Is "All Are Alike Unto God" A Facade??

As long as I've been reading the Book of Mormon I, just as you, have read about being cursed with skins of blackness as well as dark and loathsome, filthy people etc.  Recently, thank the Lord; the contexts of these scriptures have been changed to the true meaning, speaking of demeanor and attitude.  Ironically enough, a YW leader in my ward in Michigan way back in 1982 made sure she taught us, it wasn't  truly skin color, but the dark and heavy nature of being without the light of Christ, not the color of our skin.  And I believed and trusted her judgment….and ran with it.  It seemed obvious that what she veered away and taught was more conducive

 to the gospel than the separation of white skin good, dark skin bad.

They say in the Gospel of Jesus Christ all you need is love. To love one another.

Part of love is communication. If you truly love, then you will communicate.
  I"ve heard many people accuse the LDS Church of preaching "All Are  Alike, Unto God" and then practicing elitism. Calling our church a Facade. Asking me if I agree.   I don't agree.  I believe that for the most part we Brothers and Sisters of the church truly believe everyone is the same in the eyes of the Lord.  I do think we need to be more outspoken, direct, and vocal  about interracial relationships withing the Gospel. Sometimes actions don't match the preaching.  

I wonder how many LDS families have communications/discussions regarding these things.  We used to have them all the time.   I'm finding that among my friends not too many families, other than those of colors, have these discussions. We teach our children that “All are alike unto God.”  And that everyone should be treated equal regardless of skin color, culture etc.  But just chanting these mantras   a couple of times during the elementary school years and Jr. High school years aren't quite enough.    Just like tithing, prayers, faith, scripture reading, I believe accepting of the races and diverse cultures needs to be a regular part of teaching our children the gospel  ESPECIALLY because of some of the previous wording of our scriptures. No matter what the new changes are and how they come about, there have been generations ingrained and indoctrinated with the “white skin good, dark skin bad" theory.  I'm sure it's confusing.   

Teaching this new generation a different perception of it may be easy because of the changes, however I can see it being like Moses in the wilderness for 40 years waiting for the old to die off because they couldn't learn, comprehend or grasp the new thinking of what to them, has always been. 

  Like the old dogs and new tricks  

 We need to speak of these things more in our congregations and home.  Not just during that annual “priesthoods being restored to the Black Brothers’ Sunday.   We need to be vocal about these things and speak with our families forcefully, honestly and upfront about where we stand. My growing up and dating in the 80 my LDS friends were saying I love very one . The Lord doesn't see color, my parents taught me to love everyone equal.  But the minute I became the person their son was dating, their son wasn't so sure about where their parents stood either.   These are conversations we as family members and saints need to have.  We need to have them as congregations, ward members, neighbors and children of a most high Heavenly Father. 



  Does your family truly know your stance on possible interracial relationships? Or do we assume they already know?  Will you be caught in an awkward situation if a white boy shows up in you house, or a black girl comes to dinner?  Many of my friends have been caught off guard. Some have had to really dig deep and recognize how they truly feel about the situation. Others without any doubts are business as usual.  If we aren't teaching our families these things then who is? And if you don’t know who is, then you truly don’t know exactly what is being taught.   I try and take the opportunity when applicable in reminds others that these types of subjects are not sort of hit and miss type of subjects. It should be like teaching the law of morality and our stance on premarital sex.  Parents assume kids know the standards and the teachings and how they feel about the situation. But when asking the kids, they refer to a couple of sentences from an FHE lesson from years ago or a Sunday school lesson where the teacher was so embarrassed and afraid to truly teach.  If we don't teach our children these things. The world will do it in a manor that may not be conducive to your beliefs.

 In order for thought processes, changes and true brother and sisterhood to come about in the gospel, we need to have these real conversations with ourselves, family and friends. It doesn't have to be long. It doesn't have to be difficult. It doesn't have to be drama. But it, indeed, has to be.

*get to talkin! Say it loud and proud*

I Hope All White Mormons Read This!

