askandanswer

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  1. Surprised
    askandanswer reacted to mrmarklin in First Presidency Announces Uniform, Worldwide Standards for Ward and Stake Boundaries   
    Change is constant.  Here in the Bay Area region of Northern California we went from four Wards in my city to one in less than 40 years.  A lot of Stake and Ward boundaries were changed, and the biggest chapel in my city is for sale.
    A couple of cities south of me a mega chapel was completed in the late 80s.  It was designed to have 4 wards and also be a major Stake HQ.  Only one ward there now.
    All you rich Utah Valley and Silicon Slope Mormons should migrate here.  Much better weather.  We need your talent.
  2. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from NeuroTypical in First Presidency Announces Uniform, Worldwide Standards for Ward and Stake Boundaries   
    Come, come, ye saints
     
     :_
  3. Love
    askandanswer reacted to NeuroTypical in First Presidency Announces Uniform, Worldwide Standards for Ward and Stake Boundaries   
    See that everyone?  Australia needs members!  Go move there instead of Colorado - then they can have their temple!
  4. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from NeuroTypical in First Presidency Announces Uniform, Worldwide Standards for Ward and Stake Boundaries   
    The Branch that meets in the same chapel as my Branch has about 50 attendees on a good day. Its western and eastern boundaries both extend about 300 kilometers. Going south its about 250 km to the next Branch. Every time he comes up here the Mission President talks about having a Temple in this city of two Branches with a combined weekly attendance of about 160
  5. Haha
    askandanswer reacted to Grunt in An Opinionated Rant   
    Me either.🤓
  6. Haha
    askandanswer reacted to EH12NG in An Opinionated Rant   
    Lets all do the wokey pokey! Because that's what its all about. 

