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Curtis C. Newman, a volunteer for the Utah Hospitals Task Force, is writing a series of first-person stories on what he sees in Haiti.   Wednesday, Feb. 3: Tender mercies PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Marlin Cheri was standing near a cinder block wall of her home when a wall fell over during the earthquake. She was able to cover most of her head and escape most of the debris. Unfortunately, a piece of cinder block damaged her forehead and left eye. Her face was lacerated deeply, including her eyelid and eye. She came to today to Community Hospital of Port-au-Prince to...

<p>To many they are nothing more than lovely decorations that blend into meticulous architecture.</p> <p>To others they are visual reminders of the gospel that communicate and reveal various layers of truths, ideas and doctrines.</p> <p>Like the parables taught by the Savior in the New Testament, temple symbols keep the unprepared from things they shouldn't have, but it opens up layers of wonderful meaning for those who are ready for a lot more, Brinkerhoff said.</p>

In the wake of the earthquake in Haiti that left millions of lives shattered, the world saw, and continues to see, an outpouring of love, compassion and service on a magnificent scale. -SNIP-While other relief agencies and governments marshaled their many responses, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints mobilized humanitarian resources immediately once word reached its Salt Lake City headquarters.-SNIP-The partnerships bringing relief to Haiti are diverse. Some are religious, and some are not. In the past two weeks my Church has worked with the United Nations, CARE, Food for the Poor, International Relief and Development, the American...

Hugh Nibley was, without question, the foremost apologist for Mormonism during the second half of the 20th century. B.H. Roberts was almost certainly the greatest Mormon apologist of the first half. ome might ask why professor Nibley felt any need to "apologize" for Mormonism. But, if they do, they misunderstand the word. Latter-day Saints don't use the term apologetics very often, so they can be excused for thinking it a trifle strange. But our Protestant and Catholic fellow-Christians use it a great deal; it has a long and honorable history, and it's solidly useful. As the unabridged Webster's dictionary puts...

DON'T REMINISCE "It is not a travelogue."-- President Spencer W. Kimball DON'T GIVE A SPEECH "A testimony is not an exhortation; a testimony is not a sermon, none of you are there to exhort the rest." "The moment you begin preaching to others, your testimony ended."-- President Spencer W. Kimball DON'T BORROW OR RELY ON THE TESTIMONY OF OTHERS -- FOR LONG "You will not be able to stand on borrowed light when you face hardship and temptation." -- President Harold B. Lee "I do not want men to come to me or my brethren for testimony as to...

During my Christmas break, I attended my home singles’ ward, hoping to get reacquainted with old friends. When our bishop stood up and announced that four more sisters and friends of mine had received their mission calls, I exclaimed, “Eek gads! Four more friends to write!” (Okay, maybe I didn’t say “eek gads” exactly, but it was something to that effect). I am overjoyed for these sisters, for I know they will be a force to be reckoned with in their service. But it made me think of how our society has changed over the years. More sisters are serving...

Gathering Joe Jessop’s brood together for a group photo is a challenge for even the most patient of snappers. After all, there are five wives, 46 children and – at the last count – 239 grandkids to squeeze into the frame. That’s because the 88-year-old is the bed-hopping patriarch of one of the world’s most extraordinary families. Joe and his clan live in Short Creek, Utah, a 6,000-strong community of members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a polygamous offshoot of the Mormon Church. Joe says: “My family came to Short Creek for the same reason...

REXBURG -- A top LDS religious leader gave a rare unscripted fireside to Brigham Young University-Idaho students Saturday. Elder M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, focused much of his remarks on how the LDS Church is viewed by nonmembers and the media. He taught students about conveying the message of the LDS faith. Ballard spoke candidly about experiences with the national news media, specifically touching on his experiences during former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's presidential campaign. Romney is LDS. The apostle talked about the challenge...

Late Friday afternoon, ABC 4 confirmed that at least 50 children were on a flight headed to Miami, where they will be processed into the country by TSA officials. -SNIP- The text posted at 8:48 a.m. Friday morning to the Utah Hospital Task Force blog said, "We have negotiated the release of 125 orphans bound for SLC and are on ramp in Haiti. Steve Studdert and Executive team along with full support from US Military and US Customs and ICE Agents made it happen. It is truly a miracle."-SNIP- ABC 4 News has learned Stephen Studdert, the task force leader,...

KAYSVILLE -- A first novel for K.C. Grant, 39, has landed this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints author success in just a few weeks since its release. "Abish: Daughter of God" (Covenant, $16.95) already has scored a ranking in the top six for books sold at Deseret Book and Grant said a few Deseret Book stores already have sold out of her novel. "It's fun to have a first novel so well received," said the Kaysville homemaker. "It gives me an inspiration to keep on writing." Grant enjoyed a successful book signing last weekend in Centerville and has...

