Blacks Ridiculed Again by the Mormon Church

(MONROVIA, Liberia, West Africa) - For several years now, every Tuesday evening I have had the great privilege of hosting “Teaching The Truth”, an LDS focused broadcast to the Christian and Mormon listeners of Worship FM 101.7 in Monrovia, the capital City of Liberia, West Africa.

I have come to know several of the station managers and a number of the more frequent callers to this weekly program. Through their comments, questions and photographs, I have been genuinely moved to see the application of their unyielding faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Over the past few months the question of racist teachings in the Book of Mormon and from the past Leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been on the minds of the Black Liberian converts to Mormonism and the many African Christians who struggle to understand how such a Church can be growing in Africa.

I believe the answer is relatively simple; it has been the perfect merging of a sincere lack of knowledge on the part of the Black Mormon Converts and a disturbing lack of accountability on the part of the White Mormon Leaders. A near total lack of knowledge across Africa specific to the more explicitly racist teachings found within the current Mormon Scriptures, principally that of Black Skin [1] and even less information concerning the racism and bigotry openly and officially taught by the early Leadership of the Mormon Church. These facts, combined with the current Church Leadership’s inability to clearly and specifically reject its own racist teachings both in print and from its past Senior Leadership (liberally using the terms Nigger, Darky, Sambo and Skin of Blackness[2]), has left the Black Race with only a short irresponsible and offensively juvenile Official Statement[3] that claims the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints knows very little about its own race-based policy, which lasted for well over 100 years:

“It is not known precisely why, how or when this restriction began in the Church, but it has ended.” - Official Mormon Press Release concerning Race and the Church

Maintaining a detailed and comprehensive history of every aspect and teaching of the Church has been both one of the hallmarks and one of the downfalls of Mormon Church. Within the relatively young Church, authoritative documentation, however corrupt it may have been, has never been in short supply. Each of the Senior Leaders of the Mormon Church has had several official biographers as well as an army of Church approved historians to record all aspects of the History of the Church. In fact, one of my first of many “Callings” in the Mormon Church was that of a Ward (Congregational) Historian, long before I became a Mormon High Priest and Bishop.

The peculiar assertion that the Mormon Church itself does not know the details of its very own race-based policy of restricting the Blacks from holding the Priesthood is tremendously embarrassing for all Mormons and exceptionally degrading for anyone who actually believes it.

As a former local leader of the Mormon Church, I have repeatedly assured the African members of the Mormon Church that the documents and “Scriptures” I have read to them over the air are both Authorized and Official for the time period they are relevant to. I clearly state the current position of total acceptance of all Races by the Church, but I must highlight the fact that the Book of Mormon still carries it’s obviously racist message that dark skin was a curse from God. I have said many times on-air that like the Mormon Missionaries, I too believe that every African should have a copy of the Book of Mormon, if only to learn the truly racist teaching of the Mormons, directly from the Book of Mormon.

I have and will continue to teach the African Nations from the authentic Mormon Scriptures and the official Church History documents, which I had been provided by the Mormon Church to execute my responsibilities as a Mormon Bishop. The Official Records of the Mormon Church include many jokes and sermons given within the Official Semi-Annual General Conference of the Mormons, using freely the terms Nigger, Darky and Sambo. Additionally, these LDS Church documents record nearly 100 graphic sermons and lessons that clearly teach the principle, practice and policy that Black Skin was, is and will remain forever the Curse of Cain.

Only in the recent past has the “Complete History” of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints come to the attention of its own membership, much less to the under developed regions of the world. As this information is discovered, an ever increasing number of members of the Mormon Church have come into a personal crisis of faith, most notably Elder Hans Mattsson[4] of Sweden, a General Authority of the Mormon Church who has gone public with his doubts and questions concerning the appalling treatment of the Black Race by the Mormon Church.

Not unique to Africa, has been the Mormon Church’s training of young Missionaries to strictly avoid any discussion of several of the more embarrassing, yet true, teachings of the 183 year old Church. Among the prohibited subjects to discuss have been, becoming a God, the practice of Polygamy and religious racial restrictions on the Black Race.

