THE MORMON CHURCH & BLACK PEOPLE

---

The Mormon Church's RACIST teachings about American Indians and Black Africans, and How the Church is Now Saying: "We NEVER taught that Indians or Blacks were EVER cursed by God!"

---

by Darrick Evenson, former Mormon Elder and missionary.

Dear Reader,

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly called "The Mormon Church", was founded in 1830 in the state of New York, USA, by Joseph Smith Jr, who claimed to be a Prophet of God. Joseph Smith claimed that in 1820, as a boy of 14 years, he prayed to God to know which of the many Christian churches was true. Then he had a vision of God the Father (a white man) and Jesus Christ, who told him that he must not join any of the churches, and but they (God and Jesus) had a special mission for him (Joseph) to perform.

According to Smith, in 1823 the Angel Moroni appeared to him in his room, and told him about a set of "gold plates" (gold tablets) that had a history of an ancient colony of Jews who lived in America from 600 B.C. to 400 A.D., called the Nephites ("nee-fights"). The Nephites were a white-skinned Jewish people who were all killed, except for a handfull, by the Lamanites ("lay-man-nights"). The Lamanites were originally also white-skinned like the Nephites, but God cursed them with a skin of blackness because they were rebels against God. In The Book of Mormon it reads: "And the LORD 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 not be enticing unto my people [the Nephites], the LORD God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them." (2 Nephi 5:21)

In the Book of Alma, which is a book within The Book of Mormon, it read: "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 trangression and rebellion...." (Alma 3:6)

Mormons believe that the American Indians, the natives of America, are the descendants of the Lamanites, and they have red skin because this was the curse of God upon them because their ancestors were evil and rebellious. Even thought The Book of Mormon teaches that American Indians are "cursed" with a dark skin (a red skin), they have always been welcome into the Mormon Church, and have never been denied the Mormon priesthood nor worship in Mormon Temples. But black Africans have been denied these things until 1978.

The Mormon Church also taught for 130 years (from 1848 until 1978) that Negroes (black Africans or anyone who belongs to the black African race) were also cursed by God. Black Africans (and African-Americans) were under a "Priesthood-Ban"; meaning they could become Mormons, but were denied the Mormon priesthood and the right to worship inside Mormon Temples until June 8th, 1978; when the Priesthood-ban was recinded by then Mormon Prophet Spencer W. Kimball.

Today (2009) there are about 13 million Mormons worldwide; about 6 million in the United States (2 million in the State of Utah). There are about 300,000 black Mormons worldwide; about 250,000 in Africa, and the rest in Brazil, Jamaica, and the United States. But before June 8th 1978, there were very few black Mormons; perhaps only a few hundred. This was true because of two things: the Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban Policy. Let's examine both.

---

The Curse of Cain Doctrine

From 1838 until 1978, 130 years, Mormon prophets and apostles taught the following about "Negroe" (blacks):

1) Before this Earth was created there was a War in Heaven in which all spirits, the sons and daughters of God and his wife (called "heavenly mother"), took sides. Two-thirds of the spirits followed Jesus and Michael. One-third of the spirits followed Lucifer (Satan). Jesus and Michael prevailed over Lucifer, and he was cast out of heaven to Earth with those spirits who followed him. He became the Devil and his angels, the demons. They would be denied the right to become humans, but must dwell on earth as evil spirits (Jinn) for thousands of years. But some spirits who fought on the side of Jesus were "less valiant" (lazy), and as punishment, they were to be born as Negroes. This was to be their punishment for not fighting valiantly in the War in Heaven. These would be denied the right to the Mormon Priesthood; which all Mormon men must hold if they are to become Gods. Mormons believe that all faithful Mormons will become Gods and Goddesses; creating their own planets, and peopling those planets with their spirit-children for all eternity.

2) Adam and Eve were white people, and so were their children. Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters. Cain, the eldest child, was jealous of Abel, another son. So Cain killed Abel. The LORD then punished Cain, and turned him from a white man into the first Negro. Cain married one of his sisters, and she was turned from a white woman into the second Negro, and they became the parents of the Negro (Black African) race. The "Mark" of Cain was a black skin, a flat nose, and kinky hair, according to Mormon leaders.

