!

!
!
!
!
!
!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!
!
!
No!man!ever!believes!that!the!Bible!means!what!it!says.!He!is!always!
convinced!that!it!says!what!he!means.!
George!Bernard!Shaw!
!
!
During!my!last!year!of!undergraduate!studies!I!decided!to!mi;
nor!in!Englishnot!because!I!wanted!to!follow!in!Stephanie!Mey;
ers! sparkly! vampire! footsteps1!but! because! I! love! literature.! I!
read!the!classics!voraciously!and!figured!I!might!as!well!get!credit!
for!what!I!was!already!doing!in!my!spare!time.!!
A!few!of!my!classes!required!that!students!read!a!number!of!
genuinely! unsettling! books.! I! read! books! that! had! been! banned!
and!books!that!had!been!burned,!books!that!had!been!condemned!
from! pulpits! and! books! that! made! me! cry! like! the! first! time! I!
passed! a! kidney! stone.! For! one! class! we! read! the! primary! reli;
gious! texts! of! most! of! the! worlds! religions,! ancient! and! modern,!
Eastern!and!Western.!The!most!disturbing!of!all!the!books!I!read!
was!the!one!I!believed!to!be!holy:!the!Bible.!As!a!Latter;day!Saint!I!
had! read! this! book! cover;to;cover! several! times,! but! only! in! col;
lege!did!its!icky!parts!begin!to!make!great!claims!on!my!attention.!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Stephanie!Meyer,!author!of!the!freakishly!popular!Twilight!series,!is!an!LDS!BYU!
English!undergraduate.!

!
12!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

If!all!of!the!teachings!in!the!Old!and!New!Testaments!are!truly!
of! God,! then! the! God! of! the! Bible! is! ruthless.! This! God! punished!
one!group!for!the!actions!of!another!and!held!sons!and!daughters!
responsible!for!the!sins!of!their!parents.!He!butchered!thousands!
of! men,! women! and! children! for! minor! infractions! against! His!
word.! This! God! commanded! His! people! to! slaughter! the! inhabit;
ants! of! neighboring! citiesagain! including! childrenand! take!
the! women! as! spoils! of! war.2!This! God! approved! of! slavery! and!
even!gave!parents!instructions!about!the!proper!way!to!sell!their!
offspring.! I! do! not! believe! a! loving! God! would! ever! act! that! way,!
even!though!the!Bible!claims!He!did.!Lets!take!a!look.!
!
The!Old!Testament!
!
As! we! analyze! the! Old! Testament,! remember! that! in! the!
church! we! are! taught! that! Jehovah,! God! of! the! Old! Testament,! is!
Jesus!Christ,!Savior!of!the!New!Testament.3!
God! supposedly! first! experimented! with! genocide! in! one! of!
the!Bibles!most!well!known!stories:!Noah!and!the!ark.4!God!was!
displeased! with! the! earths! obstreperous! humans! so! He! com;
manded!Noah!to!build!an!ark,!saving!Noahs!family!and!some!an;
imals.! God! then! flooded! the! planet! and! the! unsaved! portion! of!
humanityalong! with! the! land;based! members! of! the! animal!
kingdomdrowned.!
This! story! is! tragic! on! a! monumental! scale,! yet! we! tend! to!
skim!right!past!the!brutality!of!it.!I!know!I!did.!I!remember!learn;
ing!about!Noah!as!a!child!in!Sunday!school!and!I!did!not!waste!any!
time! thinking! about! the! ones! who! died.! I! assumed! they! were! a!
bunch! of! big,! mean! grown;ups,! the! kind! who! would! force! their!
child!to!clean!his!room!and!eat!his!vegetables!and!not!put!bugs!up!
his! siblings! nose.! Certainly! these! adults! deserved! their! fate.! I!!
paid!no!attention!to!the!disturbing!peripheral!details!and!neglect;

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!You!can!guess!what!was!usually!done!with!those!women.!
!Old! Testament! Student! Manual! Genesis! ! 2! Samuel,! Enrichment! Section! A,! pub;
lished!by!The!Church!of!Jesus!Christ!of!Latter;day!Saints.!
4!Genesis!6;8.!
2
3

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

13!

ed! to! ask! the! obvious! questions,! such! as,! What! happened! to! the!
little!children!like!me?!
The!Bible!tells!us!what!happened.!All!of!humanityexcept!for!
those! precious! few! saved! on! the! arkwere! wiped! out.! That! in;
cludes!every!child.!Because!God!needed!to!get!rid!of!wicked!peo;
ple,!an!entire!planet!full!of!innocent!children!lost!their!lives.!Lets!
imagine! this! story! is! entirely! true.! I! assume,! then,! that! most! of!
those! little! ones! would! have! been! with! their! families! when! the!
floods! came.! They! would! have! watched! their! family! members
grandparents,!aunts,!uncles,!parents,!older!siblingssuccumb!one!
by!one!to!the!rising!seas,!until!nobody!was!left!to!keep!the!young;
est! above! water.! Finally,! completely! alone! and! utterly! terrified,!
the!children!themselves!would!have!drowned.!!
LDS! members! are! taught! that! the! story! of! Noah! was! a! real!
event! that! took! place! as! described! in! the! Old! Testament.!Apostle!
Howard!W.!Hunter!said:!
Because!modernists!now!declare!the!story!of!the!flood!is!un;
reasonable! and! impossible,! should! we! disbelieve! the! account! of!
Noah!and!the!flood!as!related!in!the!Old!Testament?5!
If!the!flood!story!is!true!as!recorded!in!the!Bible,!its!perpetra;
tor!is!fantastically!savage!(and!I!wont!even!address!the!problem!
of! all! the! innocent! animals! that! were! also! victims! of! the! slaugh;
ter).!If!any!religious!text!other!than!our!own!had!a!story!like!this,!
we!would!without!hesitation!call!it!a!fictional!tale.!But!because!it!
happened!in!our!scripture,!we!do!not!question!it!and!we!rarely,!if!
ever,!consider!the!implications.!
Thankfully! all! modern! geologistsincluding! LDS! and! most!
other!Christian!geologistsare!convinced!that!a!worldwide!flood!
never!happened,!as!are!all!archaeologists,!biologists!and!even!lin;
guists.6!Such! a! global! disaster! would! have! left! clues! so! easy! to!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Improvement!Era,!December!1970.!The!Improvement!Era!was!the!official!monthly!
church!magazine!until!it!was!replaced!by!the!Ensign!in!1970.!
6!For!a!great!article!on!the!flood!that!confronts!these!matters!from!an!LDS!scholars!
perspective,!see,!Noahs!Flood:!Modern!Scholarship!and!Mormon!Traditions,!by!
Duane!E.!Jeffery,!professor!of!integrative!biology,!Sunstone,!October!2004,!p.!27;45,!!
https://www.sunstonemagazine.com/wp;content/uploads/sbi/issues/134.pdf.!
5