» In July 1974, the NAACP filed a suit against the Boy Scouts of America on the grounds that in LDS troops ... the deacons quorum president was automatically the patrol leader, meaning that an African-American Scout could not gain patrol leader experience. When the church realized the inappropriateness of such restriction ... it dropped the policy and the court dismissed the suit. President [Spencer] Kimball had been subpoenaed to appear for deposition and bring "all church records and writings concerning the policy and position of the church regarding blacks." He felt greatly relieved at avoiding that burden and the...

SALT LAKE CITY --SNIP Harper, an assistant professor of church history at BYU and a volume editor of the Joseph Smith Papers, spoke at the University of Utah on Jan. 28 on "Memory and the First Vision."... "I think we've been quite narrow-minded in the ways we have thought about Joseph's accounts. And I mean that both by believers and non-believers, by those who accept the accounts as divine narratives and those who are critical of them as nonsense," Harper said. SNIP Memories are subjective and personal. One person's memory of a Jazz basketball game will be very different from...

"And they did fall down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him." (3 Nephi 11:17) The Old Testament word usually translated as "worship" has a sense of to depress, as in to prostrate, especially in homage to royalty or God; to bow down; to stoop; to fall down flat. The New Testament word is essentially the same, with the added sense of reverence and adoration. In English, the word "worship" means to honor or adore as divine or sacred, especially with rituals or ceremonies; to offer prayers to God; to regard with extreme respect, devotion or love; to...

Joseph Smith was a terrible writer. While that statement might sound foreign to members, considering his testimony and revelations have been spread around the world in more than 160 languages, it should come as no surprise when you realize the Prophet had no more than a third-grade education. "We can't underestimate the significance of all these scribes," said Alex Baugh, professor of church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University. "Their contributions are incalculable." Why did the Prophet call the men he did to transcribe his largely oral revelations? The answer to that question depends on whom you ask. SNIP...

  The Book of Mormon vs MormonismBy Richard Packham           Most people - Mormons and non-Mormons alike - assume that the Mormon religion is based on its holy book, the Book of Mormon and that by reading that book one can learn what Mormonism is all about.   Mormon missionaries usually try to get prospective converts ("investigators") to read it as soon as possible, implying that by doing so the investigator will get an accurate idea of Mormonism.           Although the publication of the Book of Mormon in 1830 was the impetus...

To say he simply is a rising Democratic star might be a perversion of astronomy. Ben McAdams is an internationally seasoned securities lawyer with Wall Street cred. He has orchestrated the advance team's global itinerary for two U.S. presidents as well as for Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. He moonlights as a university professor but maneuvers daily as Salt Lake City's most effective - maybe ever - legislative lobbyist. And the former University of Utah student body president has just taken his oath as a state senator... As such, the devout Mormon -- with his unapologetic progressive politics --...

There are many wondrous components of the gospel for Mormons to focus their study on rather than the unsubstantiated details and rumors of the church's history, said Elder Bruce C. Hafen of the First Quorum of the Seventy...............   -SNIP- Elder Hafen related his remarks specifically to anti-Mormon literature found on the Internet, and stated that too many people of faith let initial curiosity give way to feelings of dismay and betrayal when they come across unfamiliar arguments against the church. -SNIP-   Elder Hafen said there is much discussion out there regarding the methods through which Joseph Smith...

When the Mormon pioneers headed West under duress in 1847, they had reason to feel bitter at their treatment by the world's foremost liberal democracy. For years, Americans had chased, robbed, beaten and killed them. Joseph Smith, seeking redress for his people, earlier had gone to Washington, D.C. The towering statesmen of the day who received him acted like, well, Washington politicians. According to Smith, the legendary Henry Clay said, "You had better go to Oregon." The revered John C. Calhoun counseled, "It is a nice question, a critical question, but it will not do to agitate it." And the...

KITCHENER, Ontario -- Every Christian church shares the objective of helping people to find faith in Jesus Christ. At this interdenominational "fireside" hosted by the Kitchener Ontario Stake, local clergy from the Mormon, Catholic, Lutheran and Mennonite faiths come together to share how the teachings and practices of their respective traditions help to fulfill that mandate. Helping to show how Christians of divergent traditions share the common ground of faith in Jesus Christ, Kitchener Ontario Stake President James A. McBride, the Rev. Lloyd Oakey of Calvary Mennonite Church in Ayr, Ontario, Father Wayne Lobsinger of Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church...

Earthquake relief efforts are crossing all boundaries and fostering all sorts of unique cooperation. Such was the case Wednesday afternoon at the Petionville Ward LDS chapel, where hundreds of Haitians have taken up nearly every available square foot of space on the grounds. -SNIP- Following the two into the church's gated grounds was a half-dozen members of the U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne in two Humvees and a supply truck.   -SNIP- Soldiers also offered to load a half-dozen of the most seriously injured individuals into the church's SUV. The Army then provided an armed escort, complete with the two Humvees...