Monday, October 27, 2014

Corrupt Then, Corrupt Now


Why do corruption and immorality from 175 years ago matter today?  Because it has continued in a new form.

The latest essays (1 & 2) from the LDS Church admit to a lot. They've not admitted everything that so-called anti-mormon (but thoroughly accurate) historians have dug up about Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and more. But it is enough.

The few confessions about Joseph Smith's sexual immorality affect the plan of salvation preached by the LDS Church. It claims to be led by prophets who are inspired by an all knowing God that leads us morally.  God knows truth, and teaches it to the prophets, goes the claim. But the people he supposedly chose to lead were and are hugely immoral. The plural marriage law God sent down, thrice from an angel with a drawn sword, is corrupt. That revelation told Joseph Smith to conduct illicit sexual harassment and have multiple simultaneous sexual relationships with married women, with young teen girls and often in secret behind Emma's, the legal wife's, back.

God's angel told Joseph to do these things or else be destroyed. Either that, or Joseph made it all up.

If God did it, then the Mormon version of god is an unethical, immoral being--the way he treats women (and blacks, and gays and ex-mormons and...) is sickening. If the imperfect Joseph made it up to get his horny on, then how can you trust such a pervert who would destroy marriages and young teens in his lustful pursuits?  How do you know his other so-called revelations from angels weren't just made up likewise?

We know he was sexually corrupt. We know he couldn't translate regular Egyptian (so the Book of Abraham came from "revelation" akin to an angel with drawn sword). We know he fictionalized bits of history on ancient America that are completely overthrown by modern science. We know he was involved in a Kirtland banking scandal and had short-lived plots to overthrow the U.S. government.


Joseph Smith knew his actions were viewed by his 19th century peers as immoral and scandalous.  He tried to hide his dalliances and even his "revelations".  Joseph Smith used code names in the original Doctrine and Covenants to keep the latter-day saints activities secret from non-Mormons.  The revelation on plural marriage was kept very secretive, and (according the LDS essay on the topic) the controversy caused "leaders to issue carefully worded denials that denounced spiritual wifery and polygamy but were silent about what Joseph Smith and others saw as divinely mandated “celestial” plural marriage."  

Joseph's church lied even to their own members--that, "the Church practiced no marital law other than monogamy while implicitly leaving open the possibility that individuals, under direction of God’s living prophet, might do so." When the essay says, "implicitly leaving open the possibility" it means that the secrets were known to some, but not all.

Joseph Smith lied about his ability to translate, hid his immoral "wifery", surreptitiously plotted to increase his power with an elite Council of Fifty, and so forth.

With full disclosures on these, you can't actually expect non-Mormons to buy that this man or his god are worth following. Why are modern LDS defending Joseph Smith? Don't they know better now that their own church was practically forced to confess Smith's sins? They couldn't hide it any longer, half a century after the meticulous record produced by a woman, Fawn Brodie, in No Man Knows My History, and the several other fantastic books since.


The forced confessions at LDS Inc are too little, too late for many who have "jumped ship". And we're not going back.

Modern LDS hold on to the side rails of their sinking gospel ship. They believe the current leaders are a moral compass, dodging the icebergs of gay-marriage and wanton immorality in the latter days.  (Even as they crash into Joseph's chilly immorality and the icy racism of prophets past.)

But these same men--the Mormon prophets today--are still defending the indefensible. The corrupt and immoral foundation of their church continues in a new, but still secret form. The modern prophets continue in corruption, spending billions on profitable ventures in non-charitable ways. They pile on profits and suck out true charity to only spit it out in miserly, paper-thin disclosures.

These modern prophets are just as corrupt as Joseph; perhaps more, because they hire extensively notable legal teams and maintain better secrecy on their activities. For now.

Financial secrecy is a confession that will come. These men will be viewed just as morally bankrupt as Joseph and Brigham. But for now, LDS lawyers and non-disclosure agreements keep the Mormon faithful on course in their ship.

Historically, it was the secrecy of polygamy that troubled Mormons and their investigators. Members sigh with relief it's no longer practiced. Today it's the financial secrecy that should keep LDS awake at night.

Wake up, members. You can't trust these men. 

The restoration was made up.  It seems magical and marvelous.  If you research, however, you'll find it's been polished over the years. Your Doctrine and Covenants was transformed by later "prophets" again and again. Your Book of Mormon was edited and corrected 4,000 times since Joseph Smith published the novel. These men are blinding you to the real past, and you trust their claims that Joseph was inspired to do something no one could have done in the early 1800s. Because he didn't--the magic are the edits to his work along the next century.

What was inspired was the polishing Smith's and Young's turd by the next ten prophetic administrations and not telling you about it. Now they keep financial secrets while collecting massive amounts of LDS income to build...what are they building this month?

Oh yeah, this elite condominium investment property.  (And you thought I was going to point out the mall.) 




Joseph Smith was fond of claiming his temple, with secret oaths and penalties, was the link that binds the living with the dead.

Secrecy is the link that binds his dead corruption with the corrupted living prophets.

Happy Halloween!



19 comments:

  1. David, you can't know the truth of these things without praying and hearing the spirit. History can be distorted, but the spirit will show you was is truly right. You rely too much on the written record. Even the LDS record is probably incorrect. Joseph was a righteous man, no matter what their own historians say now.

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    1. Usual response. What of the spirit that tells over a billion Muslims that Islam is true, or the billion plus Catholics. You can't rely on feelings which is where evidence comes in. Show us some evidence of any of the claims of Mormonism and we can talk. A feeling or anecdote will get you nowhere.

