudes and in actions.

When I heard that idea, that absolute certainty and evil are the same thing, I couldn’t help but think of LDS lore. Remember the story about the suggestion that it might be better to make everyone do the right thing, so that all return to God, vs. the alternative that people have choices? Whether or not you believe that those two proposals were actually put forward in a heavenly council, it is an idea worth pondering. Choice is a basic Mormon ideal, and it seems more real to me when we are less certain. Certitude enhances meaning in one’s life, which has certain benefits, of course. But certitude also limits the number of alternatives we see, which impacts our ability to choose among our options.

Continue reading ‘Certitude’

30 Days with Same Sex Marriage

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 7, 2008
in Belief, Current Events, Family, Homosexuality, Marriage, Morality, Parenting, Raising Children, Sexual and children
. 7 Comments

When it appeared on television I’d heard about the 30 Days episode featuring an LDS woman, Katie, living with gay men who’d adopted children. I hadn’t been able to see the program, however, until today, when  a friend forwarded me the link. It is fascinating to watch, and it seems to me that Spurlock (the man behind the 30 Days series) has done a fine job presenting a balanced picture of the issue. It is apparent that the gay couple (and their friends) had hoped to change Katie’s mind. They believed that by opening their home and showing that they are good people trying hard to be good parents to four children, their actions would at least soften Katie’s opposition. She remains steadfastly opposed, however, and she describes well how her views are too intertwined with her identity and with her understanding of God and morality to change. The program takes about 43 minutes to watch, and it is well worth your time.

Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam, Not for a Torturer

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on July 26, 2008
in Current Events, Morality, Mormon, Mormons, Pacifism, Politics and peace
. 16 Comments

That was the title I suggested to my wife for her talk in sacrament meeting tomorrow. After reading that a graduate of BYU’s law school approved of the “torture memo”, it seems to me that we could benefit from being reminded that Jesus said to turn the other cheek.

What do you think? Should we change the words to the Primary song from “Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam” to “Jesus Loves Waterboarding”? I don’t remember… was it in the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus approved of physical pain as long as it wasn’t “equivalent in intensity to the pain accompanying serious physical injury, such as organ failure, impairment of bodily function, or even death.”

Sigh. What a world we live in.

Fathers

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on June 11, 2008
in Family, Mormon, Parenting, Raising Children and children
. 3 Comments

Fathers come in all types. I’m fortunate to have one who is loving and is always there when I need him. Even 40-somethings can use a helpful word from Dad once in a while, y’know.

We Mormons anthropomorphize God, calling him Heavenly Father, and seeing human characteristics in deity. Of course, in doing this we are following the Greeks and others throughout history. People seem to understand God in much the same way we understand each other. Maybe this is one of my problems with God. Continue reading ‘Fathers’

Social Influence and Defining Marriage

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on May 17, 2008
in Family, Homosexuality and Marriage
. 16 Comments

The California Supreme Court recently ruled that the state’s ban on gay marriage was unconstitutional. The Mormon internet has been busy with comments and reaction to the ruling, which will almost certainly be the subject of a ballot initiative in November to add the ban to the state constitution. Of course, the LDS church’s involvement in 2000 on California’s Proposition 22 is well known, and many observers expect the church to campaign actively in favor of the expected November ballot initiative. We shall see.

Continue reading ‘Social Influence and Defining Marriage’

Moving Forward: The LDS Polygamy Question

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on April 15, 2008
in Apologetics, Belief, Culture, Current Events, Doctrine, History, LDS, Marriage, Mormon, Mormons, Polygamy, general and temple
. 29 Comments

In today’s Salt Lake Tribune is an op-ed piece I wrote about polygamy, copied below. Some people will say I’m overstepping my bounds, and others will say I don’t go far enough. I simply hope it makes people think about the church’s connections to polygamy. The present policy - relying on the Associated Press and other news organizations to clarify who is and who is not Mormon - seems bound to fail, as the public doesn’t consult the AP Style Guide when they talk about such things.

Continue reading ‘Moving Forward: The LDS Polygamy Question’

Explaining Accidents

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on April 11, 2008
in Belief, Death and general
. 2 Comments

When I moved 15 years ago to this small corner of Georgia, Bill was one of the first people I met. He greeted me with a broad smile and a twinkle in his eye, and there was never a moment that I doubted he genuinely cared about me. Some people have that gift.

