Dave's Mormon Inquiry

Faith, Evidence, and Rationality

Freespace (looking good on the new Typepad platform) has an interesting post disputing the meaning of the term "faith." Here's a quote:

But the relevant use of the term “faith” is to refer to an epistemological method. That method must be distinguished from reason in some way. And that way is, that faith is an act of will. Faith means to believe in something despite the absence of evidence, or even in the face of evidence to the contrary.

It's a little unfair to define faith as a belief held in the absence of evidence and with no relation to reason. Let's talk about faith, evidence, and reason, and come up with a better summary.

Ugliness on Campus

A short post at Cronaca suggests life is too easy at Berkeley--a stab at explaining why student civility on the Berkeley campus is disappearing, as evident in the linked article entitled Berkeley Intifada. Whatever happened to "can't we all just get along"?

Archaeology on the Menu

BYU Newsnet has a short summary of an interesting Tuesday forum at BYU. The speaker, a BYU anthropologist, "revealed ways archaeology could help prove the credibility of the Book of Mormon" (emphasis added). Could sounds a lot like might but hasn't yet. The speaker noted rather candidly that "charges against the Book of Mormon are serious and require a response."

Fact is Stranger Than Fiction

Most recently, in this news release from BYU announcing that the Daily Universe "was awarded second place in the annual Newspaper of the Year competition held at the National College Newspaper Convention in Las Vegas." Could this simply be a clever spoof by the normally straight-shooting Universe? Or perhaps the secular collegiate judges were just so smashed from a weekend of partying in Las Vegas that they didn't know what they were doing?

I will offer my congratulations to the Daily Universe editors and staff, on the theory that the Universe really is the second-best college paper in America. Next I'll go check my food storage, then get started on the Family Ark, as this is a pretty clear signal that The End Is Near. It's been a little chilly in California this week--maybe Hell is freezing over, too.

Mosiah

I've fallen behind in my "Sunday School" category--this post will try to catch up a bit. Mosiah is the first book of the original, intended Book of Mormon narrative that we have--1 Nephi through Omni plus the Words of Mormon are really replacement material for the original Book of Lehi material which was lost. Metcalfe's essay The Priority of Mosiah is a detailed summary of the thesis (not original to him) that the material in Mosiah through Moroni was actually dictated before the replacement material in 1 Nephi through Omni. As noted by Metcalfe, that ordering of the text also sheds light on several thematic inconsistencies which otherwise emerge. In addition, inspection of the original manuscripts suggests the original first chapter of Mosiah was lost (recapitulated, one would think, by the summary material in Omni and Words of Mormon) and the present "Mosiah 1" was actually the second chapter.

Blogging Tools

For the benefit of Blog Club members (or any other bloggers), here are a couple of blog tools I've found useful for squeezing a little more fun out of my weblogs. First, Technorati is a free site that allows you to quickly identify the sites that have posted links (either within a blog post or a permanent link) to your site. It's great for identifying new sites linking to your weblog--just type or copy in your URL and hit "Search." For example, Technorati tells me that three days ago this site linked to me (he appears to be an ASU student as well as a gentleman and a scholar). It's nice my site appeals to a broad spectrum of readers.

The other tool I actually use is Sitemeter, a traffic meter that provides a running count of visitors, as well as partial information on the URL addresses, domains, and referral sources of those who visit your site. You can make your site info open for public viewing or keep it for your eyes only. Just for fun I'll open my site info up to public viewing for a few days--go click on the Sitemeter logo at the bottom of the left sidebar and you can view my site statistics. I know a few Blog Club sites have this or another sitemeter installed already.

What other blogging tools have your found useful (tools you actually use)?

Mormon Enigma, Part 2 - Zion's Camp

Over at Joseph's Journal (my other project) the HC selections now find Joseph and those with him in the Zion's Camp group hundreds of miles from Kirtland, Ohio (which they left on May 5, 1834) on their journey towards western Missouri, where they will arrive in mid-June. The whole Zion's Camp episode (a private religious army marching halfway across America!) should have been a wake-up call that the Mormons were more than just another Christian splinter group like hundreds of others in antebellum America. The material I'm reading in Mormon Enigma tonight covers this Zion's Camp period. Here are some interesting highlights.

Faking It

I flushed the old reading list yesterday and put up a completely new one (see left and down). For one, I heartily recommend Faking It (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2003) by William Ian Miller, a law professor at the University of Michigan Law School. Role-playing and double-mindedness pervade daily life and are not rare things in Church life either. But there are also many positive aspects (not really insincere at all) to "faking it" in social encounters and rituals. The book gives new meaning to the phrase "All the world's a stage."

In the News

Illegally downloading music is against the Honor Code, BYU NewsNet reminds BYU students. So not only will corporate music's legal jihad against its customers threaten you, but BYU will pile on and kick you out of school. I don't suppose it would make any difference to the Honor Code office that the school's namesake was in violation of federal law most of his adult life with no apparent remorse.

