According to The Family: A Proclamation to the World, “Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan.” And yet, hundreds of thousands of Latter-day Saints now find themselves in a predicament few of them imagined: never married or divorced after what they expected would be an eternal marriage.

"Sometimes the world can seem like a really dark place," the LDS group TREN posted on Facebook. "And though we don't deny the bad, we also believe there is goodness and beauty to be found in this world if we look for it. This is the message behind our latest song 'Find Fantastic' inspired by Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."

You may have seen the adorable video that recently went viral of young cancer patient and Utah Jazz player-for- a-day, 5-year-old JP Gibson. Now, hear from his sweet mother, Megan, about the heartache and struggles of being a cancer Mom along with heavenly blessings found, lessons learned and talents and gifts revealed.

The First Presidency has called the following new temple presidents and matrons. They will begin their service later this year.

Many parents avoid addressing the topic of sexual relations and sexuality with their children. Some parents incorrectly assume that talking about sex will encourage their children to act out sexually or that their children are too young to have questions. Many did not talk openly about these topics with their own parents and feel uncomfortable talking about them in their families. They may also feel ill-qualified to teach about something they are currently struggling with. Whatever your hesitations or fears, it is vital that you discuss sexual intimacy with your children on an ongoing basis.

Has darkness ever overwhelmed you? Have you seen cities sink and communities set ablaze? Has a voice saved you? If you know the Book of Mormon, then you are familiar with the tale I tell. After hundreds of pages chronicling the ebbs and flows of civilizations, the narrative reaches a climax. In Palestine, Jesus Christ was crucified and buried. The world felt the reverberations. “Thick darkness” fell upon the land. Nothing could bring light, “neither candles, neither torches; neither could there be fire kindled with their fine and exceeding dry wood, so that there could not be any light at all.” The sounds of howling and weeping pieced the darkness. Sadness reigned. It is difficult to overstate the drama and the beauty of the Book of Mormon’s rendering of these days. As one who watched silvery strands cloud the corneas of my infant son and darken his vision onto blindness, as one who takes the Christ story seriously in the depth of my soul, and as one who more and more considers the place of the sun and the moon, the land and the sea, in our religious imaginations, this scripture leaves me in tears. It also leaves me spinning about why the Book of Mormon is vital for American religious historians. It is not simply an artifact. It is also a treasure trove of ideas. To me, it should be required reading for anyone in my guild, and here are a few reasons.

One of the most prominent and difficult issues in philosophy of religion addresses the dilemma that arises when one asserts the existence of an all-powerful God who is also perfectly loving, while also asserting the presence of genuine evil in the world. As David Hume puts the case: “Either God would remove evil out of this world, and cannot; or He can, and will not; or, He has not the power nor will; or, lastly He has both the power and will. If He has the will, and not the power, this shows weakness, which is contrary to the nature of God. If He has the power, and not the will it is malignity, and this is no less contrary to His nature. If He is neither able nor willing, He is both impotent and malignant, and consequently cannot be God. If he is both willing and able (which alone is consonant to the nature of God), whence comes evil, or why does he not prevent it?” There have been many attempts through the centuries to address this dilemma, ranging from denial of the logical problem that seems apparent when trying to hold to all three assertions, to giving reasons for God allowing evil for some larger goods: because love requires free will, which opens the door to the possibility of us choosing evil, or because the presence of evil creates ideal conditions for “soul making,” our proving ourselves through how we respond to it.

Though the Romney and Trump political battle continues, one surprisingly positive thing did surface from this tussle: that Donald Trump loves Mormons and admires their work ethic, industry, and generosity.

Visiting Teaching Message:

Latter-day Saint convert Karak Denyok Miakol was far too young to understand the religious and tribal complexities of a civil war that brought death and fear to her Sudanese homeland.