A very little bit on doubt a svithe

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There are gobbles to say on the importance of doubt to a religious person; tonight, however, just a sampling.

I have long believed--and it is certainly a Mormon doctrine--that truth is out there, we are intended to look for it, and we can know it when we find it. This is the process of faith. If you'll allow me to define the terms, faith is two things:

1. Trusting that truth can be found.

2. Accepting truth when found.

This definition presumes that somethings are true and somethings are not. Thus it also presumes that as we have faith that we can find truth, we must also assume that we will find things which are not truth.

We call this assumption doubt. And it is important. Not just because it is faith's opposite, but because they travel the same road together--they are fellow guides to bring us to the truth.

“Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother.”
----- Kahlil Gibran

Of course, what this means is that the truth-seeker must be willing to be proved wrong. As time goes on and the fine-tuning of faith occurs, the changes required of one's belief may become smaller, but giving up those small falsities may be all the more difficult.

“Being religious means asking passionately the question of the meaning of our existence and being willing to receive answers, even if the answers hurt.”
----- Paul Tillich

But that's the way it works. Doubt and faith are complements, not competitors.

“Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of faith.”
----- Paul Tillich

I don't think that all roads lead to Heaven, but I do believe that all earnest seekers find roads that lead to the road that leads to Heaven. I do think that the play of faith and doubt runs a different course for every soul. I do believe that we are obliged to support one another and trust one another's faith/doubt processes. I do think in appropriate relationships we are constrained to share our own discoveries. I do believe that without a Godlike omniscience, faith and doubt remain elements of every person's inner life. And I think it's healthy to recognize that a proceed recognizing that they work together for our benefit.

As Hugh B. Brown was wont to quote:

“No one deserves to believe unless he has served an apprenticeship of doubt.”
----- Will Durant

Let us all serve honorably.


last week's svithe

6th 5 o'2008

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030) Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett, finished April 13

I love Terry Pratchett and the eighteen months or so I've gone without reading a Terry Pratchett novel is probably the longest Pratchett drought I've had since reading my first book of his the summer of 2002. The impetus to read this one was twofold: Lady Steed was removing most of the Pratchett books from the front room and this one's title was an obvious reference to Macbeth which I was about to start reading (see below). (Also, it's one of only three that we own that I hadn't yet read.)

In fact, the two books even share the same opening line of dialogue. Using Google Books, I've copied these first lines from each book (though not from the editions I read) for your comparative pleasure (haha):




Not quite the same.

If you don't know Pratchett, you don't know the whirlwind it is to read him. He's not just a master joke teller, but he's one of the plain best writers I know. Wyrd Sisters is one of the earlier Discworld novels and the only two earlier ones I've read I consider among his weakest works. By Wyrd however, he's fully arrived. This book gives him the opportunity to spit out references to everything from Charlie Chaplin to Samuel Beckett and nothing is safe.

(The Oxford Times calls him "Simply the best humorous writer of the twentieth century" which is certainly arguable -- the main competition being Douglas Adams and P.G. Wodehouse.)

The book seems to be based on Macbeth and the play-within-a-play tries to be based on Macbeth, but in the end, I think both are closer to Hamlet.

Anyway, you should read a Discworld novel. Depending on the person, my recommendation for first read is usually either Thief of Time, The Truth or Monstrous Regiment, but I don't think you'ld go wrong with Wyrd Sisters. Ours is about to go in a box, but if you want to take it around the block, we'll pull it back out for you.

a week

029) Animal Farm by George Orwell, finished April 8

I know. Again. And I don't even really like this book -- I certainly don't like reading it. By the end of the month I will have read it three more times. But I'm not going to count those. Twice in four months is plenty counting enough.

about ten days

028) Macbeth by William Shakespeare, finished April 7

I don't know the last time I read Shakespeare just because I wanted to read Shakespeare and for no other reason--possibly even ten years. I find this remarkable. Certainly not what me at 18 would have expected. Poor me at 18--always getting disappointed by me at later ages.

Anyway, I don't think I've read Macbeth since high school. I read way more Shakespeare in college than the average high school student--likely even more than the average English major--yet somehow I haven't touched Macbeth in like...14 years? A long time anyway.

And I totally fell for Malcolm's I-am-a-bad-guy speech. I didn't even get what it was about--I had to consult the notes then go back and reread it. (At which point it was obvious and I felt stupid. This feeling must be why I haven't read for fun any tragedies I'm not already familiar with. Titus Andronicus for example. Or Coriolanus.)

Anyway, I don't like Macbeth all that much. I just don't think it has as much to say as, say, Hamlet. Or Romeo and Juliet. It's sort of a one-note opera.

(Although I still think the current Broadway version with Patrick Stewart would be an awesome way to spend an evening.

Now: not being Hamlet does not make a thing bad.

Else all the world would be bad.

let's say ten hours

027) On the Road to Heaven by Coke Newell, finished April 4

I need to preface remarks by saying I liked this book very much and I recommend it to anyone. I need to say that because it might seem like many of my comments are denigratory, but remember: I liked this book. I laughed. I cried. The former literally. The latter darn near. A few more tear molecules and I would have spilled over.

My biggest problem with the book is a problem I got over (eventually) (mostly) and that is it's style. The book is widely rumored to read like Kerouac, but, never having read Kerouac, I can't say. There's not doubt the book was highly influenced by the man -- the title even plays on one of his titles -- and is a phrase lifted straight from another Jack book. Plus: lots of Kerouac epigrams. So the Kerouac thing I'm guessing is a yes.