     
  7. Sad
    askandanswer got a reaction from zil2 in Henry Vacuum Cleaner   
    So these people have really big feet?
  8. Haha
    askandanswer got a reaction from LDSGator in Henry Vacuum Cleaner   
    That's a vacuum cleaner? It looks pretty awkward to use, no wonder it was so henryish!
  9. Haha
    askandanswer got a reaction from zil2 in Henry Vacuum Cleaner   
    So people would end up with nicely vacuumed feet? Is that a modern version of washing the dust off their feet?
  10. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from laronius in Light   
    Some semi-formed, highly speculative ponderings about light:
    Given their source, we can accept these verses as truth. If we could work out how they are true, I think it would revolutionise our understanding of astronomy, electo-magnetic energy, truth, information, and how it is conveyed. It might also improve our understanding of how the Spirit communicates with us. In these verses, God has given us the answers. We just need to work out the how. If I was a physicist studying the properties of light, Doctrine and Covenants 88 is where I would begin. When God has given us direct teachings and truth on a topic that we want to know about, I can see some disadvantages arising from not accepting and following those teachings. 
    I suspect that one approach to studying the question of how physical light is/might be truth would be in looking more closely at the dual nature of light as both a particle and as energy. Light joins together in one thing the properties of a particle and the properties of energy. I think that the joining of two things into one -  intelligence to spirit to create a soul, then soul to physical body, then two bodies merged into one through temple marriage to create a family, then sperm and egg combining to create a body - is main method God uses for bringing seperate things into a higher order of being.  
    When I think of these verses I almost always immediately think also of the idea that God dwells in the midst of everlasting burning which sounds to me like a sun. A sun produces and emits more light than anything else - as does God. The other side of that thought is the idea that the place of least light, a black hole, where matter is stripped of its defining characteristics, sounds exactly like outer darkness, to which souls are consigned to be returned back to the condition they were in before they came into contact with God.
    (This is a diversion from the main topic but if it is the case that black holes are outer darkness, and that everything, including the remnants of those souls who are assigned there, eventually gets recycled, then perhaps what comes out of black holes - hawking radiation - might in some way be related to, or even be a form of, intelligence.)  
    I suspect that either light is the medium through which truth is conveyed, or in ways yet to be worked out, light is truth. 
    Verse 12 of the above refers to light filling the immensity of space. Light is a form of energy. The only thing I know that fills the immensity of space is the form of energy we refer to as the cosmic microwave background. 
    I suspect that if you compare the properties of light/energy with the properties of truth/intelligence you might find enough similarities to have cause to start thinking that they might be the same thing.  
    If we accept the idea that this universe started with the big bang, and maybe that's true and maybe its not, and that God played a part in enabling the big bang to happen, then that could be part of the explanation for how God created all truth, because light only came into existence as a consequence of the big bang. 
  11. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from zil2 in Light   
    Some semi-formed, highly speculative ponderings about light:
    Given their source, we can accept these verses as truth. If we could work out how they are true, I think it would revolutionise our understanding of astronomy, electo-magnetic energy, truth, information, and how it is conveyed. It might also improve our understanding of how the Spirit communicates with us. In these verses, God has given us the answers. We just need to work out the how. If I was a physicist studying the properties of light, Doctrine and Covenants 88 is where I would begin. When God has given us direct teachings and truth on a topic that we want to know about, I can see some disadvantages arising from not accepting and following those teachings. 
    I suspect that one approach to studying the question of how physical light is/might be truth would be in looking more closely at the dual nature of light as both a particle and as energy. Light joins together in one thing the properties of a particle and the properties of energy. I think that the joining of two things into one -  intelligence to spirit to create a soul, then soul to physical body, then two bodies merged into one through temple marriage to create a family, then sperm and egg combining to create a body - is main method God uses for bringing seperate things into a higher order of being.  
    When I think of these verses I almost always immediately think also of the idea that God dwells in the midst of everlasting burning which sounds to me like a sun. A sun produces and emits more light than anything else - as does God. The other side of that thought is the idea that the place of least light, a black hole, where matter is stripped of its defining characteristics, sounds exactly like outer darkness, to which souls are consigned to be returned back to the condition they were in before they came into contact with God.
    (This is a diversion from the main topic but if it is the case that black holes are outer darkness, and that everything, including the remnants of those souls who are assigned there, eventually gets recycled, then perhaps what comes out of black holes - hawking radiation - might in some way be related to, or even be a form of, intelligence.)  
    I suspect that either light is the medium through which truth is conveyed, or in ways yet to be worked out, light is truth. 
    Verse 12 of the above refers to light filling the immensity of space. Light is a form of energy. The only thing I know that fills the immensity of space is the form of energy we refer to as the cosmic microwave background. 
    I suspect that if you compare the properties of light/energy with the properties of truth/intelligence you might find enough similarities to have cause to start thinking that they might be the same thing.  
    If we accept the idea that this universe started with the big bang, and maybe that's true and maybe its not, and that God played a part in enabling the big bang to happen, then that could be part of the explanation for how God created all truth, because light only came into existence as a consequence of the big bang. 
  12. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from CV75 in Light   
    I've always been inclined to take a literal interpretation to these verses but I just haven't figured out how.
  13. Haha
    askandanswer reacted to NeuroTypical in Countdown to presidential election begins   
    That just means you need to watch more movies!  And it ain't just humans - it's the dang aliens!
    https://www.ranker.com/list/best-movies-about-america-being-invaded/ranker-film
  14. Like
    askandanswer reacted to zil2 in Light   
    I believe there is a literal interpretation to the above.  I suspect the "light" being described is not (only) the light our mortal eyes see.  My imagination comes up with all of us connected by a network of light - like a (literally) glorified fiber optic network without need for the cables.  (My imagination likes to visualize things - and make things up out of whole cloth.)
    Everywhere you see "truth", you could replace it with "knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come" and see if that sheds any (ahem) light for you.   D&C 88 and 93 have a lot of stuff that instinctively make sense, but which I have a hard time deciphering...  Go figure.
  15. Thanks
    askandanswer reacted to Just_A_Guy in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    I flatly deny that the Church as a whole has any such policy or practice regarding missionaries testifying.  Elizabeth Smart came home from her mission to testify against her kidnappers—multiple times, IIRC.
    I could *hypothetically* see why local leaders in a particular area (particularly one where government corruption may be an issue) might prefer to stay out of legal proceedings.  But, if they’re leaning on third parties/lay members to stay silent or hide evidence . . . the Church could get in a lot of trouble for that.
    I would tell my leaders that I intend to inform legal authorities/ defense counsel/ whatever of the situation on such-and-such a date unless they instruct me in writing by virtue of their priesthood and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that I must remain silent.  And if they do write such a letter, my next step is to forward a copy of it to the Area Presidency.
     
