A Parable About Truth.
http://ldsvstruth.lege.net/
A Parable About Truth.
In the Mormon Church, truth is defined to be whatever is
consistent with the prophet's latest statements. Compare
Benson's 14 points, from the First Presidency Message. [1]
This means that if the prophet says that the sun is green, but a
member of the church or an "opponent" to the church says that
the sun is yellow, then obviously this member or that opponent
is lying; and clearly out of malice, because they are evil and
because they want to harm the church.
Obviously the sun is green, if the prophet said so. That is
self-evident, and need not be discussed or questioned. Anything
else is apostasy.
Suppose that I am the member: I know that I lie.
How?
Well, I lie since everything the prophet says is true. If the
prophet says that the sun is green, well, then the sun really is
green. And I, saying that the sun is yellow, am obviously
lying.
I know that I don't have the Spirit.
How?
Because I allow reality to affect my faith. With the Spirit, I
would have believed, irrespective of reality.
But what about reality then? Does reality speak the truth or
does it lie? And does reality have the Spirit?
In 1837, the moon was populated by men and women like those
found on this earth. They could become almost 1000 years old,
and they dressed somewhat like Quakers. We know this, because
the prophet Joseph Smith Jr. said so. Additionally, the
prophet's father gave a patriarchal blessing the same year to
a young man saying that he would preach the gospel before his
21st year, to the inhabitants on the islands of the sea, and
that he would also preach the gospel to the inhabitants of the
moon. He testifies faithfully of this in "The Young Woman's
Journal" on the sixth of February in 1892, and concludes that
since the first two promises already have been fulfilled it is
reasonable to believe that the last promise will also be
fulfilled. In the same article we are told that beyond the
north pole there is a warm and fruitful country inhabited by the
ten tribes of Israel, because the prophet has said so. [2]
So far there is no problem, because when the prophet has spoken,
all is clear, and need no longer be discussed or questioned.
Anything else is apostasy.
But on the Sunday of May 14, 1961, everything changed. Because
then the apostle Joseph Fielding Smith (who later became the
president of the church) announced at a stake conference in
Honolulu that man would never go to space. This earth is the
sphere that is meant for mankind, and it was never intended that
he should leave it, says the apostle. And he added that the
moon is a superior planet to the earth, and it was never
intended that man would walk on it. ``You can write it down in
your books that this will never happen,'' he said. In 1962 he
also privately instructed that this view should be taught to
``the boys and girls in the Seminary System.'' [3]
Now the truth is instead that man will never travel in space,
and never walk on the moon, if we are willing to accept the
prophecy of the soon to be prophet as true, because if it was
not true it would be apostasy, and therefore it must be true.
But here comes reality with its lies! Reality appears on the
20th of July 1969 and says that now American Astronauts walk
as the first men on the moon. Not even the young man was
allowed to come there and do missionary work among the natives
of the moon, not even that did reality allow! One can hardly
say that reality had the Spirit, right? And one can hardly say
that reality told the truth either?
No, reality lies and reality does not have the Spirit.
Reality has apostatized from the Truth!
In the church we have a way of dealing with those who apostatize
from the truth. We can subject them to disciplinary punishments
or expel them from our midst. Obviously this is what we must do
with our former friend reality, who has now apostatized and
become evil, and wants to hurt us. Who wants to lure us away
from the Only True Church and from our inspired leaders and from
the Gospel.
Now things will start to get a little complex, because we know
that truth always is what our general authorities have said.
But Apostles Boyd K. Packer and Dallin H. Oaks, who are
righteous and upright men, sometimes use the word truth like
those who do not understand its proper meaning, in the sense
of reality that is. Therefore, read "reality" when it says
"truth" in the following.
The Apostles Boyd K. Packer and Dallin H. Oaks thus know what
must be done. In 1976 Packer explained in a private
conversation with a historian at the church's university that
he is having a hard time with historians because truth [reality]
is so important to them. ``The truth [reality] is not
uplifting; it destroys,'' he said. And he said that
``Historians should tell only that part of the truth [reality]
that is inspiring and uplifting.'' [4] At a Church Educational
Seminar in August 1981 Packer also said that ``In the Church we
are not neutral. We are one-sided. There is a war going on
[against the evil, fallen reality that is] and we are engaged in
it.'' [5] Some years later, also in August and also at a Church
Educational Seminar, in 1985, Dallin H. Oaks explained that
balance is to give the versions of both sides and that this is
neither the mission of the church nor of anti-Mormon literature.