And it's not very . . . literary. I finally figured out what it was when I hit the final page: the style is conversational. Only, not conversational in the sense Coke and I are chatting. No, it's more like he's a master storyteller and we're in matching recliners and he's spinning his old-man yarns of long ago. And you want him to go on and on and never stop until he says "But that's another story altogether" and you have to admit he's right and then you stand and stretch and clap him on the back and thank him for having you over and assure him you can see yourself out, no problem, thanks again.

And that's okay.

Anyway, if you haven't been paying attention or have had your attention riveted to things like the Democratic Primaries or the Wall Street Journal, you probably don't know, but On the Road to Heaven swept the Mormon awards this year, novel of the year from both the AML and the Whitneys (here's a nice breakdown on the difference and whether on not this fact even matters). I don't know if it deserved it as I haven't read much of the competition, but I would like to make a plea to Mormon bookstores to carry this book. Yes, it has breasts and pot and stuff, but anyone who thinks this book is not beautiful and holy and totally 13th is out of their mind. Or, more likely, can't read.

So, would you like a plot summary? Here you go.

This book, which, although masquerading as fiction is almost 100% Coke's real story, takes our young Colorado hippie from long hair and pot and mountaintop vigils and Kerouac and Black Elk and Thoreau and even Ram Dass to the Book of Mormon of all things and, woh, a mission to Columbia complete with tapeworms and earthquakes.

See? Plot summaries are lame.

But the book's not.

about a week and a half

026) The Great American Citizenship Quiz: Can You Pass Your Own Country's Citizenship Test? by Solomon M. Skolnick, finished March 23

This book uses questions off the test given to those becoming naturalized citizens of the United States as a launch into bite-sized portions of history and political theory. A fun book with occasional unknown nuggets. I for instance did not know the British occupied New York City for two years after the surrender at Yorktown. How did that work? I don't know.

I also found a typo on page 98. Do I get a prize?

(Also worth noting, even though I only skimmed the appendices: The Constitution is such a beautiful document in its brevity and perfection. Really gets me right here, like a four-inch needle of patriotism straight to the heart.)

an hour and a half maybe

Previously:

025) Long After Dark by Todd Robert Petersen, finished March 23
024) The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, finished March 21
023) Robot Dreams by Sara Varon, finished March 10
022) The Complete Peanuts 1963-1964 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 9
021) Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, finished March 7
020) Unorthodox Practices by Marissa Piesman, finished March 5
019) Happy Hour at Casa Dracula by Marta Acosta, finished March 4
018) A War of Gifts: An Ender Story by Orson Scott Card, finished Leap Day
017) Watership Down by Richard Adams, finished February 26
016) Old Boy Volume One by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi, finished February 25
015) Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, finished February 18
014) Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection, Vol. 1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, finished February 15
013) Trusting Jesus by Jeffrey R. Holland, finished February 11
012) Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall by Bill Willingham et al., finished February 11
011) Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach, finished February 4
010) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, finished February 3
009) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished LDotFMotNY
008) Zombification: Stories from National Public Radio by Andrei Codrescu, finished January 22
007) Marriage Lines: Notes of a Student Husband by Ogden Nash, finished January 22
006) Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, finished January 20
005) The Salmon of Doubt:: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time by Douglas Adams, finished January 14
004) Lord of the Flies by William Golding, finished January 10
003) Rising Sun by Michael Crichton, finished January 7
002) The Marketing of Sister B by Linda Hoffman Kimball, finished January 2
001) Animal Farm by George Orwell, finished January 1



The First Five ( 001 / 005 )
The Second Five ( 005 / 010 )
The Third Five ( 011 / 015 )
The Fourth Five ( 016 / 020 )
The Fifth Five ( 021 / 025 )

“More than a ‘Subspecies of American Literature’: Obstacles toward a Transnational Mormon Novel”

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Although there's not much in Scott Hales new essay (published in The Journal of Transnational American Studies) that's not also to be found in his dissertation, it's a lot shorter than his dissertation and much easier to find. And I appreciate its simpler focus---in this case on the need for the Mormon novel to move beyond the perception of being purely American. He again talks about On the Road to Heaven, Salvador, Redemption Road, and Elders---each of which have their pluses and minuses, but which average out by the criteria presented here as, respectively, -, +, -, +.

I recommend the essay to you if you're jonesing for some good MoLit criticism. Here's a lengthy excerpt from the conclusion to get your whistle wet:

The challenge of the transnational Mormon novel seems to be how to avoid constructing utopian spaces that function simply as another form of colonialist expression that promotes what it understands to be “change” and “social betterment” transnationally while remaining sadly unaware of its own cultural assumptions and prejudices.

