Join us as Matthew Harris returns to discuss Gordon B. Hinckley’s efforts to address lingering racism in the church, the push to remove Bruce R. McConkie’s Mormon Doctrine from shelves, and members’ calls for an apology for the church’s past racism. We also explore Elder Holland’s attempts to rebrand these doctrines as “folklore,” the continuation of racist teachings by BYU professors like Randy Bott, and the creation of the Gospel Topics Essays.
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One Response
I have no illusion that my comments will be posted. As much as John chides the Mormon church about censorship, John and his team are equally guilty when it comes to censorship. The difference is that John and his team believe their moral compass is superior, and they often view opposing viewpoints as “hate speech.” From my perspective, hate speech and non-faith-promoting speech are the same: censorship.
First, I’m not Mormon, and I agree with Mr. Harris that the Mormon church should specifically condemn their historical teachings about black individuals. In 2013, the Mormon church stated in their essays, “Church leaders and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official doctrine of the Church.” This is as close as we will get for the time being. I wish they would remove the passages in the Book of Mormon about dark skin being a curse. For me, this is the origin of their historical racial teachings.
My concerns about this episode are that Mr. Harris, with respect, is a race hustler. He seems to see Mormonism through a lens of racism. He uses stories and implies that racism is systemic in the Mormon church; however, he doesn’t provide any positive stories on the subject. I don’t believe it would take him long to find positive stories from black members, but it appears he is too devoted to his narrative (that sounds familiar). In addition, Mr. Harris doesn’t provide any empirical evidence that aligns with his racial views on Mormonism. It is interesting that he doesn’t even mention that more than half of the Church’s membership is outside the US. He also fails to mention anything about the positive growth trends of the Mormon Church in Africa. Mr. Harris should know that anecdotal evidence isn’t evidence. Many of the stories he mentions, some third-hand, are hard to believe, specifically the story about Mr. Hickley pacing the floor concerned about racism in the church.
I found it hard to take Mr. Harris seriously after he mentioned “Black Lives Matter.” I’m sorry, Mr. Harris, but ALL LIVES MATTER. The fact that he believes a racial group should be sheltered more than other racial groups exposes his racial animus. Mr. Harris doesn’t seem to catch the racism in the BLM movement. There are over 18,000 police departments in the US. It takes magical thinking to believe all of these police departments are systematically out to harm black Americans. This same magical thinking applies to those who believe the Mormon Book is historical. If you look at the racial makeup of those who encounter law enforcement versus those shot by law enforcement, you will find European Americans are disproportionately shot and killed by law enforcement. It is this type of critical thinking that is needed when addressing racial issues in America. I would encourage everyone to read and listen to Coleman Hughes if you want to know more about racism.
John, I’ve said this before: it appears you have traded your Mormon lies for Leftist lies. I wish this episode was more balanced. Perhaps if you provide more balance in your episodes, more people would be willing to donate.