Introduction

Book of Mormon

But the purpose of this article is not to deal with those broad issues, since the amount of evidence that would be required to demonstrate the falsity of those claims (and the other broad claims of Mormonism) is more than can be dealt with in a small space. Rather, I will present here instances where Mormon leaders and the Mormon church can be easily and clearly proven to have lied intentionally in order to deceive, in the service of their religion.

Lying, I will show, although piously condemned by Mormon scriptures and in sermons by Mormon leaders, has been used by the church and its leaders from the very beginning to the present day. Such use of falsehood is completely incongruous with its claims of being led by God in righteousness, as the source of truth. Would God (or God's messengers) need to lie? Lying "is not of God."

Mormon Scriptures Condemn Lying and Liars

D&C 50:17-18

17 Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

18 And if it be by some other way it is not of God.

D&C 93:24-26

24 And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come;

25 And whatsoever is more or less than this is the spirit of that wicked one who was a liar from the beginning.

26 The spirit of truth is of God…

D&C 63:17

17 Wherefore, I, the Lord, have said that the fearful, and the unbelieving, and all liars, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie, and the whoremonger, and the sorcerer, shall have their part in that lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

D&C 129:7

7 ...it is contrary to the order of heaven for a just man to deceive;...

2 Nephi 9:34

34 Wo unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to hell.

2 Nephi 28:8-11

And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God--he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little ...; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

9 Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark. ...

11 Yea, they have all gone out of the way; they have become corrupted.

Jeremiah 48:10

Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully...

Comments About Lying From Mormon Leaders

Ensign

"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.... It is a tragedy to be the victim of lies. Being trapped in the snares of dishonesty and misrepresentation does not happen instantaneously. One little lie or dishonest act leads to another until the perpetrator is caught in the web of deceit. ... A wise person will not allow himself to be victimized by the unscrupulous because of false pride. Oftentimes people are swindled because false pride prevents them from asking questions and seeking additional information. For fear of embarrassment or being thought ignorant, a prospect ofttimes nods his head in the affirmative when he really doesn't understand the glib salesman's line of chatter. "What does that mean?" "What are the risks?" "What are the pitfalls?" "What is the history of the company?" "What references do you have?" are questions worthy of pursuit. ....If prudent decisions cannot be reached on the basis of one's own expertise, advice should be sought from knowledgeable and trusted counselors. Offers that cannot wait or stand review are not worthy. [My comment: Although Ashton is referring here to unscrupulous salesmen and promoters of business schemes, the advice would also be excellent for those who are investigating Mormonism, and listening to the deceptive pitch and pressure of the Mormon missionaries.] ... People of integrity will neither foster, nourish, embrace, nor share the lie.

Brigham Young University Studies

There is no such thing as an accurate, objective history of the Church without consideration of the spiritual powers that attend this work.... Church history can he 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. If we who research, write, and teach the history of the Church ignore the spiritual on the pretext that the world may not understand it, our work will not be objective. And if, for the same reason, we keep it quite secular, we will produce a history that is not accurate and not scholarly

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. [My Comment: Apostle Packer seems to disagree with D&C 84:45, which says: "...whatsoever is truth is light..."] Some time ago a historian gave a lecture to an audience of college students on one of the past Presidents of the Church. It seemed to be his purpose to show that that President was a man subject to the foibles of men. He introduced many so-called facts that put that President in a very unfavorable light, particularly when they were taken out of the context of the historical period in which he lived. Someone who was not theretofore acquainted with this historical figure (particularly someone not mature) must have come away very negatively affected. Those who were unsteady in their convictions surely must have had their faith weakened or destroyed. Teaching some things that are true, prematurely or at the wrong time, can invite sorrow and heartbreak instead of the joy intended to accompany learning. What is true with these two subjects is, if anything, doubly true in the field of religion. 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. It matters very much not only what we are told but when we are told it. Be careful that you build faith rather than destroy it. [My Comment: In other words, don't tell the "whole truth" if it would lead anyone to doubt the claims of Mormonism.]

In an effort to be objective, impartial, and scholarly a writer or a teacher may unwittingly be giving equal time to the adversary. 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. Those of you who are employed by the Church have a special responsibility to build faith not destroy it. If you do not do that, but in fact accommodate the enemy, who is the destroyer of faith you become in that sense a traitor to the cause you have made covenants to protect.... There are plenty of scholars in the world determined to find all secular truth. There are so few of us, relatively speaking, striving to convey the spiritual truths, who are protecting the Church. We cannot safely be neutral. [My Comment: In other words, church apologists must do whatever is necessary (it is "war," after all) to make certain that they are not impartial or objective; they must "protect" the image which the church wants to maintain of itself and its history.] There are qualifications to teach or to write the history of this church. If one is lacking in any one of these qualifications, he cannot properly teach the history of the Church. He can recite facts and give a point of view, but he cannot properly teach the history of the Church. [Packer then lists the qualifications: all are questions regarding the loyalty, faith and testimony of the author.]

