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The Church
and the
Negroid People
Historical information concerning
the doctrine of the Church
toward the Negroid people.
By
William E. Berrett
About the Author
William E. Berrett is former Vice President of Brigham Young University and former Vice-Administrator of the Unified School System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is also a member of the Utah Bar Association.
As a Church Historian he is the author of THE RESTORED CHURCH, widely used as a textbook in church schools, and co-author of the three-volume, READINGS IN L.D.S. CHURCH HISTORY, used widely in church colleges.
He is well informed in the area about which he has written in the enclosed treatise. This treatise should be read by all who are interested in getting at the facts in a much disputed area.
{and therefore, to that a charge, we print it here-in]
The Church
and the
Negroid People
By WILLIAM E. BERRETT
So much has been said concerning the attitude of the Church toward those of Negroid blood, and so often without regard for the facts, that I have deemed it wise to set out in simple fashion some of
those events, documents, decisions, and opinions I’ upon which the Church policy rests. This is done
without any pretension that these matters when so portrayed will satisfy every inquiring mind, but rather in the hope that those who feel obliged to discuss the subject will not base their opinions and conclusions on false premises.
The problem of the races is not new. The various races have been with us since written history began. While these races have intermingled to some degree, one of the remarkable facts of history is their preservation in rather distinct lines of cleavage.
Those who have tried to find explanation as to why one race is white, another black, another red, another yellow, or another brown, have run into real difficulties.
The old explanation that coloring was due to climatic conditions under which the races lived
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giving rise to certain pigments in the skin has been discarded as man has learned more of the history and distribution of peoples. The long history of the White race living in the tropics and the dark skinned Eskimo living in the frozen north has pushed such theories into the discard. Frankly, we appear to be without any generally accepted scientific explanation.
Nor does the Bible assist us much in this direction. In Genesis we read that Cain was cursed of the Lord for his murder of Abel.
And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand.
When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
And Cain said unto the Lord, my Punishment is greater than I can bear.
Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shalllbe hid; and I shall be a fugitive and vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.
And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 1
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
What the mark was that came upon Cain and which enabled others to distinguish him from the other children of Adam is not made clear.
The Bible does not mention if or how the curse and mark placed upon Cain survived the great flood. In the account of Noah and his sons there is a curse referred to as being placed on Canaan, son of Ham by his grandfather Noah.
And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be hw servant.2
God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
The Biblical account indicates a separation of
the descendants of Canaan from the lands occupied P. by the descendants of Shem and JaphethY
The Biblical writers make little attempt to record the history of other than Israelite peoples and distinguish these as descendants of Shem. These we find very conscious of racial streams. Thus Abraham sends for a woman from among his own people at Haran as wife for his son Isaac. And Isaac’s son finds a wife in the same land. The Jews returning from Babylon after the captivity re—established Jerusalem but purged out all who could not trace their genealogy to Israel.4
While the Bible contains no account of a Negro bearing the Priesthood of God, one would find rather
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scant materials upon which to base any policy limiting the rights and participation of the Negro in God’s Church. Thus when The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established under Joseph Smith’s leadership in 1830, there did not exist in Christian churches generally any policy forbidding Negroes from membership and leadership in Christian churches. True, wherever the Negro existed under conditions of slavery as in the Southern States of America he was considered as inferior to the Whites and was usually segregated in Church services.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had its origin north of the slave belt. The New England of that day was not only a place where the Negro could be free, it was also the seed bed for the abolitionists, those fiery advocates of freedom and equal rights for the dark race in America. In this atmosphere it is not surprising that we find the early members of the Church often referred to by the slave holders as “Negro-lovers.” Certain it is that most of the early members of the Church were opposed to the principle of slavery.
The Book of Mormon strengthened that position:
.and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile. 5
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
The zeal to establish the new Zion, however, found a part of the Church almost at once settling near Independence, Missouri, in the heart of a slave state. Here all northerners were looked upon with suspicion as “abolitionists” and feared at the polls. This opposition was enhanced by the speed and fervor with which the Saints were pouring into that part of Missouri and their openly avowed purpose of acquiring the land solely for those of the “faith.”
It is little wonder, therefore, that any expression written or otherwise, on the part of the Saints which seemingly defended the Negro, was seized upon by the slave holders of Missouri as proof of abolitionist leanings. Thus, when the July number of THE EVENING AND MORNING STAR for 1833 published in Independence, contained an editorial on “Free People of Color” it was the signal for violent action. The editorial quoted the law of the state of Missouri relative to a Negro or mulatto entering the state, followed by the comment of the editor as follows:
Slaves are real estate in this and other states, and wisdom would dictate great care among the branches of the Church of Christ on this subject. So long as we have no special rule in the Church as to people of color, let prudence guide; and while they, as well as we, are in the hands of a merciful God, we say: shun every appearance of evil. 6
Publishing this law, and the above comment, was construed by the “old settlers” to be invitation
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
to free people of color to settle in Jackson County and as carrying instructions on how to do so legally.
