Daniel C. Peterson's Blog, page 1234

A thought on atheism and the problem of evil

    “[When I was an atheist] my argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust.  But how had I got this idea of just and unjust?  A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line.  What was I comparing this universe with [Read More...]

It’s been a long day, and I’m tired.

  So I just thought that I would share something serene and beautiful:     There.  Nice.   Relax.  Life is really very good, on the whole.   Shanti.   शान्ति    

1 Nephi 15

    Today’s reading is 1 Nephi 15.   I’m pressed for time at the moment, and will need to limit myself to a very brief comment.  So I think I’ll concentrate on something very small that struck me during this reading, in 1 Nephi 15:5:   “And it came to pass that I was [Read More...]

Three months ago, today

    I’ve had a pretty good, satisfying, and even successful life.   But this was one of my very worst days:   http://www.deseretnews.com/article/86...   The sadness never quite goes away.    

“Binyamin Netanyahu orders the biggest land-grab in a generation”

    The last paragraph of this article in the 6 September 2014 issue of The Economist might help some Americans understand a bit of the frustration and anger that Palestinians feel toward Israel:   http://www.economist.com/news/middle-...      

Is ISIS “Islamic”? Are we at war with ISIS? Should we call it “ISIL”?

    Semantic disputes have flared up over these three questions during the past week or so.   Let me comment briefly on each of them, in turn:   1.   President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron have both forthrightly denied that ISIS (or ISIL), the self-proclaimed “Islamic State,” is genuinely Islamic, [Read More...]

“Thank you to Mormon and Lutheran congregations for working together”

    I really like this letter, written by a Lutheran pastor in the area of greater Syracuse, New York:   http://www.syracuse.com/opinion/index...   And, even more, I like the activities, and the attitudes, to which it refers.    

The new BYU commercial

    http://www.deseretnews.com/article/86...   One thing I like about this is that it breaks with the rather staid and stodgy image that I think Mormons in general and BYU in particular have in the minds of some out there.    

On our duty, when appropriate, to forgive ourselves

    “I think that if God forgives us we must forgive ourselves.  Otherwise it is almost like setting up ourselves as a higher tribunal than Him.”   Letters of C. S. Lewis (19 April 1951)

“How to Search for Life on Mars”

    I guess I have ET on the brain right now.  (Actually, it’s mostly just coincidence.)   Anyhow, there’s a fascinating article in the June 2014 issue of Scientific American that’s been lying about the house since its arrival.  It’s entitled “How to Search for Life on Mars.”   (Sorry, but I can’t provide [Read More...]