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THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

OFFICE OF THE FIRST PRESIDENCY

47 EAST SOUTH TEMPLE STREET, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84150-1200

June 28, 2014

In God’s plan for the happiness and eternal progression of His children, the blessings of His priesthood are equally available to men and women. Only men are ordained to serve in priesthood offices. All service in the Church has equal merit in the eyes of God. We express profound gratitude for the millions of Latter-day Saint women and men who willingly and effectively serve God and His children. Because of their faith and service, they have discovered that the Church is a place of spiritual nourishment and growth.

We understand that from time to time Church members will have questions about Church doctrine, history, or practice. Members are always free to ask such questions and earnestly seek greater understanding. We feel special concern, however, for members who distance themselves from Church doctrine or practice and, by advocacy, encourage others to follow them.

Simply asking questions has never constituted apostasy. Apostasy is repeatedly acting in clear, open, and deliberate public opposition to the Church or its faithful leaders, or persisting, after receiving counsel, in teaching false doctrine.

THE COUNCIL OF

THE FIRST PRESIDENCY AND

QUORUM OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES

OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

28-June-2014-Letter

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I had the privilege of attending a class at BYU Education Week given by Stephanie at Diapers and Divinity. I was thrilled to see that she was able to share it on her blog. There is nothing like hearing her in person, but her blog post is excellent and thorough. Her presentation was both practical in nature but also inspirational. Be sure to watch the video clips she includes.

One of the ways we as Mormon women are able to tap into God’s power is simply to tap into His truth. As we seek Him through becoming devoted students of the gospel, we can find more about Him, about ourselves, about His plan, and about His Son.

p.s. I love her plea to “ask God, not Google.”

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I wasn’t sure what photo to include with this post. I decided on one that includes an ancestor of mine who was incarcerated for practicing polygamy. Polygamy has not been part of our practice for over 100 years, and anyone who practices it now cannot be a member of our church.

Photo credit

Editor’s note: I wrote this post several years ago, when Mormon history issues were being discussed in traditional and social media channels quite a bit. Since the topic has been kicked up again as of late, with a recent New York Times article about people who struggle with facets of the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (such as polygamy), I thought I’d repost my thoughts here (with minor edits to make the post more current].

The history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a topic on which there is obviously a range of opinions. It’s one I have mulled over for years. Years ago, I decided to turn to the Book of Mormon to see if I could find some insight on this topic. It was a simple search — I just read scriptures that mentioned “history.” I was surprised to find only six occurrences of the word. Interestingly, all of them are found within the first three books. I studied those six verses in addition to other related verses, and discovered what I think is a powerful scriptural model for teaching our history.

Early on in the Book of Mormon, Nephi tells us that what we are reading is not all he has written.

And now, as I have spoken concerning these plates, behold they are not the plates upon which I make a full account of the history of my people…. (1 Nephi 9:2).

… a more history part are written upon mine other plates (2 Nephi 4:14).

Nephi also lets us know why it is that he had two different records.

AND it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the record of my people. And upon the plates which I made I did engraven the record of my father, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and also many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them.

And I knew not at the time when I made them that I should be commanded of the Lord to make these plates [the small plates]; wherefore, the record of my father, and the genealogy of his fathers, and the more part of all our proceedings in the wilderness are engraven upon those first plates of which I have spoken; wherefore, the things which transpired before I made these plates are, of a truth, more particularly made mention upon the first plates.

And after I had made these plates by way of commandment, I, Nephi, received a commandment that the ministry and the prophecies, the more plain and precious parts of them, should be written upon these plates; and that the things which were written should be kept for the instruction of my people, who should possess the land, and also for other wise purposes, which purposes are known unto the Lord (1 Nephi 19:2-3; see also 1 Nephi 9:3; 2 Nephi 5:29-33).

Jacob said:

[Nephi gave] a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things which I considered to be most precious; that I should not touch, save it were lightly, concerning the history of this people which are called the people of Nephi.

For he said that the history of his people should be engraven upon his other plates, and that I should preserve these plates and hand them down unto my seed, from generation to generation (Jacob 1:2-3).

Nephi and Jacob explain more about their focused writing in several other places. Following are some examples, with emphasis added:

And it mattereth not to me that I am particular to give a full account of all the things of my father, for they cannot be written upon these plates, for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God. For the fulness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved. Wherefore, the things which are pleasing unto the world I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world. Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men (1 Nephi 6:6).

