foundation/methodology of mormon social justice theology

my quest ;) is to discover what exactly is the "mormon position" or maybe most accuratly, what is the position that the mormon church would teach as "Christ's" on any given matter. obviously, there is no way for me to do this without REALLY ticking some people off. but i promise it is not my intent. if i write something that seems wrong, please correct me. my goal is to discover what Christ's political opinions would be for America right now.

i come at this with a ton of personal bias and a worldview i sometimes can't even see. i'm simply writing my interpretation. i'm no prophet and never have claimed to be and would never attempt to emphatically speak for God, or even translate the words of prophets for anyone other than myself. these are my PERSONAL interpretations and have nothing to do with any organization i may happen to affiliate with. basically, yoga district is not responsible for this. ;)

i will only appeal to "primary sources". i will use the entire LDS cannon and that is all. i'm defining the cannon as that which is hosted on the LDS website or written by someone who is a general authority or is historical to the church. also, i will probably break these rules. you know me ...

i'm not a historian. nor am i a theographer or theologist. i'm just a student. i'm sincerely seeking truth. i've abandoned my need to prove something as true. i'm not afraid of what i find. no matter what i discover, i will have the confidence of conviction that i'm working my darnedest to be on the Lord's side. seriously, i don't care what side he is on, i just want to be on His side.

talmage wrote in articles of faith, something like (i'm doing this from memory b/c i'm too lazy to look it up):

the condition essential to the exercise of a living, growing, sustaining, faith in diety is the consciousness on man's part that he is at least endeavoring to live the will of God, as far as he has learned it.

i take this to mean that both knowing the will of God and then really trying to live it are both essential to having the safety true confidence and faith in Christ brings. i also believe that Christ knows the way to make everyone happy. so, it seems like if i could crack the code on how he view today's political issues, i might be able to know who best to vote for.

as you know, i have been an ardent Obama supporter. this election the man i want to be president (Obama) will most likely run against a member of my faith (Romney/Huntsman). this is my attempt to decide which one is the most Christlike politician. my theology runs up against my politics? or does it? i don't know!??

i really hope people will chime in. i will keep rambling on, if not just for my own study. i know there are people out there who know

mormon social justice theology.

i'm starting a new project this week. i'm trying to write down my understanding of mormon social justice theology. i thought i'd start with some issue and just kinda work my way through it. in an effort to get some debate going, because i never know if i'm understanding these things correctly, i decided to post this philosphical meandering on the interwebs. if you are reading and think i'm either dead wrong, missing something important, a genius, whatever ... just let me know. i seriously am just trying to figure out exactly what our doctrine is.

my boss wrote a book called A Nation for All: How the Catholic Vision of the Common Good Can Save America from the Politics of Division. i wish there was a "mormons in alliance for the common good" where i could go to get easy info on what the church's stances are on some of these political things. maybe it does exist in the general handbook of instructions? i don't know. i'm going to check it out.

i will let you know what i find ...

quit taxing me b/c i won't settle for mediocrity

why when i use Dept of ED's Income-Based Repayment Calculator their first question is if i'm married. what does that have to do with student loan repayment???

seems really unfair because some American aren't even allowed to marry who they want. what's with the anti-single government sanctioned prejudice? is this a hold over from the days when a woman had to get permission from her husband to open back accounts or buy cars?

many of us come from broken homes. some of us even had parents mature enough to set their issues with each other aside and focus on their children. some were/are able to allow the shared love for the children they created to overcome the temporary issues of "this marriage is over" -- whatever those issues are.

we all know families where the divorced parents are re-partnered and actively involved in their children's lives. all of 4 of them! the parents are friends.

it seems we may be missing the forrest for the trees on this one. i always thought you were supposed to marry out the commitment and intimacy that grew out of a love you experienced while courting? am i’m missing something??

we know that the "same sociality which exists among us here will exist among us there, only it will be coupled with eternal glory, which glory we do not now enjoy." (D&C 130:2) and mormons, of all people, should understand that the heaven (or zion) we dream of is a much more open and community/family oriented place that that of the catholics or the other christian churches. why are we pandering to their limited view of happiness?

we know the fruit of the tree of life! we know the plan of salvation. maybe you don’t realize how bold it is that you say what you say, because you use these words as jargon. but you are telling people that you actually know the intricate details of God’s plan for saving the world.

imagine, that you are in a contest and you are fighting for the world championships. or you are an Olympian and this is your gold medal race. or you are a politician and you are a year away from election day, and someone says to you here are all of the logistics planning and strategy from your opponent. what would you do with that?

God is giving us a cheat sheet and we act like its nothing, just common knowledge. this is seriously huge stuff we are telling people, i think we need to rediscover the courage and fight of Joseph and shun the run-away approach that Brigham took.

we know that families exist beyond the grave. i have friends who are married to widows who believe that their husband is simultaneously married to their deceased spouse and their current one. we know that polygamy exists after this life, and yet we are so afraid to admit it.

is it the extermination order? did they really just terrorize us into hiding our candle under a bushel like this? are you letting Governor Boggs win?

“perfect love casteth out all fear”, which to me can translate into “attempts at loving self and humanity can at least quill the impact of terror”. i don’t want perfect to be the enemy of the good, but i’m sick of being afraid to take action too!

why won't mitt just tell the truth about what he believes??!

• the church has been bold in its support for civil unions! why doesn’t he share it?
• the Church’s position on abortion assume the legality of the procedure.
• "man is free to act for himself and not to be acted upon".

isn't it that my rights end where yours begin? so why is my government telling me that in order to get the reduction of my student loan i need right now, i need to be married??

