Sunday, August 6, 2023

A Fountain Of Filthy Water



         Previously: This May Herald The Beginning Of The End For The Vaccine Scam

Almost everything you will find on this platform has been written by me; I like to keep things in my own voice so no one else gets blamed for the things I write. 

However, I have made a few rare exceptions in past years when I have come across something someone else wrote that expresses views or provides information that I felt deserved a wider audience; usually these are things I would have written myself if I had only been a lot smarter and a much better writer.  In other words, stuff that would fall into the category of "I wish I'd said that."

So today, with his permission, I present the transcript of a talk Denver Snuffer presented last month at the Sunstone Symposium because what he said echoes my own views precisely -he has just done a better job of articulating them than I could have.  The folks at Sunstone have not yet posted the audio of the talk online, but Denver did post the printed transcript on his website.  The advantage of the transcript resides in the many footnotes which not only provide sources, but also further elucidate the points brought out in the talk, which is why, even if you have already heard the talk itself, you don't want to miss having access to the footnotes.  Some of them are very revealing.

Now, I'll be honest here: I had a heck of a time properly transcribing the footnotes, but they are all included below, except instead of the footnote numbers being properly raised, I had to put them in bold print.  So at least you won't miss them.  You may find a "cleaner" copy at DenverSnuffer.com, since over there you'll find actual page numbers (just over 19 pages, if you're counting).  But not to fret; everything Denver said is here as well, so you won't miss anything. Comes down to your taste in font styles, I guess.

So, if it was so difficult for me to transfer Denver's talk from his platform onto my own, why did I go to the trouble?

First, Denver is not in the habit of widely advertising his work.  You'll find it if you look for it, but he won't hammer you with reminders on Facebook like I tend to do.  Second, I think this piece is too important -not to mention incredibly interesting- not to get widely disseminated.  And there's a third reason I bothered to put this here: Simply stated, there are some people who regularly check out what's new on my blog but who, for some unfathomable reason, are not interested in anything Denver Snuffer might have to say.  By providing a copy of this particular talk on my platform, perhaps I can have a hand in disabusing those people of their unwarranted prejudices.  This one, I venture to say, will be of interest even to those who consider themselves "Never Snuffers."

So, to begin:

A “Fountain of Filthy Water”
-Presented at the Sunstone Symposium by Denver Snuffer on July 29th, 2023

I am pleased to return to Sunstone and to see it again exists in the form we took for granted before Covid-19. I feel more welcomed here among you intellectuals, doubters, apostates, and seekers than I do now among the active Latter-day Saints. Like many of you, I see gaps, contradictions and falsehoods in the claims made by the LDS church. But I also see many gaps, contradictions and falsehoods in the critics of the LDS church. I’m a believer in Mormonism as Joseph Smith defined it: “One of the grand fundamental principles of Mormonism is to receive truth, let it come from whence it may.” When it comes to Mormonism, renegade apostates are often that because they have discovered some new, unpleasant truth about the LDS church. These disappointed former saints are not evil and do not deserve being branded as ‘apostate’—but are in reality practicing a more correct form of Mormonism by accepting more truth.

The theme discussed by this year’s Symposium presenters is “(Main)Streaming Mormonism”—an effort by the LDS church to accomplish that objective is certainly underway. But if you define “Mormonism” as Joseph Smith did; that is: “One of the grand fundamental principles of Mormonism is to receive truth, let it come from whence it may.” Well, then all of you who welcome the truth are Mormons. Even if that search has alienated you from the LDS church, or (in my case) alienated the LDS church from you. If you seek for truth then you are companions with Joseph Smith and “Mormons” as he defined it. [More on that later.] 

As for the LDS church, the hope to mainstream their organization has resulted in two things happening simultaneously: First, the original form of Mormonism is being abandoned. Second, political, social, economic and moral trends of modernity are replacing it. Considering many of the titles chosen by presenters at this Symposium, it should be apparent to us all that the present-day LDS church is both threadbare and foolishly attempting to put patches of new cloth on an old garment. The ‘traditional’ believer’s voices no longer dominate LDS meetings, conferences and lessons. 

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[1] Compare KJV Luke 3:36 (NC Luke 4:14).

But this is getting ahead of the matter. I should start with another part of this story that requires me to clarify some matters about which many of you will hold very contrary views. I am not going to defend my position on foundational matters. I’ve already done that in some 38 volumes currently in print. This is an hour-long talk, so here is a list of things I believe, but won’t be defending here:

 -First, that Joseph Smith was in contact with God and used by Them to accomplish a Divine work. 

-Second, that Joseph Smith was a devoted monogamist, faithful to his only wife, Emma. Emma had the stronger personality and better formal education of the two.

 -Third, that Joseph Smith opposed plural wivery, did what he could to discover it and eradicate it from Nauvoo, and believed that these secret adulterous crimes would lead to the destruction of the church. 

-Fourth, that it is wise, noble and virtuous to follow Joseph Smith’s example and counsel, and foolish to hold him in derision and attribute wickedness (including adulterous plural wivery) to him. Ultimately, those who believe and trust lies regarding him will have reason to mourn.2 

-Fifth, while Joseph Smith was at the head Mormonism, it was optimistic, utopian, revolutionary and innovative. It was intent on reshaping the world into a better, more egalitarian place.

-Finally, Joseph Smith was not understood by the majority of those living in Nauvoo during his lifetime.4  Once Brigham Young ascended to control over the LDS faithful, he implemented a different (although arguably still utopian) form of Mormonism than what Joseph Smith and God intended to accomplish with the restoration. 

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2 “The ends of the earth shall inquire after your name, and fools shall have you in derision, and hell shall rage against you, while the pure in heart, and the wise, and the noble, and the virtuous shall seek counsel, and authority, and blessings constantly from under your hand. And your people shall never be turned against you by the testimony of traitors, and although their influence shall cast you into trouble, and into bars and walls, you shall be had in honor. And but for a small moment, and your voice shall be more terrible in the midst of your enemies than the fierce lion, because of your righteousness, and your God shall stand by you for ever and ever.” (Letter from Liberty Jail, found in D&C 122:1-4; and T&C 139:7.) 

3 As part of his presidential platform Joseph Smith proposed selling public lands to raise the money to purchase slaves and free them from slavery. Had this been the course followed by the United States the Civil War would have likely been averted, and the south would not have been bankrupt from the emancipation of slaves. Capital would have allowed former slaves to be employed and paid, making ‘share-cropping’ and the ensuing impoverishment of freed black manual laborers a chapter of our history that never happened. The Civil War legacy led to carpetbaggers from the North exploiting the impoverished South. Query whether the “War on Poverty” in the 1960s would have been needed if freed African slaves could have been gainfully employed following their emancipation. The Bureau of Land Management might not exist now, or would control far less Federal land. We just do not know how great a price the United States has paid for rejecting Joseph Smith. 

4 As Joseph said to the Nauvoo crowd during the King Follett Sermon on April 7, 1844: “You don't know me; you never knew my heart. No man knows my history. I cannot tell it: I shall never undertake it. I don't blame any one for not believing my history  If I had not experienced what I have, I could not have believed it myself.”

Joseph was constantly adding to the breadth, depth and width of a religion he understood to have been both ancient and lost. He claimed to be a restorer, not an innovator. When the text of Genesis says that man was formed “in the image of God, male and female…” it only hinted at the truth Joseph would add about mankind: “You have to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and be kings and priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, namely by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one: from grace to grace from exaltation to exaltation until you attain to the resurrection of the dead.”5  Joseph taught we have not only God’s “image” but also Their potential. Joseph held a much more elevated view of mankind than did Christianity of the 1800s.

I prefer the optimistic, self-confident, revolutionary Mormonism of Joseph Smith over the devolving form it has since assumed. The deformities have multiplied and it now is lurching forward toward an unrecognizably abominable form.6

LDS Mormonism has not seen such radical changes as Russell Nelson’s since Brigham Young’s reign. At one point Brigham Young’s agenda brought Utah’s Mormonism into a violent, downward spiral that the US Army was sent to dethrone him as governor. President Young hoped to employ Native Americans as the “battle axe of the Lord,” but that came to nothing. A few years later the Blackhawk War from 1865 to 1872 proved that ‘battle axe’ was the Lord’s, and He wielded it against the Mormons rather than the gentiles. Brigham Young did not take the hint when removed as Governor, and he ignored the slap when the Natives made war against the Mormons. Likewise, Nelson is ignoring the tremendous outflow of disaffected LDS now underway. Instead of radically adopting bad ideas, the LDS church should just be truthful. 