!
14!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

read! that! even! amateurs! could! do! it;! no! such! signs! have! been!
found.!I!take!comfort!in!the!fact!that,!despite!what!the!church!has!
taught,! the! account! of! Noah! is! not! historical.7!If! we! look! at! this!
story!as!a!piece!of!literature,!a!legend!that!instills!a!deeper!truth!
rather!than!an!accurate!historical!account,!then!Noahs!tale!can!be!
lovely! and! quite! moving.! That! many! Christian! groupsincluding!
most!Latter;day!Saintswould!rather!believe!it!was!a!literal!gen;
ocide! brought! about! by! God! is! alarming,! especially! since! we! are!
taught!that!God!is!unchanging!and!therefore!presumably!still!okay!
with!this!kind!of!brutality.!
The!alleged!flood!was!only!the!first!of!a!long!line!of!genocides.!
These! later! genocides! were! clearly! the! products! of! men! yet! are!
attributed!to!God.!Scripture!says!the!Lord!commanded!the!whole;
sale! slaughter! of! the! Amorites,! Canaanites,! Hittites,! Perizzites,!
Hivites! and! Jebusites! for! only! one! reason:! they! worshiped! other!
gods.8!Later,! God! supposedly! commanded! the! people! to! take! the!
land!of!Bashan,!so!the!Israelites!massacred!an!entire!kingdom!of!
men,!women!and!children,!until!there!was!none!left!him!alive.9!!
We!are!told!the!Lord!ordered!the!destruction!of!foreign!king;
doms! at! the! slightest! provocation.! When! Sihon,! king! of! Heshbon,!
would! not! allow! Gods! chosen! to! pass! through! his! land,! God! told!
the! Israelites! to! conquer! it.! The! scripture! says,! And! we! took! all!
his![the!kings]!cities!at!that!time,!and!utterly!destroyed!the!men,!
and!the!women,!and!the!little!ones,!of!every!city,!we!left!none!to!
remain.10!Notice!the!biblical!authors!took!care!to!clarify!that!lit;
tle!ones!were!included!in!the!Heshbonite!genocide.!
And!thus!the!mass!slaughter!of!children!and!entire!races!con;
tinued.!The!Old!Testament!claims!God!killed!children!on!a!regular!
basis.!When!the!Lord!sent!plagues!to!convince!Pharaoh!to!let!Mo;

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7!It!is!possible!that!a!real!flood!or!flood;like!event!occurred!in!the!part!of!the!world!
from!which!the!biblical!story!sprang,!but!nothing!on!the!scale!described!in!Genesis.!
See!previous!footnote.!
8!Exodus!34:11;14.!
9!Numbers! 21:33;35.! All! quotes! are! taken! from! the! King! James! translation! of! the!
Bible,!the!translation!most!often!used!by!Latter;day!Saints.!
10 !Deuteronomy!2:26;37.!!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

15!

ses! and! the! Israelites! go,! the! Bible! says! that! God! concluded! this!
flood!of!miracles!by!butchering!every!firstborn!non;Israelite!child!
of! Egypt,! including! the! firstborn! of! other! Egyptian! slaves 11
people! who! had! nothing! to! do! with! the! oppression! of! the! Israel;
ites! and! were,! in! fact,! as! oppressed! as! Moses! people.! After! this!
repulsive!miracle,!Pharaoh!released!the!Israelites.!Hooray!!And!
all!it!took!was!the!wholesale!slaughter!of!blameless!little!children.!
Later,!when!God!was!vexed!by!a!group!of!Samaritans,!He!re;
putedly!took!revenge!not!by!punishing!the!sinners!but!by!hurting!
their!children.!The!punishment!is!described!in!graphic!terms:!
Their! infants! shall! be! dashed! in! pieces,! and! their! women!
with!child!shall!be!ripped!up.12!
We!are!told!God!performed!the!same!punishment;by;proxy!in!
Moses! day.! If! anyone! worshipped! someone! or! something! other!
than!the!God!of!the!Israelites,!the!Lord!would!not!only!punish!the!
sinner! but! the! sinners! children,! grandchildren,! great;
grandchildren! and! great;great! grandchildren.13!God! did! this! not;
withstanding! His! own! promises! that! He! would! never! do! such! a!
thing.14!God!also!vowed!not!to!punish!children!for!the!sins!of!their!
parents!in!modern!days.!The!second!Article!of!Faith!states:!
We!believe!that!men!will!be!punished!for!their!own!sins,!and!
not!for!Adams!transgression.15!
Yet! the! Bible! tells! us! God! had! no! problem! punishing! inno;
cents,!descendants!of!the!sinner!and!even!unrelated!children!and!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Exodus!11:5.!
!Hosea!13:16.!
13 !For! I! the! Lord! thy! God! am! a! jealous! God,! visiting! the! iniquity! of! the! fathers!
upon! the! children! unto! the! third! and! fourth! generation! of! them! that! hate! me.!
(Exodus!20:5.)!
14 !The!fathers!shall!not!be!put!to!death!for!the!children,!neither!shall!the!children!
be!put!to!death!for!the!fathers:!every!man!shall!be!put!to!death!for!his!own!sin.!
(Deuteronomy!24:16.)!We!will!only!be!put!to!death!for!our!own!sins.!Huzzah!!
15 !The!Articles!of!Faith!were!written!by!Joseph!Smith!in!response!to!a!request!for!a!
summary! of! LDS! beliefs.! They! are! printed! as! part! of! LDS! scripture! and! can! be!
found! in! the! last! section! of! the! Pearl! of! Great! Price! (one! of! three! booksalong!
with! the! Book! of! Mormon! and! the! Doctrine! and! Covenantsthat! are! scripture!
unique!to!Latter;day!Saints).!
11
12

!
16!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

adults!who!are!completely!blameless.!For!example,!when!a!famine!
plagued! the! Israelites! and! continued! for! three! years,! King! David!
prayed! to! know! the! cause.! The! Lord! told! David! it! was! because!
Saul! had! made! a! mistake! by! killing! a! bunch! of! Gibeonites! years!
earlier.16!Saul!was!long!since!dead,!but!that!did!not!stop!God!from!
supposedly!using!famine!to!punish!David!and!his!entire!kingdom!
because!of!a!dead!mans!actions.!!
Shortly!after!the!famine!the!Bible!says!God!again!grew!angry!
and!commanded!David!to!take!a!census.17!It!is!not!recorded!why!
God! was! angry! or! why! the! census! was! commanded.! After! taking!
the! census! the! Lord! sent! a! plague! that! wiped! out! an! astonishing!
seventy!thousand!Israelites,!not!one!of!whom!was!responsible!for!
commanding!the!census!(God!did!that)!or!taking!the!census!(Da;
vid! did! that).! According! to! the! Bible,! David! and! his! people! were!
punished!for!doing!what!God!Himself!had!commanded.!
When!the!Israelites!wiped!out!neighboring!nations,!they!were!
allegedly!told!by!God!to!make!no!covenant!with!them,!nor!shew!
mercy!unto!them.18!The!Lord!said,!Thou!shalt!save!alive!nothing!
that!breatheth.19!If!such!things!happened!today,!we!would!call!it!
what! it! is:! ethnic! cleansing.! We! are! horrified! by! the! likes! of! the!
Holocaust!and!the!1994!genocide!in!Rwanda,!yet!we!hardly!blink!
at!the!massacres!that!happen!over!and!over!again!in!our!own!holy!
book,!carried!out!according!to!Gods!supposed!commands.!!
Despite! the! obvious! evil! of! these! acts,! we! do! not! often! ques;
tion!the!claim!that!the!entire!Bible!is!Gods!word.!We!do!not!ask!
ourselves!why!a!loving!Heavenly!Father!would!direct!such!atroci;
ties!back!then!or!why!He!no!longer!does!so!today.!In!fact,!consid;
ering! how! often! we! hear! that! these! last! days! are! the! most!
wicked!of!all,20!why!arent!we!commanded!to!go!on!quests!of!eth;

