The Curse of Cain and the Mormon Church

05 April

The Curse of Cain & the Mormon Church

By Michelle Grim


The reason we keep highlighting this issue is because the Mormon Church still holds onto their “inspired scriptures” that contain racist teachings.  Even though the Church received a revelation from their god in 1978 telling them to accept blacks into the priesthood, the Church continues to proclaim that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God and gave Smith the power to translate a long forgotten story on golden plates into what they deem as scripture today.

These writings, from the plates to Egyptian papyri, are filled with bigotry which is something I’ll never understand.  If you claim you’re not racist then why in the world are these books still going to the printer and embraced by adoring members?

When the Church denounces their sin of teaching these things we will certainly post that as well!

After working for several years in ministry to the Mormons I have learned how not to get my feathers ruffled over trivial matters that keep popping up.  I have learned the LDS Church will forever and always skirt issues to make them seem more credible to the public or twist truth just a half fraction in order not to raise too many eyebrows. Their terminology differences are just once example of this.

However, this time an article that has been posted on a pro-Mormon website caught my full attention and definitely ruffled my feathers.  The issue?  The LDS Church is now denying that they have ever taught the Doctrine of the Curse of Cain.

I left Mormonism for a handful of reasons but the subject of racism was at the top of my list.  The reason why?

While I am considered to be “Caucasian” to everyone in the world (with the exception of Utah), I do have olive skin, dark eyes and hair.  My father’s family is considered to be “black Welsh”.  My great-grandmother was born in Wales, didn’t speak English and was a convert to the Church. To the reader who isn’t aware of the Curse of Cain Doctrine this seems to be a menial thing, but to the Utah Mormon it’s huge.

I was born in the early sixties in Northern Utah; a sixth-generation Mormon on my mother’s side and fourth on my father’s.  There was still enough “darkness” left in the lineage to make an impact on me while sitting through hundreds of Sacrament meetings and listening to the bishop tell the congregation that having dark skin was a sin.

I remember looking around me through my dark brown eyes at a sea of blonde-haired, blue-eyed people and wondering how in the world I could have denied Jesus in the pre-existence.

The website with the info here will be posted at the end of this article for your perusal and for my proof of their denial.  Here is just a little bit of what this pro-Mormon website had to say:

 “To whom it may concern:  You should be aware that Don Jesse, official spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is telling journalists and non-Mormon inquirers that the Church “has never taught that black people were cursed nor the descendants of Cain. Some members of the church may have held that view in the past, but it was never sanctioned by church leaders.” When asked why black men could not hold the Priesthood before 1978, Mr. Jesse responded:  “Now that’s a good question! We really don’t know the answer. Many people have speculated or tried to provide answers, but we really don’t know the reason.”

http://www.angelfire.com/mo2/blackmormon/SAQ.html

 When asked, “Did it have anything with the Curse of Cain doctrine?” Jesse responded: “No! There was never any ‘Curse of Cain’ Doctrine. There was never any such doctrine in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at any time.”

There isn’t one single verse in the Bible that sanctions bigotry or racism of any kind.  We see just one example of how the Lord abhors pride of the heart in Obadiah 1:1-4;

 “The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning Edom; We have heard a rumour from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle.  Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.  The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?  Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.

 The Edomites were descendants of Esau and filled to the brim with all types of pride.  The Lord subjected them to the ultimate doom they deserved for their sin against the people of Israel.  They were destroyed and their lineage is no longer in existence.  Verses 10-14 in Obadiah show us a list of each of the grievances the Lord had against them for their prejudice against God’s people.

The pastor J. Vernon McGee once said: “Pride of the heart is having the attitude of life that you can live without God”.  I don’t think it could have been said better!  While doing a Bible study on the ‘color issue’ years ago I finally learned the truth about the races and I challenge every single Mormon to do the same study.  It’ll only take a day for a brief overview, but at least get going on it to know the real truth about the colors of people.  The people of the biblical times typically gave names to their offspring that described their hopes or circumstances for the child.  The first mention of different races comes to us in Genesis 5:32;

 “And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

 The key words here are Shem, Ham and Japheth.  In Hebrew Shem means; name, honor, and it also means “dusky”.  He received the great blessing of having Abraham born through his lineage.  Ham means hot or burnt.  It was because of Ham’s sin of seeing his father Noah naked that his son Canaan had a curse pronounced upon him.  As you can see, this took place well after the time of Adam’s son Cain.

Japheth means expansion, ‘may he have space’, and it also means fair.  History points us to the fact that Japheth was the progenitor of the Indo-European peoples who lived the furthest from Israel.

I was 32 years-old and getting ready for work one morning when I realized I was sinning.  The pride of my heart had kept me from the simplistic truth of history and the truth of God Himself.  I had been saved for two years by then but still couldn’t look myself in the mirror and feel okay about my own coloring.  That morning I was convicted by Jesus to really look at the color of my eyes, skin and hair.  He then reminded me of where He was born and what lineage He came from.  For the first time in my life it dawned on me that He probably wasn’t white.  I know this sounds silly to many of you out there reading this, but it was monumental to the dark girl from Utah that was still a baby Christian.