3) All of the "less valiant" (lazy) spirits in the War in Heaven, who followed Jesus but were lazy in the War, would be born into the lineage (bloodline) of Cain. They would be denied the Mormon priesthood in this life. They could become Mormons, but they could not hold the Priesthood nor enter Mormon Temples and receive the Endowment and Sealing rites. Without those rites, black Mormons could go to the Celestial Kingdom (Heaven), but only as servants to white Mormons.

4) The LORD wanted to segregate the white-skinned Sethites (the children of Seth---another son of Adam and Eve) and the black-skinned Cainites (the children of Cain), but the Sethites intermarried with the Cainites. This made the LORD very angry, so He decided to send a flood to destroy all mankind, because the Sethites had disobeyed and married the black-skinned Cainites. The LORD knew that there were a few on Earth who did not disobey Him; like the prophet Enoch and his city. In The Book of Moses (a Mormon scripture) it reads: "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." (Moses 7:22) As a reward for their not marrying with Cainites, the LORD "translated" the City of Enoch to heaven.

5) After the City of Enoch was taken to Heaven, the LORD decided to destroy the Earth and all living things. But He knew that there was one more righteous man on Earth, who did not marry into the Cainites. This man was Noah, who had three sons. So, the LORD decided He would not kill Noah, but save him and his family. But Noah's third son, Ham, disobeyed the LORD, and married a black-skinned Cainite woman (named "Egyptus"), and thus the Cainite (Negro) race continued through the flood. Egyptus, who was a black woman, was pregnant with a Negro child when Ham (a white man like Noah) married her. She then bore a black child named Canaan. And Noah cursed Canaan to be a "servant of servants" to the children of Shem and Japheth; the other sons of Noah. Mormon leaders sometimes refer to black Africans as "Negroes" or "Canaanites"; meaning the children of Canaan. The Canaanites left the others children of Noah and populated Egypt and the rest of Africa.

6) Negroes may be baptized into the Mormon Church, but they cannot hold the Priesthood or receive the Endowment and Sealing rites of Mormon Temples. This means they cannot become Gods and Goddesses like other Mormons, but can only go to the Celestial Kingdom as "servants" of other Mormons who will become Gods and Goddesses.

7) One day the Negro will be given the right to the priesthood, when the Curse of Cain is removed. When that day comes, Negro women will give birth to white children with straight hair and white features. That will be the sign that the Curse of Cain will be removed. But this will only happen after Abel is resurrected, and all of his children and his descendants have been given the Priesthood first. After that, the Curse of Cain will be removed from the "seed" (children) of Cain (Negroes).

This was called the "Curse of Cain Doctrine". It was taught as "a doctrine of the Church" by Mormon prophets and apostles for 130 years. The Mormon Church is now trying to say "We never taught it!" or "It was just personal opinion, never Church doctrine!" They are lying. Any white Mormon, who was born into the Mormon Church, over the age of 50 knows that the Mormon Church taught for 130 years the Curse of Cain Doctrine. But most black African Mormons do not know this racist history. The Church never tells them.

---

The Priesthood-Ban Policy

Because of the Curse of Cain Doctrine, the Mormon Church instituted a "Priesthood-Ban Policy" in 1848. That means that anyone with "one drop" of Negro (black African) blood in them were "banned" from the Priesthood and from Mormon Temples. This priesthood-ban applied to all black Africans, or even whites with any black African ancestry; which is about 8% of all white Americans and about 85% of all white Brazilians.

In order to receive the Endowment and Sealing rites of a Mormon Temple, a Mormon male must hold the Melchizedek priesthood. Mormon women do not hold any priesthood, but nevertheless, any black Mormon, or a white Mormon with Negro ancestry, were banned from all Mormon Temples, until 1978.

Mormon Temples are not houses of worship like churches or mosques. They are comprised of many small rooms. In some rooms the Endowment ceremony takes place. This is a secret Masonic-like ceremony where the Mormon makes covenants to obey Mormon leaders. Before 1990, the Mormon Endowment Ceremony contained "blood oaths" and an actor played the part of a Christian minister who was an agent of Lucifer, but these things were removed in 1990. Mormons who go through the Endowment ceremony wear special white clothing, and watch a film about the Garden of Eden (there is no nudity shown), and then they circle a small altar, and make promises to be honest and moral and to obey Mormon leaders. Then they are taken to a white veil, and they must repeat certain secret handshakes and words. Then they are allowed to pass through the white veil and enter the Celestial Room; which is a symbol of going to the Celestial Kingdom and become Gods and Goddesses for all eternity.