We don t believe that there is anything in our current history or in our past history that is worrisome, so we are grateful for people to get to know it.

In the book, The Angel and the Beehive (1994), Armand Mauss discusses the problems that the LDS church faces with its intellectually inquisitive members. As the church attempts to put forth a media-friendly image, it tries to hide its rather unique past. Unfortunately, many young people grow up in the LDS faith and learn only the homogenized version of Mormon history. Those who have intellectual curiousity will inevitably run across discrepancies and many of those will lose faith in a religion that claims to be the "one true church" and yet lies about its own history. He laments that the LDS Church will lose its best and brightest children because of its pursuit of popularity over integrity.

Mormon writer Robert J. Matthews says, in the October 1994 Ensign article entitled "Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness," that the ninth commandment is a

"strong declaration against ... gross understatements, fabrication, or the willful giving of any explanation not supported by the facts.... Even sharing the truth can have the effect of lying when we tell only half-truths that do not give the full picture. We can also be guilty of bearing false witness and lying if we say nothing, particularly if we allow another to reach a wrong conclusion while we hold back information that would have led to a more accurate perception. In this case it is as though an actual lie were uttered.... Lying and misrepresentation in all of their forms are wrong, no matter how they may be rationalized, and those who silently let these evils pass unchallenged are also doing wrong".

Thus it appears that some Mormon spokesmen are in favor of telling the truth, but others feel that the whole truth is dangerous.

One young Mormon who had very recently returned from his mission commented to me:

When I was on my mission I never felt truly that the church was true; to be honest, I just didn't know. For that reason something that M. Russell Ballard said [in a talk to the missionaries] really stuck out to me. He told a story of a missionary who came to him and said "I can't say that I know the church is true because I don't really know it and I feel guilty when I say it." Ballard (who was a mission president at the time) responded: "The way you gain a testimony is in the bearing of it." In other words he told this missionary and essentially all of us in the conference, if you don't know the church is true just keep lying to all of your investigators and tell them you do know, until you have said it enough times that you brainwash yourself into believing it is true.

One could hardly think of a more flagrant violation of the Commandment "Thou shalt not bear false witness."

For an assessment of the pervasive deceit in the church, from a former teacher in the church educational system, see this post on the Exmormon e-mail list at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Exmormon/message/86966.

The Lies and The Truth

Joseph Smith's Lies About Polygamy ("Plural/Celestial Marriage")

The Lie:

[William Law] has gone to Carthage and swore that I had told him that I was guilty of adultery. This spiritual wifeism! Why, a man dares not speak or wink, for fear of being accused of this.... A man asked me whether the commandment was given that a man may have seven wives; and now [William Law] has charged me with adultery....I am innocent of all these charges, and you can bear witness of my innocence, for you know me yourselves... What a thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery, and having seven wives, when I can only find one. I am the same man, and as innocent as I was fourteen years ago; and I can prove them all perjurers. - (History of the Church 6:410-411)

The Truth:

Doctrine and Covenants

In Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith

The Lie:

The Truth:

Mormon Enigma: [Biography of] Emma Hale Smith

The revelation under authority of which Joseph Smith married these women, clearly requires the consent of the first wife:

...if any man espouse a virgin, and desire to espouse another, and the first give her consent... then is he justified... (D&C 132:61)

Hyrum Smith's Lies About Polygamy

The Lie:

Times and Seasons

To the brethren of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, living on China Creek, in Hancock County, Greeting: Whereas brother Richard Hewitt has called on me to-day, to know my views concerning some doctrines that are preached in your place, and states to me that some of your elders say, that a man having a certain priesthood, may have as many wives as he pleases, and that doctrine is taught here: I say unto you that that man teaches false doctrine, for there is no such doctrine taught here; neither is there any such thing practiced here, and any man that is found teaching privately or publicly any such doctrine, is culpable, and will stand a chance to be brought before the High Council, and lose his license and membership also: therefore he had better beware what he is about. [emphasis added]

The Truth:

The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power [Vol. 1]

John Taylor's Lies

The Lie:

