Over at The Millennial Star, the new group blog I participate in, Jeffrey Giliam has commented on the thread on evolution. I followed his link to his blog -- a newcomer to the Bloggernacle: (Issues in) Mormon Doctrine. His blog looks promising; welcome, Jeffrey!
Friday, February 04, 2005
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Yeah - let us reason! According to LDS theology, I have brown skin because a guy named Laman was not very nice to his brother Nephi 3000 years ago. The Book of Mormon clearly says that Lamanites were cursed with a skin of blackness; "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" (2 NE 5:21) . According to this verse in the BOM, dark skin is not "delightsome" nor "enticing" and God gave humanity differentiating skin color so that "fair" people wouldn't mix with people "cursed" with a "skin of blackness". Later in the BOM (3 Nephi 2-14-15) it says that some Lamanites had their skin returned to it's natural beautiful whiteness because of their "righteousness". This blatant racism is prevelant throughout the BOM. Why, one might wonder, is it that few in the LDS community note the blantant racist tenants of the BOM, the "most correct book on the face of the earth", acording to Joseph Smith?
ReplyDeleteThe answer lies in the Mormon emphasis on conformity and obedience. In my experience, questioning, critically analyzing, and disagreeing with church officials and doctrine was not only discouraged - but explicitly not allowed. This demand for unwavering belief even in the face of contrary evidence is not unique to Mormons but is in herent in most world religions. This, however, is just one painful example with which I am intimately familiar. So unless the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints decides to re-write the Book of Mormon, I guess I have Laman to thank for the layer of protective melanin in my skin. Though it doesn't make me "enticing", it does do a great job of keeping out cancer causing ultra-violet rays from the sun! Thanks Laman!
Posted by Smart Monkey
that brings to mind Zelph the White Lamanite, who fought under the Prophet Onondagus, you know what their is a county in new york not too far from Palmyra NY called Onondaga county.
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