My next memory of him is when I gave my first talk in Sacrament meeting. Our branch met in a tightly-packed “phase 1″ building, so I had plenty of opportunity for eye contact. His are the eyes I remember best from that day. As I gave my talk, I quickly learned that I could count on him for feedback that told me that I was being heard. Really heard. He smiled, nodded his head, and then took time afterwards to discuss my talk and to welcome me again to the branch.

A few days ago he had an accident at home, and now he is gone. The viewing was this evening; the funeral tomorrow. I will miss him and his smile. There have been days when I missed church, whether because I was out of town or just not in the mood, or I didn’t want to sit through three hours with lighting that can trigger my migraines. On those days, I may not have missed the lesson I disagreed with, heterodox guy that I am, but I certainly missed Bill and his smile.

While at the viewing, a friend tried to make sense of his death. She believes that the accident was God’s way of “bringing Bill home”. Another friend suggested that his wife, who died a few months ago, needed him. Maybe the universe works that way, with a God that intervenes, causing accidents that take lives when our “time is up”. Maybe, but I’m more inclined to think deaths like Bill’s happen for reasons other than divine intervention. Accidents happen, and the laws of physics cause trauma to our bodies. Life is fragile that way.

We look for answers, for reasons to explain the events in our lives. We seek those answers when it comes to explaining death as well. Whichever answer we arrive at, we find comfort in it. If the answer includes God taking care of us and then calling us home, the comfort seems obvious. But it also leaves us to explain why God’s intervention appears unreliable.

If the answer is more like mine, comfort comes in different forms; for me it comes in the sense of connection with humanity through a shared engagement with life. And there is comfort, too, in knowing that the memory of Bill’s smile, and the many good things he did, lives on. My friends and I may disagree over the question of divine intervention, but we agree on our connection to a fellow traveler and to each other. For me, that’s enough.

Morality Beyond Sexuality

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on March 28, 2008
in Current Events, Marriage, Morality and Sexual
. 15 Comments

One theme that I hear often in Mormonism concerns morality and its central place in society. Most recently I came across this idea in an op-ed piece in the Salt Lake Tribune. The writer, Lynn Wardle, described his views regarding morality in the context of Elliot Spitzer’s downfall. (I don’t think copyright law allows me cut & paste Wardle’s comments here but you can click on this link to read them at the Trib.)
Continue reading ‘Morality Beyond Sexuality’

Tom Lantos and Mormonism

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on February 27, 2008
in Belief, Current Events, Death, Faith, Family, Mormon, Politics and Spirituality
. 4 Comments

Tom Lantos, a powerful member of the US House of Representatives for many years, died recently. In this report of his funeral I learned he had a significant connection to Mormonism: His wife and daughters, who apparently converted some time ago.
Continue reading ‘Tom Lantos and Mormonism’

Mourning with my Alma Mater

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on February 14, 2008
in Death, Spirituality and Suffering
. 3 Comments

My alma mater, Northern Illinois University, is mourning today, following a shooting in one of its classrooms. News reports say that a gunman whose identity is not presently known shot and killed four students and wounded many  more when he fired a shotgun and then pistol in a large auditorium classroom before turning his pistol on himself. It is sad, and it hits me close to home as I think of the many exams I proctored in that very classroom during my grad school days. Continue reading ‘Mourning with my Alma Mater’

Rejection

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on February 4, 2008
in Belief, Christianity and Family
. 23 Comments

While reading a New Order Mormon discussion recently I came upon a message that made me stop and think for a moment. The discussion concerned how to deal with family members’ rejection when one has decided to leave the church. A writer described her wish to renounce her LDS Church membership, but feared the rejection that would come from her “DNA Mormon” family. One person commented, “Its hard to believe that there are people who love the church more than their family, but maybe instead of love a better way to look at it is they are more afraid of the church than they are their family.” Continue reading ‘Rejection’

Religion and Humor

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on January 26, 2008
in Culture and Mormon
. 0 Comments

Religion and comedy have been in the news recently, with some interesting Mormon angles to the story. A few weeks ago the Salt Lake Tribune had an article about Mormon comics that was quite funny. Alas, the article is archived, although you can still view the comments at that site and I think you can pay to see the original at the Trib archive. In today’s Deseret News is another, arising from Mike Huckabee’s joke about a family recipe that offended Catholics. The story also mentions some jokes I’ve collected on my website. Take a minute and enjoy the jokes. It’s Saturday, after all, and you deserve a smile.