I began employing my word studies to the study of the names of people beginning in Genesis 5:32.  The truth changed my life; it convicted me of my own pride that was buried deep in my heart.  You see, while I’ve never held the view of non-whites being inferior, that is exactly how I thought of myself.  This is sin, plain and simple.  Not accepting that God created us and not believing that we are fearfully and wonderfully made is the sin of unbelief.  God hates pride so much because pride leads us down the road of so very many other sins; unbelief is just one of the symptoms of pride.

This is also just one of many examples of how Mormonism seeps into every pore of your soul.  The exodus from this false church takes time and for every person coming out of Mormonism, there are as many new lessons to learn, truths to be heard and lies to be exposed.  Each has different stories and subjects that spark our interests so if you’re the one mentoring a Mormon or ex-Mormon, or if you are the ex-Mormon grant as much grace upon them as the Lord Jesus would give to you.  These things don’t happen overnight.  I was in the Church for 30 years and it took me about five years before I felt like all the lies had been exposed.

I thank God for His blessing of opening my ears during those lessons in the Mormon Church.  It’s also a mixed blessing at times because of the response I received from my own mother when I told her this was one of the reasons I got out of the Church.  She replied by telling me she had never heard of any of these doctrines and believed that I had misunderstood the Pearl of Great Price where it states this:

 Moses 7:22; “And Enoch also beheld the residue of the people which were the sons of Adam; and they were a mixture of all the seed of Adam save it was the seed of Cain, for the seed of Cain were black, and had not place among them.

 In other words, it was my own imagination again and why did I spend so much time questioning the leaders of the Church?  My mother obviously didn’t hear the same message from the bishop even though we sat side-by-side in those Sacrament meetings.  To be fair to her I must admit that if I didn’t feel so ashamed by something I had supposedly done then I don’t think I would have listened to that part of the meeting either, so now I am thanking Him for the blessing of dark hair.

And I found myself hearing from Him also for having the spirit of mistrust against all those that aren’t dark.  I encourage all Mormons to honestly ask God to search your heart and be willing to allow Him to cleanse it from all unrighteousness.  Ask Him if there is the sin of pride for your own coloring and then ask Him to forgive you and cleanse that from your heart.  I know from experience He’ll do it!

Below is a small fraction of the things Mormon leaders have preached from their pulpits about the race issue.  This has been going on since the birth of the LDS Church, so don’t think any of their leaders are immune to this horrendous line of thinking.

The quotations coupled with scripture for rebuttal have been used for our PSA’s (public service announcements) on the radio or for radio shows talking about racism in the Mormon Church.

You’ll also notice how their teachings frequently contradicted themselves from one teacher to the next.  This is a sign you’re not following God!

Come alongside us and pray for those caught in the grip of lies from the evil one.  My heart breaks for people like my mother.  I am living proof that God answers the prayers of His people – I had dozens of people praying for my salvation and here I am!  Thank you Jesus!

Way to Perfection, pg. 106; President Woodruff, in his journal, records the words of President Young as follows:  The Lord said, I will not kill Cain, but I will put a mark upon him, and that mark will be seen upon the face of every negro upon the face of the earth; and it is the decree of God that that mark shall remain upon the seed of Cain until the seed of Abel shall be redeemed, and Cain shall not receive the Priesthood, until the time of that redemption. Any man having one drop of the seed of Cain in him cannot receive the Priesthood; but the day will come when all that race will be redeemed and possess all the blessings which we now have.-History of Wilford Woodruff, p. 351.” – Joseph Fielding Smith

Genesis 4:11, 15; And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand  15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

With Love in Christ;

Michelle

1 Cor. 1:18

Racism in the Church/Behavior Determines Race

Race Problems as they Affect the Church, BYU speech on August 27, 1954, p.11; With all this in mind, can we account in any other way for the birth of some of the children of God in darkest Africa, or in flood-ridden China, or among the starving hordes of India, while some of the rest of us are born here in the United States? We cannot escape the conclusion that because of performance in our pre-existence some of us are born as Chinese, some as Japanese, some as Indians, some as Negroes, some as Americans, some as Latter-day Saints. These are rewards and punishments, fully in harmony with His established policy in dealing with sinners and saints, rewarding all according to their deeds.  – Mark E. Petersen, former apostle

Luke 10:17-19; And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

 http://www.mormonismi.net/mep1954 for the full text

Think about verse 18 for a few moments.  Think of the power God holds in His hands to do what He did in response to Satan’s disobedience.  You have to wonder what He thinks of Smith’s teachings on the pre-existence and the black race.

 Did this guy not think that maybe people from an African or Chinese descent could be Americans? 