Truth need not destroy faith in God, in Joseph Smith, or in Mormonism. Once the varnish is removed, keep digging and remove the veneer also. What you will find is that the LDS church has warped even Joseph Smith as part of their false narrative. There is sturdy lumber lying beneath the marketing veneer of corporate LDS-ism. 

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5 King Follett Sermon, April 7, 1844. 

6 The term “abomination” is defined in the Glossary of the Restoration Scriptures edition as:  “The use of religion to suppress truth or impose a false form of truth. It involves the religious justification of wrongdoing. That is, something becomes abominable when it is motivated out of a false form of religious observance or is justified because of religious error.” I use it in that sense.

There is a vast library supporting institutional LDS historical claims. The LDS church has always been prolific-propagandists, whose effort to claim historical support for themselves has been enthusiastic and overeager. It was, after all, the saints who threatened to “exterminate” the Missourians first, but church apologists have preserved that memory only in the form of a cruel order by Missouri Governor Lilburn Boggs. He was only a reactionary. 

There were LDS apostles who strayed into bigamy and ‘spiritual wifeism’ in England years before it became something they attributed to Joseph Smith.7  The LDS reliance on William Clayton’s Journal is misplaced.8

The Church History Library withholds many original resource materials, including contemporary journals, diaries and letters from the public. Interesting materials are becoming increasingly available that provide a valuable peek inside censored, authentic LDS history.9

Woodruff’s Official Declaration 1 was a lie, and the “Manifesto” was only to mislead the ‘gentiles’ long enough to get statehood for Utah. The document remains part of the LDS scripture canon as if it were an authentic renunciation of plural marriage.

There is another library, not quite so prolific, written by LDS naysayers. They, too, have been enthusiastic if not overeager. After reading both libraries, I’ve reached the conclusion that both overstate their cases and wind up distorting who and what Joseph Smith was. As a result, I do not fit into the LDS church and they properly excommunicated me. As they define “apostasy” I did that. I apostasied. They have every right to define the terms for continuing membership in their religious club, and I violated their terms. However, I do not hold a virulent view of Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, or whether God was up to something beginning in the early 1820s. I believe that something resulted in an inspired renewal of God’s commitment to help mankind. For that reason many of you also have strong disagreement with me.

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7.  Brigham Young, Williard Richards and Wilford Woodruff said they got a “testimony” of plural wives while missionaries in England. The origin of polygamy is far more likely from the Cochranites of Saco, Main. Jacob Cochran thought “seven women shall take hold of one man” authorized sexual license, and he disregarded traditional marriage as unnecessary. Nine of the twelve LDS apostles served missions among these people. This, however, is beyond the scope of this talk.

8. For example, one critical passage originally read: “Gave instructions to try those persons who were preaching, teaching, or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives; no man shall have but one wife at a time.” But was edited to instead read: “Gave instructions to try those persons who were preaching, teaching, or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives; for, according to the law, I hold the keys of this power in the last days; for there is never but one on earth at a time on whom the power and its keys are conferred and I have constantly said no man shall have but one wife at a time, unless the Lord directs otherwise.” The edited version has been used by the LDS church without disclosing these edited insertions, until the Joseph Smith Papers project disclosed a facsimile of the original.

9. See, e.g., A Ministry of Meetings: The Apostolic Diaries of Rudger Clawson, Signature Books in association with Smith Research Associates, Salt Lake City 1993; Candid Insights of a Mormon Apostle: The Diaries of Abraham H. Cannon, 1889-1895, Signature Books in association with Smith-Pettit Foundation, Salt Lake City 2010; In the President’s Office: The Diaries of L. John Nuttall, 1879-1892, Signature Books in association with Smith-Pettit Foundation, Salt Lake City 2007, among others.

I doubt anything I have to say will be welcome on either side of the ‘pro vs. con’ LDS divide. But at least my voice is heard and even welcomed here. Sunstone is still a valuable meeting ground for Mormons of every stripe.

As LDS Mormonism undergoes another metamorphosis, one question I think should be asked is, ‘what is the role of religion’ any religion, in any society, at any time in history—what role does it serve? To me the answer is to preserve proven or traditional values, to stabilize society against rapid and often disruptive change. Religion impedes new ideas from diverting society into a potentially unwise detour from traditions that have provided stability. Correspondingly, the greatest criticism of religion is that it interferes with adopting fashionable, new ideas. It is inevitable that when “old flattop” comes “grooving up slowly” with “hair down to his knees”10 he challenges the status quo, and provokes a chorus of churchgoing criticism.

 “Changes” require you to “turn and face the strange,”11 often leading to an uncertain, unpredictable outcome. The voices urging change offend the religions, all religions, because they oppose social stasis. A good lyricist has put the matter both clearly and persuasively:

 Come mothers and fathers throughout all the land

 And don’t criticize what you can’t understand

 Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command

 Your old road is rapidly aging

 Please get out of the new one if you can’t lend your hand

 For the times, they are a-changin’ 12

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10. Come Together by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. 

11. Changes by David Bowie. 

12. The Times They are a-Changin' by Bob Dylan.

Because LDS Mormonism is teetering on this brink, the Sunstone Symposium this year is timely. It comes when most of you are cheering on this current metamorphosis of LDS Mormonism. LDS leaders have made more changes since Russell M. Nelson ascended to the top than at any other time, excepting only Brigham Young. Nelson embraces change, even advising his followers to “eat their vitamins”13 so they can keep up with his aggressive agenda. His wife, Wendy Nelson, said his elevation would now “unleash” the changes he always aspired to adopt.14

All the recent LDS policy changes tell us where the leadership’s hearts lie: The church longs to be far more “woke”15 and popular, urging its adherents to prize a “living prophet” and neglect the dead ones. Dead ones said things unsuitable (or at least very uncomfortable) in the Brave New World where LDS Mormonism awakens. And so we have Elder Haynie of the first quorum of the seventy, telling the LDS faithful in General Conference, “unlike vintage comic books and classic cars, prophetic teachings do not become more valuable with age.” Elder Haynie added, “we should not seek to use the words of past prophets to dismiss the teachings of the living prophets.”16  That turns things onto its head but will be necessary because LDS “living prophets” contradict and ignore past prophets and even scripture.

Even the vocabulary of “living prophets” was an innovation during the presidency of David O. McKay. Before then, the LDS leader was called “President” and not “Prophet.” Opinion polling showed that LDS members responded more readily when the word “Prophet” was used, and therefore it got adopted in February 1955 by the LDS Deseret News and has continued in use ever since.17  Query whether now an ‘LDS Prophet’ could implement female ordination by fiat—or if past teachings would prohibit such a change? It probably comes down to when Baby Boomer tithepayers will poll in favor of making the change.18

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13. “If you think the Church has been fully restored, you're just seeing the beginning. There is much more to come. … Wait till next year. And then the next year. Eat your vitamin pills. Get your rest. It's going to be exciting.” LDS Newsroom, 2018, How Did the Church Change This Year?

14. “I have seen him changing in the last ten months,” said Sister Nelson. “It is as though he's been unleashed. He's free to finally do what he came to earth to do. … And also, he's free to follow through with things he's been concerned about but could never do. Now that he's president of [the Church], he can do those things.” LDS Newsroom, 30 October 2018, Latter-day Saint Prophet, Wife and Apostle Share Insights of Global Ministry.

15. The term originated in the US black population and was adopted in general use following the Black Lives Matter movement in 2014. The Mirriam-Webster Dictionary now defines it as a slang word meaning: “aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice).”

16.  A Living Prophet for the Latter Days, Elder Allen D. Haynie, LDS General Conference talk, April 2023 General Conference talk.

17. See D. Michel Quinn, Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power, Salt Lake City, Signature Books, 1997, p. 363. For an extended discussion of the matter see my book, Passing the Heavenly Gift, Salt Lake City, Mill Creek Press, 2011, chapter 13, Correlation: Controlling and Curtailing, pp. 347-375.

