by Keith L. Brown | Dec 13, 2013 | About Mormons
The official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently referred to as the “Mormon” Church” by the media and others) is LDS.org which is “part of a digital communications ecosystem made up of web, mobile, social, and media platforms.” [1] The amount of internet traffic that the site receives each month ranges upwards of 25 million visitors. Jeff Isom, director of LDS.org, commented, “It is believed to be the largest religious website in the world in terms of traffic, design, and content.” [1] With the ever increasing advances in technology, The Church of Jesus Christ is anxiously engaged in developing a website that is informative, educational, and user-friendly, in order for everyone to learn more about the gospel.
Blessing Heavenly Father’s Children with the Gospel
The LDS.org website was launched almost two decades ago, in 1996. Since its inception, the Church has developed, improved, and enhanced the capabilities of the main website, enabling Heavenly Father’s children to partake of the blessings of the gospel. The website is expected to expand even more as the work continues to move forward. One of the greatest challenges in working with a website of this capacity is having all of the various entities of the Church such as welfare, temple work, Church history, and the priesthood become more unified so that members can accomplish the work that they need to do. Since the Church has a lay clergy, every member is serving in some capacity. Resources are available to them on LDS.org. (more…)
by Keith L. Brown | Dec 11, 2013 | Mormon World Report
The Republic of the Philippines suffered major devastation as a result of Typhoon Haiyan, known as Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, which occurred in early November 2013.The powerful tropical cyclone ravaged many portions of Southeast Asia, with the Philippines being one of the hardest hit areas. The storm, recorded as one of the most deadly Philippine typhoons, claimed the lives of some 5,924 people, and not one missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently referred to as the “Mormon” Church by the media and others) was numbered among those who perished.
The Aftermath of the Storm
On 12 November 2013, 71 missionaries from the Tacloban mission arrived safely by bus in the capital city of Manila. There they were greeted by Elder Brent Nielsen, Philippines Area President, who had been expecting their arrival.
The missionaries had little more than the clothes on their backs as most of their belongings were washed away by the typhoon. They were given warm blankets, taken to the Missionary Training Center (MTC) cafeteria for a hot meal, given clothes that they could change into, and were able to notify their families of their safety via Skype and telephone calls. (more…)
by Keith L. Brown | Nov 20, 2013 | Famous Mormons
When a person hears the words “Imagine Dragons,” what might be the first thing that comes to mind? Perhaps they think of a mythological tale of a knight in shining armor defending a beautiful maiden in distress, or an entire village, from fire-breathing, man-eating dragons. That might be the case in a fairy tale adventure, but what about in reality?
Imagine Dragons is an alternative rock band that may at times claim Las Vegas, Nevada, to be their home; however, their real beginnings are in Utah. Guitarist Wayne “Wing” Sermon was born in American Fork, Utah, and lead singer Dan Reynolds attended Brigham Young University. Both are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently referred to as the “Mormon” Church by the media and others). The other members of the band are Ben McKee (bass) and Daniel Platzman (drummer). (more…)
by Keith L. Brown | Nov 20, 2013 | Famous Mormons
Horton Alexander “Cotton” Rosser is the owner of Cotton’s Cowboy Corral in Marysville, California, as well as, “one of the most successful stock contracting firms in professional rodeo,” the Flying U Rodeo Company, which is the oldest rodeo company in the world and the major supplier of rodeo stock in the United States. According to John Bascom, a relative of Rosser’s wife, Karin Allred Rosser (Miss Rodeo Utah from the Ogden, Utah area), the Flying U Rodeo Company was begun by J.C. “Doc” Sorenson of St. Anthony, Idaho. Bascom also states, “My late father Earl Bascom worked for that outfit when Doc had it back in the 1930’s.”
Earl Bascom was born in Utah in 1906, but he was raised in Alberta, Canada. His ingenuity led him to learn all that he could about horses and cattle thus helping him to become a rodeo champion. He also invented, designed, and made rode rigging that is still being used on the rodeo circuit today. In his later years he studied art, and he and his wife, Nadine, taught at schools in Southern California at high desert. When he died in 1985, Earl Bascom was “remembered throughout the West for his ability to span two seemingly disparate pursuits – rodeo and art.” [5] (more…)
by Keith L. Brown | Nov 15, 2013 | Famous Mormons
Todd Jay Christensen, an American football player who played in the National Football League from 1978 until 1988, was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, to Ned Jay and June Christensen on 3 August 1956. During his career as a professional football player, he spent most of his time playing tight end for the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders. He became well known as “The Renaissance Man” because of his varied interests.
An Athletic Prowess
When Todd was born, his father was pursuing a doctorate degree at Pennsylvania State University. His father taught in West Virginia for a time, and when Todd was 5 years of age, the family relocated to Eugene, Oregon, where his father was offered a job as a professor.
Todd was athletically gifted from a very young age. By the age of 9 he had already set world records in track and field. He had originally hoped to continue excelling in track and field, but by the time he reached puberty and adolescence, he soon discovered that although his mind was set on one goal, his body had other ideas. “Puberty and adolescence helped me realize that I was not as fast as I had thought,” he recalled. “My body went a different direction and that was when I started leaning towards football.” [1]
He graduated from Sheldon High School in Eugene, Oregon, and later attended Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. While attending BYU, from 1974 to 1977, he was a starter at running back. In 1977, he led the team for three consecutive seasons as a receiver, and was an All-Western Athletic Conference selection. His career numbers at BYU are impressive: 152 receptions, 1,568 yards, and 15 touchdowns. He graduated from BYU in 1978 with a degree in social work and soon embarked on a professional career in football. (more…)