The Saints quickly denied that intention by publishing an extra to the July number on the 16th of that month, in which we read:
Our intention was not only to stop free people of color from emigrating to this state, but to prevent them from being admitted as members of the church. Great care should be taken on this point. The saints must shun every appearance of evil. As to slaves we have nothing to say. In connection with the wonderful events of this age, much is doing towards abolishing slavery, and colonizing the blacks in Africa.
We often lament the situation of our sister states in the south, and we fear, lest, as has been the case, the blacks should rise and spill innocent blood:
for they are ignorant, and a little may lead them to disturb the peace of society. To be short, we are opposed to have free people of color admitted into the state; and we say, that none will be admitted into the church, for we are determined to obey the laws and constitutions of our country, that we may have that protection which the sons of liberty inherit from the legacy of Washington, through the favorable auspices of a Jefferson, and Jackson.7
Certainly the editor went too far in his denial when he indicated that the Church would not admit Negroes into membership as there were already a few Negroes in the Church and he had no authority to deny them membership. At any rate the “old
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
settlers” considered the extra as a weak excuse and aroused mob violence which destroyed the Mormon press.
How many Negroes had joined the Church by 1833 is not known. As late as 1839 Parley P. Pratt, wrote:
In fact one dozen free Negroes or mulattoes have never belonged to our society in any part of the world, from its first organization to this day, 1839.8
So intense was the feeling in the country regarding the status of the Negro that Joseph Smith cautioned the saints against the extreme view of the abolitionists9 and instructed missionaries to convert the master first and approach the slaves with the full knowledge and approval of the owner.10
Once the Saints had left the slave state of Missouri and were settled in the free state of Illinois, the Prophet Joseph gave voice to his views that the Government should purchase the Negroes from their masters and set them free.11
At no time during the life of the Prophet Joseph Smith, or since, has the Church denied membership to the Negroes. There have always been Negro members of the Church, at least from 1833, although the numbers have been relatively small, and no direct efforts have been made to proselyte among them.
Membership in the Church has been open to the Negro as to all men because of the instructions to
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
the Church, both in the primitive Church and now, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”12
That the gospel is for all people is made clear by the Lord in his preface to his book of Commandments:
Hearken, 0 ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together.
For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated.
And the rebellious shall be pierced with much sorrow; for their iniquities shall be spoken upon the housetops, and their secret acts shall be revealed.
And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days.
And they shall go forth and none shall stay them, for I the Lord have commanded them.
Behold, this is mine authority, and the authority of my servants, and my preface unto the book of my commandments, which I have given them to publish unto you, 0 inhabitants of the earth...
For Jam no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion.13
In setting forth the necessity for baptism and the requirements of those who are to be baptized, no restriction is placed as to race but, “All those who humble themselves before God, and desire to be baptized, and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the church that they have truly repented of all their sins, and are willing to take upon them the name of Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into his Church.14
Speaking of those unrighteous who are not permitted to partake of the sacrament, the Savior said to the Nephites:
Nevertheless, ye shall not cast him out from among you, but ye shall minister unto him and shall pray for him unto the Father, in my name; and if it so be that he repenteth and is baptized in my name, then shall ye receive him, and shall minister unto him of my flesh and blood.15
THE NEGRO AND THE PRIESTHOOD
During the first year of the Church the question of whether or not the Negro should be given the Priesthood did not arise as there is no evidence of
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any Negroes having been baptized. Even by 1833 Negro membership could be counted on the fingers of one hand. It appears that one person of Negro blood had been ordained an Elder by William Smith while he was on his mission in New York State as evidenced by a letter appearing in JOURNAL HISTORY, June 2, 1847:
At this place (Batavia, New York) I found a colored brother by the name of Lewis, a barber and an Elder in the Church ordained by William Smith. This Lewis, I am also informed, has a son who is married to a white girl and both are members of the Church. I wish to know if this is the order of God or tolerated, to ordain Negroes to the Priesthood and allow in our organization. If it is I desire to know it as] have yet got to learn it. 16
The only other Negro of whom we know, who was ordained to the Priesthood during the lifetime of the Prophet Joseph, was an octoroon by the name of Elijah Abel. This man was one-eighth Negro and was light of color. It is not known who ordained him or whether or not it was known at the time that he had Negro blood. Concerning Elijah Abel, Andrew Jensen in his L.D.S. Biographical Encyclopedia, Vol. 3:577 wrote:
ABEL, Elijah, the only colored man who is known to have been ordained to the Priesthood, was born July 25, 1810, in Maryland. Becoming a convert to ‘Mormonism” he was baptized in September, 1832, by Ezekeil Roberts and, as appears from certif-
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
icates, he was ordained an Elder March 3, 1836, and a Seventy April 4, 1841, as an exception having been made in his case with regard to the general rule of the Church in relation to colored people. At Nauvoo, Illinois, where he resided, he followed the avocation of an undertaker. After his arrival in Salt Lake City he became a resident of the Tenth Ward, and together with his wife, he managed the Earn ham Hotel in Salt Lake city. In Nauvoo he was intimately acquainted with the Prophet Joseph Smith and later in life was the special friend of the late Levi W. Hancock. In 1883, as a member of the Third Quorum of Seventy, he left Salt Lake City on a mission to Canada, during which time he also performed missionary labors in the United States. Two week after his return he died, December 25, 1884, of debility, consequent upon exposure while laboring in the ministry in Ohio. He died in full faith in the Gospel.
