Washington DC Festival of Lights

The LDS temple in the Washington DC area is hosting its annual Festival of Lights celebration. During the Christmas season, the temple grounds hosts a variety of arts and musical groups for free entertainment for the local community. There are several international exhibits as well.

Please visit this website for more information.

The Church in China

I just read an old speech by Elder Dallin Oaks about the Church in China. Mormons have been in and out of China for decades and there has been a lot of progress for the Church in that region of the world. This talk was given in 1991 at BYU and should be re-given with the amazingly positive developments that have happened in the past 18 years!

The speech is available for free at:

http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=7070

I reflect on the improved religious liberties granted to the Chinese during recent years. Chinese leaders have been increasingly willing to support their people's rights to pursue faith and religious beliefs.

President Carter established official diplomatic ties with China in 1979, just a year after LDS Church President Spencer Kimball issued very prophetic remarks about the opening of the Church and the spread of the restored gospel in China. It is remarkable that President Obama has appointed a Mormon fluent in Mandarin, Jon Huntsman, to serve as the bridge between the U.S. and China. What a great opportunity for the LDS community globally and especially in Asia!

Please take a few minutes to read this. It really inspired me and I believe that the time will come for the LDS Church to truly grow and flourish throughout China.

10th annual Mormon Night at the Los Angeles Dodgers

This evening was the annual Mormon Night at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. It was perfect weather, the game was exciting, and the Latter-day Saints were out in the thousands. LDS singers performed the national anthem and a few other songs. Elder Ballard threw the night's first pitch. It was a great evening!

The L.A. Dodgers host Mormon Night on an annual basis as a way to thank and recognize the Mormon community in Southern California for being the most active supporting organization. According to the Dodgers' website, this was the 10th annual Mormon Night!

For more information, check out:

http://www.mlb.com/la/ticketing/supergroup.jsp?group=lds

Mormons and LDS General Conference on top of Twitter trends!

During this weekend's General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Twitter tag #ldsconf reached the #1 spot on Twitter. Thousands of Latter-day Saints have been using Twitter to share favorite quotations and references from conference talks, as well as to share their own feelings and testimonies of the gospel and Church.

To follow #ldsconf on Twitter, visit: http://search.twitter.com/search?q=%23ldsconf

We are now on Twitter!!

Please FOLLOW this blog's Twitter feed:  https://twitter.com/whoaremormons

I hope to have regularly updated info on Mormons in the news, and updated to this blog.  Enjoy and let me know what you think!

https://twitter.com/whoaremormons

LDS Democrats no longer outnumbered by LDS Republicans in U.S. Senate

For the first time in at least twenty years, among Mormons serving in the U.S. Senate, there are as many Democrats as Republicans:

Democrats:

• Harry Reid (Nevada)
• Tom Udall (New Mexico)
• Mark Udall (Colorado)

Republicans:

• Orrin Hatch (Utah)
• Robert Bennett (Utah)
• Mike Crapo (Idaho)

The Udall cousins were elected in 2008 and entered the Senate earlier this month.  Gordon Smith, the moderate Republican from Oregon, lost in his race against liberal Democrat, Jeff Merkley.

I'll try to post info on current LDS in the House of Reps.

Mormon Artist magazine is launched

The new magazine, Mormon Artist, is available online for free here.

Ben Crowder (not pictured above) is founding editor of the newly launched magazine, Mormon Artist.  The magazine is dedicated to Latter-day Saints in the arts and Mormon themed art, music, photography, dance, theater, and cinema.  

The magazine looks great and will serve a highly needed role in the Mormon arts community.  

Church in Jamaica

The Church is growing in Jamaica and has attracted attention of the Jamaica Gleaner News. 

Taken from the article:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is also known as the Mormon Church, has congregations in every parish in Jamaica, and there is the prospect that two more congregations will be established by 2010 - one in Port Antonio and the other in Old Harbour.

