Theos-Talk Archives (October 2002 Message tt00198)

--- In theos-talk@y..., "brianmuehlbach" <brianmuehlbach@y...> wrote:
> It might be noted that on 9 June, 1978, 
> the Mormon hierarchy announced that black-skinned persons would 
> thereafter enjoy Ôall of the privileges and blessings which the 
gospel 
> affords. 

There is one part of the story that has been left out here. As I 
recall, their "prophet, seer, and revelator" had a "revelation" 
regarding this which some cynics (including myself) think was 
motivated by threats from the federal government that they would soon 
present him with a "revelation" of their own. Apparently some of the 
racist policies of the mormon church were in violation of federal 
civil rights statutes. When polygamy and other mormon religious 
practices were outlawed, their "prophet, seer, and revelator" had 
other "revelations" at strategic intervals which nullified 
previous "revelations" and brought them into compliance with the 
law. It appears their theology is formulated largely in the 
courtroom and not in ethereal regions.

As for the statement by someone else that the Tasmanians were "dying 
out anyway," (a phrase which seems to have some sort of implication) 
he is mistaken. Blavatsky said the "Australians" (i.e., the suriving 
Australian aborigines) and not the Tasmanians were "rapidly dying 
out." The Tasmanians were already gone, and it was not that they 
were "dying out anyway" but that they were systematically 
exterminated. There is no evidence that they were "dying out anyway" 
prior to the genocidal effort, and the aborigines are no 
longer "rapidly dying out" now that the genocide against them has 
been discontinued. So in this instance history offers nothing to 
support the cycle theory, and we should not apologize for genocide, 
IMHO.