The entry is misleading because it does not disclose that Elijah Abel was only part Negro and does not disclose the fact that in a meeting, May 31, 1879, at the home of President A. 0. Smoot, Provo, Utah, leaders of the Church reapproved that the Priesthood was not for the Negro, and that Elijah Abel was not to exercise any Priesthood rights. The fact that subsequent to that date Elijah Abel was called on a mission does not necessarily imply that he participated in any baptisms or ordinations. It appears that at the meeting at Brother Smoot’s home, the whole subject of the Negro and the Priesthood
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seems to have been discussed, especially Joseph Smith’s attitude on the subject. The following entry appears in JOURNAL HISTORY:
NEGRO
PRIESTHOOD NOT TO BE CONFERRED UPON NEGRO 1879
Saturday, May 31st, 1879, at the house of President A. O. Smoot, Provo City, Utah, Utah County, at 5 o’clock P.M.
President John Taylor, Elders Brigham Young, Abram O. Smoot, Zebedee Coltrin and L. John Nut-tall met, and the subject of ordaining Negroes to the Priesthood was presented.
President Taylor said: “Some parties have said to me that Brother Zebedee Coltrin had talked to the Prophet Joseph Smith on this subject, and they said that he (Coltrin) thought it was not right for them to have the Priesthood. Whereupon the Prophet said to him that Peter on a certain occasion had a vision wherein he saw heaven opened, and certain vessel descended unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners and let down to earth; wherein all manner of four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air—And there came a voice to him:
Rise, Peter, kill and eat. But Peter said, Not so Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean. And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God has cleansed, that call not thou common.”
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And the Prophet Joseph then said to Brother Coltrin, as the Angel said to Peter, “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.”
President Taylor asked Brother Coltrin: “Did the Prophet Joseph ever make such a statement to you?
Brother Coltrin: “No sir; he never said anything of the kind in his life to me.”
President Taylor: “What did he say?”
Brother Coltrin: “The spring that we went up in Zion’s Camp in 1834, Brother Joseph sent Brother J. P. Green and me out south to gather up means to assist in gathering out the Saints from Jackson County, Missouri. On our return home we got in conversation about the Negro having a right to the priesthood, and I took up the side he had no right. Brother Green argued that he had. The subject got so warm between us that he said he would report me to Brother Joseph when we got home for preaching false doctrine, which doctrine that I advocated was that the Negro could not hold the Priesthood. ‘All right,’ said I, ‘I hope you will.’ And when we got to Kirtland, we both went to Brother Joseph’s office together to make our returns, and Brother Green was as good as his word and reported to Brother Joseph that I said that the Negro could not hold the Priesthood. Brother Joseph kind of dropped his head and rested it on his hand for a minute, and then said, ‘Brother Zebedee is right, for the spirit of the Lord saith the Negro has no right nor cannot hold
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the Priesthood.’ He made no reference to Scripture at all, but such was his decision. I don’t recollect ever having any conversation with him afterwards on this subject. But I have heard him say in public that no person having the least particle of Negro blood can hold the Priesthood.
Brother Coltrin further said: Brother Abel was ordained a seventy because he had labored on the Temple (it must have been in the 2nd Quorum) and when the Prophet Joseph learned of his lineage he was dropped from the Quorum, and another was put in his place. I was one of the first Seven Presidents of the Quorum of Seventy at the time he was dropped.
President Taylor: Brother Zebedee, you are not one of the Seven Presidents now. What have you been doing?
Brother Coltrin: I was acting then as one of the First Seven Presidents of Seventy and was ordered back into the Quorum of High Priests. I can tell you how that thing first started. Brother Winchester and Brother Jared Carter while on the Brick Yard at Kirtland (Brother Winchester a Seventy and Brother Jared a High Priest) got to contending which held the highest office. Carter was rebuking him on account of his folly, which he said he had no right to do, as he held a higher Priesthood than he did. Jared contended he didn’t because he was a High Priest. This thing came to the ears of Uncle Joseph Smith, and then they went to the Prophet
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Joseph with it. The Prophet then inquired of the Lord, and he afterwards directed that we be put back with the Quorum of High Priests, and other men (five) were then ordained to the Presidency of Seventies, and three out of that five apostatized. Brothers Joseph Young and Levi Hancock were retained and the other five filled the number.
