Profile: Hawkgrrrl has been blogging since March 2008 and has published over 140 opinion pieces at Mormon Matters. She is a married mother of three and a business executive. She enjoys oil painting, reading, theater, and international travel.
Recently, Professor Ralph Hancock wrote a critique of Joanna Brooks’ memoir Book of Mormon Girl and specifically a criticism of what he termed “Mormonism Lite,” which is equated with a liberal set of political ideals. In his latest missive, Prof. Hancock calls out Wheat & Tares along with ByCommonConsent and Times & Seasons: In particular, [...]
I had assumed that Mother’s Day was a greeting card holiday invented by Hallmark to turn filial guilt into revenue. I was surprised to discover that Mother’s Day has a history longer than Christianity! Ancients celebrated Isis (Mother of the Pharaohs), Rhea (Greek Mother of the Gods), and Cybele (The Great Mother). The worship of [...]
As an American living in Asia, I often encounter cultural disconnects. A peer or friend will make a comment that is so obviously based on assumptions or values I don’t share that I realize that my own values and assumptions must sound equally foreign to them. A few months ago, one of my co-workers in [...]
Are Americans childist, disregarding the needs of children in favor of parents’ needs, or helicopter parents, hovering over our children to make sure they get everything to which we deem they are “entitled” – from turns at bat to Easter eggs to good grades in school? Either way, are Americans becoming the worst parents in the world, [...]
There was a fascinating post at FMH in response to Hillary Rosen’s statement that SAHM Ann Romney hadn’t worked a day in her life. For the record, Ann did not employ a nanny as some have assumed although it’s clear that the Romneys weren’t living hand-to-mouth despite their evident frugal streak that I demonstrated ably at By [...]
With the increased scrutiny of the church in the media recently, a new fear-promoting rumour has apparently begun to circulate. From a memo the church has released: “The following statements are being attributed to Elder David A. Bednar about what he purportedly said would happen if Mitt Romney wins the Republican nomination: · That persecution [...]
Just what is Mormon culture? Recently, as I read Joanna Brooks’ memoir, I noted that there were several elements of culture that I shared with her (dance festivals – on a much less grand scale, open-minded BYU professors). But there were many that differed from my own experiences (apocalyptic food storage, pioneer heritage, and Marie Osmond [...]
According to the recently published survey of disaffected members, many of those who have varying levels of disbelief in the church’s claims still want to participate. Why are they active in a church they doubt or disbelieve? Fear? To keep the peace? Enjoyment of other community benefits? Hope for progress or reconciliation of cognitive dissonance? [...]
I know the rest of you were as shocked as I was at the demise of Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore’s long standing union. Shocked that it didn’t happen ten years earlier! I was recently reading an article in the NYT about a scientific prediction for celebrity breakups. Here are some of the factors that [...]
As the culture wars heat up in the 2012 election cycle and more and more states accept same sex marriage, the church remains in a very precarious and somewhat contradictory position. This seems to be the case when change happens. Old attitudes eventually give way to new ones, but in the meantime, we have contradictory [...]
Some folks have developed some weird notions about Jesus that in fact differ greatly from the Jesus represented in the books of the Bible (which were written many years after his death anyway). The Jesus I hear people talking about is feminized and sometimes even, dare I say, Republican. As Mormon Heretic pointed out yesterday, [...]
Rules are lazy and create conformity, but they are practical for large groups of people; the higher the percentage of people for whom the rules create a societal benefit, the more useful the rule is. Different leaders have different standards for what percent of a group “needs” the rule before they will apply a rule; the 80/20 [...]
It’s been interesting to listen to the debate men have been having about women’s reproductive rights, including claims from Rick Santorum that contraception gives one license to do things which ought not be done and perverted pundit Rush Limbaugh referring to an advocate of easier access to contraception for women as a “slut” to the disgust of [...]
I recently chortled my way through an article that listed 9 controversial Rick Santorum quotes. About halfway through I paused and thought, “Hey, some of these aren’t that far off things I believe might have been said in various church publications on LDS.org.” Let’s see if I’m right. Feminism & Family Values Santorum on birth control. [...]
Our Mormon moment continues (click here for the best article I’ve seen on this one). Baptism for the dead is under scrutiny again, mostly due to 2 incidents: 1) baptizing holocaust victims (despite the church previously stating this would not happen), and 2) Mitt Romney’s family proxy baptizing wife Ann’s father who was a vocal [...]
I recently completed the HCG diet. For those not familiar with it, dieters take sublingual drops three times a day (or there are shots you can do at a clinic) and adhere to a very low calorie diet (500 cals a day). The drops are made from a chemical found in women only during pregnancy which [...]
In 2007, my husband and I sailed the western Mediterranean on the Costa Concordia, so it was with awe and fascination that I watched it sink off the coast of Italy. I kept wondering what it would have been like to be sitting in the dining room when it struck the rock, then the fear [...]
Recently, Julie Beck asked Mormon Mommy Blogs to bring her whatever questions they had. A blog post went out to ask the questions women in the church had, whether about polygamy or women and the priesthood or any other topic. Below are the questions I came up with based on my experience in the bloggernacle. As [...]
Critics of Romney have worried that his Mormonism will affect him in his office as President of the United States. This concern has been raised from several different angles, and becomes an even bigger question as his tax records reveal his tithing contributions. To those who lack the context, donating 10% of your income to [...]
There have been many analogies to illustrate the different types of Mormons: Iron Rod vs. Liahona Mormons, Adam types vs. Eve types, TBMs vs. Liberal or Cafeteria Mormons. All of these analogies are trying to illustrate that there are very vocal, orthodox, unquestioning members, and there are also members who are unorthodox in how they view things, ask [...]
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