Liberal Church Members

I have noticed an alarming increase in the number of "progressive" or "liberal" minded members of the LDS Church who appear to have simply adopted the propaganda of the liberal media and are only too happy to slam conservative values. This is manifested in some of the letters bashing the president for the war in Iraq (agreed to and funded by Congress), the economy (which is booming), same sex marriage (an obvious disgrace to mankind) and abortion, among other things. Do these "liberal Mormons" realize liberalism is the foundation of socialism? The mission of liberals is to make the American people so weak and dependent on the government that they can literally control every aspect of life. Of course, nobody will admit that.

Conservative values, in their purest sense, promote self-reliance, protect the family and, when practiced properly, greatly reduce spending and governmental involvement in our lives. It is a mystery to me why so many BYU students will submit hateful letters, which merely recite the latest dicta presented on CNN or in the New York Times. As students of BYU, we may not agree on politics; however, we should certainly agree on the very basics. I was in disgust when Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), a self-proclaimed temple recommend holder, blatantly rejected the prophet and voted against the Constitutional Amendment to ban same-sex marriage. Who else is willing to sell their soul in order to blindly join the mainstream liberal mantra?

Brad Royal

Las Vegas, Nev.

Glory to God

In response to "Glorify God, not prophet," (Dec. 13) allow me to clarify a few things. Tithing money does not pay for buildings at BYU. They are paid for with specific donations. You can sleep easy now. Is there a difference between naming a building after Pres. Hinckley while he's alive and after he has passed away? I'm not sure I understand the distinction.

By wanting to name a building that educates visitors about BYU and the gospel of Christ, why not name it after the man who has done so much to improve the image of the Church? Would it not be sacrilegious to name a building "The Heavenly Father Visitors and Alumni Center"? If it's not named after Him, it has to be named after someone. To accuse those who support the building of glorifying the prophet,? maybe your letter is better directed at the Board of Trustees that voted unanimously in favor of naming the building after President Hinckley. I'm sure the members of the board, (like Elder Eyring, Elder Scott, and other members of the general authorities) would really be grateful to find out that they are glorifying President Hinckley, not God. For everyone else who is level headed, I encourage you to donate to the Gordon B. Hinckley Building. What a great opportunity we have to be a part of that legacy. The amount isn't important. What's important is that you give something and are a part of something truly magnificent, and a building named for one of the greatest men alive is truly magnificent.

Kevin Henderson

Poway, Calif.

Special TAs Aailable Now

The author of the letter regarding the lack of non-member religion classes asked that there be special TAs for non-members. In fact they are here. They are called missionaries.

Bill Lund

Provo

Non-Member Challenges

I would like to thank the author of "Voice fall on deaf ears," (Dec. 13) for writing a letter on behalf of non-LDS students concerning the non-member section for Book of Mormon. Let me add that a while ago, a representative from the Student Advisory Council e-mailed all non-members asking why a non-member section was necessary.

Quite a few people responded with valid reasons, which included ease of learning, interaction with other non-members, and simple fairness.

After a long wait, the representative sent another mass e-mail saying that the Ancient Scripture department has motivations for removing this section, without explaining what these "motivations" are.

I took D&C last semester, and I struggled to keep up during lectures. Questions on the test expected us to have the scriptures memorized-which was not mentioned in the syllabus-an impossible expectation since we only studied concepts in class. We are graded on a similar scale with students who study these scriptures regularly. It is like grading a Bio 100 student on the same scale you would a biology scholar.

If the concern is we would not appreciate the scriptures the same way LDS students would, then given our religious background I do not see why we should. If the issue is the lack of interaction between members and non-members, I can safely say that we get enough of that in other classes. The point is that for non-members to willingly accept the removal of the section, we need to know the reasons behind it.

Adisti Regar

Jakarta, Indonesia

Defining Christian

In response to the poor confused author of "Not a Christian?" (Dec. 13) who didn't know if he was Christian, allow me to clear a few things up for this poor guy. Christianity as defined by non-members means that a person believes in doctrines such as the trinity and transubstantiation (the sacrament literally becoming the blood and body of Christ upon consumption).

If you were to tell a "Christian" that you were a Christian, you would be wrong, since their definition is different from yours. In the LDS Church, we use the word Christian to define a follower of the gospel of Christ. So, by the Latter-day Saint definition, you are a Christian. But, according to the non-member definition, you are not a "Christian."

Leslie Kuykendall

Bakersfield, Calif.

Why Recycle?

I wanted to write and let everyone know how angry recycling paper makes me. Recycle paper? You've got to be kidding me. Paper comes from trees. Trees are a renewable resource; they grow every 30 years. They have farms of trees. Actual farms of trees. Why don't we recycle the chickens we eat? Because they come from farms where they grow. If that is the case, then why should we recycle paper? I think that anyone who recycles paper is simply doing it for the comfort of his or her own conscience and not for the benefit of the environment.