With the smooth talent of a skilled politician, the Mormon Church has ended its Official Racial Restrictions with the following hypocritical and deceitful, but technically accurate Statement:

As a former Mormon Bishop and member of the Mormon Church for over 32 years, let me be of some help with the translation of this very carefully crafted, yet deceitful message. The two key and noteworthy phrases are: “in the absence of direct revelation” and “These previous personal statements do not represent Church doctrine.”

I will address the most obvious first, clearly the “previous statements” from the Church and its Leadership “do not” represent the Church doctrine today. The policy was reversed in 1978 and there is no question as to the current policy of today. The hypocritical deception is that between 1830 and 1978 those “statements” did, very much “DID” not “DO” represent past Official and Legitimate Mormon Church doctrine. Yet, I do give full credit to the clever Mormon authors and editors of today for their most skillful use of the English language.

And finally, the most revealing and enlightening statement from the Mormon Church is: “in the absence of direct revelation”. So then, it is incredibly true and accurate that without any mockery or sarcasm to state that; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had for nearly 140 years, restricted a significant portion of the human race, millions and millions from what they teach is God’s intended blessings of Eternal Marriage, Salvation and even Godhood, without knowing why they did it, all without “direct revelation”?

This Official Statement of religious shame and embarrassment comes from the Headquarters of a Church that claims to be guided in all things by “direct revelation”. How then, did such an exclusive doctrine based on prejudice, bigotry and racism become so widely accepted, so authoritative, so convincing and so commanding for so long, without any “direct revelation”?

As a former Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I give solemn testimony that what they have declared is true, in that, they were and are now racist and do not hide the History of the Mormon Church from its members or the public, this, their Official Statement on Race and their Official “Scriptures[5]” clearly demonstrates that fact.

I believe that the truly wicked teachings as well as the repulsive history of the Mormon Church concerning Polygamy, Polyandry-(sharing wives among the men), Blood Atonement, as well as restricting the Blacks from the Mormon Priesthood is available for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear.

It is my prayer that all Mormons and non-Mormons alike will come to know the true history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I wish that every adult around the world could find the time to read the calculated racism and bigotry found within the Book of Mormon5. My hope is that all mankind could discover the contemporary Mormon Teachings, to see the deception they hold, and then… to read the True Word of God and follow the True Jesus Christ found only in the Bible.

[1] 1 Nephi 11:13, 1 Nephi 12:23, 1 Nephi 13:15, 2 Nephi 5:21, 2 Nephi 30:6, Jacob 3:5, Jacob 3:8-9, Alma 3:6, Alma 3:9, Alma 3:14, Alma 23:18, 3 Nephi 2:14-16, 3 Nephi 19:25, 30, Mormon 5:15, Moses 7:8, Moses 7:12, Moses 7:22, Abraham 1:21, Abraham 1:27

[2] A full and complete list is available upon request from the author - Lee B. Baker former Mormon Bishop, contact: leebbaker@hotmail.com

[3] http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/race-church

[4] http://www.nytimes.com/video/2013/07/20/us/100000002347278/a-mormon-doubts.html

[5]1 Nephi 11:13, 1 Nephi 12:23, 1 Nephi 13:15, 2 Nephi 5:21, 2 Nephi 30:6, Jacob 3:5, Jacob 3:8-9, Alma 3:6, Alma 3:9, Alma 3:14, Alma 23:18, 3 Nephi 2:14-16, 3 Nephi 19:25, 30, Mormon 5:15, Moses 7:8, Moses 7:12, Moses 7:22, Abraham 1:21, Abraham 1:27

Special thanks to Lee Baker for submitting this article to Salem-News.com

Also see...

Jul-16-2012: Why Did the Mormon Founders Hate Black People? - Political Perspective by Tim King Salem-News.com

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Anonymous September 3, 2015 3:14 pm (Pacific time)

Religiousity is a plaugue.

Anonymous January 2, 2014 1:23 pm (Pacific time)

Only minorities have to obey the law.

Making white people obey the law is unfair discrimination.