More from Mr. Petersen’s pulpit…

Race Problems–As They Affect the Church, August 27, 1954, address at CES convention at Brigham Young University; Think of the Negro, cursed as to the Priesthood. Are we prejudiced against him? Unjustly, sometimes we are accused of having such a prejudice. But what does the mercy of God have for him? This negro, who, in the pre-existence lived the type of life which justified the Lord in sending him to the earth in the lineage of Cain with a black skin, and possibly being born in darkest Africa if that Negro is willing when he hears the gospel to accept it, he may have many of the blessings of the gospel. In spite of all he did in the pre-existent life, the Lord is willing, if the Negro accepts the gospel with real, sincere faith, and is really converted, to give him the blessings of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. If that Negro is faithful all his days, he can and will enter the celestial kingdom. He will go there as a servant, but he will get a celestial resurrection.” – Mark E. Petersen

Genesis 1:26-27; And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

The Mormon prophet Thomas Monson referred to Mark Petersen as someone who “personified righteousness” and “a giant among men”.  How could anyone who says the darker you are the more sinful the behavior, or that the black people will be servants in heaven?  How is this godly or righteous?

Imagine Mr. Petersen’s surprise when he died and saw that Jesus probably wasn’t white.

Blacks Didn’t Sin in Pre-existence

Doctrinal Commentary on the Pearl of Great Price, pg. 209; Question three: What influence can the Adversary have over man in mortality? Though the spirits of all men who come to mortality overcame the enticements of Satan and his followers when they resided in the presence of God in their first estate, they are required also to meet the opposition of the Adversary in a fallen state, away from the direct truth and power of God’s presence, where corruption and the seeds of death are associated with the endowments of the flesh. This is necessary in order that they might overcome all things and triumph over evil in the physical as well as in the pre-earth spirit realm of life.” – Hyrum L. Andrus

 Blacks Cannot Hold Priesthood

Answers to Gospel Questions 2:188; Kindly see chapters 15 and 16, in The Way to Perfection, for further light in relation to the reason why the Negro cannot receive the priesthood. In brief, it is as follows: Because of transgression in the first estate which deprives him in this second estate. Since Cain slew his brother Abel in order to obtain all the rights of priesthood to descend through his lineage, the Lord decreed that the children of Cain should not have the privilege of bearing the priesthood until Abel had posterity who could have the priesthood and that will have to be in the far distant future. When this is accomplished on some other world, then the restrictions will be removed from the children of Cain who have been true in this “second” estate.” – Joseph Fielding Smith

Free agency in the pre-existence

Doctrines of Salvation 1:58; God gave his children their free agency even in the spirit world, by which the individual spirits had the privilege, just as men have here, of choosing the good and rejecting the evil, or partaking of the evil to suffer the consequences of their sins. Because of this, some even there were more faithful than others in keeping the commandments of the Lord. Some were of greater intelligence than others, as we find it here, and were honored accordingly….

Blacks Neutral in the Pre-existence

Sermons and Missionary Services of Melvin J. Ballard, pgs. 247-248; Now, my brothers and sisters, I would like you to understand that long before we were born into this earth we were tested and tried in our pre-existence, and the fact that of the thousands of children born today, a certain proportion of them went to the Hottentots of South Africa; thousands went to the Chinese mothers; thousands went to Negro mothers; thousands to beautiful white Latter-day Saint mothers: You cannot tell me that the entire group was just designated, marked, to go where they did, that they were men and women of equal opportunities. There are no infant spirits born. They had a being ages before they came into this life. They appear in infant bodies, but they were tested, proven souls. Therefore, I say to you that long before we came into this life all groups and races of men existed as they exist today. Like attracts like.Why is it in this Church we do not grant the priesthood to the Negroes? It is alleged that the Prophet Joseph said—and I have no reason to dispute it—that it is because of some act committed by them before they came into this life. It is alleged that they were neutral, standing neither for Christ nor the devil. But, I am convinced it is because of some things they did before they came into this life that they have been denied the privilege. The races of today are very largely reaping the consequence of a previous life.” – Bryant S. Hinckley, 1949

Blacks Should Remain Slaves

Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 120; Thirteenth—”Are the Mormons abolitionists?” No, unless delivering the people from priestcraft, and the priests from the power of Satan, should be considered abolition. But we do not believe in setting the negroes free.

Curse of Cain and Black Skin

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 109; See –>DEVIL, –>HAM, –>MASTER MAHAN, –>NEGROES, –>PERDITION, –>SONS OF PERDITION, –>UNPARDONABLE SIN. Though he was a rebel and an associate of Lucifer in pre-existence and though he was a liar from the beginning whose name was perdition, Cain managed to attain the privilege of mortal birth. Under Adam’s tutelage, he began in this life to serve God. He understood the gospel and the plan of salvation, was baptized, received the priesthood, had a perfect knowledge of the position and perfection of God, and talked personally with Deity. Then he came out in open rebellion, fought God, worshiped Lucifer, and slew Abel.Cain’s sacrifice was rejected because it was offered at Satan’s command, not the Lord’s; it was not and could not be offered in faith for “he could have no faith, or could not exercise faith contrary to the plan of heaven.” (Teachings, pp 58-59.)As a result of his rebellion, Cain was cursed and told that “the earth” would not thereafter yield him its abundance as previously. In addition he became the first mortal to be cursed as a son of perdition. As a result of his mortal birth he is assured of a tangible body of flesh and bones in eternity, a fact which will enable him to rule over Satan. The Lord placed on Cain a mark of a dark skin, and he became the ancestor of the black race. (Moses 5; Gen. 4; Teachings, p. 169.)” – Apostle Bruce R. McConkie

Blacks are Cursed

Mormon Doctrine, pg. 114; However, in a broad general sense, caste systems have their root and origin in the gospel itself, and when they operate according to the divine decree, the resultant restrictions and segregation are right and proper and have the approval of the Lord. To illustrate: Cain, Ham, and the whole negro race have been cursed with a black skin, the mark of Cain, so they can be identified as a caste apart, a people with whom the other descendants of Adam should not intermarry. (Gen. 4; Moses 5.)” – Apostle Bruce R. McConkie

Curse on Dark Skin Removed

Doctrine & Covenants Encyclopedia, pg. 309; In 1976, President Spencer W. Kimball identified the Lamanites as the sixty million or more native inhabitants of the Americas and the islands of the South Pacific (CR, Oct. 1976, p. 9). According to Elder Wilford Woodruff, these people will “blossom as the rose,” and “a nation will be born in a day” as they accept the gospel (JD 15:282).A dark skin was originally placed upon the Lamanites to distinguish them from the Nephites and to keep the two people from mixing (2 Ne. 5:21; Alma 3:7-8). President Joseph Fielding Smith has written that “the dark skin was the sign of the curse. The curse,” however, “was the withdrawal of the Spirit of the Lord.” (AGQ 3:122.) Thus, when they or any other people accept the light of the gospel, “their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes” (2 Ne. 30:6).In our day, “the dark skin of those who have come into the Church is no longer considered a sign of the curse” (AGQ 3:123).” – Hoyt W. Brewster, Jr., Professor Pepperdine University and BYU

No Neutrals in Heaven, All Spirits Innocent

Doctrines of Salvation 1:65; NO NEUTRALS IN HEAVEN. There were no neutrals in the war in heaven. All took sides either with Christ or with Satan.  Every man had his agency there, and men receive rewards here based upon their actions there, just as they will receive rewards hereafter for deeds done in the body. The Negro, evidently, is receiving the reward he merits.  The Lord has said, “Every spirit of man was innocent in the beginning; and God having redeemed man from the fall, men became again, in their infant state, innocent before God.”

Curse of Cain & the priesthood

Journal of Discourses 21:370; “…Then when Cain found that his offering was not accepted, and his brother, Abel’s was accepted, Satan tempted him, and entered into him and led him into the way of all apostates,—he became possessed with the spirit of murder. I mention it as the first apostacy of which we have record after the fall of man, through it Cain lost his privilege as first-born, and the blessing fell on one more worthy, and the rights of the priesthood passed to the next son of Adam, which according to Bible record was Seth, who magnified the Priesthood, honored his birth-right, and held the blessing of the Priesthood, which was sealed upon him by his father; and from him it descended upon the righteous of his posterity.” – Erastus Snow

Curse of Cain, Blacks won’t receive priesthood until everyone is born

Journal of Discourses 2:143; We have this illustrated in the account of Cain and Abel. Cain conversed with his God every day, and knew all about the plan of creating this earth, for his father told him. But, for the want of humility, and through jealousy, and an anxiety to possess the kingdom, and to have the whole of it under his own control, and not allow anybody else the right to say one word, what did he do? He killed his brother. The Lord put a mark on him; and there are some of his children in this room.

When all the other children of Adam have had the privilege of receiving the Priesthood, and of coming into the kingdom of God, and of being redeemed from the four quarters of the earth, and have received their resurrection from the dead, then it will be time enough to remove the curse from Cain and his posterity. He deprived his brother of the privilege of pursuing his journey through life, and of extending his kingdom by multiplying upon the earth; and because he did this, he is the last to share the joys of the kingdom of God.  Here are the Lamanites, another example. Their wickedness was not so great as those who slew the Son of God. Jesus revealed himself to them after he was slain, preached to them the Gospel. But in the fourth generation the Priesthood was driven from their midst, and after that, the laws, ordinances, and power of the Gospel ceased to be with them. Is their curse as great as that of those in Palestine? No, it is light, in comparison. They began to thirst for each other’s blood, and massacred each other, from generation to generation, until they sunk into wickedness, and evil principles the most degrading, and have become loathsome and vile. Still, the curse will be removed from them before it will be removed from the children of Judah; and they will become “a white and delightsome people.”” – Brigham Young

Job 31:15; Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?