 I debated on the title of this post because I've had about 7 friends come across my news feed with the same link about a black politician in Louisiana moving from being a Democrat to becoming a member of the Republican party.  Urging people of color to please read. As if all people of color are democrats and "one of our own" has seen the light so we should take a moment and contemplate his testimony of it.  And it's followed up with how Republican want people of color to have a slice of the American Pie and truly live the American Dream and how being a Republican is the way to prosper and succeed.

It's time like these where you have to ask the Holy Spirit to calm your soul....and your nerves and to please discern, what the hell they're trying to say because they said wrong and pissed a bunch of people off.
    When I saw the link the first time, I just sort of *sighed* and rolled my eyes.  Oh the do gooders are hear to save the black folks again. They saved us from kidnapping us from Africa and bringing us to America so we could know and learn of Christianity and save our souls. They, not knowing that
 1. Christianity was already introduced to Africa
 2. It's Universal, it travels with you where ever you go.

 But when it showed up 6 more times...I kinda got ticked off.   But you can't really go after those who truly in their hearts believe that these kinds of messages will reach those who they wish would read this, whatever this is.

Why aren't they directing these messages to their white country men who are democrats or who may have voted for a black president? Is it that they are "educated enough to make the decision" and black country men are uneducated and just following some sort of tradition?"  If black people had enough power to put whomever we wanted into office all the time,  it would really be a different country.

 It took more than just black people to put President Obama in office. And since we're assuming all democrats are black and all republicans are white, what about the republicans who switched up and voted for President Obama?  I don't see them being petitioned either.

  Sometimes it feels like Black vs White all the time because of assumptions.


Nothing ticks me off more than generalities and stereotypical assumptions.
Race relations and politics seem to go hand and hand these days.  Especially since the country put a black man in office.   I, for one, am tired of being blamed for the state of the country.

 
(I ran across this photo after President Obama won in 2008 and before he raised his hand to take oath in 2009)

  What most of what most other American doesn't realize is that for Black Americans, having a black president is a double edged sword.  WE know that just by having lovely velvety chocolate or caramel skin we are guilty by association. If he fails, it's our fault because we're all democrats and we all voted for him.
 
 There are so many facets to this I cant even begin to mention them all. But I can bring to surface the one's that stand out the most to me.
 We, the black people of the United States were once considered the lowest form of human life in this country. So YES! WE CAN rejoice in the knowledge that the same country has elected a black man to be the President of the United States...Twice.  And YES! WE CAN stand in solidarity of the amazing history of being kidnapped, shipped, sold, beaten, worked to death, raped, and sold again, withheld of basic civil rights that should be afforded to every human, killed in the process of making a stand for those rights.
  Why can't it be understood that we can appreciate the history of the situation without agreeing with his politics?   And even if we don't agree with what he's doing as the President there is still going to be a respect and a line we don't cross because of being the first in that position and because of what it means to us as black Americans.  That respect I believe is what has the world assuming that black people are democrats and voted for him.  Unlike our White countrymen, they have no need to or desire to respect any part of that history.  they are very vocal about their disdain for "OBAMA" and his politics.  I've heard him called many things in the last 5 years: Racist, Flip Flopper, liar etc.  
  To me its maddening to hear these things, ESPECIALLY from Members of the church.   Through out my Mormon life  I've heard... "We should always pray for our leaders." I have been taught that to mean  Country, State and City leaders also, not just church leaders.  Maybe others are biased and take that to mean only church leaders.
    I'm about to make a parallel of sorts and it's going to piss some people off. *welcome to my world.*

 Bruce R. McConkie made the following  remarks "Those who were less valiant in the pre-existence and who thereby had certain spiritual restrictions imposed upon them during mortality are known to us as the negroes. Such spirits are sent to earth through the lineage of Cain, the mark put upon him for his rebellion against God and his murder of Abel being a black skin.... Noah's son Ham married Egyptus, a descendant of Cain, thus preserving the negro lineage through the flood....The negroes are not equal with other races when the receipt of certain spiritual blessings are concerned, particularly the priesthood and the temple blessings that flow therefrom, but this inequality is not of man's origin. It is the Lord's doing, based on His eternal laws of justice, and grows out of the lack of spiritual valiance of those concerned in their first estate."  