In the washing and annointing of Brother Abel at Kirtland, I annointed him and while I had my hands upon his head, I never had such unpleasant feelings in my life. And I said, “I never would again annoint another person who had Negro blood in him unless I was commanded by the Prophet to do so.”
ZEBEDEE COLTRIN
Attest:
L. John Nuttall
Brother A. 0. Smoot said W. W. Patten, Warren Parrish and Thomas B. Marsh were laboring in the Southern States in 1835 and 1836. There were Negroes who made application for baptism. And the question arose with them whether Negroes were entitled to hold the Priesthood. And by those brethren it was decided they would not confer the Priesthood until they had consulted the Prophet Joseph, and subsequently they communicated with him. His decision, as I understood was, they were not entitled to the Priesthood, nor yet to be baptized without the consent of their Masters.
In after years when I became acquainted with Joseph myself in the Far West, about the year 1838,
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
I received from Brother Joseph substantially the same instructions. It was on my application to him, what should be done with the Negro in the South, as I was preaching to them. He said I could baptize them by consent of their masters, but not to confer the Priesthood upon them.
(Signed) A. 0. SMOOT
Attest:
L. John Nuttall
The scriptural references which are considered as controlling in the matter of the Negro and the Priesthood are found in the visions of the text of Moses, received by Joseph Smith in 1830-1831 (Book of Moses), and in the text of the Book of Abraham, first published in 1842, in Nauvoo, Illinois. The passages are as follows:
Behold thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the Lord, and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that he that findeth me will slay me, because of mine iniquities, for these things are not hid from the Lord.
And I the Lord said unto him: Whosoever slayeth thee, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And I the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.17
And the Lord said unto me: Prophesy, and I prophesied, saying: Behold the people of Canaan, which are numerous, shall go forth in battle array against the people of Shum, and shall slay them that
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THE CHURCH ~\ND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
they shall utterly be destroyed; and the people of Canaan shall divide themselves in the land, and the land shall be barren and unfruitful, and none other people shall dwell there but the people of Canaan;
For behold, the Lord shall curse the land with much heat, and the barrenness there of shall go forth forever; and there was a blackness came upon all the children of Canaan, that they were despised among all people...
And it came to pass that Enoch continued to call upon all the people, save it were the people of Canaan, to repent.18
Now this king of Egypt was a descendant from the loins of Ham, and was a partaker of the blood of the Canaanites by birth.
From this descent sprang all the Egyptians, and thus the blood of the Canaanites was preserved in the land.
The land of Egypt, being first discovered by a woman, who was the daughter of Ham, and the daughter of Egyptus, which in the Chaldean signifies that which is forbidden.
When this woman discovered the land it was under water, who afterward settled her sons in it; and thus, from Ham, sprang that race which preserved the curse in the land.
Now the first government of Egypt was established by Pharaoh, the eldest son of Egyptus, the daughter of Ham, and it was after the manner of the government of Ham, which was patriarchal.
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Pharaoh, being a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his people wisely and justly all his days, seeking earnestly to imitate that order established by the fathers in the first generations, in the days of the first patriarchal reign, even in the reign of Adam, and also of Noah, his father, who blessed him with the blessings of the earth, and with the blessings of wisdom, but cursed him as pertaining to the Priesthood.
Now, Pharaoh being of that lineage by which he could not have the right of Priesthood, notwithstanding the Pharaohs would fain claim it from Noah, through Ham, therefore my father was led away by their idolatry.19
Even before his translation of the Abrahamic documents, Joseph Smith taught that the Negroes were descendants of Ham. Thus we read in his documentary history, ‘~ . .Negroes, descendants of
Ham. “20
And again we read: “...the Indians have greater cause to complain of the treatment of the Whites, than the Negroes, or sons of Cain. “21
The teachings of Joseph Smith that the Negro should not be given the Priesthood seem to have been well understood by those who stood closest to him in the councils of the Church. Brigham Young, second President of the Church, had no question whatever in the matter. His view is expressed in the following:
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
The first man that committed the odius crime of killing one of his brethren will be cursed the longest of any one of the children of Adam. Cain slew his brother. Cain might have been killed, and that would have put a termination to that line of human beings. This was not to be, and the Lord put a mark upon him, which is the flat nose and black skin... after the flood,.. .another curse is pronounced upon the same race—that they should be the “servant of servants;” and they will be, until that curse is removed;... How long is that race to endure the dreadful curse that is upon them? That curse will remain upon them, and they never can hold the Priesthood or share in it until all the other descendants of Adam have received the promises and enjoyed the blessings of the Priesthood and the keys thereof... They were the first that were cursed, and they will be the last from whom the curse will be removed.22
And again:
…The Lamanites or Indians are just as much the children of our God as we are. So also are the Africans. But we are also the children of adoption through obedience to the Gospel of His Son. Why are so many of the inhabitants of the earth cursed with a skin of blackness? It comes in consequence of their fathers rejecting the power of the Holy Priesthood, and the law of God. They will go down to death. And when all the rest of the children have received their blessings in the Holy Priesthood, then that curse will be removed from the seed of
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Cain, and they will then come up and possess the priesthood, and receive the blessings which we now are entitled to.23
The viewpoint of the Church in 1852 is well expressed in an article appearing in the Deseret News for April 3rd of that year:
The descendants of Cain cannot cast off their skin of blackness, at once, and immediately, although every soul of them should repent, obey the gospel, and do right, from this day forward. The mark was put upon Cain by God himself, because Cain killed his brother Abel, thereby hoping to get the birthright, and secure to himself the blessings which legally belonged to Abel; but Cain could not obtain Abel’s birthright by murder...