And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptureswhich are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.
Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard (2 Nephi 4:15-16).

For because of faith and great anxiety, it truly had been made manifest unto us concerning our people, what things should happen unto them. And we also had many revelations, and the spirit of much prophecy; wherefore, we knew of Christ and his kingdom, which should come. Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest…. (Jacob 1:5-7)

…[B]ehold, I proceed according to that which I have spoken; and this I do that the more sacred things may be kept for the knowledge of my people. Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself. (1 Nephi 19:5-6)

For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do….
And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins (2 Nephi 25:23, 26).

We all know that history is not unimportant to the Lord. We see in scriptures quoted above that He commanded Nephi to make the first set of plates which had more information – more history – including wars and genealogies as well as prophecies. We know we are each encouraged to keep personal histories, and to seek to know information about our ancestors. We are also encouraged to learn “things which have been.” In a very real sense, much of what we discuss at church is dependent on the study of history at some level (Christ’s life, death, and resurrection; the life of ancient prophets; the apostasy; the First Vision…the list could go on).

That said, in reading these scriptures, it appears to me that not all information is of equal value to the Lord. Otherwise, He wouldn’t have given Nephi such specific instructions about limiting the amount of historical information that didn’t have spiritual value in the plates that would be handed down from generation to generation. Scriptures indicate that there are things which “matter…not, for God knoweth all these things.” In a sense, Nephi has shown an effective method for dealing with history. In obedience to the Lord, he focused on the most precious, saving truths, knowing that by so doing he was helping the Lord and His purposes.

It seems to me that, while some may find a more detailed study of Church history interesting, it’s not a necessity. I tend to favor Nephi’s approach, which does not ignore that there is more historical information out there, but does not choose to focus on all aspects of our history. It seems to me that our worship, church classes, and ministering to one another touches only lightly on those things that aren’t of spiritual import. Our main mission as members of the Church is to focus most attention on the Church’s divinely ordained mission to bring souls to Christ and to preach the gospel to all the world.

But note something that Nephi says: “And if my people desire to know the more particular part of the history of my people they must search mine other plates” (2 Nephi 5:33). Even though I find it interesting that we still don’t have his “other plates” (another resource) to search, I think his words could apply to us today. And I think we can find that the Church does provide access to some other resources.

For example, for those who want to know more of the history of the Church than what can be found in Church classes, missionary discussions, or the Gospel Library at lds.org [or Mormon.org — this post was written before Mormon.org had been created], there are various resources that can help one read more about LDS Church history. [This list has been edited slightly from the original to reflect some of the changes that have occurred since this post was written…but I am sure there are more resources out there that I have neglected to mention for want of getting this post up. If you would like to add to this list of resources, leave a comment below and we’ll consider it for publication in this post.]

-The Church has a website on Joseph Smith which includes links to various resources about the prophet.

-Seven volumes of  History of the Church

– The Joseph Smith Papers project

– A BYU Studies page that is part of a frequently asked questions site about the Church.

– The Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship (formerly FARMS) and FAIR [and the FAIR Wiki], which, although not Church-sponsored per se, provide access to members’ exploration of various topics in a more extensive way than will be found at church.

– I have also appreciated the fact that our leaders have participated in various interviews [ e.g., the PBS interviews were recent when I wrote this piece]. The Church has a Newsroom that has up-to-date information on topics of interest in the press, including Church history.

I think Nephi’s inspired method of handling history is a good and wise one. I’m intrigued by how many times he repeated his purposes and focus in his writing. I can’t help but wonder if perhaps this was included in his small plates so we might learn a little from his example. We don’t need to know all of the detailed history of Nephi and his people to know that he was a prophet who taught (and teaches us) truth. Likewise, we don’t need to know all the details of our latter-day history to know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s restored church on the earth that has consistently been led by prophets of God, beginning with Joseph Smith and continuing to the present day with President Gordon B. Hinckley. We don’t need to know all the particulars of our history to enjoy the blessings of the sacred teachings and ordinances of the Church and to know of their truth and reality. These teachings and ordinances can enable us to “come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that [we] might enter into his rest” (Jacob 1:7). I don’t fault those who want to know more about history, but I would hope that they would not lose faith in or focus on the plain and precious truths of the gospel that have power to save, heal, and change our hearts and lives.