Fundamentalist Mormon : Mormon :: Mormon : Christian

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on December 12, 2007
in Christianity, Current Events, LDS, Media, Mormon and Mormons
. 17 Comments

Here’s an analogy for you to consider–

Fundamentalist Mormon : Mormon :: Mormon : Christian

Just as Fundamentalist Mormosn often consider themselves to be the ‘real’ Mormons, Mormons often consider themselves to be the ‘real’ Christians. And yet, both are viewed by the group to which they aspire as outdated, strange, and even oppressive.

Of course, analogies break down. Where does this one fall apart?

Julia Sweeney and the Mormon Missionaries

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on December 5, 2007
in Belief and Faith
. 2 Comments

Julia Sweeney recently talked on RadioWest with Doug Fabrizio. Her journey away from religious belief began when two LDS missionaries knocked on her door and asked an innocent question: Do you believe that God loves you? Her answer began a fascinating period of self-reflection and self-realization, which she transformed into her one-woman show, “Letting Go of God.”

It is well worth your time if you have entertained questions about faith and belief. The issues apply to religious belief more generally, but several questions phoned in deal with LDS issues in that context. If you read The Cultural Hall, I suspect you’ll find this a very worthwhile interview. You can listen to the podcast version here. Now, stop reading here, download the podcast, and enjoy!

What I know

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on November 19, 2007
in Belief, Christ, Faith, Family, LDS, Marriage, Mormon, Parenting, Raising Children, Women's Issues, children, compassion and conference
. 8 Comments

The discussion surrounding the recent conference talk, Mothers Who Know, was fascinating. I read the Feminist Mormon Housewives and Exponent II conversations and other blog and bulletin board discussions, as well as the comments on the articles posted at the Deseret News and the Tribune, and found that I couldn’t help but react, sometimes in agreement, and sometimes in disagreement. Later I read What Women Know, which focuses on a broadened conceptualization of women’s many roles in life, and I found myself thinking again about the women and men in my life who have made a difference. If I have amounted to anything in life, it is largely because of the things I have learned from others. Whether from women or from men, I most value the things I have learned through nurturance and compassion. Hierarchy, commandments, and guilt have proven poor teachers in my case.

Continue reading ‘What I know’

Religion Can Reduce Cheating

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on November 13, 2007
in Science and religion
. 4 Comments

This isn’t a Mormon-specific post, but I thought y’all might be interested in this post from my more academic blog. It describes research a colleague and I did that found people who were exposed to religious words, either by sorting them in a “scrambled sentence” task (akin to an anagram) or by flashing the words briefly on a screen (so that they were perceived subliminally), were less likely to cheat subsequently.

Now, back to your regularly-scheduled Mo discussions….

Mind of a Five-Year Old

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on November 11, 2007
in Belief and children
. 4 Comments

Sacrament meeting today was the primary program. It contained the usual ingredients — the child who seems to swallow the microphone, the Sunbeams who are too shy to sing, and so on. I’ve seen it dozens of times before, but it is always cute, so I went to sacrament meeting this morning wondering what would make me smile this time. Of course, my 4 yr-old played a bit of peek-a-boo with me while he was on the stand, crouching down so I couldn’t see him, and then popping up with a big smile on his face. That was fun.

But his 5 yr-old friend who sat with us before the program began said something that made me smile. During the sacrament service, she whispers to me, “I’m thinking about Jesus.” “That’s nice,” I reply. After a 3 or 4-second pause, she continues by telling me the many things she likes about Shrek. Then, not missing a beat, she tells me about the holy ghost.

I love kids! :-)

Happy Halloween! (Don’t dress like Elvira at BYU)

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on October 31, 2007
in Culture and Mormon
. 6 Comments

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Yes, I have a sweet tooth, and the dental bills to prove it. Because my favorite holidays are the ones that involve food, I love Halloween. Continue reading ‘Happy Halloween! (Don’t dress like Elvira at BYU)’

Not a Natural Act

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on October 21, 2007
in Missions and Movies
. 10 Comments

A mission is not a natural act. This is something I believed long before I went with my companion and two other elders to an R-rated movie. (More about that later.) But I was reminded of this today when I saw our local missionaries’ car in the ward parking lot. Someone had written graffiti on the windows, making it look like high schoolers on their way to the homecoming football game. Instead of “Beat the Blue Devils”, or “Go Panthers!” it had LDS themes: “CTR” in a shield; “We’re Mormon Missionaries”; and my favorite, “We (heart) Mormon Girls.”