Mormon scholar receives honor for work on international religious freedom and human rights

Professor Cole Durham, of the BYU Law School, was in Richmond, Virginia, earlier this month to receive the First Freedom Award.  

Professor Durham's work in promoting international religious freedom has gained him much attention around the world.  He has worked to improve religious liberties throughout the world in places such as Russia, Peru, and Iraq.  

Durham also organizes the annual International Law and Religion Symposium, held each October in Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah.  The event attracts government officials, religious leaders, clergy, scholars, and others from over 50 countries, including China, Spain, and India.

Church's new video

A beautiful new video produced by the Church:

http://mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/learning-center-video-popup?mediaId=finding-happiness-6-03

Pres. Uchtdorf and Elder Ballard at Obama's Inauguration

“It is always an honor for the Church to be represented at the inauguration of a new president,” said President Thomas S. Monson. “We send our best wishes to President Obama and pray for the blessings of a loving Father in Heaven to be upon him and his administration.”

In this second photo, the Church leaders attend and participate in the National Prayer Service on Wed., Jan. 21, 2009.

Mormons in the Obama Administration

We are just starting to get word on the details of the incoming administration. Here are some members of the Obama Administration who are Latter-day Saints:

• Gordon Flake, advisor on Korea and East Asia
• Jon Huntsman, U.S. Ambassador to the People's Republic of CHINA

BYU football: loss of Teo?

Report: Cougars lose out on Te'o

Several recruiting publications, including Total Blue Sports, are reporting that BYU has lost out on the Manti Te'o sweepstakes.

Teo, the top outside linebacker in the country, has narrowed his top three choices to USC, UCLA and Notre Dame. Te'o told TBS that "when it came down to it I just thought I could make a bigger impact and be a bigger influence elsewhere. I think at a school like USC or UCLA, I could really represent the Mormon church well."

Tom Hanks issues apology to Mormon community

From this morning's Chicago Tribune:

Tom Hanks is rethinking his comments about Mormons who supported Proposition 8, People.com reported Thursday.

Last week he spoke out about the religious group's involvement in passing the California law, which bans same-sex marriage. Referring to the group's financial support of the law, Hanks said, "There are a lot of people who feel that is un-American, and I am one of them."

Kim Farah, speaking for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, told Fox News, "Expressing an opinion in a free and democratic society is as American as it gets."

Now Hanks says, "Everyone has a right to vote their conscience—nothing could be more American. ... No one should use 'un-American' lightly."

The top 10 most famous Mormons in 2008:

1. Mitt Romney
2. Harry Reid
3. David Archuleta
4. Glenn Beck
5. Aaron Eckhart
6. Thomas S. Monson
   
7. Orrin Hatch
8. Gordon Smith
9. Bob Bennett
10. David Neeleman

Mormons at the Inauguration of President Barack Obama

On Tuesday morning, thousands of American Latter-day Saints attended the Inauguration of America's 44th president, Barack Obama.  Among the millions in Washington for the events, many Mormons shared the moment of Obama's new administration.  Some prominent LDS in attendance:

• Senator Harry Reid, U.S. Senate Majority Leader (D-NV)
• Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT)
• Other LDS members of Congress, e.g. the Udall cousins (D-Nm, D-CO), Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), etc.
• Mayor Mufi Hannemann, mayor of Honolulu, Hawai'i
• David Archuleta, singer
• Dieter Uchtdorf, 2nd counselor in the LDS Church's First Presidency (not American citizen)
• Russell Ballard, member of the Church's Quorum of the 12 Apostles

Mufi Hannemann one of earliest supporters of Obama

President-elect (until 22 hours from now) Barack Obama received early support from the mayor of his hometown, Honolulu: Mayor Mufi Hannemann, an LDS Democrat who has served in several presidential administrations, including Carter, Clinton, and Reagan.

David Archuleta at Sundance

 The Los Angeles Times covers an encounter with the young Mormon singer, David Archuleta, while partying during the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

Jeff, watching with me, nodded and said: "This is how Mormons party. It's just like kids everywhere, just without the sex and drugs. But there's always lots of music." He credited the Mormon faith for encouraging this devotion to music. "It's about instilling in them a sense that there are no limits to what you can be."

