The answer to the first question, “Do I believe Jesus is the Son of God?” is a simple, straightforward, “Yes!” The answer to the second about what “Son of God” means is a lot more complicated.

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I never met an atheist I could like. Surely, somewhere on this planet, there is a friendly atheist, but I haven’t bumped into one yet.

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That people pray is not as interesting as how people pray. But theologians have thoroughly explored the latter at the expense of the former. Praying, it would seem, is as old as the human race.

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When it is the earth that created you, care of the environment becomes a central religious tenet. But believers who use the Hebrew Bible and Christian Scriptures as the basis for their concern about the environment have a bigger mountain to climb than witches.

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Catholics believe marriage is a sacrament. Since the sacraments give grace to the believer with their practice, the renewal of marital love in the physical act of sex is – for Catholics — a source of divine grace. The more times you have sex, the more grace you both receive.

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A question about incorporating practices of other religions is a question about syncretism. Most believers in the Abrahamic faiths don’t like the word “syncretism.” It implies imitation of something alien to your religion, which means that your faith was “inferior” before the syncretism began.

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I make a distinction between “Mormons” and “Mormonism.” There is no doubt that both as citizens and religious believers, Mormons participate in America’s mainstream. They reach for the same achievements, make the same mistakes, and share hopes and dreams with virtually everyone else. However, Mormonism – as an ‘ism’ – is a different case.

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