We are accused here of polygamy, and actions the most indelicate, obscene, and disgusting, such that none but a corrupt and depraved heart could have contrived. These things are too outrageous to admit of belief; therefore... I shall content myself to reading our views of chastity and marriage, from a work published by us, containing some of the articles of our Faith. "Doctrine and Covenants," page 330, .... "we declare that we believe that one man should have one wife, and one woman but one husband." ( Three Nights' Public Discussion... , published by John Taylor, Liverpool 1850, photocopy in Sharon Banister, For Any Latter-day Saint , Fort Worth 1988, p. 289) or at http://www.olivercowdery.com/texts/1850Tayl.htm

The Truth:

The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power [Vol. 1]

Notice that Taylor cited the Mormon scripture Doctrine and Covenants as it was in effect and binding on all Mormons at that time. Thus Taylor (as well as Hyrum Smith and Joseph Smith) was in violation of the official laws of his own church, as well as the civil law. Notice that Taylor describes polygamy as "most indelicate, obscene, and disgusting, such that none but a corrupt and depraved heart could have contrived. ... too outrageous to admit of belief." Surely he could not have been sincere in such an opinion about a doctrine that he himself was practicing, and which he practiced and defended (as soon as it was officially admitted by Brigham Young in 1852) until the end of his life.

Ironically, Taylor later took the opposite position:

"...we want nothing secret nor underhanded, and I for one want no association with things that cannot be talked about and will not bear investigation." John Taylor, March 2, 1879, Journal of Discourses 20:264

Brigham Young's Lies about the Mountain Meadows Massacre

The Lie:

In 1857 it is estimated that eleven thousand troops were ordered here; some seven thousand started for this place, with several thousand hangers on. They came into this Territory when a company of emigrants were traveling on the south route to California. Nearly all of that company were destroyed by the Indians. That unfortunate affair has been laid to the charge of the whites.... but to this day they [the federal authorities] have not touched the matter, for fear the Mormons would be acquitted from the charge of having any hand in it, and our enemies would thus be deprived of a favorite topic to talk about, when urging hostility against us. ( Journal of Discourses 10:109-110, Apr 7, 1862)

The Truth:

The Mountain Meadows Massacre

Brooks wrote:

While Brigham Young and George A. Smith, the church authorities chiefly responsible, did not specifically order the massacre, they did preach sermons and set up social conditions which made it possible.....While he did not order the massacre, and would have prevented it if he could, Brigham Young was accessory after the fact, in that he knew what happened, and how and why it happened. Evidence of this is abundant and unmistakable, and from the most impeccable Mormon sources." (p. 219, emphasis added)

Confessions

General George A. Smith held high rank as a military leader. He was one of the twelve apostles...and as such he was considered by me to be an inspired man. His orders were to me sacred commands, which I considered it my duty to obey, without question or hesitation.....The General told me to tell the Indians that the Mormons were their friends, and that the Americans were their enemies.....that the Indians must get ready and keep ready for war against all of the Americans, and keep friendly with the Mormons and obey what the Mormons told them to do---that this was the will of the Great Spirit; that if the Indians were true to the Mormons and would help them against their enemies, then the Mormons would always keep them from want and sickness and give them guns and ammunition to hunt and kill game with, and would also help the Indians against their enemies when they went into war.....I have always believed, since that day, that General George A. Smith was then visiting Southern Utah to prepare the people for the work of exterminating Captain Fancher's train of emigrants, and I now believe that he was sent for that purpose by the direct command of Brigham Young.

... that I....should go to Salt Lake City and lay the whole matter before Brigham Young.....'You are like a member of Brigham's family, and can talk to him privately and confidentially. I want you to take all of it on yourself that you can, and not expose more of the brethren than you find absolutely necessary. Do this, Brother Lee, as I order you to, and you shall receive a celestial reward for it, and the time will come when all who acted with us will be glad for the part they have taken, for the time is near at hand when the Saints are to enjoy the riches of the earth. And all who deny the faith and doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints shall be slain---the sword of vengeance shall shed their blood; their wealth shall be given as a spoil to our people.' At that time I believed everything he said, and I fully expected to receive the celestial reward that he promised me. But now I say, Damn all such 'celestial rewards' as I am to get for what I did on that fateful day."

Gordon B. Hinckley's Lies

Unfortunately, in his efforts to make the church look good, Hinckley often bends the truth.

The Lie:

San Francisco Chronicle

Q: There are some significant differences in your beliefs [from other Christian churches]. For instance, don't Mormons believe that God was once a man?

