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LDS Miscellany through a Berkeley Lens
Episodes
Friday Apr 05, 2019
Friday Apr 05, 2019
The 2019 Association for Mormon Letters conference was excellent. Our hosts use some of the panels as a means to discuss Mormon literature in general, focusing on the work of Carol Lynn Pearson, and on the new church history book, Saints.
Authors mentioned: Brandon Sanderson, Orson Scott Card, and DJ Butler. Favorite books by them:
Mistborn: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mistborn
Ender’s Game: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ender%27s_Game
Witchy Eye: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30753675-witchy-eye
Carol Lynn Pearson: books mentioned: Beginnings, the Ghost of Eternal Polygamy, and Goodbye, I love you. The poem, A Motherless House:
http://www.amotherhere.com/coll/pearson1.php
The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy will be discussed on a future episode:
https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Eternal-Polygamy-Haunting-Hearts/dp/0997458208
The Saint’s panel was comprised of authors Scott Hales, James Goldberg, Melissa Leilani Larson, and Angela Hallstrom. Some of their work:
The Garden of Enid: http://thegardenofenid.tumblr.com/
The Five Books of Jesus: https://www.amazon.com/Five-Books-Jesus-James-Goldberg/dp/1479271306
Jane and Emma: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8581198
Bound on Earth: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2793921-bound-on-earth
Saturday Mar 16, 2019
Saturday Mar 16, 2019
Heavenly Mother is one of the most interesting Latter-Day Saint doctrines! We don't know a lot, but what we do know is awesome. Enjoy!
Oh My Father
https://www.lds.org/music/library/hymns/o-my-father
LDS topics, Mother in Heaven
https://www.lds.org/topics/mother-in-heaven
"A Mother There": A Survey of Historical Teachings about Mother in Heaven, by Author David L. Paulsen, Author Martin Pulido
https://byustudies.byu.edu/content/mother-there-survey-historical-teachings-about-mother-heaven
How to worship our Mother in Heaven (without getting excommunicated) by Kevin L. Barney
https://www.dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V41N04_133.pdf
AML conference program
Poems!
Walk in the pink moccasins by Carol Lynn Pearson
https://www.sunstonemagazine.com/pdf/137-21-25.pdf
Motherless House by Carol Lynn Pearson
http://www.amotherhere.com/coll/pearson1.php#sthash.CcHmwUg0.dpbs
A hymn for mother’s day in long meter, by Theric Jepson
http://amotherhere.com/coll/jepson.php#sthash.492OBnkp.Cnftw0gn.dpbs
Saturday Mar 02, 2019
Saturday Mar 02, 2019
Do we have free will? Is your neighbor a philosophical zombie? Are we living in a simulation? Our hosts hit scriptures, sci fi, and neurobiology to discuss agency and determinism in religion and science.
References
https://www.lds.org/manual/gospel-principles/chapter-4-freedom-to-choose
Arcadia from Tom Stoppard (mentioned in passing) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcadia_(play)
JST as an anti-determinist text. Compare https://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/ex/10 and http://classic.scriptures.lds.org/en/jst/contents
The Hard Problem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hard_Problem
Wiki article on the hard problem of consciousness https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_problem_of_consciousness
Joseph Campbell on consciousness https://amzn.to/2XuL9jW
Infinite monkey cage podcast. Two episodes:
Are We Living in a Simulation? https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08zb4d8
The Mind v the Brain https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0901bw2
Theric’s story http://bit.ly/thafterlife
Good Time (words: Vasilis Pozios | Pictures: Zakk Saam) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tylerchintanner/all-we-ever-wanted-stories-of-a-better-world
Pascal’s wager https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascal%27s_Wager
What's expected of us, by Ted Chiang: https://www.nature.com/articles/436150a
"Art is that over which beings with perfect knowledge can still have divergent viewpoints." ----D. Michael Martindale https://thmazing.blogspot.com/2011/08/found-quotes.html
Saturday Feb 02, 2019
Saturday Feb 02, 2019
Secret or sacred? Taboo or simply uncomfortable? Important or trivial? With the temple ceremony changes in the news lately, our hosts discuss why Mormons don’t go into the ceremony specifics, what kinds of venues are appropriate for difficult subjects, and when it’s appropriate to espouse the virtue of silence. Also, awesome 80’s comics apparently helped change the church?
First Presidency Statement on Temples
https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/temple-worship
Temple firesides in prep for the open house, including topics on Eve, the creation, and the temple experience.
Tweetstorm from @MattathiasW regarding silence and the temple ceremony
https://twitter.com/MattathiasW/status/1081576820057681920
Eric’s tweet requesting examples of some things Latter-day Saints shy away from speaking of
https://twitter.com/thmazing/status/1085779539668566016
Laugh precedes the miracle:: How Calvin Grondahl and Pat Bagley Changed Mormonism, by Lynne Gorton Cropper. The specific comic referred to in the episode is reproduced in this article.
The virtue of silence, by Scott Alexander. In the episode we cite this article but go in a different direction. It’s worth checking out the original topic.
https://slatestarcodex.com/2013/06/14/the-virtue-of-silence/
Monday Jan 21, 2019
Monday Jan 21, 2019
Our hosts look at how money moves through the church and some of the fascinating history behind its finances.
Church’s statement on its finances from 2018:
https://www.lds.org/church/news/read-a-summary-of-the-financial-information-released-by-the-church
Wiki article:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finances_of_The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints
LDS Inc article from By Common Consent:
https://bycommonconsent.com/2016/06/02/lds-inc/
Mentioned by Eric but not really on topic ;) A House Full of Females: Plural Marriage and Women's Rights in Early Mormonism, 1835-1870, by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
https://books.google.com/books/about/?id=0fmxDQAAQBAJ
Money as debt website:
Playlist with the full documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdMxiaZGboJSgU2raUksCFGSUfWS8eHR8
Sunday Jan 13, 2019
Sunday Jan 13, 2019
Aaron and Eric introduce the podcast! Our hosts discuss critical thinking and its application to LDS miscellany and they describe their Berkeley influences. Also a magic card comes up, but it feels natural.
Magic card!
http://www.magicspoiler.com/mtg-spoiler/skewer-the-critics
Wikipedia on critical thinking
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_thinking
Eric’s reviews of the two books mentioned, Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover and The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance by Elna Baker
https://thmazing.blogspot.com/2018/09/what-weird-expression-this-is.html#081
https://motleyvision.org/2009/10/14/elna-baker-slash-damage-control
Friday Dec 14, 2018
Friday Dec 14, 2018
In which Aaron and Eric grapple with theodicy, aka the problem of evil given a benevolent God, as presented by Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. After going over some feedback from our pilot episode, we tackle theodicy and how it relates to DNA replication, Euclidean geometry and evolution.
SMBC comic on which the episode is based, by Zach Weinersmith:
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2011-06-30
Theodicy! By wikipedia!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodicy
Geometry! "It is not possible to prove every statement... nevertheless, we should prove as many statements as possible."
https://themathpage.com/aBookI/first.htm
Evolving Faith - Wanderings of a Mormon Biologist, by Steven L. Peck
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27137644-evolving-faith---wanderings-of-a-mormon-biologist
Monday Nov 19, 2018
Monday Nov 19, 2018
In which Aaron talks with Eric about Joseph Smith's seer stone.
References:
Seer stone and additional photos from 2015 Ensign article
Brant A Gardner, FairMormon conference, 2009
Religion of a different color by W. Paul Reeve
Pictures:
