NEWS - 2 MORMONS ON 'SURVIVOR' REALITY SHOW STILL IN THE RUNNING FOR 1 MILLION $ PRIZE

Two Mormons on 'Survivor' still in the running for the $1 million prize

 

Published: Monday, Oct. 31, 2011 5:00 a.m. MDT

By Christine Rappleye, Mormon Time

As "Survivor: South Pacific" on CBS approaches the halfway point, two Utahns are still on the island and in the running for the $1 million prize.
Dawn Meehan, 41, of South Jordan and an English professor at Brigham Young University, is part of the Savaii Tribe, and Rick Nelson, 51, a rancher from Aurora, Utah, who has a handlebar mustache and is commonly seen wearing a cowboy hat, is part of the Upolu Tribe. Both are also members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.


In recent episodes, neither has been in danger of being sent home by fellow tribe members, as they have helped their teams win challenges and haven't been the weakest or the most devious or obnoxious on their teams. The show is based on winning immunity challenges, making alliances and trusting the right people, along with surviving on an uninhabited island.
In a bold move on Wednesday's episode, 30-year-old Oscar “Ozzy” Lusth volunteered to be voted off the Savaii Tribe and sent to Redemption Island with hopes of rejoining his tribe and regaining his immunity idol.
Once a player is voted out at tribal council, they go to Redemption Island. The player then competes with another voted-off member on Redemption Island for a chance to get back in the game.
Before the two-time "Survivor" alum rejoins the tribe, Lusth must beat Christine Shields Markoski, 39, who has won four of the one-on-one competitions. On Wednesday's episode, of Day 17 and 18 on the island, she beat 22-year-old Mikayla Wingle, who was voted out of the Upolu Tribe during the Oct. 19 episode. Nelson cast the swing vote when Upolu was at tribal council after losing the team immunity challenge. Their seven-member tribe was split on whether to send Whingle or Edna Ma, 35, an anesthesiologist from Los Angeles, to Redemption Island.
It's generally been around this halfway point of the 39 days on the island when the two tribes merge. Lusth's rationale was that when the tribes merge and the player on Redemption Island rejoins the game, the Savaii Tribe will have regained a member and their team members will have a better chance at winning.
"You just made one of the biggest moves in 'Survivor' history based on one big assumption: that the merge is next," said host Jeff Probst after the Tribal Council.
Some of the Savaii Tribe members had been eyeing Harvard Law School student John Cochran, 24, as the one to be voted off after his rope mishandling during the team challenge contributed to the team's loss during the immunity challenge.

 The challenge included the six members of each tribe dividing up into pairs and two of the pairs going over and under obstacles to get bags of masks and then pairing up the masks, all while blindfolded. The third team isn't blindfolded and can help verbally guide the other two teams. Cochran was one of the guides and his mishandling of tangled ropes each of the blindfolded teams were connected to was blamed for the team's loss.


However, the idea of Cochran going to Redemption Island was the same — for him to come back to the game after hopefully beating Markoski.
"The notion of Redemption Island takes on a literal (meaning) — it's to redeem yourself," Meehan said.
Nelson's tribe, Upolu, was the winning tribe, and received immunity, got to watch a special screening of "Jack and Jill" starring Adam Sandler and had hot dogs and movie candy.
Being Mormon has only come up a couple of times in the show — most recently when Meehan said she wasn't comfortable swimming in her underwear and was grateful to get the red and brown swimsuit she has been seen wearing during the last few episodes.
"Survivor: South Pacific" airs Wednesdays at 7 p.m. on CBS

