Jana Riess
Senior columnist Jana Riess is the author of many books, including "The Prayer Wheel" (Random House/Convergent, 2018) and "The Next Mormons: How Millennials Are Changing the LDS Church" (Oxford University Press, 2019). She has a PhD in American religious history from Columbia University.
All Stories by Jana Riess
Utah has the 4th-worst pay gap between men and women. Is Mormonism responsible?
By Jana Riess — April 21, 2014
Why does Utah have such a dismal record in women's earnings, and is Mormonism really to blame?
Good Friday, the end of the world
By Jana Riess — April 18, 2014
Somewhere, for someone, today is Good Friday, the end of the world. Where is our compassion?
The Twible: FREE during Easter weekend
By Jana Riess — April 17, 2014
The Twible is free through Monday on the Kindle. Happy Easter, people! Please help spread the word, both about the sale and about that guy Jesus rising from the dead. There's that.
Was Brigham Young a racist?
By Jana Riess — April 16, 2014
Mormons today believe and teach that "all are alike unto God," but have to reconcile that with racist teachings from past leaders they regard as prophets.
On Mormon blogging, by an “accomplice of Lucifer”
By Jana Riess — April 14, 2014
There will be disagreements in the Church. That's just a given. But we don't need to seek to destroy one another just to come out on top in some theological or political argument.
Mormons will get free — FREE! — memberships to Ancestry.com
By Jana Riess — April 9, 2014
My church, which has always counseled against addiction in any form, is now going to PAY for my addiction by giving all Mormons a free membership to Ancestry.com. I am so there.
Mormons and the problem of selective obedience
By Jana Riess — April 7, 2014
Elder Hales says selective obedience is undesirable because we should instead be “using our agency to obey.” The problem with this assessment is that selective obedience is where most of us live.
Founder of Ordain Women desires “complete equal footing” with Mormon men
By Jana Riess — April 5, 2014
Tonight, hundreds of Mormon women are expected to request tickets to the all-male priesthood session of General Conference. In this guest post, Kate Kelly, the founder of Ordain Women, explains why she feels that nothing short of full priesthood will suffice for women -- and why this is not a defiant stance, but a faithful one.
Leaving Mormonism . . . and finding my way back (part 2)
By Jana Riess — April 4, 2014
Yesterday we had the first of two parts of novelist Mette Ivie Harrison’s personal story of losing faith in Mormonism. Today she reveals how she is trying to find her testimony again, returning to prayer and to church activity. As you can see, she rejects the “blame the victim” response that many Mormons have when […]
Leaving Mormonism . . . and finding my way back
By Jana Riess — April 3, 2014
What causes a loss of faith? Mette Ivie Harrison was a Mormon mom, BYU professor, and novelist. in this two-part post she recounts the painful loss of her Mormon foundation, and the equally painful struggle to find faith again.
Mormon leader Uchtdorf translated to heaven; begins to glow
By Jana Riess — April 1, 2014
The LDS Church announced this morning that Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency has been translated to heaven. “He was simply too good for this world,” said a church spokesman about the wildly popular Mormon apostle.
Where is God when your child has a disability?
By Jana Riess — March 31, 2014
Parents of children with disabilities are no strangers to heartache, even despair. How can they find God's presence when they're exhausted from sleepless nights and IEP meetings?
Great advice for Mormon sister missionaries
By Jana Riess — March 29, 2014
With tens of thousands of Mormon sister missionaries now serving around the world, where are they going to get the low-down on what to expect out in the field? This inspiring new book of personal essays offers some honest advice.
“LDS Living” gently criticizes gender inequality in raising Mormon kids
By Jana Riess — March 27, 2014
LDS Living says that Mormon boys and girls should have equal standards for modesty, technology, and the recognition of their accomplishments.
The care and feeding of Mormon trolls: A guest post by Stephanie Lauritzen
By Jana Riess — March 25, 2014
The founder of "Wear Pants to Church Day" reflects on death threats and other uncivilized behavior by Mormons online. How do people so easily forget there's a person with feelings at the other end of their rants?
