KTVB Channel 7 in Boise, Idaho reports that Alex Balinski, a 23-year-old BYU student in Utah who previously served a mission in Argentina, has created a website cataloging thousands of videos about the food, history and traditions of many of the countries where Mormon missionaries serve. The website is entitled "Prepare To Serve", and is not an official website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Balinski has been spending at least six hours a day indexing existing YouTube videos and shooting new interviews with returned missionaries; his goal is to supplement existing LDS missionary preparation and information resources by educating future missionaries about how best to interact in the cultures where they'll be proselytizing.
http://preparetoserve.com/
The site is now linked on my left sidebar under the category Pro-Mormon Websites. Since the site is still a work in progress, loading and navigation are still a bit erratic and clunky at this point, particularly on the main page. This problem will undoubtedly be corrected.
The site's video playlist links to over 10,000 videos, most of which are from missions outside the United States. In addition, the Resources header contains links to an alphabetical list of all LDS missions (405 as of this post) and a list of missionary websites and blogs. Most of the blogs are edited by family and friends of the missionaries, who receive their letters from the field and post the information on the websites. Balinski's website operating expenses are paid by commercial sponsors, who currently pony up $100 per month, which helps since he quit his full-time job in the Fall of 2012 and decided to concentrate full time on the website. He's currently earning $600 per month from his sponsors. He also says he vetted the idea with a local church leader before proceeding to ensure he was accurately reflecting LDS information. Balinski thinks the site will take about three years to complete, and wants to have as many as 50,000 videos posted when complete.
Even though KTVB is just now reporting it, this is not a new story. KSL Channel 5 first reported it back on April 14th:
Official LDS information about missionary service remains available at LDS.org.
Showing posts with label media. Show all posts
Showing posts with label media. Show all posts
Monday, July 8, 2013
Thursday, August 30, 2012
LDS Church Officially Reacts To NBC's "Mormon In America", Characterizes It As "A Sincere Attempt To Know The Faith"
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has finally posted official reaction to the NBC News special entitled "Mormon In America", which aired on August 24th, 2012. On the Mormon Newsroom blog, in a post entitled "Mormonism in the News: Getting It Right August 29", they characterized the program as "a sincere attempt to know the faith" and lauded it as "a good example of what we mean when we say we want to be a part of the global discussion of Mormonism".
The Church did cite three parts of the report which could have been improved:
-- Temple Garments: This segment was considered mildly insensitive because it showed a picture of individuals wearing the garments. The LDS Church prefers that media outlets report on temple garments the same way as they would religious vestments of other faiths.
-- Insufficient Distinction Between Temples And Chapels: During one segment, Brian Williams was protrayed as sitting outside a temple and wishing he could enter it just like a Catholic cathedral. While it is correct that only devout LDS members vetted by their bishops can enter LDS temples after they are formally dedicated, it is also true that the public is always welcome to attend any of the Church’s 28,000 weekly Sunday worship services around the globe.
-- Word Of Wisdom Does Not Specifically Mention Caffeine: The NBC special erroneously stated that caffeine was forbidden. More precisely, it is hot drinks, further defined as coffee and tea, that are forbidden.
For those who may have missed it or want to watch it again, the full 42 minutes of the show is posted on YouTube. Audio is a bit low.
Unofficial reaction by individual LDS members was posted to a host of Utah media websites, where secular coverage was more detailed. In comments posted to the August 24th KSL Channel 5 news story, many found the picture of the garments to be offensive, but a considerable number were also unhappy with the point of view espoused by Abby Huntsman, one of the daughters of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. Abby has evolved into what can be best described as a "New Order Mormon", and thinks the Church should be less secretive. A few people were also unhappy with the points of view espoused by Joanna Brooks, a faithful member of the Church who flirts with feminism and has promoted gay rights. Brooks was perceived to have been obsessed with "patriarchy" within the LDS Church and promoting the idea that women should have the Priesthood conferred upon them. Nevertheless, the general consensus was that NBC strived to be fair and balanced.
The Church did cite three parts of the report which could have been improved:
-- Temple Garments: This segment was considered mildly insensitive because it showed a picture of individuals wearing the garments. The LDS Church prefers that media outlets report on temple garments the same way as they would religious vestments of other faiths.
-- Insufficient Distinction Between Temples And Chapels: During one segment, Brian Williams was protrayed as sitting outside a temple and wishing he could enter it just like a Catholic cathedral. While it is correct that only devout LDS members vetted by their bishops can enter LDS temples after they are formally dedicated, it is also true that the public is always welcome to attend any of the Church’s 28,000 weekly Sunday worship services around the globe.