TECHNOLOGY - BOOK OF MORMON APP FOR WINDOWS PHONE 7 RELEASED

Book of Mormon App for Windows Phone 7 Released

Written by Whitney Denney

Friday, 28 October 2011

A new Book of Mormon app is available for Windows Phone 7. The Book of Mormon app is available as a free download in the Windows Marketplace. The Book of Mormon app is geared toward a non-member audience largely unfamiliar with the Book of Mormon. It provides another way for people who are curious about the Book of Mormon to access a copy of it. David Staheli, a senior engineer on the project, says, “If anybody out there is curious, they’ll come along and see the Book of Mormon, and they can download it for free just to see what it’s about.” The following screenshots are from the Book of Mormon app: The Application and its Features The project started in December 2010 as an experiment. Brother Staheli says, “We thought, ‘Why don’t we take what we’ve already done—the whole gospel library and all the scriptures—but simplify it a bit for missionary purposes.’” The goal was to make the Book of Mormon less intimidating to investigators, so the team simplified the user interface by removing some of the advanced features, such as footnotes. The Book of Mormon app offers a lot of study-friendly features. Users can read or listen to audio of the text as well as underline, make notes, and bookmark their page. The application also offers a search function that will locate verses containing search terms. One of the most significant features of the Book of Mormon application is the “About” feature on the homepage. This allows users to connect to Mormon.org to learn more about the Church. They can also call the missionaries directly using a toll-free phone number specific to the application, which is one way to measure the application’s success amongst investigators. The Progress of the Application Though Brother Staheli is not yet aware of how many calls have been made using the application’s toll-free number, he is keeping track of the impact of the application as measured in download numbers. Since its release a month ago, the application has had approximately 500 downloads, about one-tenth of the downloads for Gospel Library for Windows Phone 7. Currently, downloads number about fifty a week. Brother Staheli says, “That’s like handing out fifty copies of the Book of Mormon a week!” These numbers are somewhat low to start, but as the application takes off, it will likely be extended to other platforms to increase its visibility in the market. The app has the potential to be a very economical and effective distribution of the Book of Mormon. Pass it On Initial promotion of the Book of Mormon app took place in the LDS Tech community with the team requesting that members tell their friends about the application. Brother Staheli hopes that the word about this app will continue to spread and increase its contribution to missionary efforts. He says, “I think the application is a success because, even if we have a lot of members (rather than non-members) downloading it, it brings missionary work to the forefront of their minds, and they are familiar with it, they know that they can recommend it, and pass it on.” If you know someone with a Windows 7 phone, let them know about the Book of Mormon app. Even small actions like this will help carry the gospel to all the world.

INFO - BAKING SUBSTITUTIONS

Baking Substitutions

Making meals count is important. Meals should be satisfying, good tasting, pleasing to the eye, nutritious, and have a texture that is pleasing to your palate. Otherwise, you WILL feel deprived. The good news? It is easy to modify some of your favorite recipes by using the sensational substitutions listed below--no one will even notice the difference!

Instead of...	Try...
1/2 cup oil, butter or margarine	1/4 cup applesauce + 1/4 cup canola oil, butter, or margarine
1 egg	2 egg whites
Sweetened condensed milk	Nonfat sweetened condensed milk
Evaporated milk	Evaporated skim milk
1 cup chocolate chips	1/2 cup mini chocolate chips, chopped dried fruit, or chopped nuts
Frosting	Sliced fresh fruit with a dusting of powdered sugar
Sour cream	Nonfat sour cream, low-fat sour cream, pureed low-fat cottage cheese
Whole milk	Skim milk
Cream cheese	Low-fat cream cheese
Sugar	Artificial sweetener for some or all (follow manufacturer's directions); 1/4 to 1/2 less sugar in the recipe

QUOTE - Nathaniel Bronner

Wherever Your Faith
===================

“Wherever your faith is
there is your future.”

~Nathaniel Bronner~

IM PLAYING EVE IN THE YOUNG WOMENS NIGHT: WOMEN OF VIRTUE

yup. *IM* EVE!
last sunday a sister (female congegational member) came in and announced that young womens was putting on a presentation for the young women with...

WOMEN OF VIRTUE.

and they needed ladies to sign up for roles.

so, cause i love to act and express,  i was the 1st to sign up.

have been waiting for my role to be announced to me...and it came earlier this week,

Ladies,

Thank you so much for volunteering! I feel you have a really great opportunity to touch the lives of our Young Women. You're willingness to help make this activity a success is so very appreciated!

At this point I am just going to tell you your assignments so you can know kind of what to expect. I encourage you to read about the woman of virtue you are to portray in the scriptures as well as start thinking about how you can put together a costume of sorts. Sometime in the next few days I will email you a copy of the script you will be reading that night along with a few more detailed instructions about how I would like the night to go and a picture of the woman you have been assigned as a reference point for your dress. I will have additional hard copies of scripts available that night. For now, here are the assignments I have made:

Stripling Warrior Mother - Julie Sutton

Queen Esther - Carol Stoddard

Virgin Mary - (to be announced)

Emma Smith - Catherine Wagner

Eve - Michelle Williamson

Hannah - Jamie Looney

If at any point you find that you cannot make it for that evening, please let me know as soon as possible so that I can find a replacement and fill them in. You can email me at this email address, or call me at (405)***-****. Once again, thank you all so much!

