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For 130 years (1848-1978), Mormon Church leaders taught the following:
*All human spirits were born sons and daughters of God and one or more of His wives, on the planet that God lives on, which is near a star named Kolob (koe-lawb)
This doctrine was known as The Curse of Cain Doctrine. Because of this doctrine, all black Mormons, and anyone with "one drop of Negro blood" was banned from the Mormon Temple and the Mormon priesthood. All male Mormons over the age of 12 hold the Priesthood, and they must have it in order to get into the highest heaven. All Mormons must be "Endowed" and "Sealed" in a Mormon Temple in order to get into the Celestial Kingdom (highest heaven). Without the priesthood and Temple endowments and sealings, a Mormon can only become an eternal sexless and genderless "servant" to the faithful in heaven.
In the Mormon Church, all males over the age of 12 hold the Priesthood. All males need the Priesthood in order to get "sealed" and "endowed" in a Mormon Temple. Without the Priesthood, a Mormon male cannot be "eternally married" nor can he become a "God" in the Celestial Kingdom. Without the Priesthood, a Mormon male can, at best, become a sexless and eunuched "eternal servant" of the Gods in the Celestial Kingdom.
Mormon Temples are not regular houses of worship. They have many small rooms were various "ordinances" take place. "Sealings" were Mormon couples are "sealed" in "eternal marriages". Masonic-like "Endowment Ceremonies" where Mormons are taught secret words, gestures, and hand-shakes they believe they must know in order to pass by Angel-Sentinels who guard the entrance of the highest heaven called "The Celestial Kingdom". Baptisms for the dead, as well as sealings and endowments for the dead, also take place by living person going through the ordiances "in the name" of a dead person. Mormons must be "faithful" and "worthy" to enter a Mormon temple. Any Mormon who is "banned" from the sealings and endowments cannot become a God or Goddess in the Resurrection, but, at best, only can become a eunuch-servant of the Gods and Goddesses for all eternity.
The Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban Policy is known collectively as "The Curse of Cain Legacy".
Blacks were always allowed in the Mormon Church, and they had full equality under Joseph Smith, but after Brigham Young started the priesthood-ban in 1848, many black Mormons left (including the parents of Charles Mason--the founder of the Church of God in Christ), and, naturally, very few blacks joined the Mormon Church until the after priesthood-ban was lifted on June 8th, 1978.
The Curse of Cain Doctrine was always put forth as "the reason why" blacks were banned from the temples and priesthood. The Mormon Church now claims (since 1996) they "don't know the reason why" they banned blacks for 130 years! Mormon leaders are lying and trying to "cover up" the Church's Curse of Cain Legacy.
The Mormon Church has not taught "The Curse of Cain Doctrine" since 1978. On June 8th, 1978, the Mormon Church lifted the Priesthood-Ban Policy, allowing black Mormons full equality in the Mormon Church. Why? The reasons are....
*Starting in the 1950s, black Africans hear about The Book of Mormon, and receive copies of it from family and friends in England and the U.S., and some of them start independent "Mormon" Churches such as "The Mormon Church of Nigeria"; by 1965, there are over 70,000 black Africans who belong to independent Book of Mormon believing churches in Ghana and Nigeria, thanks to various black "Book of Mormon preachers".
Since 1996, the Mormon Church has tried to "cover-up" its own Curse of Cain Legacy! And the Church has been quite successful in doing so.
We want to start a Media Campaign that will "force" Mormon leaders to "come clean" about the Church's racist past, and to issue a Public Apology for the Curse of Cain Doctrine and Priesthood-ban Policy. If you are interested in helping us with The Mormon Church MUST Come Clean! Campaign, then please email me at:
darrick_evenson@yahoo.com
1) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("Mormon Church") was founded by the Prophet Joseph Smith and five others in 1830. There have been black Mormons since 1832.
If Mormons inquire about the Curse of Cain Legacy they are told "Ask your bishop!" I've heard bishops affirm it is a Church Doctrine still today. Others bishops say it never was a doctrine. Some younger bishops, especially if they are converts to the Church, have never heard of "The Curse of Cain" before! But most bishops (volunteer ministers over congregations of about 300) usually tell Mormons the following:
To date (2012) all inquiries about the Curse of Cain Legacy (the Curse of Cain Doctrine and the Priesthood-ban Policy) from non-mormons, journalists, and non-mormon reseachers, are forwarded to LDS Public Affairs, who consistently tell non-mormons: "No, the Church has NEVER in its history taught that blacks are cursed! Nor has it taught that blacks are the children of Cain. Some Members of the Church may have believed this folklore at one time, but this folklore was never Church Doctrine."
They (LDS Public Affairs) are lying and have been since 1996; when Elder Russell M. Ballard (a Mormon apostle) became the Executive Director of the LDS Public Affairs Dept.
Before June 8th, 1978, all "Negroes" and anyone with "one drop" of "Negro" blood were banned from the Mormon priesthood and all Mormon temples. All Mormon males over the age of 12 hold the Priesthood, and they must "hold" it in order to get to the highest heaven and become Gods. All Mormon couples, if they are faithful, are "sealed" in "Eternal Marriages" in Mormon Temples, and "endowed" in a Masonic Like ritual. Without the "sealings" and "endowments" they have no hope of eternal marriage or Exaltation (becoming Gods and Goddesses).
In 1978, Spencer W. Kimball was the President of the Mormon Church. A small but friendly man, a banker from Safford Arizona. Kimball was known for his humor, magnanimous charity, and also known to condemn white Mormons who showed "superior airs" or prejudice against Native Americans. Kimball was considered a "Moderate" among Mormon leaders.
In 1965 TIME magazine came out with an article called "The Black Saints of Nigeria"; about black Africans who had started their own independent "Mormon" churches. The article also mentioned the "Curse of Cain" and how black Mormons were "banned" from the Mormon priesthood and temples. This article inspired hundreds of other articles in newspapers around the country on the subject; many exaggerated and a few quite inaccurate. Rumors in the African-American community started to fly everywhere that Mormons "hate black folks" and "filled the Klan" and "believe black folks are the children of the Devil" and "have no souls". Some Universities refused to play sports with Brigham Young University. But there were far worse problems;
1. Many Mormon missionaries in North America were facing threats of violence, and many of their investigators (those thinking of joining the Church) were changing their minds because of the Priesthood-ban issue.
