(Last Updated 1/16/2017)
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen” (KJV) or “faith is being sure of what we hope for, being
convinced of what we do not see” (NLT).
“And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one
another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom;
seek learning, even by study and also by faith.”
We are to gain wisdom
and learning by study AND faith. Faith does not trump study. You use
both. God gave us a brain; therefore, he
wanted us to use it.
Apostle Orson Pratt[1] (bold
added):
"If we cannot
convince you by reason nor by the word of God, that your religion is wrong, we
will not persecute you, but will sustain you in the privileges guaranteed
in the great Charter of American Liberty: we ask from you the same
generosity—-protect us in the exercise of our religious rights—-convince us of our errors of doctrine, if
we have any, by reason, by logical arguments, or by the word of God and we
will be ever grateful for the information, and you will ever have the pleasing
reflection that you have been instruments in the hands of God of redeeming your
fellow beings from the darkness which you may see enveloping their minds. Come
then let us reason together, and try to discover the true light upon all subjects,
connected with our temporal or eternal happiness; and if we disagree, in our
judgments, let us impute it to the weakness and imperfections of our fallen
natures, and let us pity each other, and endeavor with patience and meekness to
reclaim from error, and save the immortal soul from an endless death."
Apostle George A.
Smith:[2]
“If a faith will not bear to be investigated; if its
preachers and professors are afraid to have it examined, their foundation must
be very weak.”
The relationship
between study and faith is given earlier in the D&C. We are to “study it
out” and then apply faith by asking God “if it be right.”
(7) Behold, you [Oliver Cowdery] have not understood; you
have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it
was to ask me. (8) But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in
your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause
that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is
right.
Apostle Hugh B. Brown:[3]
"And while all members should respect, support, and
heed the teachings of the authorities of the church, no one should accept a
statement and base his or her testimony upon it, no matter who makes it, until
he or she has, under mature examination, found it to be true and worthwhile;
then one's logical deductions may be confirmed by the spirit of revelation to
his or her spirit…"
(Hugh B. Brown, “A
Final Testimony,” An Abundant Life: The
Memoirs of Hugh B. Brown, 1988)
From 1938 to 2016:
The shift from using reason and faith
to mostly faith (Testimony) within the LDS Church likely began in 1938 with Apostle
J. Reuben Clark,[4]
First Councilor to President Heber J. Grant. In his 1938 The Charted Course of the Church in
Education,[5] he
stated the two primary “doctrines” of the LDS Church are:
1. (A) Jesus Christ is the Son of God, was
crucified, was resurrected, and ascended to the Father. (B) We all will be
resurrected (see page 2).
2. (A) The Father and Son appeared to
Joseph Smith, (B) Joseph Smith and others and visions, (C) the Priesthood was
restored after the apostasy of the primitive Church, (D) the Lord restored the
Church through Joseph Smith, (E) The Book of Mormon is true, (F) Joseph Smith
had "numerous" revelations about the building and organization of the
Church, and (G) Joseph Smith's successors are "called of God" and
have received revelation or will receive revelation (see page 2).
Apostle J. Reuben Clark stated (bold
added):
"These
[above] facts also, and each of them, together with all things necessarily
implied therein or flowing therefrom, must stand, unchanged, unmodified,
without dilution, excuse, apology, or avoidance; they may not be explained away
or submerged. Without these two great beliefs the Church would cease to be the
Church." (page 2)
"Church
is to maintain, teach, encourage, and protect, temporally and spiritually, the
membership as a group in its living of the gospel." (page 1)
“The
problem primarily is to keep them [the youth of the Church; students] sound,
not to convert them…Doubt must not be
planted in their hearts.” (page 3)
Regarding teachers, J. Reuben Clark
stated:
"The
first requisite of a teacher for teaching these principles is a personal
testimony of their truth. No amount of learning, no amount of study, and no
number of scholastic degrees can take the place of this testimony, which is the
sine qua non [essential requirement]
of the teacher in our Church school system." (pages 6 & 7)
This
faith (Testimony) based education where CES students and LDS members are
protected from doubt continued for about 78 years, until 2016. J. Reuben
Clark’s ideology in the The Charted
Course of the Church in Education was echoed by subsequent LDS Church
leaders (see following quotes) and is contained in the 2004 LDS manual Teaching Seminary Preservice Readings
Religion 370, 471, and 475.
