CWK: How I became a "fan" of Lou Midgley

[hauslern]

Another reason Midgley might not be a fan of Gina Colvin:

"I was delighted to be invited to be on a plenary panel at the New Zealand Association for The Study of Religion Conference this week in Wellington.

The topic was Māori Spirituality and I had the privilege of sharing that space with the amazing Dr Dr Byron Rangiwai and the delightful Māmari Stephens! We worked so well together we might need to write books!

One most interesting snippet in the conference was some research done by Peter Lineham who has been busy crunching census numbers and has produced some fascinating graphs on sectarian churches.

What grabbed my attention were the graphs that showed Mormon income levels in New Zealand to be surprisingly low - putting paid to myths of LDS social mobility. New Zealand Mormons are also showing up in numbers in low paid/low skill work - both males and females.

Of course there are explanations particularly as it relates to a changing LDS population. But, the point remains: the blessings of heaven seem not to fall so liberally on brown people in the church. So, it beats the hell out of me why they are building temples and continue to demand a tithe when there are clearly a raft of economic and educational needs that aren’t being met!

https://www.Facebook.com/gina.colvin

[Gadianton]

Would you happen to have a link to this exchange, Dr. Robbers? My recollection is that Midgley said something to you—perhaps it was the “garbage truck” remark—and you responded by saying, “That’s Dean Robbers to you,” which resulted in you getting instantly banned by the Afore…. Am I remembering this correctly??

Not clue, I apologize. I don't even remember the context. I think you're right that I suggested he treat a fellow academic with respect and for that I got banned permanently. I think it was a two-part insult. "he probably drives a garbage truck" was the second part.

[Gadianton]

But, the point remains: the blessings of heaven seem not to fall so liberally on brown people in the church. So, it beats the hell out of me why they are building temples and continue to demand a tithe when there are clearly a raft of economic and educational needs that aren’t being met!

For people like Midgley to feel good about themselves there must be a suffering class to define themselves against. I'm sure he has no problem with it.

[Kishkumen]

Of course there are explanations particularly as it relates to a changing LDS population. But, the point remains: the blessings of heaven seem not to fall so liberally on brown people in the church. So, it beats the hell out of me why they are building temples and continue to demand a tithe when there are clearly a raft of economic and educational needs that aren’t being met!

https://www.Facebook.com/gina.colvin

Thanks partly to the Widow's Mite project, the LDS Church has significantly increased its efforts to alleviate the suffering of the poor. I agree with Gina, but I also notice that what the Widow's Mite has been much more effective by simply pointing to the best available information and subjecting it to careful, neutral analysis than the haranguing of liberal scholars.