Biblical Perspective:
Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the
living. Gen. 3:20
Have we not all one Father? Did not one God create us? Mal. 3:20
...then both Philip and the (Ethiopian) eunuch went down into the water and
Philip baptized him... (The eunuch) went on his way rejoicing. (parenthesis
added) Acts 8:38-39
In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon
called Niger... Acts 13:1 [editor's note: 'niger' means 'black']
There can be no doubt that at various times and to varying degrees, substantial numbers of Christians have been, and still are guilty of racism
However, they can find no direct Biblical basis for their views. Instead, they
are forced into denying the universality of the Genesis flood, and then into
twisting one or two other verses in an attempt to justify their position.
On the other hand, the following quotes from the Book of Mormon and the
Pearl of Great Price, clearly document that racism is a fundamental part of the
Mormon creed which is: Blacks are black because they are being punished byGod. To the Mormon religion, Black is not beautiful, it is a curse!!!
1) (The Lamanites) "...inasmuch as they will not harken unto thy words...the
Lord ...caused the cursing to come upon them... that they might not be
enticing unto my people, the Lord did cause a skin of blackness to come upon
them... and because of their cursing... they became an idle people full of
mischief."
(emphasis added) (Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 5:20-24)
2) "And it came to pass that those Lamanites who had united with the Nephites
were numbered with Nephites; and their curse was taken from them, and their skin became white..."
(emphasis added) (Book of Mormon, 3 Nephi 3: 14-15)
3) Lamanites who accept the Mormon gospel "...shall be white and delightsome people."
(emphasis added) (Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 30:6, pre 1980 edition)
[editor's note: In 1980 and later editions the word 'white' has been changed to 'pure.' Since the original edition contained the word 'white', and this edition was supposedly translated by Joseph Smith directly from the golden tablets which are no longer available for verification, what justification exists for making this change? This is especially true in light of the fact that Joseph Smith claimed to have been told "You must finish this book in 60 days, make no changes in it whatsoever-the first edition must stand forever."
4) "For behold the Lord shall curse the land... and there was a blackness came
upon all the children of Canaan, that they were despised among all people."
(Pearl of Great Price, Moses 7:8; see also vs. 9-12)
On March 3, 1836 a black man named Elijah Abel was ordained into the Mormon priesthood. Shortly after this event slave owners in the state of Missouri increased their harassment of those Mormons who continued to live there. Simultaneously, Joseph Smith claimed to have received a revelation from the Lord in the form of an ancient Egyptian papyrus which he translated. This writing became part of Mormon doctrine and is found in the Pearl of Great Price as the Book of Abraham. {Editor's note: Those Egyptologists who have seen the original papyrus claimed to be the Book of Abraham, state that it is nothing more than the account of ancient Egyptian funeral rites. Since there is so much controversay surrounding this particular document, and unlike the Book of Mormon's golden plates which Moroni supposedly took back to heaven with him, the original Book of Abraham is available for examination why doesn't the LDS leadership simply acknowledge that the Book of Abraham is incorrect? The answer of course is obvious. Remember, the leadership of the church will never admit that one of it's past leaders was ever in error, even when the facts clearly prove that to be the case. For our purposes, those portions of the Book of Abraham which are pertinent to the topic under discussion here are as follows:
5) "...Pharoah signifies king by royal blood. Now this king of Egypt was a
descendant from the loins of Ham and was a partaker of the blood of the
Canaanites by birth. From this descent sprang all the Egyptians, and thus
the blood of the Canaanites was preserved in the land...Now, Pharoah being
of that lineage by which he could not have the right of Priesthood, notwithstanding the Pharoahs would fain claim it from Noah..."
Pearl of Great Price, Abraham 1:20-27)
Based upon the foregoing, the Mormon priesthood was subsequently denied to blacks between 1836 & 1978.
6) Not only was Cain called to suffer, but because of his wickedness he became the father of an inferior race. A curse was placed upon him and that curse has been continued through his lineage and must do so while time endures. Millions of souls have come into this world cursed with a black skin... they have been made to feel their inferiority."
(Joseph Fielding Smith, The Way To Perfection p.101-102) emphasis added
7) Blacks are '...cursed with a black skin, the mark of Cain so they can be
identified as a caste apart."
(Apostle Bruce McConkie)
8) "Those who were less valiant in pre-existence and who thereby had certain
spiritual restrictions imposed upon them during mortality are known as the
negroes... The present status of the negro rests purely and simply on the
foundation of pre-existence. Along with all races and peoples he is receiving here what he merits as a result of the long pre-mortal probation in the presence of the Lord."
(Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p. 527, 1966 ed.) emphasis added [editor's note: these comments have been altered in post 1978 ed.]
9) There is a reason why one man is born black and with other disadvantages
while another is born white with great advantages. The reason is that once we had an estate before we came here, and were obedient, more or less to the laws that were given us there. Those who were faithful in all things there received greater blessings here and those who were not faithful receive less... The negro evidently is receiving the reward he merits..."
(Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, Vol. 1, p., 61 & 66) emphasis added
10 "...the negro race...have been placed under restrictions because of their
attitude in the world of spirits."
(Joseph Fielding Smith, The Way of Perfection, p. 43)
11) "The gospel message of salvation is not carried affirmatively to them,
although sometimes negros search out the truth, join the church, and become
by righteous living heirs of the celestial kingdom."
(Mormon Doctrine, 1966 ed. p. 527)
12) "... the Lord decreed that the children of Cain (blacks) should not have the
privilege of bearing the priesthood until Abel had posterity who could have the priesthood and that will be in the far distant future. When this is accomplished on some other world, then the restrictions will be removed from the children of Cain who have been true in this 'second' estate."
(Answer to Gospel Questions, Vol. 2, p. 188, given by Joseph Fielding Smith in 1958) emphasis added
Inspite of the foregoing doctrinal position, on June 4, 1978 the Mormon
prophet Spencer Kimball announced that the Lord had shown him that from that point forward, blacks should no longer be denied ordination as Mormon priests solely on the basis of race. As was true in the case of Joseph Smith's original revelation, Kimball's announcement coincided with events which were adversely affecting the Mormon church. For a period of time immediately prior to Kimball's declaration, several major Universities, had announced that until such time as the Mormon church reversed its policy of racial discrimination, they would no longer take part in athletic events in which BYU participated. More importantly though, approximately two weeks prior to Kimball's surprising declaration, President Jimmy Carter had phoned Kimball and informed him that the IRS was seriously considering removing the Mormon church's tax exempt status unless changes were made in their policy of discrimination.
As was true in the case of Smith's declaration, Kimball's announcement had the immediate effect of deflecting some criticism away from the church. However, the important thing for us to remember is that inspite of the fact that the right of the priesthood has been restored to Blacks, the Mormon church still has not renounced or changed their official doctrine. Blacks are still considered as being under the curse of God because of some transgression committed by them in their supposed pre-mortal spiritual existence. The teachings of the Book of Mormon and the Pearl of Great Price remain unchanged on this issue.
On October 24, 1992 the Mormon church's public affairs office issued the
following statement: "It is morally wrong for any person or group to deny any
anyone his or her inalienable dignity on the tragic and abhorrent theory of
racial or cultural superiority." (Church News, p.4) Why then is the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints unwilling to admit that the revelations of its
prophets as late as 1958 were 'morally wrong'?