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!2!Samuel!21.!
!2!Samuel!24.!
18 !Deuteronomy!7:2.!
19 !Deuteronomy!20:16.!
20 !It!may!change,!but!up!to!this!point!in!history!such!statements!are!blatantly!false.!
The! murder! rate! in! the! U.S.! has! dropped! more! than! fifty! percent! since! 1980!
(http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/murder;rates;nationally;and;state).!!
16
17

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

17!

nic!cleansing!more!often?!I!would!suggest!it!is!because!God!never!
commanded!such!things!and!isnt!about!to!start!now.!
One! of! my! favorite! examples! of! the! biblical! Gods! presumed!
justice!is!in!the!book!of!2!Kings.!The!prophet!Elisha!was!taking!a!
stroll!between!cities!when!some!children!started!teasing!him,!call;
ing!Elisha!a!bald!head.!The!prophet!cursed!them!in!the!name!of!
the!Lord.!Two!bears!came!out!of!the!woods!and!massacred!42!of!
the! children.21!If! we! look! at! this! as! a! legend! and! not! as! history,! I!
think!it!is!one!of!the!best!stories!in!the!Old!Testament.!It!has!eve;
rything:! dark! humor,! excitement,! and! a! good! moral! lesson! about!
the! dangers! of! teasing! the! folliclely! challenged! (especially! if! said!
bald!man!is!a!she;bear;wielding!megaprophet).!But!this!story!is!in!
the!Bible;!we!are!taught!it!is!Gods!word!and!the!tales!therein!ac;
tually!happened,!in!which!case!it!is!not!funny!at!all.!
As!this!and!other!scriptures!show,!the!punishments!God!pre;
sumably! dished! out! were! grossly! disproportionate! to! the! crime.!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rates!of!teen!violence!have!plummeted!!
(http://reason.com/archives/2009/05/18/the;decline;of;american;civili).!!
Violent!crime,!rape!and!robbery!rates!have!been!falling!like!a!whale!out!of!an!air;
plane!for!decades!(http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/glance/tables/viortrdtab.cfm).!!
Abortion!rates!have!decreased!steadily!since!1981!!
(http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html),! while! at! the! same!
time! teen! birth! rates! are! the! lowest! they! have! been! since! the! government! began!
collecting! the! statistics! in! 1940! (http://www.newsday.com/news/health/teen;
birthrates;in;u;s;lowest;in;70;years;1.2578646).!!!
Teen!pregnancy!dropped!a!whopping!twenty;eight!percent!from!1990;2000!alone!
and!rates!of!teenage!sexual!activity!have!fallen!consistently!across!the!board!!
(https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Adolescent_sexuality_in_the_U
nited_States#Sexual_behavior).!!!
For!decades,!poverty!rates!have!been!decreasing!in!every!region!of!the!world!!
(https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Global_poverty#Demographics).!
Of!course,!it!would!be!impossible!to!collect!all!the!necessary!data,!but!it!is!likely!that!
we!are!currently!experiencing!the!most!peaceful!and!prosperous!era!in!human!his;
tory.! Even! though! virtually! every! statistic! we! have! suggests! humanity! is! getting!
better,!hardly!a!Sunday!went!by!that!I!did!not!hear!(or!say!myself)!what!an!increas;
ingly!wicked!world!we!are!living!in.!
21 !2!Kings!2:23;24.!Footnote!23a!in!the!LDS!scriptures!emphasizes!that!those!torn!
apart!by!bears!were!not!little!children,!as!written!in!the!King!James!translation,!
but! youths.! This! is! a! more! correct! translation.! Unfortunately,! it! does! not! make!
the!story!any!less!disturbing.!
!

!
18!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

God! commanded! that! those! who! work! on! the! Sabbath! be! put! to!
death22!and!that!blasphemers!be!stoned.23!Prostitutes!were!to!be!
burned!to!death,!but!only!if!her!father!was!a!priest.24!!
The! acts! approved! of! in! the! Old! Testament! are! worse! than!
many!of!the!acts!that!were!condemned.!We!learned!in!the!previ;
ous! paragraph! that! working! on! the! Sabbath! was! punishable! by!
death,! yet! slavery! was! perfectly! acceptable25!and! fathers! were!
welcome! to! sell! their! daughters! into! bondage! and! were! even!
taught!how!to!do!so.26!It!was!also!acceptable!to!beat!your!slaves!as!
long!as!they!survived!for!two!days!after!the!beating.27!
There! was! child! sacrifice,! too.! In! Judges! 11,! Jephthah,! leader!
of!the!armies!of!Israel,!promised!the!Lord!that!if!he!was!successful!
in! battle,! whatsoever! cometh! forth! of! the! doors! of! my! house! to!
meet!me!I!will!offer!it!up!for!a!burnt!offering.28!This!was!an!idi;
otic! promise! on! Jephthahs! part,! one! that! would! almost! certainly!
lead!to!the!murder!of!a!human!being,!but!the!Old!Testament!writ;
ers!left!no!record!of!the!Lord!speaking!against!it.!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
22 !Six! days! shall! work! be! done,! but! on! the! seventh! day! there! shall! be! to! you! an!
holy!day,!a!Sabbath!of!rest!to!the!Lord:!whosoever!doeth!work!therein!shall!be!put!
to!death.!(Exodus!35:2.)!
23 !And!he!that!blasphemeth!the!name!of!the!Lord,!he!shall!surely!be!put!to!death,!
and!all!the!congregation!shall!certainly!stone!him.!(Leviticus!24:16.)!
24 !And!the!daughter!of!any!priest,!if!she!profane!herself!by!playing!the!whore,!she!
profaneth!her!father:!she!shall!be!burnt!with!fire.!(Leviticus!21:9.)!Non;priestly;
paternity!prostitutes,!it!appears,!escape!this!judgment.!
25 !Both!thy!bondment,!and!they!bondmaids,!which!thou!shalt!have,!shall!be!of!the!
heathen!that!are!round!about!you;!of!them!shall!ye!buy!bondmen!and!bondmaids.!
Moreover!of!the!children!of!the!strangers!that!do!sojourn!among!you,!of!them!shall!
ye!buy,!and!of!their!families!that!are!with!you,!which!they!begat!in!your!land:!and!
they! shall! be! your! possession.! And! ye! shall! take! them! as! an! inheritance! for! your!
children! after! you,! to! inherit! them! for! a! possession;! they! shall! be! your! bondmen!
for!ever.!(Leviticus!25:44;46.)!
26 !And!if!a!man!sell!his!daughter!to!be!a!maidservant,!she!shall!not!go!out!as!the!
menservants!do.!(Exodus!21:7.)!
27 !And! if! a! man! smite! his! servant,! or! his! maid,! with! a! rod,! and! he! die! under! his!
hand;!he!shall!be!surely!punished.!Notwithstanding,!if!he!continue!a!day!or!two,!he!
shall!not!be!punished:!for!he!is!his!money.!(Exodus!21:20;21.)!
28 !Judges!11:21.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

19!

