by byustudent | Mar 2, 2013 | About Mormons
BYU (Brigham Young University) is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often mistakenly called the “Mormon Church.” As part of their undergraduate coursework, BYU students take multiple semesters of spiritually uplifting, stimulating religion classes.
In this series (see below), students enrolled in scripture study classes have shared their thoughts, insights, and reflections on the Book of Mormon in the form of letters to someone they know. We invite you to take a look at their epiphanies and discoveries as they delve into the scriptures.
In publishing these, we fulfill their desire to speak to all of us of the relevance, power and beauty of the Book of Mormon, a second witness of Jesus Christ and complement to the Bible. The Book of Mormon includes the religious history of a group of Israelites who settled in ancient America. (The names they use are those of prophets who taught the Book of Mormon peoples to look forward to the coming of Christ—Nephi, Lehi, Alma, Helaman, and other unfamiliar names. We hope those names will become more familiar to you as you read their inspiring words and feel the relevance and divinity of their messages through these letters.) (more…)
by dwhite | Feb 26, 2013 | Meet Some Mormons
Justin Wayne Lewis has been a musician practically since birth. Born to musician parents and raised with a love of music, Justin is a talented cellist with a passion for conducting. He has a Bachelor’s from Temple University and a Master of Music in Cello Performance from Pennsylvania State University; he completed teaching certificates for both Pennsylvania and Virginia, returned to Pennsylvania State University for a Master of Music in Conducting and is about to complete his Doctor of Musical Arts from the Catholic University of America.
He loved teaching 6th- and 7th-grade choirs, but he was accepted two years ago into the U.S. Air Force to be a conductor. It was during basic training in the summer of 2012 that he learned he had been chosen as the winner of a contest to conduct the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He had seen the contest online and he sent in a video of himself conducting the Choir’s recording of “Ode to Joy.” His wife, Jenny, compiled the video.
Justin was given the opportunity to conduct the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on Sunday, February 17, 2013, after their weekly broadcast from the Conference Center on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.
Justin and Jenny are both talented, hard-working musicians. They recognize their talents are a gift from God and should be used to bless others’ lives. They are raising a family and make that their true focus. Enhancing and using their musical talents brings them joy and allows them to share these things with others as well. (more…)
by Keith L. Brown | Feb 23, 2013 | Black Mormon
“Africa has been held in reserve by the Lord,” Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said in an October 2010 visit to Burundi. “Africa will someday be seen as a bright land full of gospel hope and happiness.” [2]
Africa is one of the fastest growing areas of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (mistakenly referred to as the Mormon Church by members of other faiths) with some 320,000 members, the majority of whom have joined the Church over the past 30 years. These faithful Saints have found that hope and happiness spoken of by Elder Holland through embracing the teachings of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Every year, as congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ continue to grow in different areas of the world, several dozen new stakes (congregational groups similar to Catholic dioceses) are organized.
In December 2012, Elder Holland organized the 3,000th worldwide stake of The Church of Jesus Christ in Freetown, Sierra Leone. This is the first stake in the West African nation and is comprised of eight congregations (approximately 3,000 members.) “So much is happening that there seems to be this momentum, and it really seems to be featuring now the African moment, in a sense,” Elder Holland says. [1] (more…)
by byustudent | Feb 13, 2013 | About Mormons
BYU (Brigham Young University) is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often mistakenly called the “Mormon Church.” BYU students take nearly a semester of spiritually uplifting, stimulating religion classes.
In this series (see below), students enrolled in scripture study classes have shared their thoughts, insights, and reflections on the Book of Mormon in the form of letters to someone they know. We invite you to take a look at their epiphanies and discoveries as they delve into the scriptures.
In publishing these, we fulfill their desire to speak to all of us of the relevance, power and beauty of the Book of Mormon, a second witness of Jesus Christ and complement to the Bible. The Book of Mormon includes the religious history of a group of Israelites who settled in ancient America. (The names they use are those of prophets who taught the Book of Mormon peoples to look forward to the coming of Christ—Nephi, Lehi, Alma, Helaman, and other unfamiliar names. We hope those names will become more familiar to you as you read their inspiring words and feel the relevance and divinity of their messages through these letters.) (more…)
by melborupchandler | Nov 18, 2012 | About Mormons
When I was a young man, about ten years old, I was enamored with the Book of Mormon. One of the defining features of the Book of Mormon is that the ancient prophets and warriors wrote records on metal plates. Actually, the Book of Mormon is a translation of some of those records. (See Exodus 28:36; Exodus 39:30; Mosiah 28:11; Mosiah 8:9.)
I was at a book store and I saw a small pocket-sized book with a seal and a key. I did not want my parents or my pesky brothers or sisters reading my record. I also fancied myself as a secret agent. I was intrigued at making my own secret ink and made a pen with a quill from a crow’s feather. I even carved a stylus with my pocket knife and made plates of clay, but it did not work out so well, because they broke, and besides it was hard work. The “key idea” resonated with me, because it was so easy. I did not know the process was called journaling. For me it was just something fun to do. In those days only girls kept diaries, the idea of a “diary” seemed effeminate, but record keeping (journaling) was fascinating and manly. (more…)