~Allison Oliver~

so, naturally i had to ask if eve was naked or she had already been cast out of the garden for my costume, of which i already had ideas for both, and NO it wasnt  parading around in the nude.
i had thought maybe if i was Eve pre-casting out of the Garden, id try to find some pink sweats and strategically place some garland over me in certain areas to "cover" myself.
or id create some kind of LEAF top/ skirt to wear over it...

my reply came back:

The picture I have of Eve is afterwards :) So more of the animal skin type stuff.

~Allison~

THAT brought a HUUUUUUGE sense of relief...lol

well, today i got the script for this role. quite involved. allot of message within it. but one main one i chimed in on and LOVED!

 Michelle,

The following is your script for the Women of Virtue activity November 2nd. I have also attached a picture of Eve for you to reference. Thanks again for your participation, and let me know if you have any further questions!

Eve

I am Eve, and I am a woman of virtue because of my sacrifice.

Adam, my husband, and I were the first people to live on the Earth. Heavenly Father blessed us and commanded us to have children. He placed us in a beautiful place called the Garden of Eden, where we were able to talk with and see Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

We were given dominion over the garden and all of the beasts within it. Adam called me “Eve” because I was to be the mother of all living. There were beautiful trees and plants in the Garden of Eden. God told us that we could eat fruit from all the trees except one: the tree of knowledge of good and evil. “Nevertheless,” the Lord said, “thou mayest choose for thyself…; but remember that I forbid it, for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

Satan came to the garden and tempted me to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. I was shocked that he would propose such a thing! I told Satan that the Lord had commanded us not to eat it or we would be cast out of the garden to die.

Satan lied, telling me, “Ye shall not surely die.” He also said the fruit would make me wise so I would know good and evil. I realized that for Adam and I to have a family, we would have to leave that beautiful place. I chose to eat the fruit, knowing that we would be cast out of the Garden of Eden, then I gave some of the fruit to Adam, and he also ate. Later, Adam and I heard the voice of the Lord. We hid because we were ashamed that we had disobeyed our Heavenly Father.

When God asked us if we had eaten the forbidden fruit, we confessed that we had, and God cast us out of the Garden of Eden. We felt so much sorrow leaving that beautiful place, and even more sorrow that we had been cut off from the presence of our Heavenly Father. But we took comfort in the fact that we could now follow the Lord’s commandment to multiply and replenish the Earth, and that we could fulfill our earthly role as parents. Even though we had to leave the beautiful garden, we knew that God loved us, and we had faith that He would send Jesus Christ to be our Savior.

My sisters, to become a woman of virtue, you will need to make sacrifices. You may sacrifice friendships to ensure you are in a position to make good choices. You may sacrifice opportunities in order to keep your standards. You may sacrifice much time and effort giving service and spreading the gospel. And like me, you may make sacrifices to become a mother. The world you live in makes it seem that fulfilling the role that God gave you, the sacred role of mother, is less valuable than other choices you can make. Those with that attitude are sadly mistaken, for although there are many sacrifices that you must make to fulfill your divine calling, being a righteous mother is the most important work on Earth that a virtuous woman can fulfill. And I assure you that the sacrifices you will make as a mother are nothing compared to the rewards of motherhood. Heavenly Father knows all of your sacrifices and will bless you fully for them in the life to come.

so, i have to come up with an outfit now for this...

im kinda excited! i have always wanted to share with the young women, as i feel a large part of my own spiritual growth happend when i was in that age group. i have never been called to any position within Young Womens, tho. kinda sad about that. not sure why. i have as much to contribute as anyone does.

and its such a stage in life of vaulerablitlity. and uncertainty. and determination to be independant, and unique.
had i not had the leaders in Young Womens i had, id not be here now. i had some pretty awesome women who were my leaders.

to them i am eternally thankful.

i hope i can share just a shred of what i was given by them to these young women.

MICHELLE

NEWS - MORMON CHURCH LAUNCHES MEDIA CAMPAIGN

 

Mormon Church launches media campaign

By John Stanley, The Arizona Republic

Updated 10/2/2011

PHOENIX – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will launch a new media campaign Monday in 12 major cities.

The "I'm a Mormon" campaign — mostly TV spots and billboards — will encourage people to learn about Latter-day Saints by visiting the mormon.org website, which features video profiles of thousands of Mormons from around the world.

