Doors represent both the barriers to entry and the high levels of commitment common to strict churches

Saturday morning I was cleaning the house in my pajamas when the doorbell rang. Two young Jehovah’s Witnesses stood amid the leaves on my porch, and after excusing myself to change clothes I invited them in for a moment, as I try to do when they appear from time to time.  Perched side by side on my couch with Bible in hand, the pair brought to mind my own experiences as a young Mormon missionary in Portugal, and I was happy to read a verse of scripture with them.

Something about this young man and woman prompted me to put the conversation on a more personal tack, and I asked them to tell me how they came to be affiliated with the Witnesses. Despite the friendly front-room visits I’ve shared with Jehovah’s Witnesses over the…

I have blogged about California’s Prop 8 and have appreciated the comments made. It is a deeply emotional issue to many. I respect and find interest in the views and experiences of others.

The following is what my church has published in response to the outcome of the California debate:

SALT LAKE CITY 5 November 2008 COMMENTARY
Since Proposition 8 was placed on the ballot in June of this year, the citizens of California have considered the arguments for and against same-sex marriage. After extensive debate between those of different persuasions, voters have chosen to amend the California State Constitution to state that marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Such an emotionally charged issue concerning the most personal and cherished aspects of life — family, identity, intimacy and equality —…

Catholic Conference Condemns No on Prop 8 Ad

It appears California’s emotionally debated Proposition 8 has passed to amend the California State Constitution to state that marriage should be between a man and a woman. Florida and Arizona likewise amended their constitutions.

In the eleventh hour of the debates the “No on 8″ campaign targeted the activity of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) in support of Proposition 8. They scheduled an ad to run on CNN and MSNBC that vilified the Church.

The commercial depicts two Mormon missionaries invading the home of a same-sex couple and saying “we are here to take away your rights.” They take their wedding rings, ransack the house looking for their marriage license, find it, and then tear it up. They say, “that was too easy, yeah, what should we ban next?” Then the ad says:” Fact: Members of the Mormon Church have given…

The pulpit and politics in my church – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – rarely come together. Ranking religious institutions and political involvement on a scale of one to ten, with ten being the most politically active, my church is likely to be rated a 2 or 3 on the scale.

My church affirms it’s political neutrality. However, it maintains the right to speak out on social and moral issues that affect the Church and families. And occasionally the Church encourages action.

Most recently, our church leaders are encouraging members to vote YES on Proposition 8 in California to provide a legal definition of marriage being between a man and a woman. LDS.org, the Church’s website, offers various links to discussions and information on this issue.

One point made in the discussions is the idea of the “Tyranny of Tolerance” – when tolerance is redefined to mean acceptance rather than love.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Latter-day Saint church leader, clarifies and reminds us what “tolerance” means:

“Tolerance obviously requires a non-contentious manner…

Last weekend, my church hosted Gladys Knight and the Saint’s Unified Voices Choir.

Yes, that’s right, Gladys Knight, from Gladys Knight and the Pips. Only this time she wasn’t singing with the Pips and she wasn’t singing “Midnight Train to Georgia”.  Instead, she was performing with a 100 person multi-cultural choir made up of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) who live in the Las Vegas, Nevada area.

We had 6000 tickets, free and by invitation only, for four performances that could better be described as praise worship events. Someone called it a “Mormon revival”.

The packed events were much more spirited and lively than anything our church typically does. The musical heritage of our faith finds its roots in those of its early converts, many of whom were white and from the eastern United States and Europe. They brought with them a ural heritage of many faiths, but the influences of African American ure have been slow to take root.

That is…

I just got back from vacation and found Tim Townsend’s article about Chatfields Boutique in Des Peres, Missouri – click here – specializing in bridal and formal gowns that are modest.

What a concept!

This is an idea that has caught hold in Utah, where Latter-day Saint clothing entrepreneurs have, in recent years, been helping young teens and adults dress up without dressing down, way down to cleavage baring styles reminiscent of Hollywood’s Night at the Oscars.

Learn of one such clothing entrepreneur in the Meridian Magazine article: Keith Hall takes on Fashion Industry with Beautifully Modest Clothing.

For years Latter-day Saints and people of many faiths have been imploring clothing manufacturers to provide clothing with more cloth. But the response was always the same: modesty does not sell. 

When I went shopping in St. Louis a couple years ago to buy my daughter a prom dress there were none that didn’t show a whole lot of shoulder and revealing necklines. We had to…

I have enjoyed reading the comments that have been made to my last post — Latter-day Saints examine racial history. I especially enjoyed the expressions of faith in the grace of God.

To clarify, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is built on the foundation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We believe in a restored, not reformed gospel. We believe in living prophets and apostles and our doctrines are derived from an open cannon of continuing revelation from God. Our roots are in Christian teachings, but our doctrine is distinct relative to other Christian traditions because of our open cannon. If there are errors in our practice, those errors are of man.

Our open cannon makes us open for correction or clarifying revelations. It makes our church vibrant and responsive to challenges in our times. We often refer to the church as a “living church”.

We rejoiced in the clarifying revelation in 1978 that extended the…

Tim Townsend’s article on Monday touched on a topic close to my heart, that is: the experience of black members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. To read his story, Black Mormons straddle two worlds on 30th anniversary – click here.

I have to admit, Tim’s story, while balanced and refreshing, was also hard to read. Especially hard for me to read was a comment made by my friend, Latter-day Saint (Mormon) convert, Nekisha Rhodes who says she is “comfortable being uncomfortable” as she struggles to learn more about the heritage of her new-found faith, a heritage that includes a church policy, lifted 30 years ago, prohibiting black male members from the priesthood.

Nekisha sounds much like many African American Latter-day Saints when they candidly express their faith and experience in the church. Catherine Stokes, Latter-day Saint and former assistant director, Office of Health Care Regulation,…