The Sealing rite is where a Mormon man and women kneel on an altar, and a Mormon high priests "seals" them; meaning they will be married in Heaven as they are married on earth. Endowments and Sealings are done for the living and on behalf of the dead as well.

Also in Mormon Temples are baptisms for the dead. The dead are not baptized, but a person is baptized in the name of a dead person; so the dead person can be a member of the Mormon Church in the Spirit-World.

The Priesthood-ban prevented all Negroes, and whites with Negro blood, from entering Mormon Temples and receiving the Endowment and Sealing rites. Without those rites, the Mormon cannot become a God or Goddess in Heaven, and they cannot be married in heaven, but must be a servant to other Mormons in heaven forever.

---

The 1978 Revelation

In 1970, TIME magazine (at that time the most popular American magazine) came out with an article about the Mormon Church, and it mentioned the Curse of Cain Doctrine. The article enraged millions of Americans, both black and white. They considered the Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban policy to be "racist". They wanted the Mormon Church to allow black Mormons the Mormon Priesthood and the rites of Mormon Temples. Mormon Church leaders replied that they could not do this, because the Priesthood-ban was the LORD's doing. They reminded people of what they said in 1951: "The attitude of the Church with reference to Negroes remains as it has always stood. It is not a matter of policy but of direct commandment from the Lord, on which is founded the doctrine of the Church from the days of the its organization, to the effect that Negroes may become Members of the Church, but they are not entitled to the Priesthood at this time." (The First Presidency, August 27, 1951, quoted in Mormonism and the Negro, p.16)

But things began to change. The U.S. Government was threatening to do away with the Church's tax-exemption status, and to deny Mormon students at Brigham Young University federal loans and grants. This would have devastated the Mormon Church financially. Also, the Church was building a Mormon Temple in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Tens of thousands of white Brazilian Mormons had sacrificed greatly to build this temple. Then, it was discovered that 85% of white Mormons in Brazil had at least one Negro ancestor. This meant, under the Priesthood-ban, that 85% of white Mormons in Brazil could not enter the Temple they were helping to build.

That is not all. In Ghana and Nigeria, since 1948, certain black ministers had read articles about Joseph Smith or the Mormon Church; but knowing nothing of the Priesthood-ban. Some of these ministers began to preach using The Book of Mormon, and to create their own independent Mormon churches; without the blessing or knowledge of the Mormon Church in Salt Lake City. Some of these independent churches, such as the Mormon Church of Nigeria, became quite large by the early 1970s; with tens of thousands of Members. Many of these ministers wrote to Salt Lake City saying, "Please send us missionaries, we want to know more about the Mormon Church. We want to be ordained to the Priesthood." The Mormon leaders wrote back and said, "We cannot ordain you, but we can send you white Elders who can perform baptisms." Some of the ministers then discovered the Curse of Cain Doctrine, and concluded they wanted nothing more to do with Mormonism. But, other ministers wanted to remain Mormons; even with the Priesthood-ban. But then the governments of Ghana and Nigeria discovered the Curse of Cain Doctrine, and then denied visas to all white Mormons from America.

Also, some black Nationalist organizations in America, such as the Black Panthers, were threatening terrorist attacks in Salt Lake City, because of the Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban policy.

Faced with these threats and problems, the president of the Mormon Church, Spencer W. Kimball, on June 8th 1978, claimed to receive a Revelation from Jesus Christ, instructing him to end the 130-year old Priesthood-Ban policy. Most white Mormons were overjoyed at this news, because they did not like to be perceived as racist. Also, the hundred or so black Mormons in America were joyous; as were the leaders of the various independent Mormon congregations in West Africa.

Since June 1978, black Mormons have been allowed the Priesthood and the Endowment and Sealing rites of Mormon Temples. Today they are as equal as any other Mormons.

But, the Curse of Cain Doctrine has never been repudiated by Mormon leaders. The 1978 Revelation did NOT say that the Curse of Cain doctrine was false. Nor did it say that the Priesthood-ban policy was wrong or a mistake.

