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Welcome to the Book of Jared. No, I am not the Jared from the Book of Mormon, but I hope in spite of that fact that you will find something of value here on my site.

I learned a valuable lesson today...

I rented a car to drive from Chicago to Las Vegas, about a 22 hour drive. In the end, I discovered that the car's registration had expired and all four tires were completely bald. What should have been a 22 hour drive, …

Come all ye sons of God...

One of the reasons I became a Freemason is because of the fraternity I felt with my brother masons. I know I should feel that same affection for my brothers in the priesthood, but I don't, and I wanted to look at why I …

Time to get a grip...

Galations 2:9 refers to the "right hand of fellowship." Modern freemasons have "grips" or handshakes that are taught to initiates, and Latter-day Saints have similar grips in our temple ceremonies. What are these grips, …

What is the value of a temple?

I often hear critics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints complain about the cost of building a temple. To be sure, a temple is expensive to build and maintain, but what are the benefits of building a …

New Category!

I have decided to add a new section to the site, one where I can put out information and news about upcoming bands that I have discovered. Living in Las Vegas, we get a lot of bands that come through town and give …

What I really want for Christmas this year

I will be the first to admit that I am a total techno-geek. The new Star Wars Trailer made me geek out, and how! But what I really want for Christmas, from each of my family members is a little different this year. …

Joseph the Egyptian...

Joseph, son of Israel, and father of Ephraim and Manasseh, has a deep and abiding connection with the land of Egypt. It started with the jealousy of his brothers because of his father's preference of their younger …

The Book of Abraham: Understanding the why behind the facsimiles

When we last left our intrepid astronomer priest he was in Egypt, trying to show Pharaoh that he has the needed qualifications to be an astronomer priest in Egypt. This is where the interesting part of the facsimiles …

The Book of Abraham: Taking it for what it is...

I have had some interesting thoughts of late about the Book of Abraham. I have been reading all the possible sources for the book, and whether it was translated from the fragments we have in Salt Lake City, and so on. …

6 things...

 I am basing this musing on something Loyd Davis wrote when he was the Worshipful Grand Orator for the Grand Lodge of Utah. In his oration he mentioned that "there are six things you know about a mason before you …