Jephthah! was! successful! in! battle;! the! first! person! who! met!
him!upon!his!return!was!his!own!daughter.!Jephthah!immediately!
regretted! his! stupid,! stupid! vow! (I! wonder! who! he! had! hoped!
would! walk! through! the! door),! but! his! daughter,! plucky! young!
thing! that! she! was,! comforted! her! father.! She! told! him! that! he!
must!keep!his!promise!and!asked!only!for!two!months!to!lament!
her!virginity.!Afterward,!she!was!sacrificed!as!a!burnt!offering!to!
the! Lord.! The! authors! of! the! book! of! Judges! uphold! this! act! as! a!
commendable!one;!Jephthah!kept!his!vow!to!God.!
Child! sacrifice! was! not! uncommon! among! Gods! people.! In!
Exodus!22:29;30!we!are!told!God!explicitly!commanded!the!sacri;
fice!of!firstborn!sons,!just!as!the!Israelites!offered!the!firstborn!of!
their! oxen! and! sheep. 29 !In! Ezekiel! 20:25;26,! God! commanded!
child!sacrifice!by!fire.!The!Lord!said,!And!I!polluted!them!in!their!
own! gifts,! in! that! they! caused! to! pass! through! the! fire! all! that!
openeth! the! womb,! that! I! might! make! them! desolate,! to! the! end!
that!they!might!know!that!I!am!the!Lord.30!
The! Old! Testament! also! tells! of! a! talking! donkey,31!the! suc;
cessful!summoning!of!the!ghost!of!a!dead!prophet!via!witchcraft32!
and! the! willing! surrender! of! ones! concubine! to! rape! in! order! to!
appease! a! sex;starved! mob! and! get! a! good! nights! sleep.33!I! have!
scarcely! scratched! the! surface,! yet! what! I! have! shared! so! far!
should!cause!universal!rejection!of!the!theory!of!divine!origin!for!
much!of!the!Old!Testament!and!it!almost!certainly!would!if!these!
stories!were!in!somebody!elses!holy!text!and!not!our!own.!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Thou!shalt!not!delay!to!offer!the!first!of!thy!ripe!fruits,!and!of!thy!liquors:!the!
firstborn! of! thy! sons! shalt! thou! give! unto! me.! Likewise! shalt! thou! do! with! thine!
oxen,!and!with!thy!sheep!
30 !Sacrificing!ones!child!would!undoubtedly!make!such!a!lesson!memorable,!but!it!
is! the! educational! equivalent! of! teaching! ones! students! to! avoid! running! in! the!
classroom!by!chopping!off!their!legs.!
31 !Numbers!22.!
32 !1!Samuel!28.!
33 !Judges!19.!This!story!is!perhaps!the!most!graphic!and!disturbing!in!all!scripture.!
Read!at!your!own!risk.!If!you!do!read!it,!pay!careful!attention!to!just!how!nasty!it!is!
(you!will!notice!that!in!verse!24!the!man!is!even!willing!to!offer!his!own!daughter!
in!addition!to!the!concubine).!
29

!
20!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

When!I!was!a!Latter;day!Saint,!instead!of!acknowledging!that!
some! of! what! is! commanded! in! the! Old! Testament! is! clearly! not!
from!God,!I!would!pretend!to!believe!it.!But!because!I!didnt!obey!
most! of! the! Old! Testament! commandments! (no! one! does),! my!
biases!would!look!for!a!way!to!rationalize!this!willful!disregard!of!
divine!revelation.!Those!commandments!dont!matter!today,!Id!
tell!myself.!I! have! the! New! Testament,!so!I!can!ignore!the!other!
stuff.!I!would!never!have!made!these!excuses!if!such!stories!were!
found! in! someone! elses! sacred! scripture;! instead! I! would! have!
seriously!questioned!their!texts!claim!to!holiness.!But!for!my!reli;
gious! texts! I! put! my! questions! on! hold! and! tied! myself! in! knots!
when!explaining!why!God!did!all!those!ugly!things.!!
The! Old! Testament! has! good! stuff,! too,! and! perhaps! that! is!
why!I!worked!so!hard!to!give!it!the!benefit!of!the!doubt.!I!love!the!
story! of! Adam! and! Eve,! of! Joseph! and! his! brothers,! of! David! and!
Goliath.!I!relish!the!poetry!of!Isaiah!and!the!pithy!wisdom!of!Prov;
erbs.!What!I!did!not!like!was!how!I!was!taught!to!remember!only!
the!good!stories!while!at!the!same!time!ignoring!the!atrocities!and!
all!the!while!affirming!that!the!whole!thing!was!the!word!of!God.!If!
the!Bible!is!the!word!of!God,!shouldnt!all!of!it!be!good!and!not!just!
the!parts!we!choose!to!focus!on?!
Sometimes! people! come! to! scriptures! defense! by! saying,!
Yes,! the! Old! Testament! teaches! dreadful! things,! but! it! doesnt!
matter!because!the!New!Testament!overrides!it.!No,!it!does!not.!
Nowhere! does! any! New! Testament! character! say! such! a! thing,34!
nor!have!any!prophets!from!Joseph!Smith!to!current!church!pres;
ident!Thomas!S.!Monson.!Christ!himself!said,!Think!not!that!I!am!
come!to!destroy!the!law,!or!the!prophets:!I! am! not! come! to! de[
stroy,! but! to! fulfill.35!It! should! go! without! saying! that! to! fulfill!
something!is!to!build!on!it,!not!replace!it.!Jesus!specifically!upheld!
the!lawthe!Old!Testamentand!quoted!from!it!often,!yet!some!
still!profess!that!the!New!Testament!supersedes!the!Old.!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
34 !With! the! possible! exception! of! Paul! (see! Hebrews! 8;9),! though! there! is! disa;
greement! among! scholars! as! to! what! Paul! meant.! Either! way,! I! suspect! Christs!
opinion!supersedes!Pauls,!and!Christ!consistently!upheld!the!Old!Testament.!
35 !Matthew!5:17.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

21!

