Jesus Christ

Leonard J. Arrington is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (“Mormon Church”). He has published widely throughout his distinguished career. He is the author (or coauthor) of, among others: Mothers of the Prophets, Presidents of the Church,From Quaker to Latter-day Saint, Building the City of God, Brigham Young: American Moses, The Mormon Experience: A History of the Latter-day Saints, and Great Basin Kingdom. Christmas Story: On The Farm Picture an isolated, two-room, wooden frame home on a windy prairie in southern Idaho. Coyotes howl in the distance. Despite wintry weather, the sky is clear and the stars are brilliant. There is a faint trace in the sky of an aurora borealis, or what is commonly referred to as “northern lights.” One can hear horses in a nearby corral breathing heavily and occasional sounds of late-night munching from two milk cows. Add to the picture a family, with a father and mother and three children—LeRoy, seven;... Read the rest of this entry »

A Christmas Message: Christmas as a Child I’ve titled this chapter “Christmas Extravagance” because Christmas seems to be a time of delicious, glorious abundance, profusion, and excess—a real cornucopia of a time. I realized I felt this way about it as I listened to one of those presentations I’m sure we’ve all heard—about how you have to deal with the stress of the holidays by setting priorities, establishing limits, making yes-lists and no-lists, deciding what you’ll eat and what you won’t, working out a budget, a schedule, a plan. It all sounded very prudent, moderate, controlled, restrained. It all sounded very boring. It sounded like no fun at all. Yet I realized that it made good sense, and I know that the Christmas season is ruined for some people by bingeing—they spend too much, eat too much, do too much, run too fast and too hard. They end up feeling sad, selfish, and sinful. So how could I actually want extravagance? Isn’t... Read the rest of this entry »

Michaelene P. Grassli served as a member of the Primary general board of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes mistakenly called “The Mormon Church” by the media),from 1975 to 1980, a counselor in the Primary general presidency from 1980 to 1988, and Primary general president from 1988 to 1994. She is the author or coauthor of three pamphlets and author of two books, What I Have Learned from Children and Leadertalk. Christmas Message: Giving Gifts That Matter Christmas was getting out of hand. Our children were beyond the magical, mysterious secrecy of childhood, yet they seemed to cling to the desire for that aspect of Christmas gift-giving. And so did their parents! It seemed to Leonard and me that it would take an upwardly spiraling cycle of materialism to continue to produce the Christmas morning thrills that had been so easy to achieve with simplicity when the children were small. Our oldest was married and in college, the second had begun college... Read the rest of this entry »

Christmas Message: Serve Others Decorate your home. One year, a former roommate informed me that she was going home for Christmas and, therefore, was not going to help decorate our place. I was tempted to do the same, since I was also going to my parents’ home for the holidays. But then I realized that I, too, am important and that decorations are as much for me as for others. So I decorated. Since then, regardless of whether or not I have had roommates, I have decorated my home and enjoyed it. Attend Christmas parties. I attend parties given by my ward, given at work and given by friends. My neighborhood also has Christmas parties. In addition, some years I have thrown a party at my home for my friends. That is my Christmas gift to them—the time we spend together. Find ways to be part of a child’s Christmas. Children are so exuberant. My first nephew was born when I was 10 years old, so when I was growing up and out of the “awe” of Christmas there were... Read the rest of this entry »

Tinsel, garland, gifts under the tree, smells and scents that connote a beautiful time of year–these all are reminiscent of Christmas, a time for the joyous celebration of Christ’s birth. The first real gift of Christmas is the Baby Himself, Jesus Christ.  He is ours to receive, to know, to love, to worship as Savior of the World, the Only Begotten in the flesh, the Son of God.  The second real Christmas gift, intimately connected with Himself, is the key to the knowledge of  Him which has been restored to the earth through the re-establishment of His own Church on the earth–The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently called by friends of other faiths, the “Mormon Church”). These are two gifts in one: the Savior, and His Church in our day! These are the real gifts of Christmas! Christmas Message: Jesus Christ Established His Church & Restored It In Our Day From the creation of the world, the prophets foretold and the children of God... Read the rest of this entry »

Marcus is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (inadvertently called by friends of other faiths, the “Mormon Church”). Tried by adversity as a teenager, he now shares his story of healing. Marcus has also enjoyed filming a nationally televised commercial and traveling to South America. Everyone has challenges. It doesn’t matter where we’re from, what religion we are, how much money we have or our status in society. Nothing in this world can make a person immune from the difficulties of life. Some of the greatest challenges I have faced in my life came at an early age. At 12 I was diagnosed with a hereditary condition which caused my body to not produce enough of a chemical called Serotonin. The result of not having enough of this chemical produced in your body is depression. I was then diagnosed with severe social anxiety and had to drop out of school. My parents divorced when I was 15 years old and by the age of 17, my mother stopped talking to... Read the rest of this entry »

Several years ago, while pondering the birth of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, I discovered a few fitting details about the rigorous, devoted lives of ancient shepherds. I regret that I can no longer find their source. Perhaps one of you will recognize the passages and inform me of their origin. As I pondered those details in light of the account of the Savior’s birth, a message divinely intended for parents seemed to illuminate itself. I share it with you in all its tender simplicity. It speaks to Jesus‘ awareness of each of us. And I wish you a Merry Christmas. Jesus Christ Birth: Christmas Message Jesus Christ‘s birth has a setting many of us know intimately. Let’s start witht the positioning of the shepherds. Imagine the life of a shepherd two thousand years ago, tending his flocks at night—a harsh and lonely life framed on the fringes of cultivated land. Generally of modest means, shepherds either owned a small flock or were hired to work for someone else.... Read the rest of this entry »