18. See, e.g., Jeffrey Holland’s October 2006 LDS General Conference talk, Prophets in the Land Again in which he refers to their focus group testing and opinion polling with these words: “I testify that the grasp this body of men and women have of moral and societal issues exceeds that of any think tank or brain trust of comparable endeavor of which I know anywhere on the earth.”

The Community of Christ has ordained women since 1984, and today five of their twelve apostles are women. The LDS organization appears, from the symptoms of recent behavior, to look with envy on that achievement. The overtures are there: Russell Ballard’s May 1, 2015 talk at BYU (The Essential Role of Women) mentioning how women have been allowed to weigh in on church councils, from wards to the highest levels of church administration. Then rewriting the temple endowment to put Eve into direct rather, than indirect, contact with Elohim. The LDS patriarchy glacier clearly wants to melt and run rapidly downhill, freed from the icy prison of its past. Homosexuality is no longer grounds for excommunication.19  Some homosexuals serve in local leadership positions.20

In a gesture that was likely intended to keep more traditional Baby Boomer believers to ‘hold fast’, Dallin H. Oaks spoke to the LDS youth in May 2023. His talk was reported by Peggy Fletcher Stack on May 21, 2023. She reported his talk included this advice: 

“Marriage is central to the purpose of mortal life and what follows,” said Oaks. “We are children of a loving Heavenly Father who created us with the capacity to follow his commandment to multiply and replenish the earth.”

The power of creation is “one of the most precious gifts we have in mortal life,” he said, but “central to that gift is the law of chastity, the commandment that our powers of procreation be expressed only within marriage between a man and a woman.”

 Delaying childbearing, he said, “means fewer children born to grow up with the blessings of the gospel.”21

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19. See, e.g., Russell Ballard’s talk, The Lord Needs You Now! “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the experience of same-sex attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin but acting on it is. Even though individuals do not choose to have such attractions, they do choose how to respond to them. With love and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, including [those with same-sex attraction]’” (Ensign, Sept. 2015, 29), quoted on the LDS website (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/topics/gay/individuals?lang=eng) in the answer to the question “Is feeling same-sex attraction a sin?”

 20. See, e.g., https://religiondispatches.org/openly-gay-mormon-appointed-to-lds-church-leadershipposition/ which discusses the call of a gay man to serve as ward executive secretary in a San Francisco congregation.

 21. Stop delaying marriage and start having kids, Dallin Oaks urges Latter-day Saints, report of Peggy Fletcher Stack in Salt Lake Tibune on the youth fireside talk by Dallin H. Oaks.

There’s more than a little common sense to that advice. Catholicism has lasted for two millennia in part because, although its clergy is celibate, its members are traditionally quite fecund. Catholic teachings oppose abortion and birth control, and emphasize having large families. The result is that over the generations, Catholic membership numbers exceed 1 billion.

The one thing that almost all varieties of homosexuality fail to produce is children. Homosexuality does not result in pregnancy and/or children. Transsexuals do not reproduce. It will take only one generation of such sexual non-productivity to “leave them neither root nor branch.”22 Those Biblical words are genealogical terms, and in context mean without descendants or posterity. It is not a matter of ‘go woke, go broke’ but instead a matter of ‘empty wombs leaves only tombs.’ Any church, including the LDS, which wants to survive the next century, will need a birth-rate well above the mortality rate.

The theme that worldly popularity is antithetical to godliness appears early in the Book of Mormon. Lehi saw but failed to notice, and Nephi both noticed and described the meaning of filthy water:

 And the angel spake unto me, saying, Behold the fountain of filthy water which thy father saw, yea, even the river of which he spake; and the depths thereof are the depths of hell. And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the Devil which blindeth the eyes and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost. And the large and spacious building which thy father saw is vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men. And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them, yea, even the sword of the justice of the Eternal God and Messiah who is the Lamb of God. (1 Ne. 3:17.)

Broad roads and large, spacious buildings are symbols of worldly success, acceptance, popularity and vanity. Pretty much what we get in the values advocated by mass media, entertainment, current fashion and now well represented in opinion polling among those aged 18-35.

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22. OC-Malachi 1:10; NC-3 Ne. 11:4; T&C 58:8.

In contrast, as Joseph Smith taught, there is a narrow pathway that runs contrariwise and is to be preferred:

 [I]f one man cannot understand these things but by the spirit of God, ten thousand men cannot. It is alike out of the reach of the wisdom of the learned, the tongue of the eloquent, the power of the mighty. And we shall at last have to come to this conclusion, whatever we may think of revelation, that without it we can neither know nor understand anything of God, or the Devil; and however unwilling the world may be to acknowledge this principle, it is evident from the multifarious creeds and notions concerning this matter that they understand nothing of this principle, and it is equally as plain that without a divine communication they must remain in ignorance. The world always mistook false prophets for true ones, and those that were sent of God they considered to be false prophets, and hence they killed, stoned, punished, and imprisoned the true prophets, and they had to hide themselves in deserts, and dens, and caves of the earth, and though the most honorable men of the earth, they banished them from their society as vagabonds, while they cherished, honored, and supported knaves, vagabonds, hypocrites, impostors, and the basest of men. (T&C 147:6, italics in original.)

 Joseph Smith was killed by the conspiracy of adulterous insiders, jealous politicians, and mobs motivated by lies. They did not understand him or know what he stood for. The LDS church today has essentially adopted those same slanderous lies as their version of his biography. And many of you think him to have been a pedophile and a liar. I disagree. In 1829 God predicted there would be these opposing views:

The ends of the earth shall inquire after your name, and fools shall have you in derision, and hell shall rage against you, while the pure in heart, and the wise, and the noble, and the virtuous shall seek counsel, and authority, and blessings constantly from under your hand. And your people shall never be turned against you by the testimony of traitors, and although their influence shall cast you into trouble, and into bars and walls, you shall be had in honor. (D&C 122:1-3; T&C 139:7.)

I hold Joseph in high regard, believing he was a much greater spiritual presence than what he claimed publicly—meaning he understated his visionary calling and mission. He was a friend of heaven, and that alone vouches for his character. I think I understand what heaven requires of a prophet. The caricature believed to be Joseph Smith by the LDS church and many of those attending this Symposium is not a fair representation of what is required to have the heavens opened.23  God does not entrust salvation of the souls of men to the self-indulgent and sexually promiscuous.

Mormonism today seems to agree with one of the anti-Christ characters of the Book of Mormon. It was Nehor whose message was:

“preaching to them that which he termed to be the word of God, bearing down against the church, declaring unto the people that every priest and teacher ought to become popular and they ought not to labor with their own hands, but that they ought to be supported by the people. And he also testified unto the people that all mankind should be saved at the last day, and that they need not fear nor tremble, but that they might lift up their heads and rejoice, for the Lord had created all men and had also redeemed all men; and in the end, all men should have eternal life.” (Alma 1:1.)

The religion of Nehor is not only practiced by the LDS church, but also by many of that church’s opponents. The many podcasts, websites and ministries that are anti-LDS hope to be popular and supported financially by their audience. In a sense they are part of broadening mainstream Mormonism by the practice of anti-Mormonism. They contribute by advocating either the futility of salvation in the afterlife, or that salvation is generally available without any need to accept or acknowledge Joseph Smith’s contribution to God’s work of saving us. “Mormonism” has therefore become an inadvertent broad tent, being practiced even by everyone attending this Symposium. 

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23. The established criteria is set out in scripture: “Verily thus says the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsakes their sins, and comes unto me, and calls on my name, and obeys my voice, and keeps all my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am, and that I am the true light that lights every man who comes into the world, and that I am in the Father and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one — the Father because he gave me of his fullness, and the Son because I was in the world, and made flesh my tabernacle, and dwelt among the sons of men.” D&C 93:1-4; T&C 93:1.

Sincere Nehorists are preaching, teaching and crying “Lo here! And Lo there!” inside these turbulent LDS competitors’ competition for consideration.