2. "The Brazil Situation"--white Brazilian Mormon men, who had been given the Priesthood years before, were doing their family history in order to do "work for the dead" in the new Mormon Temple, but at leats 60% of these white Brazilian Mormon men were discovering they had at least one "Negro" ancestor; making them fall under "The Curse of Cain". If these men were "removed" from the Priesthood, that would almost destroy the Church in Brazil. Also, unless all white Brazilians did their genealogy, there was no way to be sure they had a "Negro" ancestor or not. Future priesthood-holders would also have to be defrocked when they discovered they had at least one "Negro" ancestor.
3. The Church wanted to provide Senior Elders (retired white men) to independent African "Mormon" congregations, but the leaders of Nigeria and Ghana were refusing them visas because of the Curse of Cain issue.
4. (This is rumor only) The U.S. Government purportedly "threatened" to revoke the Church's tax-exempt status if it continued to "discriminate" against blacks (i.e. the priesthood-ban). Had the Government done this, the Church would lose billions a year.
President Kimball "prayed" for many hours, for several months, in the Upper Room of the Salt Lake Temple. Then, on June 8th 1978, seven years to the day that the Genesis Group was founded, he had the following declaration released to the Media:
June 8, 1978
To all general and local priesthood officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout the world:
Dear Brethren:
As we have witnessed the expansion of the work of the Lord over the earth, we have been grateful that people of many nations have responded to the message of the restored gospel, and have joined the Church in ever-increasing numbers. This, in turn, has inspired us with a desire to extend to every worthy member of the Church all of the privileges and blessings which the gospel affords.
Aware of the promises made by the prophets and presidents of the Church who have preceded us that at some time, in God’s eternal plan, all of our brethren who are worthy may receive the priesthood, and witnessing the faithfulness of those from whom the priesthood has been withheld, we have pleaded long and earnestly in behalf of these, our faithful brethren, spending many hours in the Upper Room of the Temple supplicating the Lord for divine guidance.
He has heard our prayers, and by revelation has confirmed that the long-promised day has come when every faithful, worthy man in the Church may receive the holy priesthood, with power to exercise its divine authority, and enjoy with his loved ones every blessing that flows therefrom, including the blessings of the temple. Accordingly, all worthy male members of the Church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color. Priesthood leaders are instructed to follow the policy of carefully interviewing all candidates for ordination to either the Aaronic or the Melchizedek Priesthood to insure that they meet the established standards for worthiness.
We declare with soberness that the Lord has now made known his will for the blessing of all his children throughout the earth who will hearken to the voice of his authorized servants, and prepare themselves to receive every blessing of the gospel.
Sincerely yours,
Spencer W. Kimball
__________________________________________________________________________________________
COMMENT: Official Declaration 2 (also known as "The 1978 Revelation") does not mention, much less condemn, repudiate, nor apologize for, the Curse of Cain Doctrine. It does not even "mention" the Curse of Cain Doctrine To date (2012) the First Presidency of the Church (the presiding quorum) has not repudiated nor apologized for the Curse of Cain Doctrine. LDS Church Public Affairs spokesmen often tell journalists, when they are asked about the Curse of Cain Doctrine: "We'll let Official Declaration 2 speak for itself!" Yet, OS2 does not speak a word about the Curse of Cain Doctrine! This is just another deceptive ploy by LDS Public Affairs.
The Genesis Group of Black Latter-day Saints ("Genesis Group") is the official auxiliary organization for Black Mormons in North America. It is part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are active in Utah and a few other locations around the country where there are more than a "few" black Mormons. Their website is at:
The Genesis Group is active in Utah, Oakland California, and a few other places. Still, the number of "active" black Mormons remains very low. Some have estimated that 90% to 95% of African-American Mormons do not attend the Church anymore. Some black Mormons in North America have requested their own wards (congregations), because many black Mormons in North America feel uncomfortable in predominantly white or Hispanic wards. However, the First Presidency of the Church has denied them their own wards; fearing the Media may start accusing the Church of "segregating" its black members. The Mormon Church leaders are extremely "Media" conscious, and they don't want to do anything to make the American Media think the Church is racist or run by racists (even though most of the older Apostles are in fact moderate racists). So, "black Mormon" wards in North America are not authorized by the Church.
Genesis Group members meet in wards (congregations) according to geographical location, and not race. They meet one evening per month for a Genesis Group "activity" in the Fort Union section of Midvale, Utah. Fort Union was originally founded as a black Mormon colony in Utah in 1850.
There are about 20,000 black Mormons in the United States, but I would guess only about 2,000
are "active (attend Church). This makes it difficult for black Mormons to marry and socialize
with others of their own race. You may try "Black Mormon Singles" to help you find other black Mormons:
Mormon missionaries are young men (and women) who volunteer their time to teach the Gospel as
they understand it. They have not received "one second" of instruction on how to deal with
this issue, which is called "Blacks and the Priesthood Questions" (BPQs). Some of them "lie"
about it. A few of them are honest about it. Others have been told lies by older Mormons that
they sincerely believe is the truth, and then repeat these lies, thinking they are
repeating truths. Thus, not all Mormon missionaries who tell you "the Church never taught
that blacks are cursed" are lying. They have been lied to themselves, and simply believe
the lies they have been told, and they will sincerely repeat these lies to you, thinking
they are telling you the truth.
Go to www.mormons.org and click on "Chat with Missionaries" and when a missionary comes online
ask:
"Did you Church EVER teach that black people were the cursed children of Cain?"
If they say, "Yes, our Church used to teach that!" they are being truthful. Anything other
than that is a lie or equivocation.
Q. Was the Curse of Cain Doctrine and official Church doctrine?
A. YES! Anyone who tries to tell you that it was "just some folklore that some Members believed but never doctrine" is trying to deceive you, or they are deceived themselves. The Curse of Cain Doctrine was taught by top Mormon leaders for 150 years. At no time was it ever presented as "opinion" or "speculation" or "folklore". It was always called "a doctrine of the Church". In an official statement from the First Presidency (three senior Presidents of the Church) called "The First Presidency Statement on the Negro Question" it says:
"The attitude of the Church with reference to Negroes remains as it has always stood. It is not a matter of the declaration of a policy but of direct commandment from the Lord, on which is founded the doctrine of the Church from the days of its organization, to the effect that Negroes may become members of the Church but that they are not entitled to the priesthood at the present time."
