ACCORDING TO ZAC

I finished a book this week called Greenwood that I really loved. It tells the story of a family, the Greenwoods, starting in 2038. We open with Jake Greenwood and walk backwards in time, learning about the previous generation, then the one preceding, and again the one that came before. Then, when we can sort of get a sense of where much of this family’s trajectory started, we start walking forward again to fill in the gaps and see how all of these individuals’ decisions were impacting people down the line, even if it was impossible to know that at the time. So much of this book spoke to me and made me think about my life, but two passages specifically go along with some thoughts I’ve been having about a couple members of my family. The first comes from Liam, Jake's father. He's a woodworker with difficult relationships with some of the people around him. In a tough moment, he comes to a realization: “Time, Liam has learned, is not an arrow. Neither is it a road. It go...

The idea of the separation of church and state is fine. I get why that's a thing. What's funny is that my priorities as a voter are shaped critically by my spirituality (which is different than the church, but is very closely related). So in my brain, I get that we're trying to create an operational government (lolol) that isn't a theocracy. We want people to have their cake and eat it too—enjoy their religion, but have freedoms separately established and protected by our duly elected officials as a safeguard preventing religious zealots from inappropriately wielding power over anyone. But I can't shake how my religious exposure and subsequent spiritual work as an individual inform what I think the government should be doing and the rights it should be ensuring we have as citizens. My ideals and philosophies are wholly shaped by who I know God to be and what He's asked of me as His son. I was grateful this week to have recently read Alma 5 . There is a lot  to...