Neither has any responsibility to present both sides of the
issue. [6]
This is truly inspired!
We have already concluded that reality lies and that reality
doesn't have the Spirit. That reality has apostatized from the
Truth! How wonderful then, that we have inspired leaders who
protect us from evil reality!
Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!
Leif Erlingsson, apostatized to reality and the kind of "truth"
that corresponds to evil and malicious reality. Wednesday,
March 10, 2004.
Published [in Swedish] Monday March 15, 2004, see note 7. [7]
References
1. "Benson's 14 points" -- First Presidency Message;
Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet, Address
given Tuesday, February 26, 1980 at Brigham Young
University, became First Presidency Message June 1981.
Available through search here: http://lds.org/
Excerpt of concluding summary:
1. The prophet is the only man who speaks for the Lord
in everything.
2. The living prophet is more vital to us than the
standard works.
3. The living prophet is more important to us than a
dead prophet.
4. The prophet will never lead the church astray.
5. The prophet is not required to have any particular
earthly training or credentials to speak on any
subject or act on any matter at any time.
6. The prophet does not have to say ``Thus Saith the
Lord,'' to give us scripture.
7. The prophet tells us what we need to know, not
always what we want to know.
8. The prophet is not limited by men's reasoning.
9. The prophet can receive revelation on any matter,
temporal or spiritual.
10. The prophet may advise on civic matters.
11. The two groups who have the greatest difficulty in
following the prophet are the proud who are learned
and the proud who are rich.
12. The prophet will not necessarily be popular with the
world or the worldly.
13. The prophet and his counselors make up the First
Presidency -- the highest quorum in the Church.
14. The prophet and the presidency -- the living prophet
and the First Presidency -- follow them and be
blessed -- reject them and suffer.
Several of the above points are also available from
D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of
Power. Appendice 5; "Selected Chronology of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1848-1996",
page 873, with additional very interesting comments:
``Feb 26, 1980 - Apostle Ezra Taft Benson instructs BYU
students in televised address "Fourteen Fundamentals in
Following the Prophet," including: "1. The Prophet is
the only man who speaks for the Lord in everything.
2. The living Prophet is more vital to us than the
standard works [of scripture]. 3. The living prophet is
more important to us than a dead prophet. 4. The
Prophet will never lead the church astray. 5. The
Prophet is not required to have any particular earthly
training or credentials to speak on any subject or act
on any matter at any time. 6. The Prophet does not have
to say `Thus Saith the Lord,' to give us scripture....
11. The two groups who have the greatest difficulty in
following the prophet are the proud who are learned and
the proud who are rich." In the national publicity
resulting from his this talk, Some Mormon academics
interpret this as Benson's way of preparing for his own
presidency over the LDS church. First Presidency's
spokesman publicly states that it is "simply not true"
that LDS president's "word is law on all issues --
including politics." Privately, church president
Spencer W. Kimball is "concerned" about Elder Benson's
talk and wants "to protect the Church against being
misunderstood as espousing ultraconservative politics,
or -- in this case -- espousing an unthinking `follow
the leader' mentality." However, these concerns have
neither the circulation nor publicity of Benson's
original talk. Next week Kimball requires Benson to
explain himself and his motives to private meeting of
all general authorities.''
Whatever came out of Benson explaining his motives to
all the other general authorities, the fact is that this
became a First Presidency Message the following year, in
June 1981.
2. "In 1837 the moon was populated" -- Oliver B.
Huntington, The Young Woman's Journal, Vol. 3,
p. 263-264, Sat. Feb. 6, 1892, under the heading of
OUR SUNDAY CHAPTER:
``Nearly all the great discoveries of men in the last
half century have, in one way or another, either
directly or indirectly, contributed to prove Joseph
Smith to be a Prophet.
As far back as 1837, I know that he said the moon was
inhabited by men and women the same as this earth, and
that they lived to a greater age than we do - that
they live generally to near the age of a 1000 years.
He described the men as averaging near six feet in
height, and dressing quite uniformly in something near
the Quaker style.
In my Patriarchal blessing, given by the father of
Joseph the Prophet, in Kirtland, 1837, I was told that
I should preach the gospel before I was 21 years of
age; that I should preach the gospel to the
inhabitants upon the islands of the sea, and - to the
inhabitants of the moon, even the planet you can now
behold with your eyes.