Hinckley: I wouldn't say that. There was a little couplet coined, "As man is, God once was. As God is, man may become." Now that's more of a couplet than anything else. That gets into some pretty deep theology that we don't know very much about. [emphasis added]



Time Magazine

"On whether his church still holds that God the Father was once a man, [Hinckley] sounded uncertain, `I don't know that we teach it. I don't know that we emphasize it... I understand the philosophical background behind it, but I don't know a lot about it, and I don't think others know a lot about it.'" [emphasis added]

Time

Time

Time

Q: Just another related question that comes up is the statements in the King Follett discourse by the Prophet.



Hinckley: Yeah



Q: ... about that, God the Father was once a man as we were. This is something that Christian writers are always addressing. Is this the teaching of the church today, that God the Father was once a man like we are?



Hinckley: I don't know that we teach it. I don't know that we emphasize it. I haven't heard it discussed for a long time in public discourse. I don't know. I don't know all the circumstances under which that statement was made. I understand the philosophical background behind it. But I don't know a lot about it and I don't know that others know a lot about it. [emphasis added]

The Truth:

"God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted Man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens. That is the great secret... It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the character of God and to know...that he was once a man like us.... Here, then, is eternal life - to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves,... the same as all Gods have done before you..." [emphasis added]

"He [God] is our Father - the Father of our spirits, and was once a man in mortal flesh as we are, and is now an exalted being." [emphasis added]

"Mormon prophets have continuously taught the sublime truth that God the Eternal Father was once a mortal man who passed through a school of earth life similar that through which we are now passing. He became God - an exalted being - through obedience to the same eternal Gospel truths that we are given opportunity today to obey." [emphasis added]

"...God...is a personal Being, a holy and exalted man..."

"God is an exalted man. Some people are troubled over the statements of the Prophet Joseph Smith ... that our Father in heaven at one time passed through a life and death and is an exalted man..."

"President Brigham Young taught ... that God the Father was once a man on another planet who 'passed the ordeals we are now passing through...'"

The Lie:

Larry King Live

KING: You condemn it [polygamy].

HINCKLEY: I condemn it, yes, as a practice, because I think it is not doctrinal. It is not legal. And this church takes the position that we will abide by the law. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, magistrates in honoring, obeying and sustaining the law. [emphasis added]

The Truth:

Doctrine and Covenants

Book of Mormon

1 Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you have inquired of my hand to know and understand wherein I, the Lord, justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also Moses, David and Solomon, my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines--

2 Behold, and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as touching this matter.

3 Therefore, prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions which I am about to give unto you; for all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same.

4 For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory....

29 Abraham received all things, whatsoever he received, by revelation and commandment, by my word, saith the Lord, and hath entered into his exaltation and sitteth upon his throne.

...

30 Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins-.... both in the world and out of the world should they continue as innumerable as the stars; or, if ye were to count the sand upon the seashore ye could not number them.

31 This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham, and the promise was made unto Abraham; and by this law is the continuation of the works of my Father, wherein he glorifieth himself.

32 Go ye, therefore, and do the works of Abraham; enter ye into my law and ye shall be saved.

33 But if ye enter not into my law ye cannot receive the promise of my Father, which he made unto Abraham.

34 God commanded Abraham, and Sarah gave Hagar to Abraham to wife. And why did she do it? Because this was the law; and from Hagar sprang many people. This, therefore, was fulfilling, among other things, the promises.

35 Was Abraham, therefore, under condemnation? Verily I say unto you, Nay; for I, the Lord, commanded it.

...

37 Abraham received concubines, and they bore him children; and it was accounted unto him for righteousness, because they were given unto him, and he abode in my law; as Isaac also and Jacob did none other things than that which they were commanded; and because they did none other things than that which they were commanded, they have entered into their exaltation, according to the promises, and sit upon thrones, and are not angels but are gods.

...

61 And again, as pertaining to the law of the priesthood--if any man espouse a virgin, and desire to espouse another, and the first give her consent, and if he espouse the second, and they are virgins, and have vowed to no other man, then is he justified; he cannot commit adultery for they are given unto him; for he cannot commit adultery with that that belongeth unto him and to no one else.

62 And if he have ten virgins given unto him by this law, he cannot commit adultery, for they belong to him, and they are given unto him; therefore is he justified.



Some people have supposed that the doctrine of plural marriage was a sort of superfluity, or non-essential to the salvation of mankind. In other words, some of the Saints have said, and believe that a man with one wife, sealed to him by the authority of the Priesthood for time and eternity, will receive an exaltation as great and glorious, if he is faithful, as he possibly could with more than one. I want here to enter my protest against this idea, for I know that it is false. ... Therefore, whoever has imagined that he could obtain the fullness of the blessings pertaining to this celestial law, by complying with only a portion of its conditions, has deceived himself. He cannot do it. ... I understand the law of celestial marriage to mean that every man in this church, who has the ability to obey and practice it in righteousness and will not, shall be damned, I say I understand it to mean this and nothing less, and I testify in the name of Jesus that it does mean that. ( Journal of Discourses 20:28-31.)