 Any attempt to be part of a mainstream of thought is denounced in the Book of Mormon. If there is a “truth” to be valued, then whether it is popular or not the Book of Mormon prefers we follow that truth without regard to the opinion of others:

For the time speedily shall come that all churches which are built up to get gain, and all those who are built up to get power over the flesh, and those who are built up to become popular in the eyes of the world, and those who seek the lusts of the flesh and the things of the world and to do all manner of iniquity — yea, in fine, all those who belong to the kingdom of the Devil — are they who need fear, and tremble, and quake. They are those who must be brought low in the dust, they are those who must be consumed as stubble; and this is according to the words of the prophet. (1 Ne. 7:5.)

Following truth in a lifelong quest to discover more light and truth rewards the seeker. Popularity invariably pulls away from enlightenment and toward decadence. “The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.”24 

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24. Attributed to Laozi (Lao Tzu), who was an ancient Chinese Taoist philosopher believed to have lived in the 6th Century BC.

Then there is this:

Behold, the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots are the desires of this great and abominable church. And also for the praise of the world do they destroy the saints of God and bring them down into captivity. (1 Ne. 3:19.)

There is a lot of money in religion. The charitable impulse produces a great deal. Gold, silver, silk and harlots are often where tithes and offerings wind up among successful religious organizations. That is why today we have been taught by the Lord to not gather tithes, but to distribute them locally and immediately within fellowships to those with needs. Those needs include food, clothing, housing, transportation, education and medical needs. This precludes the need for any Ensign Peak Advisors.25

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25. This non-profit organization controls over $38 billion in an investment portfolio for the LDS church and has been fined $1 million for dishonesty about its affairs. See the SEC release dated February 21, 2023 titled: SEC Charges The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Its Investment Management Company for Disclosure Failures and Misstated Filings, available at: https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2023-35

What about those “harlots” that creep in at the end of that list? How far does that word extend? Are drag-queens contemplated as part of the harlotry? Transvestites? Is the effort to popularize sexual dysphoria through such institutionalized events as “Pride Month” included as “harlotry?” Can we accept and welcome such conduct while adding “sin no more” tolerance, or something else? If there were to be homosexuals in the final, actual City called by the Lord ‘Zion,’ would they ignite in flames when the Lord appears in His glory? What thoughts expand as we contemplate the “harlots” that are the desires of this great and abominable church? Can we ever discuss the matter without fear and loathing? Or are we doomed to damning one another because we are too immature and foolish to talk honestly and candidly with one another?

Frequently sexual dysphoria has an underlying traumatic cause.26  Many personality disorders are likewise the result of unresolved trauma.27  Certainly the Bible and Book of Mormon have many triggering words. Religion can also be the source of well-intentioned abuse. And good intentions alone cannot repair the scars inflicted.

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26. See, e.g., Colizzi M, Costa R, Todarello O. Dissociative symptoms in individuals with gender dysphoria: is the elevated prevalence real? Psychiatry Res. 2015 Mar 30;226(1):173-80. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2014.12.045. Epub 2015 Jan 23. PMID: 25656174; also sources cited there. 

27. See, e.g., Lisa Firestone, PhD, Dealing with Unresolved Trauma, Psychology Today, March 2018, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/compassion-matters/201803/dealing-unresolvedtrauma

The anti-Mormons are often as abusive in their approach as the LDS church they oppose. Benjamin Franklin said: “Half a truth is often a great lie.” When the search extends only far enough to discover a justified criticism, the search ought not end. Whatever your conclusion is about Mormonism, you are probably wrong. Even the claim you are thinking for yourself is vain, as Kathryn Schulz explained in her landmark book, Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error:

Thinking for oneself is, beyond a doubt, a laudable goal. But there are three problems with the idea that it is a good way to ward off error. The first is that the glorification of independent thought can easily become a refuge for holders of utterly oddball beliefs. You can dismiss any quantity of informed and intelligent adversaries if you chose to regard them as victims of a collective, crowd-driven madness, while casting yourself as the lone voice of truth. The second problem is (as we have seen), our own direct observations and experiences are not necessarily more trustworthy than secondhand knowledge. … The last and most significant problem with the idea that we should always think for ourselves is that, bluntly put, we can’t. Every one of us is profoundly dependent on other people’s minds—so profoundly that if we took seriously the charge to think for ourselves, we would have to relinquish our faith in the vast majority of the things we think we know. In his Confessions, Augustine wrote that,

I began to realize that I believed countless things which I had never seen or which had taken place when I was not there to see—so many events in the history of the world, so many facts about places and towns which I had never seen, and so much that I believed on the word of friends or doctors or various other people. Unless we took these things on trust, we should accomplish absolutely nothing in this life.28

___________________________________________ 

28. Kathryn Schulz, Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error, New York City, Harper Collins, 2010, pp. 139-140

This explanation of the problem of proof, knowledge, and thinking for yourself reminds me of the Second Lecture on Faith. But that is beyond the scope of this talk.

Today the Lord has provided a way to practice Mormonism without the risk of being subjugated to an insecure, insular hierarchy. Hierarchies eventually succumb to the temptation to make the institution itself “God.” Today we are asked to fellowship independently, joining together in our homes without brick and mortar facilities. It is one small precaution against priestcrafts, which always replace priesthood in hierarchical religions. They are described in the Book of Mormon:

He commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world, but they seek not the welfare of Zion. Behold, the Lord hath forbidden this thing; (2 Ne. 11:17.)

It may be forbidden by God, but priestcraft is the inexorable result of a stratified body of believers where power and influence are concentrated in an office. The LDS church was doomed to apostasy as soon as Joseph and Hyrum were killed because offices of “President” and “Patriarch” could be occupied by anyone. There was no need to wait for God to choose a suitable occupant. A vote by common consent was considered enough to put a person in the office. Over time the ill-defined concept of “keys” took center stage. Now, even common consent is irrelevant because the “keys” (whatever you conceive them to be) are held by the leader. Therefore the hierarchy feels comfortable teaching that there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men. If you want salvation, hearken ye unto my precept. The bloated, distended, swollen, but altogether ill-defined idol of “keys” has replaced the unknowable God described in the Athanasian Creed.29

Mormonism is no longer interested in gathering together believers to establish a city of peace. Instead it is gathering together funds for a ‘rainy day’ and for the payroll needs of far-flung interests of the institution. 

And behold, instead of gathering you, except ye will repent, behold, he shall scatter you forth that ye shall become meat for dogs and wild beasts. Oh how could you have forgotten your God in the very day that he has delivered you? But behold, it is to get gain, to be praised of men, yea, and that ye might get gold and silver. And ye have set your hearts upon the riches and the vain things of this world, for the which ye do murder, and plunder, and steal, and bear false witness against your neighbor, and do all manner of iniquity; and for this cause, woe shall come unto you except ye shall repent. (Hel. 3:4.)  

_______________________________________________________ 

29. The Creed was attributed to Athanasius (298-373 A.D.), Archbishop of Alexandria, however was likely not written by him. The Creed includes the words, “Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit. The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.” Similarly, the term “keys” used by the LDS church has vague, but prolific, lip-service given in General Conference talks. In the end, it comes down to the right to exercise control and dominion over the church membership.

It becomes apparent that the Book of Mormon unequivocally denounces the LDS church and her daughters. Despite what those who attend Sunstone or post on the exMormon Reddit forum, to listen to Mormon Stories or Radio Free Mormon, watch Shawn McCraney think of themselves, they are all daughters of the LDS church every bit as much as the FLDS and Apostolic United Brethren. Mormonism controls their content. It makes little difference they are pro or con, they are still part of today’s Mormonism. They are all comfortably situated in a ‘broad mainstream’ into which the LDS church’s gradualism has been, and is, proceeding. 

Joseph Smith hoped to welcome all into a friendly brotherhood of mixed faiths peacefully co-existing. “Have the Presbyterians any truth? Yes. Have the Baptists, Methodists, &c., any truth? Yes. They all have a little truth mixed with error. We should gather all the good and true principles in the world and treasure them up, or we shall not come out true 'Mormons.'”30  It was truth, not sectarianism that mattered to him: “One of the grand fundamental principles of Mormonism is to receive truth, let it come from whence it may.” In that same spirit, would Joseph Smith been willing to likewise acknowledge, “Has John Dehlin any truth?” and answer, “Yes.” And would Joseph ask, “have RFM, exMormon Reddit, or Shawn McCraney any truth?” and admit likewise, “Yes.”

