The Consistency of Prophetic Abortion Teaching
Some have accused American faith communities of rising in opposition to abortion only in recent decades—and largely as a political ploy. No one can honestly make that claim about Latter-day Saints.
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Better than Self-Esteem? + Today’s Digest
Our daily rundown of the articles from around the web that we feel our readers would enjoy and appreciate. We hope to highlight the best of what’s around. Public Square Bulletin recommends: Jesus’ Alternative to Self-Esteem H. Wallace Goddard—Meridian Magazine While the gospel has some similarities with the self-esteem movement, Goddard, a parenting expert, looks at the research, and suggests that there may be weaknesses to the self-esteem movement that the gospel can rectify. Religion and the American Constitutional Experiment John Witte Jr.—Canopy Forum An excerpt from the upcoming book of the same name, this fascinating take gives a whirlwind tour of religious freedom, the role the founders and courts have played in developing it, and what we might expect in the next decade. The Perils of Heterodoxy Adam M. Wakeling—Areo Increasingly the information we get is filtered through a smaller and smaller group of individuals, so being independent-minded is important. But this route also comes with dangers that, left unchecked, could prove problematic. Exercising the Virtues Allen Porter—Law & Liberty Physical fitness is an important expression of a virtuous life. The patterns we develop should be consciously chosen and acted on and should be done to shape our minds and bodies in accordance with a higher purpose. Six Theologians Every Thoughtful Person Should Read Bruce Riley Ashford—First Things Excuse the uncharacteristic click-bait headline. This article outlines some of the most influential thinkers in orthodox Christian thought. While none come from the Church of Jesus Christ, each makes thoughtful observations that can not only increase your inter-faith understanding but provide fresh insights into your own faith as well.
Church’s Newest Concert Could Become a New Tradition
This weekend the Church put on a concert of their newest album “Trust in the Lord.” The album includes music both appropriate for worship and celebration (or singing out loud in the car with your kids). I’d especially recommend Yahosh Bonner’s “Dust.” You can catch his introduction at the 12:12 mark in the video below, the song starts at 13:22. The album supplements this year’s youth theme “Trust in the Lord.” The album and concert are starting to become a tradition to look forward to. Of course, they also follow the long tradition of celebratory and worship music in the Old and New Testament churches.
Researching Disaffection: The Neglected Variable of Conversion
It is important to understand the lived experience of our faith, including the reasons why people step away. But real understanding of these experiences is not possible unless we account for the variable of conversion.
LA Times Features Public Square Magazine
Several of the folks from Public Square Magazine were interviewed recently by Meredith Blake at the LA Times. She highlighted the ways that Latter-day Saints have reacted to the show Under the Banner of Heaven. Blake did an excellent job of representing our takes on the show. But we did have a couple of observations about the show mentioned in the interview that inevitably couldn’t make it, so I wanted to add those here for those who were curious. Jeb Pyre, the fictional detective portrayed by Andrew Garfield, is the main character viewers see the story through. But none of the four people being interviewed felt like Pyre was a good depiction of a thoughtful Latter-day Saint. Pyre is depicted as a well-established, thoughtful, fully-committed member of the Latter-day Saint community, yet the way he reacted to the information he learned felt less like the way an adult would respond to learning new things, and more like an adolescent response. Pyre’s character did resonate with some of us, from when we were teenagers. His character feels like it was written by someone who left the Church when they were sixteen, and remained mentally stuck in that place, and then tried to project those thoughts into a grown man, hoping to give them more validity. Consequently, the character feels flimsy. One of the other major observations from the interview was that we worried that the Church felt like it was part of the problem in the Lafferty murder when at the time, most members of the Church felt that they were part of the victims. These two men who had recently been excommunicated came back for revenge. In fact, the stake president was on their hit list. It seemed to place most Latter-day Saints on the opposite side of this issue than they felt at the time. The show’s writer, for his part, responded to these by engaging in the kind of motte and bailey techniques Cassandra Hedelius recently did a good job of identifying for us here at Public Square. Thanks again to Meredith Blake for her thoughtful interview.