How is such avoidance possible, though, when most Mormon novels are being written by white American authors whose transnational ties are decidedly limited? David A. Shuler’s thoughts on historical colonialism, international development efforts, and Mormon expansion into developing nations offer some possibilities with application to transnational Mormon novels. As Shuler notes, “implement[ing] change in a cross-cultural relationship is challenging and can even be dangerous,” particularly when “the environment and context within which we initiate change . . . is different from our own and is unfamiliar, or worse, unknown. . . . the best way for Mormons—or any people—to promote change in the lives of others is to “recognize and respect agency” and be “aware of [personal] motives, predispositions, and areas of ignorance.” As Shuler observes, “We must be aware of our impositions, meaning how our cultural values may differ from others we try to help, and how forceful we are, or can be, in influencing their ideas and actions and ultimately their lives. We should question our methods and our assumptions, including any change [to] orthodoxies that have not been humbly and thoughtfully challenged” (281–82). In their efforts to imagine transnational Mormonism and promote global betterment, therefore, Mormon novels must reflect constantly on their cultural work and the kind(s) of transnational Mormonism they construct and promote through utopian spaces. Furthermore, they must be mindful of the ways they depict and appeal to non-Western Mormons, whose “cultural values” and “Mormon” identities may be radically different from the values and identities of American Mormons. They must be aware also that giving voice to the Other—including the Mormon Other—is always a problematic endeavor. Utopian spaces, after all, are experimental constructs where ideas for social betterment are culturally determined and often ephemeral. What might function as a utopian space for one people might be dystopian for others.

To be sure, it is altogether likely that the next one hundred years of Mormon literature will better reflect the recent international growth of the LDS Church,particularly the experiences of those who have grown up in the Mormon faith in international settings and transnational situations and better understand the needs of their various regions and cultures. . . .

Accordingly, the Mormon novel will likely remain little more than a “subspecies of American literature” if it long resists or overlooks seeking after these “shared kernels of humanity” and continues to present transnational landscapes as America’s foil, a place where American missionaries go to be tried and tested before they return home with honor.

Of course, this just makes me more anxious for Scott's analysis of City of Brick and Shadow.

But it also makes me think about my short story "The Great Mormon Novel of the 21st Century" and wonder whether it's a step towards the transnational novel Scott's imagining or mired in the Americentricity we hope someday to grow out of. As the author, my opinion of the story is irrelevant. What matters is what the story actually does for readers.

So! To encourage that conversation, for the next month (until April 7), you can download "The Great Mormon Novel of the 21st Century" from Smashwords for free with the following coupon: TH84W.

I don't mind if you hate it. That's okay. (Of course, you're welcome to like it as well. That's perfectly fine.)

So while I may be sad to be a boring white male American Mormon writer. Where are all the Mormon writers who are different on at least three of those other four points? Why are they so hard to find?

In the meantime, I suppose you're thtuck with what you've got. . . .

Svithetacular 196.5

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I decided to take more serious notes this goround as I'll be giving a talk about these talks in a couple weeks. But why post them online? What is with this exercise in solipsism? Well, honestly, I post them mostly for the benefit of my own memory and so I'll know where to find them in the future.

But, with homes of making it slightly more worth-opening for others, I'm following the Center's poetic suggestion and thus will start with a found poem (of sorts):

Why did the temple workers cross the road?
the lord as sculptor, us as clay
we remake the covenant every week
we keep the covenant every day by serving
without divine comfort we risk losing hope
love is being interested in others' lives
being there with arms outstretched
when we see each other through christ's eyes, good things happen
all day long, just me and the cows, alone with my thoughts
the miracle of the propane!
missionaries meet people at wells every day
to do work for the other side

As always, these notes are not really for anyone else. Do not cite them under the assumption of accuracy. They may cause headaches or bloating. Discuss with your doctor prior to consumption.

I did notice some trends. A big push on the value of sacrament meeting, but President Uchtdorf's observation that it's the only ordinance where we are not called by name felt particularly significance to me. Recognition of sad missionaries. A lot about faith and community. Only one (brief) reference to the new schedule and the answer proposed to a question about the schedule answered a completely different question. So it goes.




*** SATURDAY MORNING ***

____Gerrit Gong

Why did the temple workers cross the road?
To do work for the other side.
(must be hard to translate)

doing temple work for embittered family members brought forgiveness

manifesting temple sacrifice in new ways
 more often
 more family names
 serving as a worker


____Tamara Runia

dead-son, undetected cardia myopathy
all things will be for our own good
experience is valuable and the only way to get it is through

sometimes we're puzzled when we get what we need (rather than what we want)

sometimes were gonna get pelted

i know he loves his children but not the meaning of all things

ergo, hard times are part of love
become like him to live with him
carved from the things that make life hard

not understanding not the same as not believing

don't look sideways

suffering gives purpose to the path

the lego analogy (follow the instructions even if you lose the box)

a divine mending that changed what's happening TO you to something that's happening FOR you

the lord as sculptor, us as clay

he waits for an invitation before he goes to work


____Gerald Causse

the apostolic witness remains central and compelling

to know jesus christ is one of the greatest blessings

what does the lord expect me to do with this giftr
a testimony is not a gift o be hidden
but shared

spread I KNOWs as much as I LOVEs

testimony leads to becoming an instrument in his hands


____Vaiangina Sikahema

16hr journey by boat turned into two and a half days on first leg of trip to see Matthew Cowley
their son died; they buried him and moved on; like pioneers on the plains, yearning to be with an apostle
sail on

a famine of hearing the word of god (for noem)

that god speaks to prophets and apostles is the unflinching declaration of our church

the trip was worth it

once some leaders didn't want to publish the revelations

grateful for a legacy of faith and courage in the face of obstacles


____Kevin J Hathaway

tires came loose from a semi and hit two cars on their way, having left everything to serve the lord

a scriptural pattern of divine deliverance:

opposition comes to all and brings questions

such questions are not sin or weakness but can create a sacred space in which to seek jesus

king darius is an interesting choice....

how could this happen when i was one week away from hugging my dad
the past few weeks have been the most awful and the most sacred of my life
they help her endure what she cannot alone

thus needed growth and stretching occurs
and jesus consecrates our pain

he is not derelict in his deliverance
has not forgotten you
does not take joy in your suffering
but knows this is necessary and good

