Mormon Coffee

The ‘restoration’ according to the Bible: “In summary, the ‘restoration of all things’ and ‘the regeneration’ both refer to the same event and time, namely, the coming of the glorious kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ and all of the changes that will occur then.  The whole earth will be ‘restored’ and ‘regenerated’ into righteousness and obedience.” (>>)

 If Mormonism is false, should we do nothing about it?

There seems to be a pervasive notion among many non-Christians that even if Mormonism is a religion fundamentally based on lies, people who know about it should, in a manner of speaking, simply sit back, kick up their feet, and take up wine-tasting. To quote Kevin Barney, a Mormon apologist associated with FAIR:

“I like to think that were I ever to leave, I would simply walk away. This has been the case with those of my family who are no longer involved in the Church, and I hope that I would be able to follow their example should it ever come to that.

“But I may be deluding myself. I have a huge intellectual investment in Mormonism (much, much more than any of my family members who have disengaged), and I can see how it would be hard not to remain engaged in thinking and writing and talking about Mormonism, albeit from a different perspective. Still, I like to think that I would indeed just walk away, take up wine drinking and focus my scholarly sensibilities on something else. Even if I came no longer to believe, I think I would still see the value in the Church for others and would not want to interfere with anyone else’s beliefs.” (>>)

I do not find this to be very loving. I want to live my life in such a way that I treat people the way I would want to be treated if I were in their shoes, especially considering what I know now. It is hard for to think, “If I was a worshiper of Baal and Yahweh was the one true God, I would hope that people would help me stay in ignorance or delusion or hardheartedness.” If I was a Mormon, and if Mormonism was based on a con-man, and if the Bible were still trustworthy in what it says about God and salvation and false prophets, I would want someone to “interfere” with my beliefs. Letting me go my merry way in a delusion isn’t loving. That kind of “tolerance” is for the lazy and cowardly who lack the moral integrity to step up and be gutsy, iconoclastic whistleblowers. Jesus wasn’t lying when he said, “and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”  (John 8:32).

If Mormonism isn’t true, it would be incredibly loving and pro-Mormon to help destroy the religious system which enslaves the Mormon people with false promises.

Tragically, I have met scores of Mormons who disagree. I ask them, “If Mormonism isn’t true, would you want to know? If Mormonism isn’t true, and if it is leading people down a spiritually destructive path of damnation and enslavement to deceit, what should Christians like me do about it?” The answers are often shocking, but they reveal the heart’s condition. Apart from the radical, life-changing, perspective-revolutionizing, worldview-shaping work of the Holy Spirit, even the most relevant scripture and compelling arguments for the importance of truth cannot circumcise a calloused heart. As Jesus said, “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:7-8)

Knowing this, Christians are called to be patient and kind, to persist in teaching and correcting, praying that God would “grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 2:22-26). “What is impossible with men is possible with God” (Luke 18:27).

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For discussion: How would you answer the two aforementioned questions?

Note: This thread is not about whether Mormonism is true or false, but rather about what one should do if it is indeed false. Even if you firmly believe Mormonism is true, I would hope that you would still be able to answer the question instead of merely criticizing the hypothetical.

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Daniel Peterson, “heir to the slippery Hugh Winder Nibley”, gets caught using a discredited hoax as evidence for the Book of Mormon

Elijah Abel was the first Black man to hold the priesthood in the LDS Church. He received his ordination as Elder on March 3, 1836. Later Elijah was ordained a member of the Third Quorum of the Seventy. In 1838 he went on missions to Canada and New York, and served a mission to Ohio late in his life.

While in Nauvoo, Joseph Smith gave Elijah the calling of an undertaker. Elijah was a good friend of the Prophet’s; he once (unsuccessfully) attempted to rescue the Prophet from illegal detainment in Illinois.

When Elijah arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in 1853, he contributed his carpentry skills to the building of his third temple, having previously worked on both the Kirtland and Nauvoo temples. Elijah worked at many trades throughout his life, including performing in minstrel shows with his family.

Following is the text of Elijah Abel’s Patriarchal Blessing, pronounced by Joseph Smith, Sr., circa 1836:

[Patriarchal] Blessing of Elijah Able who was born in Frederick County, Maryland, July 25th 1808.

