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Prof’s postelection proclamation
After Donald Trump’s election victory, a Brigham Young University math professor raised a voice of warning to backers of the once and future president.
Tacking a note to his office door, David Cardon pointed to a passage from the Book of Mormon, the church’s signature scripture, that cautioned if the majority of people ever chose “iniquity,” they could face the “judgments of God” and “great destruction.”
“By almost all objective standards, Donald Trump is an evil man,” Cardon concluded. “Now that you’ve made your choice, you should expect this prophecy to be fulfilled.”
Cardon’s message drew notice and criticism from The Cougar Chronicle, an independent, student-run conservative newspaper.
“Many students in Dr. Cardon’s class likely voted for President Trump; the blatant hostility shown to Trump voters thus creates a risk of sowing the seeds of dissension and conflict among his students,” the paper wrote. “...Accusing potential students of triggering the ‘judgments of God,’ placing the moral responsibility of the resulting destruction on their shoulders, is inappropriate, no matter the victor.”
The article then invited readers to message BYU school officials about Cardon’s statement.
For his part, the anti-Trump BYU prof was unapologetic.
“There is no question that Trump is a wicked man. The list of his crimes is very long,” Cardon responded. “... If [the scriptural verse] offends you, then you should also be offended by the Book of Mormon. If it offends you, you probably don’t believe the Book of Mormon.”
RealClearEducation’s 2020 College Free Speech Rankings cited church-owned BYU as the school where left-leaning students were least comfortable expressing their views. Progressives, unlike their conservative classmates, were more inclined to sit on their hands during discussions than to raise them.
At the same time, the church’s premier university finished as the fourth friendliest for students with right-leaning politics.
In the 2025 rankings, BYU was excluded from the overall tally. Rather, it was listed under “warning schools” with five other religiously affiliated colleges that “clearly and consistently state that [they prioritize] other values over a commitment to freedom of speech.”
Latin celebration
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Performers dance during the annual “Luz de las Naciones” celebration in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Nov. 8, 2024.
The 22nd Annual “Luz de las Naciones” (Light of the Nations) celebration of Latin American culture drew tens of thousands to the Conference Center in downtown Salt Lake City over two nights last week.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for all of us that are not living in our countries to get together, to clap, to have fun, to feel joyful,” Andrea Muñoz Spannaus, second counselor in the global Young Women presidency, said in a news release. “And also, for people outside our countries to have a flavor of what it is like to live in Latin America.”
If you couldn’t score any of the free tickets, which were gobbled up in minutes, you can enjoy all the singing and dancing by watching a recording of the performance on broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, the Gospel Stream app or YouTube.
‘Free and fair’ election
The grassroots group Mormon Women for Ethical Government praised government employees, poll workers and volunteers for their dedication to democracy.
“As it was four years ago,” the organization wrote on its website, “the election was free and fair.”
At the same time, MWEG vowed to work against the sometimes “anti-democratic and dehumanizing” rhetoric spewed during the 2024 campaign.
“These messages have left many people with legitimate concerns about the impact the election results might have on their individual lives, and we pray that as citizens and disciples we will work together to care for one another,” the group stated. “...We will redouble our efforts to help our nation come into better alignment with our highest values.”
From The Tribune
(The Salt Lake Tribune) Marion D. Hanks served as a general authority Seventh for four decades.
• A new biography explores the life of a compassionate and charismatic general authority who, decades ahead of his time, spoke out against racism, sexism and “silly” church traditions.
• The new movie “Heretic” is smart about religion and Mormonism, writes scholar Matthew Bowman, especially on a key point: Feelings matter and even count as “evidence.”
• An eighth missionary dies this year, surpassing 2023′s total fatalities among the proselytizing force.
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Tinotenda Watson Maumbe, 24, died Nov. 6, 2024, while serving a mission in Benin.
• Tribune columnist Gordon Monson suggests what divided Latter-day Saints and their church can and should do now that Donald Trump will return as president.
• With the institutional church increasingly losing its influence among members, Tribune guest columnist Natalie Brown wonders if leaders should do less policing and more responding to modern realities.
• Apostle Jeffrey Holland makes his first journey abroad since his near-death experience last year.
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Apostle Jeffrey R. Holland speaks to members and friends at the Carlos Teo Cruz Colosseum, and more than 12,000 joined via a broadcast, during Holland's ministry to the Dominican Republic on Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024.
• A historic Latter-day Saint meetinghouse partially torn down on Easter may rise again.
• A 100-year-old Russell Nelson dedicates the Deseret Peak Temple, the 200th operating temple in the 194-year-old faith and one of 31 existing or planned temples in Utah.
(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) President Russell M. Nelson, center, arrives at the Deseret Peak Utah Temple for its dedication on Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. Nelson is joined by Brian K. Taylor, general authority Seventy, and his wife, Jill Taylor, far left); apostle Gary E. Stevenson and his wife Lesa, left; Nelson's wife, Wendy Nelson; Brook P. Hales, general authority Seventy, and his wife, Denise (right); and Kevin R. Duncan, General Authority Seventy, and his wife Nancy, right.