  16. Like
    askandanswer reacted to zil2 in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    I feel sorry for everyone involved.
    But I also feel strongly that those who witness a crime (truly witness it) should come forward and state what they saw and heard.  I feel even more strongly that if the state is abusing its authority (and it has been suggested here that it is), it is everyone's business and everyone who has direct knowledge should speak up.  And finally, I feel strongly that one should not abandon a brother to abuse for a supposed policy (or any other reason short of God himself telling you to keep your mouth shut).
    (And yes, brother shouldn't have been committing criminal acts in the first place, but please consult King Benjamin for what to do with that thought. )
  17. Thanks
    askandanswer reacted to NeuroTypical in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/general-handbook/38-church-policies-and-guidelines?lang=eng#title251
     
    So, that has to do with leaders.   I see nothing in the handbook about how missionaries can't be witnesses or testify in legal proceedings.  
  18. Like
    askandanswer reacted to mirkwood in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    This is speaking as if the missionary were the victim.
     
    For argument sake, let's say it also applies as being a witness.  That would be the missionary's choice, not the church leader.
  19. Like
    askandanswer reacted to zil2 in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    These are the closest thing I could find, and the second doesn't seem in favor of this whole "don't let missionaries be witnesses" thing (though only by implication).
    https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/missionary-standards-for-disciples-of-jesus-christ-supplement/07-appendix?lang=eng&id=p205#p205
    https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/missionary-standards-for-disciples-of-jesus-christ-supplement/07-appendix?lang=eng&id=p222#p222
    IMO, the missionaries should decide whether or not to come forward (and IMO, they should, if they actually witnessed the events in question).  Is it possible to bear false witness by keeping your mouth shut?  I wouldn't want that question lingering in my soul until I die.
    ETA: Scratch that question.  IMO, that hymn I posted answers my question:
     
  20. Like
    askandanswer reacted to mirkwood in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    Pretty sure you won't find anything in the Church Handbook of Instructions to support his position of not involving the missionaries in a criminal investigation due to some rule or policy of the church.
  21. Love
  22. Like
    askandanswer got a reaction from NeuroTypical in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    Thanks for this, this is a helpful and interesting read.
    This has partly become my business. The first counsellor in the District Presidency asked me to attend court the day after the person was arrested. I did this, and there were several phone calls between myself and the Branch President on the morning of the hearing as I kept him updated. Since then I have visited the person in prison four times, twice with the EQP and once with the Branch President. The Branch President and I have made several attempts to find emergency accommodation for this person in the hope that if he had a place to stay the judge would be more likely to release him on bail. 
  23. Thanks
    askandanswer reacted to zil2 in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    I have real problems with this policy and the whole "be good citizens" thing our Church teaches.  ETA: For that matter, I have issues with it and the whole "tell the truth" thing and the "be kind" thing, and I could go on but why.
    Good luck to you, @askandanswer.  Don't envy your position.
  24. Like
    askandanswer reacted to mirkwood in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    A witness is a witness no matter who they are.
  25. Like
    askandanswer reacted to Carborendum in Ethical guidance for a not completely hypothetical situation   
    If they were personal eye-witness to the events, I'd say that more light is always better than less light.