To black member's it's always been OBVIOUS that this was not the case. Matter of fact many of us who were members at the time were waiting for the white members to "figure it out" so this "policy" would change.
  Article of Faith #2 dictates to that. The scriptures indicate there were no "fence sitters' in the first estate.  Matter of fact it goes against The Lord's eternal laws of Justice.
  In 1978 when Elder Mcconkie admits: “Forget everything that I have said, or what President Brigham Young or President George Q. Cannon or whomsoever has said in days past that is contrary to the present revelation. We spoke with a limited understanding and without the light and knowledge that now has come into the world. We get our truth and our light line upon line and precept upon precept. We have now had added a new flood of intelligence and light on this particular subject, and it erases all the darkness and all the views and all the thoughts of the past. They don't matter any more.”

 I get that The Lord only has us humans to work with, that we will make mistakes, man will make mistakes, the Lord will hold us accountable for what we do to verify mistakes and the actions we take to correct them.  That does not diminish my faith or belief in the church because I KNOW the Lord's work will move forward regardless of the mistakes of men, even men of God.



   I still hear member defending the policy instead of recognizing and admitting that " hey our leaders, who are men of God, Human and privy to mistakes and circumstances surrounding the country and atmosphere messed up. THANK GOODNESS It's been fixed!"  These were racist moves. The motives may not have been but the act of withholding them were. Yet these are men who are still honored and respected. They were acting out of what they thought was best, regardless of if it was or not.   I don't hear them being called Liars, Racists or Flip Floppers. 

When Ronald Regan supported the apartheid regime, It appeared to be ok because it was in a different country.  Even Congress overrode a veto imposed on by president Reagan about South African Sanctions.  Remember when he was caught selling illegal weapons to Iran?  I don't recall such blatant disrespect of him being called a racist, a liar or a flip flopper.

                        [the current president would be crucified for pulling a stunt like this]

What about the infidelity of the President's in office? Kennedy? Clinton?  Shall we go into the Nixon administration? People still have more respect for all of these men.  Then our Black President of the United States. 
   It's hard to determine if the Disrespect is because of his actions or his color or both. It's true he's doing things in office that have never been done before. But it's also true he's a man of color and we would be crazy to  not acknowledge that it could be a possibility as well.


I've heard people say nothing about President Obama is good or positive.  I beg to differ.
  It's nice to see a family in the office where the Husband and Wife are focused on maintaining a family life, the father is home and involved and making it a priority to be a part of.  Long after he is out of office, all he may have left is his family.  Good to hear a President compliment his wife and show a true desire to be with her and support her while not cheating or hoeing around on her.  It's good to see him be a great father to his daughters and not allow them to fall by the wayside to baby sitters and house keepers and secret service folk.  



Some of the comments and remarks I've seen from church members cause me to wonder.  Are you praying for your leaders, Church, Country, City/Civic? And if you truly are how can you ask the Lord's Blessing be upon them in one breath, while blatantly disrespecting them in the next?






  
 I read something from a woman who did the exact opposite of something because the first Lady was encouraging it.   This woman wrote: That Michelle Obama was going on an on about eating healthy and putting healthier foods and snacks in schools lunches and vending machines. I sat all of my kids down in front of the TV with candy, cookies, ice cream and all the junk food i could find.  They're messing up the country so badly I refuse to do or support anything that comes out of her or her husband's mouth.  
   WHAT THE HELL?   What kind of anger and hate causes that kind of a reaction that folks wont even do the good and positive things that may come from President or First Lady Obama? Is it Racism?  Is it Anger? Crazy Coincidence? Does it make logical sense to any of you?


 
Not to push this upon anyone else, but I've been "commanded" to support my leaders. Church and "otherwise" in my Patriarchal blessing.  Even I recognize that if I cannot in good conscious support the actions of them, I can dang sure support them in prayer.   What would the country look like if instead of being so quick to criticize, judge, belittle and disrespect our leaders we spend that time petitioning to the Lord in their behalf. I'm not saying agree with them and their actions, I'm saying to stop the madness of the public land-blasting and act productively in the things or ways you can support.
  The scriptures let us know the state of the country is less about the  chosen Leader of the country and more about OURSELVES
2 Chronicles 7:14:
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 


How about a little less bitching about who is in office down here and a little more petitioning to who is in office up above.