BiV's Blog of the Month

My pick for Blog of the Month for the month of March is one that has only been around for three months:

Temple Study.




I'm really happy when I can highlight a newer blog or a solo blog, and this fits the bill for both. But Bryce Haymond is an exceptional example of a solo blogger. In the month of March, he posted every day, and his posts were meaty and interesting. On his about page we read that he is a conservative TBM and an admirer of Hugh Nibley. In fact, the theme of Temple Study fits the following quote by Nibley, "Latter-day Saints believe that their temple ordinances are as old as the human race and represent a primordial revealed religion that has passed through alternate phases of apostasy and restoration which have left the world littered with the scattered fragments of the original structure, some more and some less recognizable, but all badly damaged and out of proper context..."

I have been fascinated to read Bryce's posts as he presents some of these "scattered fragments." In Early Christian Textile Markings from Fayum Egypt, he blogs about some plain linen burial clothes found in Egyptian tombs which have some interesting markings. In another post he discusses the Tallit Katan - The Sacred Undergarment of Judaism. Don't miss the 6-part series The Genesis of the Round Dance. The visuals on this blog are absolutely breathtaking. They add to the historicity of each post, give just the right touch to the posts and are beautiful aesthetically.

Bryce shows on his blog that he has an artist's soul. Just read this sonnet he wrote in response to Shakespeare's Sonnet 18; and notice how well it fits the theme of his blog.

Look for Bryce as he begins his new post permablogging with Millennial Star. He promises that most of his blogging will still be at Temple Study, and to me that is great news.

BiV's Blog of the Month

This month I would like to introduce a fairly new blog called



Project Deseret







Project Deseret is written by Ashley Sanders, famous for organizing the BYU Alternative Commencement last year. She was also editor of the Collegiate Post, a progressive magazine at BYU that was shut down largely due to her article The Evolution Of Revolution, which you can find on her blog, and which I suggest that everyone should read.

Don't go to this blog for a quick blog-fix during the day on company time. This blog needs to be savored late at night when all the kiddoes are tucked safely in bed and Dear Spouse is safely occupied with some engrossing hobby. The articles are thought-provoking and current, if a bit longer than what we usually encounter on a blog. They are full of substance and well-written, as befits the English major that she is. Ashley's blog was started in connection with Sunstone magazine as a blog/podcast with a goal of social change: "building a socially, politically, and economically just community." Her vision for this project is as follows: "The podcast is divided into three parts: narrative, interview, and manifesto. It is divided that way to give history on three levels: the individual’s story, the expert’s analysis, and the dreamer’s hope. I hope that these three histories will tell us who we have been and where we can go now." Ash is exactly the person to do this. Some of her posts so far deal with pacifism versus passivism, chain stores, and liberalism and secularism. She is stirring and passionate about these causes.

"We love the revolutionary as long as he is tucked safely in the folds of history..." Ashley says. "We talk about repeating history. We worry about it; we hope we won’t. But we will if we don’t realize that ethics is always uncomfortable in the present..." In one of her posts, she explains one of the reasons why she organized Alternative Commencement: "I believe that ordinary people know what is best, and I believe that organizations that don’t allow ordinary people to improve them from the inside will be less vibrant, less fair, and less humane."

The personal stories in her articles draw me in to the author's life, and make me feel I know her and her struggles:

"I am at a class party when my professor looks at me and says, “Let me guess. You’re a vegetarian.” When I answer yes, he runs to his closet with glee and pulls out a shirt. On it, a bunch of animals are bursting out of a stuffed pot. The caption says: “For every animal you don’t eat, I’ll eat three.” My teacher thinks this is hilarious, nudging me and crowing with triumph. I think this is supremely odd: If I said I was ethically opposed to slavery, would he have run to his room and pulled out a slave?"

Another issue she addresses is one I really relate to as a Latter-Day Saint:

"A lot of people have asked me: if you disagree with what BYU or the government does, why don’t you just go someplace else? (A favorite suggested location is Berkeley.) I only know one way to answer them, which is to tell them that I love this place, and want it to be what it can be. After I answer this way, there is always another question: If you love it, why do you criticize it? My answer is the same: because I love it, and because I believe that integrity requires a mix of staying and going, charity and chastisement, and because I want to go to a school and live in a country that let me do all of the above."

I have been asked many times on my blog if I disagree with some of the policies of the Mormon Church, why don't I go to another church? Ashley articulates so beautifully what I would like to tell them.

The latest articles on "Project Deseret" reveal Ashley's personal concerns and thoughts. I've felt some of the same feelings myself. She reveals:

"I also worry about how contradictory and proliferate my thoughts are. I will write something and immediately feel the exact opposite, and then I will wonder whether I should revise my earlier writing or continue stalking the contradiction."

I'm fascinated to see the blog move in a more personal direction as she explores some of the issues she confronts in the Church. I'm looking forward to more writing in this vein.

I read Ashley's blog because she is eloquent, touching, and funny. I read it because she falls apart. Because she picks herself up and keeps on. I read it because she isn't sure yet where she is going, and I want to be part of her journey.