Kearon said jesus specializes in the impossible
and he's really good at it
he's perfect at it


____Ulysses Suarez

fasting and prayer

fasting makes us more humble, more aware of our dependence on god

better prepared to receive revelation

jesus's example shows that fasting and prayer may not remove burdens but instead bring heaven near

generous fast offerings turn our hearts to others


[what an interesting flower arrangement]


____Sean Douglas

bad choice of glasses; under this lighting he looks like a crosseyed supervillain who believes he means well (kinda like kirk douglas in guardians two, only crosseyed)

lord's excitations are high for missionaries but oh so worth it

baptized at 24, went inactive, filled out his papers, returned to church at 25, felt to serve a mission, decided to go, lord removed obstacles, became a wonderful/converted missionary, every trial consecrated for his gain

the day he got married he was also called as a bishop

what would your life be without a mission?

invitation to converts to serve

don't be distracted by alternatives of far less worth

come join the ranks! we need you!

bless a world suffering without knowledge

life up and rejoice for the hour of your mission is come
thrust in your sickle with all your soul etc etc

the people will receive you


____D Todd Christofferson

gambling! a plague on mankind since about the beginning

the percentage of adults now gambling is high

this is a good thing for a conference talk
we're in real trouble right now

solid joke on betting on the second coming

gambling crowds out things of value replacing them with greed

girls starting to catch up to boys re mobile gambling

people know the house always wins...they just think they're exceptions

constant online access can change gambling into a constant behavior

McKay Coppins!
we're betting that this time OUR civilization can beat the house

even if you can just do it once in a while for fun without real harm---what about your example to others?

a little gambling with a minor impact in your life may cause much greater harm to someone else

(really, reading McKay's article would be good for a YM activity)

paul's note on why not to eat the food for idols even though it doesn't harm you

as there is a risk to any soul, and as all are precious, just don't do it

besides: gambling is morally wrong, fullstop

any game comes at someone else's expence
how to reconcile with LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF?

gambling produces nothing of value, only enriches its purveyors

what does gambling do to gamblers?
it leads us from giving to taking
the act of taking (or trying to) without providing value in return is destructive to the spiritual

a key part of a life well lived is contributing to others, doing better without others doing worse

gambling, even for fun, leads away

opportunity cost

don't just refrain from gambling but use those resources for good

blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness

o be wise, what can i say more?


*** SATURDAY AFTERNOON ***

____Dale G Renlund

oh, that's a sweet tie

oatmeal/heartpatient story

comp: children of Israel in the wilderness

"i'm not extraordinary enough to warrant an exception"
the blessings are for all of us


____Timothy L Farnes

(elder mayhem)

oaks: brother. tell me how you are really doing

"it's what we do, isn't it?"

we remake the covenant every week
we keep the covenant every day by serving

moving story of anxious missionary waiting for a plane


____Christian C Chigbundu

"immunity"

SPIRITUAL immunity

what's his pin...?

small and simple things
great things brought to pass

- study the scriptures

lotta crying missionaries this session

- prayer

- sacrament

- ...something about the covenant path? the temple?

must be temple

these things are the armor of god


____Patricio M Giuffra

tithes and offerings

[necessary break, alas]


____Jeremiah J Morgan

community of christ, I assume?

i knew it was important to my mother

no time and effort spent reading the book of Mormon is wasted

i knew it and i knew that god knew it and i could not deny it
at 14 no less

his ancestors' temple covenants drew him back

dho: covenants do not take a day off
even though kids and grandkids retain agency
the influence of god maintains

pk: god uses every possible measure to draw us back

this'll be a message of hope for many

we are all the beneficiaries of countless covenants

god's covenants spread over all time and space

even over you


____Hutch U Fale

children of god

our families as models of that family

NT and BoM and OT all start with a focus on a family

there is nothing you can do to unearn a parent's love

[teartracks down his face!]

keeping covts only way to understand his love

this makes us immune to the misleading labels of the world (on us or on others)

also a lie: "too late"

father's message has always been there's still time to accept christ

hooray for Gideon bibles


____Patrick Kearon

i hope that Uchtdorf anecdote is true

(so fascinating which words this texteditor is choosing to cap)

you cant see rising air but you can see what it does
but, more important, you can feel it

we must avoid sink
and find lift
we can learn to feel these

nice use of pause, asking us when we felt spiritual lift and what it felt like
less pause for considering past sink

if you're not actively climbing, you're descending, perhaps so gradually you do not notice

we want lift yet may miss the quiet creep of neglect

the language of the spirit of god is not a language of words


____Michael A Dunn

ultramarathon anecdote

he quietly lightened my load
he took on my heaviest burden

the redeemer rescues not by shortening the course but by helping us lengthen our strides

christ deputizes the teds of the world to lift our burdens

feeling broken does not mean god has abandoned by you

we often can't see the lord's hand till much later

don't confuse the invisibleness of the lord's hand with anything wrong with his heart


