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Saturday, June 9, 2012

Video: Chris Rock says Mormons thought blacks "the Devil" until 1978

During an appearance on Jimmy Fallon's late show, Chris Rock said that Mormons "believed black people were the devil until 1978." While Romney's followers assume their roles as candidate defenders and party loyalists, many don't seem to realize the potential powder keg this stuff can be. The truth is that Mormonism has quite a racist history that didn't end until well after the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's.

In fact, if Mormons of today are to believe that Brigham Young was a prophet who spoke the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, they must themselves be racist as well. Otherwise, they have to renounce Young as a prophet. The truth is simple. Brigham Young espoused racist views.

Chris Rock certainly embellished for comedic effect but this is going to be a real problem for the Romney campaign. Having to explain these things away is Romney's achilles heal and the mainstream media knows it. A common refrain from these outlets is that Romney refuses to talk about his faith.

Folks like Rock are simply chipping away at the wall until Romney will have to address these issues.

Via NewsBusters:

4 comments:

Rolodex1 said...: "Religions do not change their doctrines." ? So let's see then, Jews once had prophets, now they have rabbis, Jews once practiced polygamy, now they don't. Early Christians had "all things in common," and practiced communalism, and now they don't. Jesus would not do missionary work among the Gentiles (would you call Him a racist), and then Peter had a revelation that changed that after Jesus was dead. The founding principle of the Southern Baptist religion was based on the right for white men to own slaves, but now they don't believe that. If you are going to dig up everything that has been said in the LDS Church from its inception, then please go back in time to the inception of the Roman Catholics, Baptists or any other religion, and you will see MONUMENTAL changes in their doctrines. Does anyone believe today that adultery or homosexuality should be punished by execution, as the OT specifies? No, well except for a few middle-Eastern fundamentalists, and a few Bible fanatics here in America. People change, mature and progress, and so do their organizations. The Churches are made up of people, human people, who are not perfect, and thus no church is perfect, even if their fundamental doctrines might be perfect. No Mormon I know alive today would ever teach that blacks are descendants of the devil. Several Mormons I know have mixed marriages of black and white, and this is not looked down on or prohibited, as it once was in almost all religions, and they are married in the temple.
Churches or synagogues are not for perfect people, but people who are trying to grow and improve, and who want to fellowship with others that have the same goal, to love God and their Neighbor and Themselves. Some of the worst sinners you can find at Church, but does that mean that we should forbid them? Mormons never had black and white segregated congregations during the time that other churches did, and never banned blacks from coming or joining the Church.
Chris Rock is not showing any care or thoughtfulness or accuracy, because his goal is to be funny...comedians don't usually tell the truth, but exaggerate for laughs. So there was nothing wrong with what he said, only the ding-dongs that took him literally. Rock was referring to one or two statements made OVER 100 years ago by men who held high positions in the LDS Church.; July 5, 2012 at 11:47 PM
Rolodex1 said...: While Catholics have a doctrine of Papal Infallibility, the Mormons have no such doctrine and never have had. In fact, several Presidents of the Church have admitted they were wrong on some things, because men, yes, even men like Moses had opinions about things that were incorrect UNTIL they received further light from the earnest study, prayers and Heaven. If we hold EVERYONE to the standard of--- once they say something or opine something that they cannot change their opinion, imagine how the world would be? Some have quoted Elder McConkie’s prejudiced comments. But what did he say in 1978, when there was a revelation that said different. "I was wrong."
Is there anything more fantastical about a guy that goes up into a mountain and talks to a burning bush, and then comes down with a bunch of commandments, and in a rage smashes them or a man who went to a grove of trees and had a similar discussion and came out with the Book of Mormon? Think people...just don't repeat what you hear others say. These people that throw the word cult around do not even know the definition of the word....they make up their own definition to mean that it is any organization or religion that does not read and see and interpret the Bible the way THEY interpret it. They are intolerant, and cannot conceive that ANYONE but themselves or their local minister can understand the Bible any differently than they do—they are claiming in essence infallibility, usually a doctrine that they despise in Roman Catholics.
Is it Christian to call people names, you who profess Christianity? Is it Christian to tell another person, because they do NOT belong to your Orthodox Protestant Church, that they are NOT a Christian? Who made you God or the Pope to be able to make such a final and terrible judgment towards a Mormon people that from what I know of the ones that are active in the church, try to treat others kindly, do service projects, help build burnt down black churches, that aren’t even their own religion? Christianity is NOT a verbal expression or nametag, it is a way of life, and if you had studied the life of Jesus and how he treated others, you would understand. He was the first Rabbi to have women in his following. He was way ahead there, but he didn't allow Gentiles, period, to be in His inner circle. Circumstances change and times change, and so doctrines and practices change, but the love of God does not change. Would you call Jesus prejudice?
