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  1. Forum speaker urges religious conversations

    Photo by Andrew VanWagenen. Harvard law professor Noah Feldman, right, prepares to speak at a BYU forum.

    Noah Feldman, professor of law at Harvard Law School, encouraged students in Tuesday’s forum, “Few are Chosen: Comparative Religion and the Public Sphere,” to engage in open conversations about comparative religion in the political realm.

    Feldman drew parallels between various Massachusetts presidential candidates whose elections were heavily influenced by religion. He also discussed how Americans have responded to political candidates’ religious beliefs and how they can better respond in the future.

    “[We] need a broad and diverse community of other believers,” Feldman said, “to speak openly, to speak freely, to speak regularly, to speak unabashedly and to speak in an engaged way with others in the public sphere about religion, about comparative religion and about the ideas thereof.”

    He first cited the re-election campaign of John Adams, a Congregationalist, against Thomas Jefferson in 1800.

  2. Video: Students react to Tuesday's Forum

  3. Professors defend Church's stance on Salt Lake City ordinance

    With the LDS church’s recent endorsement of a gay rights ordinance in Salt Lake City, many have begun speculating that the church is on its way to changing its policy on same-sex marriage. Not so, say BYU professors of religion and political science. 

    Last week, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints publicly endorsed a city ordinance that bans housing and employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The BYU professors interviewed said that although the church supports tolerance and equality, it does not approve of homosexuality.

    Kent Jackson, associate dean of Religious Education, said the church is not contradicting its previously-stated positions and that it has always been in favor of equality. 

  4. Former seminary principal pleads not guilty to sex charges

    By AMANDA VERZELLO

    The former LDS seminary principal accused of sexual conduct with a 16-year-old girl plead not guilty to 15 felony charges on Tuesday.

    Michael Pratt, 37-year-old former principal of Lone Peak High School’s seminary program, faces 14 first-degree felony charges and one second-degree felony charge, including forcible sodomy, object rape, rape and forcible sex abuse.

    Prosecutors say Pratt violated a “special position of trust” by carrying out the alleged relationship.

    The alleged victim, now 17, gave her testimony in a preliminary hearing last month. She said her relationship with Pratt included multiple sexual encounters in various locations in Utah Valley, including nearby canyons and the seminary building’s roof.

    Police say they have discovered hundreds of text messages between Pratt and the girl, several of which were sexually explicit.

  5. Religious institute accepting paper proposals for conference

    The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship issued a call for paper proposals to be considered for presentation at the 2010 Biennial Restoration Scripture Conference, to be held at BYU during fall semester 2010.

    Proposals must be received or postmarked on or before Dec. 31 to be eligible for consideration.

    Papers presented at this conference, titled “Symbolism in Scriptures,” will contribute to a better understanding of the scriptures by focusing on different types and forms of symbolism.

    Paper proposals should be no longer than one page and should include a brief description of the thesis of the paper.

    Proposals can be mailed to the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religion Scholarship or e-mailed to paul_hoskisson@byu.edu.

  6. Utah volunteers make a difference during crisis

    Photos courtesy of Vicki and Leonard Watts. Volunteers serve the people of American Samoa.

    The water destroyed one village, completely washing it out. A nearby village was just fine, safe in the height of the hills. It was luck and the extra 15 feet of altitude that made the difference.

    This was the case for many people in American Samoa recently. One day their lives and homes were completely intact; the next day, everything was completely washed away.

    A month ago, a call for help went out when an earthquake and tsunami devastated Samoa and American Samoa. Eleven disaster volunteers from the American Red Cross in Utah were part of the many who answered the call to assist more than 2,000 locals affected.

  7. Religions encouraged to discuss benefits of organ donation

    By AMANDA VERZELLO

    Jayne Simonds’ first thought after waking up from surgery with a new heart was, “I can breathe.”

    “I could feel the heart beating,” Simonds said. “It was so strange to hear the heart go ‘thump, thump, thump.’”

    In 2002, Jayne Simonds would still bike 16 miles a day, despite suffering a heart attack six years earlier. Gradually, her energy level diminished and she had to give up biking all together, but she never gave up walking.

    “I’m a real active, energetic-type person, so I kept exercising,” Simonds said. “My cardiologist told me, ‘It doesn’t matter how slow you go, don’t give up walking.’”

  8. Devotional: Adversity the key to success

    Photo by Stephanie Rhodes. Elder M. Russell Ballard, Elder Jon M. Huntsman Sr., and President Cecil O. Samuelson speak Tuesday.

    Elder Jon M. Huntsman Sr., founder and chairman of the Huntsman Corporation and Area Seventy, said in the Tuesday devotional that adversity can help shape people of integrity.

    Elder Huntsman opened his message by giving students a reason to continue.