______________________________________________________

30. History of the Church, 5:517 (23 July 1843).    

Brigham Young twisted big-idea, broadminded Mormonism. He instituted an integrated patriarchal and polygamous society that employed threats, intimidation and murder to reign with blood and horror31 in his Telestial  Kingdom. I spoke about that in a previous Sunstone Symposium32 and will not address that again here. Young’s leadership viewed outsiders or non-Mormons with disdain as though they threatened his kingship. His fiery rhetoric helped inspire the Mountain Meadows Massacre. While employed as LDS Church Historian, Richard Turley acknowledged, “tough talk about blood atonement and dissenters must have helped create a climate of violence in the territory, especially among those who chose to take license from it.”33  That would be the apologist’s view, but more candor would admit that Stake President Isaac C. Haight and other LDS leadership organized and executed the slaughter at Mountain Meadows, even holding a prayer circle prior to the killing.34

______________________________________

30. History of the Church, 5:517 (23 July 1843). 

31. As part of the Mormon Reformation, the “Home Missionary Program” was instituted to intimidate the isolated saints. They were subjected to an inquisition to determine whether they were guilty of sins worthy of shedding their own blood under Young’s doctrine of “blood atonement.” The first four questions posed to church members were: “Have you committed murder, by shedding innocent blood, or consenting thereto? Have you betrayed your brethren or sisters in anything? Have you committed adultery, by having any connection with a woman that was not your wife or a man that was not your husband? Have you taken and made use of property not your own, without the consent of the owner?” For a complete list see Paul H. Peterson, The Mormon Reformation of 1856- 1857: The Rhetoric and the Reality, Journal of Mormon History, Vol. 15, 1989, p. 59, p. 70. Brigham Young’s Reformation included a twenty-seven question interrogation put to all the saints by inquisitorial Home Missionaries. These questions asked about issues such as “betraying your brothers or sisters,” committing adultery or shedding innocent blood. These three sins were grounds for blood atonement. The questions were designed to bring into the homes of every resident of the kingdom the reality that their unfaithfulness may not be tolerated by the kingdom.

32. In the 2012 Sunstone Symposium I read an abridged paper titled Brigham Young’s Telestial Kingdom, which was subsequently published with two other papers in the book Essays: Three Degrees. That paper is available on my website denversnuffer.com to download. 

33. Ronald Walker, Richard Turley Jr., and Glen Leonard, Massacre at Mountain Meadows: An American Tragedy. (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2008), p. 25-27.

34. Before executing their plan, “The men sat in a circle off by themselves and began by praying for ‘Divine guidance,’ a sacrilege that only the passions of the time could explain.” Id., pp. 187, 189.  

Wilford Woodruff wanted to keep the polygamous practices in place but tried to hide it from public view to get statehood. Congress, the President and the US Supreme Court would not be placated, and when the Edmunds-Tucker Act passed in 1887 both the church and its Perpetual Emigrating Fund were disincorporated. Woodruff yielded and by September 24, 1890, President Woodruff knew the U.S. Supreme Court had found the federal campaign against Mormonism to be constitutional. The church’s property was forfeited, trustees had acquired title, and criminal prosecution for bigamy was lawful. In the face of that pressure, the “Manifesto” was issued pretending the practice of plural marriage was over.35  It was a lie. The Manifesto was written by church lawyers in response to the Utah Commission’s finding that plural marriages were continuing in Utah even after the U.S. Supreme Court decision. Woodruff’s Manifesto denies the report. Later in 1890, when the abandonment of polygamy made statehood at last possible, Mormonism reached a point of “abandonment of its violent culture and the beginning of its selective memory of a turbulent past.”36  Polygamy continued, but went underground.

________________________________________

35. It constitutes Official Declaration 1 in the LDS Doctrine and Covenants. 

36.  D. Michael Quinn, Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power, (Signature Books, Salt Lake City, 1997), pp. 260-61.   

From 1903 to 1907 the US Senate debated whether to seat Reed Smoot as a member of the Senate. This was before Senators were popularly elected, and he had been appointed by the LDS church-dominated legislature. During the Reed Smoot Senate Confirmation Hearings, LDS President Joseph F. Smith testified under oath that the practice of polygamy had ended. Apparently, shortly after that testimony, he took the step to officially end it and submit to US rule. That change of direction was not merely submission to the government, but Mormons changed culturally as well. The ambition to create an independent kingdom turned to dust, and uber-Americanism became the new order of things. Baseball, apple pie, Boy Scouts, pledges of allegiance, and hopeful conformity into the American ideal was progressively how Mormonism projected itself into the Twentieth-century. It worked. 

Gordon B. Hinckley helped accelerate this assimilation using public relations tools. Opinion polling and focus group testing informed LDS programs, messages and even temple changes. Social science tools became the new form of ‘revelation’ as the institution adopted social studies and marketing tools in the quest for popular acceptance.

The unsteady course that the LDS church has followed over their history resulted in a compromised, untenable message now that alienates everyone on one issue or another. The message is as frayed and discordant as this:

-Homosexuality is evil and God destroyed Sodom because of its wickedness 

-BUT, children are innocent before God 

-HOWEVER, children raised by homosexual parents cannot be baptized because of the malevolent influence of the parents until after they leave home at 18 

-EXCEPT, we’ve changed our mind now that we think about the unaccountability of children for the sins of their parents 

-AND, now that we think about it, everyone has sexual fantasies, so if you're queer and only fantasize then you’re not unlike the typical Elders Quorum President who fantasizes about women he can add to his harem in the afterlife because of D&C 132  37 

-SO, we’re tolerant and accepting of everyone, and love queers, but don’t approve of their behavior; ‘cuz God destroyed Sodom after all… OR, as discordant as: 

-We teach that Joseph Smith lied about multiple wives 

-We lied when we said publicly that we abandoned the practice

 -SO, we are just like Joseph Smith when we lie about multiple wives 

-AND, we’ve added it to our scriptures (even though it was a lie) 

-BUT, we really now do want to stop that excess wivery thing so Joseph F. will mail out a letter (and it’s not scripture), 

-AND SO, now ‘all we have to do is take these lies and make them true’ 38 

-THEREFORE, D&C 132 authorizing plural wives, and OD1 ending it will both remain LDS scriptures… -BECAUSE we are just like Joseph Smith when we lie about stuff; and that is how ‘modern prophets’ always act…

_____________________________________ 

     37. The tragic legacy of polygamy lingers in LDS minds. See Carol Lynn Pearson’s The Ghost of Eternal Polygamy: Haunting the Hearts and Heaven of Mormon Women and Men, Pivot Point Books (July 12, 2016).                                

   38.  38 See, George Michael, Freedom (lyrics) Columbia Records, October 1990.   

I’m trying to understand their position and I think that represents a fair retelling of it. Maybe not, but I’ve tried to pay attention and I’m not deliberately mischaracterizing their message(s). It is an on-again/off-again attempt to be traditional and untraditional, not too hot, but not too cold, firm, but yielding when needed. If the LDS church is ashamed of its history, it would be better for the institution and its members for the leaders to confess and drain the infection than to deny and lie. I’m not suggesting that as an attack or as an enemy. I’m sincerely trying to be helpful. I hate to witness the LDS church failure now underway. If it is to be reversed, it can only come through institutional confession and acknowledging errors—or what the scriptures term “repentance.” 

Wouldn’t we all be better off if there was one, consistent, unchangeable message that was reliably stated across the centuries? You can disagree with it, argue against it, reject or accept it but it should be knowable and unchangeable if religion is serving its purpose.

If there was a broad mainstream of popular opinion in the 1920s, supported by popular opinion, journalism and entertainment, (and there was) did the LDS church fit in then? How about the broad mainstream in the 1950s? How well did the LDS church adapt to the cultural changes of the 1960s? What about the morass of today’s broad mainstream? Can today’s mainstream even be defined? Can the same church attract membership from the ranks of Democrats and Republicans, Green New Deal advocates, Black Lives Matter, NRA members, Bill Maher, and Tucker Carlson fans? Probably not. If the organization is trying to be all things to all people.