-- Word Of Wisdom Does Not Specifically Mention Caffeine: The NBC special erroneously stated that caffeine was forbidden. More precisely, it is hot drinks, further defined as coffee and tea, that are forbidden.
For those who may have missed it or want to watch it again, the full 42 minutes of the show is posted on YouTube. Audio is a bit low.
Unofficial reaction by individual LDS members was posted to a host of Utah media websites, where secular coverage was more detailed. In comments posted to the August 24th KSL Channel 5 news story, many found the picture of the garments to be offensive, but a considerable number were also unhappy with the point of view espoused by Abby Huntsman, one of the daughters of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. Abby has evolved into what can be best described as a "New Order Mormon", and thinks the Church should be less secretive. A few people were also unhappy with the points of view espoused by Joanna Brooks, a faithful member of the Church who flirts with feminism and has promoted gay rights. Brooks was perceived to have been obsessed with "patriarchy" within the LDS Church and promoting the idea that women should have the Priesthood conferred upon them. Nevertheless, the general consensus was that NBC strived to be fair and balanced.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Change In LDS Definition Of "Membership" Since 2000 Caused ASARB To Overstate LDS Growth Rate From 2000-2010
On May 3rd, 2012, the Salt Lake Tribune reported that the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB) overstated the growth rate of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during the period 2000-2010. According to the ASARB's 2010 U.S. Religion Census, the LDS Church reported an increase from 4,224,026 U.S. members in 2000 to 6,144,582 members in 2010, a 45.5 percent jump.
However, the Tribune discovered that the LDS Church had reported a total U.S. membership of 5,208,827 for the year 2000 in the LDS Church Almanac. Had that figure been used, the growth rate during the past decade would have been closer to 18 percent, which still would have put the LDS Church at the top of the list among Christian faiths.
Official LDS Church spokesman Scott Trotter explained the discrepancy; two different definitions of "membership" were used. The current definition of "membership", reflected in the 2010 total of 6,144,582, is derived from all those individuals who have been baptized or born into the Church. They don't drop off the membership rolls if they changed congregations. In contrast, back in 2000, the Church left out the numbers of members who, although baptized, were not currently associated with a specific congregation.
Dale Jones, a researcher on the Religion Census, was mildly annoyed with the change in definition, but said it's no big deal and acknowledged that any church has the right to define its membership standards. But the discrepancy is still embarrassing; already, some anti-Mormons are trying to mine propaganda value from it.
But it's not unheard of for an entity to change its foundational definitions. For example, in 1961, Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's record for home runs in a season by hitting 61. However, while Ruth hit his 60 during a 154-game season, Maris hit his 61 during a 162-game season. So for years, Maris had an asterisk next to his name in the record books. But when Mark McGuire and Barry Bonds subsequently broke that record in 1998 and 2001 respectively, the season was still 162 games, so no asterisk was appended to their names, although baseball fans who are purists might be tempted to asterisk their names for a different reason.
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has done the same thing. Although the FBI reported a 30 percent decrease in hate crimes during the period 2000-2010, the SPLC claims that the number of hate groups increased by 66.4 percent during the same period. One of the main reasons is because, during that period, they changed their definition of "hate group" from racist groups alone to include immigration restrictionist groups, militia groups, and even pro-family groups. Pro-family groups who oppose the promotion and statutory protection of homosexuality are now considered "hate groups" by the SPLC. Obviously, if you cast your net wider, you'll catch more fish. Some critics of the SPLC accuse them of doing this primarily to assure their self-perpetuation and to keep the donation spigot cranked wide open; they seek to scare more people into giving them money.
Of course, nobody on Recovery From Mormonism is criticizing the SPLC for engaging in these tactics. They only target the LDS Church.
However, the Tribune discovered that the LDS Church had reported a total U.S. membership of 5,208,827 for the year 2000 in the LDS Church Almanac. Had that figure been used, the growth rate during the past decade would have been closer to 18 percent, which still would have put the LDS Church at the top of the list among Christian faiths.
Official LDS Church spokesman Scott Trotter explained the discrepancy; two different definitions of "membership" were used. The current definition of "membership", reflected in the 2010 total of 6,144,582, is derived from all those individuals who have been baptized or born into the Church. They don't drop off the membership rolls if they changed congregations. In contrast, back in 2000, the Church left out the numbers of members who, although baptized, were not currently associated with a specific congregation.