Actually, a form of polygamy is still practiced by the church under very limited circumstances: if a man and woman are "sealed" together on earth to be husband and wife in eternity, and the wife dies, the man can remarry, and then have his second wife "sealed" to him, so that in heaven he will be a polygamist. For example, Joseph Fielding Smith, who was president of the church from 1970 until his death in 1972, was technically a monogamist. But he was sealed for eternity to three successive wives, each of whom left him a widower. Thus, he is now a polygamist, supposedly living in the Celestial Kingdom with his three wives.

The Lie:

HINCKLEY: When our people came west they permitted it [polygamy] on a restricted scale.

The Truth:

It was the rampant but secret practice of polygamy which led some prominent Mormons in Nauvoo, who believed the practice to be false, to publish in 1844 a newspaper (the Nauvoo Expositor ) exposing and denouncing it. Smith's illegal destruction of the newspaper's offices and press led directly to the state of civil war between the Mormons and the non-Mormons, to Smith's arrest and death, and the exodus to Utah.

Thus, Hinckley's implication that it was not practiced until the Mormon arrival in Utah is false.

The Lie:

KING: You could have a certain amount of...

HINCKLEY: The figures I have are from -- between two percent and five percent of our people were involved in it [polygamy]. It was a very limited practice;...

The Truth:

The Mormon Hierarchy: [Volume 1] Origins of Power

Hinckley also neglects to mention that until 1890, the leaders of the church urged all good Mormons to practice it (see the quotation from Joseph F. Smith above, which is typical of sermons of the day). If it was not practiced by all Mormons, it was not because the church was trying to limit the practice, as Hinckley falsely implies.

In fact, every president of the Mormon church from Joseph Smith was polygamous through Heber J. Grant (who died in 1945, and who gave it up when he was 52 years old). The first monogamous president of the church was George Albert Smith, who succeeded Grant in 1945.

The Lie:

HINCKLEY: I say this to other people: you develop all the good you can. We have no animosity toward any other church. We do not oppose other churches. We never speak negatively of other churches. [emphasis added]

The Truth:

Pearl of Great Price

"I asked the Personages [God the Father and God the Son] who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)--and which I should join. I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt;..." (Joseph Smith - History 1:18-19, emphasis added)

Book of Mormon

"And he [God] said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth." (1 Nephi 14:10, emphasis added; see also 13:6, 14:3, 9; Alma 5:39)

"...the religions of the day were hatched in hell. The eggs were laid in hell, hatched on its borders, and then kicked on to the earth. They may be called cockatrices, for they sting wherever they go. " ( Journal of Discourses 6:176, January 17, 1858) "Whosoever confesseth that Joseph Smith was sent of God to reveal the holy Gospel to the children of men, and lay the foundation for gathering Israel, and building up the kingdom of God on the earth, that spirit is of God; and every spirit that does not confess that God has sent Joseph Smith, and revealed the everlasting Gospel to and through him, is of Antichrist" ( Journal of Discourses 8:176, September 9, 1860)

These facts would seem to contradict Hinckley's statement that "We never speak negatively of other churches."

The Lie:

KING: What's your role?

HINCKLEY: My role is to declare a doctrine. My role is to stand as an example before the people. My role is to be a voice in defense of the truth. My role is to stand as a conservator of those values which are important in our civilization and our society. My role is to lead people.

The Truth:

...thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me [i.e., God];

5 For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine [i.e., God's] own mouth, in all patience and faith. [emphasis added]

Deny not the spirit of revelation, nor the spirit of prophecy, for wo unto him that denieth these things;

The Lie:

"Our faith, our knowledge [of Christ] comes of the witness of a prophet in this dispensation [Joseph Smith, Jr.] who saw before him the great God of the universe and His Beloved Son, the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. They spoke to him. He spoke with Them. He testified openly, unequivocally, and unabashedly of that great vision." [emphasis added]

The Truth:

Pearl of Great Price

Improvement Era

Evidences and Reconciliations

"Unequivocally": Before writing the Pearl of Great Price version, Smith produced at least two other versions, which differ significantly from the PoGP version and from each other. This fact is also acknowledged by church historians (Dean C. Jessee, BYU Studies , Spring 1969, pp 277-78, also Summer 1971, p 462). One of the accounts is in Smith's own handwriting, dating from about 1832, and the other - still different - is in Smith's diary for 1835.