____Matthew J Eyring

lots of dead kids / young adults today

mourning with those who mourn
comforting those who stand in need of comfort

the mortal journey designed to try our faith

without divine comfort we risk losing hope
which may make us stop trying
(the world short of other sources)

he has prepared our rescue from permanent tragedy

living with the hg should be among our highest priorities


____Ronald A Rasband

everyone must choose for themselves to follow jesus christ

cajoling alone will win no one

be not afraid nor dismayed; the battle is not yours but god

be at peace---we cannot change others' hearts; but god can and he knows them even better than we

he has the power and authority to heal all his children

love is being interested in others' lives
being there with arms outstretched
lifting in faith and hope
relies on calmness of hg

be a peacemaker

love is expressed in prayer

jesus already gave his life for those we love in order to bring them home, all the way home

what brought back the prodigal son?
love
he knew where to find it

never give up on those you love
remember the example of alma praying for his son

never let a problem to be solved be more important than a person to be loved (tsmonson)

jc is the answer---always has been---always will be

pray, mightily

build on the rock then trust him


*** SUNDAY MO3RNING ***

[just realized we're halfway through conference with not one comment on 25minute life]


____Henry B Eyring

life is sposeda be hard

challenges are varied as us

"...and in the hard days ahead"

"even your simple attention was a comfort"
evidence to them that the lord loves them

(another callout to missionaries having a hard time; in need of encouragement)

the lord will help you find ways to comfort those who are pleading for it


____Rosemary K Chibota

"i see you" as a greeting

jesus as an example of seeing those left unseen

your daughter sees me

christ's grace can life you above any label

before we were anything else, we were spirit children of heavenly parents

every person has divine worth
when we see each other through christ's eyes, good things happen

this week, learn the name of someone who deserves to be seen


____Neil L Andersen

lil bio of sister rosemary

it has always taken spiritual courage to be a disciple of jc

all day long, just me and the cows, alone with my thoughts
we need stillness to nourish our faith in christ

courage


____James O Fantone

MY profound thought is should he be signing his daughter's name

lot of recognition that missions are hard this conference

the work does not change; the workers do


____Edward Dube

no antitrespassing signs!
trespassers will be welcomed with christ's love!

come: it's an action; we choose to move

deny: surrender, let go

perfect: come as we are with a willing heart and get a new one

we do not perfect ourselves to come to christ; we come to christ to be perfected

[he has such great energy]


____Quentin L Cook

whate'er thou art, act well thy part

integrity

happiness as virtue

let virtue garnish your thoughts unceasingly

that we might have joy

all these things connected

not just bad manners; affects others

the ultimate reward of integrity and virtue is the companionship of the hg


____Alfred Kyungu

a spiritual exercise: identity what we need to forego and replace it with better

not the first talk about language usage

in the beginning was the word...

peace


____Ciro Schmeil

sacrament essential to have the strength to continue on the covt path

everyone will have a time of hesitance to go partake of the sacrament
but when you go anyway it'll keep you firm and solid

keeping sabbath activities right leads to good stuff

build our week around the sacrament, is his gist


____Dallin H Oaks

salvation was and is and is to come through jc

that's our invitation to all

we need one another's prayers

we are all in different places on the covt path

we need to be patient with each other and ourselves

we need to resolve conflicts between differing epistemologies
this requires faith
hold on to the first article of faith while other stuff un-understood
hold faith in the lord's timing

a major concern of your prophet leaders are those with diminishing faith in jesus christ
we love you
so does the lord god
he is relentless in his loving pursuit of each of you
ergo i urge you to keep the commandments and true to your covts
never let secular learning limit spiritual horizons

two methods of gaining knowledge
evolving knowledge of man through scientific method etc
truth discovered through spiritual method starting with faith
no ultimate conflict between them, however it looks now

increase our humility

Kimball said humility is teachableness, an ability to realize that not all virtues are concentrated in oneself
forgiving others because the same flaws may well be in us

protect yourself through weekly sacrament and consistent efforts to live by covts and attending temple for the endowed

bofm witness god reaches out to all

i invite all to believe

act on these truths

share them with others

invitation made in his name


*** SUNDAY AFTERNOON ***

____Dieter F Uchtdorf

spiritual growth like an exponential curve, starting small then whoosh

we desire to be part of a people who bear one another's burdens
when we join the church, we declare we want to follow jc and to do it together

granfalloons

not a granfalloon: we are all children of god

consider the story of lamanites and nephites when the all embraced jesus

when out attention is riveted on christ, superficial things are hardly worth noticing

NOW is the time to unify
it won't just magically happen in the next life
we need to take steps now
no matter how small

the sacrament is a chance to start over re unity

have you noticed it's the only ordinance where we are not called by name?

renewing covenants with god surrounded by others choosing the same


____Andrea Munoz Spannaus

god knows your exact location and can guide you to your destination

jesus beholding him loved him

choose one for the next few weeks:
take the sac humbly
repent daily
study scriptures to learn god's character
study what it means to have ministering angels
protect your sleep
limit cell use; exchange for real present connection
seek friends striving to follow the lord

god is at your side

study a of f 13 and create your own list of aspirations


____Moises Villanueva

hg helps to recognize blessings

the miracle of the propane!