This means that everyone who puts a newspaper in one of the recycling bins on campus isn't being a shepherd but a hireling. In the flock, which is the environment, there are people like me, the shepherds, who don't recycle paper because they know it would do nothing, and the hirelings, who recycle paper because they are more concerned about how they look than the actual environment itself. Me not recycling does nothing to hurt the environment because it's going to grow back in 30 years; while you recycling doesn't hurt the environment either you're being dishonest to others about your intentions. And, if you lie to yourself, that just isn't good. So, every time you recycle paper either scream: "I'm doing this for self-aggrandizement," or just don't do it.

Stephen Dethloff

Murphy, Texas

Unrighteous Dominion?

In response to the illogical rant "Let them have dominion" (Dec. 13) denouncing a rather thoughtful letter on the environment ("Defiled Mountain," Dec. 8), it is obvious that the writer has an incorrect idea of what constitutes man's dominion over the earth that has been delegated to him by God. Dominion is not the right to pollute, plunder and exploit God's creations. In the words of Brigham Young, man's dominion entitles him to "progress and improve upon, and make beautiful everything around [him],"?? (JD 8:83). It is "to beautify the face of the earth, until it shall become like the garden of Eden" (JD 1:254), and "to handle the temporal elements of this world and subdue the earth, multiplying those organisms of plants and animals God has designed shall dwell upon it" (JD 9:168).

Dominion is not a license to destroy living organisms, but rather a stewardship to multiply them for the beauty of the earth. And then, the earth can "both please the eye and to gladden the heart" (D&C 59:18). This power of God delegated to man to help create and sustain life, "this dominion" is nothing less than priesthood, and when we exercise that dominion or priesthood unrighteously, "behold, the heavens withdraw themselves, [and] the

Spirit of the Lord is grieved,"?? (D&C 121:37). So before the author assumes the right to tell others that they are attending the wrong institution for his or her education, perhaps he should educate himself on the issues he is addressing.

Christopher Jones

Plano, Texas

Misunderstanding

I think there may be a misunderstanding. The words "worship" and "honor," though often coupled as synonyms, surprisingly have very different meanings. You can find these differences in your nearest Webster's Dictionary or the popular Dictionary.com. Along with gaining a valuable understanding of denotation vs. connotation, you may discover the Alumni Associations' true motivation for naming their new building after Gordon B. Hinckley.

What in the world is the difference between building and dedicating a building to someone who is living and to someone who has passed away? Is it less blasphemous posthumously? Is there a greater chance of becoming prideful when they're 96-years-old, then when they can no longer see the building? These are some perplexing questions I hope we all consider when we decide to name our children after our living parents and perhaps give them the false sense that we are worshipping them.

As for your other questions, I'm not qualified to answer them, as I am not a member of the Alumni Association or the Architect that decided to give President Hinckley his very own clock tower. I suggest you do some research and find the answers. But when all is said and done, honoring our prophet is not degrading God.

Katherine Gee

Austin, Texas

If You Can't Say Something Nice...

I was scanning The Daily Universe looking for a place to satisfy my passion for writing. Then, I came across the Readers' Forum. After carefully reviewing the published letters, I came to the conclusion that most BYU students truly have nothing to write about.

I read one that emphatically blamed the university for glorifying the prophet and not God by constructing a building in President Hinckley's honor. My first thought was, who is this guy Does he not realize that following the prophet is the same as following God, and likewise glorifying the prophet is the same as glorifying God. Don't just carry your scriptures around - read them. (Also read "Joseph Smith: A Revealer of Christ," by Bruce R.

McConkie).

I also read two letters; one about Mormons not being Christians and another was about the demolition of the Deseret Towers. Both were failed attempts to arouse the public on flawed logic. Why don't BYU students write about something more important?

As BYU students, we traverse the halls of the Wilkinson Center three or four times a week. Many of those times are spent among fellow students eating in the Terrace. Why doesn't someone write about all the trash that is left by the nasty students who can't pick up after themselves? Oh, my bad, that's not nearly as important as placing doubt in the minds of others for honoring of our prophet.

De-Wayne Dennis

Christiansted, Virgin Islands

Wo is Us

The God Alumni and Visitors Center...yeah, that sure has a nice ring to it. I just thought I would come out and follow the advice given in "Glorify God, not prophet" (Dec. 13). (Sarcasm approaching). I was deeply appalled at the mention of being "no better than BYU-Idaho" - how terrible that is. We now find ourselves at that same low level as BYU-Idaho because we have a building with the living prophet's name in the title, wo is us.

How does naming a building after the deceased give more glory to God than having a building named after someone still breathing? Perhaps the living would be more able to benefit from such a self-entitled building as was argued, "Now BYU has...constructed an enormous building for President Hinckley." I doubt the Prophet has plans to use the new Visitors Center as his summer home. Should we throw shame on the prophet Lehi for naming that valley and river after his then living sons when he could have "glorified God" with a dead person's name? Probably not.