---

Denying the Curse of Cain Doctrine Was A Doctrine of the Church

On June 8th, 2008, on the 30th anniversary of "The 1978 Revelation", about 5,000 black Mormons gathered in Salt Lake City for a celebration. At that time, journalists in Salt Lake City asked the Mormon Church about the Curse of Cain Doctrine, if the Church was willing to call the Curse of Cain Doctrine a "mistake" of the past. Mark Tuttle, who was the official spokesman of the Church, replied:

"This folklore is not part of and never was taught as doctrine by the church" ( Salt Lake Tribune, June 7, 2008)

Mark Tuttle lied. In fact, the Mormon Church has been telling journalists and others since 1996 that the Church "never taught" that blacks are cursed or the children of Cain. They are lying. Mormon Church leaders claim they are "Prophets/Seers/Revelators"; even though they do not prophesy/see/revelate. They claim they do not make mistakes.

Therefore, they cannot call the Curse of Cain Doctrine, which they taught for 130 years, a "mistake". So, instead of apologizing for it, they simply DENY they taught it in the first place, and hope they will be believed. And the 250,000 black African Mormons believe them! They believe anything the white Mormon prophets and apostles in Salt Lake City tell them.

The last part of my article will be a series of quotes from Mormon Church leaders on the Curse of Cain Doctrine; a doctrine that the Church NOW denies it ever taught. You be the judge of that. Please let your Mormon friends and neighbors know about this article. It is time that black Africans become informed about the racist past of the Mormon Church. It is time for the Mormon leaders in Salt Lake City to stop lying about the Curse of Cain legacy, and to issue a pubic apology for it instead of deying they ever taught it as they are not doing.

All of these quotes are from official Mormon publications.

---

Quotes from Mormon prophets and apostles on Negroes being the seed (children) of Cain and being under the Curse of Cain

Joseph Smith (Mormon prophet and founder of the Mormon Church):

"Canaan, after he laughted at his grandfather's nakedness, inherited three curses: one from Cain from killing Abel, one from Ham for marrying a black wife, and one from Noah for ridiculing what God had respect for. Are not the Indians a smple of marking with blackness for rebelliong against God's holy word and holy order? And can we not observe in the skin-color of almost all nations, except for the Europeans, a dark hue, which tells us that they have fallen or changed from the original [white] beauty and grace of father Adam?" (Messenger and Advocate, March 1835, p. 82)

"I do not believe that the people of the North have any more right to say that the South shall not hold slaves, than the South have to say that the North shall hold them. I can say, the curse is not yet taken off fro the sons of Canaan [Negroes], neither will be until it is affected by as great a pwoer as caused it to come, and the people who interfere the least with teh purposes of God in this matter, will come under the least condemnation before Him." (History of the Church 2:438)

"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 Seth 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." (Times and Seasons 6:857)

Oliver Cowdery (Mormon apostle and co-founder of the Mormon Church):

"Let the blacks of the South be free, and our community will be overrun with paupers, and a reckless mass of human beings, uncultivated, untaught, and unaccustomed to provide for themselves the necessities of life, endagering the chastity of every white female who might by chance be found in our streets, our prisons filled with convicts, and the hang-man wearied with executing the fuctions of his office!" (Messenger and Advocate, Sept. 11, 1833)

Orson Hyde (Mormon apostle):

"At the time the Devil was cast out of heaven, there were some spirits that did not know who had authority, whether God or the Devil. They consequently did not take a very active part on either side, but rather htought the Devil had been abused, and considered he had rather the best claim to the government. These spirits were not considered bad enough to be cast down to Hell, and never have bodies; neither were they considered worthy of an honorable [white] body on this Earth. But those spirits in heaven that rather lent an influence to the Devil, thinking he had a little the best right to govern, but did not take a very active part any way were required to come into the world and take bodies in the accursed lineage of Cain; and hence the Negro or African race." (Speech of Elder Orson Hyde to the Quorum of High Priests in Nauvoo, Illinois, April 27th 1845, p.30)

Brigham Young (Mormon Prophet):

"I have never yet preached a sermon and sent it out to the children of men, that they may not call Scripture." (Journal of Discourses 13:95)