Remember,! the! God! of! the! Old! Testament! is! supposed! to! be!
Jesus! Christ.! If! we! stick! to! the! notion! that! these! are! not! the! doc;
trines!of!men,!and!if!God!is!the!same!yesterday,!today!and!forever,!
we! must! ask! ourselves! why! the! Lords! personality! changes! so!
drastically;!on!one!hand!we!have!a!Christ!who!butchers!innocent!
children!and!obliterates!entire!nations;!on!the!other!hand!we!have!
a! Christ! who! blesses! the! merciful! and! suffers! the! little! ones! to!
come!unto!him.!
I!invite!you,!if!you!have!not!done!so,!to!carefully!read!the!Old!
Testament! from! beginning! to! end.36!What! Christ! is! said! to! have!
commanded! in! the! Old! Testament! is! terrible.! We! pretend! it!
doesnt!matter,!but!it!mattered!to!the!people!who!had!to!live!ac;
cording! to! those! allegedly! divine! instructions.! It! mattered! to! the!
countless!innocent!women!and!children!who!were!butchered!as!a!
result! of! those! commands.! We! are! told! these! events! took! place!
long!ago,!but!just!because!something!happened!in!the!distant!past!
does!not!give!us!permission!to!pretend!it!did!not!happen!at!all.!!
I!know,!I!know.!It!is!very!easy,!and!perhaps!unsportsmanlike!
of!me,!to!poke!holes!in!the!Old!Testament,!a!book!that!is!so!clearly!
in! error.! But! that! is! precisely! my! point.! We! already! know! it! is!
flawed!and!ignore!most!of!the!Old!Testament,!yet!at!the!same!time!
we!pretend!these!doctrines!of!men!are!the!word!of!God.!Why!do!
we!try!so!hard!to!maintain!that!impression!when!we!obviously!do!
not!believe!it?!!
In!fact,!the!problem!is!not!that!we!reject!some!parts!of!the!Bi;
ble! that! are! wrong! but! that! we! do! not! reject! enough.! We! do! not!
throw! away! our! belief! in! the! historicity! of! God! slaughtering! the!
firstborn!of!Egypt!in!Moses!day,!nor!do!we!set!aside!the!genocide!
of!a!planet!full!of!children!in!the!account!of!Noah!or!the!butcher;
ing! of! youth! by! she;bears! for! calling! a! prophet! bald.! Instead! the!
church!teaches!these!stories!as!real!events!and!even!attempts!to!
justify!them.!For!example,!the!church!explains!the!slaughtering!of!
those! who! teased! Elisha! by! suggesting! that! even! though! Elisha!
cursed!the!youth,!their!death!was!unrelated!to!the!teasing:!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
36

!Im!amazed!how!few!people!have!actually!read!the!book.!
!

!
22!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

Is! it! not! possible! that! these! forty;two! were! a! set! of! unlucky!
young!men,!who!had!been!employed!in!the!wood,!destroying!the!
whelps!of!these!same!she;bears,!who!now!pursued!them,!and!tore!
them!to!pieces,!for!the!injury!they!had!done?37!
This!explanation!is!completely!invented!and!there!is!not!the!
tiniest! shred! of! supporting! evidence! in! the! book! it! claims! to! ex;
plain.!It!is,!to!put!it!kindly,!a!stretch,!yet!these!kinds!of!excuses!are!
supposed!to!allow!us!to!sweep!centuries!of!atrocity!under!the!rug.!
Do! you! believe! what! the! Old! Testament! teaches?! Do! you! be;
lieve! that! slavery! is! okay,! including! the! selling! of! your! own! chil;
dren?!Do!you!believe!that!innocent!people!should!be!punished!for!
the!sins!of!others,!even!to!the!third!and!fourth!generation?!Do!you!
believe!that!child!sacrifice!and!the!mass!slaughter!of!women!and!
children!is!acceptable,!as!long!as!God!commands!it?!
Of!course!you! dont.!Neither! do!I.!No!one!in!their!right!mind!
would!believe!these!things!and!a!loving!God!would!not!command!
them.! We! behave! accordingly! and! dont! follow! most! of! the! Old!
Testament.! In! fact,! those! who! do! take! the! Old! Testament! at! its!
word! and! act! on! its! teachings! are! so! evidently! morally! bankrupt!
that!they!are!locked!away!or!even!executed.!!
I! am! not! against! God! or! Christ! or! a! testimony! thereof.! I! am!
against! the! popular! practice! of! rejecting! much! of! the! Old! Testa;
ment!(which!each!one!of!us!already!does)!while!at!the!same!time!
pretending! to! believe! it! and! blaming! God! for! those! atrocities.!
Based! on! what! we! know! to! be! right! we! ignore! the! Bibles! bad!
parts!anyway,!so!why!teach!that!the!Old!Testament!is!Gods!word!
from!beginning!to!end!when!we!find!much!of!it!disturbing!at!best!
and!downright!evil!at!worst?!Since!we!ignore!most!of!it!already,!I!
believe! in! admitting! that! while! it! has! some! good! stories! (and! it!
really! does,! especially! if! we! do! not! treat! every! story! as! history),!
much! of! the! Old! Testament! contains! doctrines! of! men,! not! doc;
trines!of!God.!
!
!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
37

!Old!Testament!Student!Manual:!1!Kings!T!Malachi,!2003,!(5;42),!p.!64.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

23!

The!New!Testament!
!
Even! if! the! Old! Testament! was! meant! to! be! replaced! (and! it!
was! not),! the! New! Testament! presents! its! own! difficulties.! To!
begin,!there!are!almost!as!many!verses!supporting!slavery!in!the!
few!hundred!pages!of!the!New!Testament!as!in!all!1100;plus!pag;
es! of! the! Old.! (Our! inappropriately! positive! perspective! of! New!
Testament!slavery!verses!may!be!due!in!part!to!the!popularity!of!
the! King! James! translation.! This! translation! refers! to! slaves! as!
servants,!but!the!Greek!word!translated!as!servant!in!the!New!
Testament! is! doulos! and! always! means! slave.38)! Paul! com;
mands! slaves! to! be! obedient! with! fear! and! trembling.39!Peter!
tells!slaves!they!must!remain!in!subjection!to!their!masters!even!if!
the! masters! are! wicked! and! beat! them.40!Slaves! are! commanded!
to! count! their! masters! as! worthy! of! all! honor,41!to! please! their!
masters! in! all! things! and! to! never! talk! back.42!Not! one! person! in!
the! New! Testament! speaks! against! slavery.! According! to! this! sa;
cred! book,! an! individual! cannot! enter! heaven! if! he! is! a! drunkard!
or! a! homosexual! or! effeminate,43!but! if! a! person! owns! other! hu;
man!beings!as!property!and!beats!them,!everythings!fine.!I!do!not!
believe!these!are!doctrines!of!God.!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Strongs! Exhaustive! Concordance! of! the! Bible,! Thomas! Nelson! publishers,! 2001,!
Greek!dictionary,!#1401.!
39 !Ephesians!6:5.!The!command!is!reiterated!in!Colossians!3:22.!
40 !Servants,! be! subject! to! your! masters! with! all! fear;! not! only! to! the! good! and!
gentle,! but! also! to! the! froward.! For! this! is! thankworthy,! if! a! man! for! conscience!
toward!God!endure!grief,!suffering!wrongfully.!For!what!glory!is!it,!if,!when!ye!be!
buffeted!for!your!faults,!ye!shall!take!it!patiently?!but!if,!when!ye!do!well,!and!suf;
fer!for!it,!ye!take!it!patiently,!this!is!acceptable!with!God.!(1!Peter!2:18;20.)!
41 !Let!as!many!servants!as!are!under!the!yoke!count!their!own!masters!worthy!of!all!
honour,!that!the!name!of!God!and!his!doctrine!be!not!blasphemed.!(1!Timothy!6:1.)!
42 !Exhort!servants!to!be!obedient!unto!their!own!masters,!and!to!please!them!well!
in!all!things;!not!answering!again.!(Titus!2:9.)!
43 !Be! not! deceived:! neither! fornicators,! nor! idolaters,! nor! adulterers,! nor! effemi;
nate,! nor! abusers! of! themselves! with! mankind,! Nor! thieves,! nor! covetous,! nor!
drunkards,!nor!revilers,!nor!extortioners,!shall!inherit!the!kingdom!of!God.!!
(1!Corinthians!6:9;10.)!
38

