My friends and I stumbled upon this LDS seminary video from the early ’90s and I must share it with you! Look who stars in it:
That, my friends, is actor Aaron Eckhart (from “Thank You for Smoking” and “The Dark Knight”). Funny stuff. Turns out Eckhart was raised LDS, served a mission in France and Switzerland, and graduated from BYU in film studies. He no longer identifies as Mormon, however.
This is an admittedly lazy post, and I apologize. But because the semester is winding up, I have less time to devote to this blog. I hope you enjoy the video all the same.
Here are more Bible contradictions, and apologetic responses to them.
I have often defended Mormonism against the accusation that it is a cult. “Cult” is a loaded term that people throw around a bit too lightly. But that said, the LDS Church does invite the accusation with how it vilifies apostates and discourages dissent.
Case in point: At home one weekend, I found the book Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (2007). Thumbing through it, I came upon a chapter entitled: “Beware the Bitter Fruits of Apostasy.” Here are some choice excerpts:
Losing confidence in Church leaders, criticizing them, and neglecting any duty required by God lead to apostasy.
Heber C. Kimball, while serving as a counselor to President Brigham Young, reported: “I will give you a key which Brother Joseph Smith used to give in Nauvoo. He said that the very step of apostasy commenced with losing confidence in the leaders of this church and kingdom, and that whenever you discerned that spirit you might know that it would lead the possessor of it on the road to apostasy.”
Wilford Woodruff, while serving in the Quorum of the Twelve, said: “Brother Joseph used to counsel us in this wise: ‘The moment you permit yourselves to lay aside any duty that God calls you to perform, to gratify your own desires; the moment you permit yourselves to become careless, you lay a foundation for apostasy. Be careful; understand you are called to a work, and when God requires you to do that work do it.’ ”
Those who apostatize lose the Spirit of God, break their covenants, and often persecute members of the Church.
“Strange as it may appear at first thought, yet it is no less strange than true, that notwithstanding all the professed determination to live godly, apostates after turning from the faith of Christ, unless they have speedily repented, have sooner or later fallen into the snares of the wicked one, and have been left destitute of the Spirit of God, to manifest their wickedness in the eyes of multitudes.
“There is a superior intelligence bestowed upon such as obey the Gospel with full purpose of heart, which, if sinned against, the apostate is left naked and destitute of the Spirit of God, and he is, in truth, nigh unto cursing, and his end is to be burned. When once that light which was in them is taken from them they become as much darkened as they were previously enlightened, and then, no marvel, if all their power should be enlisted against the truth, and they, Judas-like, seek the destruction of those who were their greatest benefactors.” (History of the Church, 2:23)
Jon Stewart is once again the voice of reason. In this video, he discusses the recent controversy over South Park’s unsuccessful attempts to portray Muhammad. To those who have threatened violence against the creators of South Park, Stewart tells them to “go f*ck themselves.”
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| South Park Death Threats | ||||
|
||||
Apparently, you cannot even watch the South Park episode in question online.
In her defense, she’d make for a more interesting graduation ceremony than Danny Glover. ;)
Will Holloway, everyone’s favorite metalhead, was kind enough to record the lecture Dr. Charlie Huenemann gave before SHAFT last week. Huenemann is a philosophy professor here at Utah State University. He spoke about the difficulty atheists face in grounding their morality, especially in the wake of Friedrich Nietzsche.
The reason for his lecture was not disabuse SHAFTers of their disbelief. Dr. Huenemann is an atheist who doesn’t consider theism “a live option.” Rather, Huenemann worries that many atheists (and people in general) aren’t very thoughtful about their basis for morality.
If you weren’t able to attend the lecture, or—like me— you just want to listen to it again, the lecture and the question/answer period are provided below.
The school year is quickly coming to a close, and so too is my undergraduate career—I am a senior and will be graduating this semester. And because I’m leaving Utah State University, I’ve been reflecting on my time here.
Many of my fondest memories will be of SHAFT. I have been involved with the group as an officer since its inception in Spring 2008. SHAFT has introduced me to some amazing people and, more generally, has given the secular community a much needed presence on campus. I think we all have reason to be proud of what SHAFT has accomplished.
There has been some discussion recently over what the future of SHAFT should be, however. SHAFT’s mission, as I understand it, is two-fold: (1) provide a fun and safe community for non-theistic students, and (2) promote skepticism (of ourselves and others), scientific literacy, and secular humanist values. There is a slight tension between these objectives. Were SHAFT only a social and support group for atheists, then we run the risk of groupthink. But when we neglect this social/support aspect of SHAFT, we could alienate those who most need SHAFT—people who have been ostracized from family and friends because of their religious doubts or disbelief.
I am convinced that both purposes of SHAFT are vital, so there must be a balancing act. The criticism (and it may well be a legitimate one) that has been leveled at me lately is that I have not struck the appropriate balance. So for the benefit of next year’s officers, let’s discuss what the future of SHAFT should be. Answering the following questions will help inform our discussion:
What has been your favorite SHAFT event? Why?
What has been your least favorite event? Why?
Do you have event ideas for next year? Please share.
Should SHAFT be more accommodating of religious people and their concerns, or less?
To what extent should SHAFT practice self-criticism and challenge atheism?
Your thoughts are greatly appreciated. Thank you for your interest in this club. I am going to miss SHAFT, but I am also excited to see how it will evolve. I trust next year’s officers to do a phenomenal job, and they should have your confidence too.
SHAFT’s 2010-2011 officers:
Administrative – Mike Otteson
Activities – Chris Gardner
Public Relations – Mike Linford
Advertising – Caitlin Laughlin
Tomorrow (Tuesday) SHAFT will be on the TSC patio selling baked goods from 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM. This event was very successful last year, and I hope it continues to be a SHAFT tradition in the future.
All proceeds go to Doctors Without Borders. So please stop by, enjoy a treat, and contribute to a good cause!
And if you would like to make some stuff for the table (cookies, brownies, etc.), it would be greatly appreciated. Just remember that all goods must be individually wrapped.