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Unless and until this person actually does something to cause trouble, leave him be. You'd be amazed at how easy it is to get put on that list in some states. I was once taking to someone very knowledgeable in this area who said that it can be as simple as who happens to catch a person urinating in public. If an adult sees you do it, it's a misdemeanor, maybe nothing but a citation. If a kid sees you do it (accidentally, of course) you get a misdemeanor and have to register for 15 years. Add to that, in some categories, the recidivism rate is so low you can be reasonably assured that you won't get any further trouble from such an individual. (For some reason guys who molest boys have a high recidivism rate, but that seems to be the only category where we see that.) In any case, the vast majority of cases of this nature, the perpetrator is not a stranger to the victim, but a close friend or family member. Not really applicable to a public trading site. A person on the registry has done something wrong, been caught, punished, and has been through the justice system. There's no reason to pile on more. They have a hard enough time getting life back on track as it is without being constantly reminded of their screwup in the past. What would the Savior do?

I had a registered sex offender attending a ward I was in once. I was, frankly, astounded at the lack of Christianity, forgiveness, and love that most of the ward displayed toward this man. There is a balance to be found, of course. You wouldn't, of course, have such a man babysit for you. You would, of course, take precautions about where and when children go, etc. But when the man is at church, helping with service projects, etc., you forgive, you love, your forget, etc., It is a tough balance and one that takes great wisdom and spiritual guidance, methinks. But like I said, I was amazed at how many people just treated him as a write-off, shunned him entirely, and spent a great deal of time posting nasty things on Facebook (the devil's playground) about him. Not sure this is applicable to the OP. Just sharing thoughts.

An execution should be a solemn and terrible thing, and not a cause for joyful celebration. I remember hearing that Joseph Smith was supposed to have said that you can tell when a man has rejected the Spirit, because he prays for his enemy's destruction. (Sorry, no reference.) Hollywood has fed us a steady diet of revenge fantasies for two generations now. Hardly surprising that we should see that mindset acted out among so many.

I inserted really foul language and now I'm offended.

Just a thought from the non-LDS parent on the board--maybe you could agree with your mother to read a book co-authored by an Evangelical professor (with Baptist-like leanings) and one from Brigham Young University (LDS)? The book is: How Wide the Divide: A Mormon and an Evangelical in Conversation, by Blomberg and Robinson. The book covers major doctrines (salvation, scripture and revelation, the nature of God, etc.) and is pretty straight forward. The authors are learned, fair-minded, kind, but they do not brush differences under the rug. It should give you and your mother a better understanding of each other, without either of you having to read stuff that's mean-spirited and harsh. Amazon has it used for .01 ($4 delivered): http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0830819916/ref=sr_1_1_twi_1_pap_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1431999165&sr=8-1&keywords=how+wide+the+divide

I just found out recently that one of my neighbors is a registered sex offender. Lived near him for almost 6 years and had no idea. He's always the one that offers to help people move in or out. I've seen him shoveling driveways and walks for some of our elderly neighbors. He always has a smile and a hello when you walk by and he's out in his yard. I've never heard a bad thing said about him from any of my neighbors. So I do feel bad for some of those who truly are trying to get past whatever they may have done in the past. Sometimes it's people like you and I (generically speaking) that are their biggest obstacles in being able to do that.

How I see every sports interview -

Perspective from a public schooled guy whose wife is homeschooling his kids. Parents who think opting out = keeping kids from being exposed to whatever is being opted out of, are kidding themselves. "Where were you yesterday little billy?" "My mom freaked out about whatever they talked about and signed a paper so I didn't have to go. So what happened?" "Mrs. Noggle told us boys and girls don't exist, because some kids are both or neither or something." "Oh. That's dumb." "What did you expect, it was Mrs. Noggle." "Yeah. Let's go pick on little tommy, and call him a dimorphic gender-fluid gay bio-male who's spirit animal is a lesbian anthro-pony." "Nah, we did that last week. Let's just punch him." I suggest keeping open lines of communication with your kids, and lots of mutually enjoyable fun times when they come home with the latest story of the dumb thing they got taught.

I view it as justice, not a celebration.

I'd go with PC's advice over Gator ' s at this point. You may not be ready for anti LDS books and a nice both - sides - of - the - fence book will be more unifying than material fighting.

The world is so weird it is dizzying. I often wonder how many kids think they are (insert appropriate inner confusion) because of the hyper intense influence of the agenda driven crowd that perpetuate this type of (be sensitive Bytor)......................stuff.

:::cough::: We tend to vacation in Idaho...Silverwood, Couerdalene Golf Resort, Sandpoint's local charm...what's not to love?

