Latest from Mormon Land: How NOT to greet missionaries at your door

The Mormon Land newsletter is The Salt Lake Tribune’s weekly highlight reel of news in and about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Join us on Patreon and receive the full newsletter, podcast transcripts and access to all of our religion content — for as little as $3 a month.

Begone, missionaries

The Onion-like Babylon Bee has sharpened its skewering satirical scimitar and pointed it directly at proselytizing by concocting 10 “easy ways” to chase off Latter-day Saint missionaries when they come a-knocking. Here is a sampling:

• “Tell them no thanks, you already have kids named Braelynn, Braden, Braeliana and Brayston: They will know you’re one of them.”

• “Explain a police officer is about to drop by and ask, if by chance, you can borrow their nametag: Always does the trick.”

• “Douse yourself in Coca-Cola and R-rated movies before opening the door: It’s a time-tested defense.”

Here’s a knock on The Bee’s editors: Contrary to cultural myths, Latter-day Saints can drink Coke, and R-rated flicks aren’t necessarily a no-no. Even so, check out The Bee’s babblings for a chuckle.

Utah’s religious divide: a six-part series

Now available: All six installments of our exclusive series on the religious divide that separates Utah’s Latter-day Saints from their neighbors. Here are Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and solution-based 6.

A Royal visit

Call it a sermon on the mound.

Decked out in a big league jersey and celebrating his 69th birthday in Royal fashion, Latter-day Saint apostle Gary Stevenson gave a pitch for the church’s service program last week in Kansas City.

The southpaw tossed out the ceremonial first pitch during JustServe Night at Kauffman Stadium. Catching his throw: Latter-day Saint Jeremy Guthrie, a former Royals World Series hurler.

Afterward, 150 missionaries from Missouri’s Independence Mission sang “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

“It brought back fond memories to see the missionaries singing the national anthem on the field,” Guthrie said in a news release, “and it was all topped off by having an apostle of the Lord … throw the first pitch.”

‘Deep dive’ into LDS art

Containing 22 scholarly essays from the likes of Terryl Givens, Jennifer Reeder and W. Paul Reeve, along with more than 200 artistic reproductions from dozens of institutional and private collections, “Latter-day Saint Art: A Critical Reader” is due out next month from the nonprofit Center for Latter-day Saint Arts and Oxford University Press.

“This book is hands down the most amazing introduction and deep dive into Latter-day Saint art,” co-editor Mason Kamana Allred, a professor of arts and letters at Brigham Young University-Hawaii, says in a news release. “It represents the inspiring work of a group of brilliant scholars, and I couldn’t be more proud of the final product.”

The volume can be ordered through Oxford University Press, Amazon and other booksellers.

From The Tribune

• A special worldwide broadcast on Sept. 9 will mark a special occasion: church President Russell Nelson’s 100th birthday.

• Latter-day Saint Democrats — yes, they exist, and they’re growing — have high hopes for the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz ticket.

• A world-renowned designer of wedding dresses moved to Utah to be closer to her Latter-day Saint faith, but her gowns are for all brides.

• In its latest court battle against a class-action lawsuit over tithing, the church argues the plaintiffs are “dissidents” and can’t presume to speak for millions of faithful members.

• Top church leaders can make big changes, suggests Tribune guest columnist Natalie Brown, without big revelations.

• Former Brigham Young University track star Kenneth Rooks credits the Book of Mormon and a church devotional for supplying the inspiration behind his surprise silver medal performance in the steeplechase at the Paris Olympics.