"The position of the Church regarding the Negro may be understood when another doctrine of the church is kept in mind, namely, that the conduct of spirits in the pre-mortal existence has some determining effect upon the conditions and circumstances under which these spirits take on mortality, and that while the details of this principle have not been made known, the principle itself indicates that the coming to this earth and taking on mortality is a privilege that is given to those who maintained their first estate; and that the worth of the privilege is so great that spirits are willing to come to earth and take on bodies no matter what the handicap may be as to the kind of bodies they are to secure; and that among the handicaps, failure of the right to enjoy in mortality the blessings of the priesthood is a handicap which spirits are willing to assume in order that they might come to earth. Under this principle there is no injustice whatsoever involved in this deprivation as to the holding of the priesthood by the Negroes.....
"Man will be punished for his own sins and not for Adam's transgression. If this is carried further, it would imply that the Negro is punished or allotted to a certain position on this earth, not because of Cain's transgression, but came to earth through the loins of Cain because of his failure to achieve other stature in the spirit world." (Statement of The First Presidency on the Negro Question, July 17 1947, quoted in Mormonism and the Negro, pp.46-7)
"As you have been advised, your letter of June 16 was received in due course ... We have carefully considered [its] content; and are glad to advise you as follows:
"We make this initial remark: the social side of the Restored Gospel is only an incident of it; it is not the end thereof.
"The basic element of your ideas and concepts seems to be that all God's children stand in equal positions before Him in all things. Your knowledge of the Gospel will indicate to you that this is contrary to the very fundamentals of God's dealings with Israel dating from the time of His promise to Abraham regarding Abraham's seed and their position vis-a-vis God Himself. Indeed, some of God's children were assigned to superior positions before the world was formed.
"We are aware that some Higher Critics do not accept this, but the Church does. Your position seems to lose sight of the revelations of the Lord touching the pre-existence of our spirits, the rebellion in heaven, and the doctrines that our birth into this life and the advantages under which we may be born, have a relationship in the life heretofore.
"From the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith even until now, it is has been 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.
"Furthermore, your ideas, as we understand them, appear to contemplate the intermarriage of the Negro and White races, a concept which has heretofore been most repugnant to most normal-minded people from the ancient patriarchs till now. God's rule for Israel, His Chosen People, has been endogamous [meaning 'marriage within a specific tribe or similar social unit']. Modern Israel [the Mormon Church] has been similarly directed.
"We are not unmindful of the fact that there is a growing tendency, particularly among some educators, as it manifests itself in this are, toward the breaking down of race barriers in the matter of intermarriage between whites and blacks, but it does not have the sanction of the Church and is contrary to Church doctrine.
"Faithfully yours,
[signed]
George Albert Smith
The First Presidency
(John J. Stewart and William E. Bennett, Mormonism and the Negro," [Orem, Utah: Community Press, 1960], pp. 46-47; see also, http://www.signaturebookslibrary.org/neither/neither2.htm and lightplanet.com )
"You have too much of a potentiality for doing good and we therefore prayerfully hope that you can re-orient your thinking and bring it in line with the revealed Word of God." (Stewart and Bennett, "Mormonism and the Negro," p.28)
"The position of the Church"
"the doctrine of the Church"
"another doctrine of the Church"
"the doctrines of the Church"
"the revealed Word of God"
If letters from The First Presidency, signed by all three Presidents, are not "official Church doctrine" then pray tell what ___is___? One cannot get more "official" than a signed letter from the First Presidency! That is as "official" as it gets in the Mormon Church.
At no time did any Mormon leader say "this is my personal opinion"! The Curse of Cain Doctrine was always presented as a "doctrine of the Church" from 1848 to 1978. The Church has never apologized for it, nor repudiated it, nor said it was "in error" or a "mistake". Only recently are some Mormons (including LDS Public Affairs) claiming it was "never doctrine" but "opinion" or "folklore that some Members believed". In fact, just about all white Mormons believed in the Curse of Cain Doctrine (except for some liberal white Mormons), because it was always presented to them as "doctrine" and "the revealed Word of God".
Young Mormons today, and converts, and told nothing about the Curse of Cain Legacy. It cannot be found in any Church manual or history. In 2002, a black Mormon professor at Brigham Young University was "fired" after he helped publish a book ("Black and Mormon") that discussed the Curse of Cain Legacy. The official Black Mormon organization, the Genesis Group, does not discuss the issue, and their website does not mention the Curse of Cain Doctrine anywhere.
Black African and African-American converts to the Church are told nothing about the Curse of Cain Legacy.
Since 1996, LDS Church Public Affairs has told non-mormon inquirers, journalists, and non-mormon researchers that the Curse of Cain Doctrine was "folklore" and "never a doctrine of the Church" and that the Church "doesn't know the reason why" it banned blacks for 130 years!
The vast great majority of journalists believe what LDS Public Affairs tells them!
LDS Public Affairs is lying. They are trying to "cover-up" the Curse of Cain Legacy. They have been since 1996, when Elder Russell M. Ballard, a Mormon Apostle, took control of the Church's Public Affairs Department.
"The Curse of Cain Legacy Cover-up" continues to this day.
Q. Are black Africans the descendants of Cain?
A. Probably not. At least not most of them. There is a tribe in the Arabian penninsula (Saudi Arabia and Yemen) called the "Sleb" ("marked ones") because they have a tribal mark of a "T" (Tau) on their foreheads. This is a tribal mark of protection. If anyone kills a Sleb, then 7 other Sleb will avenge his death. The Sleb also call themselves the Qayin: the Arabic and Hebrew name found in the Bible and Quran that is translated into English as "Cain". They are workers in metal, and have goats and sheep. They do not farm, because they believe the ground does not yield its "fruit" to them. They are not black Africans, but ruddy-skinned Arabs, like all other Arabs of the southern Arabian penninsula (light reddish skin color). They resemble all other southern Arabs, and speak Arabic.