Yes, “We (heart) Mormon Girls.” Now, if that doesn’t inspire confidence in member-missionary relations, I don’t know what does.

Our missionaries are young, and they may even be immature enough to have decorated the car themselves, but I somehow doubt that it was their own graffiti. More likely, it was written on the car by the missionary fan club while the elders were in meetings. Still, it reminded me of my own mission experiences.

I went on my mission back before “the bar” was raised. If anything, it was as low as it had ever been. I went when males were called for 18 months, and with the way that transfers worked out, I served just 17. Granted, it seemed much longer than that, but still, the bar was low. Very low.

For instance, my mission president didn’t mind us seeing movies once a month, as long as they were “clean” movies. At the time, I didn’t even look at the marquis when we went to the small-town theater on P-Day and saw a matinee. There wasn’t much skin, but there was a lot of violence in that movie. It was a natural thing for four 20-yr-olds to do. The un-natural thing happened when one of the ward members came through the theater whispering, “Elders? Elders, where are you?” He wanted to take us to the district leaders’ baptism in a nearby town. Not finding us at the apartment, he looked around, asking himself where we might be. Seeing the theater down the street, he assumed we were there, despite the fact that it was an R-rated action flick playing. See, I told you the bar was low.

So I’m going to cut our missionaries some slack when I see their car decorated with graffiti, even if it is their own handiwork. Part of the reason is that I’m not looking to convert anybody. But the more important part is that a mission is not a natural act. As I recall, Joseph Smith himself said something to the effect that if you keep a spring wound too tightly, it will break. Even Elder G, the tightly-wound companion with whom I suffered tension headaches, loosened his spring when the next James Bond movie came out. Besides, the girls I heart are Mormon girls, too… although I never wrote it on my car windows.

Mistakes were made…

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on September 12, 2007
in Current Events and History
. 25 Comments

Reports of the sesquicentennial anniversary of the Mountain Meadows Massacre have been fascinating, haven’t they? Newspapers far beyond Utah have covered the event, as a quick search of google news will show. Some friends of mine were there, traveling from their Georgia home to join in the Lee family reunion and explore New Harmony and the surrounding area. I can hardly wait to talk with them about the trip.

Me, I have merely read from afar. I began with news articles, followed by the comments to those articles, and then visited blogs and bulletin boards to see what people had to say. Of course, you probably know what they said; comments ranged from praise for the church’s apology to questions of whether there was any apology at all. Both apologies and beauty are in the eye of the beholder, it seems.

Then today a bulletin board pointed me to this AP News story, in which the church spokesperson noted “We don’t use the word ‘apology.’ We used ‘profound regret.’” Ah, so close, and yet so far.

There’s a distinct similarity between this quasi-almost-apology and the typical political pseudo-apology. Both come at it from a perspective that “mistakes were made (but not by me…..)”. Sure, we’d all like to see a church that claims to be directed by God to display better-than-human foibles, but is that expecting too much? People are people, even when they believe they are on God’s errand.

Meanwhile, the devout and the lapsed and the inbetweeners will interpret Elder Eyring’s statement in ways that confirm their beliefs. And the world will go on spinning and orbiting, until the next powerful institution or person sees that mistakes are most easily almost apologized for in the passive voice.

Icon or Punchline?

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 27, 2007
in Culture, Humor and Mormon
. 9 Comments

This weekend Second City Touring Company made it to my corner of Georgia. The comedy troupe that gave us such greats as John Candy and Stephen Colbert spent Saturday night in little ol’ Statesboro. They performed classic skits from the past and poked fun at current events as well. It was a great evening of laughs.

The curious thing happened at the end. Their last act was completely improvised. It began with the actors taking the pose of a letter, and then acting in whatever way suggested by that letter. On Saturday night, the letters “M” and “D” suggested to the cast monkeys or chimps. The way the skit worked, when the moment seemed right one of the cast members watching the others would say “Freeze!” and assume the same pose as the other actor, but take the skit an entirely different direction. It was a riot.