"thus saith the Lord: Let the work of my temple, and all the works which I have appointed unto you, be continued on and not cease; and let your diligence, and your perseverance, and patience, and your works be redoubled, and you shall in nowise lose your reward, saith the Lord of Hosts. And if they persecute you, so persecuted they the prophets and righteous men that were before you. For all this there is a reward in heaven." -- Joseph Smith (D&C 127:4)

Obama reducing student loan burden: Pay as you Earn

Last month the Obama Administration announced steps they are taking to help borrowers better manage their student loan debt by moving forward with a new “Pay As You Earn” proposal that will reduce monthly payments for more than 1.6 million people.

Here are the deets:

Starting in 2014, borrowers will be able to reduce their monthly student loan payments from 15 percent to 10 percent of their discretionary income. The new “Pay As You Earn” proposal will fast track the initiative to begin next year.

The questions below will help you understand income based repayment and find out if you are able to take advantage of these changes.

1. What is income-based loan repayment?

Income-Based Repayment (IBR) is a repayment plan that caps your required monthly payments on the major types of federal student loans at an amount intended to be affordable based on income and family size. All Stafford, PLUS, and Consolidation Loans made under either the Direct Loan or Federal Family Education Loan programs are eligible to be included in the program. Loans currently in default and Parent PLUS Loans are not eligible for the income-based repayment plan.

The program lowers monthly payments for borrowers who have high loan debt and modest incomes, but it may increase the length of the loan repayment period, accruing more interest over the life of the loan.

2. Who qualifies for IBR?

IBR helps people whose federal student loan debt is high relative to income and family size. While your loan servicer (the company you make your loan payments to) will determine your eligibility, you can use the U.S. Department of Education’s IBR calculator to estimate whether you are likely to qualify for the plan. The calculator looks at your income, family size, and state of residence to calculate your IBR monthly payment amount.

If that amount is lower than the monthly payment you are paying on your eligible loans under a 10-year standard repayment plan, then you are eligible to repay your loans under IBR.

3. Will my eligibility change if I'm married? What if my spouse also has loans?

If you are married and file a joint federal tax return with your spouse, both your income and your spouse’s income are used to calculate your IBR monthly payment amount.

If you are married and you and your spouse file a joint federal tax return, and if your spouse also has IBR-eligible loans, your spouse’s eligible loan debt is combined with yours when determining whether you are eligible for IBR. If the combined monthly amount you and your spouse would pay under IBR is lower than the combined monthly amount you and your spouse are paying under a 10-year standard repayment plan, you and your spouse are eligible for IBR.

4. How will President Obama's changes help lower my monthly payments though IBR?

In the 2010 State of the Union, the President proposed – and Congress quickly enacted – an improved income-based repayment plan that allows student loan borrowers to cap their monthly payments at 15 percent of their discretionary income. Starting July 1, 2014. the IBR plan was scheduled to reduce that limit from 15 percent to 10 percent of discretionary income for all new borrowers.

The President today announced that recent graduates shouldn’t have to wait that long to see lower monthly payments. Pay As You Earn will limit student loan payments to 10 percent of a graduate's income in 2012, rather than having to wait until 2014. This cap will reduce monthly payments for more than 1.6 million borrowers.

5. How will enrolling in IBR affect my monthly payments compared to the standard repayment plan?

It depends on your income. But, take for example a nurse who is earning $45,000 and has $60,000 in federal student loans. Under the standard repayment plan, her monthly repayment amount is $690. The currently available IBR plan would reduce her payment by $332, to $358. President Obama’s improved “Pay As You Earn” plan -- reducing the cap from 15 percent to 10 percent -- will reduce her payment by an additional $119, to a more manageable $239 -- a total reduction of $451 a month.

6. How will enrolling in IBR affect my payments over the life of the loan compared to the standard repayment plan?

In general, your payments will increase as your income does, but they will never be more than they would have been under the standard 10-year repayment plan. Although lower monthly payments may be better for some borrowers, lower payments may also mean you make payments for longer and the longer it takes to pay your loans, the more interest you pay compared to the standard repayment plan.

7. Is it possible my payments will be higher under IBR than they would under the standard repayment plan?

IBR will never cause your payments to increase more than they would have been under the standard repayment plan. It is possible, however, that your income and the size of your outstanding loan balance may mean that IBR is not beneficial to you. If your payments would be higher in IBR than they would be in the standard repayment plan, the IBR option will not be available to you.

Also, because a reduced monthly payment in IBR generally extends your repayment period, you may pay more total interest over the life of the loan than you would under other repayment plans.

8. How do I opt in to IBR?

To sign up for IBR, call your loan servicer. The loan servicer is the company that sends you your monthly student loan bills. If you don’t know who your servicer is or would like more information about your loans, such as the balance and interest rates, you can look it up on www.nslds.ed.gov. To see a list of and contact information for common servicers of student loans held by the US Department of Education, you may visit the Loan Servicer page.

9. How can I find out more?

Visit www.studentaid.ed.gov or call 1-800-4-FED-AID. You can also learn more about other student loan repayment options and find advice on paying loans off more quickly using the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau's Student Debt Repayment Assistant.

To find out about other changes to student loan programs, including President Obama's plan to allow borrowers to consolidate Direct Loans and Federal Family Education Loans, click here.

President Obama also can't wait for Congress to:

• Reduce prescription drug shortages
• Help businesses grow
• Help America's graduates
• Put veterans back to work
• Help homeowners refinance their mortgages

See more about Economy, Education

the cops beat the congressman

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