In 1998 Hinckley said in a speech "...when Joseph left the grove that day [in 1820], he knew more of the nature of God than all the learned ministers ..." ( Deseret News , June 20, 1998). One must then ask, "Then why couldn't he tell it the same way twice?"

Official Lying by the Church

The Teaching Manual "Teachings of Brigham Young"

Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young

For example, although the Mormon church was known throughout the world for its practice of polygamy during Young's entire leadership of the church, and although Young was a devout defender, proponent, and practitioner of polygamy, no mention is made of polygamy in this book, either of the doctrine itself, or of Young's harem of wives. Wherever Young is quoted on the subject of domestic relations, when he mentioned "wives" in his sermons, the editors have substituted "[wife]."

In the one-page "Historical Summary" which lists the supposedly important events of Young's life (page vii), beginning with his birth and concluding with his death, the editors list the coming of the railroad, the organization of the Mutual Improvement Associations, and his role in the building of two temples, but there is not a hint of Young's 52 wives, his 15 divorces/separations, or his 55 children. (For a listing, click here). Nor is any mention of Young's polygamy to be found in Chapter 1, "The Ministry of Brigham Young," even though on page 6 the opportunity was ideal:

Before the [Nauvoo] temple was completed, Joseph Smith privately introduced President Young and other members of the Twelve to temple ordinances, including baptism for the dead, the temple endowment, and family sealings...

Nor is any mention made in this manual of Young's doctrines of Adam as God, of "Blood Atonement," or of his anti-Negro doctrines.

In the introduction of this church lesson manual, the editors caution against readers consulting source materials:

"...the sources [of the extracts from Young's sermons] will not be readily available to most members. These original sources are not necessary to have in order to effectively study or teach from this book. Members need not purchase additional references and commentaries to study or teach these chapters. The text provided in this book, accompanied by the scriptures [the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price], is sufficient for instruction."

Thus, a completely inaccurate picture of Brigham Young is being promulgated by the church.

The "Truth" Pamphlet Published by the LDS Church

"During the early years in Utah, some members of the Church practiced polygamy, patterned after similar Old Testament practices, which they considered to be a religious principle revealed by God to the Church founder, Joseph Smith. In 1890 Church President Wilford Woodruff announced the end of the Church's practice of polygamy. No one practicing polygamy today can be a member of the Church."

The Lie:

The Truth:

The Lie:

The Truth:

And it wasn't just "some" - almost all of the church leaders practiced it, and after 1852 Brigham Young tried to get all members to practice it, by preaching that a monogamist would not be exalted in heaven like a polygamist. Almost all higher church leaders before 1890 were polygamists.

The Lie:

The Truth:

The Lie:

The Truth:

The Lie (incomplete truth)

The Truth:

Doctrine and Covenants

The Lie (incomplete truth):

The Truth:

But it did not end with that public announcement. Polygamous marriages were performed secretly by church leaders, for over a decade, at least until 1906 or 1907.

Lies About Polygamy

The Lie:

The Truth:

Under certain circumstances, a Mormon man can still be "sealed" (married for eternity) to more than one woman at a time. A man who remarries after the death of his wife (or after divorce) can be sealed to his new wife and expect to live with both women in heaven.

Joseph Fielding Smith, tenth president of the church (1970-1972) married Louise E. Shurtleff in 1898. She died in 1908. In 1908 he married Ethel G. Reynolds, who died in 1937. In 1938 he married Jessie Evans, who died in 1971. He was sealed "for eternity" to each of those women. Now, paraphrasing what the Pharisees asked Jesus: Which woman will be Smith's wife in the celestial kingdom? According to Mormon doctrine, ALL THREE will be his wives. Smith confirmed "...my wives will be mine in eternity.” (Doctrines of Salvation, vol 2, pg 67.)

Harold B. Lee, the 11th president of the church, also remarried after his wife's death and anticipated his reunion with both women in poetry:

"My lovely Joan was sent to me:

So Joan joins Fern

That three might be, more fitted for eternity.

'O Heavenly Father, my thanks to thee' "

(Deseret News 1974 Church Almanac, page 17)

Additional examples include Howard W. Hunter, the 14th church president, who married Clara May Jeffs in 1931. She died in 1983. He then married Inis Bernice Egan in 1990. Both were sealed to him for time and eternity. Hunter died in 1995, having stated that he was looking forward to being reunited with his two wives in heaven.