Just for the record, the Mormon Church has ALWAYS had african-blacks in their Church, and Joseph Smith ordained Elijah Abel a black African as a Seventy in the priesthood and sent him on a mission. African blacks came across the plains. Did the Mormons hold backward ideas about blacks, even into the 50's and 60's like most religions did over 100 years ago, yes! But let us allow people to change on their own timetable.
Would these same bible fanatic fundamentalists, have been the first ones to pick up a stone like the Pharisees of old and stone Jesus, because he said he was the Son of God, and then quoted to them out of the OT, where it said, “are ye not all gods,” (John 10:34-36) or because he refused to actively seek converts among the Gentiles? Would you call Jesus prejudice too? He wasn't, but there is a time and a season for everything.; July 5, 2012 at 11:51 PM
Rolodex1 said...: The prohibition against African-blacks holding the priesthood was a tradition that developed and a misinterpretation of the scriptures. It was NEVER a revelation, and that is why it was so hard to overturn, because it had developed by tradition, and there was a never a revelation banning African-blacks from the priesthood, only a few bible and BOM verses that were misinterpreted. You can find Bible verses to justify slavery, but does anyone believe in it today? No, so there is an example, where you don’t take the Bible literally. It took a REVELATION to overturn the tradition in the Mormon Church. The same thing that happened in the early Christian Church when they denied Gentiles even membership, much less the priesthood in the Church. It took a revelation to Peter to overturn that doctrine and practice.
Polynesian blacks like the Fijians, that are much blacker than any African American, have ALWAYS held the priesthood. It had nothing to do with skin color, though some LDS interpreted it that way, because they read certain passages through biased eyes. I know for a fact that there were decades before the revelation, that several Church Presidents struggled and ached with this issue and wanted it to change, but they didn't get a revelation on it, and so they waited, but then Spencer W. Kimball plead with the Lord, and the revelation came. Most people in the Church hated the practice when I was a young man in the 70’s and 80’s, and were relieved and cried tears of joy as did Romney, that this practice was abandoned.
Sometimes prophets have pride and have a hard time admitting they were wrong---has anyone heard of Jonah and the whale? Or Moses who was so distraught that he asked the Lord to strike him dead, because he could not stand the pressure of all these people clamoring after his advice. Read your ENTIRE Bible, not just selected verses, and then you will get a FULL picture of what the Bible teaches.
Most of the people on this board have never even read the Bible entirely, much less studied it---you can see that by their comments. But their ignorant statements are taken as facts. Stop relying on HIGHLY PAID ministers to tell you what the Bible says, and read it for yourself. I like listening to different preachers, but I do so with a discerning ear. Every Church has some truth, and surprise, the Mormons don't have the whole truth obviously, or they would be able to hand us solutions for the problems in the world, and they would have solutions for their own people who struggle to live its strict tenets. They don’t understand and are struggling with the gay issue, but have modified and softened the hardened stance of decades ago, same as with other Churches. One size does NOT fit all---can't anyone see that each person is a distinct individual and what works for one, may not work for all? Perhaps you can have programs for the majority of the people, but they do NOT fit everyone's need. We have 50 million people that have no health insurance. Why in a Christian-professing nation, do we not practice Christianity more in our practice and behavior? Because, if you read your NT and OT Bible, it does not outline capitalism, but a communal system under God. Under Ancient Judaism all debts were canceled every 7 years. You couldn’t charge interest. Imagine if anyone proposed that today, they would be cast out on their ear. So yes, DOCTRINES do change.; July 5, 2012 at 11:53 PM
Rolodex1 said...: I am sure God has a sense of humor, because He is for no party---he has his own form of government. I am sure the Devil just loves the bitter hate and feelings that foment over politics. The selfishness of---we have ours and we don't want to have equality or share with others, is that Christian? We go to MBA and Law School and learn to be a shark, and get as much as we can horde, and to hell with everyone else. Is that a Christian attitude? Why are their various types of Mormons---liberals like Harry Reid who is faithful and active in the Church and whose kids have gone to BYU, and conservatives like Mitt Romney, with the same good kids and BYU degrees, who see things oppositely? It’s because the leaders of the Church today, do not tell Mitt or Harry what to do, nor do they ask their church leaders what they should do. These are accomplished men that have a brain of their own, and they represent their constituents, not the Mormon Church.
Why were Orrin Hatch and Ted Kennedy such good friends, because they had respect for each other, and did not vilify each other simply because they saw some issues differently?; July 5, 2012 at 11:54 PM

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Saturday, June 9, 2012

Video: Chris Rock says Mormons thought blacks "the Devil" until 1978

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