Cain did not obtain Abel’s birthright and blessing, though he killed him for that purpose; the blessings which belonged to Abel, descended to his posterity; and until the blessings of Abel’s birthright are fully received, secured, and realized, by his (Abel’s) descendants, Cain and his posterity must wear the mark which God put upon them; and his White friends may wash the race of Cain with Fuller’s soap every day, they cannot wash away God’s mark: yet, the Canaanites may believe the Gospel, repent, and be baptized, and receive the Spirit of the Lord, and if he continues faithful until Abel’s race is satisfied with his blessings, then may the race of Cain receive a fullness of the priesthood, and become satisfied with blessings, and the two of
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them become as one again, when Cain has paid the uttermost farthing.24
President Wilford Woodruff taught the same doctrine in regard to the Negro. Mathias F. Cowley in his biography of Wilford Woodruff states the following:
He said in his journel of October, that year (1894) that ‘Aunt Jane,’ the colored sister, had been to see him. She was anxious to go through the Temple and receive the higher ordinances of the gospel. President Woodruff blessed her for her constant, never changing devotion to the gospel, but explained to her her disadvantages as one of the descendants of Cain.
In after years when President Joseph F. Smith preached the funeral sermon of this same faithful woman he declared that she would in the resurrection attain the longings of her soul and become a white and beautiful person.25
President Woodruff made the statement: “The day will come when all that race will be redeemed and possess all the blessings which we now have.”
The position of the First Presidency in 1951 is clarified by the following announcement:
Statement by the First Presidency of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
on the Negro Question
August 17, 1951
The attitude of the Church with reference to Negroes remains as it has always stood. It is not a
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
matter of the declaration of a policy but of direct commandment from the Lord, on which is founded the doctrine of the Church from the days of its organization, to the effect that Negroes may become members of the Church but that they are not entitled to the priesthood at the present time. The prophets of the Lord have made several statements as to the operation of the principle. President Brigham Young said: “Why are so many of the inhabitants of the earth cursed with a skin of blackness? It comes in consequence of their fathers rejecting the power of the holy priesthood, and the law of God. They will go down to death. And when all the rest of the children have received their blessings in the holy priesthood, then that curse will be removed from the seed of Cain, and they will then come up and possess the priesthood, and receive all the blessings which we now are entitled to.”
President Wilford Woodruff made the following statement: “The day will come when all that race will be redeemed and possess all the blessings which we now have.”
The position of the Church regarding the Negro may be understood when another doctrine of the Church is kept in mind, namely, that the conduct of spirits in the pre-mortal existence has some determining effect upon the conditions and circumstances under which these spirits take on mortality, and that while the details of this principle have not been made known, the principle itself indicates that the
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THE CHURCH AND THE NEGROID PEOPLE
coming to this earth and taking on mortality is a privilege that is given to those who maintained their first estate; and that the worth of the privilege is so great that spirits are willing to come to earth and take on bodies no matter what the handicap may be as to the kind of bodies they are to secure; and that among the handicaps, failure of the right to enjoy in mortality the blessings of the priesthood, is a handicap which spirits are willing to assume in order that they might come to earth. Under this principle there is no injustice whatsoever involved in this deprivation as to the holding of the priesthood by the Negroes.
Why the Negro was denied the priesthood from the days of Adam to our day is not known. The few known facts about our pre-earth life and our entrance into mortality must be taken into account in any attempt at an explanation.
1. Not all intelligences reached the same degree of attainment in the pre-earth life.
And the Lord said unto me: These two facts do exist, that there are two spirits, one being more intelligent than the other; there shall be another more intelligent than they; Jam the Lord thy God, I am more intelligent than they all.
The Lord thy God sent his angel to deliver thee from the hands of the priest of Elkenah.
I dwell in the midst of them all; I now, therefore, have come down unto thee to deliver unto thee the works which my hands have made, wherein my
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wisdom excelleth them all, for I rule in the heavens above and in the earth beneath, in all wisdom and prudence, over all the intelligences thine eyes have seen from the beginning; I came down in the be ginning in the midst of all the intelligences thou hast seen.
Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said:
These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born....
And we will prove them herewith to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.26
2. Man will be punished for his own sins and not for Adam’s transgression. (2nd Article of Faith.) If this is carried further, it would imply that the Negro is punished or allotted to a certain position on this earth, not because of Cain’s transgression, but
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came to earth through the loins of Cain because of his failure to achieve other stature in the spirit world.