Mormon Apostle Dallin Oaks, speaking at a BYU devotional, Jan 29, 2002:

"When I was 66, my wife June died of cancer. Two years later--a year and a half ago--I married Kristen McMain, the eternal companion who now stands at my side."

In April 2006, Church Apostle Russell M. Nelson married for a second time. His first wife had passed away the previous year. Both his first and second marriage were “solemnized” in an LDS Temple ceremony.

Lies About Mormon Racism

The Lie:

How grateful I am that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has from its beginnings stood strongly against racism in any of its malignant manifestations. ( Ensign , Sept 2000, p 16)

The Truth:

By 1978 the church was being heavily criticized for its racist practice. It wanted to get permission to build a temple in Brazil, where a large part of the population has Negro ancestry. Many college athletic teams in the United States were refusing to associate with the Mormon teams from Brigham Young University. Finally, in 1978, the church announced that a revelation had been received (although the actual revelation was never published) allowing a change in policy. The announcement now appears as "Official Declaration 2" in current editions of the Doctrine and Covenants .

However, in spite of the change in practice, there has been no change in the scriptures or doctrines by which the church had for so many years justified its racial stance. Those are still a part of the Mormon scriptural canon, and the statements of earlier prophets of the church have not been repudiated except in the most general way. In general, those doctrines are:

A dark skin is God's curse for unrighteousness, either in this life or in the spirit life before birth;

If a dark-skinned person becomes righteous (presumably by becoming a good Mormon), his skin will lighten;

Negroes are descended from Cain, who was "marked" by God (with a black skin);

The "blood of Cain" survived through the Great Flood through the wife of Ham, who was black.

The "Curse of Cain" is a black skin; priesthood is denied:

Abraham 1:21-27 (Pearl of Great Price) :

21 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.

24 ...and thus, from Ham, sprang that race which preserved the curse in the land.

25 Now the first government of Egypt was established by Pharaoh, the eldest son of Egyptus, the daughter of Ham, ...

26 Pharaoh, being a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his people wisely and justly all his days, seeking earnestly to imitate that order established by the fathers in the first generations, in the days of the first patriarchal reign, even in the reign of Adam, and also of Noah, his father, who blessed him with the blessings of the earth, and with the blessings of wisdom, but cursed him as pertaining to the Priesthood.

27 Now, Pharaoh being of that lineage by which he could not have the right of Priesthood, notwithstanding the Pharaohs would fain claim it from Noah, through Ham, ... Moses 7:8, 12, 22 (Pearl of Great Price) :

8 For behold, the Lord shall curse the land with much heat, and the barrenness thereof shall go forth forever; and there was a blackness came upon all the children of Canaan, that they were despised among all people. ...

12 And it came to pass that Enoch continued to call upon all the people, save it were the people of Canaan, to repent; ...

22 And Enoch also beheld the residue of the people which were the sons of Adam; and they were a mixture of all the seed of Adam save it was the seed of Cain, for the seed of Cain were black, and had not place among them.

A dark skin is God's punishment for unrighteousness and unbelief:

1 Nephi 12:23 (Book of Mormon) :

23 And it came to pass that I beheld, after they had dwindled in unbelief they became a dark, and loathsome, and a filthy people, full of idleness and all manner of abominations.

Marriage between the white-skinned (righteous) and dark-skinned (unrighteous) frowned upon:

2 Nephi 5:21 (Book of Mormon) :

21 And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them.

When dark-skinned people become righteous, they will turn white:

2 Nephi 30:6 (Book of Mormon) :

6 And then shall they [the dark-skinned Lamanites/Indians] rejoice; for they shall know that it [to receive the gospel] is a blessing unto them from the hand of God ; and their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a white and a delightsome people. [in editions after 1981, "white" was changed to "pure"]

Statements by Church Prophets (before 1978)

Shall I tell you the law of God in regard to the African race? If the white man who belongs to the chosen seed mixes his blood with the seed of Cain, the penalty, under the law of God, is death on the spot. This will always be so. ( Journal of Discourses 10:110, March 8, 1863)