On the other hand, black Africans do not have a "mark of protection". A black skin is not a mark of protection from killers, and there is no "seven-fold vengeance" against those who kill a black African, as there is in the Qayin ("Cain") tribe of Arabia. A black skin only protects the skin from the very harsh Ultraviolet rays of the Sun near the equator. All black-skinned races (Africans, Autraloids, Melanesians, Dravidians, Veddahs, Anamese, etc.), have black skin because their skins must be protected from the harsh rays of the Sun, because these races have spent hundreds of thousands of years near the Equator. Europeans are white-skinned because the rays of the Sun in Europe (especially northern Europe) is very weak; thus their skins need very little protection from the ultraviolet rays. The closer a race evolves near the Equator, where the UV rays of the Sun are strongest, the darker the skin. American Indians have red skin because they evolved living on the Ice Sheets during the last Ice Age, when massive Ice sheets covered most of Siberia and Canada. Massive amounts of ultraviolet light was reflected back off the ice. This is also why Asians have "folds" in their eyes; to protect their eyes from the massive "glare" of the reflected Sun-light on the sheets of ice they lived on for tens of thousands of years. Europeans did not live on the Ice Sheet, nor did they live near the Equator, so they didn't need the added protections of black skin or red skin or Mongolian folds in their eye-lids.
The Middle-Eastern races, who arose in the deserts, needed long noses to help them smell water, and they have "ruddy" skin, to protect them from the Sun, but not black skin; because the UV rays of the Sun are not as strong in the Middle-East as they are near central Africa and northern Australia.
The Sleb ("Qayin") of Arabia don't farm, because they have trouble farming. Genesis says that the ground was "cursed" to Cain, that he could not farm but had to wander. This is true for the Qayin of Araib. On the ohter hand, Black Africans have no problem farming, the ground yields its fruit to them, but the Qayin do have trouble farming. "Cain" (Arabic: "Qayin" Hebrew: "Qayin") obviously refers to the Sleb of the Arabian Penninsula, a wandering tribe of blacksmiths with a "mark of protection" on their foreheads in the form of a "T" (Tau), and not to black Africans.
Q. Are black Africans "Canaanites"; the children of Canaan?
A. No, unless they have the blood of the ancient Egyptians. The Canaanites were the children of Canaan son of Noah. Their descendants today are the Lebanese and Palestinians and Egyptians. They are not black Africans; although most Egyptians have some "black" in them via the Nubians. The Lebanese are white. The original North Africans (the Berbers) are also white unless they have Arabic blood, in which they are "ruddy" complexioned. The Canaanites are of the same "race" as the Jews and Arabs. The ancient Egyptians (who were ruddy-skinned Caucasoids) had "Canaanite" blood in them. Some African tribes are called "Afro-Hamitic" and have some blood from the ancient Egyptians, and thus could be classed as "Canaanite" in the broadest sense of the word, but most black Africans do not have any Canaanite blood in them.
The white slaveholders of the South used the "Curse of Canaan" to justify enslaving black Africans, because, they said, black Africans were "Canaanites" and Noah cursed the Canaanites to become the "servants" of the Japhethites and Semites. But black Africans were not Canaanites. The Canaanites were the Lebanese, the Carthagians of North Africa, the Berbers, and perhaps also the original Egyptians now referred to as the Copts; all white-skinned Caucasoid peoples.
Q. Did Brigham Young teach that the law of God upon inter-racial couples was "death on the spot" for them and their children?
A. Yes he did. But, in defense of Brigham Young (if he can be defended), he said that at a time (1860) when some white Southern Mormon converts were coming to Utah with their black slaves. This may have been a "warning" to those white Mormon slave holders not to mess with their black female slaves. He said:
"mixes his blood" means to have sex or offspring with.
"seed of Cain" means a "Negro".
The threat of death seems to be upon the white man, not both of them; which suggests that Brigham Young was warning white Mormon slave-holders not to "mess" with their female slaves. But, we'll never know for sure.
Q. Did Brigham Young legalize black slavery in Utah?
A. Yes he did, in 1850. Black slavery continued in Utah until the Emancipation Proclamation of Abraham Lincoln in 1863. At least one Mormon apostle (Charles Rich) owned black slaves, as well as the long-time mayor of Salt Lake City, Abraham O. Cannon. Brigham Young never owned any slaves, telling a New York Herald reporter in 1858 that it was cheaper for him to hire laborers than to support slaves. Brigham Young sometimes referred to "Negroes" as "Canaanites".
A black Mormon was killed in Salt Lake City in 1857, when the city was 95% Mormon. His body was found in a gutter. His throat was cut from ear to ear, and a sign hung around his neck saying: "Niggers don't mess with white women". The murder was never solved.
Inter-racial marriage was illegal in Utah until 1969. Any white Mormon girl who "dated" (much less married) a black man was excommunicated. However, Mormon leaders "looked the other way" and allowed Hispanic Mormon women, Native-American Mormon women, and Polynesian Mormon women to date and marry black men. These men formed the bulk of the small but loyal black Mormon community until June 8th, 1978, when the Priesthood-ban Policy was recinded. Before June 8th, 1978, there were no more than 1000 black Mormons worldwide; with no more than 50 to 100 "active" (attending Church) any given Sunday. Today (2012) there are more than 400,000 black and Mulatto Mormons worldwide; mosly in black Africa. About 99% of black African Mormons have never heard of the Curse of Cain Doctrine; because the Church has never informed them, and they have no easy access to the Internet.
Q. Did segregationist laws exist in Utah?
A. A few, but there were never enough blacks in Utah to justify separate bathrooms or drinking fountains or schools. Salt Lake City had very few blacks (1 in 500 people) until recent times (blacks in Salt Lake City are now about 1 in 30 people). Ogden had a small but vibrant black community of several thousand at any given time, because it was a railroad hub and many blacks worked for the railroad. Ogden blacks lived in their own small enclave west of the railroad tracts, but their numbers were still too small to justify separate schools. Like in every other part of America (up until 1965), blacks in Utah sat in the balconies of cinemas, and were banned from most taverns and most restaurants and the Masonic Lodge. There were too few black Mormons to bother giving them separate seating areas in Mormon chapels, but during Priesthood meeting male black Mormons had to sit in the Foyer of Mormon chapels and wait for their Hispanic or Polynesian wives to come out of Relief Society. The Mormon owned amusement parks, such as Saltair and Lagoon, also banned blacks until 1965 when the U.S. Government outlawed segregation nationwide.
