During scripture study last night, I came across the following verse in Alma 21:

But he caused that there should be synagogues built in the land of Ishmael; and he caused that his people, or the people who were under his reign, should assemble themselves together.

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On the Church’s website for For the Strength of Youth, we find the following:

Immodest clothing is any clothing that is tight, sheer, or revealing in any other manner. Young women should avoid short shorts and short skirts, shirts that do not cover the stomach, and clothing that does not cover the shoulders or is low-cut in the front or the back. Young men should also maintain modesty in their appearance.

I’ve never understood why the guidelines are specific for young women but general for the young men.

At least they are addressing more than sex-related guidelines in reference to modesty:

Young men and young women should be neat and clean and avoid being extreme or inappropriately casual in clothing, hairstyle, and [behaviour].

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The LDS Church recently released a statement about what constitutes doctrine. The following is an excerpt:

With divine inspiration, the First Presidency (the prophet and his two counselors) and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (the second-highest governing body of the Church) counsel together to establish doctrine that is consistently proclaimed in official Church publications. This doctrine resides in the four “standard works” of scripture (the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price), official declarations and proclamations, and the Articles of Faith. Isolated statements are often taken out of context, leaving their original meaning distorted.

What I find interesting is that they include proclamations as doctrine. Official declarations have been presented to the general body of church membership for an acceptance vote. Proclamations have not.

What do you think? Are proclamations doctrine, particularly when they contain tenets not found anywhere else? Is doctrine the same as canon?

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“Avril’s mellow new album is, in effect, an attempt at reinvention and so far it hasn’t worked,” said Jeff Burlingame, the author of “Avril Lavigne: Celebrity With Heart.”

Oh, right. Because success as a musician has nothing to do with creativity, art, or introspection; it has only to do with record sales and concert attendance.

Read the rest of the article at Let go: Avril Lavigne experiencing dwindling Canadian crowds, sales – News1130.

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I like to think I have been sensitive to gender equality, violence against women and the like for some time, but I have to say that the women studies course I took this past semester hammered a lot of things home.

I see sexism and discrimination against women in places I previously would have overlooked and in things I previously would have found funny.

This past week has been pretty hard for me. I have seen many of my friends participating in Facebook memes that denigrate and objectify women. When I do try to stand up against such, I am the one labelled as being insensitive and told I should lighten up.

I am very fed up this week and I am disgusted more each day that goes by to the point I feel sick to my stomach and my hands shake.

Here are a few of the images my friends have posted:

This one tries to make light violence against women. Strictly speaking it’s spousal abuse period, but since I am a man and the friend who posted it is a man, I saw this as directed at women. Besides, as the saying goes, it’s a dog is man’s best friend, not human’s best friend. It is never okay to laugh at the idea of stuffing one’s own spouse into the trunk of a car.

This is sexist in several ways. First it treats men as prizes (You’re all mine if you plan to marry in the temple. It treats women as objects of desire (if you aren’t going to get married in the temple, you don’t get me). It trivializes the sacredness of temple ordinances.

This perpetuates the stereotypes of women being emotionally unstable, and it ties so-called manhood to men being accepting of emotional abuse.

This objectifies women and glamorizes sodomization, both of which together promote sexual violence against women.

Yet another one objectifying women. This one goes even further by presenting women as objects that can be eaten. And why is it women have to wait for men to come along; why can’t they initiate relationships?

Finally, this one is sexist on several fronts. First, it promotes emotional instability in relationships. Second, it promotes the idea of women being owned by men. Finally, notice how the male progresses from boy to gentleman, but the female in the relationship remains a girl? Also, notice the female in the relationship is a girl, but the females outside of the relationship are women.

What disturbs me the most is that those who post these images are completely oblivious to the sexism contained within them.

And the sexism isn’t confined to just these images either. Every day, it seems, someone I know posts similar photos. New photos. The cycle continues: Someone promotes violence and sexism in their images and other perpetuate their messages by sharing them.

In all sincerity, what is there that can be done?

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President Monson announced five new temples during conference today: Provo, Utah, USA; Barranquilla, Columbia; Durban, South Africa; Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; and Star Valley, Wyoming.

The new Provo temple will be built on the location of the Provo Tabernacle, which burned down last year. It will be rebuilt as it was before, but will be used as a temple.

As someone who has been following the growth of the church in Africa, I am particularly happy about the two new temples in Africa. The DRC temple will be the first in Central Africa.

He also mentioned a temple in Paris, which technically was announced in July, but this was the first time it was brought up in conference.

Finally, he made mention of the Patron Assistance Fund, which members can use to fund a single trip to the temple. This will be a great help to members who live so far from the temple and make such huge temporal sacrifices to make a single trip to the temple.

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About a month ago, I was set apart as a seminary teacher. Technically, I am a substitute teacher, filling in for the full-time teachers when they are out of town, sick, etc. Even though we aren’t even a month into the school year, I already taught this week and last week, and starting Monday, I will be teaching for 3.5 weeks.

It’s been a good experience so far, but I have to say I know now what I and my friends put our seminary teachers through.

If anyone is interested, here are the callings I have had since I was married in 1995:

• elders quorum second counsellor
• elders quorum president
• ward mission leader
• stake mission secretary
• young men president
• ward clerk
• elders quorum president
• Gospel Doctrine instructor
• executive secretary
• seminary teacher

Nope. No ward bulletin editor.

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A small-town judge in Alabama is giving non-violent offenders a choice at sentencing: go to jail or go to church.Under a program dubbed “Operation Restore Our Community,” the city judge in Bay Minette lets misdemeanor offenders serve time and pay a fine or go to church every Sunday for a year, according to WKRG.com. If offenders choose church, they can pick the place of worship as long as they check in weekly with the pastor and police. After a year of Sundays in the pew, the offenders case will be dismissed.

via NBC San Diego.

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The other day, my children and I were discussing as part of our supper conversation opposites. You know, like, hot and cold, hard and soft, light and dark.

I asked them what the opposite of “man” is, and immediately, they answered, “Woman!”

But I wonder, are men and women opposites? They don’t look like opposites; anatomically, they are more similar than different. They don’t act like opposites; they do a lot of the same things.

Some might say, oh, but women are more spiritual. But if a woman is kind, does that mean a man is unkind? If a woman is soft-spoken, does that mean a man is angry?

Some might say, oh, but men are stronger and faster. Even if that is true, that isn’t the same as saying a man is strong and woman is weak or a man is fast and a woman is slow.

Frankly, I don’t see how men and women can be considered opposites in any way.

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