Now shut your racist face and go pay your taxes. Your government is broke.

/sarc(????)

Anonymous January 2, 2014 9:57 am (Pacific time)

Peter, Your comment of 20, 2013 5:19 am says, "You need not suppose that the "skin of blackness" spoken of in the Book of Mormon refers to race. . . I believe this term refers to a disease. Your accusations are based on false assumptions." I hope you can help me out on this one. As I understand it, the LDS Church teaches that American Indians are the decendents of those with this skin of blackness and that is why they have skin darker than most Europeans who came to the Americas after Columbus. Do you think this is actually a better approach than assuming the skin of blackness was something more along the lines of a change of race? I don't understand how assuming the skin of blackness is a disease might help the LDS Church. Again, thanks! Zack

Zack Tacorin January 2, 2014 9:37 am (Pacific time)

Peter,

In your response of December 20, 2013 5:21 am, you indicated that you know the LDS Church is Gods restored Church because God has revealed it to you. How can you be so sure it is God providing you answers when:

- Your answers contradict answers others think they have received from God? (For example, there are Catholics that believe God has told them the Catholic Church is God's one and only church with authority from God, yet the LDS Church indicates the creeds of all churches besides the LDS Church are an abomination to God.)

- Such influence from God is admittedly easily confused with emotions or influence from satan? (search for the words "emotional" or "adversary" in this article by Elder Packer at http://www.lds.org/ensign/1983/01/the-candle-of-the-lord)

- You have no objective way to determine that your perceptions of the Spirit are anything other than a psychological experience called elevation? (see more about elevation at http://www.theamateurthinker.com/2011/02/how-can-we-find-truth-part-4/)

- “A common technique among religious cults is to instruct people to ask God what He wants them to do. Members are exhorted to study and pray in order to know God's will for them." (Steven Hassan, Combatting Cult Mind Control, p. 70)? Keep in mind that this kind of exhortation to prayer to find answers from God often leads to conclusions like the "Reverend Sun Myung Moon is the Messiah."

Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on this!
Zack

Dave Morrison December 27, 2013 11:59 am (Pacific time)

I just had a lengthy email dialog with Mr. Baker refuting many of his claims in this article--as well as others throughout our email dialog. Notedly:

- To his claims of "racist teachings both in print and from its past Senior Leadership" I provided concrete evidence that throughout the 1600s to the middle of the 1900s nearly all mainstream Christian churches exhibited the same racism that Mr. Baker accuses the Mormon church of.

- I provided evidence showing that, although some Mormon leaders used the term "nigger" in talks, they were used in relation to storytelling and were not their own personal views. In addition, I showed that this term was used commonly in American society up until the civil rights movement of the 1960s and the LDS citations Mr. Baker provided were more than 50 years previously.

- I refuted Mr. Baker's claim of "explicitly racist teachings found within the current Mormon Scriptures".

- I challenged Mr. Baker to provide documentation for his claim that "Mormons held, traded and sold Slaves in each and every State or Territory they occupied". Mr. Baker did provid a link to an article that showed that in the 1850 census (when slavery was legal) there were as many as 29 slaves in the state of Utah--TWENTY NINE. In the 1830 U.S. census the ratio of slaves to non-slaves in the entire U.S. (North and South) was 15%. With 29 slaves in 1850 in the territory of Utah, the ratio would have been .25%-a quarter of 1%.

To this point, I have received nothing from Mr. Baker disputing any of the evidence I provided. This is so typical of anti-Mormons. When confronted with evidence disputing their claims, they simply change the subject and move on to the next critique.

My guess is that Mr. Baker makes a pretty good living selling books and public speaking, and that being a Mormon bishop just didn't provide enough cash flow.

Anonymous December 24, 2013 9:28 am (Pacific time)

These types of allegations regarding the Mormon Church have never been considered anything more than fabrication by Christian haters. It was a typical propaganda program aimed at Presidential candidate Romney. Regarding the Duck Dynasty program, well this is the biggest and most watched program in cable television history. The "Elites" and their "tools" have been shown to be the real "bigots." This Duck Dynasty family is light years beyond the myopics found in the progressive cesspool, and they do it with good family values. As they say, one should not judge a book by it's cover. By the way, most of their products are made by American companies, which has created many many jobs. Better living through American Capitalism. It's what keeps this site online also.

