Christian Influencers: "To glorify God, we must have the 10 Commandments studied in schools, including 'Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.'" Also Christian Influencers:

Samuel's (first) wife is Mary Haskins Parker Richards, who had a nifty edition of her Winter Quarters Journal published several years back!

Reading through some typescript journals, I had wondered why so many redactions were happening in context of officiating in the Endowment house, but then I found a couple unredacted ones where he's just noting what role he played in the drama that day. Usually abbreviated, like 'Y.' for Yehovah.

So who know - maybe the Lectures on Faith presentation of the Holy Spirit as being the shared Mind of Jesus and the Father could be due for a revisit! lecturesonfaith.com/5/

Why is this relevant to what I've been talking about? Because the concept of Jesus possessing the 'Name of God' in him as the source of his power and unity with the Father was the way Gospel of John presented the same concept Mark does with the Spirit of God, might be a good time!

President Oaks' interest in emphasis on the concept and language of the "Name of God" as a distinct thing one receives and possesses has been working itself more into the main stream understanding of Temple and Sacramental liturgy. This is actually really helpful!

Heard a guest on a popular LDS podcast this week saying we don't have an explanation why women don't need to be ordained to Priesthood office to do temple work like men do. The answer is Confirmation/Holy Ghost was the OG authorization/power & the Priesthood Correlation program shifted away from it.

We applied this early in the Restoration, too! As early as the 1830s, miracles/healing blessings (including by women) were authorized by virtue of their having received the Holy Ghost. The reception of the Spirit was the initial proto-endowment of what we today include within 'Priesthood'.

This is also partly because we have funneled all expressions of "Power of God" into the term "Priesthood". But in the NT (particularly Mark), the Divine Spirit is the power Jesus used to perform his miracles. The Jerusalem Endowment was the reception of the Divine Spirit by the disciples.

Putting out there into the world another project I'm developing: in the Latter-day Saint tradition, we've emphasized the "Holy Ghost as personage in the Godhead" so much that we misread usages of Holy Spirit/Divine Spirit in the scriptures that use it in the way we use "Priesthood Power" today.

I'm pretty sure this is a canonically sound Latter-day Saint position.

LXX Book Completion reading progress: ✅️Genesis ✅️Exodus ✅️Ruth ✅️Leviticus Numbers will probably take a while 😅 #ComeFollowMe

#CurriculumWatch Last year the Come Follow Me manual for 2026 was published online Friday, July 11. The year before, the 2025 was published at the end of August. 2024 was July 13. So we should be seeing the New Testament 2027 manual (last to get a Home & Church edition) posting online... soonish ;)

Ironic, as building up nonconventional families and claiming their kinship ties eternally valid using every means possible, particularly through adoption, is the most Joseph Smithian concept possible.

@benjaminepark.bsky.social 's recent history of the Second Anointing ritual reminded me of when my eyebrow raised upon reading Russell M. Nelson's autobiography "From Heart To Heart" several years ago.

And today's selection from the Office of Readings (from Saint Clement) is also condemning schizmatics 👀

The link is still up, but still nothing.

Looks like a big Deseret News op/ed by Dallin Oaks on religious freedom is coming later today... This posted last night, but the link doesn't work, and it's not on the website.

It blew my mind this morning to discover that today's scripture passage in the Liturgy of the Hours' Office of Readings *that every priest, deacon, & religious with consecrated vows in the worldwide Catholic Church is obligated to read* is about Uzzah being struck down for steadying the ark.

Just as there is a Liturgical Year. And each Day of the week has its own sacred time with Sunday being a weekly memorial of the Resurrection/Easter and new Creation, LotH makes each day a mini-Gospel as told through time.

Every Morning prayer contains Zacharias' song the Benedictus, speaking of the promises of salvation amd hope, and the forerunner. Amd then Every evening had Mary's Magnificat. Salvation is drawing nearer!

Psalm 95 speaks about the children of Israel wandering for 40 years, not being able to enter into the rest of the Lord. But then in the final office of the day, Night Prayer, or Compline, we DO enter into that rest!

I love the Invititory. Before starting whatever first office you do that day (either Morning Prayer or Office of Readings), you start here, after declaring 'Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will proclaim your praise' as your first words of the day,we move into Psalm 95.

Now these books take training, and use several ribbons to keep place! There's the general order for each office, the unique seasonal/daily theme or antiphons, and a distinct Psalter, and more! It's ... a lot!

Then came the Liturgy of the Hours. Instead of 1 book, 4 volumes. Tied deeply to the liturgical year. Daily Lectionary is not part of it (Readings are part of the Mass), although there is a separate Office of Readings w/ selection from ancient Church writers and a separate scripture block.

What I got most out of using the Church of England experience was setting apart time and structure. 79 Episcopal BCP introduced me to some beautiful prayers, that I decided to memorize, that still really help activate my thoughts and jumpstart my personal extemporaneous prayers.

The next year, I worked through the American Episcopalian Book of Common Prayer (1979). Similar structure, but a little different! Really was appreciating the daily Psalm diet, and the daily Magnificat and Benedictus. Night Prayer/Compline to finish out the night was lovely and calming.

Sure! I started with the Church of England's 'Common Worship: Daily Prayer', their 2000 update of the Book of Common Prayer. I watched videos & used their app for help! Got used to basic structure of Psalms, lectionary readings, standard prayers & phrases. www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-w...