LDS Today Articles for January 5, 2007

January 5, 2007
Century Mark: Church leader with historic position nears 100th birthday (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (January 5, 2007)Just 10 days shy of his 100th birthday, Eldred G. Smith is the oldest living and longest-serving LDS general authority - and that includes 96-year-old President Gordon B. Hinckley, who joined the leadership ranks a decade after Smith.
The Mormon faith is spreading. But is it a world religion? (The Economist - UK) (January 5, 2007)LIKE any religious community, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (better known as the Mormons) will always cherish the locations connected with its foundation story. Not only the places in New York state where its prophet, Joseph Smith, said he received a vision of God (in 1820) and then a new set of scriptures, or the faith's spectacular headquarters in Utah, the state where Mormon pioneers found refuge. Also dear to Mormon hearts are parts of northern and central England where, soon after Smith had his visions, the faith won many converts.
Places of beauty, houses of worship (Huntsville Times - Alabama) (January 5, 2007)From humble to grand, state's churches honored in new photograph book From simple clapboard structures to the gleaming white marble of the new temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Alabama's places of worship are celebrated in the book "The Churches of Alabama," published by the Alabama Rural Electric Association of Cooperatives.
Media try to size up Reid as he enters D.C. spotlight (Deseret News - Utah) (January 5, 2007)Harry Reid is dour, unpolished, a walking contradiction with an "Eeyore exterior." Or he is "shrewd and very effective," with a "spine of steel," a brawling political insider who started life as a rural Nevada outsider.
Is It Mormon in America? (American Spectator) (January 5, 2007)Now that Mitt Romney has made the "lone walk" from the Massachusetts State House to the 2008 presidential race, he can expect to face many questions. Not about abortion, Iraq or immigration, mind you. Instead, the candidate will be pressed to discuss the Angel Moroni, The Pearl of Great Price, and his relationship to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Four stars lead early GOP race (Christian Science Monitor) (January 5, 2007)Enter Romney: successful businessman, savior of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, with an attractive family. Having won the governorship of liberal Massachusetts as a moderate Republican in 2002, he then sought to remake his national image by adopting conservative positions on abortion, gay rights, and stem cells. But many Republicans remain leery. And among Evangelical conservatives, Romney's Mormon faith can also be a hurdle.
Huntsman Sr. will help Romney with finances (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (January 5, 2007)Utah billionaire Jon Huntsman Sr. will serve as one of nine national finance co-leaders for Mitt Romney's presidential exploratory committee, the former Massachusetts governor announced Thursday. Huntsman, a petrochemical magnate and fellow Mormon, has contributed heavily to Romney's coffers in the past. Huntsman joins eight other well-known party fundraisers, including four of President Bush's 2004 "Rangers," a nickname for his top fund- raisers.
LDS mission store finds a niche (Salt Lake Tribune - Utah) (January 5, 2007)Someone keeps turning the rack of tiny state flags before Penni Crowther can snag North Carolina, where her daughter is serving an LDS mission. "It helps me keep track of my kids," the Murray mother says while she waits at one of the most popular attractions at the Missionary Emporium.
Festival to screen LDS films (Deseret News - Utah) (January 5, 2007)The 6th Annual LDS Film Festival is scheduled Jan. 17-20 at the SCERA Center for the Arts, 745 S. State. The four-day event features a variety of entries in the short- and feature-film categories, as well as speakers and booths. The speakers will include producer/director Kieth Merrill; James Huntsman, president of Arsgaard Entertainment; Rob Diamond (writer/director) and Kels Goodman (producer) of "Tears of a King: The Latter Days of Elvis Presley"; and Ryan Little and Adam Abel, founders of Go Films, producers of "Saints and Soldiers," "Outlaw Trail" and "Forever Strong."