Improvement
Era[6] (bold
added):
“When our leaders speak, the thinking has
been done. When they propose a plan- it is God's Plan. When they point the
way, there is no other which is safe. When they give directions, it should mark
the end of controversy, God works in no other way. To think otherwise, without
immediate repentance, may cost one his faith, may destroy his testimony, and
leave him a stranger to the kingdom of God."
Apostle Boyd K. Packer (Bold added):
“There
is a temptation for the writer or the teacher of Church history to want to tell
everything, whether it is worthy or faith promoting or not. Some things that are true are not very
useful…
We
are teachers and should know the importance of the principle of
prerequisite…The scriptures teach emphatically that we must give milk before
meat. The Lord made it very clear that
some things are to be taught selectively, and some things are to be given only
to those who are worthy…
That
historian or scholar who delights in pointing out the weakness and frailties of
present or past leaders destroys faith. A destroyer of faith—particularly one
within the Church, and more particularly one
who is employed specifically to build faith—places himself in great
spiritual jeopardy. He is serving the wrong master, and unless he repents, he
will not be among the faithful in the eternities.
One who chooses to follow the tenets of
his profession, regardless of how they may injure the Church or destroy the
faith of those not ready for “advanced history,” is himself in spiritual
jeopardy. If that one is a member of the Church, he has broken his
covenants and will be accountable. After all of the tomorrows of mortality have
been finished, he will not stand where he might have stood…
Those of you who are employed by the
Church have a special relationship to build faith, not destroy it…
[The
article also includes “qualifications to teach or to write the history of this
church”: a testimony of God, Jesus Christ, the First Vision, Joseph Smith, the
restored church, and the succession of church prophets as “prophets, seers, and
revelators”.]
(Boyd
K. Packer, “The
Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than Intellect”,[7] CES
Symposium on the Doctrine and Covenants and Church History, 1981)
Apostle Bruce R.
McConkie:
“No true Latter-day Saint will ever take a stand that is in
opposition to what the Lord has revealed to those who direct the affairs of his
earthly kingdom. No Latter-day Saint who
is true and faithful in all things will ever pursue a course, or espouse a
cause, or publish an article or book that weakens or destroys faith.”
Apostle Dallin H.
Oaks (bold added):
"Balance is
telling both sides. This is not the mission of the official Church literature
or avowedly anti-Mormon literature. Neither has any responsibility to present
both sides. But when supposedly objective news media or periodicals run a
feature or an article on the Church or its doctrines, it ought to be balanced.
So should a book-length history or biography. Readers of supposedly objective
authors and publishers have a right to expect balance in writing about the
Church or its doctrines…
Evil speaking[8] of
the Lord’s anointed is in a class by itself. It is one thing to depreciate a
person who exercises corporate power or even government power. It is quite
another thing to criticize or depreciate a person for the performance of an
office to which he or she has been called of God. It does not matter that the criticism is true. As Elder George F.
Richards, President of the Council of the Twelve, said in a conference address
in April 1947, 'when we say anything bad about the leaders of the Church,
whether true or false, we tend to impair their influence and their usefulness
and are thus working against the Lord and his cause.' ... The Holy Ghost will
not guide or confirm criticism of the Lord's anointed, or of Church leaders,
local or general. This reality should be part of the spiritual evaluation that
LDS readers and viewers apply to those things written about our history and
those who made it.”
(Dallin H. Oaks, Reading
Church History, Ninth Annual Church Educational System religious Educators'
Symposium, August 16, 1985. Also see The
Salt Lake Tribune, August 18, 1985, page 2B)
Apparently, Church
history taught by the LDS Church has been faith-promoting and one-sided for a
long time. A degree of one-sided rhetoric and writings is to be expected by
Critics, the LDS Church, and LDS Apologists because all authors are biased by
their perspective. The LDS Church admits suppression of “advanced history” and
relies on testimony. Critics use “advanced history” and rely on reason.
The Internet:
With the rapid spread
of the Internet starting in the mid 1990s, the information available on LDS
Church history is ever growing. Members, who really didn’t have access to
“advanced history,” found it, usually by accident, on the Internet:
Prominent LDS Apologist Michael Ash:
“Most Latter-day Saints, like most people in the world, are
not professional historians. Prior to the digital age of the Internet and
digital scans of early documents, even professional historians had a hard time
finding some of the obscure details of the past. The average LDS member (like
the average member of any community) is typically ignorant of historical
oddities…”
Apostle
M. Russell Ballard:
“It was only a generation ago that our young people’s access
to information about our history, doctrine, and practices was basically limited
to materials printed by the Church. Few students came in contact with
alternative interpretations. Mostly, our young people lived a sheltered life.
