Changing Our Perceptions Of LDS Housewives: The Hot Mormon Muffins Calendar

The creator of the calendar that featured 12 LDS RMs posing shirtless has just released a new calendar where 12 LDS mothers are posing in the kitschy vintage pin-up style.

A spokesman for the calendar stated that the calendar is designed to shake up stereotypes that paint Mormons as "stuffy or hyper-conservative and mothers in particular as homemakers from another era."
"For Mormons, the most holy calling next to missionary work is motherhood," the spokesman said. "But they're not all the subservient housewives that people think they are."

I think the creator's intent to dispel people's stereotypes about LDS mothers is not really necessary because LDS mothers and housewives of today are nothing the mothers of previous generations. I don't think this is strictly an LDS issue either.

The mothers and wives of today have grown up playing Nintendo or Atari), watched MTV, downloaded songs from Napster in college (when it wasn't illegal to download free music) and are now listening to their favorite songs on their ipods while taking the baby stroller down the street. Even the grandmothers of today who grew up and got married that "stuffy" or "hyper-conservative" era have seem to have shed the old stereotypes of that time.

The truth is that we don't need the calender to change our perceptions about motherhood and housewives because of the changes in the cultural, political, and economic landscape of America have already done that.

What do you think? Does people's perceptions about LDS housewives really need to be changed and improved?

Thomas S. Monson: The Most Powerful Octogenarian in America.

Slate.com has just released its 2009 list of the most powerful octogenarians in America. Thomas Monson is #1 on their list:

The top spot this year goes to 82-year-old Thomas S. Monson, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the only person on the list to rule over millions of people as a prophet of God. Enjoy it while you can, Monson—you're only old once.

Congrats, President Monson.

Charting The Book of Mormon: A Cool Way To Study The Book of Mormon

I accidentally came upon a great website, hosted by BYU, called "Charting the Book of Mormon" where you can get a visual understanding of the Book Of Mormon in the form of charts and graphs. Looking at some of the charts, its pretty detailed and comprehensive yet it is presented in an easy to understand format which goes along way in understanding the Book of Mormon.

This website is useful in a lot of ways. For those of you who are visual learners or like to have things presented in a logical and organized way, this is a great website to use as an aid to your study of the Book of Mormon. Even if you're not a visual learner, its a great personal study tool you can use to understand the more complex parts or aspects of the book. It is also resourceful for those of you who teach Gospel Doctrine and can use it when it comes time to teach the Book of Mormon in Sunday School.

I highly recommend the website and urge people to check it out.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks v. Senator Harry Reid

On October 13, there were two interesting articles that came out at the same time. The Salt Lake Tribune published an article of Senator Harry Reid criticizing the LDS Church for its involvement of Prop 8 while the LDS Newsroom published an article about Dallin H. Oaks giving a speech at BYU-Idaho where he outlines his belief that religious liberty is being threatened in America.

I find it amusing that two distinct and separate articles come out at the same time that presents a brewing debate among prominent religious and political LDS leaders despite the fact that they work together often. I wonder how the discussion goes when Harry Reid and Dallin H. Oaks actually discuss the issue of religious liberty and gay marriage face to face. Harry Reid believes that religion, specifically, his religion ought to stay clear of being involved in the public debate over gay marriage whereas Dallin H. Oaks believes that any faith, including the LDS Church, have a right to promote and preserve religious liberty in the public square.

Clearly, there is a disagreement about which right deserves federal protection: religious liberty or same sex marriage. This is a legal debate between a LDS Senator and an Apostle who has had a successful career as an attorney. If you want to read a good legal treatise that reflects Elder Oak's position on this issue, I highly recommend the Harvard Law review article titled, "Or For Poorer: How Same Sex Marriage Threatens Religious Liberty" By Roger Serverino. For a good legal treatise that reflects Harry Reid's position, I recommend, "Same Sex Marriage And Slippery Slopes" by Eugene Volokh.

Who is correct here? Elder Dallin H. Oaks or Senator Harry Reid? Whose voice do we listen to? A politician or an Apostle?

UPDATE: Here's the transcript of Elder Oak's talk.