Marriage for Elites Only? + Today’s Digest
Our daily rundown of the articles from around the web that we feel our readers would enjoy and appreciate. We hope to highlight the best of what’s around. Public Square Bulletin recommends: The Benefits of Marriage Shouldn’t Only Be For Elites W. Bradford Wilcox—Institute for Family Studies Today the rich marry much more often than the poor. The benefits of marriage are clear and consistent. Wilcox wonders how to close this gap. Thoughts and Prayers Do Help David Bashevkin—Wall Street Journal Russell M. Nelson spoke in May about how praying for those in need inspires him to action. So I wanted to recommend this recent Wall Street Journal article that delves into the concept and why it would be a mistake to throw away “thoughts and prayers.” Susa Young Gates: ‘Daughter of Mormonism’ Jerry Winder—From the Desk Susa Young Gates is an essential figure in the early history of the Church of Jesus Christ. This Q&A with her biographer is succinct, fascinating, and essential for anyone looking to quickly understand her life and accomplishments. Walmart Settles Religious Discrimination Dispute Tom Raabe—American Spectator One of the most interesting religious freedom cases making its way to the Supreme Court involved a man that Wal-Mart refused to promote because as a Seventh-Day Adventist he required one day off a week. But Wal-Mart unexpectedly settled the case before it could make the high court. The reasoning may interest you. Jesus in Recent Latter-day Saint Art Chad Nielsen—Times and Seasons This overview of Anthony Sweat’s recent presentation about depictions of the Savior includes links to many of the beautiful images that Sweat references and is definitely worth a leisurely read.
Draping Yourself in a Rainbow Flag Doesn’t Help Me Feel Loved
Journalists at Church-owned media who promote Pride Month material may not realize how confusing and discouraging it can be for active members like me.
Welcome to Pride Month + Today’s Digest
Our daily rundown of the articles from around the web that we feel our readers would enjoy and appreciate. We hope to highlight the best of what’s around. Public Square Bulletin recommends: Welcome to Pride Month, Christian Carl Trueman—World Carl Trueman offers a full-throated call to oppose Pride month and its use of the rainbow symbol with the same drive that we oppose racist symbols such as Confederate flags and statues. New survey: corporations failing to respect religious and political diversity Jerry Bowyer—The Christian Post Paging Brian Grimm of the Religious Freedom and Business Foundation. Your work is desperately needed. A new report on religious and political diversity among corporations shows disappointing results, with the average score being 12 out of 100. Journalists might ask: Did fundamentalists actually win their debate with modernists? Richard Ostling—Get Religion One hundred years ago, Harry Fosdick asked if modernists or fundamentalists would win the fight for Christianity’s soul. Today many journalists seem to assume the fundamentalists won, but Richard Ostling invites them to re-examine that assumption. A Defense of Faith Statements Shirley Mullen—Heterodox Academy The easy assumption is that universities that require statements of faith to attend limit academic freedom. But a former president of one such university makes the case that by creating a community with shared beliefs, they are able to articulate a voice in a larger marketplace of ideas. The Problems of Putting off Children Nathanael Blake—Public Discourse The author had hoped to have children much younger than typical for highly educated, dual-career couples. But a combination of circumstances prevented that, leading him to have children at about the age many of his peers did. He has some thoughts about the drawbacks of this status-quo.
Tabernacle Featured on “American Built”
We wanted to draw your attention to a segment on the new show “American Built.” The show features major architectural and engineering projects across the United States. Their most recent episode featured the development of the Tabernacle at Temple Square. The brief eight-minute video looks at the specific challenges the pioneers faced, and the ways Brigham Young solved those challenges, and the pioneers worked to overcome them.
What I Hope You Mean When You Say “I Don’t See Color.”
“I don’t see color.” To paraphrase Inigo Montoya, “you keep using that phrase. I don’t think it means what you think it means.”
The Media’s Political Narrative Default for Tragedies + Today’s Digest
Our daily rundown of the articles from around the web that we feel our readers would enjoy and appreciate. We hope to highlight the best of what’s around. Public Square Bulletin recommends: Political Narratives Are the Media’s Default in Times of Tragedy Gerald Baker—Wall Street Journal We often look at the way the media’s coverage impacts the contours of our public discourse. In Gerry Baker’s latest column, he looks at the instinct to turn every news story almost immediately into a debate about which government programs should be started to address the problem. An Honest Look at the Consequences of Overturning Roe v. Wade Jessica Keating—Church Life Journal The director of the Notre Dame Office of Human Dignity and Life Initiatives takes a tour through the various political effects of Roe v. Wade ending, looking at the best polling data on the intricacies of abortion opinion and extrapolating what the next steps might be. The Self is a Problem Jake Meador—Mere Orthodoxy Where does the modern desire to construct the self come from? Could it begin with the rejection of ontological density that took place during colonialism? Mere Orthoxy’s editor-in-chief makes a provocative if unexpected argument about the roots of our contemporary identity crisis. The Sermon of the Wolf Eleanor Parker—Plough This inspiring tale focuses on how one leader, looking at an apocalyptic Viking invasion facing his people nevertheless found hope through self-improvement. To Build a Pro-Natal Culture, Don’t Overlook Maternal Mental Health Amber Lapp—Institute of Family Studies Do conversations about building a pro-natal culture too often fall to abstractions? Are we tackling the “earthy concreteness” of the struggles and difficulties? Amber Lapp suggests bridging the gap between the abstract and the practical may be the key to building a durable cultural shift.