____David A Bednar

to worthily receive them is the quest of a lifetime
to keep them is the challenge of mortality
---packer on covts

damaged passport

holding a valid passport created the opportunity but did not guarantee entry

of course, like all analogies, it only goes so far
consider: atonement

entry stamp like hg

the sealing ordinance has two parts:
lateral sealing of man and woman
vertical sealing of god to them through generations
both elements vital

the promise is clear even if the lord's means remain unrevealed

no faithful disciple will be denied any blessing bc of another person

consider on the blessed and happy state of those who keep the comms of god


____Thabo Lebethoa

contention, boo

feelings of inadequacy, fear, doubt, loss, uncertainty...
the answer is always jc

he restores hope where there was hopelessness

-increase faith
means trust jc understands our issues

strong faith doesn't grow overnight as my doubt
faith requires intentional effort

-study scriptures daily esp bofm

no single right way to study scriptures (share with seminary kids)

consistency of study style less important than consistency of effort

-practice repentance daily

(very similar to sis spannaus's talk)

today can be a new day
tomorrow will be a better day
for all who come until jc


____Paul H Sinclair

accidental straight jacket

i mean, girls vs boys, right?

you never know who will learn from your example

a true disciple of jc is quick to help and slow to judge

woman at the well to whom jesus was quick to offer grace

any day is ordinary till jesus shows up

he did not hold her hostage to her history; he trusted her with truth

arrive as a pariah, leave with a purpose

missionaries meet people at wells every day

when we help ppl rather than judge them we're preparing the world for the second coming


____Gary E Stevenson

one for the kids

"so sweet and juicy"

amazing photo

tree-of-life fruit

another recurring theme: our primary identity? children of god

that kid's even carrying a fruit!

the great plan of happiness

js IS the strength of youth

another great fruit---the gift of the holy ghost


____Gabriel W Reid

educators and an nfl player

lord do you have the right guy

well, love

the impact of a gospel lesson isn't just the lesson, it's the love of the messenger

Jesus's love didn't end when the lesson did (see 3n)

christ-centered love is rooted in relationships

first mention of new schedule!

that feels like a pretty misread answer to the proposed question....


____Clark G Gilbert

the oaks five:

-avoid overly contentious settings

oo, grand inquisitor ref

in the words of the gambler, know when to walk away

is it worth winning the debate only to lose the spirit or a friend?

-first find common ground

patience and listening

eating the fruit is a happy thing

being a light opens more doors than winning an argument

the first two comms symbiotic


____Dallin H Oaks

salt lake temple celebration

first time open to the public since 1843

previous svithetaculars on thubstack

196.0

previous svithetaculars on thutopia

176.0 • 176.5 • 177.0 • 177.5 • 178.0 • 178.5 •179.0 • 179.5 • 181.5 • 182.0 • 183.5 • 196.0

 

previous svithe on thutopia and thubstack

 

 

Maybe movies, maybe films

.

May is always a good month. It's the month AP English Literature and Composition turns into AP Writing about Film (if CollegeBoard doesn't like this, then they can tell my school to end classes after AP testing). So I'm guaranteed a few good things packed into whatever's getting watched anyway. You can probably guess which are which.

Plus, we went to theaters to watch to underperformers that were actually really great and which each make strong argument for a stunt-team Oscar. Rumor has it that's finally happening. If this is the year, expect them both to get nominated.

And now: On with the show.

.

HOME
Prime Video

Hunting the Northern Godard (2013)

Small town ennui, Quebec style. The film tries to play with visual lanugage in an interesting way but it mostly comes off as revealing the lowness of the budget. The lead is beautiful and the mom is an incredible actor. Otherwise, meh.

Wildly, I recognized the pub band. I thougth I was wrong because in the movie they were Les Tragédiens, but I was right. It was Les Breastfeeders.

Please deliver my hipster cred directly to the door.

HOME
Internet Archive

The Arizona Express (1924)

I found this via Bluesky recommendation and boy oh boy was she right. This movie's incredible! It made me laugh and gasp and I could never guess where it was headed next. It's one of the most edge-of-my-seat thrillfests I've seen recently. Plus it amnages to be classic typical 1920s boilerplate at parts and really cool shots and amazing action sequences later. The murder scene was very cool and [SPOILER REDACTED] and [SPOILER REDACTED] and [SPOILER REDACTED] were topnotch film- and stuntwork.

My main complaint from a hundred years later is that all the women look the same. They have 1920s brunette bobs with dramatic eye makeup and teenytiny cupidbow lips. It wasn't until the good girl dressed like the bad girl (turning her into Some Like It Hot Tony Curtis) that I was able to pick up on the differences of class and morality that the clothing was supposed to be projecting.

I was riveted, people. Riveted.

THEATER
Rialto Elmwood

Hundreds of Beavers (2022)

I just heard of this movie. Its slow crawl through theaterspace happens to have it in town these past two weekends. Some of the kids really wanted to see it but "not tonight" which is fine because it was only convenient at the Elmwood which is an old theater diced into four tiny theaters with too-thin walls. Also, it's more expensive. We don't go there very often. But it seems like once a year they're the only place with the movie y'wanna see.

Anyway, the movie is wild and fun and surprising. It doesn't draw on silent comedy alone, but also video games (from Frogger to Lemmings) (and beyond), Orson Welles, you name it. It gets existential. It gets horror. It goes all over the place. It's been called "a hilarious slapstick comedy in the vein [of] Looney Tunes and Adult Swim cartoon[s]," and that seems about right.

Don't know how you'd manage it, but if you can get a full theater to see it in (ours had six people), I think you'll laugh your head off. We merely laughed a lot.

THEATER
Hilltop Cinemark

The Fall Guy (2024)

Look: I'm not here to argue this movie is great or important or whatever. But it was pure fun, a great ride, a joy factory. And that counts for a lot. We need escapism that's quality and this movie delivers. I loved it.

And it may actually prove important for one reason. It makes the argument, and well, that stunt teams deserve Oscars. Everyone seems to feel that Oscar may finally be about to happen. I don't see how The Fall Guy can do anything but accelerate that.

