"We must not inter-marry with the Negro. Why? If I were to marry a Negro woman and have children by her, my children would oil be cursed as to the priesthood. Do I want my children cursed as to the priesthood? If there is one drop of Negro blood in my children, as I have read to you, they receive the curse. There isn’t any argument, therefore, as to inter-marriage with the Negro, is there?”
- Apostle Mark E. Peterson, “Race Problems – As They Effect the Church,” Address given at the Convention of Teachers of Religion on the College Level, delivered at BYU, August 27, 1954
"One drop of Negro blood" was the term I heard frequently.
In 1978, just before the "ban" was lifted, a Tongan member of our SoCal ward -- an Elder, temple-married, with an Aaronic Priesthood aged son -- found a former slave in his ancestry, on his mother's side, 8 generations back.
He "reported" it. He was then immediately stripped of his priesthood (as was his son), his temple marriage was declared null and void, and he was removed from his Elder's Quorum calling.
commongentile Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Brother Kolob, > > What happened to the Tongan member after the ban > was lifted?
It was about three months later that the "ban" was lifted. He and his family had remained active after their shameful demotion. When the "ban" was lifted, the bishop gleefully told him, "Isn't it wonderful? Now you can be re-ordained a deacon, work your way back up through the priesthood, and in a year or so be married in the temple officially!"
He wasn't so gleeful. He (rightly) didn't understand why he had been a worthy elder, then he wasn't because of the race of some long-ago ancestor, then he was again -- but he had to "work" his way back to where he was. It was ridiculous.
He and his family left the church. Never to return. I'm friends with him on Facebook. :) He speaks out about the church's racism.
"Not a drop", eh? Then a number of spirit-discerning leaders were asleep at the wheel with me. My 23andMe results are in and I have 2% West African alleles. The Aaronic ph was conferred on me in 1971 and melchizedek a few weeks before the "revelation" came in.
Does "not a drop" also apply to Neanderthal ancestry? I have 3% of that.
Funnily enough, with Neanderthals DNA it's the other way around, in terms of the races (i.e. Neanderthals lived on the eurasia so white and asian people have remains of their DNA, but not black people).
I have always wondered how ANY Mormon could hold the priesthood, since most (according to their patriarchal blessings) are of the tribes of Ephraim or Manasseh.
According to the Bible, Ephraim and Manasseh were sons of Joseph. Their mother was Asenath, the daughter of an Egyptian priest Potipherah, a pagan priest of On (Genesis 41:50). According to the Book of Abraham (1:22, 27), "all Egyptians" were denied the priesthood, presumably also all their descendants.
So, why wouldn't that include Ephraim and Manasseh's descendants?
Good thing they had a revelation about it before their tax-exempt status was revoked. Not to mention the technology that can detect just how many African drops which many of the good brethren undoubtedly have.
I've wondered the same thing about King David. He was a descendant of Ruth who was a moabite. The whole point of the story is to say that she was a foreigner with mixed blood, in essence a Canaanite, which has a mixture of Hams descendants and therefore cursed. So according to BY Christ was unworthy to be running his own church? Strange.
I mentioned to GBH at a stk conference ... in Seattle.... abt a roomie who discovered African Ancestry... and was allowed to remain PH. He is partly Mexican/Hispanic.
Dave the Atheist Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > is mormonism still hiding the fact that we ALL > have African ancestry ?
Denying, not hiding. Remember, in their little fantasy, white and delightsome Adam & Eve were magically created 6,000 years ago :)