Blacks to be used as slaves & have no priesthood

Journal of Discourses 2:184;The seed of Ham, which is the seed of Cain descending through Ham, will, according to the curse put upon him, serve his brethren, and be a “servant of servants” to his fellow-creatures, until God removes the curse; and no power can hinder it. These are my views upon slavery. I will here say a little more upon this point. The conduct of the whites towards the slaves will, in many cases, send both slave and master to hell. This statement comprises much in a few words. The blacks should be used like servants, and not like brutes, but they must serve. It is their privilege to live so as to enjoy many of the blessings which attend obedience to the first principles of the Gospel, though they are not entitled to the Priesthood.” – Brigham Young, February 18, 1855, Salt Lake City

Blacks are Cursed & Cannot Hold Priesthood

Journal of Discourses 3:29; When the curse of the Almighty comes upon a people, it certainly is the work of generations to remove it. When Cain brought a curse upon his own head, and that of his household, his after generations bore the same curse.  The curse that came upon Canaan, the son of Ham, has extended to a great portion of the human race, and has continued to the present day…

When God had decreed a certain way for men to be in servitude, and has designed they shall hold that position, it is worse than useless for any man or set of men, to undertake to put them in a position to rule.  

The Lord conferred portions of the Priesthood upon certain races of men, and through promises made to their fathers they were entitled to the rights, and blessings, and privileges of that Priesthood. Other races, in consequence of their corruptions, their murders, their wickedness, or the wickedness of their fathers, had the Priesthood taken from them, and the curse that was upon them was decreed should descend upon their posterity after them, it was decreed that they should not bear rule.” – Elder G.A. Smith, September 23, 1855, Salt Lake City

Blacks are Uncouth, Uncomely

Journal of Discourses 7:291; You see some classes of the human family that are black, uncouth, uncomely, disagreeable and low in their habits, wild, and seemingly deprived of nearly all the blessings of the intelligence that is generally bestowed upon mankind. The first man that committed the odious 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. Trace mankind down to after the flood, and then 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; and the Abolitionists cannot help it, nor in the least alter that decree. 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. Until the last ones of the residue of Adam’s children are brought up to that favourable position, the children of Cain cannot receive the first ordinances of the Priesthood. They were the first that were cursed, and they will be the last from whom the curse will be removed. When the residue of the family of Adam come up and receive their blessings, then the curse will be removed from the seed of Cain, and they will receive blessings in like proportion.” – Brigham Young, October 9, 1859, Salt Lake City

Blacks & whites shouldn’t mix

Journal of Discourses 10:110-111; Shall I tell you the law of God in regard to the African race? If the white man who belongs to the chosen seed mixes his blood with the seed of Cain, the penalty, under the law of God, is death on the spot. This will always be so.” – Brigham Young, March 8, 1863, Salt Lake City

Acts 17:26-27; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us.

Curse of Ham

Journal of Discourses 10:250;Ham will continue to be the servant of servants, as the Lord has decreed, until the curse is removed. Will the present struggle free the slave? No; but they are now wasting away the black race by thousands. Many of the blacks are treated worse than we treat our dumb brutes; and men will be called to judgment for the way they have treated the negro, and they will receive the condemnation of a guilty conscience, by the just Judge whose attributes are justice and truth. Treat the slaves kindly and let them live, for Ham must be the servant of servants until the curse is removed.” – Brigham Young, October 6, 1863, Salt Lake City

Blacks Go Down To Death

Journal of Discourses 11:272; The Lamanites or Indians are just as much the children of our Father and 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 sin 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.” – Brigham Young, August 19, 1866, Salt Lake City

Blacks are Slaves Mentally

Journal of Discourses 5:217; Elder Hyde inquired the situation of the negro. I replied, they came into the world slaves mentally and physically. Change their situation with the whites, and they would be like them. They have souls, and are subjects of salvation. Go into Cincinnati or any city, and find an educated negro, who rides in his carriage, and you will see a man who has risen by the powers of his own mind to his exalted state of respectability. The slaves in Washington are more refined than many in high places, and the black boys will take the shine of many of those they brush and wait on.” – Heber C. Kimball, Salt Lake City, September 6, 1856

1 Cor. 12:13; For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Mr. Kimball was a self-imposed slave to his own thinking.

Curse of Cain & the priesthood

Journal of Discourses 21:370; “…Then when Cain found that his offering was not accepted, and his brother, Abel’s was accepted, Satan tempted him, and entered into him and led him into the way of all apostates,—he became possessed with the spirit of murder. I mention it as the first apostacy of which we have record after the fall of man, through it Cain lost his privilege as first-born, and the blessing fell on one more worthy, and the rights of the priesthood passed to the next son of Adam, which according to Bible record was Seth, who magnified the Priesthood, honored his birth-right, and held the blessing of the Priesthood, which was sealed upon him by his father; and from him it descended upon the righteous of his posterity.” – Erastus Snow

Blacks Not Born Innocent

Way to Perfection, pg. 102; In the spirit of sympathy, mercy and faith, we will also hope that blessings may eventually be given to our negro brethren, for they are our brethren-children of God-notwithstanding their black covering emblematical of eternal darkness.” – Apostle Joseph Fielding Smith

James 2:1-4; My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.  2 For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; 3 And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: 4 Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?

