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<p>The Abraham story is wonderfully larger than Abraham. When the prophet Isaiah (whose “great words,” the Savior declared, should be searched “diligently”) addressed those who “seek righteousness,” he urged them to remember not only their illustrious forefather but also their equally illustrious foremother: “Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you…. For the LORD shall comfort Zion.”</p>

It has been more than half a century since the last big shift in thinking about Book of Mormon geography. Judging from the commotion in the blogosphere and on rival theorists' Web sites, a dramatically different -- and disputed -- theory is gaining traction among some of the LDS faithful. The theory, popularized by Rod Meldrum and Bruce H. Porter in the past three years, suggests that Book of Mormon events took place in the heartland of the United States, east of the Mississippi River from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. They have popularized the idea at...

PROVO, Utah -- Mormons should push to openly talk about their differences in interfaith dialogue rather than overlooking them, a British religious scholar told listeners at BYU Studies' 50th Anniversary Symposium on March 12. "The important point is that, however other faiths are engaged with or viewed, it must be against the background of the First Vision," James Holt said. "Anything we do has to be informed by the Sacred Grove and the events that took place there. It can't be simply dismissed, because the Lord said it." Holt, senior lecturer and subject leader in religious education at the University...

An acquaintance of a noted Greek philosopher once lamented, "They deride thee, O Diogenes!" Unperturbed, the philosopher replied, "But I am not derided." Diogenes, who lived from 410-320 B.C., understood that truth, if it is truth, can never be truly harmed by mockery, ridicule or derision .... nor can those who promote it. Falsehood, on the other hand, will easily wither under intense and finely focused disparagement. Thus, ridicule and mockery have long been employed as legitimate devices for distinguishing fact from fallacy. There is a fine line, however, between responsible ridicule and malicious mockery, and what begins as an...

I write today for my son and other young men about what an extraordinary privilege it is to be an Aaronic Priesthood holder. You have been ordained and given POWER, by someone with authority from God, to act in God’s name on the earth today. You know all about superheroes. It’s fun to watch movies and see the powers superheroes like Spiderman, Batman and Superman have. But that’s just the movies and not real. However, from the moment you are ordained a deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood, you are given more power than all the superheroes in the world combined...

One of the popular themes used by critics is to pose the question, "Are Mormons Christian?" and to come up with the answer "no". This theme has appeared, without substantial variation, in a number of anti-Mormon publications over the years. The approach has been trivially simple: to create a set of false dichotomies consisting of assertions to the effect that Christians (i.e. the critic's preferred flavor of Christians) believe X, while Mormons are (usually inaccurately) portrayed as believing Y, which X and Y are assumed (and not demonstrated) to be incompatible. Hence, Mormons cannot be Christian. A number of responses...

Our Relationship with the Lord BRUCE R. MCCONKIE Bruce R. McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostlesof The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when this devotionaladdress was given at Brigham Young University on 2 March 1982I shall speak of our relationship with the Lord and of the true fellowship all Saints should have with the Father. I shall set forth what we must believe relative to the Father and the Son in order to gain eternal life. I shall expound the doctrine of the Church relative to what our relationship should be to...

PROVO, Utah -- Those who were responsible for the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum on June 27, 1844, were not who might you think they were, according to one presenter at the BYU Studies 50th Anniversary Symposium. Debra Marsh, a master's student at the University of Utah, presented evidence Friday that the members of the Illinois mob that sought to put an end to Mormonism at Carthage Jail didn't rot away because of "the Mormon curse," as N.B. Lundwall claimed in his book, "The Fate of the Persecutors of the Prophet Joseph Smith," but went...

Dallin Oaks' Harvard appearance part of LDS drive to increase understanding, awareness of religion ... The tripartite structure of the Godhead is one of the central aspects of LDS theology that Elder Oaks stressed as critical to LDS beliefs. “We maintain that … God the Father is not a spirit but a glorified Being with a tangible body, as is his resurrected Son, Jesus Christ. Though separate in identity, they are one in purpose.” In addition, the purpose of existence in this reality has a definite purpose in LDS: “to qualify for the glorified celestial condition and relationships that are...

Women have a sacred role in the sanctification and purification of men, Elder Glenn L. Pace of the Seventy told students and faculty during the campus devotional in the Marriott Center at BYU on Tuesday, March 9. Reflecting on the love he felt from his mother, sister, wife and daughters, Elder Pace spoke of the positive influence women have had on his life. Speaking specifically about a time when his daughter fell asleep in his arms, Elder Pace noted the comfort it must have brought his daughter to be held by her father. He realized afterward that even greater was...

"And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, which was with me from the beginning: Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." (Moses 2:26) The plural form of the expression "Let us make man" has long been an interpretive problem for commentators looking at the Old Testament through the lens of strict monotheism. Such scholars often explain the phrase by way of analogy to the "royal we" used by a king or queen in self-reference; however, this does not explain why it occurs only in the early chapters of Genesis and nowhere else. A view consistent with...