!
24!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

Women!in!New!Testament!days!did!not!fare!very!well,!either.!
Paul!taught!that!women!are!not!to!speak!in!the!church:!
Let! your! women! keep! silence! in! the! churches:! for! it! is! not!
permitted!unto!them!to!speak;!but!they!are!commanded!to!be!un;
der! obedience,! as! also! saith! the! law.! And! if! they! will! learn! any!
thing,! let! them! ask! their! husbands! at! home:! for! it! is! a! shame! for!
women!to!speak!in!the!church.44!!
If!that!were!the!only!New!Testament!scripture!that!is!degrad;
ing!to!women,!it!might!be!easy!to!ignore,!but!there!is!more.!I!will!
first! highlight! a! positive! doctrine:! Paul! told! husbands! to! love!
your!wives,!even!as!Christ!also!loved!the!church,!and!gave!himself!
for! it,45!which! can! be! a! beautiful! teaching.! Unfortunately,! Paul!
directly!preceded!it!with!a!command!that!women!must!subject!
themselves!to!their!husbands.46!Later!he!taught!that!women!in!the!
church!are!to!remain!in!submission:!
Let!the!woman!learn!in!silence!with!all!subjection.!But!I!suf;
fer! not! a! woman! to! teach,! nor! to! usurp! authority! over! the! man,!
but!to!be!in!silence.47!
The!Apostle!Peter!also!taught!that!wives!must!be!in!subjec;
tion!to!your!own!husbands.48!
Some! of! the! New! Testament! promotes! slavery! and! sexism,!
but! at! least! it! does! not! pretend! that! God! commanded! genocide!
and!child!sacrifice.!However,!the!God!of!the!New!Testament!is!still!
blamed! for! dealing! death! to! the! disobedient.! For! example,! after!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
44 !1! Corinthians! 14:34;35.! The! Joseph! Smith! Translation! replaces! speak! with!
rule,! which! softens! the! meaning! but! renders! verse! 35! unintelligible;! what! does!
asking!questions!have!to!do!with!ruling!in!the!church?!The!verse!only!makes!sense!
if!the!word!is!speak!and!not!rule.!In!addition,!while!the!Joseph!Smith!transla;
tion! makes! this! scripture! more! palatable! to! our! modern! ears,! it! came! two! thou;
sand!years!too!late!to!help!the!women!of!Pauls!day.!(The!Joseph!Smith!Translation!
is!a!version!of!the!Bible!dictated!by!Joseph!Smith.!It!contains!revisions!to!both!the!
Old!and!New!Testament,!most!of!which!are!small!but!often!significant!changes.)!
45 !Ephesians!5:25.!
46 !Therefore!as!the!church!is!subject!unto!Christ,!so!let!the!wives!be!to!their!own!
husbands! in! every! thing.! (Ephesians! 5:24.)! Paul! repeated! this! doctrine! in! Colos;
sians!3:18.!
47 !1!Timothy!2:11;12.!There!is!no!Joseph!Smith!Translation!to!soften!these!words.!
48 !1!Peter!3:1.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

25!

Christs!crucifixion!Peter!instituted!a!system!in!which!members!of!
the!church!sold!all!they!had!and!the!money!was!redistributed!ac;
cording! to! need.49!One! couple! wished! to! join! the! followers! of!
Christ,! so! they! sold! their! possessions! but! secretly! kept! a! portion!
of!the!money.!The!offering!was!voluntary,!yet!when!Peter!learned!
of!the!deception!he!condemned!the!couple!for!lying.!The!man!died!
instantly,!and!fear!came!on!all!them!that!heard!these!things.50!
Some! New! Testament! writers! also! have! God! threaten! future!
generations! with! famine,! plague,! disease,! torture! and! all! manner!
of! gruesome! death.! The! book! of! Revelation! alone! contains! more!
than!enough!suffering!to!compete!with!all!the!atrocities!of!the!Old!
Testament!combined,!and!these!horrors!are!still!to!come.51!
Do!you!believe!these!things!in!the!New!Testament!are!of!God?!
Do!you!believe!that!owning!other!humans!as!property!is!accepta;
ble?! Do! you! believe! that! slaves! should! be! obedient! and! see! their!
masters!as!worthy!of!all!honor,!even!if!the!master!is!wicked!and!
beats! them?! Do! you! believe! that! a! woman,! no! matter! how! well!
loved!by!her!husband,!should!be!in!subjection!to!him?!Do!you!be;
lieve! that! a! woman! must! not! teach! but! must! learn! in! silence?! As!
with! the! Old,! we! focus! on! the! good! parts! of! the! New! Testament!
and!pretend!the!uncomfortable!verses!do!not!exist.!!
The!New!Testament!is!certainly!not!wicked!from!beginning!to!
end!and!my!analysis!of!the!previous!subjects!is!not!an!indictment!
of! Christ.! I! think! Jesus! sermon! on! the! mount! is! beautiful! and!
many!of!his!parables!inspiring.!I!love!the!nativity!story!in!the!book!
of! Luke! and! Pauls! lessons! about! charity! in! 1! Corinthians.! I! cry!
each!time!I!read!of!Christs!crucifixion!in!the!book!of!Matthew.!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!LDS!readers!will!recognize!this!as!an!early!form!of!the!United!Order.!
!The!scriptures!do!not!say!what!happened!to!the!woman.!Read!the!entire!story!in!
Acts!4:32;5:5.!!
51 !If! Armageddon! ever! does! come! to! pass,! I! doubt! it! will! reflect! Gods! will.! It! will!
simply!be!the!believers!of!God!once!again!justifying!mass!murder!by!claiming!to!do!
the! Lords! will.! We! shrink! in! horror! at! the! brutality! of! todays! Islamic! terrorists!
who!murder!innocents!in!the!name!of!Allah,!yet!to!this!day!we!attempt!to!rational;
ize!the!slaughter!of!innocents!by!Gods!chosen!people!in!the!Bible!instead!of!simply!
admitting!they!are!the!doctrines!of!men.!
49
50

!
26!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

At!the!same!time,!I!believe!the!New!Testament,!like!the!Old,!is!
a!product!of!its!culture!and!teaches!things!that!are!definitely!not!
the! word! of! God.! Implicitly! we! already! acknowledge! this! and! ig;
nore! those! scriptures! that! are! frightening,! contradictory! and! im;
moral.!We!do!not!question!the!bad!stuff!but!focus!exclusively!on!
the!Bibles!uplifting!teachings.!I!think!we!should!question!all!of!it,!
just!as!we!would!any!other!book!that!claimed!divine!origin.52!
!
Modern!Scripture!
!
We! also! fail! to! question! discrepancies! in! more! recent! sacred!
texts.! Consider! Doctrine! and! Covenants! 89,! the! revelation! on! the!
Word! of! Wisdom,! the! LDS! health! code.53!Just! as! we! do! with! the!
Bible,!we!pick!the!parts!of!the!Word!of!Wisdom!we!wish!to!believe!
and!toss!the!rest.!For!example,!D&C!89:7!commands:!
And,! again,! strong! drinks! are! not! for! the! belly,! but! for! the!
washing!of!your!bodies.!
When! was! the! last! time! you! used! strong! drinks! (i.e.,! hard!
liquor)! to! wash! your! body?! Why! havent! you?! We! already! know!
the!answer:!because!even!though!alcohol!can!be!used!as!an!effec;
tive! disinfectant,! today! there! are! far! better! things! for! washing!
than! liquor.! There! were! better! resources! available! in! Joseph!
Smiths! day! as! well! (like! soap)! but! the! scriptures! say! nothing!
about!those!alternatives.!This!strikes!me!as!a!doctrine!of!men,!not!
God.!
Lets!read!verse!8:!
And!again,!tobacco!is!not!for!the!body,!neither!for!the!belly,!
and!is!not!good!for!man,!but!is!an!herb!for!bruises!and!all!sick!cat;
tle,!to!be!used!with!judgment!and!skill.!
The! first! half! of! the! verse! sounds! great.! What! about! the! se;
cond?!I!feel!bad!for!the!cows.!Tobacco!is!just!as!poisonous!to!our!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
52 !Then! again,! maybe! we! already! treat! the! religious! books! of! other! faiths! in! the!
same!way!we!treat!most!of!the!books!in!the!Bible:!by!not!even!reading!them.!
53 !The! Doctrine! and! Covenants! (hereafter! referred! to! as! D&C)! is! a! book! of! LDS!
scripture!composed!of!revelations!given!primarily!to!Joseph!Smith.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

