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"I just had to come" - on the plane to Haiti

Meridian Magazine - Just 16 days ago I was doing the most normal day-to-day chores in our home in Virginia. We were reluctant to take down the Christmas decorations—our tree was still supple and green, our 67 nativities were still set up in various places around the house. Many days in January have been colder than normal and we just couldn’t bring ourselves to take the cheeriness of the season from our home. I had no idea what was coming. I hadn’t paid much attention to the news on Tuesday afternoon, January 12—I was just too busy. Besides, I would be putting up the...

433

Joseph Smith's memory of the First Vision

Deseret News - One of Steven C. Harper's most vivid memories happened when he was about 14 years old. This is, coincidently, about the same age Joseph Smith was when he had his First Vision. Harper's experience greatly changed his life. He was sitting at the breakfast table and talking with his dad about something he had just read in the LDS Church News. He remembers he was eating cold cereal, but he can't tell you what cereal. He remembers sitting to the left of his dad, but he can't remember the clothes he or his dad were wearing. Some details are fuzzy, yet...

432

Church Ball, just how important is it?

Deseret News - For better or for worse — sometimes both, perhaps — the game of basketball has been a big part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for the better part of 100 years. Male church members first played in a formal basketball league in 1908, and church basketball has spawned enormous participation from hundreds of thousands of people in the 102 years that have followed. One need only mention the words "church basketball" to just about any male who spent any length of time growing up in the state of Utah, where the LDS Church is based, to realize...

431

LDS ward building now home for 600 displaced Haitians

Deseret News - A momentary calm fell over the Petion-ville Ward Chapel grounds as homeless Haitians raised their voices in song and prayer to close another day. Strains of "Where Can I Turn for Peace" in French filled the cloudy night sky followed by Stevenson Laurent's heartfelt petition in Creole to awake to the sunshine of a new morning. The nightly devotional calms the restlessness of what amounts to a village that sprung up around the church after the Jan. 12 earthquake. Petion-ville was one of the hardest-hit areas in the country. About 600 tent cities or makeshift communities are sprinkled throughout the region....

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Residents surprised by Church decision to lower Phoenix temple height

Arizona Republic - Critics of a proposed Phoenix temple said Wednesday they are surprised the Mormon Church withdrew its plans to exceed residential zoning heights but it's just one piece of their concerns, which they have raised since the church unfolded its proposal last summer. Church officials said Tuesday they will lower and redesign the height of the temple. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officials had proposed building a temple, at 51st Avenue and Pinnacle Peak Road, which would be 40 feet high, 10 feet higher than the land's current zoning, which is capped at 30 feet. The temple would still...

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Conversion story showing the importance of being a good example

Deseret News - Eight months ago, Scott Meushaw, 22, of Towson, Md., was in envy of his co-worker, Blair Peterson, the quarterback on the Towson University football team. "What was it about him?" Meushaw wondered. Why did he not get angry? Why didn't he drink, smoke or party but still had fun? After all, he was the quarterback. "I knew there was something different about him. I wanted his life almost," said Meushaw. So Meushaw approached Peterson, who had served a Mormon mission to Argentina, on Facebook -- too embarrassed to approach him face to face at work -- and asked him some poignant...

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Top recruit gave up hair to be a Cougar

Deseret News - It's been 13 days since La Habra High School running back Joshua Quezada sacrificed his black locks, his signature calling card reminiscent of the long curls of Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu. This long mane flowing out the back of his helmet was iconic as Quezada terrorized defenses last fall in Orange County en route to the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Division championship, a senior year in which he rushed for 2,114 yards and 26 touchdowns. Today, Quezada is attending classes at BYU and working out with the Cougars, having qualified for early graduation. He's sure to be one of the...

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Oakland newspapers standing up for local LDS man dealing with fallout over Prop 8 support

Deseret News - Finally, someone is standing up to the mayor and city council of Oakland, Calif., for reconsidering the appointment of an LDS member of the board of directors of the city's Paramount Theater because he contributed a large sum of money to the Proposition 8 campaign. Lorenzo Hoopes, 96, and others were scheduled for reappointment to the Paramount Theatre board, but before a vote could be taken in recent City Council meeting, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums had the nominations pulled for "further consideration" Jan. 19. Gay rights activists appeared to want to humiliate Hoopes because he contributed $26,000 to the ballot initiative...

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Mormon Messages (for Youth): Charity, An example of the believers

Mormon Life -

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Opinion: LDS bashing by sports fans crosses the line

Deseret News - Saturday at San Diego State, BYU players and fans were exposed to a group of Aztec students, wearing missionary-like suits and white shirts, bicycle helmets and name tags. That's actually pretty funny. I say that on fairly good authority, considering I was once a missionary in San Diego and wore the same kind of suit. And looked just as geeky. But what wasn't funny was the part near the game's end when BYU fans chanted, "BYU Cougars!" and the hecklers responded with obscene gestures and taunts of "You're still Mormon!" Sometimes there's a thin line whether it's BYU or the LDS...