Mormon Enigma, Part 1 - New York

I'm moving through Mormon Enigma, my Book O' Month (title abbreviated just to keep the title on one line). Here are brief notes on Emma's time in New York and Pennsylvania, covering the period through the end of 1830 (p. 1-36).

Kierkegaard and Mormonism

I've been looking for a post from Mormon Metaphysics to summarize here for commenting. and found these comments on Kierkegaard interesting although the conversation wanders around a bit. Click here for a short summary of Kierkegaard. As the most noted Christian philosopher of the modern era, you would think Kierkegaard would figure in LDS theologizing from time to time, but Mormon thinking pretty much ignores him. He just doesn't seem to click for a Mormon audience, as noted by Clark. Why not? Here are a couple of ideas.

In Search of Good Fiction

I recently whizzed through Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford Univ. Press, 2000) by Jonathan Culler, a literary Brit. It covers a variety of interesting issues surrounding narrative of all sorts (literary, historical, or cultural). Reading the book has whetted my appetite to read a few novels, so I'm soliciting recommendations. I'm inclined toward American fiction; I suppose I ought to read Huck Finn sometime.

Rounding Out the Club

A sudden flurry of activity gives us three new members, filling out the roster at ten blogs. While I originally envisioned "Mormon-themed" blogs, that has broadened to include personal-themed blogs of LDS bloggers--the only sites I declined were political blogs and those past the ten-blog limit. I push a "big-umbrella" model of the Church, so I might as well use the same approach for the Blog Club. I'll put links for those sites who expressed interest but aren't in the mix this time around in an "On Deck" blogroll to the right. Your time will come.

Blog Club Update - New Members

I'm pleased to announce two new members of the Blog Club. First, Celibate in the City, which bills itself as "The misadventures of urban dating for a Mormon woman outside of Utah." Despite the barrage of media images to the contrary, there are millions of young singles--LDS, Christian, and everything else--whose vision of an active social life and dating does not have sex on the menu. This blog explores that theme (one we are all familiar with!) from an LDS perspective. Welcome to the Club, CC.

Next, Imagination's Fool has signed on. A college blog, IF features a lot of good writing and interesting commentary on college life--as one would expect from a literature major. And I thought Maine was a place people only went to on vacation! There's obviously more going on there than I would have guessed. Welcome to the Club, IF.

In other Club news, Lyle at S4TL has shared his call to serve in Iraq starting next month as a sergeant in the 250th Signal Battalion of the New Jersey National Guard. Safe journeys Lyle--email me from time to time and I'll post updates so the greater Bloggernacle can share your experience and give their support.

Martha, in the Kitchen, with a Knife

Congratulations to Kristine, who was awarded the Bloggernacle April 2004 Post of the Month for her post Laundry, Lizards, and the Sisters of Lazarus. Marvelous that a Bcc post came out on top. The banner on top of the site is actually a subliminal message implanting the command "vote for Bcc" in the minds of potential judges.

Old Friends

Three old friends dropped in for a visit last night--Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, in the "Wrath of Khan" director's edition (= new box, no new editing). I'm sure it has been out for awhile, I just happened to pick it off the shelf at the local library in a moment of weakness. You know the plot: Khan, the superior intellect, wreaks havoc hunting the white starship but gets outsmarted in the end by Kirk, who gets some timely aid from that other superior intellect, Spock. And don't miss Kirstie Alley in her finest role as Mr. Saavik.

This time I picked up on the paternal theme, as a gently aging Kirk discovers--out of the blue--that he has a son. Then, over the course of the movie, he grows into the role of a father and by the end feels young again. It could have been titled "Star Trek II: The Renewal of Kirk," but no one wants to see a movie about renewal, so they kind of slip that theme in between action scenes.

Mother's Day Tribute

I have posted a new Book of the Month for May 2004, Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith (Univ. of Illinois Press, 2d edition, 1994), by Linda King Newell and Valeen Tippetts Avery. The controversy surrounding this book partook in an odd way of the controversy surrounding Emma Smith as a figure in LDS history. As Joseph's (first) wife, she had firsthand information concerning events associated with the publication of the Book of Mormon and with the murky, private events connected with Joseph's practice of polygamy. She later became a critic of Brigham Young's emergence as leader of the Church in the wake of Joseph's death, punctuated in later years with the ascendance of Joseph Smith III as leader of the RLDS Church.

Given that Sunday was Mother's Day, it is appropriate to quote Joseph Smith III's tribute to his mother Emma, given in the frontpiece to the book (p. v):

My mother [Emma Smith] was one of the best poised women that I ever met. Of the noblest and purest intentions herself, she never submitted to be made a party to anything low, wrong, or evil, was absolutely fearless where the right was concerned, and was a just and generous mother. Her heart never changed toward her children, and her fidelity to them never waivered. It's needless to say that we loved her. (italics in original).