3. All spirits are born innocent into this world. Every spirit of man was innocent in the be ginning; and God having redeemed man from the fall, men became again, in their infant state, innocent before God.27
4. The Negro was a follower of Jehovah in the pre-earth life. (There were no neutrals.)
One of the best explanations is that given by President David 0. McKay:
November 3, 1947
Dear Brother:
In your letter to me of October 28, 1947, you say that you and some of your fellow students “have been perturbed about the question of why the Negroid race cannot hold the priesthood.”
In reply I send you the following thoughts that I expressed to a friend upon the same subject:
Stated briefly your problem is simply this:
Since, as Paul states, the Lord “hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth,” why is there shown in the Church of Christ discrimination against the colored race?
This is a perplexing question, particularly in the light of the present trend of civilization to grant equality to all men irrespective of race, creed, or
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color. The answer, as I have sought it, cannot be found in abstract reasoning, for, in this case, reason to the soul is “dim as the borrowed rays of moon and stars to lonely, weary, wandering travelers.”
I know of no scriptural basis for denying the priesthood to Negroes other than one verse in the Book of Abraham (1:26); however, I believe, as you suggest, that the real reason dates back to our preexistant life.
This means that the true answer to your question (and it is the only one that has ever given me satisfaction) has its foundation in faith—(1) Faith in a God of Justice, (2) Faith in the existence of an eternal plan of salvation for all God’s children.
Faith in a God of Justice Essential
I say faith in a God of Justice, because if we hold the Lord responsible for the conditions of the Negro in his relationship to the Church, we must acknowledge justice as an attribute of the Eternal, or conceive Him as a discriminator and therefore unworthy of our worship. In seeking our answer, then, to the problem wherein discrimination seems apparent, we must accept the Lord as being upright, and that “Justice and judgment are the habitation of His throne.” (Psalm 89:14), and we must believe that He will “render to every man according to his work,” and that He “shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” (Eccl. 12-14) Accepting
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the truth that God is just and righteous, we may then set our minds at rest in the assurance that “Whatsoever good thing any man doeth the same shall be received of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.” {Eph. 6:8.)
I emphasize Justice as an attribute of Deity, because it is the Lord who, though He “made of one blood all nations,” also “determined the bounds of their habitation.” In other words, the seeming discrimination by the Church toward the Negro is not something which originated with man, but goes back into the Beginning with God.
It was the Lord who said that Pharaoh, the first Governor of Egypt, though “a righteous man, blessed with the blessings of the earth, with the blessings of wisdom.. .could not have the priesthood.”
Now if we have faith in the justice of God, we are forced to the conclusion that this denial was not a deprivation of merited right. It may have been entirely in keeping with the eternal plan of salvation for all of the children of God.
The Peopling of the Earth is in Accordance with a Great Plan
Revelation assures us that this plan antedates man’s mortal existence, extending back to man’s pre-existent state. In that pre-mortal state were “intelligences that were organized before the world
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was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
“And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said:
“These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good.”
Manifestly, from this revelation, we may infer two things: first that there were many among those spirits different degrees of intelligence, varying grades of achievement, retarded and advanced spiritual attainment; second, that there were no national distinctions among those spirits such as Americans, Europeans, Asiatics, Australians, etc. Such “bounds of habitation” would have to be “determined” when the spirits entered upon their earthly existence or second estate.
In the “Blue Bird” Materlinck pictures unborn children summoned to earth life. As one group approaches the earth, the voices of the children earthward tending are heard in the distance to cry: “The earth! the earth! I can see it; how beautiful it is! How bright it is!” Then following these cries of ecstacy there issued from out of the depth of the abyss a sweet song of gentleness and expectancy, in reference to which the author says: “It is the song of the mothers coming out to meet them.”
Materlinck’s fairy play is not all fantasy or imagination, neither is Wordsworth’s “Ode on Intimations of Immortality” wherein he says:
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Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting,
The Soul that rises with us, our life’s Star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting
And cometh from afar;
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home;
For, as we have already quoted, it is given as a fact in revelation that Abraham was chosen before he was born. Songs of expectant parents come from all parts of the earth, and each little spirit is attracted to the spiritual and mortal parentage for which the spirit had prepared itself.
Now if none of these spirits was permitted to enter mortality until they all were good and great and had become leaders, then the diversity of conditions among the children of men as we see them today would certainly seem to indicate discrimination and injustice. But if in their eagerness to take upon themselves bodies, the spirits were willing to come through any lineage for which they were worthy, or to which they were attracted, then they were given the full reward of merit, and were satisfied, yes, and even blessed.