The LDS book used above was written in 1949 by then apostle Joseph Fielding Smith who later became the tenth president/prophet of the Church.

Cain, Mark of

Way to Perfection, pg. 106; President Woodruff, in his journal, records the words of President Young as follows:  The Lord said, I will not kill Cain, but I will put a mark upon him, and that mark will be seen upon the face of every negro upon the face of the earth; and it is the decree of God that that mark shall remain upon the seed of Cain until the seed of Abel shall be redeemed, and Cain shall not receive the Priesthood, until the time of that redemption. Any man having one drop of the seed of Cain in him cannot receive the Priesthood; but the day will come when all that race will be redeemed and possess all the blessings which we now have.-History of Wilford Woodruff, p. 351.” – Joseph Fielding Smith

Genesis 4:11, 15; And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand  15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

What in the world?  Why would anyone born of God say such awful things about an entire race of people, God’s creation?

Cain Despised Among All People

Way to Perfection, pg. 110; The name of Ham is also rather significant, for it means “swarthy” or “black.” It is possible that this is an appellation given to the third son of Noah because of the part he played in preserving through his lineage-and that most likely, as we have tried to show, through his wife Egyptus-the race of blacks upon whom the curse was placed. Piecing together the evidence as we discover it in holy writ and in tradition, we are brought to the conclusion that Ham, through Egyptus, continued the curse which was placed upon the seed of Cain. Because of that curse this dark race was separated and isolated from all the rest of Adam’s posterity before the flood, and since that time the same condition has continued, and they have been “despised among all people.”  This doctrine did not originate with President Brigham Young but was taught by the Prophet Joseph Smith.” – Joseph Fielding Smith

Blacks are Satan’s Representatives after Flood

Gospel Kingdom, pgs. 103; …And then the devil put on a long face and said, I imagined I had got rid of these fellows; but they are going to have a chance yet that I did not think of. And after the flood we are told that the curse that had been pronounced upon Cain was continued through Ham’s wife, as he had married a wife of that seed. And why did it pass through the flood? Because it was necessary that the devil should have a representation upon the earth as well as God.” – John Taylor

Genesis 6:10; And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

1. Ham’s name means “burnt”.

2. Cain lived circa 3979 BC.  Ham lived circa 2440 BC. 

3. The Mormons teach that being black is a sin and therefore evil.

4. The Bible clearly states the curse was upon Canaan because of Ham’s behavior, not because of his color (Gen. 9:18-29).

5. The Bible never gives the name of Ham’s wife or her race.

Gospel Kingdom is a collection of thoughts and writings of John Taylor, 3rd prophet of the LDS Church.

Blacks, Why They Were Accepted into Church

Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg. 353; Under these conditions President Spencer W. Kimball began an exhaustive personal study of the scriptures as well as statements of Church leaders since Joseph Smith, and asked other General Authorities to share their personal feelings relative to the longstanding Church policy. Then he began to inquire of the Lord if the time was not right to extend the priesthood blessings to this restricted people. Recalling this period, President Kimball stated, “Day after day, and especially on Saturdays and Sundays when there were no organizations in the temple, I went there when I could be alone.” The result was a revelation on 1 June 1978.

Romans 12:2; And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Truth:  the Mormon Church was being pressured by many to change their racist ways.  One example was the NCAA who was threatening to boycott the BYU football team.

Racism in the Church/Blacks cannot Scrub off the Black Mark of Cain

Millennial Star, No. 27, Vol. 14; For instance, the descendants of Cain cannot cast off their SKIN OF BLACKNESS, at once, and immediately, although every soul of them should repent,…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;…” – Saturday, August 28, 1852

John 8:44;Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

The words of Jesus says it all.

Racism in the Church/Descendants of Ham have Black Hearts

Times and Seasons, vol. 6 (January 15, 1845 – February: pg. 857; History and common observation show that these predictions have been fulfilled to the letter. The descendants of Ham, besides a black skin which has ever been a curse that has followed an apostate of the holy priesthood, as well as a black heart, have been servants to both Shem and Japheth, and the abolitionists are trying to make void the curse of God, but it will require more power than man possesses to counteract the decrees of eternal wisdom.

Genesis 9:24-27; “And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.  25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.  26 And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. 27 God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.”

I thought it was the descendants of Cain that had the curse?  If anyone has a black heart it has to be those who teach these things.

Blacks are Cursed

Evening and Morning Star, vol. 1 (June 1832-May 1822): pgs. 18-19; And again the Lord said unto me, Look, and I looked towards the north, and I beheld the people of Canaan, which dwelt in tents. 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 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 thereof shall go forth forever: And there was a blackness come upon all the children of Canaan, that they were despised among all people.

RACISM IN MORMON SCRIPTURE

2 Nephi 5:21; And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them.

Genesis 4:11, 15; And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

Isaiah 38:18; “For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.”