Brother Able, in the name of Jesus Christ I lay my hands upon thy head to bless thee and thou shalt be blessed even forever. I seal upon thee a father’s blessing, because thou art an orphan, for thy father, hath never done his duty toward thee, but the Lord hast had his eye upon thee, and brought thee through straits and thou hast come to be rec[k]oned with the saints of the most High. Thou hast been ordained an Elder and anointed to secure thee against the power of the destroyer. Thou shalt see his power in laying waste the nations, & the wicked slaying the wicked, while blood shall run down the streets like water, and thy heart shall weep over their calamities. Angels shall visit thee and thou shalt receive comfort. They shall call thee blessed and deliver thee from thine enemies. They shall break thy bands and keep thee from afflictions. Thy name is written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Thou shalt travel in the East and visit foreign countries, speak in all various tongues, and thou shalt be able to teach different languages. Thou shall see visions of this world and other worlds and comprehend the laws of all kingdoms, and confound the wisdom of this generation. Thy life shall be preserved to a good old age. Thou must seek first the kingdom of heaven and all blessings shall be added thereunto. Thou shalt be made equal to thy brethren and thy soul be white in eternity and thy robes glittering: thou shalt receive these blessings because of the covenants of thy fathers. Thou shalt save thousands, do much good, and receive all the power that thou needest to accomplish thy mission. These and all the blessings which thou canst desire in righteousness, I seal upon thee, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

W.A. Cowdery Assist. Recorder [emphasis added]

Though Elijah spent his life serving in the LDS Church, he had one desire which was denied him in this life. According to A Book of Mormons,

“Abel had received washings and anoitings in the Kirtland Temple in 1836, before the complete endowment ceremonies had been established. Though he acted as proxy in baptisms for the dead in Nauvoo and Slat Lake City, Brigham Young denied his request to be sealed to his wife and family [8 children]: that was a ‘privilege’ he ‘could not grant,’ a decision later reaffirmed by President John Taylor.” (Richard S. Van Wagoner and Stephen C. Walker, 4)

As race relations in the Church continued to deteriorate over time, LDS Apostle Joseph Fielding Smith even attempted to deny that Elijah Abel had ever been a priesthood holder. Responding to a private inquiry, Mr. Smith claimed Church historian Andrew Jensen had gotten it wrong when he put Elijah’s ordination to the priesthood in the Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia. Mr. Smith suggested that there were two men named Elijah Abel; the historian had confused the “names and the work done by one man named Abel … with the name of the Negro who joined the Church in an early day.” (Joseph Fielding Smith to Mrs. Floren S. Preece, 18 Jan. 1955, S. George Ellsworth Papers, Utah State University, Logan)

A few years later Joseph Fielding Smith changed his position, writing in another private letter,

“According to the doctrine of the church, the Negro, because of some condition of unfaithfulness in the spirit—or pre-existence, was not valiant and hence was not denied the mortal probation, but was denied the blessing of the Priesthood. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints he has the privilege of baptism, confirmation and membership along with everyone else, as far as this life is concerned.

“…It is true that elders of the church laid hands on a Negro and blessed him ‘apparently’ with the Priesthood, but they could not give that which the Lord had denied. It is true that Elijah Abel was so ‘ordained.’ This was however before the matter had been submitted to the Prophet Joseph Smith. …It was afterwards that the Prophet Joseph Smith declared that the Negro was not to be ordained.” (Letter from Joseph Fielding Smith to Joseph H. Henderson, April 10, 1963)

Elijah Abel died in Utah on Christmas Day, 1884. His obituary, which appeared in Deseret News, said Elijah “died in full faith of the Gospel.” He was buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery. In 2002 a monument was erected over his grave and dedicated by LDS Apostle M. Russell Ballard.

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New article by Rob Sivulka: Don’t good feelings indicate the Book of Mormon must be from God?

My husband & I have supported your ministry for a few years now & appreciate your work with Mormon believers. My sister & her husband are Mormons. I just visited their home last weekend when their youngest son returned from his 2-year mission. I have noticed over the past few years that their abstinence from drinks containing caffeine has changed significantly. They never used to drink any beverage containing caffeine; so they drank only 7-Up, Root Beer, & Postum. Now, my sister’s family, anyway, has started drinking Coke & Dr. Pepper but still no coffee or tea. What’s the deal? I thought the “problem” with those drinks was the caffeine.