27!

bovine!friends!as!it!is!to!ourselves,!yet!we!are!commanded!to!use!
it!for!sick!cattle.!
!
Verse!13!of!the!Word!of!Wisdom!teaches:!
And! it! is! pleasing! unto! me! that! they! [meat]! should! not! be!
used,!only!in!times!of!winter,!or!of!cold,!or!of!famine.!
Do! you! eat! meat! only! during! winter,! cold! or! famine?! Since!
vegetarians! do! not! eat! meat! at! all,! they! can! take! pride! in! their!
obedience!to!this!commandment.!The!rest!of!us!dont!seem!to!give!
the!verse!another!thought.!!
We!also!ignore!verse!17,!which!declares!what!various!grains!
are!to!be!used!for:!
Nevertheless,! wheat! for! man,! and! corn! for! the! ox,! and! oats!
for! the! horse,! and! rye! for! the! fowls! and! for! swine,! and! for! all!
beasts!of!the!field,!and!barley!for!all!useful!animals,! and!for!mild!
drinks,!as!also!other!grain.!
Wheat!is!for!man.!Corn!is!for!oxen!but!we!eat!corn!flakes,!oats!
are!for!horses!but!we!eat!oatmeal,!rye!is!for!fowls!but!we!eat!rye!
bread.54!We!are!especially!blind!to!the!meaning!of!the!last!part!of!
the! verse:! barley! for! mild! drinks.! That,! of! course,! refers! to! beer,!
which! is! produced! by! the! fermentation! ofyou! guessed! it
barley.! Do! you! partake! of! mild! drinks! made! from! barley?! The!
Word! of! Wisdom! is! quite! clear;! that! is! how! we! are! to! use! it! and!
the! examples! of! early! church! leaders! support! this.! Joseph! Smith!
regularly!drank!beer.!He!recorded!in!his!journal!on!June!1,!1844:!
Drank!a!glass!of!beer!at!Moissers.55!
How!did!early!members!treat!other!parts!of!the!revelation?!I!
always!thought!that!during!the!fledgling!days!of!the!church,!obe;
dience!to!the!Word!of!Wisdom!was!not!required;!after!all,!the!se;

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!On!a!side!note,!I!learned!from!a!friend!who!keeps!chickens!(and!confirmed!it!by!
contacting! an! industrial! chicken! farm)! that! rye! is! poisonous! to! birds,! causing!
stunted! growth,! lameness! and! horrible! diarrhea.! Why! then! would! God! command!
rye! for! fowls?! Let! us! call! this! scripture! what! it! is:! a! doctrine! of! men! men! who!
have!never!raised!chickens.!
55 !Joseph!Smith!Journal.!Moissers!was!a!local!tavern!in!Nauvoo,!Illinois,!one!of!the!
first!cities!founded!by!the!church.!
54

!
28!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

cond! verse! of! the! revelation! states! that! it! is! given! not! by! com;
mandment! or! constraint.! However,! a! year! after! receiving! the!
revelation!Joseph!Smith!proposed!that:!
No!official!member!in!this!Church!is!worthy!to!hold!an!office!
after!having!the!word!of!wisdom!properly!taught!him;!and!he,!the!
official!member,!neglecting!to!comply!with!and!obey!it.56!
The!proposal!was!accepted!unanimously,!yet!for!many!years!
no! one! took! it! seriously,! including! Joseph! Smith.! He! often! drank!
tea57!and! also! drank! wine! freely.58!There! are! more! than! fourteen!
references!to!drinking!wine!and!beer!in!Josephs!journals.!!
On! June! 27,! 1844,! the! day! Joseph! Smith! was! murdered,59!he!
and!his!compatriots!in!Carthage!Jail!asked!for!wine!to!be!brought.!
President!John!Taylor!later!recorded:!
Sometime! after! dinner! we! sent! for! some! wine.! It! has! been!
reported! by! some! that! this! was! taken! as! a! sacrament.! It! was! no!
such! thing;! our! spirits! were! generally! dull! and! heavy,! and! it! was!
sent!for!to!revive!us.60!
It! was! while! they! were! drinking! that! John! Taylor! sang! the!
hymn!A!Poor!Wayfaring!Man!of!Grief.!The!downtrodden!Joseph!
asked!John!to!sing!it!again!and!he!did!so.!Latter;day!Saints!hear!of!
the!singing!a!great!deal;!we!are!not!often!told!of!the!drinking.!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

56 !February! 20,! 1834,! History! of! the! Church! Vol.! 2,! p.! 35.! History! of! the! Church!
(hereafter! referred! to! as! HC)! is! a! set! of! six! volumes! that! were! initially! an! official!
publication!of!the!church.!Though!no!longer!considered!official!history,!it!is!still!
published!by!Deseret!Book,!which!is!wholly!owned!by!the!church.!
57 !Joseph!Smith!Journal,!March!11,!1843.!
58 !January!14,!1836,!HC!Vol.!2,!p.!369;!May!2,!1843,!HC!Vol.!5,!p.!380;!June!27,!1844,!
HC!Vol.!6,!p.!616.!Most!references!to!Joseph!Smiths!drinking!in!HC!have!been!re;
moved,!edited!without!any!acknowledgment!by!the!church!that!it!has!done!so,!but!
Joseph!Smiths!original!writings!in!his!journals!remain!intact.!
59 !Joseph!Smith!was!arrested,!along!with!his!brother!Hyrum,!on!charges!of!treason!
and! held! in! Carthage! Jail,! not! far! south! of! Nauvoo.! John! Taylor! (who! would! later!
become! the! third! president! of! the! church)! and! Willard! Richards! were! also! incar;
cerated.!On!June!27,!1844!an!armed!mob!stormed!the!jail.!Both!Joseph!and!Hyrum!
were!killed.!
60 !HC!Vol.!7!p.!101.!Curiously,!the!church!has!not!edited!this!statement.!

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

29!