BiV's Blog of the Month

The hottest Mormon blog I've seen in the first month of 2008 has got to be

Mormon

Matters.




And I don't say that just because I have a crush on the cool and erudite John Hamer.♥
I really think John Dehlin has another winner in this blog. First of all, he has chosen several (21 right now, and growing!) bloggers to join him on what used to be a podcast dedicated to--you guessed it--Mormon matters. The podcast was lively and entertaining, but didn't reach nearly the audience that it does now as an active posting medium. And when I say active, I really mean it. There are sometimes 3 or 4 posts a day that go up on the site. So far they have all been of interest. Mormon Matters deals with diverse topics such as Chris Heimerdinger's new film, early patriarchal blessings, non-member family members at temple marriages, and the Church's position on biblical interpretation, to name just a few. The comments are just as well-informed and fascinating as the posts.

I'm sure most of my readers are familiar with this blog by now. But don't miss all of its awesome features:

The handy author profile on the sidebar allows you to view Chris Bigelow in a tie-dyed T-shirt, and ponder such things as how Jeff Spector could have joined the Church in June 1982 and been sealed to his wife in the Oakland Temple in August 1982.

The "Notes From All Over" are more numerous and comprehensive than those found on the sidebars of other blogs. They include calls for papers, announcements of retreats and conferences, studies and national coverage of the Church, as well as YouTube picks and humorous anecdotes.

I think that with this blog, John Dehlin has accomplished his goal in having informative discussion on all aspects of Mormon history and culture from all sides of the idealogical spectrum, while remaining positive toward the LDS Church. I expect that the podcast will continue as well, and I'm hoping that John will add more females to his cast of bloggers.

BiV's Blog of the Month

This new blog is the brightest star on the Mohorizon for 2008:

Beginnings New.

BNJeans describes herself as a "lifelong member and former YW, now a Laurels teacher, parent, part-time college professor, and all-around busy gal." Her new calling in the Young Women's organization has prompted her to start the blog "Beginnings New." Jeans is a feminist who was unable to find any substantive YW ideas on line. The offerings out there are primarily "cutesy" ideas, crafts, quotes, and clip art. With the arrival of this new blog, YW leaders have something more.

When Jeans first broached the idea of a blog with more substance directed toward YW leaders, it was met mostly with enthusiasm at FMH. However, there was at least one vote of caution about what she hoped to accomplish. Silver Rain wrote about this on her blog post "A Plague of Agendas". Here she expressed her concern that YW leaders should not push their feminist agendas in church classes. "Is nowhere safe?" SR laments. "What will I do if I find my daughter isn't being taught the gospel in Church?" After a thorough perusal of the new blog, I don't think she has anything to worry about. I was sincerely impressed by the post What's in Your Church Bag? Jeans speaks of negotiating how to teach from the prescribed materials while being authentic, real, and relevant. In her "Church bag" she brings her testimony, scriptures, and love and unconditional acceptance. She leaves behind her political affiliations, confessions (ha! one of my bug-a-boos!), higher biblical criticism (not the place), personal angst (must you whine about how hard it was to prepare the lesson?) and demons from her own YW experience.

On the sidebar, the purpose of the blog is clearly stated.

My goal is to provide a lively and practical online place for YW leaders to talk about everything related to their calling to minister to the young women of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints... This is not the place for clip art or sappy poems. It's also not the place to merely complain about the program or about specific leaders, or the materials and manuals. While possibly cathartic, that can't be very helpful. I think we can help one another as leaders without throwing the manuals out in disgust. Yes, they are outdated. Yes, my own YW leaders taught out of the same ones in the 1980s. Total redesign of the manuals or overhaul of the program is not within my stewardship or my power. I'm looking for ways to inspire, challenge, nurture and transform the young women in my care to greater discipleship, and I'm confident there are lots of people out there who can participate in that project.

I found many things to enjoy over at Beginnings New. There are plenty of lesson ideas. Jeans hopes that as more people visit the blog, these will turn into discussions on how to adapt lessons to different wards, different age groups, and different needs. In one of these lesson discussions on health she mentioned considerations for girls who were vegetarians. I was thrilled to see this. One of my daughters decided to go vegetarian at the age of 16 (not due to the influence of DH or myself, rabid McDonalds and Pizza Hut frequenters). This was a considered and thoughtful decision on her part. At Church, she got no guidance beyond the advice that "eating meat sparingly" meant she was a sinner if she decided not to eat meat at all. It's good to see a YW blog that treats the girls as if they have intelligence of their own, and are able to understand complex issues.

I'm also excited to see that she has also included posts on issues of importance to YW. There is a post dealing with the pregnancy of Jamie Lyn Spears, Britney's younger sister and popular actress on the Nickelodeon show "Zoe 101." This is something my 14-year-old is talking about with her friends.

To all who are interested in YW issues, I encourage you to visit this blog and add your input.

**Revised 1/3: Just visited Beginnings New and read the new post on "God the Father"--this blog is going to be great fun even if you're not involved with YW at all!! Also I forgot to mention the cool webcrawl on the sidebar. Example: "no dating before 16? In S. Africa, no kissing either."