So, what was the curious thing? At what turned out to be the very end of the performance, 5 of the 6 cast members are all huddled together — one inside the huddle and four surrounding him in a circle — and the 6th yells “Freeze!” but then says, “The Mormons!” And then the lights went out; that was the end of the skit.

A group of people huddled together could be many things, but “The Mormons”? It left me wondering whether this actor is/was LDS, or what connections he might have with the church. The huddle was reminiscent of a prayer circle; maybe our comic knew it from Dutcher’s States of Grace, or Big Love, or some other film where the image has appeared prominently. Or, maybe the pose suggested to him the “love-bombing” that sometimes happens with investigators.

At any rate, I was intrigued that this iconic pose was known well enough that in a fast-moving improvisation game, “The Mormons” is what came to the actor’s mind. I also wondered what the audience’s laughter represented. Honestly, I have a hard time believing that the typical person attending that performance knows an LDS prayer circle, even if it is an iconic LDS image in Mormons’ minds. Instead, it seems that “The Mormons” is really a punchline, a funny name given to a weird pose. Maybe it would be different in Salt Lake or Cedar City, but not in this backwater Baptist town.

Killer Kane

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on August 5, 2007
in Audio, Belief, Culture, Media, Movies and Stories
. 5 Comments

I’d heard good things about the movie New York Doll, but I was unprepared for just how strong a film this is. While in film school, LDS film student Greg Whiteley learns that Arthur “Killer” Kane is in his ward and preparing to play a concert with his fellow New York Dolls. This has been Kane’s dream, and comes after the group split up 30 years ago. During that time, Kane went from stardom and fame to obscurity. In the process he had a religious conversion and lived a humble life, working in the Los Angeles family history library while dreaming for the day when he and the other two remaining members of the Dolls might play together again.

Through the efforts of Morrissey, the group reunited in 2004 to play a concert that exceeded everyone’s expectations. Past hurt had been forgotten, and the band’s music was a triumph.

In case you don’t know Kane’s story, I won’t give away the ending of the film. I will say only that I was deeply touched by the story of this gentle soul. My musical tastes don’t include the style of the Dolls, but this film will be one I watch many times for its beautiful message.

New York Doll is a powerful and moving film. The story of a lost and hurt soul who found a home in Mormonism, Kane longed for the limelight he once knew. Sometimes dreams do come true.

Dangerous Home Teaching

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on July 21, 2007
in Callings
. 9 Comments

I’ve never been very eager about home teaching, but I hadn’t considered it dangerous. Until recently, that is.

The Deseret News reports that a home teachee pistol whipped his home teacher in Provo. Apparently they were arguing - maybe over the beattitudes? - and the teachee pulled out his “large silver revolver” and hit the teacher in the face with it. According to the report, he’s awaiting bond. I’m guessing that he won’t be calling his home teachers for help in posting the $5000.

And it isn’t just the home teachers who can find the assignment dangerous. The recent story from Oregon about the man who allegedly molested a child while he was the family’s home teacher suggests that the person in the white shirt & tie may not necessarily have your best interests at heart. No, the world is a more complicated place than that.

My own experience with home teaching has been much more mundane. As a child, I wasn’t usually very excited when the home teachers came to visit. The strongest memories I have of home teaching as a teen were that one of my companions, Brother Johnston, was a very nice guy who knew my grandpa years ago when they worked together in the mine. Oh, and that one of the families had a Playboy calendar posted conspicuously near the front door. I suppose that some people would consider that a dangerous assignment, but I was a teenage boy, so I counted it a blessing.

A few years ago, the relief society did a lesson for the benefit of the priesthood about what they have learned from home teaching. One sister described how her home teacher was there when she needed him to be. The other described how her home teacher was a slothful servant whose lackadaisacal attitude prevented her from having the priesthood in her home. The odd thing is that they were both served (or not) by me. I saw them the same, treated them the same, and to one I was a shining example while to the other I was unfit to be called a home teacher. Different people have different expectations, don’t they?

I’m not currently home teaching, but we do let home teachers come by on the last day of the month. They are nice people, and it makes them feel better. They seem safe, and I promise not to pistol whip them.