This is yet another example of the Mormon god hating dark people.  How can anyone believe skin color determines worthiness or that you could be baptized for dead people?

2 Nephi 26:33; “…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.

Galatians 3:28; There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

This is an example of how the Mormon Church confuses its members.  At the time this was written the Church didn’t like black people.  Additionally, this passage of “scripture” supposedly took place around 545 BC.  Jews and Gentiles were not alike unto God at this time.

 2 Nephi 30:6; “And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing unto them from the hand of God; and their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a pure and a delightsome people.”

Genesis 1:27; “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Psalm 5:9; For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.

 The BoM verse above used to say “a white and delightsome people”.  This is an interesting verse.  In my 1976 version of the Book of Mormon the latter part of the verse says “…save they shall be a white and delightsome people”.

Who has ever heard that white means pure or that pure means white?

Alma 3:6; “And the skins of the Lamanites were dark, according to the mark which was set upon their fathers, which was a curse upon them because of their transgression and their rebellion against their brethren, who consisted of Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph, and Sam, who were just and holy men.

Colossians 3:10-11; “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: 11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

Growing up in the Church I can remember always thinking I was less of a person in Mormonism because of my dark coloring.  For years I felt God hated me for what I had supposedly done in the pre-existence.

3 Nephi 2:14-15; “And it came to pass that those Lamanites who had united with the Nephites were numbered among the Nephites; 15 And their curse was taken from them, and their skin became white like unto the Nephites.”

1 John 2:9; “He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.

 It sounds like their god is a god of magic.

Racism in the Pearl of Great Price/Seed of Cain is Black

 Race Issue, Blacks are Cursed

Moses 7:8; For behold, the Lord shall curse the land with much heat, and the barrenness thereof shall go forth forever; and there was a blackness came upon all the children of Canaan, that they were despised among all people.

Genesis 6:10; And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Those the Lord can and will save are those who the Mormon Church throws away.

Moses 7:22; “And Enoch also beheld the residue of the people which were the sons of Adam; and they were a mixture of all the seed of Adam save it was the seed of Cain, for the seed of Cain were black, and had not place among them.”

Joel 2:1; “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand.”

If the people who were black had no place among the righteous then why was Ham who was blessed marrying into that clan?

Abraham 1:24-27; “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.  25 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.  26 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.  27 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.”

Proverbs 3:5; “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

1. Pharoah was not righteous.

2. Egyptus definition from Mormon Doctrine says there are 2 women name Egyptus.  One is the descendant of Cain who was married to Ham and the other is their daughter.  The Mormons believe the first Pharaoh was the grandson of the daughter Egyptus.

3. SOOO – if the mom Egyptus was already black and Ham married outside the approved “race”…

4. The Bible says that Ham was blessed.

 

4 Responses to “The Curse of Cain and the Mormon Church”

  1. Hiram August 13, 2011 at 9:13 pm #

    I have been in the church my entire life. You accuse the church of little ‘quarter twists’ of truth, so as to look more legitimate. Yet it is you, who are twisting the truth.

    In my experience as a faithful member of the church, I have never run into a single person who showed any racism, not a single person.

    Further, the so-called ‘curse of cain’ as you put it is not, nor ever has been a doctrine of the Church. The reasons they could not hold the priesthood had to do with the curse of Ham. And it was not just blacks, but all of Ham’s descendants who were cursed… not by God, but by Noah, Ham’s father.

    The King James version of the bible teaches us that Ham attacked Noah during a moment of weakness. When Noah recovered, he cursed Ham and all his descendants.

    If you want to make the claim that the KJ version of the Bible is racist, than that is between you and the Lord.

    Noah placed a curse on his son Ham, that neither he nor his descendants would hold the priesthood. It has nothing whatsoever to do with modern prophets, who were bound by the Lord’s covenants with an earlier prophet.

    Many modern day prophets had long prayed for this curse to be lifted. Journal and other writings show these prayers extending as far back as the first leaders of the Church.

    In deed, the LDS Church was at the forefront of the abolition movement, helping many slaves to escape.

    A prophet is in the unfortunate position of having to do what he is told. He does not get to make up doctrine. Sometimes this means enforcing covenants from earlier / ancient prophets, that put these modern prophets in uncomfortable positions.

  2. CamdenC August 16, 2011 at 3:41 am #

    Hiram, Hiram, Hiram… Did you not read the posted article?

    How old are you? Only reason I ask is that apparantly you have had the privelage of being a member of the LDS church “post-racism”.

    I was born into the church in 1968, ten years before the “priesthood revelation” and was still a member 16 years after the revelation. (26 years old when I gave my heart to Jesus)

    You must have been born well after 1978 to have never met any members that were racist towards the African-Americans (We used to refer to them as blacks or N——.) And just because nobody is openly racist towards them today, doesn’t mean that they are not racist in their heart.

    I was raised up in the church with racism and it was totally acceptable throughout our ward to think less of, make fun of, look down our self-righteous noses at them, learn about their inferiority in our priesthood and Sunday school classes, make no attempt to evangalize them, and just have a general disdain towards them (Like “hey, they didn’t even take sides in heaven and us white folks fought on the side of Jesus!”)