(Also, Metalstorm looks terrible.)

(Also, I want that neon suit.)

HOME
library dvd

The Nice Guys (2016)

It keeps getting brought up and since we watched Ryan Gosling doing action and being funny in The Fall Guys it seemed time to finally finally watch it.

And it was fun stuff. With lots of sex, violence, and alcohol, to boot. If you're into those sorts of things.

The dramatic irony of the villain's motivation fell a bit flat for me, but otherwise the film felt very true to me. And the party was straight out of the era. (One of the scarier badguys may have even been modeled after the fellow from that older movie.)

ELSEWHERE × 2
our dvd

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

I love this movie. And it holds up so well.

How do I know?

Because teenagers love this movie as well.

QED, baby.

ELSEWHERE × 2
our dvd

Frankenstein (1931)

I love it.

It has precious little to do with the book.

This viewing, however, I had some breakthroughs in my own long-gestating adaptation (not that the world needs another). I'm already about halfway through a treatment.

ELSEWHERE
Prime Video

Love & Friendship (2016)

Not sure I loved it as much as before but perhaps that's simply because high-school students tend not to laugh when they think something's funny.

💀

ELSEWHERE
Prime Video

Paterson (2016)

Split this into two days. After day one I wasn't so sure about it. By the film's conclusion however I'd come around. The scene with the Japanese tourist was wonderful.

I think the best poem was the girl's. I'm not sure if that was intentional.

But the slow rotation of daily life. And the important question of how art fits in. And how art's importance is realized. These things are addressed with a measured lovely calm.

HOME
library dvd

Simon of the Desert (1965)

First, I didn't expect Luis Buñuel to be so coherent. While I won't deny the term surreal, it moved from point to point from beginning to end. I was startled by how it ended—or perhaps by when it ended—bit otherwise it made sense.

And for a guy who made atheism such a key part of his identity, for all its satrical tinge it seems to be saying things worth saying and from a place of, even if bemused, understanding.

HOME
library dvd

Bonnie and Clyde (1967)

It's possible to know all the reasons why a movie changed the game and still not quite understand it. I take it this violence was worse than what had gone before and I guess I can see the counterculture vibes and undercurrent of optimistic nihilism and certainly the look is cool. But it's hard to believe it was as huge and important as it was, even if I see echos in movies near and far.

So I went back and read Roger Ebert's review. He was a young guy then and he was one of the few contemporary critics who predicted Bonnie and Clyde's position in movie history. And reading his analysis, I'm convinced.

It is a good movie. Maybe a great movie.

And it's saying something we still need to hear.

HOME
Paramount+

Days of Heaven (1978)

I came in with so many misconceptions. I thought this was the Wild West. And I also thought it was Badlands. And that Richard Gere wasn't in it. None of that is true.

Although it continued on past where I thought it would end (twice, overall this has a pretty straightforward plot. But it pauses to take in the beauty of the landscape both at large and in microcosm. And the images are so powerful that it feels like it's a fully s*y*m*b*o*l*i*c as a less plotty film like The Tree of Life.

I really wanted people to be a tad more clever. A tad better at lying. Or at being honest. Or at thinking ahead. Or recognizing what moment they're in.

But I suppose real life isn't like that.

And then the locusts come.

Anyway. I loved it. So when I say it felt as long as Tree of Life, I mean that in the best way possible.

HOME
Paramount+

Tropic Thunder (2008)

I remember reading a review in one of the altweekly's that were still nice and thick when this movie came out. It was the first of years and years of praise. It's generally considered one of the best comedies of the new century. Smart and hilarious.

Now, Ben Stiller can be a skilled director but this movie really suffered from me having watched Every Frame's Edgar Wright video earlier today. Now, Tropic Thunder isn't as bad as the examples cited in that vid but it doesn't really use the medium for comedy that much. And the second half largely turns into an '80s action film. Oh. Which reminds me of another Every Frame. Why can't a movie be both funny and action-packed? I bet Ben would do a better job today.

Anyway, I lauched a few times in the first ten minutes and once in the last ten minutes. But . . . it's not that funny a movie. I guess it scratched an itch or something in 2008 but I don't think generations that missed it in theaters will be that impressed.

A lot of ink has been spilled about Robert Downey, Jr. in blackface and Ben Still in "full retard" (mostly favorable) but I think favorable because the film comments on both of these and uses them to make fun of actors. But I've only ever heard positive takes on Tom Cruise's comic turn. But he is in full animalistic Semite costume and that's just who is character is in this movie. How have I never heard about this? I thought he was just bald but it's much, much more than this. Elizabethan nose and red-wig updated for the 2000s.

But the main thing is I didn't think it was funny. Sixteen years people have been talking up this movie. Cannot meet the hype.

ELSEWHERE
our dvd

Spirited Away (2001)

Did you know the Disney dvd has two separate English-language subtitle tracks?

ELSEWHERE
our dvd

The Iron Giant (1999)

Tear report: fewer this year. None actually left my eyes.

ELSEWHERE
Tubi

Freaks (1932)

Honestly, I don't think it's that great a movie. But I do appreciate the humanity it gives the freaks themselves, even if, perhaps, that's not the "right" answer. The siamese twins and the armless woman are simply presented as beautiful women, albeit with a twist. Frieda is the very picture of dignity throughout.

It's possible that audiences have matured enough that now we can identify with people once intended only to be looked at, but I have to believe that's what Browning had in mind all along. He was a circus guy. Not every normie hates the freaks. I think he knew what he was doing. It doesn't reflect well on the contemporary audience that the film was so upsetting it was pulled from theaters.