PROVO, Utah (BP)--Drive an hour south of Salt Lake City down Interstate 15 and you enter a different world, says North American Mission Board missionary Mickie Kelly. "People think I'm exaggerating when I tell them the kinds of things that go on here," said Kelly, a church planter in Payson, Utah, near Provo. "The spiritual darkness is like a blanket that you wear every day." Around the well-kept homes and clean-cut families of Payson, a spiritual drawstring tightens under the influence of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). "Salt Lake City is 47 percent LDS," Kelly said....

A former seminary principal charged with having a sexual relationship with a student has retained a new attorney. Michael Pratt, 37, hired attorneys Stephen R. McCaughey and Jeremy M. Delicino last week, according to court records. He initially said he could not afford an attorney and asked the court to appoint a public defender. He has been represented by public defender Dusty Kawai since July. Pratt's attorney also filed a new motion to continue his trial, which is scheduled to begin April 12. Kawai filed the same motion in February, citing a heavy case load and difficulty interviewing witnesses. At...

A church youth leader from Weber County was arrested for sexual abuse of three girls. Cory Campbell, 37, was booked into jail on three counts of forcible sex abuse after a young woman came forward, claiming she was abused by the man. Campbell posted bail Tuesday night and has since been released, according to Capt. Clint Anderson. Authorities believe one family member and two others were victimized in incidents that date back to October of 2009. They say it is possible there are more victims out there. Campbell served as an LDS young men's leader in Farr West.

The recent finding of a 19th century silver bracelet in Alamo Mocho, in the desert of Baja California, represents the first material evidence of presence of the Mormon Battalion, which camped at the site before integrating to the 1847 Mexico-United States War (Mexican War). The discovery took place after a sandstorm uncovered archaeological material. Specialists of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) began exploration at the site afterwards. The jewel represents a clear testimony for Mexican and American historians that Mormons camped in Alamo Mocho approximately for 3 days, before their integration with the 1847 war, fact only...

Are Christians Mormon?Reassessing Joseph SmithÂ’s Theology in His BicentennialHarold Bloom, the self-proclaimed "unbelieving Jew"1 and distinguished scholar, recently characterized Joseph Smith as "a religious genius," stating that the religion Smith founded "is truly a biblical religion."2 More recently, Carl Mosser has written concerning the doctrine of that religion: "MormonismÂ’s heresies are legion; they are also very interesting and often unique in the history of heresy."3 Biblical or heretical? Of these two reactions, the charge of heresy has been far more common, especially among conservative Christian critics, who consistently draw a circle that leaves JosephÂ’s Mormonism out.No wonder, then, the...

“The Holy Ghost Testifies of Truth,” Ensign, Mar 2010, 10–11The Holy Ghost is the third member of the Godhead. He is a personage of spirit, without a body of flesh and bones (see D&C 130:22). He is often referred to as the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of the Lord, or the Comforter. He works in perfect unity with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.1 As a personage of spirit, the Holy Ghost can be in only one place at a time, but His influence can be everywhere at the same time.2 President Joseph Fielding...

Teaching that God, who is pure spirit (John 4:24), has His own spirit body is to teach something definitely not found in Scripture. There is no biblical basis for such a teaching. This teaching would be more in line with Mormonism than orthodox Christianity. Kenneth Copeland teaches that God created the Universe, and everything therein, out of a spiritual substance known as faith, by forming a mental picture of the creation in "the insides of Him," then by using words as containers for His "faith," projected the image outwardly into the reality of creation. For example, in his tape, Spirit,...

What is the definition of 'anti-Mormon'?   I have often heard the criticism that Latter-day Saints classify everyone who disagrees with our beliefs as "anti-Mormon." Of course, the people who say this are usually anti-Mormons. Am I proving their point? I don't think so. I actually agree that this is a problem in our church. After all, our belief system, if firmly embraced, demands a lot of personal sacrifice, and we often become hyper-defensive when we sense a threat to our faith. Unfortunately, this often leads to irrational name-calling and blindly neglecting to differentiate between non-Mormons and anti-Mormons. Of...

The MMO takes the media pulse in three areas: slimy tabloids intrude into the Osmonds' sacred space in the wake of a tragedy, the media still can't move beyond Mitt Romney's faith, and U.K.'s Guardian takes a jaded view of Mormon-Catholic cooperation. Intrusion into a family moment Leave it up to the tabloid press to exploit the Osmonds once again as they reported on the suicide of Marie Osmond's son, Michael. The Mormon Media Observer will not reprint or link to the myriad of tabloid articles filled with speculation and innuendo. Let's just say this, the kind of press coverage...