There is no doubt that if Utah had a large black population, Mormon legislators would have created "Jim Crow" type laws to segregate them from the white population. But their extremely low numbers in Utah never justified the creation of such laws, except for the ban on black-and-white marriage.
Q. Are Mormons racist?
A. No! Brigham Young was a "racist" but he didn't even "hate" black people! He once said that the white man could be "cursed" for the way they have treated the Negro! But, as most white men of his day, he was a "racist" in that he considered the white race to be superior, and also he considered "Negroes" to fall under the Curse of Canaan. Most white men in his day would have agreed with him. And this is also true of most white Mormons in that day. White Mormons have always had the same general attitude toward blacks as most white Americans for their generation. Today (2012) I would say that the vast great majority of white Mormons are NOT "racist". I would guess the percentage of white racist Mormons as follows:
0-30 years of age: 0.1%
30-50 years of age: 5-7%
50-70 years of age: 15-20%
70-99 years of age: 35-45%
And most of the "racist" Mormons that still linger are old (usually over 60), non-college educated, and live in rural areas of Utah and Idaho. In another 10 to 20 years, there will few, if any, white Mormons left who were taught the Curse of Cain as "a doctrine of the Church". Ten years from now, Mormons are going to think that the Curse of Cain Doctrine was "never a doctrine" but just some "folklore" that "a few Members" believed, and that Mormon leaders always preached against! I am not kidding you! This re-writing of history, this "revisionism" is going on all the time. In September of 2000, Elder Alexander B. Morrison, a Mormon "Seventy" (deputy apostle), wrote in the official Church magazine called the ENSIGN:
In June of 2008, the Deseret News (owned by the Mormon Church) interviewed Elder F. Sheldon Childs; who at that time was a white Seventy (deputy apostle) who was given authority over the Genesis Group (a black Mormon fellowship organization). The Genesis Group of Black Latter-day Saints is an official auxiliary organization of the Mormon Church. It's Presidency is all black, but its "supervisor" is always a white Seventy who reports directly to the all-white First Presidency of the Church. Here is what Elder Childs had to say.
The Mormon Church is successfully "re-writing" its history and "writing out" the Curse of Cain Legacy! As George Orwell wrote in his classic 1984:
In 2008, LDS Church Spokesman Mark Tuttle (LDS Public Affairs) told religion reporter Peggy Stack of the Salt Lake Tribune:
The Reader is encouraged to contact LDS Church Public Affairs and ask them yourself:
Many Mormons who work for the Church believe in "Lying for the Lord"; meaning that if you are "counseled" (ordered) to lie for the Church, you are lying for the Lord, and therefore it is not "really" lying, and certainly not a sin, because the Lord, via His Living Prophet (the President of the Church), has commanded you to do it, and you'll get "blessings" for doing so.
You can contact LDS Church Public Affairs at:
Inquiries from the general public: (801) 240-2205
Inquiries from journalists: (801) 240-1670
Write them at:
LDS Public Affairs Dept.
Q. Was Joseph Smith a racist?
A. No. Joseph Smith was far ahead of his time. He said that "Negroes" of his day (1840s) were ignorant only because they were denied education, and that if they were educated they would be the equal to whites. Joseph Smith ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1843 under the "Mormon Reform Party" ticket, and he was the first American presidential candidate to call for the freeing of black slaves, educating them, and giving them equal rights. He once gave his horse (an expensive white stallion) to a black man in Nauvoo, Illinois, so the black man could purchase his children out of slavery in Missouri. He did once refer to a group of rebellious slaves who killed over 150 white people in Virginia in 1831-2 as "rebellious niggers in the slaves states" but other than that, he was respectful of blacks and wanted them freed, educated, and given equal rights. He ordained Elijah Abel (a Mulatto Mormon) as an Elder and later approved him as a Seventy (deputy apostle). He approved the ordination of other black Mormon men to the priesthood. He never 'banned' them from the priesthood nor Mormon Temples. Joseph Smith was killed in June of 1844 by an anti-Mormon mob in Carthage, Illinois.
The eldest son of Joseph Smith Jr., Joseph Smith III, founded the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which split into "liberal" and "conservative" factions. The liberal (and largest) faction is now called "Community of Christ" headquartered in Independence, Missouri. The conservative factions are called the "Restoration Branches". Joseph Smith III was also pro-black and anti-racist. But most Mormons followed Brigham Young to Utah.
Q. Does The Book of Mormon teach that black people were cursed with a black skin?
A. The Book of Mormon has no reference to black Africans. After Lehi (lee-high) gets to America with his sons and an Arab named Ishmael and his daughters, his descendants split into two groups:
*The Nephites (nee-fights) meaning Nephi, Jacob, Sam, and their wives and children. They retain their white skin.
*The Lamanites (lay-man-nights), Laman, Lemuel, and their wives and children.
The Lamanites (lay-man-nights) in the book are "cursed with a skin of blackness" because they were "filthy" and "idolatrous" and the LORD did not want the Nephites to intermarry with them. Mormons interpret "skin of blackness" variously:
a) that one day the Lamanites woke up to find their white skins had turned white. This was the most popular interpretation for many decades. Traditional Mormon View
b) that the families of Laman and Lemuel intermarried with a black skinned race that already existed in ancient America, and their descendants became black skinned because of these intermarriages. There were in fact a few "black skinned" Native American tribes, but these went extinct within several centuries after the Spanish, French, and English arrived. American Indian tribes are either dark right, light red, or, in the case of some New England tribes, almost white skinned.Intellectual Mormon View
c) that the Lamanites were white-skinned like the Nephites, but ran around almost naked in the Sun, and got deep sun tans. Neo-Mormon View
d) The Book of Mormon is not literal history but a prophetic parable about America (like Paradise Lost): the Nephites are a symbol of the white race in America, and the Lamanites of the colored races in America. Liahona Mormon View
Native Americans (Lamanites) were never banned from the Mormon Temples or Priesthood. The Mormon Church still teaches that Native Americans are "Lamanites". The Book of Mormon promises that if the Lamanites accept Christ they would become "white and delightsome". The Mormon Church changed the verse "white and delightsome" to "pure and delightsome" in 1985. However, most Mormons (including Mormon leaders) interpreted "white and delightsome" literally, and that Laymanites (American Indians) would turn white and Caucasian if they "accepted Christ" (i.e. the Mormon meaning of "accepting Christ" means accepting the Church as true).