TFP, I shy away from using the word "crackpot" in the same sentence with either Pres. Young or Elder Pratt; but I agree with the fundamental point of your post. :)

OK, they kill the savior because he was a threat to the status quo, so as a follower of his you're going to write about his family in any but the most oblique ways? Where do we find out the Apostle Philip had been married and for a time his residence with his daughters was in Hierapolis, since only the apostle Peter is mentioned as having a mother-in-law (in the Gospel of Matthew)? Do you think they wanted their own families hunted down and killed too as they were?

You've been baptized and given the gift of the Holy Ghost, learn to follow positive impressions and the Holy Ghost will guide you. You also know about prayer, go to your Heavenly Father about the things weighing on your heart. Wait after you pray and ponder any impressions you receive. Write them down and ponder and pray about them throughout your day. Prayer is rarely a once and done thing but as you continue to ponder and pray the answer should become clear in your mind. Once you have your answer, do it (walk by faith). Personal revelation from your Heavenly Father is the best advice you can ever be given. Good luck! :)

Just to demonstrate how aged I am, I remember when parents had to opt-in for the controversial stuff. Just sayin'

This website was super helpful to me as I was converting so I was eager to get around to opening my account. I was baptized last weekend and couldn't be happier or more sure of this decision I made. Heavenly Father has blessed my life so much in these past few weeks and I am just so incredibly thankful. I started meeting with the missionaries around mid-April. I had done a lot of researching on my own before even contacting them and had even started reading the Book of Mormon (my best friend is a member of the Church and she was also super helpful at answering any questions.) At the end of my first meeting with the missionaries, they told me I was pretty much ready to be baptized and we set a date. We met several times after that and they walked me through all the lessons and it was just an incredible experience overall. I was baptized May 9th and confirmed the next day. It's insane to me that it's only been a little over a month since I started this journey and I am so excited for what Heavenly Father has in store for me. I'm sure I'll have lots of questions and needs for advising as I settle in and learn more about this wonderful church that has changed my life so significantly in such a short amount of time. But for now, I just wanted to introduce myself, so. Hi, I'm Liz, I'm 20 years old, currently work at a gas station and I'm a new member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. And I couldn't be happier about it.

Ronda Rousey, and to a much lesser extent Cain Velasquez, are the only things keeping me even slightly interested in the UFC. I'm about ready to break completely with watching any professional sports at all. Even college sports are mostly really boring. As a middle-aged man, I have been surprised to discover that basketball, which was always my favorite sport growing up (both to play and to watch), is actually pretty darn boring. Baseball is better. BASEBALL. Football is okay, I guess, but kind of annoying. Rugby -- now there's a man's sport. I could totally get into that. It's like football for people who don't want to wear suits of armor. Not sure what the relationship/difference is between rugby and Aussie rules football, but the latter is totally cool to watch, too. But when it's all said and done, I think I'm just losing my taste for watching sports. Which frees up many hours per month for me to play in my wood shop...

In the present case, the guy wants to participate in the most banal elements of human interaction. He is looking merely to buy and sell stuff, or maybe trade. But because he is a Registered Sex Offender, which could mean anything from raping babies to having consensual but drunken sex with an equally drunk sorority girl, we pretend we're doing everyone a huge favor by either exposing his legal status or by throwing him out of the club. I for one would appreciate less sanctimonious hypocrisy about protecting children or some such and more open acknowledgement that, yes, we are persecuting this guy, and we're doing it because we think he deserves it. That may not be noble, but at least it's honest. (EDIT: This was not directed specifically at Bini. It is a general comment.) (SECOND EDIT: Not directed specifically at Eowyn, either.)

I do not know the answer to the question of what to do with sex offenders, especially child molesters. But our current treatment of them is in no possible sense Christian. I would have no problem, in concept at least, with executing certain sex criminals, including forcible rapists and some child molesters. But the scarlet M branding is contrary both to common decency and to (my understanding of) the foundational concepts of our justice system.

Hi again Richard, Glad to hear things are changing for the better, as you mentioned in your opening post. For what it's worth, please do resume attendance in your ward soon. You'll want ongoing inspiration for whatever endeavors you're engaged in, creative or otherwise. When you go, I'd also encourage you to reach out to others in your ward who appear to be in need of company, rather than wait for others to reach out to you. Regards, John

Come on in Vort...the water is fine I've definitely changed allot as I've aged but watching sports has never held much interest for me. I played football and was First String Varsity wide receiver my Junior year and still had a difficult time fitting in with average dudes as I could only name a handful of NFL teams and definitely couldn't name any of the players. Let alone any other team sport. I did have a period of time where I enjoyed watching the MMA, but it was more about hanging out with my brother and when I moved I lost interest because I started doubting how honest the matches are. I think I would still enjoy watching a track meet or some of the Olympics if it was ever broadcast better. Anyway like you said more hours to enjoy other things.

As Joseph taught: "We should gather all the good and true principles in the world and treasure them up, or we shall not come out true Mormons."