Accepting this theory of life, we have a reasonable explanation of existent conditions in the habitations of man. How the law of spiritual attraction works between the spirit and the expectant parents,
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has not been revealed, neither can finite mind fully understand. By analogy, however, we can perhaps get a glimpse of what might take place in that spirit world. In physics we refer to the law of attraction wherein some force acting mutually between particles of matter tends to draw them together and to keep them from separating. In chemistry, there is an attractive force exerted between atoms, which causes them to enter into combination. We know, too, that there is an affinity between persons—a spiritual relationship or attraction wherein individuals are either drawn towards others or repelled by others. Might it not be so in the realm of spirit— each individual attracted to the parentage for which it is prepared. Our place in this world would then be determined by our advancement or conditions in the pre-mortal state, just as our place in our future existence will be determined by what we do here in mortality.
When, therefore, the Creator said to Abraham, and to others of his attainment “You I will make my rulers,” there could exist no feeling of envy or of jealousy among the million other spirits, for those who were “good and great” were but receiving their just reward, just as do members of a graduation class who have successfully completed their prescribed courses of study. The thousands of other students who have not yet attained that honor still have the privilege to seek it, or they may, if they choose, remain in satisfaction down in the grades.
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By the operation of some eternal law with which man is yet unfamiliar, spirits come through parentages for which they are worthy—some as Bushmen of Australia, some as Solomon Islanders, some as Americans, as Europeans, as Asiatics, etc., etc., with all the varying degrees of mentality and spirituality manifest in parents of the different races that inhabit the earth.
Of this we may be sure, each was satisfied and happy to come through the lineage to which he or she was attracted and for which, and only which, he or she was prepared.
The priesthood was given to those who were chosen as leaders. There were many who could not receive it, yet who knew that it was possible for them at sometime in the eternal plan to achieve that honor. Even those who knew that they would not be prepared to receive it during their mortal existence were content in the realization that they could attain every earthly blessing—progress intellectually and spiritually, and possess to a limited degree the blessing of wisdom.
George Washington Carver was one of the noblest souls that ever came to earth. lie hold a close kinship with his heavenly Father, and rendered a service to his fellowmen such as few have ever excelled. For every righteous endeavor, for every noble impulse, for every good deed performed in his useful life George Washington Carver will be rewarded, and so will every other man be he red,
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white, black or yellow, for God is no respecter of persons.
Sometime in God’s eternal plan, the Negro will be given the right to hold the priesthood. In the meantime, those of that race who receive the testimony of the Restored Gospel may have their family ties protected and other blessings made secure, for in the justice and mercy of the Lord they will possess all the blessings to which they are entitled in the eternal plan of Salvation and Exaltation.
Nephi 26:33, to which you refer, does not contradict what I have said above, because the Negro is entitled to come unto the Lord by baptism, confirmation, and to receive the assistance of the Church in living righteously.
Sincerely yours,
(Signed by) David 0. McKay.28
DOM:cm
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References
1. Genesis 4:11-15.
2. Ibid. 9:25-27.
3. Ibid. 10:15-20, 32.
4. Ezra 2:61-63; 10: 10-17.
5. 2 Nephi 26:33.
6. “Evening and Morning Star,” Kirtland Reprint, July, 1833, pp. 218-219.
7. B.H. Roberts, “A Comprehensive History of the Church,” Vol. I, p. 328.
8. Parley P. Pratt, “Late Persecution of Church of Latter-day Saints,” New York; J.W. Harrison, 1840, p. 28.
9. “Times and Seasons,” Vol. III, No. 15, pp. 806-808.
10. See - Kirkpatrick, “The Negro and the L.D.S. Church,” Utah Historical Quarterly.
11. See - Joseph Smith, Memorial to Congress, “History of the Church,” Vol. 6, pp. 197-209.
12. St. Matthew 28:19.
13. D&C 1:1-6, 35.
14. D&C 20:37.
15. 3 Nephi 18:30.
16. I haven’t had opportunity to check this letter as to date, etc. but have had a copy in my files as above for some time.
17. Moses 5:39-40.
18. Moses 7:7-8, 12.
19. Abraham 1:21-27.
20. Joseph Smith, “History of the Church,” Vol. I, p. 191.
21. Ibid. Vol. 4, p. 501.
22. Brigham Young, “Journal of Discourses,” Vol. 7, pp. 290-291.
23. Ibid., Vol. 11, p. 272.
24. “Deseret News,” Vol. 2, No. 11, Saturday, April 3, 1852.
25. “Wilford Woodruff’ by M.F. Cowley, p. 587.
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26. Abraham 3: 19-23, 25-26.
27. D&C 93:38.
28. For publication of this letter see “Home Memories of President David 0. McKay,” by Llewelyn R. McKay, pp. 226-231. Published by Deseret Book Company.
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END
Announcement of the Revelation
that Males of all Races may he
Ordained to the Priesthood
The policy of the Church concerning who is eligible to receive the blessings of the priesthood was changed in June, 1978, when the following letter of instruction was issued by the First
Presidency:
To All General and Local Priesthood Officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Throughout the World
Dear Brethren:
As we have witnessed the expansion of the work of the Lord over the earth, we have been grateful that people of many nations have responded to the message of the restored gospel, and have joined the Church in ever-increasing numbers. This, in turn, has inspired us with a desire to extend to every worthy member of the Church all of the privileges and blessings which the gospel affords.