The first two promises have been fulfilled, and the
latter may be verified. From the verification of two
promises we may reasonably expect the third to be
fulfilled also.''
. . .
``The inspiration of God caused men to hunt for a new
continent until Columbus discovered it. Men have lost
millions of dollars and hundreds of lives to find a
country beyond the north pole; and they will yet find
that country - a warm, fruitful country, inhabited by
the ten tribes of Israel, a country divided by a
river, on one side of which lives the half tribe of
Manasseh, which is more numerous than all the others.
So said the Prophet. At the same time he described the
shape of the earth at the poles as being a rounded
elongation, and drew a diagram of it in this form:
_____
_/ \_
[_ _]
\_____/ ''
The above excerpt from "The Young Woman's Journal"
is also available at http://lds-mormon.com/moon.shtml.
Also see Journal of Discourses, Vol.13, p.271, Brigham
Young, July 24, 1870: ``I will tell you who the real
fanatics are: they are they who adopt false principles
and ideas as facts, and try to establish a
superstructure upon a false foundation. They are the
fanatics; and however ardent and zealous they may be,
they may reason or argue on false premises till
doomsday, and the result will be false. If our religion
is of this character we want to know it; we would like
to find a philosopher who can prove it to us. We are
called ignorant; so we are: but what of it? Are not all
ignorant? I rather think so. Who can tell us of the
inhabitants of this little planet that shines of an
evening, called the moon? When we view its face we may
see what is termed "the man in the moon," and what some
philosophers declare are the shadows of mountains. But
these sayings are very vague, and amount to nothing; and
when you inquire about the inhabitants of that sphere
you find that the most learned are as ignorant in regard
to them as the most ignorant of their fellows. So it is
with regard to the inhabitants of the sun. Do you think
it is inhabited? I rather think it is. Do you think
there is any life there? No question of it; it was not
made in vain. It was made to give light to those who
dwell upon it, and to other planets; and so will this
earth when it is celestialized.'' (LDS Collectors
Library 1995 Edition, Journal of Discourses, Vol.13,
p.271, Brigham Young, July 24, 1870)
3. "Sunday of May 14, 1961" -- D. Michael Quinn,
The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power. Appendice 5;
"Selected Chronology of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, 1848-1996", page 848:
``May 14, 1961 - Apostle Joseph Fielding Smith announces
to stake conference in Honolulu: "We will never get a
man into space. This earth is man's sphere and it was
never intended that he should get away from it." Smith,
the Twelve's president and next in succession as LDS
president, adds: "The moon is a superior planet to the
earth and it was never intended that man should go
there. You can write it down in your books that this
will never happen." In May 1962, he privately instructs
that this view be taught to "the boys and girls in the
Seminary System." On 20 July 1969 U.S. Astronauts are
first men to walk on moon. Six months later Joseph
Fielding Smith becomes church president.''
Same source, page 862:
``Sep 14, 1971 - Apollo 15 astronauts present to
President Joseph Fielding Smith a Utah state flag that
has traveled with them to the moon.''
4. "In 1976 Packer explained" -- D. Michael Quinn, Faithful
History, Essays On Writing Mormon History, chapter 6;
On Being a Mormon Historian (and Its Aftermath), text of
note 22 that will be found on page 103:
``When Elder Packer interviewed me as a prospective
member of Brigham Young University's faculty in 1976, he
explained: "I have a hard time with historians because
they idolize the truth. The truth is not uplifting; it
destroys. I could tell most of the secretaries in the
church office building that they are ugly and fat. That
would be the truth, but it would hurt and destroy them.
Historians should tell only that part of the truth that
is inspiring and uplifting."''
5. "August 1981 Packer also said" -- Boyd K. Packer,
The Mantle is Far, Far Greater than the Intellect,
presented 22 August 1981 to seminary, institute, and
Brigham Young University religion instructors, and
published in Brigham Young University Studies 21
(Summer 1981): 259-78:
``In the Church we are not neutral. We are one-sided.
There is a war going on and we are engaged in it. It is
the war between good and evil, and we are belligerents
defending the good. We are therefore obliged to give
preference to and protect all that is represented in the
gospel of Jesus Christ, and we have made covenants to do
it.''
Previous to the above quote, this quote was excerpted:
``Church history can be so interesting and so inspiring
as to be a very powerful tool indeed for building faith.
If not properly written or properly taught, it may be a
faith destroyer.''
