A few years ago, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared the following thoughts in general priesthood session:<\/p>\n
Sometimes we think of the Restoration of the gospel as something that is complete, already behind us\u2014Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, he received priesthood keys, the Church was organized. In reality, the Restoration is an ongoing process; we are living in it right now. It includes \u201call that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal,\u201d and the \u201cmany great and important things\u201d that \u201cHe will yet reveal.\u201d\u00a0Brethren, the exciting developments of today are part of that long-foretold period of preparation that will culminate in the glorious Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.[1]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Drawing on the nineth Article of Faith, President Uchtdorf talked about the Restoration of the gospel as an ongoing process, even today.\u00a0 Since then, the idea of ongoing Restoration has caught on as a paradigm to discuss changes in the Church that result from continuing revelation and changing circumstances in the world.<\/p>\n
One of the paradoxes of the Restoration of the Gospel that I\u2019ve discussed before<\/a> is that there are both concepts that the Church has to change and adapt through continuing revelation and that there is a \u201cperfect state\u201d that needs to be restored (and thus must also stay static to maintain that perfect state after it is achieved).\u00a0 The goal of restoration in general is to return something to a former condition.\u00a0 Joseph Smith looked to return to the Christianity practiced in the New Testament era, as indicated by his statement that: \u201cWe believe in the same organization that existed in the primitive church, viz: apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists &c.\u201d[2]<\/a>\u00a0 The basic idea seems to be that if \u201cGod is the same yesterday, today, and forever,\u201d[3]<\/a>\u00a0then His Church must be as well.\u00a0 And, to some degree, that seems to be what Joseph Smith taught, stating that the Lord\u2019s \u201cpurpose\u00a0in himself in the winding up scene of the last dispensation is, that all things pertaining to that dispensation\u00a0should be conducted precisely in accordance with\u00a0the preceeding dispensations. \u2026 therefore he set the\u00a0ordinances\u00a0to be the same for\u00a0Ever and ever.\u201d[4]<\/a>\u00a0 This sets up an ideal state (a perfect, New Testament-style church and gospel) that must be returned to and maintained forever as the restored church.<\/p>\n
At the same time as restoration, ongoing revelation is a necessary part of the Church\u2019s DNA, even though it does lead to some instability.\u00a0 Joseph Smith indicated as much when he wrote that: \u201cWe believe all that God has revealed, all that he does now reveal, and we believe that he will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the kingdom of God.\u201d[6]<\/a>\u00a0 And a part of that need is that the context that we live in changes as societal norms shift or various situations arise.\u00a0 That\u2019s why President John Taylor taught that:<\/p>\n
[We have] always required new revelations, adapted to the peculiar circumstances in which the churches or individuals were placed.<\/p>\n
Adam\u2019s revelation did not instruct Noah to build his ark; nor did Noah\u2019s revelation tell Lot to forsake Sodom; nor did either of these speak of the departure of the children of Israel from Egypt. These all had revelations for themselves, and so had Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Jesus, Peter, Paul, John, and Joseph. And so must we, or we shall make shipwreck.[7]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
There is a need for that revelation and that change, even if it runs against the concept of a restoration in some ways.<\/p>\n
The reality is that things change with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.\u00a0 For example, at this last general conference, President Russell M. Nelson discussed changes to temple ordinances.\u00a0 A change in ordinance seems to contradict Joseph Smith\u2019s statement that the Lord \u201cset the ordinances to be the same for Ever and ever.\u201d\u00a0 I.e., if there is one perfect state that must be restored, a change indicates that either the old way of doing things was wrong or the new way is a mistake.\u00a0 But the Church has made several changes to temple ordinances, even during my lifetime.\u00a0 In his address, President Nelson draws a little on both sides, initially stated that: \u201cTemple ordinances and covenants are ancient. \u2026 In the house of the Lord, we can make the same covenants with God that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob made. And we can receive the same blessings!\u201d\u00a0 That takes the restoration-centric view that what we do in the temples is a return to ancient and eternally correct process.<\/p>\n