Probably so, if the message is a timeless statement of moral values that advises people and lets them govern themselves. A religion needs to stand for something solid, reliable and knowable.

Churches must understand that drifting along with the stream, choices need to be made. It is impossible to float along rudderless without getting grounded on one bank or the other. 

As the Book of Mormon reminds us, popularity may be profitable, but it can be morally hollow:

O ye wicked, and perverse, and stiffnecked people, why have you built up churches unto yourselves to get gain? Why have ye transfigured the holy word of God that ye might bring damnation upon your souls? Behold, look ye unto the revelations of God, for behold, the time cometh at that day when all these things must be fulfilled. Behold, the Lord hath shewn unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come at that day when these things shall come forth among you. Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shewn you unto me, and I know your doing, and I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts. And there are none, save a few only, who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquity. And your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts. For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted. O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies? Because of the praise of the world? Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick, and the afflicted to pass by you and notice them not? Yea, why do ye build up your secret abominations to get gain? And cause that widows should mourn before the Lord, and also orphans to mourn before the Lord, and also the blood of their fathers and their husbands to cry unto the Lord from the ground for vengeance upon your heads? Behold, the sword of vengeance hangeth over you, and the time soon cometh that he avengeth the blood of the saints upon you, for he will not suffer their cries any longer. (Mormon 4:5.)

The mainstream now more closely resembles the fountain of filthy waters described in Nephi’s vision than a pure and healthy stream. The voice of gladness Joseph wrote about in 1842 39 has lost its vigor, and is not likely to be heard again from the conference center pulpit. Thankfully, Mormonism does not belong to a single franchise. 

If Mormonism welcomes all truth from whatever source provides it, then instead of debating fashion, politics and social causes, why not teach the brotherhood of man, man’s eternal nature, doing good unto others? All this by focusing on the crucified and risen Lord. 

___________________________

39. Letter of Joseph Smith written on September 6, 1842, in relevant part found in D&C 128:19-21; T&C 151:15.

                                                                                The End   

                                                                                   *****

Notes And Asides:

I am informed that even though the folks at Sunstone have not yet posted Denver's talk online, there is a bootleg copy floating around, which you can find HERE. There is a brief Q&A following the talk which I found quite revealing. 

For those readers curious to see the works I've included of other "guest bloggers" on this platform, probably the first would have been the series by J.J. Dewey titled Infallible Authority.  

Growing up in the LDS Church I was taught that God had declared the LDS church to be "the only true and living church on the face of the earth."  That turned out to be a lie; God never said any such thing. McKay Platt sets the record straight in Misquoting God. 

The proprietor of the podcast Radio Free Mormon, presented an excellent overview of precisely how, following the death of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and the Twelve executed an illegal coup d'etat which gave them complete control over the Church.  I published the transcription of that expose in two parts which I titled How Jesus Christ Was Ousted From The Church Of Jesus Christ and Brigham Young's Hostile Takeover.

There was also this short but astute essay, Uncomfortable God.  In order to protect the writer's identity, I listed her only as "Cate." (just as an aside, the second commenter in the comment section at the end of that essay was from Denver Snuffer, who tells us the first thing he would do if he were president of the corporation that currently owns the Church.)

In Speaking Truth To Power, guest writer Ron Madsen shows us how much different things would have been if we had only followed Christ's admonition in the weeks following 9/11.

Finally, in my piece titled What Is The Church? I link to the work of Zo-Ma-Rah, who succinctly provides the definition few active members are even aware of. 

Saturday, June 24, 2023

This May Herald The Beginning Of The End For The Vaccine Scam

Previously: Restoration Conference


Perhaps the most nefarious thing LDS Church leaders have done since 1852 was when Russell Nelson, Dallin Oaks, and Henry Eyring issued an official statement urging all latter-day Saints to receive the COVID-19 vaccination, insisting that these vaccines "have been proven to be both safe and effective."

The first problem with that statement is this: the claim that the vaccines have been proven safe and effective was known, even at that time, to be demonstrably false.  These vaccines were given emergency authorization precisely because no studies had been done that remotely established them as either safe or effective.  They had never been tested, therefore never proven. 

The second problem is this: historically, every time the Church hierarchy has issued these statements, they become the official doctrine for the Church.  Members of the Church have been raised to believe that such declarations were given to the president through revelation from God himself, because we have been taught that the voice of the prophet is the voice of God.  Yet we know that God is not a liar.

President Russell Nelson, a former physician who was quite capable of researching the background of the Covid vaccine, would have known the vaccines have never been proven "safe and effective." The idea itself is laughable to anyone who has had even a passing familiarity with the vaccine's development.  Nelson also most certainly knows that the general membership of the Church believes he was ordained to his position as president, and those members also believe -mistakenly, it turns out- that God ordained Russell to be His mouthpiece on the earth. 

Two years and thousands of deaths later, a growing number of people -Mormons included- are coming to realize that the Covid vaccine and its numerous boosters are turning out to have been quite dangerous.  But thanks to a media blackout, not everyone has yet gotten the word.  However, all that is about to change.  The impetus for that change began less than a week ago.

Enter The Charlatan
As you are doubtless aware, a fellow by the name of Dr. Peter Hotez is one of the vaccine establishment's biggest cheerleaders and a tireless crusader against those who would dare question their efficacy. He would like to see every person in the world vaccinated, by force if necessary.  Hotez is constantly on all the major news shows denouncing those who are questioning the safety of Covid vaccine as "dangerous conspiracy theorists."  He positions himself as a selfless crusader for the good of mankind; but as it turns out, he has personally profited off the vaccines to the tune of tens of millions of dollars and is not too happy now that demand for his product has been tapering off. 

Podcaster Joe Rogan has a show that draws in excess of eleven million listeners per episode, a number many times the size of any news program.  Well, not long ago Rogan had Peter Hotez on his show as a guest. Hotez, whose entire reason for being is to convince everyone in the world of the importance of getting vaccinated multiple times, took that opportunity to denounce the people who he claimed were spreading "misinformation" about the vaccine.  This has to stop, Hotez declared.  He insisted the science is settled and all the skeptics are dangerous and must be silenced, if not arrested and imprisoned for their crimes of holding unauthorized opinions. 

So next thing you know, Rogan invites Robert F. Kennedy, Jr on the show and we get a completely different take on the vaccine science.  Kennedy, who is extremely well informed on the subject of vaccines, cited the voluminous evidence proving that Dr. Hotez and his ilk are, to put it kindly, all wet. It is they who are posing a danger to mankind.

Rogan asked Kennedy if anyone has ever debated him on this stuff, and Kennedy replied, "No one will debate me."  You can watch that full three hour interview HERE and believe me, it's worth your time. 

So this is where things started to get interesting.  After JFK, Jr's appearance on the Joe Rogan Show, Peter Hotez publicly complained that Spotify should take Rogan's show off the internet because it was full of lies and misinformation.  So Rogan had an idea.  He tweeted an invitation for Hotez to come back onto his show, this time with RFK, Jr so the two of them could hash it out, and he sweetened the offer with a $100,000 dollar donation to the charity of Hotez's choice.  All Hotez has to do is simply come on the show and debunk Kennedy's allegations. Should be a piece of cake, right, since Kennedy's been doing nothing but spewing misinformation?

Well, for some strange reason Hotez didn't want to take that opportunity. It didn't take long before Elon Musk pledged an additional ton of money for the charity and so did a slew of other podcasters, upping the donation amount to where the offer now stands in the millions of dollars for Hotez to give to any charity of his choice.  (Click Here for the list of who has pledged so far, along with the amounts offered.)

Peter Hotez is connected to more than one children's charity, so you know he could make good use of that money.  But how does Hotez respond to the invitation? Well, he made a series of lame excuses and when he ran out of reasons he started making like Ralph Kramden whenever someone called his bluff:


The world is finally discovering that "Doctor" Peter Hotez is a transparent fraud.  He is quick to call anyone who disagrees with him "misinformation specialists" but, like Dr. Tony Fauci, he seems unable to back up his claims with any scientific evidence. He's clearly afraid to go up against someone who might be armed with actual knowledge.

This Should End It
So why am I saying this controversy may mark the nail in the coffin for the entire vaccine scam? 

