The racial beliefs of Brigham Young have been coming up lately as part of the Latter-day Saints discourse in light of the larger American debate over racism and police brutality. The problem is that most people, even the Saints themselves, are either completely misinformed or are entirely ignorant of who Brigham Young was, his impact on the American West, and his beliefs regarding race and slavery. This article is aimed at correcting these errors, exploring Brigham Young’s ideas on these issues, good and bad, and explaining why the Saints should take great joy in Brother Brigham’s legacy today despite his erroneous beliefs about race.
Tag: LDS
Was Joseph Smith A Pedophile?
Anti-Mormons like to hurl the accusation that Joseph Smith was a pedophile at members as a way to attack their faith. The facts of history say otherwise though.
All Killing is Forbidden by the Gospel of Jesus Christ
The voice of the Lord to the Saints today is loud and sharply clear: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Thou shalt not steal; neither commit adultery, nor kill, nor do anything like unto it. (D&C 59:6) Notice the Lord does not say “murder,””shed innocent blood,” nor give any other exemption. Nor are there any problems with translations to cause debates about the meaning of the words in question. God has forbidden the Saints to kill for any reason.