"You see some classes of the human family that are black, uncouth, ugly, disagreeable and low in their habits, wild, and seemingly deprised of nearly all the blessings of intelligence that is generally bestowed upon mankind. Cain slew his brother. The LORD put a mark upon him, which was the flat nose and black skin. Trace mankind down to after the flood, and then another cursed is pronounced upon that same race---that they should be the servants of servants, and they will be until the curse if removed." (Journal of Discourses 7:290)

"Ham will continue to be servant of servants, as the LORD decreed, until the curse is removed. Will the present struggle [American Civil War] free the slave? No, but they are now wasting away the black race by thousands. Treat the slave kindly, and let them live, for Ham must be the servants of servants until the curse is removed. Can you destroy the decrees of the Almighty? You cannot." (Journal of Discourses 10:250)

"Shall I tell you the law of God in regard to the black African race? If the white man who belongs to the chosen seed mixes his blood with the seed of Cain, under the law of God, is death on the spot. This will always be so." (Journal of Discourses 13:95)

John Taylor (Mormon prophet):

"After the flood we are told that the curse had been pronounced upon Cain was continued through Ham's wife [Egyptus], as he had married a wife of that seed. And why did it pass through the flood? Because it was necessary that the Devil shoudl have a representation upon the earth as well as God." (Journal of Discourses 23:304)

"When He destroyed the inhabitants of the world before the flood, he allowed a descendant of Cain [Egyptus] to come through the flood in order that the Devil might be properly represented upon the earth." (Journal of Discourses 23:336)

"For instance, the decendants 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 withe friends may wash the race of Cain with fuller's soap every day, they cannot wash away God's mark." (Millennial Star 14:418)

Wilford Woodruff (Mormon prophet):

"What was that mark of Cain? It was a mark of blackness. That mark rested upon Cain, and descended upon his posterity from that time until the present. Today there are millions of the descendants of cain, through the line of Ham, in the world, in Africa, and among the Negroes of America, and that mark of darkenss still rests upon them." (Millennial Star 51:339)

George Reynolds (Mormon apostle):

"A black skin is a mark of the curse of heaven placed upon some portions of mankind. Some, however, will argue that a black skin is not a curse, nor a white skin a blessing. In fact, some have been so foolish as to believe and say that a black skin is a blessing, and that the Negro is the finest type of a perfect man that exits on this earth; but to us such teachings are foolishness. We understand that when God made man in his own image and pronounced him very good, that he made him white. We have no record of any of God's favored servants being of the black race. The pure Negro, as represented by the people of Guinea and its neighboring countries, is generally regarded as the unmixed descendant of Ham. Their skin is quite black, their hair woolly and black, their intelligence stunted, and they appear never to have arisen from the most savage state of barbarism." (Juvenile Instructor, Oct. 15, 1868, p. 157)

"It is very clear that the mark which was set upon the descnedants of Cain was a skin of blackness, and there can be no doubt that this was the mark that Cain himself received. It has been noticed in our day that men who have lost the Spirit of the LORD, and from whom His blessings have been withdrawn, have turned dark to such an extent as to excite the comments of all who have known them." (Juvenile Instructor 26:635)

Brigham H. Roberts (Mormon apostle):

"That the Negro is markedly inferior to the Caucasian is proved both craniologically and by six thousand years of planet-wide experimentation. The co-mingling of the inferior with the superior must only lower the higher." (A Seventy's Course in Theology, p.233)

George F. Richards (Mormon apostle):

"The Negro is an unfortunate man. He has been given a black skin. But that is as nothing compared with the greater handicap that he is not permitted to receive the Priesthood and the ordinances of the Temple, necessary to prepare men and women to enter into and enjoy a fullness of glory in the Celestial Kingdom."

George Albert Smith (Mormon prophet and newphew of Joseph Smith):

"From the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith even until now, it is havee the doctrine of the Church, never questioned by any of the Church leaders, that the Negroes are not entitled to the full blessings of the Gospel. Intermarriage beween the Negro and White races is a concept which is most repugnant to most normal-minded people, and is contrary to Church doctrine." (Letter of the First Presidency to Prof. Lowry Nelson, June 16th 1947, quoted in Mormonism and the Negro, p.16)

Joseph Fielding Smith (Mormon prophet and grand-nephew of Joseph Smith):