Because word is getting out.  This offer made to Peter Hotez is all over the internet, and people are beginnng to wonder: Why is Hotez so obviously afraid to challenge RFK, Jr on the evidence? If Hotez has all the science on his side, he should be in a position to absolutely humiliate Kennedy just by citing the studies, right?  Hotez should be able to easily slam Kennedy and all the other conspiracy theorists and misinformation specialists right into the ground once and for all, shouldn't he?  So why won't Hotez take Rogan up on such a generous offer?

I think Elon Musk said it best: "He's afraid of a public debate because he knows he's wrong."

Everything that happens from this moment on will only serve to awaken the masses to how thouroughly they have been bamboozled regarding vaccine efficacy. 

Now, this is key: this entire controversy could never have gained traction if Twitter was still under its old management, because the discussion would have been nipped in the bud by the censors at the old Twitter the moment Joe Rogan or Robert Kennedy spoke up in response.  You may never have known there even was a dispute about the lack of science concerning Covid.  But now?  Now the story is never going away.  It will only get bigger and bigger until every American with a brain comes to realize that the Covid vaccine and all its variants never were "safe and effective" but are actually demonstrably dangerous.  Everyone, Mormons included, will finally be questioning the status quo, and that will be a good thing.  As the Lord tells us in Luke 12: 2-3, everything that is done in darkness will eventually come to light.  Nothing can be hidden forever; the truth will eventually be revealed.

Peter Hotez and everyone else who spews false allegations willy-nilly seems to have forgotten one thing: people with contrary opinions are no longer being silenced.  You can't just continue to make outrageous claims and not expect someone to challenge you on them; you're going to have to put up or shut up.  And if you shrink and cower like Peter Hotez, the whole world will know about it.

But rather than my trying to explain this entertaining adventure myself, allow me to defer to this episode of The Rubin Report where you can see all the clips you'll need in order to realize that those who claim to speak for science on this issue are complete frauds.  The episode below is 50 minutes with commercials, so if you have to skip the commercials, go ahead, but I implore you: please do not miss this.  It's loads of fun to watch.


Also, if you want to enjoy some laugh-out-loud entertainment, here are traditional liberal comedians Jimmy Dore and Kurt Metsger making fun of Peter Hotez for all the times Hotez kept changing his story:


Well, that's it for now.  Except I guess it's worth noting for those who are not aware: Robert F. Kennedy, Jr is running for President.  Just like his famous father and uncle (for those of you who don't follow the news, that was Robert F. Kennedy and President John F Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated in the '60s), Robert Junior is running as a Democrat.  Wanna guess how frightened the current Democratic establishment is about his candidacy?  Well, seeing as RFK, Jr is a traditional democrat and the current crop are evil illiberal fascists determined to stamp out traditional liberalism, you would be right if you guessed the current crop are really, really scared.  Because they know that the legions of Democratic voters who still embrace traditional liberalism are very likely to favor a Kennedy for president over the doddering old disaster currently being pushed on them as their only choice.

You bet they're frightened: you can see it in the way they are frantically trying to get you to look away.  As you can see from Tucker Carlson's latest commentary, those attempts are not working.  Click Here to see Tucker explain "Why Bobby Kennedy Is Winning."


                                                                               *****                                                                                
Related Posts:





And on the futility of Americans dividing themselves into "Right" and "Left" political factions: 



Notes and Asides: 
Robert F. Kennedy Jr is legal counsel with Children's Health Defense.  If you would like to see why the Left really fears him, watch the four minute video on the front page of their internet site. 

You can watch the entire 3 hours of the Joe Rogan Podcast with Robert F. Kennedy Jr that started it all HERE  where someone has posted it on Rumble.

"Peter Hotez's War Against Science" (as referred to in the Jimmy Dore/Kurt Metsger discussion above) can be found HERE.  Essential reading for understanding the sociopathic mindset.

Just today (Saturday June 24th) Comedians Rob Schneider and Jimmy Dore discuss all this stuff about RFK and a whole lot more (including what it's like to be traditional liberal comedians who reject today's woke Democratic party).  Click  HERE.  


Please note (please, please, please) I'm continuing to post new content on my other blog, which is devoted to less serious topics (f'rinstance the horrendous singing of this guy pictured on the left).  That blog is picking up readers, but you wouldn't know it because there is very little activity in the comments sections.  Do me a favor and say something so I don't feel like I'm talking to myself over there, will you?  You'll Find it by clicking HERE.

And finally I want to mention once again one of the more fascinating Mormon-themed blogs being written these days.  The latest entry in the series "The Beast Comes To Utah" is up now at Book of Mormon Perspectives

UPDATE July 5th 2023:
This is cutting it close, timewise, but I wanted to announce that there is a Remnant Young Adult Fellowship taking place near Teton National Park in Wyoming.  Although they have already reached maximum capacity, they would still love to fellowship with others ages 18-33 over Zoom.  Email Remnantyafellowship@gmail.com


Sunday, May 21, 2023

Restoration Conference

 

Previously: Zion WILL Come


Right now as I write this (Sunday Morning May 21st, 2023), the Restoration Conference held at Layton, Utah is currently taking place.  These conferences are now being broadcast worldwide and you can join in and watch it at the link below:



If you came in late, you will still be able to access the entire conference (as well as all past conferences) on the Restoration Archives Youtube Channel, available HERE.

I'll be back with content of my own in a few weeks, but while I'm here I also want to mention the latest post at Book of Mormon Perspectives, which has been delving deeply into evidence that LDS Church leaders are working hard at getting the Church into bed with the Globalist New World Order.  It's no wonder the Book of Mormon warns us about how far from God the Church will stray in these last days. 

The particular series I'm referring to is titled "The Beast Is Coming To Utah" and though you'll definitely want to read it from part one, for now I recommend you dive right into the latest, shocking chapter which you can find RIGHT HERE. 

For some lighter fare, I have posted new content on my other blog, Aging Hipster Doofus, where you can sample disparate fribble about TV, movies, comics, and surf music from the '60s.  My latest, added just this morning, is a shoutout to the joy of owning a cheap record player.

That's all for now. See you next time.

Sunday, March 12, 2023

Zion WILL Come


Previously: Why It's Nearly Impossible To Sue The LDS Church For Fraud

For lack of a better idea, I've cribbed the title of this piece from a talk given by Denver Snuffer in 2016 which you can listen to HERE.

What I want to address first is a silly rumor being passed around among the those in the Restoration movement. Don't worry, I won't be using any names. 

According to the gossip, a wealthy Provo doctor (the medical kind, not the Jill Biden kind) has spent 40 million dollars to purchase massive amounts of land in and around Lemhi County, Idaho for the purpose of providing God's people with a place to establish Zion and/or (depending on who's telling this story) for the building of a temple in that area.

This rumor started with one guy who I won't name, and quickly spread until Connie saw it on a thread that was sent to her.  I immediately pegged this story as false. Ridiculously false, in fact, for reasons I'll get to below. 

I happen to know this doctor.  I'll call him "Stan." I assume Dr. Stan makes a decent living in his specialty, but I seriously doubt his practice has brought in forty million dollars.  But then again, I've never asked him. 

Some years ago Stan and I had communicated by phone and email, but we had never met in person.  Then one day Stan called me to say, "Hey Rock, this is Stan. My daughters and I are here in Sandpoint.  Would you like us to stop by for a quick visit?"

I excitedly responded, "Boy, would I!" 

"Well, we're at Safeway right now but we can come by in a few minutes.  Can we bring you anything from the store while we're here?

"Well actually, Stan, I have been craving a glazed donut so bad I was actually contemplating driving to the store to get one."

"You want a donut?"

"So bad I can taste it."

So thirty minutes later I got to meet Dr. Stan and his two lovely daughters.  And they brought me a donut which they refused to take my money for.  And a sack of vegetables, for some reason. 

That was two or three years ago.  So to bring this story up to the present, immediately after I heard this rumor about Stan purchasing Zion, I sent him a teasing email:  

"Say Stan, as long as you have 40 million dollars to throw around, do you think I can get you to buy me another donut?"

