Simply a former Mormon discovering the wonders of the universe
The book Morality - Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times (amazon) was recommended to me by my dad in late January 2021. I was intrigued and looked up the author Jonathan Sacks online. According to wikipedia he served as the chief rabbi in Great Britain for the main branch of Judaism from 1991-2013. After … Continue reading Morality Matters
I am the youngest of four. I have two brothers and one sister. When I was about seven or eight years old I was playing basketball with our neighbors next door, along with my brothers. I remember becoming outraged at a perceived injustice that spiraled into a full blown temper tantrum. Understandably annoyed, one of … Continue reading Shame
This is part book report and part ‘what I learned’ while reading Friedrich Nietzsche’s book Twilight of the Idols. You'll see references represented by chapter acronyms throughout (see list in the references section near the bottom). The subtitle is illustrative of the subject of the book: How to Philosophize With a Hammer. It is a … Continue reading Nietzsche’s Hammer
I received my genetic report from Nebula this past week. I was underwhelmed with the ancestor report. But how would it be anything other than 100% Northern and Central Europe? What I really liked was the repository of research publications on genomic discoveries and how my genes fit into those studies. There are 140 studies … Continue reading Genetics and Mormon Homosexuality
The purpose of this post is to distribute a compilation of Latter-day Saint (Mormon) positions on organic evolution from the days it was introduced by Charles Darwin to the the present day. I can point to this topic as the one that began my faith transition out of Mormonism. As I read and compared what … Continue reading Mormon Theory of Evolution – My First Crack
What is the central difference between regret and sadness? In some ways regret involves sadness or disappointment over a lost opportunity or a choice made. Sadness involves a reaction to a condition that makes you sad. The ability of choosing otherwise is the difference. In my life, as I have transitioned value structures and studied … Continue reading Regret and Sadness for My 18 Year Old Self
Dissenters are not new to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. They have walked its halls and made a mess of things since the very beginning. The modern church has attempted to obfuscate much of the dissent of its early days by simply labelling dissent as apostasy. This method acts like dormant … Continue reading Dissenter Hall of Fame
It was evident early in the days of my questioning the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints that I would not be able to speak about my questions with my family and friends. The advice I received was the same as the advice given to the famous Mormon critic Fawn Brodie by her father, … Continue reading Make the Sanctity of Dissent Great Again
In recently months it has become apparent that the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has been shifting their ministry toward those that have doubts about the truthfulness of the church. Why are we seeing so many talks about how to handle doubt and concerns as it relates to difficult questions about church history? … Continue reading Maintaining Order at the Expense of Relationships
During the past few years I have been slowly consuming books on Stoicism. I was introduced to it by way of Tim Ferriss through his podcast The Tim Ferriss Show. I remember him talking about his love for Stoicism, providing quotes, and highlighting some of its principles. From these small interactions I always knew I … Continue reading Unpacking Stoicism
Sapien Curiosus 