Anonymous December 23, 2013 6:55 pm (Pacific time)

Nothing as bad as what is happening to the family on Duck Dynasty and how they are being abused for simply quoting biblical passages and living wholesome lives with Christ as their guide. Phil Robertson, the Patriarch, was a college football quarterback who turned down a pro career, and has a Masters Degree In Education. Terry Bradshaw was his back up quarterback. So how come the real haters, the progressive liberals, aka Marxists, attempt to demonize these fine people?

Nothing is as bad as what is happening on Duck Dynasty, what? That is a corporate TV show making millions of dollars and benefiting the Chinese govt.

What a joke.

Douglas December 22, 2013 9:41 am (Pacific time)

Always be wary of those who fill their pockets selling religion.

pinkfloyd December 21, 2013 9:57 am (Pacific time)

In my humble opinion, anyone taking a name of a religion, is extremely unlearned and controlled by an entity they have not even a clue that exists. All wars are banker wars, and all religions were designed to control. I happen to believe in Jesus Christs' teaching, but I am not a Christian. I am Stephen, temporarily inhabiting a human body, experiencing new adventures every day, and I dont care if your skin color is purple or polka dots. The only time Christ got angry is when he turned over the tables of the money changers (the bankers)..Instead of fighting amongst ourslelves, we should be prosecuting and jailing the bankers and our government who is controlled by the bankers. They also control the media and the education system to control us like guinea pigs. Come on, you know this is true, its obvious now. Ten years ago when I spoke of this, I understood why people did not believe me. But now? come on, its right in front of your face. Education is indoctrination, media is indoctrination. Wake up and be yourself and the entity that God created in love, forgivenes, mercy and beauty. Look up the 9 fruits of the spirit.

Jimbo December 21, 2013 12:40 am (Pacific time)

Hold on. The church still did teach that blacks were less valiant in the pre existence and that blacks were the devil's representatives on earth. Ans we all know the white and delight some text that was removed from the Book of Mormon. If apologists can't see the racists teachings, then they are just too stupid to argue with.

I am not saying the church is racist now, but trying to whitewash its history with no apology or admission of guilt is maddening to non-menbers

Bernard Hamblin December 20, 2013 7:15 pm (Pacific time)

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and I am Black. I am amazed at how many former Bishops and High Priests there are in the anti-Mormon movement. FYI: I am being facetious. After 32 years of fully supporting the alleged past racial oppression, the Spirit has now moved him to uncover the truth.

I guess this author is our next "great white hope" and will rescue us poor uninformed Negroes from those overly nice Mormon people who held racist policies 150 years ago. The same people who have to take accountability for a policy they stopped in 1978. Are there still racist Mormons? I'm sure there are, but I've never met one personally and they'll be contrite or held accountable when the time comes.

I'll tell you the real secret: some Mormons, including Prophets, are human beings that make human being mistakes (FYI: all Mormons are human beings by the way). Revelation is infallible and that is the significance to the Church's statement, because racist polices were not the result of revelation from our Heavenly Father.

Pilgrims fully participated in and profited from chattel slavery. Most White people who were openly against slavery certainly didn't want Negroes living in their neighborhoods. Actually, last I checked we still decreased property values by 10-20% in most suburban neighborhoods.

I challenge the author to name a Christian sect or someone in his own family that hasn't used those ignorant words in the past 150 years. Mormons did not create the whole "Black Curse" interpretation. I'm sure it's an oversight by the 32 year, veteran, High Priest, AND Bishop: he failed to mention the Prophet Joseph Smith personally bestowed the priesthood upon a Black man. Given that, I am inclined to believe we would not have this problem if he weren't assassinated.

Lastly, The author conveniently left out a reference to 2 Nephi 26:33. "...and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free..."