However, the Mormon Church still teaches that the Native Americans of today are the Lamanites and the descendants of Lehi (lee-high) the Jew and Ishmael the Arab; although DNA studies of Native American populations show that Native Americans are Asians related to the Mongols and Tungus peoples of Siberia, and that they have zero "Semitic" ancestry. DNA studies have failed to find any Semitic (Jewish/Arab) markers in Native American DNA.
It should be noted that The Book of Mormon also teaches that the black-skinned Lamanites eventually are converted to Christ, and become more righteous than the white-skinned Nephites. Finally, the Lord allows the dark-skinned Lamanites to "utterly destroy" the white-skinned Nephites (nee-fights) because the Nephites become wicked, lovers of Mammon (riches), materialistic, lovers of money rather than God, practice polygamy and concubinage (yes...The Book of Mormon preaches against polygamy!), and reject the Prophets. This final battle at the Hill Cumorah, destroys the entire Nephite nation, about 415 A.D., except for Moroni (more-roe-nai), son of the prophet Mormon, who hides the history of the Nephite nation upon tablets of gold he buries in a hill called the Hill Cumorah, in what is now Upstate New York. In 1823, Moroni, now an Angel of God, appears to Joseph Smith and commands him to retrieve and "translate" the record of the Nephites on the gold plates into English; which Joseph Smith does via the ancient Jewish Urim and Thummim (seers stones) as well as a seerstone Joseph Smith finds in a well years before.
Most Mormons today still see The Book of Mormon as literal history; although the animals mentioned in the book (cows, sheep, goats, donkies, oxen, rideable horses) did not exist in the Americas before the Spanish brought them over in the 1500s. Ancient America did have small unrideable deer-like horses, but these went extinct about 8,000 B.C. The modern horse was introduced to the Americas by the Spanish and French and English.
Some more "intellectual" Mormons, sometimes (perhaps 3% of active Mormons), believe that the "Lamanites" in The Book of Mormon are not the Native Americans, but rather a race that is now extinct; perhaps the "Mound Builders" of North America. A few small "black skinned" tribes did exist in the Americas when the Spanish came, but they too are now almost completely extinct.
There is a very small number of Mormons who call themselves "Liahona Mormons" after the compass called a "Liahona" (lay-ah-ho-nah) in The Book of Mormon, which was a sort of magical compass, who now view The Book of Mormon as a prophetic parable about America, and not a literal history of Jews in ancient America. These Mormons remain Believers, but concede that all available scientific evidence is against the book being ancient history. They see the book as a prophetic warning about the fate of whites in America. In the next 100 years or so the white race in America will become a small minority, like the Nephites in The Book of Mormon who are ultimately destroyed by the Lamanites.
The "Community of Christ" (original name: "Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints"), an early offshoot of the Mormon Church, no longer teaches that The Book of Mormon is historical. They are headquartered in Independence, Missouri, and have about 250,000 members worldwide. They are very liberal, and accepting of homosexuals and are pro-choice.
However, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("The Mormon Church"), headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, continues to teach that The Book of Mormon is a literal history of the Nephites and Lamanites in ancient America, and that the Native Americans are the direct descendants of Laman (lay-man) and Lemuel; the two rebellious sons of Lehi (lee-high) and the daughters of Ishmael the Arab who married the sons of Lehi. Mormon leaders taught for 150 years that "Lamanites" have dark skin and Asian features because the LORD cursed them with a "skin of blackness" because they were lazy, filthy, and worshipped idols. But, not being descendants of Cain, they were never banned from the priesthood or temples.
"Sunstone" (Liberal) Mormons, named after the liberal Mormon publication "Sunstone", generally do not view The Book of Mormon as historical. They view it either as a fabrication or, a "pious fraud", or, at best, inspired fiction like "The Book of Jonah" in the Bible or "Paradise Lost". About 3% to 5% of active Mormons are "Sunstone" Mormons. They are named "Sunstone" Mormons after the liberal Mormon magazine Sunstone which was founded in 1970.
Q. Do Mormons hate black folks?
A. No! White Mormons have never "hated" black people! That is just another myth about Mormons in the African-American Community; one of many. To blame white Mormons "today" for the racism of Brigham Young and other early Mormon leaders, is like blaming all white Americans "today" for the racism of Thomas Jefferson or Abraham Lincoln! Absurd! There are thousands of inter-racial couples in the Church, and there are about 300,000 black African Mormons. Ironicly, in the next 30 years, the Mormon Church will be predominantly black African, and in the next 50 years I'm sure that there will be black Mormon apostles and perhaps even a black Mormon "Prophet". Brigham Young must be rolling in his grave!
The general perception in the African-American Community that Mormons are "racist" and "hate black people" and "filled the Klan" and "believe black folks have no souls" and "believe black folks are the children of the Devil" is false, and based upon false rumors in that Community. White Mormons were no more "racist" than the general attitude of most white Americans in their particular generation they lived in. Very few white Mormons are "racist" today unless they are uneducated, live in rural areas, and are over the age of 60.
Q. Why did Brigham Young begin teaching the Curse of Cain Doctrine and institute the Priesthood-Ban Policy in 1848?
A. The Curse of Cain Doctrine and Priesthood-ban Legacy began not with Joseph Smith (who was pro-black) but with Brigham Young, in 1848. Basically, there are four reasons "why" Brigham Young began the Curse of Cain Legacy in 1848:
The Negro/Cain Connection
Brigham Young had at one time been a follower of Jacob Cochran, a "prophet" in the State of Maine who practiced polygamy. Brigham Young lived with the Cochranites for four months in 1834, while he was a missionary for the Mormon Church. At that time, Brigham Young thought it was not a contradiction to follow "two prophets" (Joseph Smith and Jacob Cochran) at the same time. At that time (1834) Mormonism did not teach that there could be only one Prophet on Earth at a time; that doctrine did not come until much later after the Mormons were in Utah. Jacob Cochran had at one time been a follower of Joanna Southcott, a British "prophetess" who claimed many revelations and had at one time a substantial following. One of her purported "Revelations" called "Negroes" to be the descendants of Cain. The Mormon Church has never recognized Joana Southcott, nor Jacob Cochran, as prophets of God. But Brigham Young and others seemed to have accepted their doctrine that "Negroes" were the children of Cain, and that God changed Cain into the first "Negro". Cain married his sister, and God changed her into the second "Negro". She prophesied that Jesus Christ would return in the year 2004. Some elements of the Mormon Endowment Ceremony, a secret Masonic-like ritual that all Mormons going on missions or getting married must go through, was partially based upon certain secret "rites" invented by Jacob Cochran of Saco, Maine, in the 1820s. Cochran died in 1836, and his widow became a plural wife of Brigham Young.
