Home Waters

I didn’t ever expect that in 2016 we would be struggling as a nation with the very idea of the universal brotherhood of God’s family. Of course, I expected that we would still have difficulty rising up to the standards such an idea implies, but we are seeing such naked and bald assertions of hatred of late and many of us understandably are recoiling in a state of shock. Let us not recoil. If we wish to stand for something, let us stand for kindness, decency, and the courage to model civil disagreement. Let us remember how good we have been and still can be. Let us celebrate those moments of light when the idea of the familial nature of all human relationships shines brightly. [Read more…] about Literature and the Art of Friendship

The LDS Church has recently rolled out new training for members about the central importance of the importance of observance of the Sabbath Day and of the sacrament. My thoughts here are inspired by this training, which I find to be wonderfully focused on the fundamental covenant we make at baptism and which we renew each Sunday to take upon ourselves the name of Christ and to keep his commandments.

We are to keep the Sabbath Day holy, but it is also clear that setting this day apart is not an end but a means to an end. And what is that end? If we are living with integrity and Christian purpose throughout the week, the end result is that the entire week becomes holy. We become sanctified by our willingness to bear Christ’s name every day and this enables us to live in his light. But it is a good question to ask: what does it mean to make a day holy? [Read more…] about The Sabbath Day and Earth Stewardship

Sam Brown has written an important and beautiful book. Every Mormon serious about deepening their understanding of their most fundamental commitments should read it, and any Mormon who feels adrift in the institutional church will find resources sufficient to stoke the fires of faith anew. It is also a fantastic introduction to the fundamentals of the Mormon faith for anyone new to Mormonism. [Read more…] about Review: First Principles and Ordinances: The Fourth Article of Faith in Light of the Temple by Samuel Brown

I just returned from a marvelous gathering at the Yale Divinity School where scholars and theologians met to discuss the story of the origins of the universe and of life on earth, as told by contemporary science, and its impact on and relevance to Christian belief. More specifically, it was a series of responses to the project called Journey of the Universe that includes a book, a documentary film, a DVD series of interviews, and a website. You can read more about the conference here. I have used both the book and the film in my “Humanities and the Environment” class and intend to continue to use it because it is remarkably accessible and because it tells the story of the origins of the universe and of life on earth in a way that is friendly to religious belief. I was asked to provide a Mormon response to the project, and I am summarizing my thoughts in this post. [Read more…] about Mormonism, Cosmology, and Environmental Stewardship

I have had a rare and unusual opportunity this week to spend a few days with leaders from The Nature Conservancy and from environmentally active religious communities representing many different faith traditions. The Nature Conservancy is an organization for which I have a great deal of respect and to which I am in debt since they helped support a faculty effort to enhance environmental education at BYU several years ago. I have written earlier about my experiences with them. [Read more…] about Religion, Conservation, and Community

Let me say outright that I am not interested in this post in trying to prove climate change to anyone. I frankly find such debates exhausting. If you want to know what I think of climate change, you can find some of my posts here and here. And if you want to read a more serious and academic version of these arguments, you can read an essay I published in Interdisciplinary Studies of Literature and the Environment. More importantly, if you want a primer on the science from a reputable resource, take twenty minutes and watch this excellent video from the National Academy of Sciences. [Read more…] about The Theology of Climate Change Denial