I love you, Mr. Baker, and I pray Heavenly Father blesses you and your family with good health a good spirits.

Rex Whitmer December 20, 2013 6:39 pm (Pacific time)

I have a sad comment for Mr. Baker. At the first, priesthood was given to several black people and they were treated as any other member. When the Church moved to Missouri which was at that time a slave state, persecution was furious. Blacks were still admitted to the priesthood though there were few of them. There were no revelations that were published that made any distinction between races. No one seems to know or understand why black members were denied priesthood after they got to Utah. Though it was taught that blacks at that time could not be admitted to the priesthood it was also taught that they would be when things were right. Growing up I read several ideas for why they were being denied, but none were ever published by the Church. I do know that I had a son who served part of his mission in Washington state at the time that President Kimball announced the revelation that even before that he had several black families he was working with. With the announcement many more came quite ready for baptism. I have often before the revelation was given cautioned members whom were obviously prejudiced that blacks were God's children as much as they were and that the day was coming when they would be equal in the Church to every one else. One Bishop came to my son and told him not to baptize any more blacks into his ward. My son asked him, "Your Ward?" The Bishop stopped and thought a moment, then turned and walked away. Now then if indeed you are still an active member the Church, if you ever were, you know that it is no great thing to be a Bishop? In the main you are given no special knowledge and you have no right to question the leadership. If you are a member then you know that they speak and act for God on the earth. I do not and will not question God on any matter, and if you do then perhaps you would be much happier within some other congregation?

JJ December 20, 2013 4:24 pm (Pacific time)

You are seriously out of order. Obviously bitter and clearly biased. Get over it and move on with your life.

Anonymous December 20, 2013 2:57 pm (Pacific time)

In 2014 you will see a Mormon black woman from Utah, currently a mayor, become a Republican U.S. Congressman. The left will demonize her, as they always do to black conservatives. As usual the left will be ignored, as are all their media programs and publications, by the majority.

Earl December 20, 2013 2:14 pm (Pacific time)

Salem-news.com lists these as its guiding principles: ~Truth~ ~Justice~ ~Peace~ Sadly, this article is sorely lacking in each of these virtues. I suggest you avoid giving a forum to haters such as Mr. Baker. Any knowledgeable, objective reader can see that he is devoted to spreading misinformation and outright lies in order to sell books and destroy the faith of others. Publishing this kind of article does nothing to enhance your reputation as a purveyor of Truth, a defender of Justice, or a promoter of Peace.

john zimmerman December 20, 2013 12:44 pm (Pacific time)

There is some truth to some of what is stated. But there are also untruthful manipulation, exagerations. What he is doing is akin to judging someone as ugly by taking a magnification glass to a mole on the person's skin.

Anonymous December 20, 2013 12:35 pm (Pacific time)

Dear brother, there is no racism in the Book of Mormon. It is the history of one family and their descendants, joined by another group of the same origin....Israelites. It even explicitly states, " For none of these iniquities come of the Lord; for he doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile."

It is one thing to talk about the Church and its teachings. It is another to misrepresent and mislead.

Hubert December 20, 2013 11:52 am (Pacific time)

It is good that Mr. Baker used "former" and has found a place in his heart that he can live with other than the LDS Church. I hope he found perfection in his new settings. I am not perfect nor do I expect anyone other than Jesus Christ to be, and that makes it simple for me to continue to believe that the true gospel can be found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Ken Dahl December 20, 2013 11:45 am (Pacific time)

Mormons don't like it when the press publishes something about them that, while true, is unflattering. They actually have a well documented history of attempting to suppress free speech. Their founder, Joseph Smith, was killed for that very reason--as self-appointed General of Nauvoo, IL, Smith instructed the city council to destroy the "Nauvoo Expositer" which ran truthful though disparaging articles about him and his followers. Smith's death led to the exodus west and racist Brigham Young's rise to power within Mormonism.