Aware of the promises made by the prophets and presidents of the Church who have preceded us that at some time, in God’s eternal plan, all of our brethren who are worthy may receive the priesthood, and witnessing the faithfulness of those from whom the priesthood has been withheld, we have pleaded long and earnestly in behalf of these, our faithful brethren, spending many hours in the Upper Room of the Temple supplicating the Lord for divine guidance.
He has heard our prayers, and by revelation has confirmed that the long-promised day has come when every faithful, worthy man in the Church may receive the holy priesthood, with power to exercise its divine authority, and enjoy with his loved ones every blessing that flows therefrom, including the blessings of the temple. Accordingly, all worthy male members of the Church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color. Priesthood leaders are instructed to follow the policy of carefully interviewing all candidates for ordination to either the Aaronic or the Melchizedek Priesthood to insure that they meet the established standards for worthiness.
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NEW REVELATION
We declare with soberness that the Lord has now made known His will for the blessings of all His children throughout the earth who will hearken to the voice of His authorized servants, and prepare themselves to receive every blessing of the gospel.
Sincerely yours,
s/ SpencerW. Kimball
s/ N. Eldon Tanner
s/ Marion C. Romney
The First Presidency
Announcement of the revelation was made through local and national news media the following day. Salt Lake City’s “Deseret News” reproduced the letter in a front-page release headlined “LDS Church extends priesthood to all worthy male members.” The letter was repeated in the “Church News” for the week ending June 17, 1978 under the headline “Revelation extends blessings of gospel.” Supporting articles in the same issue concerning the new availability of the Priesthood to Negro members included “Priesthood news evokes joy,” “News bring excitement,” “Temple goal closer now,” “Interracial marriage discouraged,” “Prophets tell of promise to all races,” and “Since early Church days, blacks have set an example.”
The weekend edition of the “Deseret News” for June 10, 1978 told of the interest on a national scale which the announcement received in an article captioned “Priesthood news spurs calls, stops the presses:”
News media across the nation held up editions and 17 telephone operators in the Church Office Building took a steady stream of calls as news swept across the country that the LDS Church would no longer ban blacks from the priesthood....
In New York City, Time and Newsweek magazines stopped the presses on their weekend editions to get stories in, and the news made the front page of the New York Times.
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NEW REVELATION
Various Church spokesmen were quoted as they told of calls received by the Church:
LeFevre said a local church leader in Mississippi called church headquarters to ask if the report was true. “When told it was, he said it was a great blessing,” the church spokesman said, adding that it was typical of calls received throughout the day.
Joan Kleinman, another spokesman said that from 11 am. until 1 p.m. the phones never stopped ringing on the 17 incoming lines.
“Most said they were thrilled, that this was the best news they could imagine, and some were just awed,” she said. “There were no negative reactions.”
A front page article in that edition bannered “Carter praises LDS Church action” revealed the content of a telegram from U.S. President Jimmy Carter:
“I welcomed today your announcement as president and prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that henceforth all worthy men in your church without regard for race or color may have conferred upon them the priesthood in your church.
“I commend you for your compassionate prayerfulness and courage in receiving a new doctrine.
“This announcement brings a healing spirit to the world and reminds all men and women that they are truly brothers and sisters.”
The article also gave further insight on the events which preceded the announcement:
The announcement came after several months of careful study and consideration by the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve.
A major problem the church has faced with its policy regarding blacks was in Brazil, where the church is building a temple. Many people there are mixed racially, and it is often impossible to determine whether church members have black ancestry.
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NEW REVELATION
The practice of denying blacks the priesthood has long been a difficult public issue for the church, and in the past the church has been severely criticized for it.
However, the announcement changing the practice came at a time when comparatively little pressure was being received by the church to change it.
Shortly after the announcement was released, President Spencer W. Kimball was in Hawaii to dedicate the remodeled Hawaiian Temple. Reporters interviewed him there, and his clarifying comments were released in a June 13th “Deseret News” article titled “Not for women:”
The priesthood is something sacred and was established by the Lord for the men of his kingdom,... We pray to God to reveal his mind and we always will, but we don’t expect any revelation regarding women and the priesthood.
Further comments by President Kimball were summarized by the reporters as follows:
He said the church, which opposes the Equal Rights Amendment, gives women just as much prominence and importance as men, but said it is a different kind of prominence.
President Kimball refused to discuss the revelation that changed the church’s 148-year-old policy against ordination of blacks, saying it was “a personal thing.”
There is no reason why a black entering the priesthood could not move up into the church’s administrative hierarchy “if the person is worthy,” he said.
President Kimball said the revelation came at this time because conditions and people have changed.
“It’s a different world than it was 20 or 25 years ago. The world is ready for it,” he said.
President Kimball said the church will extend its missionary work in Africa and also in America’s inner cities.
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