Which state? Access to criminal records in a lot of places isn't that expensive. $15/mo at PublicData will get you criminal background, driver's license and vehicle registration for all the states it covers. Plus, if your state's sex offender registry doesn't include details, you have no idea what he's being banned for. One of my former coworkers is stuck with registration as a child sex offender because he got caught with his barely-too-young girlfriend on his 18th birthday.

The Oxford English Dictionary. The CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics Pong

Are they also screening for convicted murderers, armed robbers and arsonists?

Funny. That's just the excuse I used to start viewing it back in the day, leading me down what became a very dark path. Secretly, I always knew better.

To be fair, there's "exposure" and then there's "Exposure!". There's coming across and there's having it taught/preached. There's skeptical exposure and there's embracing supportive exposure. These things matter. I'm not sure putting it in terms of such extremes as the idea of trying to shelter your children from any exposure whatsoever is legitimate in the argument. It makes for a nice straw man. But it's really more about controlling the exposure. Lest you think I'm just being contrary, I do think there is, certainly, some validity to the idea that if parents are teaching and raising their kids right, then what they are taught falsely in school is really not much of an issue. That being said, I tend to fall on the side of "sheltering" a bit, with a healthy understanding (I hope) that your point, while perhaps too extreme, is valid. Kids are gonna hit this stuff somehow somewhere. The solution isn't just to hide from it.

Hi Richard, Curious timing. My oldest brother is actually on that list, and is in the UK right now. He should be back in the States next month. He's an experienced playwright, and has a production that is going off-Broadway (in New York City) this summer. (I saw an earlier version of that production several months ago at BYU, and quite enjoyed it.) To contact him, he's the only one on that BYU web page with "playwriting" listed in his credentials. He'll likely have his hands quite full this summer with the project mentioned above, but it might be worth a try contacting him while he's still in the UK or later this year, after things in NYC settle down. Who knows what he'll say? I wish you well!

Agreed

There's a difference between celebrating the death of an offender and celebrating the life of the survivor/s. Having a strong sense of relief - even a joyous one - that you can no longer be threatened or harmed by someone on death row is valid, in my opinion. I would think most people are able to tell the difference. That said, absolutely, there are many MANY that celebrate both. For many, this is un-Christian and not what God would want. But I think it should also be considered, that when a heavy tragedy hits, people in general aren't in the right mindset, you're hurt and angry - especially when you've lost loved ones. I think in most cases, there's grieving steps before people are able to come to terms with things. I know that if my 3 year old was taken from me, her life gone, instinctively I'd want that murderer's head.

I think this is good advice. When you are brand-new in the church, immersing yourself in anti LDS literature can be especially harmful. You need to give your testimony time to grown and develop strong roots.

That is a great idea, thank you! I'll definitely read that on my own and then if it becomes an issue, pass it along to my mom. Also, I appreciate the different perspective so thanks a lot for commenting and sharing!

It's been posited that at least some who say they felt same-sex-attracted at an early age might have simply felt different. For boys, in particular, that differentness can be frightening. It is easier to eroticize one's fear than encounter it. Yet, every time there is a sexual encounter, the sense of not being part of the community of men only grows. Today it is even easier for those who might be socially awkward, and who feel like outliers, to conclude, since they are repeatedly asked about this, that their differentness must be related to sexual orientation. I'm not sure this is intentional grooming. Perhaps it's just the post-modern quest for as much grayness as possible.

Yeah you're right that makes sense. I guess it's a tricky balance and we sort of have to be introspective about it. In the case of a guy who is on death row, it's unlikely he'll be able to hurt anyone so I'd think that sense of relief and justice would come when the conviction was achieved in court.

I find it very difficult to believe that Christ was unmarried His entire life. In Matthew chapter 3 we read: 13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. Christ was baptized because it was necessary to enter the third heaven. We know from modern day revelation that a man and wife must be sealed together in marriage through the holy priesthood to enter the highest degree of the celestial kingdom. (Read Doc. & Cov. section 131 verses 1-4). Christ obeyed the commandment of baptism but not the commandment to be sealed in marriage to a wife? We do not know who He was married to or if He had children. But certainly He was married.

Haha. Yeah...well...thank you for the appropriate reprimand on the matter. I certainly don't consider either of them crackpot, and actually believe that most of what we consider "crackpot" from President Young is likely misunderstood, misquoted, misetc... Orson did have some "out there" theories. But due respect owed. So I apologize.

Oh I wouldn't expect anyone to have sympathy for him, I sure don't. I just feel weird about celebrating someone's death. Whey killed Bin Laden I was watching the news and they showed people out in the streets celebrating in New York. I mean, I guess I can understand their feelings, but it struck me that it didn't seem all that different from when Palestinians were in the street celebrating as the Twin Towers fell. Are we really better than they are if we act like that?

