Hi, I'm Matthew

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

About Me

I'm a math teacher in an urban public school. I've been married for twenty years and have three daughters. My wife and I joined the church together right after our marriage in 1990.

Why I am a Mormon

Mormonism offers me spirituality and an eternal perspective. My faith grants my life enormous potential, has made my life much, much more than it might have otherwise been.

Personal Stories

How can we develop greater harmony in our homes?

In our home, as we have raised our daughters -- the oldest is about to finish the eighth grade -- we have focused heavily on tone of voice. From as early as our daughters could communicate with each other, and as they have communicated with us, we have nipped in the bud any conversation or comment that has a disrespectful or unkind tone. As a result, quarrels are few. We have expected other children who visit our home to maintain the same standards of respect that we expect of our own children.

The computers in our home are in public spaces, rather than secreted away in peoples' bedrooms.

How I live my faith

I try to love others and serve them by being a friend. I attend my meetings. I try to set an example for my family. I am an honest man. I seek to know the Savior and be more like Him.

What is the difference between attending a Mormon Church and a Mormon Temple?

Matthew answered...

Not all Mormons are able to enter a temple. To be worthy to enter a temple, members must live up to a number of obvious standards of honesty, chastity, faithfulness and paying an honest tithe. To enter a temple, members must belong to the Church for at least one full year. All people, Mormons or not, are welcome to attend Sunday worship and other meetings. In the temple, we prepare for eternity. In the meetinghouse on Sunday morning, we prepare ourselves for daily life and to be worthy to enter the temple.
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Kimberly. answered...

We go to church weekly to worship and take the sacrament, which is like communion. Everyone, no matter their faith, is welcome to come to church services and learn more about the Gospel.

The temple is a special place where members make further promises to Heavenly Father that they will keep his commandments. It is also where we are married, or sealed together, and where we can be baptized and sealed for our family members who have died before having those opportunities in life.

To go to the temple you need a card called a temple reccomend from your church leaders that confirms that you are currently doing your best to follow Christ and His Gospel as a member of the Church.

Why do some call Mormonism a cult?

Jeff answered...

I think some call Mormonism a cult mainly because they don't understand what it's about. Before I was a Mormon, I used to believe that Mormons did not believe in the Bible, in Jesus Christ and a good deal of other things. I didn't realize how incorrect I was. There have been some pretty amazing things that have happened in conjunction with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and if you don't get the whole picture, then some of the stuff can sound pretty odd, and I think that's where I was before.
An example I sometimes use is: if someone told you that he had cut a man with a knife, from that limited piece of information, you'd probably report him for stabbing someone. But if you found out that this someone was a Doctor, and that he was preforming a surgery to save a man's life, having the full story completely changes your perspective on the situation.
In regards to the church I belong to, once I did have the whole story, I could see that Mormons were not cultish, but that they really are in fact Christians. I've even found that I have a stronger love of the the core things I believed before I was a Mormon, like the Bible and Jesus Christ.