This talk was also immediately published as a pamphlet
by the Church Educational System. Similar, but less
developed, views subsequently appeared in the following
general authority talks: Gordon B. Hinckley, "Stop
Looking for Storms and Enjoy the Sunlight," Church News,
3 July 1983, 10-11; Hinckley, "Be Not Deceived," Ensign
13 (Nov. 1983): 46; Packer, "Dedication of Museum of
Church History and Art," Ensign 14 (May 1984): 104;
Hinckley, "Keep the Faith," Ensign 15 (Sept. 1985): 3-6;
Hinckley, Remarks at Priesthood Session in October 1985
Conference Report, 63-69; and Russell M. Nelson,
"Truth--and More," Ensign 16 (Jan. 1986): 69-73.
In fact, at request of students, then BYU history
professor D. Michael Quinn gives his perspective on
Elder Packer's talk and role of historical inquiry to
a Phi Alpha Theta meeting of BYU's history majors on
4 November 1981. About forty people attended. This is
the original "On Being a Mormon Historian" presentation.
See D. Michael Quinn, Faithful History, Essays On
Writing Mormon History, chapter 6; On Being a Mormon
Historian (and Its Aftermath), page 89, or D. Michael
Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power.
Appendice 5; "Selected Chronology of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1848-1996":
``Summarized within days by off-campus student newspaper
Seventh East Press, this conflict between some apostles
and some Mormon historians is subject of Feb 1982
Newsweek article which quotes BYU professor that "a
history which makes LDS leaders flawless and benignly
angelic would border on idolatry."
[See page 84 of Essays On Writing Mormon History for the
text of the source of the Feb 1982 Newsweek article.]
The last quote is also available from D. Michael Quinn,
The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power. Appendice 5;
"Selected Chronology of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, 1848-1996", page 875.
6. "in 1985, Dallin H. Oaks explained" -- D. Michael Quinn,
The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power. Appendice 5;
"Selected Chronology of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, 1848-1996", page 880:
``Aug 16, 1985 - Apostle (and former Utah Supreme Court
Justice) Dallin H. Oaks instructs educators and
administrators of LDS Church Educational System:
"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."''
A lawyer commented that this requires members of the
Church to become the impartial judge. And an impartial
judge must hear both sides. This requires members of
the Church to investigate not only the Church version.
Dallin H. Oaks himself stated 4 October 2003 in the
173rd Semiannual General Conference, Saturday Afternoon
Session, in his "Repentance and Change" address that:
``Some cultures allow lying, stealing, and other
dishonest practices. But dishonesty in any form --
whether to appease, to save face, or to get gain -- is
in direct conflict with gospel commandments and culture.
God is a God of truth, and God does not change. We are
the ones who must change. And that will be a big change
for all whose traditions accustom them to thinking that
they can lie a little, cheat a little, or engage in
deceit whenever it brings personal advantage and is not
likely to be detected.''
7. Published [in Swedish] Monday March 15'th, 2004. This
also being the day that I and my family announced our
resignation from the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints.
For those who are reading [the Swedish original of] this
text on sdh@lege.net, I therefore want to announce that
while the purpose with sdh@lege.net is to be a forum
that respects the faith and teachings of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I therefore plan to
spend less time myself in this forum and more time in a
new forum that I will start. It will become a support
forum for those who like myself no longer feel at home
in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
If you know anyone who might want to participate in such
a new forum [in Swedish], please let me know!
sdh@lege.net will remain as before, but not even in the
future will subjects be discussed that are contrary to
the theology of the church. What is acceptable is to
discuss the political positions of the church (extreme
right) and how the theology is shifting here and there
somewhat like slalom during the history of the church.
Leif Erlingsson
Mon Mar 15 20:01:18 MET 2004
Corrections after the initial [Swedish] publication:
Oliver B. Huntington was of course a man. The gender of
the young man in the beginning is now corrected (from
woman to man). The information came from The Young
Woman's Journal, a Latter-day Saint magazine of the
1890s, hence the mistake.
Leif Erlingsson
Wed Apr 14 13:58:52 MEST 2004
An English text version can be downloaded here: http://ldsvstruth.lege.net/reality.txt
A Swedish text version can be downloaded here: http://ldsvstruth.lege.net/verkligheten.txt
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Copyright © 2004 Leif Erlingsson <ldsvstruth@lege.net>
Updated 16 April 2004