Daniel C. Peterson's Blog, page 1170

“Science and religion are two windows . . . “

    “Science and religion are two windows that people look through, trying to understand the big universe outside, trying to understand why we are here. The two windows give different views, but both look out at the same universe. Both views are one-sided, neither is complete. Both leave out essential features of the real [Read More...]

“If judges can’t join the Boy Scouts, what about the Mormon Church?”

    A recent decision by the California Supreme Court to bar state judges from affiliation with the evil Boy Scouts of America raises interesting issues, as this letter to the Los Angeles Times recognizes:   http://www.latimes.com/opinion/reader...   For example, what if a bishop in California tried to call a member of his ward to [Read More...]

New Testament 60-61

    Matthew 6:1-6   It’s a sore temptation to want to point to one’s good deeds in order to gain the admiration of others, or, even, to silence their condemnation.   I know several people who’ve made substantial, even massive, donations to various worthy causes, yet whose names virtually never appear in connection with such [Read More...]

“On reading scripture and being human”

    Nathaniel Givens offers an interesting perspective on the relationship between scripture and history — a relationship that has been somewhat controversial of late in certain sectors of online Mormondom, sometimes generating considerable unnecessary heat.  Fortunately, he’s lucid and calm:   http://timesandseasons.org/index.php/...    

“In Memoriam”

    I trust that my friend Bill Hamblin won’t mind my posting a link to his funeral tribute to his mother, posted nearly two weeks ago:   http://www.patheos.com/blogs/enigmati...   I thought that it eloquently expressed not only his admiration and affection for his mother, but, more generally, why so many of us think the [Read More...]

“In Los Angeles, Muslim women find empowerment in female-only Friday prayers”

    I’ve often expressed my belief that the future direction of Islam will be decided — certainly, I hope it will be decided — by Muslims living in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other such free nations, far from the corrupting influence (and oppressive tyranny) of the purportedly “Islamic” states of [Read More...]

“Mormon Feminist Watch”

    I guarantee to you that this site is interesting, and that many will find it controversial.    

The secret of being miserable

    “The secret of being miserable is to have leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not. The cure for it is occupation, because occupation means pre-occupation; and the pre-occupied person is neither happy nor unhappy, but simply alive and active, which is pleasanter than any happiness until you are tired of it.” [Read More...]

Some benefits of attending Sunday meetings

    Not infrequently, I read comments from purportedly liberated ex-Mormons about the glories of churchless Sundays.  Instead of attending mind-numbingly dull and repetitious meetings, they claim to spend most of their Sundays skiing, golfing, biking, reading classic books, listening to superb music, perfecting their highly toned bodies through exercise, enjoying the beach, and sipping fine [Read More...]

“Girls should pursue worthy hobbies and so should boys”

    I like Neylan McBaine.  She’s very bright.  I think she has a lot to offer, I agree with a great deal of what she has to say, and I recognize her as being on the same side.   I’m somewhat bemused by the controversy reflected in this piece, though, and by some of [Read More...]