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This week here at Mormon Women, we’ve been exploring some of the concepts surrounding the doctrine of the priesthood – priesthood keys, authority, and power. We’ve shared a little about the Church organization and the purpose of the restoration of keys and authority to and through the prophet Joseph Smith and how those keys and authority are operative today. We’ve shared what I believe to be insightful reflections from the Relief Society training on the reality of priesthood power and the blessings of priesthood that are available to all of God’s children through receiving the ordinances of the gospel and by keeping gospel covenants in faith.

I’ve also shared some personal insights about asking questions in faith…about the divine process of asking, seeking, and knocking (see Matthew 7:7-8).

I hadn’t planned on sharing content on these topics a week ago, but now it seems as though these two concepts deserve some shared, colliding space. That is the purpose of today’s post.

First I want to say that I do plan to share more links and posts about priesthood here over the coming weeks. It’s a topic that is both simple and yet also layered and deep and rich. It’s a topic that our Church leaders clearly want Church members to understand more (e.g., see the Worldwide Leadership Training or Elder M. Russell Ballard’s recent Conference talk). It’s a topic I’ve spent a good portion of my life studying and seeking to understand, and the more I study and ponder it, the more I cherish the doctrine.

And yet, I understand that priesthood in the context of Mormonism is also a topic that makes some people uncomfortable. It raises questions. (Some see that as a bad thing. I believe it can be a good thing. It is okay to have questions!) Because only men hold priesthood office in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, on the face of it, the topic of priesthood in Mormonism doesn’t necessarily match the world’s definition of “gender equality.” Equality in cultural, social, and political terms tends to focus on limited opportunities within organizational structures and equality in other more mortally- (by mortals) measurable ways.

Some even within our church insist that the Church is wrong to not ordain women. It is probably clear from the tone and content of this site that I (and those who sponsor this site) do not share this point of view. Future posts may explore more of my personal feelings on this topic, but for now, I want to say that I do understand and sympathize with the pain people may feel about topics related to gender. And while I disagree with translating personal questions and struggles into public activism to try to change the Church, I respect that personal, sacred process of asking questions. And I think it’s important to acknowledge that the questions exist. (As a side note, I think our leaders have made it clear that they know they do. People may not always like the answers they give, but I do believe they know the questions are there.)

I also want to say that our intent here at Mormon Women is not to ignore or mock the pain some may feel with relation to gender issues or other charged topics. Neither do I want to be misunderstood as thinking that such questions can (or even should) be quieted through simple, pat answers.

But I do not believe that the doctrines and teachings of Jesus Christ are facile or “pat answers.” I believe the doctrine of the restored gospel and the power that comes of making and keeping gospel covenants is what can unlock the answers to the deepest questions of the soul — whether those questions be about gender issues or about the purpose of life or the reality of God or why bad things happen to people who do and are good (or why good things happen to people who are doing bad things).

I will take it a step further and say that I think sometimes the very issues that seem to bring the most questions and tensions are the ones that can provide the most opportunity for us to come to understand more about God’s plan for and love for us. I believe it’s often in the process of leaning into tensions and pain that we can find more about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and His grace, and about our eternal destiny and divine, individual worth and potential as children of heavenly parents.

But strong feelings about my faith aside — even if you do not currently believe in or are currently struggling with Mormonism — my hope is that wherever you are, whatever your questions may be, however you may study the questions out in your mind, go first and most often and boldly to your Father in Heaven. He is real. He knows you. He loves you. Take to Him the questions or concerns or frustrations or fears or pains that may exist in your life. Share your joys, too, and your gratitude for the good you see and feel. Pray vocally. Pray in your heart. Pray through the written word. Pray through song. Pray through other means of expression that resonate with your soul. Pray with attention to detail about what you are thinking, wondering, feeling.

I believe we learn the most from God not when we have answers and comfort, but when we have questions and struggles. And we learn when we act on whatever answers He may give.

I know from personal, repeated experience that that He is real and He listens to and answers prayers. Some — many– of those prayers have never been uttered. Some are so deep within me that I can’t find words for them, just as Paul acknowledges can happen (see Romans 8:26). I have found that the process of having answers distill can take days, weeks, months, years, even decades. I believe coming to know God and to recognize what God’s answers feel like and look like in our lives is the journey of a lifetime.

But oh, what a journey it is.

God bless you in your own journey of faith, whatever that path may look like for you. God bless you in your process of asking questions of and seeking wisdom from Him.

I know He will, in His way and time.

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