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Elder Anderson visits saints in Africa

LDS Church News - As Consolata Usi and some of her five children were walking down a Kenyan road one day in late 1992, Mormon missionaries approached her and started to tell her about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Although she was interested in what the missionaries had to say, her husband was traveling away for work, so she told them to come back at a later time to speak more with him. "When I came home, I met the missionaries my family had told me about," said Elder Hesbon O. Usi. "I wished to see how they worshipped, so I went to Church....

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Military district formed in Iraq

LDS Church News - The Baghdad Iraq Military District was recently created to provide increased spiritual support for the needs of approximately 1,300 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints living in Iraq. After six years of meeting as military groups the Mormon Church now has a palpable presence and priesthood structure in place to serve those in the armed forces and working in other capacities throughout the country. Frank Clawson, the Church's Director of Military Relations, said the creation of the Baghdad Iraq Military District will allow for the exercise of priesthood keys on a local level that was not previously...

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Joseph Smith Lesson 47: “‘Praise to the Man’: Latter-day Prophets Bear Witness of the Prophet Joseph Smith”

Feast Upon the Word - The last lesson in the manual, particularly because it records the words of everyone but Joseph Smith, more or less speaks for itself. It is worth saying, though, that it functions as a kind of compendium of all the major “uses” to which we put Joseph Smith as Latter-day Saints, from “Joseph the foreordained” (section one of the “Testimonies” half of the lesson) through “the Joseph Smith of the First Vision” (section two) and “Joseph Smith the structurally incapable of having done what he did” (section three) and “Joseph the prophetically unique” (section four) to “Joseph Smith as a global figure...

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The conversion of two BYU football teammates

LDS Church News - While quarterback Ty Detmer was playing through his stellar, Heisman Trophy-winning career at BYU, Garrett Tujague stood up for him as an offensive lineman. When Garett Tujague was baptized in September, Ty Detmer stood up for him — he stood in the circle of Melchizedek Priesthood holders when he was confirmed on Sunday, Sept. 27. The two spoke of their diverse paths to conversion during a recent telephone conference call with the Church News. Brother Tujague of the Castaic Ward, Valencia California Stake, continues to enjoy football as head coach of the successful program at College of the Canyons in Valencia....

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How a seer stone helped in the Book of Mormon translation

Deseret News - As we've discussed in past articles, Joseph -- like any other prophet -- was a fallible human with preconceived ideas, opinions, and assumptions, who was divinely called to an important role. Worldviews don't change immediately or all at once. God reveals his word, line upon line, and those who listen can enlarge their understanding of truth a little here and there as they are willing to grasp new concepts. In approximately 1819, Joseph borrowed a seer stone from a friend to find another whitish seer stone in an iron kettle 25 feet underground. Then, in 1822, Joseph found a brown stone...

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Even BYU & Utah football coaches are in the rivalry

Deseret News - Something's got to give when BYU and Utah square off Saturday at LaVell Edwards Stadium. For the second time in their careers as head coaches, Bronco Mendenhall and Kyle Whittingham will match wits in a rubber match. Each has two wins, including one apiece on the opposing field, in head-to-head battles. It'll be the second time in three years where a coaching tie will be broken in the rivalry. In 2007, they were 1-1 when the Cougars topped the Utes, 17-10 in Provo. Given the success of both coaches, the closeness of the series should come as no surprise. Mendenhall is...

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Head of Church Public Affairs writes in the Washington Post

Washington Post - The history and practice of American politics and democracy affirm that churches and their leaders have a constitutional right to speak out in public policy debates. Local, state and national officials regularly consult with religious leaders as a matter of course. During the 2008 presidential campaign, for example, both then-Senator Barack Obama and Senator John McCain led a number of discussions with religious leaders across America to gather input on challenges facing the nation. Every individual and group has a stake in the direction of government. When values collide, as they do in every society, a healthy democracy requires active engagement...

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Protesters picket proposed Phoenix Temple

ABC News - Dozens of protesters picketed services at a Phoenix LDS church on Sunday. Thirty people lined a north Phoenix intersection, letting passing drivers know of their opposition to the church building a temple. "We respect their right to worship, this isn't about religion," said Scott Anderson, spokesperson for the Little Deer Valley Homeowners Association. "What it's about is a building that's incompatible with the neighborhood," Anderson said. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints wants to build a new, nearly 10,000 square-foot temple adjacent to their current building at 51st Avenue and Pinnacle Peak Parkway. But neighbors like Don Egigian...

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Nephi's steel bow difficult to replicate at BYU competition

Deseret News - About 33 BYU students made a Book of Mormon story a reality Friday at the second annual Nephi's Steel Bow Competition. These students designed, made and shot off steel bows, experiencing for themselves the difficulties of the ancient American prophet Nephi in making an effective bow out of metal. "Steel is a lousy material to be designed with," said Anton Bowden, a BYU professor in biomechanical engineering and creator of the competition. "So when I read that Nephi made a bow out of steel, I wondered how that would really perform." Many students put in weeks researching, designing and producing bows...

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Complete poetry of Eliza R. Snow published

Deseret News - Poetess. Prophetess. Priestess. Presidentess. These are all words Jill Mulvay Derr and Karen Lynn Davidson used to describe Eliza R. Snow at an event Friday, Nov. 20, in the Sons of the Utah Pioneers building to celebrate the release of "Eliza R. Snow: The Complete Poetry." The 1,333-page book was edited by Derr and Davidson -- an intense labor of love. It contains 507 poems, arranged chronologically, spanning from 1825 to 1887. Poems were drawn from Snow's two published volumes, but the majority are unpublished poems from other sources, such as newspapers and her journals. "We know that people are going...