Battle of the Blogs Goes to College

Round 3 features two college blogs, both of which have been blogging for some time now. The winner(s) receive(s) a coveted spot on the "Blog Battle Winners" list on the right sidebar. Remember you can give two thumbs up if you like 'em both--this is more of a showcase than a tournament.

Things to Act describes itself as offering "BYU blogging, plus political, social, theological, and other random commentary." He's been blogging since January 2004 but has managed to stay below the Bloggernacle radar until recently (I first noticed it in a comment left here by grasshopper about a week ago). Go visit this weblog and for Pete's sake leave some comments while you're there.

Imagination's Fool cites this quote from Ursula K. LeGuin: "My imagination makes me human and makes me a fool; it gives me all the world and exiles me from it." If you look carefully down the link lists on the left you will come across a Bloggernacle section, but with only three links that somehow manages to omit this site. Student attends Bowdoin College (sounds East Coastish) and just took a final in Russian poetry. Not just poetry, Russian poetry, which makes me think of Klingon opera, but I suppose a few vodkas bring out the sensitive side of any Russian on a cold night around the heater in a Siberian winter. By the way, Arwyn Evenstar is at least half a real name rather than a handle, so no name jokes. Or else you lose your spot on the white ships sailing to Valinor and will be doomed to wander deserted sylvan slopes, pining for your departed kin, until the end of the Fourth Age.

Reformed Mormonism

Not a term you hear too often. The idea of reform of the Church is utterly alien to the orthodox LDS perspective, as if a restored church couldn’t possibly ever be in need of reform. I just finished The Catholic Church: A Short History (Modern Library, 2001), by Hans Kung, the noted Catholic theologian. I’m surprised at the extent to which reform as a theme dominates modern Catholic history, which ignored 16th-century Reformers and lost half of Europe, then adopted some reforms during the Counter-Reformation, then successfully opposed accommodation to modernism in the 19th and half of the 20th century, then finally made some major reforms following the decrees of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65).

Other Posts

FYI, I've made several posts recently over at BCC, with nice comments added by clever bloggernackers:

A Visit to Mountain Meadows, giving my impressions of a visit to that site last month.

Efficient Blogging, with comments on the new Manhattan temple.

Reformed Mormonism, discussing Hans Kung's observations on Catholic reform and whether reform, as a concept, is relevant to Mormonism and the Church.

Club Update

Another courageous blogger takes a leap into the unknown and joins the Club: Wump Blog. The associated home page has some nifty graphic displays--the bouncing ball is strangely captivating. The blog is powered by WordPress and has kind of a clean, layered look to it.

What's In A Name?

Over at Joseph's Journal is the text of the May 3, 1834 HC entry where the official name of the Church was changed from the Church of Christ to "The Church of the Latter-day Saints." The new name was proposed by Sidney Rigdon, seconded by Newell K. Whitney, and adopted unanimously by the assembled conference of elders. Nice name; maybe we should have stuck with it.

Welcome to the Club

Introducing the charter members of the Blog Club:

I Love the Honor Code, which self-identifies as "a humorous look at life in Utah Valley." There is plenty of material to work with! Funky font on the title (my blog can't do that!).

Our Thoughts, with the tagline "thought-provoking, critical and often irreverent commentary on life, politics, religion and social issues." KS claims his wife posts sometimes too, but I've been dropping by for two months and have yet to see a spousal post. Maybe this is the week.

Speaker 4 the Living, a title with instant appeal to the ten million OSC fans out there. S4TL is still in the embyonic stage, but since his other blog is a polished MT blog, I'm sure it will develop quickly. I'm assuming something Mormonish shows up on S4TL now and then.

Only 24 hours, and I'm already surprised--this is a more diverse group than I was expecting, but then that's what makes this interesting. And thanks to Kaimi for the post at T&S. As noted in the comments there, comment capability is highly encouraged but not strictly required for joining the Club.

Efficient Blogging: The Three-Paragraph System

Our Fearless Leader recently encouraged BCC bloggers to step up and blog a bit more. So I’ll pitch in by sharing my patented “3 Paragraph System” for pasting together a friendly blog post in ten minutes or less. Para. 1: “There’s a short article over at Site X talking about this interesting new idea blah blah blah.” Para. 2: “Which makes me think of this clever idea, blah blah blah.” Para. 3: “So there you have it: Might work, might not. What do you think?” Let’s give it a whirl on the story of the week.

Mormon Blog Club

I've been continuing to ponder Emergence (my Book of the Month) in relation to the blogosphere. I've decided group blogs are not, in fact, an "emergent property" of blogs--they are not assemblies of blogs, they are assemblies of people. In an emergent system, the agents (here, blogs) retain their integrity and agglomerate. What is needed is a way for solo blogs to self-organize. How are ten solo blogs linked together different from ten solo blogs working independently? I don't know. That would be emergence, and the only way to know what happens is to try it.

So I have a proposal.