    “God did not put us on this earth to fail,” Elder Huntsman said. “It is totally up to you what you become. The footprint we will leave in this life is based entirely on our motivation.”

    Through trials and hardships it is easy to get discourage, but, adversity is the means for growth.

    “We must face adversity head on and conquer any obstacles in our path,” Elder Huntsman said. “Contrary to public opinion, there is much to learn from the lessons of our times. Adversity determines our character.”

    Elder Huntsman emphasized the importance of integrity. 

  9. Church supports Salt Lake City’s anti-discrimination ordinance

    By ERIKA POTTER

    SALT LAKE CITY — A spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints read a statement supporting the anti-discrimination employment and housing laws in Tuesday’s Salt Lake City Council meeting.

    The laws prevent discrimination against gays and lesbians in housing and employment matters.

    “The church supports this ordinance because it is fair and reasonable and does not do violence to the institution of marriage,” said Michael Otterson, church director of public affairs. “The issue before you tonight is the right of people to have a roof over their heads and the right to work without being discriminated against.”

  10. Dear John...'waiting' for a missionary

    Photo illustration by Jamison Metzger.

    Every missionary can tell which letter in the mailbox is special. Maybe the stationary smells suspiciously like perfume or there might be lipstick kisses inside. But it isn’t these extra touches that make the letter special; it’s the signature at the end, and the girl it belongs to, that makes the missionary’s heart skip a beat.

    At BYU, it isn’t hard to find someone who has personal experience waiting for a missionary. The various opinions among church members on “waiting” are as diverse as mission locations.

    “Waiting means there’s an implication that the relationship could take a serious turn when the missionary gets home,” reported WaitingForaMissionary.com, a Web site created by a former missionary girlfriend. “Some consider themselves waiting if they only casually date. Others would not even date casually.”

  11. Church history inspires course excursion

    Photo courtesy of Bergen Knutzen. Richard E. Bennett’s church history class took a group photo at the Hill Cumorah.

    Students can get a first-hand look at the past through an honors church history class.
    Honors 341 gives students the unique opportunity to visit sites from the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as part of the class curriculum. From Oct. 23 through 28, this year’s class visited key places in the history of the church. 

    “This is the third time we’ve done this trip,” said Richard E. Bennett, professor of church history and doctrine who guided the students. “The purpose is to provide an onsite learning experience in the principles of the gospel through visiting church history sites.”

    This year the class visited Palmyra, the Sacred Grove, the Hill Cumorah, the Grandin printing shop, Fayette, Kirtland, the John Johnson home, Nauvoo and Carthage jail.

  12. Video: Students share thoughts on Tuesday's Devotional

  13. Devotional focuses on standing for truth

    Photo by Stephanie Rhodes. Elder Walter F. Gonzalez of the Presidency of the Seventy speaks at devotional on Tuesday.

    Students were encouraged to be brave in defending truth and righteousness in a devotional given by Elder Walter F. Gonzalez on Tuesday.

    Gonzalez is a member of the Presidency of the Seventy and presides over Church affairs in the southern states.

    He said students will face important decisions in their lives that require courage.

    “You are at a point where you are making decisions that require you to be brave and bold,” he said. “Your decisions are being recorded in your book of beginnings, in your stories without end.”

    He said gaining a good education can help in making such decisions.

  14. President Uchtdorf: Realize your worth

    Photo by Andrew Van Wagenen. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf speaks at the Sunday evening CES Fireside.

    President Dieter F. Uchtdorf spoke about the importance of recognizing self-worth, in a CES Fireside Sunday in the Marriott Center.

    The second counselor in The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began his address by relating Hans Christian Anderson’s story of the ugly duckling. In the tale, a young duckling that is born different than the rest doubts his value until discovering his true identity as a swan.

    President Uchtdorf encouraged all to come to an understanding of their true identity as children of God.

    “A knowledge of who you are can help you overcome some of life’s greatest challenges,” he said.

    He listed three common problems that many face and he discussed how the knowledge of divine potential can help people overcome in each situation.

  15. Viewpoint: Commemoration of Martin Luther on Oct. 31

    While most Americans spend the evening of Oct. 31 dressed in imaginative costumes knocking on their neighbors’ doors begging for treats, most Christians — and LDS members should as well — celebrate a world-shaking event that took place on this evening in 1517 in the small German university town of Wittenberg. Knowing that on the morning of Nov. 1, the sacred All Saints Day, dignitaries, professors, students and town folk would enter the Castle Church to celebrate mass, the Catholic priest and Augustinian monk, Martin Luther, pinned 95 theses on the entrance to the church. It was customary in those days to formulate grievances as thesis statements and publish them in a well-attended spot, challenging interested parties to a public debate about the issues.