Boston Globe's Religion Blog -- Articles of Faith

A religion blog wouldn't ordinarily fall under the rubric of Know Your Neighbor, but the Boston Globe's Articles of Faith, written by Pulitzer prize-winning, religion reporter Michael Paulson is in my opinion noteworthy:

1)  Over the weekend, Paulson posted an entry titled Mormons begin new Cambridge Building. In this post, he discusses the ease with which approvals have come for this chapel compared to most.  It is no doubt in part because most of the neighbors are non-residential, but I also wonder to what extent member involvement in the Cambridge community, which to my knowledge has been reasonably significant, has helped?

This begs the question -- if we (stake presidents, bishops specifically) know that a building may be constructed within the next 5-10 years in a specific neighborhood, is there a task force from the stake involved in developing relationships with local town leaders, zoning officials, historical commissions, neighbors, the press -- so that a new building is a celebration for the entire community, not just Mormons?

2)   Having met Mr. Paulson on several occasions, and read many of his pieces, his unusual lack of bias is striking.  I can't ferret out what his personal religious beliefs are.  This is impressive.  Particularly given that the Mormon faith is so often a religion that is subject to tremendous negative bias.  In short, here is a reporter that tries to find common ground amongst religions, for which I am grateful.

We often express disappointment to those that are not fair, but when was the last time that we expressed our appreciation for those that are, whether by sending them an e-mail, commenting on their blogs, or even linking to them?