    Did you ever get to see the play, “Saturday’s Warrior”?

    I went to the same ward for 26 years and only once when I was a priest did I see a black person at church. You could see the people staring at them and hear the whispering “what are they doing here?” “Look how they are dressed” I mean it was like an old western movie when the gunslinger walks into the bar and the piano playing and carousing stops… I was guilty of being involved with the “murmuring” against them. How did me and my fellow priests “rebell” as teenagers? We listened to Reggae music… boy that really ticked off our parents and leaders… My dad went off the deep end when I brought home a “Run-DMC” album. (12″ vinyl disc with 2 sides that plays at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute on a record player)

    Even though I was raised from day one to believe they were a lesser people, I still deep down inside knew that there was something wrong with the doctrine. And yes, it was and still is a doctrine. You can try to confuse it between Cain and Ham but just because past leaders have contradicted each other, doesn’t take away from the fact that it is, was, and always will be a shameful and very un-Christian way of thinking, acting, and believing. I have been a Born Again Christian for 16 years. Because of my job, we have lived in 6 different states in the last 9 years. Not once at any of the dozen or so Christian churches we have attended have I ever heard one pastor contradict another pastor about the Gospel, salvation, faith, grace, the Word, etc. Furthermore, in 16 years of Christian church I have never heard anything from the pulpit or congregation that was anywhere close to racism. “God so loved THE WORLD that He gave His only begotten Son”

    Racism was alive and well not only around church, but was very prevelant in my own family. My grandpa, dad, and uncle all told “N” word jokes like it was nothing. In fact the only jokes I knew growing up were about blacks and people of Polish ancestory. Racist jokes were told around the campfire at Boy Scout outings and Jamborees.

    Hiram, to deny that there never was racism or that the teachings were never there is a failed attempt at trying to “sweep it under the rug”. And even if you say that when those quotes above were spoken or written down, that person was not speaking as a “Prophet”, “Apostle”, or “Spokesman for the church” (very common for the LDS to claim that), then you have to throw out everything they ever said or wrote down. It’s the whole “allowing a little leaven in” problem.

    What if somebody came to you and said, “Here is a brand new bottle of the purest mountain spring water you could ever get. It was bottled at the source of an underground spring, high up in the Andes Mountains. It has been filtered, purified, and tested to be the purest water known to man. Would you like to drink some? You would, great. Here I will open it for you… Now, before I give this to you let me pull this little bottle out of my pocket and put a couple of drops of poison in it.. not a lot, just a couple of drops… There, a very small amount of poison has been added to this bottle of pure water. Go ahead, drink it…”

    Would you drink it?

    When you are ready to come to terms with the church’s history in regards to the blacks, the curse, lesser spiritual blessings, slavery, racism, and contradictions in leadership… let me know. I will be here to tell you how I called the bishop of my ward and told him that I have been freed by the Son, “and if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed”. Also how I told him that I have had a new heart put inside me and I am going to follow Jesus, not Joseph…

  3. melinda February 26, 2015 at 12:42 am #

    I Think you are wrong to assume the previous Mormon’s comment comes from a juvenile Mormon. I am a Mormon and was born in 1975. I think your problem is you were raised as a UTAH Mormon. There is a huge difference between being raised Mormon is Utah and being raised utside Utah. I can say this because I was raised outside Utah but have lived here for 20 Years and I have lived In Provo, (graduate f BYU) SLC and now reside in Northern Utah. There is a pronounced difference in how people in Utah are raised and there is also a very pronounced difference in how jack Mormons behave from Utah as opposed to Jack Mormons from others areas. I believe you are bitter because you experienced issues that are common to how Native Utah residents tend to behave. I actually feel sorry for those that are raised here because it is still hard to live here and not be LDS. My father was born and raised here and I have never been taught that anyone being born a darker or olive skinned was a sin. An my parents were never opposed to me marrying and having children with someone of another race (gasp he is dark). I have, however, experienced racism here while living in Provo. I just think of those people as ignorant. You have a right to your feelings and experiences, people here can be some of the most deluded people have encountered. But I have also met and befriended those from here that are the most genuine, wonderful people. You should not assume that because someone is an active member it means they believe in racism and all the other stuff you spouted off. To each their own you should forgive people their ignorance but should also let people believe what they want. You say you’ve found Jesus but I think you need to tell yourself that because if you really did then you would still have the need to bash and criticize others you don’t have to believe but Jesus would want you to let go of bitterness and recognize men are just humans and therefore, are not perfect. Let it go and you will find true peace and happiness. Let others believe what they want and what makes them feel good. And keep in mind where you were raised and that Utah is better than it was when I moved out here. It is getting better, but you also have to take responsibility for how you criticize because you are doing what was done to you……..

  4. jaqueline February 26, 2015 at 12:52 am #

    You are a deluded self righteous douchebag 🙂

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