Dale Jones, a researcher on the Religion Census, was mildly annoyed with the change in definition, but said it's no big deal and acknowledged that any church has the right to define its membership standards. But the discrepancy is still embarrassing; already, some anti-Mormons are trying to mine propaganda value from it.
But it's not unheard of for an entity to change its foundational definitions. For example, in 1961, Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's record for home runs in a season by hitting 61. However, while Ruth hit his 60 during a 154-game season, Maris hit his 61 during a 162-game season. So for years, Maris had an asterisk next to his name in the record books. But when Mark McGuire and Barry Bonds subsequently broke that record in 1998 and 2001 respectively, the season was still 162 games, so no asterisk was appended to their names, although baseball fans who are purists might be tempted to asterisk their names for a different reason.
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has done the same thing. Although the FBI reported a 30 percent decrease in hate crimes during the period 2000-2010, the SPLC claims that the number of hate groups increased by 66.4 percent during the same period. One of the main reasons is because, during that period, they changed their definition of "hate group" from racist groups alone to include immigration restrictionist groups, militia groups, and even pro-family groups. Pro-family groups who oppose the promotion and statutory protection of homosexuality are now considered "hate groups" by the SPLC. Obviously, if you cast your net wider, you'll catch more fish. Some critics of the SPLC accuse them of doing this primarily to assure their self-perpetuation and to keep the donation spigot cranked wide open; they seek to scare more people into giving them money.
Of course, nobody on Recovery From Mormonism is criticizing the SPLC for engaging in these tactics. They only target the LDS Church.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
YouTube Mormon Messages: "Honesty - You Better Believe It" A Winner In The LDS International Video Contest
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently held their first International Video Contest where Church members from around the world created their own videos and competed for the Visitors' Choice Awards. The submission deadline was January 31st, 2011. The winning videos are all listed HERE.
One of the three winning entries in the Professional category was a video by Brian Burnham entitled "Honesty: You Better Believe It". Directed primarily towards young people, its purpose is to motivate people to compete honestly and avoid cheating, particularly in school. It is now featured on the Mormon Messages channel and is embedded below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDayDdxpw_M
The video draws significantly from the counsel given by the late President James E. Faust, who was a Second Counselor in the First Presidency at one time. His counsel was published in a November 1996 Ensign article entitled "Honesty — a Moral Compass", and built upon the 13th Article of Faith, which states “We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul — We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.” President Faust wrote about how his honesty facilitated his selection for Officer's Candidate School in World War II, even though he feared his honesty might make him look narrow-minded and cause his rejection. He took the high road -- and was rewarded. President Faust characterized honesty as a moral compass to guide us in our lives.
Would you want to be treated by a doctor who cheated his way through medical school?
Larry Richman of LDS Media Talk discloses that the first International Video Contest was such a success that the LDS Church is now soliciting more multimedia creations from its members, and has set up the Create.lds.org website for this purpose. Submitted materiel may be used by Church designers for products and websites, and made available for download by individual members to use for lessons, family home evenings, and non-commercial websites and blogs. The latter could be of inestimable value to Church members who live in remote locations without an organized ward or branch.
One of the three winning entries in the Professional category was a video by Brian Burnham entitled "Honesty: You Better Believe It". Directed primarily towards young people, its purpose is to motivate people to compete honestly and avoid cheating, particularly in school. It is now featured on the Mormon Messages channel and is embedded below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDayDdxpw_M
The video draws significantly from the counsel given by the late President James E. Faust, who was a Second Counselor in the First Presidency at one time. His counsel was published in a November 1996 Ensign article entitled "Honesty — a Moral Compass", and built upon the 13th Article of Faith, which states “We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul — We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.” President Faust wrote about how his honesty facilitated his selection for Officer's Candidate School in World War II, even though he feared his honesty might make him look narrow-minded and cause his rejection. He took the high road -- and was rewarded. President Faust characterized honesty as a moral compass to guide us in our lives.
Would you want to be treated by a doctor who cheated his way through medical school?
Larry Richman of LDS Media Talk discloses that the first International Video Contest was such a success that the LDS Church is now soliciting more multimedia creations from its members, and has set up the Create.lds.org website for this purpose. Submitted materiel may be used by Church designers for products and websites, and made available for download by individual members to use for lessons, family home evenings, and non-commercial websites and blogs. The latter could be of inestimable value to Church members who live in remote locations without an organized ward or branch.
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