Super Bowl - Sized Sundays

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on July 15, 2007
in Surviving Sundays
. 22 Comments

The high councilor’s story was something like this. Two young men in South Carolina were driving down the road when they saw a woman struggling to change the tire on her car. According to the young men, she was elderly; the high councilor elicited a chuckle from the audience when he said, “but to these young men, that might have meant she was in her 40s.”

After they changed her flat tire, she reached in her purse to offer them something to repay their kindness. Out from her purse she pulls two Super Bowl tickets. The boys are overwhelmed with her generosity, and they all go their separate ways. Continue reading ‘Super Bowl - Sized Sundays’

Father’s Day Messages

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on June 17, 2007
in Family
. 7 Comments

Here is a thread to discuss the Father’s Day messages you heard! To begin it all, here is mine.

The informal messages were beautiful. My family took care of my normal morning responsibilities (walking the dog, etc.), so I had the rare experience of an extra 90 minutes of sleep! Then, pefect gifts from my wife and children, and a sweet email from my own father. The day just couldn’t get better than that!

And it didn’t. Most of the messages at church were, well, expected but underwhelming. The sacrament meeting talks about fathers were quite institution-focused. Apparently, what makes a good father is someone who plays his role in the church. I did hear one mention of treating one’s children well, but otherwise it was all about the institution. wow.

Sunday school included the parable of the virgins. You know the story- they need to prepare to meet the bridegroom, but half don’t have enough oil. They were left out because they were foolish and because the wise wouldn’t / couldn’t / shouldn’t share. When the teacher asked what the oil represented, and what lessons are we to conclude from this story, I muttered that we are supposed to be selfish and keep our blessings to ourselves. Bzzzzt! Wrong answer! Answers tended more to say that each of us needs our own testimony; we can’t rely on others’ testimony. Somewhere through the years I’ve heard similar conclusions for what the oil represents. But the thought occurs to me that I’ve never heard this passage reconciled with one of my favorite parts of the D&C, D&C 46, where we read that not everyone has a testimony but that everyone profits from people’s testimonies. My conclusion is that this is another area where people’s reasoning changes to fit the needs of the moment. The more traditional Mormon response is likely that, yes, we can profit from others’ testimonies but ultimately must rely on our own. That rationale is less than satisfying to me, but as you know, I seldom feel satisfied with the usual answer. Of course, I’m open to other interpretations, if you have ‘em.

Now it is time for a nice lunch with my family, and an afternoon of watching the movies they gave me for Father’s Day. It will be a very nice day.

For me, Father’s Day is a good day. I’ve been lucky to have a great father, and to have a wonderful family of my own. This day brings me happiness, with beautiful memories of my family. But not all people have good memories. For some it is because they had an abusive father, or an absent one. For others, the day is painful because their good and loving father is now gone, and the loss still hurts. Whatever your Father’s Day is like, take a minute to write about it here. I’d even suggest that as we do this, “all may be profited thereby.”

The Ward Cultural Hall

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on June 14, 2007
in Culture, Mormon and Surviving Sundays
. 15 Comments

I like the idea of the Cultural Hall. It is a place where people can gather to enjoy a wide range of experiences together. My last, most memorable real-life “cultural hall” experience was a high priests’ dinner a couple of years ago. These can be dull and boring, collections of men vying to best each other in some unofficial story-telling competition, but not this one. The dinner was good, and there was entertainment. Fun entertainment, even, that opened up my eyes to talents I didn’t realize my fellow ward members had. They asked me to tell Mormon jokes, as a sort of master of ceremonies, between the real talent acts. It was a blast.

Most of the time, though, our cultural hall is used for Sunday school or other classes. For me, not so fun. In fact, I rarely attend those events.

Remembering that high priests’ dinner has reminded me that the cultural hall in my ward fills many needs. Sometimes, er, usually, it is a place where people gather for spiritual uplift, or education, or group-think, take your pick. Other times, it is a place for socializing, basketball, or even broom hockey. For me, I’ll take broom hockey over group think.

This leads me to ask, how big is the cultural hall in your ward? Big enough that you feel included, at least from time to time? What was the best, most memorable event to take place there?

Connections

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on May 31, 2007
in Belief, Family, Inspiration and Spirituality
. 3 Comments

A basic element in religion is connection. As I understand it, the root of the word religion traces back to the idea of connection, which people in Western religion often construe as connection with God. Like many who inhabit the cultural hall, I prefer to see it more broadly: spirituality represents connection with the world, with nature, or with humanity.