"Not only was Cain called to suffer, but because of his wickedness he became the father of an inferior race. A curse was placed upon him and that curse has been continued through his lineage and must do so while time endures. Millions of souls have come into this world cursed with a black skin and have been denied the privilege of the Priesthood and the fulness of the blessings of the Gospel. These are the descendants of Cain. Moreover, they have been made to feel their interiority and have been separated from the rest of mankind from the beginning. We will also hope that blessing may eventually be given to our Negro brethren, for they are our brethren, children of God, notwithstanding their black covering emblematical of eternal darkness." (The Way To Perfections, pages 101-102)

"There were no neutrals in the War in Heaven. All took sides either with Christ or Satan. Every man had his agency [free will] 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 receiveing the reward he merits." (Doctrines of Salvation, volume 1, pages 65-66)

"There is a reason why one man is born black and with other disadvantages, while another is born white with great advantages. The reason is that we [whites] once had an estate [life] before we came here [to earth], and were obdient, more or less, to the laws that were given there." (Doctrines of Salvation volume 1, page 61)

Alvin R. Dyer (Mormon apostle):

"Is God such an unjust person that He would make you white and free and make a Negro cursed under the cursing of Cain that he should not hold the Priesthood of God? There is an imposed judgment placed upon everyone who leaves the Spirit-World. When they [Negroes] left the Spirit-World they have already been judged by what they had done in the Spirit-World and in their previous life. Everything is in order. Why is a Negro a Negro? The reason that spirits are born into Negro bodies is because those spirits rejected the Priesthood of God in the pre-existence. This is the reason you have Negroes upon the earth. You will observe that when Cain was influenced by the power of Lucifer to follow him, Cain rejected the counsel of God. He rejected again the Priesthood. Consequently, you have the beginning of the race of men and women into which would be born those who had rejected the Priesthood of God in the pre-existence." (The Negro in Mormon Theology, pages 48-49)

Mark E. Peterson (Mormon apostle):

"Think of the Negro, cursed as to the priesthood. This Negro, who, in the pre-existence [War in Heaven], 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 the darkest Africa. If the Negro is willing when he hears the [Mormon] Gospel to accept it, he may have many of the blessings of the Gospel. In spite of all he did in the [War in Heaven], the LORD is willing, if the Negro accepts the [Mormon] 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 celestial glory." (Race Problems As They Affect the Church, August 27, 1954)

Bruce R. McConkie (Mormon apostle):

"Though he was a rebel and an associate of Lucifer in the pre-existence [War in Heaven], and though he was a liar from the beginning whose name was Perdition, Cain managed to attain the previledge of mortal birth. Under Adam's tutelage, he began in this life to serve God, but he came out in open rebellion, fought God, worshipped Lucifer, and killed Abel. As a result of his rebellion, Cain was cursed with a dark skin; he became the father of the Negroes, and those spirits who are not worthy to receive the Priesthood are born through his lineage." (Mormon Doctrine, p.102)

"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." (Mormon Doctrine, p.114)

"Through Ham (meaning black), the blood of the Canaanites was preserved through the flood, he having married Egyptus, a descendant of Cain. Negroes in this life are denied the Priesthood; under no circumstances can they hold this delegation of authority from the Almighty. Negroes are not equal to other facres where the receipt of certain spiritual blessings are concerned." (Mormon Doctrine, p.343)

"Racial degeneration, resulting in differences in appearance and spiritual aptitude, has arisen since the fall [of Adam]. We know the circumstnaces under which the posterity of Cain, and later Ham, were born with the characteristics of the black race (Moses 5:16-41). The Book of Mormon explains why the Lamanites received dark skins and a degenerate status (2 Nephi 5:21-22). If we had a full and true history of all races and nations, we would know the origins of all these changes from the physical and spiritual perfections of our common parents have been brought about by departure from the gospel truths." (Mormon Doctrine, p.616)

---

Covering-Up the Curse of Cain Legacy

The Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban Policy is collectively known as "The Curse of Cain Legacy". Since 1997, the Church has been actively trying to "cover-up" that legacy.

In a 1997 interview on the Australian COMPASS television program, Mormon Church president Gordon B. Hinckley was asked:

COMPASS: "What was the reason for that? [i.e. denying blacks the priesthood]

HINCKLEY: "I don't know what the reason for that was."