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    2. When I got the impression the LDS church was running a scam I was 28. RM, honest, obeyed my leaders and the commandments, fulfilled my callings.
      I spent two years fasting and praying, consulting with church leaders, family and friends.

      At the end of two years, the sensation was stronger than ever. I didn't want to go, but my conscience demanded it. History shows the church to be a fraud, and so do the feelings you describe as 'the spirit'.

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  2. Prophets in the old testament failed at times too. They were still the mouthpiece of God. Peter the apostle denied Christ, but he continued on as the great apostle. Men are weak, but God is strong. This doesn't shake our testimony!

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    1. you have taken the road to personal apostasy and by doing so have placed yourself under the control of evil... that is why you are now spiritually myopic, david

      most long term members have witnessed this process repeatedly as people leave the church, so it's nothing new

      instead of focusing on the supposed failures of joseph smith, you need to wake up and focus on your own

      because you have many, my friend...

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    2. You're attitude towards anyone questioning the church puts you in a much deeper darker cavern of personal failures.

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  3. Love it, "Schultzing". Thanks, Insana D, you're clever. Good way to describe how my TBM relatives and friends just accept the new essays as nothing at all. The Church is still true, doesn't matter at all. Awful that our human brains can so deceive us, such cognitive bias and tyranny of our own egos.

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  4. I don't know how anyone who has a daughter could - in good conscience - raise her in this religion where people continue to justify this kind of behavior even to this day. It gives me the creeps, and I would hope that it would give most normal people the creeps... so why can't Mormons see it??

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    1. Mormons are whackjobs. Plain and simple. They hide behind this "spirit feeling" and fairly tales that are just modern day nursery rhymes.

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  5. Lol, Angel C.,

    My daughter converted at the same time I did to this religion. She was fourteen at that time. I find your comment hilarious. This church does not promote promiscuous sex at all. They don't even encourage dating unless there are several other kids present. The kids in the church come up knowing this as normal. I know that there are no guarantee's that kids will not have sex outside of marriage, but it less likely the kids in this church will have sex outside of marriage than other religions. She took part in girls activities and the dances and there was never the drama or problems she encountered in mainstream Christian churches.

    Pologamy, Joseph Smiths marriages, Brigham Young etc., is not a discussion that is held anywhere in the church. So, if your twisted thoughts make you believe that somehow the church would is corrupting young minds, you are wrong. It is your thoughts that are corrupt not the church.

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    1. I grew up in your 'religion' and was a teenage girl in it, so I am fully qualified to say what it does to a girl's mind, soul, and self-esteem. I was raped at age 7 by a teenager twice my age, and my parents took me to the bishop, where I was interrogated in order to find out what I 'had done to cause it'. THAT is the kind of twisted thinking that takes place in the Mormon church -- and then they twist it by blaming the victims, just as the church has done in the recent essay (exonerating Joseph). Continue to delude yourself, but I would never put any girl's life, health (mental or physical), or anything else in the hands of this harmful, lying, deceptive, insidious 'religion'. But I love how you chose to attack ME rather than actually addressing the problem... logical fallacies are also woven into the teachings of the church, and members spew them out with nearly every breath.

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    2. The Mormon church has yet to disavow Joseph Smith for pedophilia and condemn the successive prophets for their underaged teen marriages. You say "This church does not promote promiscuous sex at all." Yet they excuse and praise the men called prophets that practiced it. Hollow words.

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    3. Anonymous, Please see David's post, "A Challenge to Neil Andersen." Anonymous, you are missing the point. Not talking about the problem doesn't solve it. The ideas and policies that this detrimental behavior hatched, lives on in pervasive ways in the church. The extreme modesty and asexual behavior, especially in girls of the church, is one example.

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  6. Angel C.,

    I'm sorry you had a bad experience with a bishop and your parents. However, that does NOT mean that happens everywhere with everyone. This kind of crap happens in all religions, and everywhere. There is no excuse for it, and it would be ideal if this never happened to anyone.

    In regards to addressing the issue, I have addressed it, just not to the suggestion that people have an ax to grind, satisfaction.

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    1. So being against pedophilia means you rudely have an "ax to grind"? Does that mean that pro Mormons are sporting a big ole wooden ax handle for underage sex?

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    2. You really should be ashamed of your insensitivity and ignorance at even implying that AngelC thinks everyone has the same experience!

      As I stated in my earlier comment to AngelC, yes, of course sexual abuse happens everywhere, but you have indeed missed the point. The problem in your church is that your leaders justify it. It can never be justified. Yes, as you say there is no excuse for it, yet you happily accept the excuses of your prophets so that you can feel faithful and righteous. Seriously disgusting attitude.

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  7. reason and fact was in full display when it seemed reasonable to kill 6 million jews... and that's a fact

    "trust not in the wrm of flesh"

    the lord knows the real truth and the truth is, my friend, you have apostatized from the truth

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  8. Apparently there were women who wanted to be sealed to Joseph Smith in the eternal sense, but not to live as man and wife. For anyone to suggest that he engaged in adultery is simply wrong. These were by and large descendants of the Puritans, and they would have abandoned Joseph quickly if he were involved in adultery. In addition, the average life span of a woman at that time on the American frontier was in their thirties and marriage at the age of a teenager was common and legal. Even today, there are states that legally allow teens to marry at fourteen. The author of this article plays his hand when he refers to Almighty God as "god"... typical of atheists.

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  9. Yesterday's answers have nothing to do with today's questions

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