Addiction is a very common metaphor for sin (or maybe addiction is just one type of sin).  What I want to do in this post is describe what is actually going on with addiction a little more clearly in a way that will help us with our own and others’ struggles with sin.  I am going to use terms from the psychiatric-medical complex but I’m using them from the perspective of my own experience and observation of sin; I’m not bothering to make them medically or psychiatrically accurate.

This photo of a tree growing out of a ruin is going to tie in at the end.

Let’s begin:  we believers have a folk  understanding of “addiction” as any behavior you have an unhealthy inner compulsion toward, so we call lots of sin addiction.

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Brother McConkie did a deep dive into the story of the man sick with the palsy. The story is not a parable but this talk felt similar to Elder Bednar’s.

Let’s talk about the story. But first, let’s give one answer to the question Brother McConkie starts off with.

How do you show God you love him?

Answer: you spend time with him. Most of all in prayer when you pray in such a way that we can call “talking to God.” Sometimes you just need to talk to God. I love it myself when my kids come to me and say, Dad, I just want to talk to you, I don’t care what about.

And now for the story.

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Owen Broadcast give the longest possible variation of the correct answer to the question, “Are Mormons Christians,” which is

Yes, but . . .

its been a minute since we had a thread about a nice semi-electric topic. therefore, it is time for another

?? american theology thread:

ARE MORMONS CHRISTIAN

[and why. an actual poking into this that isnt just fishing for likes and in group pat on the backs] pic.twitter.com/IJnoMdvm5D

— owen cyclops (@owenbroadcast) January 24, 2023

We had just one of the guys at Elders Quorum teach the lesson.  It must be his time, he gave a talk in December.  I don’t know exactly what he does for a living but he’s a driven business type, and when he gets up to talk he’s feeling stiff and formal, kinda driven.

One of the other guys raises his hand before he can even say anything.  He’s startled but calls on him.

The brother is grinning as he talks.  “Hey, I was just wondering how your presentation went.  Did the big bosses stare out the window like you thought?”

The context here is that in his talk last month, this guy told us about how he had to give this big presentation he was working night and day on, but in the past the big bosses at the national level this presentation was for usually just fiddled on their phones instead of paying attention.

The teacher’s eyes lit up.  “No!” he says.  “They were alert to it!”  There’s some laughter, some more conversation around the room, a  couple of jokes.  2-3 minutes later, the teacher takes us back to the lesson.  But now as he starts talking about it he’s relaxed, and the presence of the Spirit is instantly palpable.

Why does a little chewing the fat invite the Spirit like that?

This is another dream post, so skip it if you aren’t in the mood. Also, my Puritan conscience impels me to tell you that this dream does not have social value, great wisdom, or an improving message. (more…)

Poor C.S. Lewis, he had to write the Screwtape Letters by himself, before ChatGPT was around.

The machine has the perfect tone of unctuous smarm for Screwtape, Jack Lewis could have fired off a few queries and then zipped over the pub.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/america-it-s-time-to-pay-the-demographic-piper

in 2024, the Historical Reversal of America’s age structure is expected to occur, i.e., when persons aged 65 and older outnumber children under the age of 15. That demographic milestone represents a significant and far-reaching transformation of the U.S. population. It will usher in a new demographic era unlike much of the country’s youthful past when approximately one out of three Americans were children under 15.

Ladies,  I’m going to share some cute decorating tips for protecting your egg from marauders.

A young man went climbing the mountain to speak to the guru at the mountain top.  On his way up, he met a wiry man in a robe climbing down.

“Did the guru give you wisdom?” the young man asked.

“I am the guru,” the other man said.

“Then why . . .?”

The guru nodded.  “Because I saw another mountain peak over there higher than this one that I’m going to ascend.  Because a voice said to me, ‘you are not the guru at the mountain top.  You are the guru climbing the mountain.’  And because I don’t know if any mountain top can be high enough.”

The guru took his leave and continued on down, but when he  looked back the young man was following him.

“Why are you following me?” Then the guru grinned and the young man grinned.  They both knew why.  They  continued on their way. (more…)

This is the true church.  I believe that through revelation and experience.

At the same time, well, look at all those other guys.  They aren’t LDS, they probably aren’t gonna be anytime soon, and sometimes they do some things that seem pretty cool.

I am of the opinion that we cannot heal the breaches in religion in this world and we really do need to find effective ways to live—if not together then apart. The old idea that not everyone converts during the Millennium means something interesting is going on that belies our expectations

-un amigo.

I’ve been gnawing at that for awhile, and it led me in the same direction. (more…)

Congressman Renault is shocked, shocked to find quid pro quo lobbying going on in this fine legislative establishment.

Kids want to feel like grown ups (which is different from being grown ups).  However, this is by no means only children.  Everyone wants to ape those higher up the food chain than themselves.  For children, that just happens to mean grown ups.

Think of how names work, for example.  Anyone who studies name changes over time realizes it works like this.  Rich people get some sort of fashion in names.  A few years later, middle class people start using that name and the rich people stop.  A few years later, working class people start using that name and the middle class people stop. (more…)

Someone in Sunday School made the interesting observation that Joseph was of royal descent according to Matthew’s genealogy but was a carpenter in humble circumstances, and in this way was a type and shadow of Christ.

We all know that Christ was born in humble circumstances.  In a stable in a manger in a small town in a backwater province.  You and I have both had tender feelings when we think about the King being wrapped in common cloth by his young  mother there in what was effectively a barn, or according to some scholars a campground or an RV park.

However, Jesus being born in what we perceive as humble circumstances is just God’s way of making the point obvious enough that we can get it.  Because no matter where Jesus as born, be it an undersea palace dripping with pearls, it would have been humble circumstances.  He was the Lord of the universe, stars blazed at his command.  Any circumstance would have been a humble circumstance.

When Nephi says, behold the condescension of God, he doesn’t mean, ‘because he chose to be born in Palestine instead of a nice hospital in an American suburb.”

When this photo was shared with me yesterday, I was struck by the expressions an the three faces. The young mother on the left, XX, is preparing for the upcoming blessing by the elders of the church of her firstborn, YY. The little girl standing next to XX and her daughter is XX’s cousin, ZZ. For ZZ, this day sharing in XX’s motherhood joy will be worth more than a half dozen Sunday lessons on motherhood. But ZZ is too young for this day to stay a specific memory. It will form the background of things she has always known. This day will have to be built upon with future experiences like this one. And since truths must be taught by precept and by example, a couple dozen Sunday lessons on motherhood will be a valuable way to explicitly bring the meaning of her experiences to the fore, felt and also thought about intelligently.

Considering what an opinionated bunch we are around here, full of gloom about “the current situation,” we don’t really touch politics much, so I hope this comment of mine doesn’t ruin things. (more…)