Let me state that I was once a huge fan of both Joseph Fielding Smith and Bruce R. McConkie… I loved and respected both of these men as servants of God in part because you knew exactly where they stood on difficult doctrinal positions…neither of them was wishy washy or feared taking a stand, particularly when it came to Mormon Doctrine. Unlike many leders in the church today, neither of these men feared taking a position even when it flew in the face of reality and contrary to the prevailing thought of the day. However despite being great giants in Mormonism…I would dare say that time has not been kind to either of their legacies. The black and white thinking and so many of the teachings that both of these men taught as truth has been eroded by scientific advancement and many of their other teachings have been shown, with the passage of time, to be blatant falsehoods.
While I do not hold them responsible for this reality since they were merely reflecting the general thinking of their day…how are believing members of the church able to reconcile the fact that these men and other black and white thinkers in the church like them got it so wrong. Despite claiming inspiration directly from God…They got so many things wrong at the very time when they were claiming divine inspiration and revelation. If these men got God’s revelations and inspiration to them so wrong, how are we to accept any of Gods revelations to anyone who makes similar claims to this same revelatory power today? Why would God allow his chosen leaders to teach so many falsehoods as truth at the very same time they were claiming direct communications from God. How are members of the church today supposed to process and reconcile this reality?
Edited by Craig Paxton, 02 July 2012 - 03:13 PM.