Hello,

When it comes to the caffeine issue, Mormonism is anything but consistent. For example, in a January 8, 1965 letter, Joseph L. Anderson, Secretary to the First Presidency under David O. McKay, wrote:

Dear Brother C**:

Your letter of January 1st addressed to Miss Clare Middlemiss, secretary to President David O. McKay has been referred to this office for answer.

You indicate that you are the home teacher of a sister residing in your ward who has a Word of Wisdom problem in that she drinks coffee. You state that you are trying to help this sister overcome this problem by the use of Sanka or Postum. As your letter is understood, you are desirous of knowing the attitude of the Church regarding the drinking of Sanka Coffee.

I am directed to tell you that the drinking of a beverage made from the coffee bean, from which all caffeine and deleterious drugs have been removed, is not regarded as a violation of the Word of Wisdom.

In answer to your second inquiry as to whether President McKay has given and written suggestions for studying the gospel and the scriptures, I am directed to tell you that we know of no such written suggestions on this subject.

In answer to your final question as to the date when President McKay may have received revelations pertaining to the new priesthood correlation, home teaching, and family home evening programs, please be advised that we have no recorded date of such revelations.

Sincerely yours,

Joseph L. Anderson
Secretary to the First Presidency

We find LDS Seventy Sterling Sill stating in a conference message four months later:

“And one of the most damaging sins and one that gives greatest strength to our death instinct is the violation of that great revelation given 132 years ago called the Word of Wisdom. Some violators of this law tend to excuse themselves because it appears to be such a small thing. It seems like just a little disobedience, a little caffeine a little nicotine, a little friendly indulgence in alcohol. Yet these are the springboards to disease, broken homes, immorality, disloyalty to God, physical death, and the death of many of our eternal interests” (Sterling Sill, Conference Report, April 1965, p.88).

Mormon Apostle John A. Widtsoe, on page 96 of his book, Joseph Smith As Scientist, called caffeine a ‘vegetable poison.’ He states,

“Without going into further details, it is readily seen that the teachings of Joseph Smith, in 1833, in relation to the value of tea and coffee in human drinks, harmonizes with the knowledge of today. Moreover, he was in advance, in the certainty of his expressions, of the scientists of his day. It is true that caffeine had been found in coffee and tea a few years before the revelation of 1833, but the physiological action of the drug was not known until many years afterwards.”

Thomas G. Alexander, in his book Mormonism in Transition (p.267) addresses the caffeine issue:

“Still, church members were not long in making the link between stimulants and additives on the one hand and the Word of Wisdom on the other. On October 15, 1924, representatives of the Coca Cola Company called on President Grant to complain that Dr. T. B. Beatty, state health director, was using the church organization to assist in an attack on Coke. They asked President Grant to stop him, but he refused at first, saying that he himself had advised Mormons not to drink the beverage. Beatty, however, had been claiming that there was four to five times as much caffeine in Coke as in coffee, when in fact, as the representatives showed, there were approximately 1.7 grains in a cup of coffee and approximately .43 grains or about a fourth as much in an equivalent amount of Coke. After a second meeting President Grant said that he was ‘sure I have not the slightest desire to recommend that the people leave Coca Cola alone if this amount is absolutely harmless, which they claim it is.’ Beatty, however, insisted that he [p.268] would still recommend against its use by children. The question was left unresolved, and evidence indicates that while the First Presidency has taken no official stand on the use of cola drinks, some members urged abstinence.”

Gary James Bergera noted in a 1985 Sunstone article (”Has the Word of Wisdom Changed Since 1833?”):

If interpreted as prohibiting the use of all drinks or substances containing caffeine (the chief drawback of coffee and cola drinks), the Word of Wisdom would forbid:

1. Brewed coffee, which contains 100 to 150 milligrams of caffeine per cup.
2. Tea, which contains 60 to 75 milligrams of caffeine per cup.
3. Coca Cola, Mountain Dew, Tab, Pepsi, and Dr. Pepper, all of which contain more than 30 milligrams of caffeine per 12 ounces.
4. Anacin, Cope, Vanquish, Excedrin, and No-Doz, all of which contain over 30 milligrams of caffeine per tablet.
5. Cocoa, with anywhere from 6 to 142 milligrams of caffeine per cup. (Sunstone 10:7/33 [Jul 85]).

Science continues to show that coffee and tea are generally not health hazards. In fact, some studies show that both liquids actually have health benefits.

Bill

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