Anonymous December 20, 2013 10:30 am (Pacific time)

Mr. Baker,

You should know that Joseph Smith did give the priesthood to a few black men in the 1830s, and they maintained that priesthood until they died in the Salt Lake valley. Now, make your claims scientific: study the behavior of other churches in the 1800s--study the behavior of God-fearing men and women of the 1800s. You might just find that racism has existed institutionally and individually for a long time. Mormons were abolitionists, and yet you don't mention that in your remarks. I hope that you can study this sensitive topic without the eye of hatred that you have. I'm sorry for whatever happened to you in the Church for you to have these bitter feelings. I'm sorry that you have the spirit of hate consuming you. I hope that you can find peace in your life.

Tom Johnson December 20, 2013 9:09 am (Pacific time)

The most important words in this article are those stating that the author, Lee Baker, is a "former Mormon High Priest and Bishop." He has apostatized from the Church and his bittnerness and prejudice against the Church is obvious.

Marc Cody December 20, 2013 9:04 am (Pacific time)

Why do people from the LDS church have such a hard time admitting the truth? Are they just lying or truly so blatantly ignorant?

Douglas December 20, 2013 7:10 am (Pacific time)

Under the interest of full disclosure and exposure of bias, does this man have financial incentive to vilify the Mormon church?

Peter Marlow December 20, 2013 5:21 am (Pacific time)

On the one hand you have those who are eager to mock and make accusations and point out what they think are the faults and flaws of the LDS Church and its leaders. They don’t try to teach anything positive. They don’t offer encouragement or try to uplift. They only want to tear down what I and a rapidly increasing number of others are experiencing as great source of spiritual strength in our lives and which we then naturally enjoy sharing with others in a loving manner. These accusers and hecklers come across as angry or bitter. I don’t feel much love in their words –certainly not the Spirit of God.

When someone offers a reasonable response to their accusations, rather than try to learn from it or modify their position, they throw out more accusations – an endless stream of venom. If we heed them, we risk becoming like them. Not a pleasant prospect. If their belief system leads them to feel the need to denigrate the beliefs of others and destroy a faith based on love, I want no part of it.

They argue as I have always imagined the devil argues. He relishes finding the faults and flaws in each of us, constantly reminding us of them, and trying to discourage us from thinking we are worth anything to God. The devil hates that God loves each one of us and extends mercy to us all through His Son, Jesus Christ. The devil would give us no mercy. He wants to see us despondent and full of despair. If we believe his accusations, if we fall for his lies and allow him to discourage us, we may even eventually start to turn against others in a similar fashion.

On the other hand, you have those who seek to bravely respond to the accusations – not to defend themselves in any way, but to protect others from the misinformation mixed in with and insinuated by the accusations. Unfortunately, their explanations usually require more effort to understand than most people are willing to make. But they are still wonderful to the many who do care deeply about right and wrong and who want to know the truth. Defenders of the faith, keep up the good work!

This asymmetry of argument is not anyone’s fault. It is just the nature of good and evil. Accusations are easy to make. The underlying facts are difficult to assemble (that is, if they can even be known to anyone today), and impossible to prove. Even in a court of law, the threshold for proof is only “beyond a reasonable doubt.” It takes a lot of work to get at those facts and communicate them to others. But many people don’t understand this and allow accusations to tarnish their understanding of a subject. It is their loss. Accusers have known this since the beginning of time and still exploit it to their advantage.

But their advantage will be short-lived. God knows what He is doing. This opposition is all a part of His greater plan. Even Jesus had to be imprisoned, cruelly treated, judged unworthy to live, and crucified like a criminal. Yet among His last words on the cross were these: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

And so what if this or that LDS prophet or apostle was not perfect. None of us mortals are perfect. God understands this. Our sins and mistakes do not affect His love for us one whit. He works with us and through us, anyway. The Bible is full of accounts of imperfect prophets and apostles making mistakes and learning from them. Moses, because of his sin, was not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Even the great apostle Peter denied Christ thrice in His darkest hour. God smiles upon us patiently as we grow in our understanding of His greatness and love. Someday, His perfect justice and mercy will make all things right for everyone, even those who presently refuse His invitations, even those who had crucified His Son – and would still crucify Him today if they could (as evidenced by the way they fail to recognize His servants, and even hate them). Trust Him. We have nothing to fear.