Later in the address, however, President Nelson noted that: \u201cUnder the Lord\u2019s direction and in answer to our prayers, recent procedural adjustments have been made.\u201d\u00a0 He positioned these changes as being due to ongoing revelation: \u201cCurrent adjustments in temple procedures, and others that will follow, are continuing evidence that the Lord is actively directing His Church.\u201d\u00a0 To navigate the gap between those views, he does indicate that some things never change: \u201cThe procedure changed, but the covenants remain the same.\u201d\u00a0 He also chose to describe changes to temple ordinances over the course of the Restoration as a process of them being \u201cgradually refined.\u201d\u00a0 Ultimately, President Nelson focused on changes to temple ordinances as being set in a context where: \u201cThe Restoration is a process, not an event, and will continue until the Lord comes again.\u201d\u00a0 And, when looking to accomplish the central goals of the restoration more effectively, \u201cthe Lord reveals more insights. The ongoing Restoration needs ongoing revelation.\u201d[5]<\/a>\u00a0 In many ways, it felt like President Nelson was walking a tightrope in explaining beneficial changes that were concerning to some members of the Church because they contradicted the idea of a restoration for reasons described above.<\/p>\n
Now, I remember being asked one time while discussing the idea of an ongoing restoration whether the concept was based on the idea that the initial Restoration under Joseph Smith was deeply flawed (and it takes revelation and restoration to fix those flaws), or whether it was rooted in the idea that the initial Restoration was correct and it just needs minor tweaks and adjustments here and there to make it work a little better.\u00a0 To be honest, I feel like it is some of both (depending on the example), as well as shifting context and circumstances that come together to make change necessary.<\/p>\n
A prime example of changing circumstances is the Church\u2019s history with polygamy.\u00a0 Although illegal in the United States throughout the entire period it was officially practiced, pressure from the federal government to abandon the practice was gradually ratcheted up over several decades until it became unbearable.\u00a0 The Latter-day Saints believed, however, that they were doing God\u2019s will by entering plural marriages and kept doing so as long as possible. \u00a0By 1890, however, things reached a point that President Wilford Woodruff felt that: \u201cI have arived at a point in the History of my life as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints whare I am under the necessity of acting for the Temporal Salvation of the Church. The United State Governmet has taken a Stand & passed Laws to destroy the Latter day Saints upon the Subjet of poligamy or Patriarchal order of Marriage.\u201d[8]<\/a>\u00a0 He issued the Manifesto (known today as Official Declaration 1<\/a>) as a result, which sounded the death knell for plural marriage in the Church.\u00a0 In describing his rationale to the Saints in Cache Valley, Utah, President Woodruff stated that: \u201cThe Lord showed me by vision and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, you would have had no use for \u2026 any of the men in this temple at Logan; for all ordinances would be stopped throughout the land of Zion. Confusion would reign throughout Israel, and many men would be made prisoners. This trouble would have come upon the whole Church, and we should have been compelled to stop the practice.\u201d[9]<\/a>\u00a0 Circumstances had changed as more and more laws had been passed and enforced by the U.S. government prohibiting polygamy, requiring a change in Church practice.<\/p>\n
And, while initially the change was entirely pragmatic in its presentation, time and reflection have led to a refinement in doctrine.\u00a0 Within the past few years, the Church has clarified that plural marriage is the exception, not the law, and indicated that it was rescinded on a permanent basis.\u00a0 Gordon B. Hinckley laid the groundwork in his 1998 address when he gave his reasons for having nothing to do with polygamy: \u201cMore than a century ago God clearly revealed unto His prophet Wilford Woodruff that the practice of plural marriage should be discontinued, which means that it is now against the law of God.\u201d<\/a>[10]<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0The Gospel Topics essay on Plural Marriage confirmed that this was the official stance of the Church, stating that: \u201cLatter-day Saints believe that the marriage of one man and one woman in the Lord\u2019s standing law of marriage,\u201d but noted that plural marriage was instituted for a time by revelation.[11]<\/a>\u00a0 More recently, Kate Holbrook (a church historian) spoke at a face to face event at the time\u00a0Saints<\/em>, vol.1 was released, stating that: \u201cOur church leaders have taught us that monogamy is the rule and plural marriage is the exception.\u00a0 And our Church leaders have taught us that plural marriage is not necessary for exaltation or for eternal glory.\u201d\u00a0 Elder Quentin L. Cook backed up her comments by stating that: \u201cIn the senior councils of the Church, there\u2019s a feeling that polygamy as it was practiced has served its purpose, and we should honor those saints.\u00a0 But that purpose has been accomplished and that, that it isn\u2019t necessary.\u201d[12]<\/a>\u00a0 As a gradual refinement of the reasons for abandoning the practice of polygamy, Church leaders have embraced the idea of monogamy as God\u2019s law.[13]<\/a><\/p>\n
