Making our history one step at a time
I re-checked out Jerry Z. Muller's comprehensive little library of conservative theory "Conservatism: An Anthology of Social and Political Thought from David Hume to the Present" this past week, because I kept wanting to quote it, but I hadn't written down any quotes when I first read it! Checking it out from the UW library,... Continue Reading →
With the world cup upon us, I thought it would be fun to reflect on the first time I really got excited about the soccer when I was in Germany back during the 2010 games in South Africa. At the time, I was still serving in my first assigned area, the beautiful city of Münster.... Continue Reading →
Rating: 4/5 Stars Genre: YA Fiction Spoilers: No Reading time: Read entire book on a Saturday Goodreads summary Three years ago, Tanner Scott’s family relocated from California to Utah, a move that nudged the bisexual teen temporarily back into the closet. Now, with one semester of high school to go, and no obstacles between him... Continue Reading →
Trains. Sitting by the window seat on the inter-city express from Hamburg down to Münster watching the yellow fields of raps (the canola in canola oil) speed by was the first moment of semi-peace I had felt since the long flight across the Atlantic to begin my assigned labor in the corner of the Lord's... Continue Reading →
This past Sunday, a youth speaker was asked to give a talk on the Be One youth event given by President Nelson. As asked by the President of the Church, I had also been participating in the social media fast that week, but I didn't have the opportunity to watch the entire broadcast. My interest... Continue Reading →
I absolutely loved Craig Harline's memoir of his mission in Belgium in Way Below the Angels, and I hoped he had written more. It is funny, moving, and honest about the spiritual growth and trials built into serving a mission. It turns out that he is a history professor at BYU now, and he just... Continue Reading →
My mind has been turned recently due to a constellation of reading material and personal interactions to the topic of guilt. Guilt seems to have become a widespread phenomenon within the Church-- and particularly in the LDS LGBT community. It seems to be an ever-present burden, and the negative aspects of it have caused some... Continue Reading →
I read this interesting exchange between the Israelites, Moses, and the Lord this morning on my scripture study. It involved at heart what I would call a "democratic" rebellion against Moses as the representative of the Lord, and it had some pretty harsh consequences (I just include excerpts here, but a few people get swallowed... Continue Reading →
Planet Narnia was a Goodreads recommendation based on my Favorites shelf that is clearly dominated by the works of C. S. Lewis. I haven't read a book by C. S. Lewis for a good two years now, and I was wanting to rekindle some of the spiritual insights I had gathered while reading his works.... Continue Reading →
