NOM

1. Military Parades-trump Nauvoo Legion drills, etc. Joseph Smith 2. Wives & mistresses- trump Polygamy- Joseph Smith. 3. Get rid of dissent- trump Chase Cowdery, Whitmer and other dissenters out of Far West- Joseph Smith P.S. I almost posted this under Doctrine, because I believe Joseph Smith felt ...

Thank you Angel. I wish I could be there. Heat does things to my body, so I'll have to protest through donations and supporting others. I gave the first Democratic donation in my life yesterday.

This is just something I do sometimes to try and make sense of this crazy trip called life.
Impressions + intuition = the holy ghost?
intuition + narcissism + burned over district = prophet?
power + narcissism= ????

Mr. Deity is back with new posts on Youtube. He was always one of my favorites. Maybe he never went away, but anyway, he has put out some great new material.

The packet boats are a very likely inspiration for the Jaredite barges. If the Books of Mormon sold for $1.75, compared to 25 cents for the Adam Clarke volumes the comparison is interesting. Martin Harris paid $3,000 for 5,000 copies of the BOM. That meant Joseph/Martin were hoping to make more than ...

One problem with the endowment ceremony is that it indoctrinated Mormons (us in a former life) to have a very narrow view of God: white, male, long hair and beard, white robes, sandals, lives in a Geek style temple in the sky. Maybe it's because most people create god in the image of their father or ...

From Atlantic magazine: The Trump administration has demanded that Harvard hire additional conservative professors or risk losing even more of its federal funding. (Even as it made that demand, it insisted that Harvard adopt “merit-based admissions policies and cease all preferences based on race, ...

When I think about a judgement day I see a lot of possibilities. First, human nature is inclined to think about it as "the day when I am vindicated and all my enemies get punished." Reading the 'scriptures' leads to a confirmation of this, a confirmation that we all likely have a "confirmation bias ...

I've been reading "Nature's God" by Matthew Stewart. He points out that Jefferson, Washington, Franklin, and many other founding fathers were deists. This is emphasized in Jefferson's reference to "Nature and Nature's God" in the Declaration of Independence. We don't hear much about deism nowadays ...

This is a good reminder to be kind.
Your title, "Very fine people on both sides" followed by your name "Said Nobody" is kind of ironic.

Dan McClellan fills a real niche with his youtube posts. I'm enjoying the book as well. Some chapters are hard for me to follow, but most the book is really clear and straightforward. 8-) Mike Johnson may be smart about some things, or maybe not. ;) Either way, I doubt he has read the bible ...

Sorry for your loss, Alas. It just feels wrong when a child passes before their parent.
Your words have comforted and enlightened me many times. Thanks for your efforts.

I believe the goal of the Church is to maintain the maximum power over members that is possible. This goal means they will omit, so far as is possible any information, or discussion that will damage that control. It is not unlike what the Pharisees and Sadducees were trying to accomplish during the ...

Thanks for the excellent responses. I didn't want to start with my views on the topic, but I'll share them now. I am concerned with the potential that the USA could follow the pattern of Muslim governments such as Iran, and revert to Christian fundamentalist views and laws. I don't think that TBM's ...

I regret unkindness I have shown in my past life, and I feel grateful for kindness I have shown. I likely have been perceived as being malicious when I was just ignorant and stupid. Some people don't realize they are being unkind, although it is obvious to others around them that they are. It is ...

How do religion based governments compare to secular based governments? what are your thoughts?

I think Joseph Smith and Trump share interesting personal qualities. consider these quotes below On 23 January 2016, presidential candidate Donald Trump caused controversy when he stated the following during a campaign rally in Iowa: “I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I ...

I am trying to imagine the dialogue between the artist and the Church editor/publisher that led to this picture being used on my classroom wall.

So Michelle Brady, of "132 Problems with Polygamy" has taken down her posts. It is kind of sad to imagine what finally pushed her into this decision. I don't envy people who have had to struggle to the "powers that be." I didn't agree with her, but I believe Michelle was trying, in her own way, to ...

Sequana bless us- every one.