Skip to content
Main Street Plaza

A Community for Anyone Interested in Mormonism.

Main Street Plaza

A Community for Anyone Interested in Mormonism.

Sunday in Outer Blogness: Another Mother’s Day Edition!

chanson, May 8, 2016

Yes, it’s every Mormon’s favorite holiday again! Time to talk about moms, and how motherhood is every woman’s most important role!

In the ongoing discussion about rape policies at BYU, we have a lot of discussion about how the CoJCoL-dS’s chastity/modesty teachings contribute to rape culture (not a new observation, it turns out).

Maybe it would be better for the church to spin off its universities…?

In other victim-blaming news, the CoJCoL-dS seems a little confused as to whether they want to invite people back or kick them out. The discussion continues on Tyler Glenn’s video (here are two podcasts). Jeffrey Holland’s charming speech doesn’t appear to have helped.

I feel like the church’s biggest problem is that they want everyone to stay Mormon by simply becoming that round peg that fits into the round hole that Mormonism has preparted for them. Look at the situation for singles:

Within the church, however, some institutional and cultural pressures tend to overlay doctrines of marriage and family with the idea that one isn’t fully an “adult” until he or she is married. A common and commonly commented upon illustration of this is the singles’ activity that requires the presence of advisors or supervisors who are younger and less-experienced but are married. The implication seems to be that returned-missionary, military-veteran, graduate-degree-holding, formerly-married people who aren’t married are not “adult” enough to manage their own activities but that a husband-and-wife team of twenty-three year-olds is.

In scriptures, the Book of Mormon has some difficulty agreeing with modern Mormon beliefs. The first vision has gotten some interesting new spin, though:

In an incredible show of cognitive dissonance, Richard Maynes (presidency of the Seventy), has declared that the various differing and contradictory accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision actually lend credibility to the event rather than detract from it. Can you imagine a lawyer in court making that conclusion about a witness who changed his or her story multiple times?

In books, we have a very exciting announcement!! Holly Welker has two new Mormon-related books out: Singing and Dancing to The Book of Mormon: Critical Essays on the Broadway Musical and Baring Witness: 36 Mormon Women Talk Candidly about Love, Sex, and Marriage (I’m proud to have contributed an essay to the latter). Also another ex?mo, Galen Dara, is in the running for a sci-fi/fantasy award. Plus, the Sunstone Foundation is starting this year’s fiction contest!

Speaking of Sunstone, don’t miss this podcast with Mary Ellen Robertson!

In personal stories, we have a tale of white privilege, an exciting mission escape, a year in IT, an illness, and the church stepping on a kid’s birthday wish:

Fifteen years old and all he wants is to spend time with his dad. This is going to end badly for dad who will probably have some painful regrets. However, I prophecy a happier ending for the son who will likely become an exmo, although due to this experience, a bitter exmo.

I can relate to the dad, and one of my many regrets is the time I spent on callings which I should have spent with my kids.

How about those US elections? sigh.

For those of you in SLC, Richard Carrier will soon be speaking in a venue near you!

Folks, sorry this one is a little late — the reason is actually kind of mothering-related (though I’m not entirely sure whether it’s Mothers’ Day here in Switzerland). In the afternoon, I went with my kids to the pool, and then my son created this elaborate Minecraft universe that he really, really wanted us all to play, so I spent the late afternoon and evening playing Minecraft with my kids. Then we all went to bed. Anyway, it’s done now — happy reading!

Minecraft Sunday in Outer Blogness

Post navigation

Previous post
Next post

Related Posts

Sunday in Outer Blogness: Let’s talk about excommunication edition!

June 22, 2014

Now that it’s been more than a week since the bomb dropped, the whole excommunication thing has gone into the discussion phase — and (as Andrew S noted) everybody has something to say about it!!! Even this week’s Old Testament lesson has some (tangentially related) points about how prophetic authority…

Read More

Sunday in Outer Blogness: Further Punishment Edition!

May 25, 2014

Perhaps you’ve heard about the latest smack-down by the CoJCoL-dS. Not satisfied with their earlier swipes at Ordain Women, the CoJCoL-dS has upped the ante by rewarding another women’s group that exists to criticize Ordain Women. To take suggestions from people outside the church hierarchy or to take their arguments…

Read More

Sunday in Outer Blogness: Pioneers and Polygamists Edition!

July 31, 2011

If it weren’t for the Internet, I probably wouldn’t have remembered that July 24th is Pioneer Day, commemorating the day Brigham Young uttered those famous words “This is the place” (or something like that). BiV asks what the holiday means to Mormons outside of Utah (growing up on the East…

Read More

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Mormon Alumni Association Books

Latest Comments:

  1. Cara B. Klein on My conspiracy theory #2April 26, 2025

    Wow, I had never thought about it in that way before You have really opened my eyes to a new…

  2. chanson on LDS vs LGBTQ:  Nathan Kitchen sheds false binariesApril 16, 2025

    The haiku at the end is lovely. Sounds like a great book!

  3. Donna Banta on LDS vs LGBTQ:  Nathan Kitchen sheds false binariesApril 14, 2025

    I imagine anyone who has tried to change the church from within will identify with Kitchen's story. I especially like…

  4. Johnny Townsend on LDS vs LGBTQ:  Nathan Kitchen sheds false binariesApril 14, 2025

    This was a painful review to read. For many years, I held the same hope, that the LDS church would…

  5. LDS vs LGBTQ:  Nathan Kitchen sheds false binaries – Main Street Plaza on It’s Time to Vote for the 2024 Brodie Awards!!!April 14, 2025

    […] sincere acceptance is not a priority. Fortunately, this is what he exemplifies in his memoir, the Brodie-nominated Boughs of…

8: The Mormon Proposition Acceptance of Gays Add new tag Affirmation angry exmormon awards Book Reviews BYU comments Conformity Dallin H. Oaks DAMU disaffected mormon underground Dustin Lance Black Ex-Mormon Exclusion policy Excommunicated exmormon faith Family feminism Gay Gay Love Gay Marriage Gay Relationships General Conference Happiness Homosexual Homosexuality LDS LGBT LGBTQ Link Bomb missionaries Modesty Mormon Mormon Alumni Association Mormonism motherhood peace politics Polygamy priesthood ban Sunstone temple

Awards

William Law X-Mormon of the Year:

  • 2023: Adam Steed
  • 2022: David Archuleta
  • 2021: Jeff T. Green
  • 2020: Jacinda Ardern
  • 2019: David Nielsen
  • 2018: Sam Young
  • 2017: Savannah
  • 2016: Jeremy Runnells
  • 2015: John Dehlin
  • 2014: Kate Kelly
  • 2013: J. Seth Anderson and Michael Ferguson
  • 2012: David Tweede
  • 2011: Joanna Brooks
  • 2010: Monica Bielanko
  • 2009: Walter Kirn

Other Cool Sites!

WasMormon.org
©2025 Main Street Plaza | WordPress Theme by SuperbThemes