ELSEWHERE
our dvd

It's Such a Beautiful Day (2012)

Don's touring the movie now, doing Q&As. I'm bummed the SF show was sold out by the time I heard about. I wish I could have gone.

HOME
Tubi

Grendel Grendel Grendel (1981)

John Gardner's beloved novel turned into this strange thing. (The Wikipedia article includes the phrase "Because of its limited appeal.") The character design reminds me a bit of Sixties animation like Yellow Submarine. The colorblocking reminds me of the first draft of a digital animation or perhaps the back of the cel. It has needless songs like an 80s featurelength toy commercial (aka Care Bears or My Little Pony). It has 70s philosophizing characters. It has occasional bloody violence and a bit of full-frontal nudity (thank you, only human female) but otherwise feels like it's aimed at children.

The movie's been largely forgotten (consider the length of the Wikipedia article or that zero screenshots are available on the IMDb page or that there is no critic score on Rotten Tomatoes) so I'm not certain how I came to put it on my to-watch list. (I had it narrowed down to this, Birds of Prey or Rashamon; I suspect I chose wrongly...)

I don't regret watching it. It's an interesting experiment. But I'm not surprised that it proved a dead end in the evolution of animation.

HOME
library dvd

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

I suppose a movie can only blow you away by exploding your expectations but once, but even in our living room this is an amazing experience. And then we stayed up over another hour, well past midnight, watching half the special features, because the boys wanted to know more about how.

I love that. Movies are amazing.

Give stunt folk their own Oscar!

HOME
our dvd

Pride and Prejudice (2003)

The 7yrold picked this out and . . . did not like it. The 14yrold also watched and found it . . . varied in quality.

I last watched the first half when I showed it to a class, gosh, over eight years ago? They didn't want to finish it the second day.

It's entirely possible it's been 18+ years since we last watched it. And if I can see it's not quite the gem I once thought it was, I still enjoy it. And the amount of nostalgia it inspired in me and Lady Steed would get it a pass even if it were terrible, which it is not. It has a number of perfect moments (use of color, character, quotable lines). Not for no reason did I once imagine Andrew Black making a Byuck movie.

It's also exquisitely 2003 in music and fashion and Provo. I mean. I was there. You can see my apartment in one shot. I would know.

THEATER
Cinemark Century
Hilltop 16

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

So I loved it. But I'm not sure it quite works without having seen Fury Road. And I thinkn George Miller knows that since the credits are intercut with major plot points from Fury Road, which is the true end of Furiosa's journey.

That said, the worldbuilding is good. The villain is good. The two actors playing Furiosa are good. The new relationships are good. The action is good.

In fact, I could praise all those elements to high heavens. My only real complaints are surprising ones (why did they use cg on someone climbing a wall or getting on a horse?). In short, I liked the movie a lot. But if I hadn't just watched Fury Road, I think it would have been much less satisfying.

But really: two excellent Furiosas. Excellent stakes. Excellent dilemmas. Great movie.

Just no Fury Road.

HOME
Tubi

Moonstruck (1987)

I like how this movie is about mature people and mature relationships. That said, the suddenness and impulsiveness of the main relationship is confusing. And thus I'm not quite sure why I find this movie so deeply satisfying. But I do.

Also, parts of it are wonderfully funny.

ELSEWHERE
Kanopy

L'Age D'Or (1930)

Like a lot of famous-for-being-shocking works of art, is it?

I mean, there are some startling images and some silly stuff, but that's all par for Surrealism. Maybe we're too far away? But Un Chien Andalou came out first and was wildly popular. And then this one was banned for decades. Why?

I know the historical answers. But it's still mysterious.

Showing it to a room of high-school seniors was instructive. Some hated it. Some were bored. Some were startled. Some were confused.

But I don't think any of them were quote-offended-unquote.

UPDATE: I just read all their write-ups and yes. Plenty were offended. 100% hate rate. A couple called for it to be banned again. So maybe I'm just jaded from too much time in the Surrealist swimming pool.

ELSEWHERE
Tubi

The Kid (1921)

In my opinion? It's the least of Chaplin's features (keeping in mind I haven't seen The Circus or Limelight), but it is still charming and wonderful and, important when considering which to show a kid, only an hour and costars a brilliant child (of whom Chaplin said he was his favorite costar).

That said, perhaps a bit too sentimental to be the first you show teenagers.

ELSEWHERE
Kanopy

Lady Bird (2017)

It's a beautiful movie.

And not the same movie to each watcher.

Your age does make for very different experiences.

I'm not surprised teenagers love it entirely and hate it deeply. But I'm glad the ratio seems to be about 5:1.

ELSEWHERE
YouTube

Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery (2022)

I've been looking forward to the new Jim Henson documentary that drops today, so when I saw a Slate headline saying that the ultimate Henson doc was already extant and made for YouTube, I wanted to watch it. Weirdly, Slate didn't link to it. So I went to the YouTuber's channel and, for some reason I can't explain, I watched this one instead. I don't even know that four-note mnemonic! I'm too old to have watched Disney Channel in the Oughts!

But I did love watching Kevin Perjurer (unfortunate surname for a documentarian) track down lead after lead. It's a solid example of what "doing research" is like.

I've seen a couple shorter Defunctland videos before. Maybe I'll make space for more feature-length ones too. Certainly, there are topics that interest me more than this one.