Mormon Life - Government tag

With or without Romney, D.C. a surprising Mormon stronghold

Mon, 14 May 2012 11:06:00 -0600

source: cnn.com

Mormon Life says: This article is making its way around all the national media outlets--have you read it? A few hundred Mormons filed into a chapel just outside the Washington Beltway one recent Sunday to hear a somewhat unusual presentation: an Obama administration official recounting his conversion to Mormonism.

“I have never in my life had a more powerful experience than that spiritual moment when the spirit of Christ testified to me that the Book of Mormon is true,” Larry Echo Hawk told the audience, which stretched back through the spacious sanctuary and into a gymnasium in the rear.

Echo Hawk’s tear-stained testimonial stands out for a couple of reasons: The White House normally doesn’t dispatch senior staff to bare their souls, and Mormons hew heavily Republican. It’s not every day a top Democrat speaks from a pulpit owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Norlan G. and Sheron R. Walker: Service in the Nuclear Age

Tue, 01 May 2012 14:59:00 -0600

source: keepapitchinin.org

Mormon Life says: What an interesting mission call to help victims called "Downwinders" do family history. Between 1951 and 1962, the Nevada Test Site northwest of Las Vegas was the location of exactly 100 above-ground nuclear blasts and hundreds more below-ground tests. The atmospheric tests were the fun ones, of course, you could sit in your hotel room in Las Vegas and marvel at the mushroom clouds some 65 miles away. If you were in the military, you might have an even closer view. These were awesome glimpses of unimaginable power – but not to worry, you were safe: Tests were conducted only when the desert breezes blew away from Las Vegas and the heavily populated Southern California regions beyond. To show you exactly how safe it all was, the federal government even drove carloads of ranchers out to see the Test Site after some blasts (giving the dust a couple of hours to settle safely first, of course).

Religion’s Vital Place in Society: Part 5 in a Series on Religious Freedom

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 10:30:00 -0600

source: Newsroom.lds.org

This is part 5 in a series of articles on religious freedom. For the series introduction, see “Religious Freedom Series, Part 1: An Introduction to Religious Freedom.” See also part 2, part 3, part 4 and part 6.

Religion is vital to democracy

“[We] have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion.” — John Adams

Religious instruction and belief remain today the lifeblood of society’s moral ethos. Not only does religion teach virtue, it catalyzes moral action. As such, religion plays an essential societal role warranting special consideration.

New Mormon leader Echo Hawk fostered new era in tribal, U.S. relations

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 10:22:00 -0600

source: deseretnews.com

Distrust of the federal government ran high in Indian Country when Larry Echo Hawk arrived in Washington, D.C., three years ago.

Disputes over tribal homelands, sovereignty and water have plagued the relationship for decades. There also was a 13-year lawsuit over billions of dollars in royalties for oil, gas, grazing and other leases the government had failed to pay individual tribal members.

The surprising faith of 8 American presidents

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:52:00 -0700

source: huffingtonpost.com

Presidential religious lives are, for the most part, rather unremarkable--just like the majority of Americans they represent. As the 2012 presidential race, and especially the Republican nomination, dominate the news, the religion of the sometimes-frontrunner Mitt Romney continues to be an issue for many Republican voters. Americans have a hard time imagining a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a Mormon, as President. Yet Mormonism is, perhaps, the most American of all religions, founded by an American citizen and based on a sacred text that tells the story of God's work in the Americas. As many question Romney's religious heritage, it would be enlightening to look at eight presidents whose religious lives have troubled and fascinated Americans, or whose faiths may surprise us even today.

NPR: What the IRS could learn from Mormons

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:38:00 -0700

source: npr.org

Mormon Life says: I find it interesting what different people consider "income." This is a good read. Many religious traditions stress the importance of charity. But Mormons are remarkable for the amount and the precision with which they give to their church.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that each Mormon in good standing should tithe 10 percent of his or her income. The money goes right to church headquarters in Salt Lake City and then is distributed back to congregations around the world.

An introduction to religious freedom

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:26:00 -0700

source: Newsroom.lds.org

Mormon Life says: This article is an introduction for an upcoming series of articles on religious freedom. For many people in the world, there are few things more precious than freedom. Freedom — the power to live as one would choose — is one of the great sources of human dignity. Exercising freedom correctly is also one of the great responsibilities that humans hold. We continue to grapple with how to define our freedoms, how to understand them, and how they should be both cultivated and tempered. At the heart of these questions, we find one of the most fundamental of all freedoms: freedom of religion.