At other times, things were brought into the Church that should not have been incorporated and it has taken time to sift them out.\u00a0 In January 1858, an early Church leader named Zerah Pulsipher told his family that: \u201cMost of you are young therefore you have the advantage of me because [yo]u have less Gentile Traditions to over com[e].\u201d[14]<\/a>\u00a0 The Saints who joined together to form the Church (Joseph Smith included) came from an existing religious tradition and were part of an Anglo-American culture, and they brought many of their \u201cGentile Traditions\u201d in with them as they entered the Church.\u00a0 One of the most toxic examples of this centers on concepts of race that early Latter-day Saints brought with them into the Church.\u00a0 In the second volume of the official history of the Church, this came up in a discussion about the position early converts to the Church that were Black, such as Jane Manning James, found themselves in: \u201cJane \u2026 knew that white Saints generally accepted black people into the fold. Like other groups of Christians at this time, however, many white Saints wrongly viewed black people as inferior, believing that black skin was the result of God\u2019s curse on the biblical figures Cain and Ham. \u2026 Brigham Young shared some of these views.\u201d[15]<\/a>\u00a0 These concepts of a curse on Cain<\/a> and a curse on Ham<\/a> being linked to individuals of black African descent were originally developed and spread as a justification for transatlantic slave trade and the ongoing enslavement of black Africans.\u00a0 The ideas were imported into the Church as part of the general cultural assumptions of early members and were used as the supporting ideology for a race-based priesthood and temple ban.<\/p>\n
When Official Declaration 2 was released in 1978, that began to change.\u00a0 Because of the declaration, \u201call worthy male members of the Church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color.\u201d[16]<\/a>\u00a0 This removed the need to draw on the rationalizations to defend current Church practices.\u00a0 Beginning in the late 1980s, Elder Dallin H. Oaks began to proclaim that while \u201csome people put reasons to\u201d the priesthood and temple ban, those reasons \u201cturned out to be spectacularly wrong.\u201d<\/a>[17]<\/a>\u00a0 In 2013, the Gospel Topics essay on Race and the Priesthood was published with the approval of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve and declared that: \u201cToday, the Church disavows the theories advanced in the past that black skin is a sign of divine disfavor or curse, or that it reflects unrighteous actions in a premortal life; that mixed-race marriages are a sin; or that blacks or people of any other race or ethnicity are inferior in any way to anyone else. Church leaders today unequivocally condemn all racism, past and present, in any form.\u201d[18]<\/a>\u00a0 Between these two statements and the one found in the official history of the Church, it is clear that it is the stance of the Church today that earlier views about race commonly held and taught by Church members in times past were wrong\u2014they were dross that had been wrongly integrated into the Church but have since begun to be purged to fix the flaw.<\/p>\n
In any case, one way that I\u2019ve thought about this ongoing process of creating the Church through restoration and revelation is the concept of iterative equations.\u00a0 When modeling complex processes mathematically, such as fluid flow, sometimes an equation with a lot of variables is needed.\u00a0 And, once in a while, when an estimate of a specific variable is needed, there isn\u2019t a perfect equation available to just spit out the answer.\u00a0 So, instead, an equation is used where an estimate of the value is plugged in with all the other variables to produce another estimate of the answer that is, ideally, closer to reality.\u00a0 That new estimate can then be plugged back into the equation to generate yet another estimate of the answer that is, ideally, closer to reality than the previous answer.\u00a0 Over time, if all goes well, the estimates being produced will converge and stabilize to a point that they aren\u2019t changing significantly and you have what is likely a pretty close answer to reality.\u00a0 To some degree, I think of the Church and Gospel that we experience as being an estimate of the truth.\u00a0 Each generation, that estimate is put through the equation and churns out a refined version of the gospel that, if all is going well, is moving us nearer to the truth and life that God wants for us.\u00a0 While the current version is only an estimate (and thus has flaws and problems), it is the best estimate we have available and we need to keep living and working with it to try and further the Restoration as an ongoing process, leading up to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.\u00a0 Perhaps it\u2019s just me that finds looking at it that way beneficial, but it has proven helpful to me in understanding changes and concerns about the Church.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Footnotes<\/strong><\/p>\n
[1]<\/a> Dieter F. Uchtdorf, \u201cAre You Sleeping through the Restoration?\u201d General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints<\/em>, April 2014, https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/general-conference\/2014\/04\/are-you-sleeping-through-the-restoration?lang=eng<\/a><\/p>\n
[2]<\/a> \u201cChurch History,\u201d 1 March 1842,” p. 709, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed December 12, 2021, https:\/\/www.josephsmithpapers.org\/paper-summary\/church-history-1-march-1842\/4<\/a><\/p>\n