We spoke on the phone shortly after that and Stan admitted he was pretty miffed at having his name attached to a crazy rumor like that.  He told the guy who started the rumor that it was 100% false, and of course reiterated the same to me.  Unfortunately, once it left the lips of the first guy the rumor seemed to have speedily spread.  Like Mark Twain said, "a lie can travel half way around the world before the truth has a chance to put its boots on."

So, for the record, let's be clear: nobody is buying up land for the purpose of establishing Zion or a temple in or around Lemhi County, Idaho or anywhere else.  Especially not Dr. Stan.

At least Stan is not the lone victim of such a rumor. In the past few years, the rumor mill has placed the coming Zion in Missouri (natch!); Mount Pleasant, Utah; The Hopi reservation, Challis, Idaho; somewhere in Montana; and Northern Idaho.  I'm partial to that last one, because Northern Idaho is where Connie and I live now and when the call comes, having Zion located right down the street from us would suit me just fine.  

The location of Zion is understandably one of great interest to a lot of people in the Remnant, as it certainly feels like the world is getting more wicked by the day.  With the growing feeling that circumstances are closing in on us, I can certainly understand others' keen interest in knowing where the good people will end up so we can start making the physical preparations to at least move closer to where Zion is to be located.   But the Lord is keeping that information to himself for now, so all we can do is prepare ourselves morally and spiritually to be ready. It will be the Lord who establishes Zion's whereabouts, and He is the one who controls the timeline. Since Connie and I are now in our golden years, with any luck we will have returned to the bosom of Abraham before that time occurs, because as far as I'm concerned, shuffling off this mortal coil would be a lot less of a hassle than packing up and moving again for the umpteenth time.  Too bad about the rest of you guys. 

What DO We Know About Zion, Anyway?
Admittedly, the topic of Zion has been confusing to a lot of people, so here is the little bit I understand about the topic:

Zion will be established preliminary to the Lord's return in glory. If I understand correctly, there must be a dedicated temple for the Lord to return to before he makes his return in glory, because he cannot first set foot on the earth without everything he touches being consumed.  This is a rather simple analogy, but I see the temple as functioning as a sort of stargate, a way for God to leave the dimension He resides in and enter into ours to begin the process of his return.  I could be wrong, but that seems to me like an apt yet simple description regarding the how and why.

Zion will be a place of refuge (D&C 45:66) for God's people because that will be the place He governs from as king before the wicked are destroyed.  This will be our safe place where none can get to us, as "he that fighteth against Zion shall perish." (2 Nephi 10:13)  If you're following current events, you can see having a safe place to live that is out of reach of the wicked might be a pretty nifty thing.  I certainly understand why rumors get started, because some people just can't wait.  As the Lord tells us in D&C 45, verse 70,  the bad guys will know better than to even try to get at us once we're safely ensconced in Zion. That place, wherever it turns out to be, will be better than a bunker; the ultimate safe room: "it shall be said among the wicked: Let us not go up to battle against Zion, for the inhabitants of Zion are terrible; wherefore we cannot stand."

As Denver Snuffer puts it, 

"God will be the force with which the nations of the earth must contend if they intend to do harm to Zion, because it is His government, it is His handiwork, and it is an affront to Him to challenge His authority in attacking Zion." -Denver Snuffer, "Zion Will Come"

So ease your minds, because

"It is going to come to pass. In your enthusiasm it would be better to demonstrate the virtue of patience as the Lord brings His work about than to exhibit the character flaw of impatience and enthusiasm in trying to bring about what the Lord intends Himself to cause to happen, because you cannot, you cannot give birth prematurely to a living Zion because it will choke and it will die because it is unable to be viable outside of the hands of the Lord. We have to wait on Him..." -ibid at 50:21

"...If you think that you can out-think the Lord and you can arrive at the right place and the right time, then go ahead and buy some farmland in and around Independence, Missouri and wait for the burning, because you're not going to be at the right place.  If Independence, Missouri was where the Lord intended Zion to be, he wouldn't have told them in January of 1841 that he was going to make Nauvoo the corner of Zion.  It is portable until it is fixed by Him. -ibid at 1:08:28

So What Do We Do In The Meantime?
In the meantime, we wait on the Lord. But while we're waiting, we prepare outselves: morally, spiritually, and physically. Store up what provisions you are able to, so your resources are not strained as times get increasingly difficult. Constantly show kindness to the people you interact with, so that you will be able to stand before the Lord with a pure heart.  Most of all, be charitable.  And what I mean by that is this: don't judge others just because you may not feel they are doing enough to bring about Zion. You focus on yourself and concern yourself only with whether or not you and your family will be ready to depart when the time comes.  Do what you can to comfort others.  If the only other person in your house is your spouse, try giving more attention to him or her than you do to yourself.  Ask yourself what you need to do to become a more loving, outward-focused individual in your interactions, both with your friends and especially with strangers.  If you only do that, you might be halfway qualified for Zion already. 

Also remember to have fun. In these increasingly stressful times there is still plenty to laugh about and enjoy. Do you have a hobby that doesn't cost much? Then find time to enjoy it! Start a blog and write about whatever interests you. Who cares if nobody reads it? Blogging is still free, so what's stopping you?  At the very least it's a dandy way of keeping a journal about the things that interest you. That's what I did. I named my other blog Aging Hipster DoofusUnlike this blog, that one is a depository for short bits of fribble that reflect my interest in 20th century popular culture.

 And guess what? Nobody reads it!

Perhaps one of the most effective ways to prepare for Zion is to give Zion-living some real-world practice.  If you are not already involved with a local fellowship, by all means hook up with like-minded people.  Zion fellowships have taken hold all over the world, with the largest concentration in the Rocky Mountain states as you would presume.  If you can't find like-minded people, pull up the Fellowship Locator  online.  If you still can't find a physical group to gather with, there's still the Fellowship of Christ Facebook Group.  Lots of fascinating discussions going on there.

Keep in mind that the actual Zion will operate much like the Kingdom of God on earth; which is to say one won't require a background in Mormonism in order to belong. So if you live in an area bereft of other believers in the Restoration, not to worry.  Cultivate friendships with your neighbors and begin to live as much as you can as if you were already part of the Kingdom of God.  (See here for my three-part series titled "The Church Ain't The Kingdom"  to understand what that entails.  God's intention for his Kingdom of God on earth is very different than you may have supposed.  

Just because these are serious times, it's no time to take things too seriously. As important as it is to keep up with what the politicians are doing to us, it's even more fun to laugh at and mock them.  Remember, the scriptures tell us we win in the end. If you are trusting on the Lord and doing everything you can to withstand the coming tribulations, you'll be alright.  The worst they can do is kill you, and that just means you get to go home early. What could be better than that?

                                                                          *****

Notes and Asides:

Fascinating expose at Book of Mormon Perspective
I've been gathering notes these past couple of months in order to blog about the odd collusion that's been going on between leaders of the Corporate LDS Church and elements of the Deep State, but it looks like I've been spared the trouble of writing about this issue. Just this morning the author of Book of Mormon Perspective beat me to the punch.  Not only did he get here first, he has provided a more thorough take on the topic than I ever envisioned.

The piece is titled The Beast Is Coming To Utah, and in one section he wrote about something I think might be pertinent to what I've discussed here today.  As many people are aware, elements in the deep state and the federal government have for years been passing legislation making it increasingly impossible for ranchers and farmers to make a living off their own land. The ostensible goal of crowding these landowners out has been to "protect the environment" but what the enemy is actually doing is attempting to crowd all the humans into the cities where they can be more easily controlled, while keeping millions of square miles of useful land effectively under their own control.  

This made me think: what if, at the Lord's return, he takes all that "government land" that was stolen by the modern Gadianton Robbers, and gives it back to the people to develop, farm, and live on?  That would solve the question some people have wondered about, which is "if God's people move into an area to make it Zion, what about the people who already live there? Are they displaced?"

The answer, of course, would be no. No one would be displaced except the globalist squatters who stole it.

My Other Blog
In case anyone is interested in exploring the content at Aging Hipster Doofus, here are the subjects of my most recent posts on that site:

Mr. Acker Bilk Got Here Before The Beatles

The Very First Rock And Roll Record Was Released In 1934

"Huh?" And The Mysterions

There's more to come. These things are brief and so and easy to write that I can knock one out every day if I want to. 

And I kinda do want to, so I hope you'll pop in now and then.