In a week when Mitt Romney has started to show and tell more about his Mormon faith, NBC's "Rock Center with Brian Williams" is devoting a full hour to the subject of what it means to be "Mormon in America." The special, which "Rock Center" calls "ambitious and lively," airs Thursday, Aug. 23, at 9 p.m. MDT, making NBC the first network to devote a full hour of prime-time television to Mormonism.

Perhaps Robert Jeffress did Mitt Romney a favor.When the Dallas pastor called Mr. Romney’s faith – Mormonism – a “cult” at a recent convention of Christian conservatives, he brought into the open a simmering issue: whether a leading Republican presidential candidate should be judged over religious beliefs some Americans see as outside the mainstream.

Pamela Dolan wrote a great piece about holiday drinking last week, and invited other Belief St Louis contributors to chime in, roundtable-style. I thought I’d take the bait, though it’s not obvious what I, a teetotaling Mormon, could add to a discussion about drinking in St Louis, a city awash in the influence of Anheuser Busch. Faithful Mormons eschew all drinking, and that prohibition is absolute: no exceptions for holidays or special occasions, not even an occasional glass of wine. I have been an active Mormon all my life, and like many other life-long Latter-day Saints I have never tasted a drop of alcohol, even in college. Now in middle age, my habits and identities are so firmly set that the thought of having a drink at a party or tasting a sip of wine would never seriously cross my mind.

MR says: Read the Church's response to the Boy Scouts of America's resolution to allow gay leaders here.

In a Washington Post opinion piece about social mobility in the United States, columnist Fareed Zakaria says “cities with strong families, civic support groups and a community-service orientation do well on social and economic mobility.” He notes that this is “why Salt Lake City — dominated by Mormons — has mobility levels that compare with” countries in northern Europe that “do better at moving poor people up the ladder than the United States does." Salt Lake City may not be “dominated” by Mormons, but the Latter-day Saints there consider it a religious duty to help their neighbors.Zakaria calls this fabric of community relationships “social capital,” and it’s one of the values that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints lives by. What’s more, this same “social capital” is greatly boosted by religion. Several commentaries on MormonNewsroom.org explain how Mormon faith and practice help create strong families and robust communities. But it’s not only Mormons. All people of faith nurture social capital in their efforts to make the world a better place.

Robert D. Hales serves as an apostle in the Quorum of the Twelve for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But did you know that he also used to play baseball and fly fighter jets? In this biography of Robert D. Hales, read about his promptings from the spirit, faithfulness in serving callings, and the lessons he has learned in his life.

In his address to faith leaders gathered for a summit on marriage at the Vatican, President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said “a man and a woman, united in marriage, have a transcendent power to create happiness for themselves, for their family, and for the people around them.” (Full transcript of the address)

[Archbishop Bernardito] Auza spoke of the various persecutions both Catholics and Latter-day Saints have experienced throughout history and even noted that had there been no persecution of the saints he could be speaking from Palmyra, New York; or Kirtland, Ohio; or Far West, Missouri; or Nauvoo, Illinois. All places of persecution for the Mormons.

The Jurgys are an LDS husband and wife who chronicle their adventures together on Instagram. From pictures of the temple to exotic trips and hot air balloon rides, the couple shares their faith and love of family through social media.

World Wide Wed, a series that explores the customs of weddings around the world, featured an LDS couple, Melissa and Sergio, as they prepared to marry in the temple. The video focuses on the couple navigating difficult decisions, like how to include family members who are not part of the LDS faith, as well as their beliefs in everything relating to the temple—from garments to sealings to eternal marriage. As World Wide Wed says on Facebook, "witness what it takes to build a family that lasts beyond death."