Deceiving the Saints

And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. Colossians 2:4 Beguile (verb) – HOODWINK: To lead by deception Merriam-Webster Dictionary The apostle Paul warned the members of the church against people who would try to deceive them. His warning is even more pertinent today. There are many people and organizations … Read more

The Collapse of Civilization

In his 2005 book “Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed,” Jared Diamond listed three indicators that a society was going to collapse. He based his findings on a study of three historical societies: the Pueblo civilization in Chaco Canyon between 850 and 1250 CE, the Mayan civilization in Mesoamerica from 250 to 950 … Read more

Two different approaches to the law

Now that the Justice Department has indicted the former President on 31 counts of “willful retention” of classified documents, the Republican propaganda machine is going wild. Of interest to members of the LDS Church should be the vastly differing responses of Utah’s two Republican senators. Mitt Romney Like all Americans, Mr. Trump is entitled to … Read more

A Prophet calls for greater civility

At the end of the Sunday Morning session of the April 2023 General Conference, LDS Church President Russell M. Nelson expressed concern about the loss of civility and decency in the world. Civility and decency seem to have disappeared during this era of polarization and passionate disagreements. Vulgarity, faultfinding, and evil speaking of others are … Read more

God or Mammon?

The Sermon on the Mount contains some disturbing messages for people who want to identify as Christian but do not want to change their lives. Jesus makes it very clear that one must choose between following Him or pursuing the material things of this world. No man can serve two masters: for either he will … Read more

It’s time to admit Donald Trump is a criminal

On Monday, December 19, 2022 the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol referred former president Donald J. Trump to the Justice Department for potential prosecution on four Federal crimes. These crimes are: 1. Obstruction of an official proceeding, 2. Conspiracy to defraud the United States, 3. Conspiracy … Read more

Election 2022: Disaster avoided? or simply delayed?

It appears that democracy in the United States may have survived the 2022 election. Perhaps even more important than the Democrats keeping control of the Senate is the fact that all 13 election-denying Republican candidates, in 6 battleground states, for governor, secretaries of state, and attorneys general, lost their races. (The Arizona Attorney General race, … Read more

Avoiding politics in church meetings?

It is well-known that politics can be divisive. This is especially true in our current climate of distrust, class division, and demonization of political opponents. In LDS Church meetings the general understanding is “We shouldn’t discuss politics in Church.” This frequently heard statement is based on a vague sense of an actual Church policy (which, … Read more