I testify in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that I know God lives, that Jesus Christ is His Son, our Savior and Redeemer, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is His doing, His restoration of the church He organized when He walked upon the earth, restored in its fullness by the resurrected Christ through a prophet He had appointed to do this work, the Prophet Joseph Smith, and led today by prophets and apostles He has called. I know this not because I was taught to believe this as a child (I was taught and believed in atheism for the first 20 years of my life). I know this not because others have convinced me with evidence and arguments (and for this reason “evidence” and arguments to the contrary have no power to dissuade me from the truth). I know this because God, in His goodness and grace, has revealed it to me personally and has made it as plainly real and true to me as the reality and truth of my own existence, as only He has the power to do.

I know that it is His greatest desire that we humbly and lovingly submit ourselves to Him, to seek to do His will, and allow Him to lead each of us to His great truths, the greatest of which is His perfect love, to our infinite and eternal joy.

Peter Marlow December 20, 2013 5:19 am (Pacific time)

You need not suppose that the "skin of blackness" spoken of in the Book of Mormon refers to race. God never claimed to have changed anyone's race. I believe this term refers to a disease. Your accusations are based on false assumptions.

Linda December 20, 2013 2:17 am (Pacific time)

Again, you judge 19th century men on 21st century standards.

You accuse church leaders, in General Conference, using words like "darkey", and those other vile words. WHEN was this, exactly? How long ago? I mean, I've been a member now for well over 30 years, which is all of my adult life, and I have NEVER EVER once heard ANY of our leaders use those words!!
Not to mention that if you had been a bishop, you would know that the Book of Mormon does NOT talk about BLACKS, because blacks, the blacks who could not hold hte priesthood, were AFRICAN descendants, and the Book of Mormon takes place no where NEAR Africa! but in the Western Hemisphere. That's the AMERICAS for the geographically challenged.
The only people complaining so vehemently about this church policy are the ones who DO NOT want it! Many blacks joined our church before 1978, and many others wanted to, even knowing the church policy.

Why can't our church just stand or fall on what we believe? Why do people like this guy feel that they must LIE about our church to bring it down?

Curtis December 20, 2013 12:11 am (Pacific time)

You live a small, little life. You seriously have nothing better to do?

Curtis December 19, 2013 10:03 pm (Pacific time)

You allow this man to write here unanswered? Will you give equal space and prominence for a rebuttal from a representative of the Church this man berates?

Editor: Yes, we will consider that, please have them contact us via our regular email address, newsroom@salem-news.com..

lillith1941 December 19, 2013 8:56 pm (Pacific time)

The Mormon Church could not have existed in a racist America if ir had continued to ordain blacks as Joseph Smith did. As it was the US sent an army out to Utah to deny them popular sovereignity in self determination, the same Jacksonian policy used to justify the driving of the Mormons and the Native Americans from the USA. The law favored the WASPs.

The statements of the people wondering why and coming up with reasons is human nature and humans are fallible.

The way people attack the Mormons as racist is kind of anesiatic. In the south even after the Civil Rights act was passed interracial couples were being killed or harassed in the south, a great fear of the south that mixed marriages would be a result of the CRA. And so it has.

Only a complete dummy would expect the Mormons to have survived without Priesthood ban which effectively held down temples marriages and thus mixed marriages. People marry those they know.

So let's repeat that again, the Mormons who were driven out of slave state ambitious Missouri with an extermination order that Mormons could be killed at will, 6-8000 dying on the trail west, are racist for being like the rst of the whites in America? Something wrong here. I think it is tunnel vision.

The native Americans differentiated between the Mormons and the Mericats (who took pot shots at them).

You are wrong in your assertions but when did that ever stop a prejudiced bigot shooting from the hip.

Steve December 19, 2013 8:36 pm (Pacific time)

I am surprised that the Salem-News would publish such vile, uninformed bigotry. While it is true that in the distant past (150 years ago) LDS leaders expressed racially charged ideas at least they weren't practicing slavery like much of the rest of the United States.

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