And to the argument that the money for the Visitors Center could have been better spent on other buildings that "will actually benefit the university" -- hehehe. How will being better able to showcase our university and the religion behind it to the public ever be beneficial? Well ya got me--you must be right, more room for soil testing in the Widstoe will help roll along the work much more.

Devin Warner

San Antonio, Texas

If it Wasn't for My Peers..

Thank heavens for the students we have here at BYU, specifically those who were a part of the readers' forum Wednesday. If it wasn't for their self-righteousness I believe the other tens of thousands of us would remain in darkness. If it wasn't for the questions they pose, the doctrine they clarify, and the examples they give, we all would remain in a state of ignorance and confusion. Just think we almost built that alumni center as our "golden calf" to worship an idol instead of spending money to give my biology professor a bigger office. Also, if the question of whether I am a Christian or not had not been so carefully articulated I would have never realized that not only am I not Christian, according to the author, but I am not a man. Let me explain. When a girl vents about her ex-boyfriend to me and says, "guys are so dumb!" I know she isn't referring to me and therefore I can conclude that I am not a guy. Thanks for clearing that one up BYU.

P.S. Make sure to run into parked cars while texting your girlfriend in Brigham Square .

Jordan Staples

Fruit Heights

The Problem With Video Games

With the recent releases of Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii, I have reflected on how detrimental video games are to the moral of today's youth. Of the two afore mentioned consoles, the Wii is by far the most dangerous. This new system allows the player to swing a controller and cause an object on screen to swing in similar fashion. This object can range from a tennis racket to a sword to a bowling ball. Most consumers will see this as a cute novelty, but they overlook the inherent evil of such a game.

Impressionable children or teens will spend hours honing their skills on a simulated blade and do well in the video game. This will give them delusions of grandeur and they will incorrectly assume that they will have the same success with real swords. So, instead of running when ninjas attack, like most normal people do, they will stay, fight and ultimately lose. The same is true with the tennis games, granted they probably won't die after being bested in tennis, but they will have lifelong self-esteem issues and hours of costly counseling.

Craig Dittman

Moorpark Calif.

The Definition of Christian

In response to the poor confused author of "Not a Christian?" (Dec. 13) who didn't know if he was Christian, allow me to clear a few things up for this poor guy. Christianity as defined by non-members means that a person believes in doctrines such as the trinity and transubstantiation (the sacrament literally becoming the blood and body of Christ upon consumption).

If you were to tell a "Christian" that you were a Christian, you would be wrong, since they're definition is different from yours. In the LDS Church, we use the word Christian to define a follower of the gospel of Christ. So, by the Latter-day Saint definition, you are a Christian. But, according to the non-member definition, you are not a "Christian."

Leslie Kuykendall

Bakersfield, Calif.

Honor Prophet

The self-righteous declaration of the "Glorify God, not prophet" letter caught my eye. I agreed with the title; however, once I dived into the letter I saw the shortcomings associated with an illogical argument.

To address the first issue: the scientists in the Widstoe are neither the cash cows nor the catalyst of progress for the university. The sports teams and the alumni are. They make the money, and, in the case of the alumni, donate it to the university. Is this necessarily a perfect system? I don't think so, but my opinion won't change that fact. The scientists of the Widstoe, the cramped economists of the FOB, the humanities professors of the spacious JFSB, and the lumped One-Stop office all benefit from a trickle-down effect when the university caters to the aforementioned groups. Not every expense of BYU is paid through tithing donations.

To address the second issue: no sane person at BYU or BYU-I has prayed to God in the name of Gordon B. Hinckley. Building a building named after someone is not blasphemous -Solomon built a temple and throughout time it is known as "Solomon's Temple."

The university is honoring someone for wise leadership and sound advice. Gordon B. Hinckley has been guiding the university since probably before you were conceived. In fact, perhaps before your parents were. It is not a sin to honor someone.

To sum up, this isn't the prophet's own country. Feel free to honor him.

Thomas Roderick

Joshua, Texas

Provo Driving 101

1. Ignore the leading and following green arrows. When cars around you start honking, look confused and dig through your purse. Glance up once the light has gone red and pull out your cell phone...

2. Run as many red lights as possible from your date's apartment to the dollar theatre. Oh goody! Now you're there two minutes earlier, but don't count on a second date.

3. Get jiggy with it at each stoplight. Bust out the Disney sing-alongs and flail about in your vehicle. This provides entertainment to drivers around you.

4. Hit all bikers in the D.T. area. Most likely they are freshman.

5.Pedestrians - wear all black in the evening. Walk into oncoming traffic and expect drivers to see you. Win a Darwin Award.

This is just a reminder to everyone to pay attention and drive safely, especially if you don't have experience driving in the snow. Grab an experienced friend to teach you! Also, leave your house a few minutes earlier so you don't have to speed or run red lights. It's not worth the risk!

Caitlin Rogers

Escondido, Calif.

Copyright Brigham Young University 14 Dec 2006