If one wonders where a David Achuleta comes from — a prodigy who expresses himself more naturally in music than in words — this seemed a glimpse at the answer. Through the night, the wandering tribe of 9- to 19-year-olds rarely paused, breaking into song at every possible moment — even, as I soon learned, in extreme circumstances.

ABC News take a look inside the new LDS Temple in Draper, Utah

Mayor of Honolulu and Samoan heritage

As the first Samoan-American to graduate from Harvard University, Mayor Mufi Hannemann honors his Samoan heritage at an event in Hawai'i.  Mayor Hannemann is the second Mormon to serve as mayor of the city of Honolulu.  He has served as a high councilor in the Honolulu West Stake.  

He recently participated in a celebration honoring Samoan culture and heritage.  

Christmas Lights at Washington DC LDS Temple

If you're in the Washington DC area, please visit the LDS Temple during evening hours. The Temple's grounds are beautifully decorated with thousands of Christmas lights.  This year's lighting ceremony was conducted by Neil Andersen of the Church and the Honorable Ronen Sen, Ambassador of India to the United States.

The temple is located just outside of Washington at: 9900 Stoneybrook Drive, Kensington, Maryland 20895.  It is a quick drive through the woods from the I-495 freeway.  Open through the beginning of January!

Canadian students research Mormonism because of David Archuleta

This is an interesting, kind of random video. Some Canadian schoolgirls decided to look into Mormonism because their favorite American Idol finalist, David Archuleta, is LDS.

Take a look:

Mormons in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, etc.

This is an excerpt from one of my favorite Church-made videos, "Ensign to the Nations":

Do Mormons Drink Caffeine? - video

Latter-day Saints live by a health code known as the Word of Wisdom that counsels against the use of alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, coffee, non-herbal teas, etc.  Some have asked if we Mormons drink caffeinated drinks such as Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, etc.  Thank you to these nice young LDS girls for posting this video and giving us a good answer. Thanks!

Five (5) Mormon authors are currently on the New York Times Bestsellers list

Five members of the LDS Church have fiction books currently listed among the New York Times Bestsellers! Article here.

Mormon Temple to be constructed in Trujillo, Peru

The LDS Church has announced that a new temple is planned to be constructed in the city of Trujillo, Peru.  This will be the second LDS temple to built in Peru, where the Church has had phenomenal growth.  This article contains more information.

LDS Temple to be constructed in Rome, Italy

President Thomas Monson announced yesterday that the Church has plans to construct a new temple in the area of Rome, Italy.

There are over 22,000 members of the LDS Church in Italy, who will be served by the newly built temple. Also included in the temple district will be other regions of southern and eastern Europe.

Other Mormon temples are located in Copenhagen, Bern, London, Madrid, Frankfurt, Stockholm, and the Hague, among other European capitals and cities.

Boston Globe looks at Mormon growth in urban centers

This article discusses a new LDS stake center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  

The LDS Church is strengthening its efforts to grow in major urban centers from Boston to New York and Miami.  

The Church in Taiwan

Found a great article on the Church's growth and expansion in Taiwan.  Find it here.

Romney's political future?

Some Mormons have expressed disappointment over John McCain's choice as running mate: Sarah Palin of Alaska.  Many Latter-day Saints were hoping that McCain would choose former Mass. governor Mitt Romney.  Romney's credentials are somewhat strong, and many speculate that he has a strong political future on the horizon.  

Now that Mitt won't be President of Vice-President (this time, at least), perhaps John McCain--if he wins in Nov. '08-- will recruit him for a cabinet-level position.  With Romney's solid "economic" experience, he could fill positions such as Sec. of Commerce or Sec. of Treasury in a Republican administration.  

Now we'll look to see if there is any room for Mormons in an Obama administration.  Stay tuned.