(COMPASS, aired Nov. 1997, Australian Broadcasting System)

Gordon B. Hinckley lied. He knew very well the reason why blacks were banned. It was because of the Curse of Cain Doctrine. Gordon B. Hinckley taught that doctrine himself or at least 40 years. He lied to avoid embarassment. Mormon leaders are still lying.

Since 1997, Mormon leaders have refused to discuss the Curse of Cain Doctrine. If anyone, journalist or otherwise, asks about the Curse of Cain Doctrine, they are referred to the Mormon Church's "Office for Public Affairs". I contacted this office several times, and this is what I was told:

Evenson: "Did the Church at any time teach that black people were cursed or the children of Cain?"

Donald LeFevre (Public Affairs Office): "No! That has never been a teaching of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." (telephone converstation May 17, 2000)

Evenson: "Did the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints EVER teach that black people were less-valiant in the War in Heaven and were under the Curse of Cain?"

Brett Hales (Public Affairs Office): "No! The Church has never taught that blacks are cursed or the descendants of Cain." (telephone conversation April 20th, 2001)

In a letter from Mormon Church Public Affairs officer Donald Jesse, to Mr. Timothy Killian, dated August 14, 2003, Jesse writes:

"In regards to your question as to why black members of the Church were denied the Priesthood prior to 1978, the position of the Church is that we don't know what the reason was, for the LORD never revealed it." (Mormon Church Public Affairs officer Donald Jesse to Timothy Killian, Aug. 14, 2003)

On June 8th, 2008, about 5,000 black Mormons gathered in Salt Lake City to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the 1978 Revelation (the end to the 130 year old Priesthood-ban) at the Salt Lake City Tabernacle. A white Mormon leader, Elder Sheldon F. Child, was asked to speak at the celebration before the congregation of black Mormons. He said:

"When you think about it, that's just what it is — folklore. It's never really been official doctrine... We have to keep in mind that it's folklore and not doctrine... It's never been recorded as such" (Deseret News, June 7, 2008).

Elder Child lied. He himself taught for many years the Curse of Cain Doctrine, as a doctrine of the Church.

A journalist for the Salt Lake Tribune newspaper named Peggy Stack then asked Mark Tuttle, the Church Spokesman, about the Curse of Cain Doctrine. Tuttle replied:

"This folklore is not part of and never was taught as doctrine by the church" (LDS spokesman Mark Tuttle, quoted in "Mormon and Black", by Peggy Fletcher Stack, Salt Lake Tribune, June 7, 2008)

Mark Tuttle lied. He taught the Curse of Cain Doctrine himself, as a Mormon missionary, many years before, as an official doctrine of the Church.

I call upon all black Africans to write to their governments DEMANDING that they cancel all visas for white Mormons coming into the country, until the leaders of the Mormon Church issue a public apology in which they repudiate the Curse of Cain Doctrine, admit they taught it for 130 years as official Church doctrine, and call the Curse of Cain Doctrine "false" and apologize to all black people everywhere for the Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban policy. Until they issue such a public apology, black African governments should deny all white Mormons visas. Please write to your government officials, if you agree with me on this.

Q. Why is the Mormon Church lying?

A. Because the leaders of the Mormon Church are embarassed about the Curse of Cain legacy. They wish to avoid the embarassment of apologizing for it. Instead, they will simply DENY THE CHURCH EVER TAUGHT IT in the first place!

Thanks for your time.

Darrick Evenson
darrick_evenson@yahoo.com

Darrick Evenson joined the Mormon Church in 1978, and resigned from it in 1996. He served a mission to California (1983-85), and wrote several books in defense of the Church from anti-Mormon attacks. He resigned from the Church because he discovered that the Church is trying to cover-up and re-write its past, and is covering-up many facts about Joseph Smith, Mormon history, and the Curse of Cain legacy. He is now the Director of Dahesh Mission USA; an organization which promotes the life and teachings of Doctor Dahesh (1912-1984), the miracle-working Prophet of Lebanon.

This article is not copyrighted.

---

Post your COMMENTS HERE

---

Suggestions for Journalists who want to Expose the Mormon Church's Curse of Cain Cover-up

---

Mormonism vs. Daheshism: A Brief Comparison

---

The Mormon Church and The Curse of Cain Legacy

---

The Mormon "Negro" Doctrines

---