Did Jesus have hair on his head? Well, the scriptures are silent on the matter, so therefore it's pretty apparent that Jesus was completely bald. He did not even have any body hair. Smooth as a baby's bottom, all over. I understand that not everyone believes that. But no one has to prove he wasn't hairy, because we're not making the claim that he was. If you make a claim you have to back it up with something. Ergo, Jesus had no hair on his entire body.

I think that the death penalty has its place, and it seems appropriate to use it in a case like this... but it bothers me a bit how many people who call themselves Christians are practically salivating at the prospect of executing this guy. Raise your hand if you think Jesus Christ would be sitting there as a witness to the execution with a big foam novelty finger on His hand. Anyone?

I would love to see Brandon Sandersons Mistborn trilogy made into a movie. As well as the Les Miserables musical movie redone with a completely unknown cast who can actually sing. For SciFi it would be cool to see Old Man's War by John Scalzi made into a movie. And lastly I would love to see a TV series based off Patricia Briggs Mercy Thompson series.

For number 1: We don't know your parents(mom) like you do... any detailed advice would be guess work.. In a more general sense realize that your actions and behaviors with them will be seen as "Mormon" once they know. Every negative word or action you take will be seen by them as the "Mormon corruption" on you. So please step up and be your best self. After all that is really the best way to get them to accept your choice is by seeing the positive impact in has on you. For question 2: Typically the Order is Limited Use Recommend (for baptisms for the Dead), Patriarchal Blessing, Full Temple Endowment, then Mission. Time wise there is some flexibility. A Full Temple Endowment is at least a year after baptism, and a Mission only after the Temple Endowment. Patriarchal Blessings are very flexible time wise. You could wait months and still be in the typical pattern. That being said your being prepared is the most important thing rather than following a pattern. Your leaders can help guide you, his mentioning of it was probably to get you to start thinking about it and preparing yourself

Liz anne, congratulations! I am very excited for you. Not sure what to tell you about your mom. That's a sensitive area. In the end, I think truth will always win out. But there is an appropriate time and method to tell her such things, and that's not really something I'm very practiced at. (Despite my jokey avatar, I am not a pretty young Icelandic woman. I am an overweight middle-aged American man.) As for your patriarchal blessing, I am of the opinion that the sooner you get it, the better. It is not a magic talisman, but it is personal revelation that can give you insight into yourself and your own life, and perhaps direction to help you make some important decisions.

When personal pleasure is involved - evidence is irrelevant. Also having served in the army in an intelligent unit and trained in propaganda. I am convinced that individuals can be brainwashed to believe anything despite evidence. According to Joseph Goebbels; humor is the most effective of all propaganda (brainwashing) - that anything a person will laugh at they will eventually not only believe but will believe that it has always been their opinion. I agree that parents should be able to opt out - but I will go a step farther - communities should be able to opt out and have the program dropped from their local schools.

Nor do we believe he did not produce children. The Church takes no stand on whether or not Jesus was married or on whether or not such a marriage might have produced children, opinions of individual members notwithstanding. Specifically, Mary Magdalene was conflated with the woman taken in adultery and with the "sinful" woman who washed Jesus' feet (whom John says was Mary the sister of Martha and Lazarus, not Mary Magdalene). There is no evidence that Mary Magdalene was either of these, especially not the adulteress; but I understand that a Pope declared them to be so, fixing that idea as part of Catholic theology. It is worth bearing in mind that Mary Magdalene was apparently the first person to witness Jesus as a resurrected man. Why she should have had this honor, instead of e.g. Peter, who was the senior apostle and leader of Jesus' Church after his death, is something of a mystery. If she had been Jesus' wife, that would make a whole lot more sense to the typical LDS mind; I suspect this is a large reason why many Latter-day Saints think that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married. Really, this is the final word on the subject.

I'd be more supportive of the death penalty if we didn't all know this will spend a decade or two in appeals.

I have always believed there was wiggle room in the timeline of the second coming. Abraham bargained to save Gomorrah according to the number of righteous found. In the BoM a city had been spared because of the prayers of the righteous. Once the wicked slew the righteous time was automatically up. Hezekiah had his life extended. The sun was made to stand still so Joshua could win a battle. The problem for the wicked is at some point the Father gets to say "Enough." despite the pleading prayers of the saints and the intervention / mediation on our behalf by Christ. I believe Christ was given agency on the cross to chose the precise moment of his death in order to become our mediator with the Father. I believe the Father will use his agency to decide when enough is enough before the millennium just like when the war in Heaven occurred and that Christ will carry out the Father's will just as he has submitted his will to the Father's in all things. But that's just my opinion.

You can't make him change or force him.

You can't force someone to be spiritual. How do we influence others to be spiritual? From D&C 121 Persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, love unfeigned, kindness, pure knowledge, without hypocrisy, without guile, full of charity and virtue.