[3]<\/a> Moroni 9:9.<\/p>\n
[4]<\/a> “Instruction on Priesthood, circa 5 October 1840,” p. 2, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed December 12, 2021, https:\/\/www.josephsmithpapers.org\/paper-summary\/instruction-on-priesthood-circa-5-october-1840\/3<\/a><\/p>\n
[5]<\/a> Russell M. Nelson, \u201cThe Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation,\u201d Conference Report of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, <\/em>October 2021, https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/general-conference\/2021\/10\/47nelson?lang=eng<\/a>.<\/p>\n
[6]<\/a> \u201cChurch History,\u201d 1 March 1842,” p. 709, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed December 12, 2021, https:\/\/www.josephsmithpapers.org\/paper-summary\/church-history-1-march-1842\/4<\/a><\/p>\n
[7]<\/a> Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: John Taylor<\/em>\u00a0(SLC: LDS Church, 2011), Ch. 17.<\/p>\n
[8]<\/a> Wilford Woodruff,\u00a0Wilford Woodruff\u2019s Journal: 1833-1898, ed. Scott G.\u00a0<\/em>Kenney,\u00a09 vols.<\/em>\u00a0(Midvale, UT: Signature Books, 1983), 9:113-114 (September 25, 1890).<\/p>\n
[9]<\/a> Cache Stake Conference, Logan, Utah, Sunday, November 1, 1891. Reported in\u00a0Deseret Weekly,<\/em>\u00a0November 14, 1891.\u00a0 See Also OD1, https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/scriptures\/dc-testament\/od\/1?lang=eng<\/a><\/p>\n
[10]<\/a> Gordon B. Hinckley, \u201cWhat Are People Asking about Us?\u201d CR October 1998,\u00a0https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/general-conference\/1998\/10\/what-are-people-asking-about-us?lang=eng<\/a>.<\/p>\n
[11]<\/a> \u201cPlural Marriage in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,\u201d\u00a0Gospel Topics Essays<\/em>,\u00a0https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/manual\/gospel-topics\/plural-marriage-in-the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints?lang=eng<\/a>\u00a0accessed 14 March 2020.<\/p>\n
[12]<\/a> Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults: A Face to Face Event with Elder Quentin L. Cook 9 September 2018\u00a0https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/broadcasts\/face-to-face\/cook?lang=eng<\/a>.<\/p>\n
[13]<\/a> See Chad Nielsen, \u201cEmbracing Jacob\u2019s Sermon,\u201d Times and Seasons <\/em>17 March 2020 for a more detailed discussion. https:\/\/www.timesandseasons.org\/harchive\/2020\/03\/embracing-jacobs-sermon\/<\/a><\/p>\n
[14]<\/a> Zerah Pulsipher record book, circa 1858-1878 MS 753 1, Church History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.<\/p>\n
[15]<\/a> Saints 2<\/em>, p. 71,\u00a0https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/history\/saints-v2\/part-1\/05-bowed-down-to-the-grave?lang=eng<\/a>.<\/p>\n
[16]<\/a> Official Declaration 2, https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/scriptures\/dc-testament\/od\/2?lang=eng<\/a>.<\/p>\n
[17]<\/a> Dallin H. Oaks cited in \u201cApostles Talk about Reasons for Lifting Ban,\u201d\u00a0Daily Herald,<\/em>\u00a0Provo, Utah [5 June 1988]: 21 [Associated Press]; reproduced with commentary in Dallin H. Oaks,\u00a0Life\u2019s Lessons Learned: Personal Reflections<\/em>\u00a0[Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Co., 2011], 68-69.<\/p>\n
[18]<\/a> https:\/\/www.churchofjesuschrist.org\/study\/manual\/gospel-topics-essays\/race-and-the-priesthood?lang=eng<\/a>, accessed 7\/29\/2020.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A few years ago, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared the following thoughts in general priesthood session: Sometimes we think of the Restoration of the gospel as something that is complete, already behind us\u2014Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, he received priesthood keys, the Church was organized. In reality, the Restoration is an ongoing process; we are living in it right now. It includes \u201call that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal,\u201d and the \u201cmany great and important things\u201d that \u201cHe will yet reveal.\u201d\u00a0Brethren, the exciting developments of today are part of that long-foretold period of preparation that will culminate in the glorious Second Coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.[1] Drawing on the nineth Article of Faith, President Uchtdorf talked about the Restoration of the gospel as an ongoing process, even today.\u00a0 Since then, the idea of ongoing Restoration has caught on as a paradigm to discuss changes in the Church that result from continuing revelation and changing circumstances in the world. One of the paradoxes of the Restoration of the Gospel that I\u2019ve discussed before is that there are both concepts that the Church has to change and adapt through continuing revelation and that there is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10397,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,2895,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-church-history","category-come-follow-me-currculum","category-general-doctrine"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10397"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42316"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42318,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42316\/revisions\/42318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}