Mormons, Tattoos, and Judgmentalism
How many times do we need to blame the victim before Mormons as a people realize that judgmentalism is a sin whose wage is death? How many young adults do we need to lose before we admit there is a problem?
Author Archives: Jana Riess
About Jana Riess
Jana Riess is the author of Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor and several other books.
Stories
It Is Finished. Well, Sort Of.
Today I want to shout a great big “thank you!” to the readers who have made the Twible project so fun for me. Tomorrow on Twitter, this project will jump into high gear with multiple tweets per day as we get ready for the book launch down the road.
Sabbath Reflections: Why Are We Afraid to Slow Down?
I’ve practiced the Sabbath for years but am only just beginning to understand why some people might be afraid of it. Of its silence. Of its demand that we rest.
A Four-Star Trek
I’ve loved these characters all my life. I “have been, and always shall be,” their friend. And I loved the new Trek installment. (And no, this post is not really relevant to religion.)
Mormon Works vs. Evangelical Grace? Not So Fast
A Christianity Today article this week praises Mormon youth for their passion in missionary service but then caricatures Mormonism as having a works-based theology. Mormons and evangelicals both talk of “grace,” but they may be using the term differently.
When We Really Need Our Mothers
We often regard early childhood as the most important time for us to have a mother’s presence and care. But as Maya Angelou’s new memoir suggests, we never really outgrow that need.
Amy Grant’s New Album Releases on May 14
Grant’s new album, “How Mercy Looks from Here,” comes out on Tuesday. And it looks pretty darn good from here.
Elizabeth Smart, Mormon Girlhood, and Purity Standards
If virginity is the cornerstone of female power, as Sister Elaine Dalton suggests, then its surrender, whether willingly or by force, is the very definition of disempowerment and devaluation. As Elizabeth Smart put it, who wants a chewed-up piece of gum?
Why Mormons Have the Lowest Rates of Interfaith Marriage
Interfaith marriages now make up 36% of marriages in America. So why are Mormon interfaith marriages still so rare?
When God Answers Your Prayer
It’s not like I have a slew of miracle stories I can trot out from more than a quarter century of being a Christian, Latter-day or otherwise. But a recent experience has taught me that sometimes, miracles do happen.