I was reminded of this when I read a friend’s memoir, published in the new literary journal, Memoir (and). Take a few minutes to read it, and enjoy the sense of spirituality it beautifully expresses.If you’re at all like me, you’ll find yourself reflecting on your connections and the many forms they take. Take a moment or two and, as the hymn suggests, “count your many blessings.” Chances are, your connections are atop that list.

What’s in a name?

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on February 24, 2007
in Administration, Callings, Mormon and Surviving Sundays
. 14 Comments

A friend gave me permission to share part of an email with you. He is a former bishop who lives in a densely LDS area, and has gone from believer to disbeliever. He wrote,

I was watching a segment on the history channel last week called “Heaven
and Hell” and I perked up when they mentioned the historical common
practice of conquering kings giving the defeated kings new names to
diminish any influence or authority the defeated kings once had and to
establish the conquering kings dominance. I couldn’t help but think about
the new name they gave me in the temple and in addition, I had just
discussed with my wife that I didn’t really like all of my neighbors and
friends calling me Bishop all the time still. I’m sure they are just doing
this out of respect but I really would like to be called by my real name
as a unique individual and with my own rational and critical thoughts and
reasoning abilities. I am feeling more and more uncomfortable with any
symbolism that outwardly suggests I submit to Mormon perceived authority
or dominance in my life.

He recognizes that “Hello, Bishop Jones” is surely meant as a sign of respect, but now it grates on him. He would rather be known by his first name than by a title. The old saying that “Once a bishop, always a bishop” just doesn’t work well for him any more. I suggested that he reply, “Once a Gary, always a Gary” when asked why he doesn’t go by “Bishop” any longer.

What do you think: How significant is your name in the context of church? Do titles grate on you the way they do Gary? What role does your name, and the individuality it represents, carry in your spiritual journey?

PS - Of course, I’ve changed Gary’s name. If your former bishop is named Gary Jones, please don’t think that he sent me this email. On the other hand, if you have a former bishop who is named something other than Gary Jones, then maybe it was he who emailed me…. ;-)

Royalty, Shmoyalty

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on January 7, 2007
in Current Events, Doctrine, History and Mormon
. 31 Comments

Although I love watching people, I have never been very interested in royalty. Even if Prince Charles might secretly be seeing Princess Astrid of Belgium, it really wouldn’t pique my interest much. Call me strange, but Royal Intrigue just doesn’t usually intrigue me.

So when I read a story in the Salt Lake Tribune describing a book about Joseph Smith being a distant relative of Jesus, I was left wondering, “So what?” I mean, what might it matter if Smith was a 75th-generation grandson of Jesus? Would that make his claim to prophetic power any more legitimate?

One thing that I frankly like about LDS theology is that it places some responsibility on the individual, which might displace hero worship or adulation of royalty. At least, that’s how it works in theory. I know that there’s plenty of evidence indicating that church leaders have benefited from their family connections. J Golden Kimball admitted that he was selected to be an apostle because of his Kimball name, and Quinn’s “Mormon Hierarchy” books show this pattern repeatedly.

Still, I wonder if I am I missing something here? What would be the significance of Smith (and who knows how many other people) having descended from Jesus? Some might say that it demonstrates that there is something special about having Jesus Genes, so to speak, but if that’s the case, what about the Mormon idea that we all have the potential to become like God? And what about the negative things that Jesus’ descendents did? Joseph Smith wasn’t perfect, after all, and odds are that there were a few horse thieves or worse to have the same shared lineage. Or does people’s interest in this amount to people being intrigued by celebrity?

So, tell me, should we care that Joseph Smith might have been related to Jesus? Why? Why not?

Sacred? Secret?

Published
by
Michael Nielsen
on December 1, 2006
in Apologetics, Current Events, Doctrine, LDS and Mormon
. 22 Comments

Sacred, not secret. That’s the phrase in my memory associated with the temple and garments. I was reminded of this by a conversation at BCC, where people are discussing Andrew Sullivan’s post about garments. As part of his recent interest in Mormonism and Mitt Romney’s political aspirations, Sullivan posted a photo of people wearing garments. As you might expect, many objected to the picture, and some even object to the discussion of garments.

Continue reading ‘Sacred? Secret?’