[This post is an intermission related to a series on Joseph Smith’s Polygamy. To read from the beginning or link to previously published posts, go to A Faithful Joseph.]

Alex Beam’s New Book regarding Joseph Smith’s death

I’ve had so much fun reading and commenting on Alex Beam’s recent book that I didn’t have time to produce the full article about the next step in Joseph’s efforts to establish plural marriage among the Mormons.

So let’s take a pause for questions. What burning questions regarding Joseph and polygamy have plagued you? Which questions do you still have that I haven’t yet answered?

Feel free to read the excerpt regarding polygamy from American Crucifixion posted on Salon. Which parts do you find most troublesome, and why? Given that American Crucifixion will be making the rounds, it’s sure to be a topic of discussion. I figure it would be good/fun/useful to discuss this here, in a friendly, knowledgeable forum.

In the mean time I’ll keep working on the next posts in the series….

Today in my world was an interesting celebration of women.

This morning I attended my Stake’s Women’s Conference with my autistic daughter, who is now 18. They provided lovely eats–yogurt and fruit, muffins, and water/juice. The conference was set up to explicitly serve both those in the Stake who speak English and those who speak Spanish.

The plenary speaker was a lovely lady who used to be on the Young Women General Board. Unfortunately I was a bit distracted because of my daughter’s behavior. I decided to let my daughter select the classes, so I wouldn’t be faced with arguments. Continue reading →

Arguably the most successful Mormon made and oriented movie, The Saratov Approach is like no other missionary themed movie made to date. There are the usual tropes and scenes found in other movies, Like God’s Army and The Best Two Years, but the mold is often broken. Audiences and critics alike have come away having positive reviews. It can now be bought and watched at home.

It goes almost without saying that the movie is based on a true story about two missionaries kidnapped in Russia. The abductors had hoped a large and wealthy American church would pay a $300,000 ransom for their safe return. Things ended up very differently than expected for everyone involved. That is all the story synopsis that needs told. It might be part of history what happened, but that outcome will be passed over to avoid unnecessary spoilers.

One of the obvious questions that Mormons almost always ask is if the movie is safe to watch with the family. Despite the PG-13 rating for subject matter and bouts of violence, there is probably not much to be concerned with viewing. The rating system, that has been argued over since its start, dropped the ball yet again. It seems more like a “hard” PG rating that two decades ago would have been slapped on to any similar film. Why anyone bothers paying attention to what the rating board decides (for someone who thinks such a system is still important) is questionable, but that can be a discussion for another day. With individual discretion there is no reason the whole family can’t sit down and enjoy this cinematic production. Continue reading →

Bruce mentioned in his comments this week that my last post was speculative. Someone else objected to my use of “midrash” in this Faithful Joseph series, saying my “midrash” was pure fiction. They particularly noted my speculation about Eliza’s poem: “[Meg] hasn’t look[ed] at the original document but… proposes that the journal has been altered (based upon what evidence, save that it doesn’t help her theory as is?)…”

This caused me to rock back on my heals, chin-stroking, and wonder how I had violated the rules of scholarly etiquette practiced by those trying to figure out Joseph’s motives and activities regarding plural marriage. Why is Alex Beam’s remix portraying a dangerously manipulative Joseph[ref]Alex Beam, American Crucifixion: The Murder of Joseph Smith and the Fate of the Mormon Church, April 22, 2014.[/ref] accepted while my methods are not? I was concerned in particular because if someone sufficiently orthodox to visit M* isn’t understanding my method, it’s a sure bet those not inclined to see Joseph as honorable will simply reject this reconstruction as the fevered imaginings of a deluded naive.

What you don’t know and I haven’t demonstrated, is the way I think, as a scientist. It’s similar to what we all do, but I suspect it is more rigorous in my case, and certainly rigorous in how I’ve treated the subject of Joseph and plural marriage. Continue reading →

I hope this will be the last post on M* regarding the Ordain Women movement. The OW movement has been relatively quiet since the last General Conference, which is probably a good thing. Hopefully the people involved with the movement will come to the realization that there are Church-approved channels for bringing up requests for change within the Church.

In the meantime, a private letter from Church Public Affairs Managing Director Michael Otterson surfaced on another blog. It was posted here in a comment, and I wrote to Church public affairs to confirm its authenticity, which was confirmed.

I also asked for the Church’s official position on the OW movement and received a response, which I will detail in this post.

But first, I think it is important to make it clear the Church Public Affairs is definitely speaking for the Brethren on these issues. I asked public affairs this question and received the answer: “yes.” In addition, the private letter from Bro. Otterson says the following:

Please also understand that no Church spokesperson – whether Cody Craynor, Jessica Moody or myself – issues statements on behalf of the Church that are not either initiated or approved by members of the Twelve and, at times, by the First Presidency.

I really need to drive home this point because it appears some people, even faithful latter-day Saints, are not understanding this: public affairs is not some rogue group. All of their statements are approved by the leadership of the Church. In effect, their statements are statements from the modern-day prophets who lead the Church.

So, what is the Church’s official position on the OW movement?

Continue reading →