Our curriculum at that time, though well-meaning, did not
prepare students for today—a day when students have instant access to virtually
everything about the Church from every possible point of view. Today, what they
see on their mobile devices is likely to be faith-challenging as much as
faith-promoting.”
(M. Russell Ballard, "Opportunities
and Responsibilities of CES Teachers in the 21st Century",
Address to CES Religious Educators, February 26, 2016)
After finding “advanced
history” (LDS Church history and doctrine issues) on the internet, many members
of the LDS Church have left in droves. In a November 11, 2011, Q&A with a
Mormon Studies student group, LDS Church General Authority Marlin K. Jensen[9]
stated:
"We are aware [that members are "leaving in
droves"]. And I'm speaking of the 15 men that are above me in the
hierarchy of the church…
Maybe since [the 1837 church bank failure in] Kirtland,
we've never had a period of - I'll call it apostasy, like we're having
now."
(Peter Henderson and Kristina Cooke, "Special
Report: Mormonism besieged by the modern age", Reuters.com,
January, 31, 2012)
Apostle Quentin L.
Cook:
“Many who are in a spiritual drought and lack commitment
have not necessarily been involved in major sins or transgressions, but they
have made unwise choices…Some have immersed themselves in internet materials
that magnify, exaggerate, and in some cases invent shortcomings of early Church
leaders. Then they draw incorrect conclusions that can affect testimony. Any
who have made these choices can repent and be spiritually renewed.”
Starting in November
2013, the LDS Church began issuing the Gospel Topic Essays
approved by First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. As of
December 2016, 13 Essays have been released. They “provide accurate and
transparent information on church history and doctrine within the framework of
faith.”[10]
However, the testimony-based strategy persisted:
Letter
to General Authorities, Stake Presidents, and Bishops (September 9, 2014):
Besides the content of the Essays, leaders should emphasize
"prayer, regular study of the scriptures and the teachings of the living
prophets, the exercise of faith, and humility are fundamental to receiving
inspired answers to sincere questions."12
Apostle
Neil L. Andersen
“We might remind the
sincere inquirer that Internet information does not have a ‘truth’ filter. Some information, no matter how convincing,
is simply not true.”
Inoculation:
The LDS Church’s new strategy for “advanced
history” is inoculation: teach members about “advanced history” within a “framework
of faith.” Inoculation, according to LDS apologists, should strengthen member
testimonies and enabling them to withstand critical interpretations.
Apostle M. Russell Ballard (bold
added):
“For you to understand the doctrinal and historical content
and context of the scriptures and our history, you will need to study from the
“best books,” as the Lord directed. The “best books” include the scriptures,
the teachings of modern prophets and apostles, and the best LDS scholarship
available. Through your diligent efforts to learn by study and faith, you will
be able to help your students learn the skills and attitudes necessary to
distinguish between reliable information that will lift them up and the half-truths
and incorrect interpretations of doctrine, history, and practices that will
bring them down…
You know we give medical inoculations to our precious
missionaries before sending them into the mission field so they will be
protected against diseases that can harm or even kill them. In a similar
fashion, please, before you send them
into the world, inoculate your students by providing faithful, thoughtful, and
accurate interpretation of gospel doctrine, the scriptures, our history, and
those topics that are sometimes misunderstood.
To name a few such topics that are less known or
controversial, I’m talking about polygamy,
seer stones, different accounts of the First Vision, the process of translation
of the Book of Mormon or the Book of Abraham, gender issues, race and the
priesthood, or a Heavenly Mother.
The efforts to inoculate our young people will often fall to
you CES teachers. With those thoughts in mind, find time to think about your
opportunities and your responsibilities…
Church leaders today are fully conscious of the unlimited
access to information, and we are making extraordinary efforts to provide
accurate context and understanding of the teachings of the Restoration. A prime
example of this effort is the 11 Gospel Topics essays on LDS.org that provide
balanced and reliable interpretations of the facts for controversial and
unfamiliar Church-related subjects.
