Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Michigan

                                                                                       Recent articles in the Deseret News on both protests against the current way the Honor Code at Brigham Young University is handled and coverage of Brother Utt's statements about how the Honor Code Office operates has caused me to reflect on the matter.      While there is probably room for better interactions with students by the Honor Code Office, this does not seem to be the source of the complaints. Some protestors were asking for accomadations that are just not going to happen. The ban on same-sex dating, which in practice means a ban on same-sex kissing is not going to be lifted. If we are going to see reforms here it would be more stringent rules about all extr...

Well, I have learned a little more on Elder Johnson. His wife is white. How did I learn this because ComeuntoChrist.org has this video  https://www.mormon.org/video-peter-johnson-on-prophets I also learned a little more of his children. A recent Deseret News article on Elder Johnson linked to this article  https://www.deseretnews.com/article/865673983/Two-sisters-at-SUU-a-walk-on-at-USU-and-other-returned-Mormon-missionaries-in-college-basketball.html  That article does mention "Peter Johnson" as the father of Whitney and Kiana Johnson on the SUU basketball team, and mentions both were returned missionaries, serving in Mexico and Cape Verde. The photos make it clear that the Johnson sisters are at least partly African-American. Still with Peter a marginally common name and Johnson being one of the three most common names in the US without the link from the other Deseret News article I would not have been positive there was a link.

The most exciting development with new general authorities is the first African-American general authority, Peter Matthew Johnson. Elder Johnson is not the first black general authority. That was Elder Helvicio Martins from Brazil. Elder Martins however is dead. Elder Johnson is not even the only current black general authority. Elder Joseph W. Sitati from Kenya and Elder Edward Dube from Zimbabwe are both black. Elder Johnson grew up in the borough of Queens in New York City. I believe he is the first gneral authority to have grown up there since Elder Hales. That is where similarities end. Elder Johnson and his brother were in a rap group. They would perform at weddings, high school dances and block parties. When he was 14 a violent event happened at a rap gathering he was at. In this talk  https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/peter-m-johnson_faith-family-friendship/  he does not go into it. Shortly after that he moved to live with his mother in Hawaii. In Hawaii Elder Johns...

I am still feeling a need to revitalize the strength of the Belle Isle Branch. That said, I have become discouraged about Detroit's failed fight on blight. To me the surest sign of this is the forgotten promises of demolition. About a week ago I was going down a street where I had last been in Detroit back in December. Back then there were several houses with signs prosising soon the houses would be down. Those same houses had the same signs three to four months later. In other neighborhoods the city has abandoned putting any date on the signs. The worst example I know is a house in the 7 Mile and Evergreen area that has had up the sign promising demolition since 2014. Yesterday I was driving through the area south of McNichols east of Van Dyke. This area has blocks where probably 5 out of 50 past houses are left. Still, of those 5 remaining houses only maybe 2 are lived in. In fact there is at least one block in that area where the only think left are maybe three foundatio...

My long standing disagreement with some editors on Wikipedia has reached a boiling point. The article on Benjamin de Hoyos has been nominated for deletion. I am very frustrated about this. I am even more frustrated at what other articles may be deleted if this deletion is successful. I still think all the general authority seventies of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are default notable, but even a lower level cut off seems not to gain much support. The article on Benjamin de Hoyos was not only supported by reference to the well researched Ensign and Church News articles. It was supported by coverage of actions of de Hoyos in such publications as the Salt Lake Tribune. This is a new throwing down of a guantlet. Indepth article coverage is now being claimed to have to have the person per se as the main subject, even when the person's actions are clearly the main focus. Area Presidents take clear and unequivocal actions, and yet the situation is ignored. I am tire...

'''Benjamín De Hoyos Estrada''' (born 20 February 1953) has been a [[general authority]] of [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church) since 2005. De Hoyos was born in [[Monterrey]], [[Nuevo León]], [[Mexico]], and grew up in northern Mexico. As a young man, he served a [[Mormon missionary|mission]] in the Mexico [[Hermosillo]] [[Mission (LDS Church)|Mission]], where he first met his wife Evelia Genesta Mendivil, who is a native of [[Ciudad Obregón]], [[Sonora]]. Mendivil had converted to the LDS Church while a teenager and was then serving as a [[Stake missionary]]. Benjamín and Evelia renewed their acquaintance later when he was working as a [[Church Educational System|seminary]] teacher at [[Benemerito De Las Americas]], an LDS Church-owned prep school in [[Mexico City]], and Evelia was working there as a secretary. They were married on 4 June 1975 and are the parents of six children. De Hoyos received a [[bachelor's degree]] f...

I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only true and living Church on the face of the earth. I know that Jesus Christ is our saviour and redeemer, and it is only through him we can overcome sin. Only His atonement pays the price for our sins. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know it was written anciently and translated by the gift and power of God. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. I know Russell M. Nelson is the prophet of God today. He is a man called, prepared and chosen to lead the Church at this moment in time.