You see some classes of the human family that are black, uncouth, un- comely, disagreeable and low in their habits, wild, and seemingly deprived of nearly all the blessings of the intelligence that is generally bestowed upon mankind. The first man that committed the odious crime of killing one of his brethren will be cursed the longest of any one of the children of Adam. Cain slew his brother. Cain might have been killed, and that would have put a termination to that line of human beings. This was not to be, and the Lord put a mark upon him, which is the flat nose and black skin. Trace mankind down to after the flood, and then another curse is pronounced upon the same race - that they should be the "servant of servants;" and they will be, until that curse is removed; and the Abolitionists cannot help it, nor in the least alter that decree. How long is that race to endure the dreadful curse that is upon them? That curse will remain upon them, [p.291] and they never can hold the Priesthood or share in it until all the other descendants of Adam have received the promises and enjoyed the blessings of the Priesthood and the keys thereof. Until the last ones of the residue of Adam's children are brought up to that favourable position, the children of Cain cannot receive the first ordinances of the Priesthood. They were the first that were cursed, and they will be the last from whom the curse will be removed. When the residue of the family of Adam come up and receive their blessings, then the curse will be removed from the seed of Cain, and they will receive blessings in like proportion. - ( Journal of Discourses 7:290-291, October 9, 1859)

Until 1978, Mormon leaders and apologists defended this position vigorously. The First Presidency issued the following official "Statement... On The Negro Question" on August 17, 1951:

The attitude of the Church with reference to negroes remains as it has always stood. It is not a matter of the declaration of a policy but of direct commandment from the Lord, on which is founded the doctrine of the Church from the days of its organization, to the effect that negroes may become members of the church but that they are not entitled to the priesthood at the present time. [They then quote Brigham Young's statement, above, and others, to defend the doctrine.]... (cited by William E. Berrett, vice president of Brigham Young University, The Church and the Negroid People , p. 16, published in John J. Stewart, Mormonism and the Negro, , 1960).

Miscellaneous The newspaper Arizona Republic carried the following item in its issue of October 10, 1993, quoted in Issue 85 (Nov 1993) of the Salt Lake City Messenger : Last month, John Beck, 33, of Provo, resigned the church and quit his job as a BYU business professor. 'My problems had to do with the ethics of the university,' he said, 'which comes down to their not telling the truth. They are firing people not for the reasons they say.' His wife, Martha Nibley Beck, 30, daughter of famed pro-church scholar Hugh Nibley, said she left her job as a BYU sociology professor in July after the school removed Carol Lee Hawkins as leader of the Women's Symposium.... 'The church is moving toward social isolation,' Martha Beck said.... BYU spokeswoman Margaret Smoot said that the removal of Hawkins was routine.... However, Smoot's predecessor, Paul Richards, 57, who left BYU last year, ridiculed that notion.... 'I worked in public affairs for the church for 13 years, and I had to lie all the time....' [emphasis added] Peggy Fletcher Stack, a co-founder and long-time editor of Sunstone Magazine (a liberal journal often critical of the church), and a reporter on religion for the Salt Lake Tribune , June 17, 2001, wrote in an article "Sunstone: The Cost of Intellectualism" about the founding of the magazine: We heeded LDS Apostle Hugh B. Brown, a Democrat and liberal thinker, who told students at church-owned Brigham Young University in the 1960s: "Your thoughts and expressions must meet competition in the marketplace of thoughts, and in that competition truth will emerge triumphant. Only error needs to fear freedom of expression."

...When I was editor/publisher [of Sunstone ] from 1980 to 1986, it was an exciting time to be a Mormon intellectual. But our springtime of inquiry was about to take on a decided chill.

Sonja Johnson was excommunicated for publicly opposing Mormon leaders on the Equal Rights Amendment, Arrington's approach to church history was replaced by a more "faithful history" and the archives were once again closed to critical scholarship.

LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie, an ardent defender of Mormon orthodoxy, described intellectuals as "dogs nipping at the heels" of true pilgrims. Nothing more than an irritant, he said, while "the caravan moves on."

... Now, some 25 years after Sunstone's founding, I am still in the church but less naive about fostering an open forum.

The church hierarchy continues to be preoccupied with presenting a seamless image and relegating to the margins Saints with a decidedly intellectual bent. Conclusion This article only scratches the surface of how deception and lies permeate Mormonism. After having read and heard hundreds of former Mormons tell their reasons for leaving the church, I find that by far the most frequent reason given, and often the only reason, is:

"The church lied to me!"

For another (more extensive) discussion of official lying by Mormon leaders, see the article by Ken Clark (life-long teacher and institute director in the Church Education System) "Lying For The Lord" at http://www.mormonthink.com/lying.htm.

Still another discussion of Mormon lying by Mormon leaders is Appendix I of Carmon Hardy's Solemn Covenant: The Mormon Polygamous Passage , "Lying For The Lord", pp. 363ff (U. of Illinois, 1992)

For a survey of how lying was practiced by early Christians, see "God's Truth - Lies"

© 2001 Richard Packham Permission granted to reproduce for non-commercial purposes, provided text is not changed and this copyright notice is included