It is important that you [CES Teachers] know the content in
these essays like you know the back of your hand. If you have questions about
them, then please ask someone who has studied them and understands them. In
other words, “seek learning, even by study and also by faith” as you master the
content of these essays.
You should also become familiar with the Joseph Smith Papers
website and the Church history section on LDS.org and other resources by
faithful LDS scholars.
The effort for gospel transparency and spiritual inoculation through a thoughtful study of doctrine and
history, coupled with a burning testimony, is the best antidote we have to help
students avoid and/or deal with questions, doubt, or faith crises they may face
in this information age.”
(M. Russell Ballard, "Opportunities
and Responsibilities of CES Teachers in the 21st Century",
Address to CES Religious Educators, February 26, 2016)
As I’ve shown, those who were raised
before “inoculation” have left in droves. Why? LDS Apologist Kevin Barney stated,
“people can absorb hard facts when presented in a context of faith. But they
cannot absorb the feeling of being lied to.”[11]
Another LDS Apologist Allen Wyatt stated, “Critics know it is not the information
that make people leave, but the perception that the information was ‘hidden.’
It is the feelings of deception and betrayal that ultimately drive people out,
not the discovery itself.”13
From personal experience, there is a degree
of shock when first learning “advanced history” because the information in
brand new and didn’t come from the LDS Church. For me, I was already exposed to
some “advanced history” in the early 1990s and assured by the LDS Apologists that
they were lies or half-truths. I believed them.
With the Essays, the LDS Church admits the
truthfulness of previous “lies” by Critics. The LDS Church now publishes “advanced
history” in the Essays and offers the faithful context in which to interpret
them. Critics claim the LDS Church has been lying. Clearly, the LDS Church—not
unknowing members like teachers, bishops, and stake presidents—has been
withholding “advanced history” to protect members from doubt. Is this lying?
Apostle Marvin J. Ashton (bold added):
"A lie is any communication given to another
with the intent to deceive… A lie can be effectively communicated without
words ever being spoken. Sometimes a nod of the head or silence can deceive. Recommending a questionable business
investment, making a false entry in a ledger, devious use of flattery, or failure to divulge all pertinent facts
are a few other ways to communicate the lie."
Gospel Principles (bold added):
“Complete
honesty is necessary for our salvation…Honest people love truth and justice.
They are honest in their words and actions. They do not lie, steal, or cheat.
Lying is intentionally deceiving others.
Bearing false witness is one form of lying…There are many other forms of lying.
When we speak untruths, we are guilty of lying. We can also intentionally
deceive others by a gesture or a look, by
silence, or by telling only part of the truth. Whenever we lead people in
any way to believe something that is not true, we are not being honest.
The evidence shows the LDS Church lied
by withholding “pertinent facts.” The withheld facts are pertinent because they
affect or can adversely affect a person’s faith. Further, many have left the LDS
Church because of the feelings of deception, betrayal, and being lied to after
learning “advanced history.”
Question: what’s so advanced about
“advanced history”? The “framework of faith” in the Essays are basically written
to be understood by an average person. No special knowledge required. Are
members spiritual neophytes? The real issue is what those “advanced history”
facts mean.
[1] Orson Pratt
(1843-1881) was an Apostle from 1835 to 1881. He briefly separated from the LDS
Church over polygamy in 1842.
[2] George A. Smith (1868-1875)
was an Apostle from 1839 to 1875 and Brigham Young’s First Councilor from 1868
to 1875.)
[3] Hugh B. Brown
(1883-1975) was an Apostle from 1958 to 1975 and First Councilor to David O.
McKay from 1963 to 1970.
[4] J. Reuben Clark would
serve in the First Presidency of the next two LDS Church Presidents, George
Albert Smith and David O. McKay, until his death in 1961.
[5] The Charted Course of the Church in Education (1938) was revised in 1994 and updated in 2004. It is contained
in 2004 LDS manual Teaching Seminary
Preservice Readings Religion 370, 471, and 475
[6] The Improvement
Era was the LDS Church magazine from 1897 to 1970. It was replaced by the Ensign.
[9] Marlin K. Jensen
served in the First Quorum of the Seventy from 1989 to October 2012. He was
Church Historian and Recorder from 2005 to October 2012.
[10] Letter to General
Authorities, Stake Presidents, and Bishops (September 9, 2014) as quoted by
Peggy Stack, "Mormon Leaders Spread Word About Controversial Essays", Salt Lake City Tribune, September 23, 2014.
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