Abraham 1:26
In 1835, Joseph Smith bought some Egyptian papytus from a man named Michael Chandler. Joseph Smith claimed that "The Book of Abraham--written by his own hand" was among the papyrus, and Joseph Smith "translated" it into English, and had it published. In the first chapter it says that "Pharoah was a righteous man" and desired to have the Priesthood, but because he was of the "blood of the Canaanites" he was "cursed as to pertaining to the Priesthood" (Abraham 1:26). Although Joseph Smith is the originator of "The Book of Abraham"; he did not ban blacks from the priesthood or the temples. The Ancient Egyptians were not black Africans, but of a ruddy-skinned Caucasoid race like the Arabs. Yet, this verse (Abraham 1:26) was used by Mormon leaders to justify that black Africans were "cursed" as pertaining to the Priesthood. Just about all Egyptologists (including Mormon ones) deny that the Joseph Smith Papyrus, from which Joseph Smith "translated" The Book of Abraham, contained the ancient Book of Abraham, but declare that the papyrus Joseph Smith "translated" was a common first century pagan Egyptian "Book of the Dead"; a document which guided the soul into the Afterlife where he would be judged by Osiris. All Egyptologists (including all Mormon Egyptologists except for one) dismiss "The Book of Abraham" as a childish fraud.
The Less Valiant Doctrine
Another justification from the Priesthood-ban was the "Less Valiant Doctrine"; that some human spirits were "less valiant" in the War in Heaven, and thus punished for this "laziness" by being born as Negroes. This "War in Heaven" scenario that "Negroes" were punished on earth for being "less valiant" in the War in Heaven was first taught in a pamphlet by Joana Southcott, a British "prophetess" in 1804. No such revelation about some spirits being "less valiant" in the War in Heaven can be found in the Revelations to Joseph Smith. The Mormon Church today does not accept Joana Southcott as a prophetess, but clearly some early Mormon converts did, and they brought these particular Negro/Cain beliefs with them into the early Mormon Church.
Brigham Young and the William McCary Incident
Brigham Young accepted black Mormons at first, including black Mormon Elders. He referred to Walker Lewis, a black Mormon Elder in Lowell, Massachusetts, as "one of the best Elders" in the Church. However, in 1847, a Mulatto (half-black and half-white) black Mormon Elder in Winter's Quarters, Nebraska, named William McCary, claimed to be "Adam" reincarnated, and he told various young Mormon women they were "Eve" reincarnated, and seduced a number of them by this ploy. McCary claimed to be half American Indian, and to be the son of a famous Indian chief (a lie). McCary's seductions of young white Mormon women ENRAGED Brigham Young, who, after "The McCary Incident" began preaching the Curse of Cain Doctrine and starting the Priesthood-ban Policy of banning all black Mormons, and anyone with "one drop of Negro blood in their veins" from all Mormon temples and the Mormon priesthood. Without the priesthood and temples, black Mormons had no hope of eternal marriage or Exaltation (becoming Gods in the hereafter). All this because of the immoral actions of William McCary; a Mulatto man who was in all likelihood mentally unstable.
Q. Are younger Mormons taught the Curse of Cain Legacy?
A. No. Not a word, unless they hear it from a parent or friend. The Church no longer teaches it, and has instructed their "teachers of Mormon youth" (called "Seminary Teachers" and "Institute Instructors") not to discuss the issue! This leaves these teachers "between a rock and a hard place" if students inquire about the Curse of Cain Legacy. Many Mormon teachers of youth change the subject, or put a "spin" on it such as: "The Brethren banned blacks from the priesthood and temples NOT because they were racist, but because they wanted to protect black Mormons from the racism of white Mormons". Of course...in truth...the Brethren (Mormon leaders are called "The Brethren") were racists, and taught the Curse of Cain Doctrine as "a doctrine of the Church" for 130 years (1848-1978).
Q. Will the Mormon leaders issue a Public Apology for the Curse of Cain Doctrine and Priesthood-ban Policy?
A. No! Not unless they are "forced" to. A public apology would greatly embarrass them. Although they do not "claim" to be "infallible", many Mormons in fact believe they are. They don't repudiate this "aura of infallibility" because it gives them unlimited power and control over rank-and-file Mormons. To issue a Public Apology would be saying that past "Prophets" were "wrong". That would cause many rank-and-file Mormons to start asking: "What are current Mormon Prophets 'wrong' about today?" The Brethren (top Mormon leaders) don't want that! So, instead of a apology, they continue to "lie and deny" the Church ever taught the Curse of Cain Doctrine in the first place. They call the doctrine "folklore" that "some Members" used to believe; thus blaming some nameless and faceless "Members" on it, and not Mormon leaders who taught it as "a doctrine of the Church" to all Members for 130 years.
Q. What is the future of the Curse of Cain Doctrine?
A. The Church is literally "rewriting" its history, and removing all references to the Curse of Cain Doctrine other than to say it was "folklore some Members may have believed at one time". In other words, some nameless and faceless "Members" are blamed for the Curse of Cain Doctrine. But, in fact, the Curse of Cain Doctrine was believed by at least 90% of active Members while it was taught, because it was taught by the very top leaders of the Church for 130 years (1848-1978). Official Declation 2, issued by President Spencer W. Kimball, did not repudiate the Curse of Cain Doctrine! It has never been apologized for nor repudiated. Instead, the Church leaders have decided to simply erase it from Church history, to punish those who still teach it or even talk about it (creating a climate of fear), and blaming "some Members" for it instead of top Church leaders; the ones who taught it to the Membership for 130 years. In other words, the Church is lying! Future generations of young Mormons are being raised to believe that the Church never taught that blacks are cured or the children of Cain. Some of them discover this on the Internet, and many who do lose faith in their leaders (who have lied to them), and they leave the Church. But, most young Mormons simply think the Curse of Cain is an "anti-Mormon lie" and was never taught by their beloved Church leaders. After all....Prophets don't lie!