"These are real people," said Cindy Packard, the LDS Church spokeswoman for the metropolitan Phoenix area. "There are no scripts, no fake stories, no wardrobe, just real people talking about their lives."

Visitors to the website can also chat live with representatives who can answer questions about the Mormon faith and check out a list of common questions about church doctrine, such as "Are Mormons Christians?" "Why don't Mormons drink coffee, tea or alcohol?" and "What do Mormons believe about the Bible?"

The purpose of the campaign is to make it easy for people to learn about the faith and get to know Mormons personally, Packard said.

Although there are 52,000 full-time Mormon missionaries in the world, nowadays many people prefer to seek information about the church online, she said, noting that it's an efficient and effective way to reach more people, and on their terms.

"You can come knocking on our door whenever it's convenient and learn as much as you want," she said.

A similar effort to publicize the website was launched in nine cities last year.

Both campaigns came about after church research showed that about half of all Americans say they have never met a Mormon, and that many held misconceptions about church tenets.

In the spotlight

Mormons have been the topic of much public discussion lately:

• "The Book of Mormon" Broadway show, by Robert Lopez and "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, opened in March. In June it won nine Tony Awards, including "Best Musical."

• A June Gallup poll showed that 22% of Americans (20% of Republicans and Independents, and 27% of Democrats) would not vote for a Mormon for president.

• The mid-summer sex-abuse trial and subsequent imprisonment of polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs, who headed the Arizona- and Utah-based Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which split away from the mainstream church more than a century ago. Despite the similarity of names, there is no affiliation between the two groups.

• The ongoing quest by church members Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman for the Republican nomination for president.

'Strict neutrality'

According to several prominent Phoenix-area Mormons, though, there is no connection between the "I'm a Mormon" campaign and the candidacies of Romney and Huntsman.

"I can tell you unequivocally that this mormon.org campaign has nothing to do with the election," said Paul Gilbert, a zoning attorney who serves as the co-chair of Mitt Romney's Arizona campaign.

Gilbert is also the president of the Tempe Arizona University Stake.

"I have attended every training meeting about mormon.org (at ASU) and the presidential race has never been mentioned," he said.

He also said that he didn't think the "I'm a Mormon" campaign would have any effect — positive or negative — on Romney's candidacy.

Charles E. "Bud" Jones, former Chief Justice of the Arizona Supreme Court, said the church has always maintained a neutral stance about individual candidates. The only time the church gets involved with politics, he said, is when issues concern doctrine, such as abortion or same-sex marriage.

"But as far as political candidates and partisan politics — absolutely not," Jones said.

Any perception of a church-orchestrated effort to aid Romney or any other candidate is simply wrong, said Jones, who has served as a stake president and bishop in the church.

"The church has a policy of strict political neutrality," Packard said. "We have Harry Reid on one end (of the political spectrum) and Glenn Beck on the other. So there's lots of (political) diversity within the church, and that's the way it should be."

Early church

Founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith, the church was instrumental in the settlement of the American West and has grown to more than 14 million followers, with more than half of those living outside the United States.

According to church history, Smith had a series of visions around the family's home in Palmyra, N.Y. in the 1820s. In 1830 he published the Book of Mormon, which he said was a translation of a pre-Columbian history of the Americas.

Smith was murdered by a mob in a Carthage, Ill., jail, where he was awaiting trial for inciting to riot and other charges in 1844.

The church splintered after Smith's death, with the largest contingent following Brigham Young to Salt Lake City, now the church's headquarters.

Under Young's leadership, the church established settlements throughout much of the western region of the country, as well as in southern Canada and northern Mexico. Over the decades, though, disputes arose with non-Mormons over church practices, especially polygamy, which was announced as official doctrine in 1852.

Almost 40 years later, in 1890, the church reversed its policy regarding the practice. It now promotes strict monogamy and strong family values.

The "I'm a Mormon" campaign in Phoenix will continue through February 2012. Other cities in the campaign are Spokane, Wash., Seattle, Austin, Texas, San Antonio, Texas, Omaha, Neb., Lincoln, Neb., Denver, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Ind., and South Bend, Ind.

A separate "I'm a Mormon" campaign started in New York City in June.

"(The website) is just a really fun way to learn about our lifestyle and our faith," Packard said. "The diversity that is represented there will be surprising to a lot of people."

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My name is Michelle Williamson, i am an avid Blogger, and i am a Mormon. Nice to meet you! :)

MICHELLE