The following is a story I was told by John Lund, who had been an Institute of Religion Instructor for the Mormon Church in Seattle, Washington, in 1969. Lund was the author of "The Church and the Negro" (1968) which was an overview of "The Curse of Cain Doctrine". At this time (1969) various Universities were refusing to play sports for Brigham Young University; because BYU was owned by the Mormon Church which most Liberals perceived to be 'racist'. Lund was asked by the Trustees of the University of Washington to appear before them and answer questions as to "why" the University should not cancel sports events with Brigham Young University, since "BYU is owned by a racist organization". Lund appeared before them in a public meeting attended by over 1000 students and teachers, but every time he attempted to answer questions a black faculty member arose and said "Why are we listening to this man? We must be CRAZY to want to listen to this man? We must be INSANE!! Why are we listening to him?" Lund was not allowed to speak but was constantly interrupted by the black faculty member. Finally, Lund tried to answer again but the black faculty member arose yet again and said: "We are INSANE to want to listen to this man! We must be INSANE!" So, in frustration, Lund said, "Well, you must be INSANE then-- so I'm leaving!" Lund walked out to the hiss and boos and spittle of the crowd. The next day, the Seattle Times did an article titled "Mormon Leader calls black faculty member Insane". The day after the Seattle Times article, two cars filled with black men carrying tire-irons and basball bats drove up in front of the Seattle LDS Institute of Religion and got out. About 10 to 12 men in all. All armed and yelling "Let's kill all those racist Mormon m****** f******s!" The Institute Director (Jeffrey Holland--later an Apostle) directed Lund to "hold the front doors closed" while he (Holland) marshalled the students out the back door. Lund rushed to the front door and said a quick prayer for protection. Suddenly, one of the black men said, "Hey, this ain't the Mormon Church! This is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Look at the sign! Man, we got the wrong place!" At that point, the dozen black men rushed back into their two vehicles and drove away. No further threats or attempts at violence were reported. John L. Lund is the author of "The Church and the Negro" which is still sold by Amazon.com online. It is a compilation of quotes from Mormon leaders about "Negroes" with some commentary by John L. Lund.
There is more than one "Mormon Church". Not all Latter-day Saints followed Brigham Young to Utah. Some followed Joseph Smith III, or Sidney Rigdon, or Granville Hicks (founder of the Church of Christ (Temple Lot). The following "Mormon" churches have never had a Curse of Cain Doctrine and have never banned blacks from their houses of worship or priesthoods:
Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now called "Community of Christ") 250,000 members.
The Church of Jesus Christ (Restoration Branches) 6,000 members.
The Church of Christ (Temple Lot) 3,000 members.
The Church of Christ Restored 2,000 members.
The Church of Christ (Zion's Branch) 400 members.
The Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints 600 members.
The Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 4,000 members.
The Church of Christ (Cutlerite) 100 members
The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) 12,000 members.
The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message. 10,000 members.
All of these churches are headquartered in the State of Missouri or Pennsylvania. They have no official connections
to the "LDS Church" headquartered in Salt Lake City Utah. All of these churches believe that Brigham Young
was a liar and false prophet who taught "doctrines of the devil". None of these churches ever taught that "Negroes" were the cursed children of Cain. All of them accepted black Members and ordained them to all priesthood offices from the very beginning.
Darrick Evenson started "The Black Mormon Homepage" in 1994 on the Internet, when there was absolutely "nothing" about black Mormon history in LDS bookstores or on the Internet. At the time (1994) not 1 in 10,000 Mormons had ever heard of Elijah Abel (the first black Mormon Elder) . Not 1 in 10,000 white Mormons knew anything about black Mormon history, and fewer cared. This webpage started with 2 pages of text. In 2002, the LDS Genesis Group, the official "Black Mormon" organization, started its own webpage, and you can find it at www.ldsgenesisgroup.org. Yet, the Genesis Group homepage does not deal with the Curse of Cain Legacy. Not one "word" about it. They are forbidden from discussing the Curse of Cain legacy. Any Mormon who even mentions the Curse of Cain will be threatened with a Church Court if they do not desist; this is part of the Church's current campaign to "erase its racist past" from history. For this reason, the original "Black Mormon Homepage" continues. It all of its versions it has seen well over 100,000 "hits".
Darrick Evenson joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1978 after reading positive articles about Mormons in Reader's Digest. He is not black, but is of European and Cherokee lineage. He served an honorable mission for the LDS Church (Calif. San Jose 1983-85) and wote a book ("The Gainsayers") and did a casette tape series ("The Truth Will Prevail" Tape Series published by Tree of Life Productions) in defense of the Church. He spent many years doing research to defend the Church against anti-Mormon claims, and wrote "The Gainsayers" (published in 1989) and "Black Mormons and the Priesthood-ban"; both of which sold in LDS bookstores for many years. However, his research in order to "defend" the Church led him to conclude that Mormon leaders were "changing" Mormon history "for the good of the Church" (i.e. "Lying for the Lord"). He realized that a True Church does not need ____lies____ to help it along! In 1996 he resigned from the Mormon Church. He was never excommunicated nor ever had a Church Court nor ever committed any sin worthy of a Church Court.
Darrick is now a follower of Dr. Da'hesh (1912-1984), the miracle-working Prophet of Lebanon. Da'heshists attend the UNITY churches. For further information on UNITY please go to: unity.org
UNITY was founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore ijn 1890-91, as "The Unity School of Practical Christianity" and is headquartered at Unity Villege, Jackson County, Missouri. UNITY does not officially endorse Dr. Da'hesh or Da'heshism, but it allows Da'heshists to become members of UNITY, and even UNITY ministers. Dr. Da'hesh taught that it does not matter what church, or caste, or religion we belong to, because all are judged equally according to how we treat other sentient beings and by no other criteria: the Atheist who does more good works than the Christian or the Muslim, will get a better reward than they will in the World-to-Come.
If you would like to read about the supernatural miracles and teachings of Dr. Da'hesh, Prophet of Lebanon, send me an email and I'll send you a link
darrick_evenson@yahoo.com
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