Most!early!church!leaders!ignored!the!Word!of!Wisdom.!Ho;
sea!Stout,!one!of!the!great!loyal!members!of!the!young!church!and!
a!rabid!journal!keeper!wrote!on!July!1,!1845:!
This! day! there! was! a! grand! concert! we! had! also! the! 12!
and! other! authorities! with! us,! and! was! also! provided! with! as!
much!beer,!wine,!cakes!&c!as!we!could!eat!and!drink.61!
President!Brigham!Young!said!in!General!Conference:!
If!a!person!is!weary,!worn!out,!cast!down,!fainting,!or!dying,!
a!brandy!sling,!a!little!wine,!or!a!cup!of!tea!is!good!to!revive!them.!
Do!not!throw!these!things!away,!and!say!they!must!never!be!used;!
they!are!good!to!be!used!with!judgment,!prudence,!and!discretion.!
Ask! our! Bishops! if! they! drink! tea! every! day,! and! in! most! cases!
they!will!tell!you!they!do!if!they!can!get!it.62!
The!drinking!of!alcohol,!tea!and!coffeeall!of!which!are!cur;
rently! prohibited! by! the! churchwere! not! prohibited! by! early!
leaders.! Why! have! these! commandments,! or! the! interpretation!
thereof,!changed?!Some!of!the!changes!are!understandable;!many!
parts!of!the!Word!of!Wisdom!are!so!vague!as!to!be!almost!impos;
sible!to!interpret!with!any!degree!of!accuracy.!Verse!7,!for!exam;
ple,! prohibits! hot! drinks.! The! 2006! edition! of! the! Church!
Handbook!of!Instructions!states:!
The!only!official!interpretation!of!hot!drinks!in!the!Word!of!
Wisdom! is! the! statement! made! by! early! Church! leaders! that! the!
term!hot!drinks!means!tea!and!coffee.63!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Hosea!Stout!Diary.!The!12!mentioned!were!the!members!of!the!Quorum!of!the!
Twelve!Apostles.!
62 !April!7,!1867,!JD!Vol.!12.!(General!Conference!is!a!twice;yearly!conference!held!
in! Salt! Lake! City,! Utah! and! broadcast! to! church! members! worldwide.)! President!
Wilford! Woodruff! took! Youngs! advice! to! heart.! He! later! recorded:! I! was! quite!
restless!all!night.!Felt!chilly.!Took!a!little!Brandy!sling!and!a!cup!of!coffee,!and!slept!
some!before!daylight!and!until!9!am.!(Wilford!Woodruff!Journal,!June!9,!1897.)!
63 !Church! Handbook! of! Instructions! Vol.! 1,! 2006,! p.! 185.! The! Church! Handbook! is!
composed! of! two! volumes! prepared! by! the! First! Presidency! and! Quorum! of! the!
Twelve,!and!is!one!of!the!churchs!preeminent!policy!guides.!As!of!2010!the!second!
volume!was!made!available!on!the!churchs!website,!but!the!first!volume!is!given!
only!to!male!leaders!who!have!reached!a!certain!level!within!the!church.!
61

!
30!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

That! is! not! what! early! church! leaders! practiced,! nor! is! it! the!
only! official! interpretation.! Some! church! leaders! ignored! the!
hot!drinks!part!of!the!revelation!entirely!while!others!prohibit;
ed!much!more!than!coffee!and!tea.!In!General!Conference!Apostle!
George!Q.!Cannon!declared:!
We! have! heard! considerable! of! late,! especially! since! twelve!
months! today,! on! the! subject! of! the! Word! of! Wisdom.! Almost!
every!elder!who!has!spoken!from!this!stand!has!felt!the!necessity!
and!importance!of!calling!the!attention!of!the!people!to!this!sub;
ject.!We!are!told,!and!very!plainly!too,!that!hot!drinkstea,!coffee,!
chocolate,! cocoa! and! all! drinks! of! this! kind! are! not! good! for!
man!we!must!feed!our!children!properly!We!must!not!permit!
them!to!drink!liquor!or!hot!drinks,!or!hot!soups!or!to!use!tobacco!
or!other!articles!that!are!injurious.64!
Why! is! hot! soup! and! hot! chocolate! no! longer! condemned! by!
the!church?!Well,!because!such!rules!were!silly.!No!one!followed!
them!and!the!doctrines!eventually!died!out.65!!
The! Word! of! Wisdom! also! teaches! some! correct! things! (to;
bacco!is!bad!for!humans),!but!again,!this!is!scripture! that!is!sup;
posed! to! be! straight! from! God.! Shouldnt! every! part! of! it! be!
correct?! Shouldnt! its! interpretation! by! current! prophets! corre;
spond!to!that!of!former!prophets?!
The!good!things!taught!in!the!Word!of!Wisdom!are!often!held!
up!as!evidence!that!its!source!is!divine,!but!the!principles!therein!
were! notas! Latter;day! Saints! like! to! sayahead! of! their! time.!
King!James!of!England!blasted!tobacco!way!back!in!1604,!calling!
it,!Hatefull!to!the!Nose,!Harmefull!to!the!braine,!dangerous!to!the!
Lungs66!and!tracts!were!published!against!tobacco,!alcohol,!meat!
and! hot! drinks! long! before! the! Word! of! Wisdom! appeared.! In!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!April!7,!1868,!JD!Vol.!12.!
!Thank!goodness!they!did;!Stephens!Gourmet!(http://www.hotcocoa.com/),!mak;
ers!of!the!worlds!finest!hot!chocolate,!was!founded!by!Latter;day!Saints!in!Farming;
ton,!Utah.!I!do!not!know!how!I!would!survive!the!Utah!winters!without!them.!
66 !http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Counterblaste_to_Tobacco;!full!text!at!
http://www.laits.utexas.edu/poltheory/james/blaste/.!
64
65

!
Why!I!Question!Scripture!

31!

1806!Dr.!Shadrach!Ricketson!published!a!health!book!in!which!he!
quoted!multiple!doctors!of!his!day.!About!hot!drinks!he!wrote:!!
Avoid,!likewise,!the!excessive!use!of!hot!drinks,!such!as!cof;
fee,!chocolate,!and!tea,!particularly!the!last,!in!which!the!inhabit;
ants!of!this!country!indulge!more!than!any!other!beverage.67!!
About!tobacco:!
In! no! one! view,! is! it! possible! to! contemplate! the! creature!
man!in!a!more!absurd!and!ridiculous!light;!than!in!his!attachment!
to! tobacco! The! oil! of! tobacco! is! of! so! active! and! virulent! a! na;
ture,!that!a!few!drops!of!it!have!proven!fatal.68!
And!finally,!about!meat:!
A! reason! for! avoiding! much! animal! food,! especially! in! cities!
and! during! the! summer! season,! is,! that! a! great! part! of! the! fresh!
meat! brought! to! market! becomes! overheated! and! some,! per;
haps,! has! already! undergone! the! incipient! stage! of! putrefaction!
before! it! is! cooked! It! is! therefore,! recommended! to! all! in! hot!
seasons!and!climates,!to!abstain!from!much!animal!food.69!!
I! have! quoted! only! one! of! numerous! tracts! published! in! the!
early!1800s!that!teach!the!same.!The!Word!of!Wisdom!clearly!re;
flects!the!popular!thinking!of!the!time!and!is!an!excellent!example!
of!the!doctrines!of!men.!!
Do!you!believe!everything!taught!in!the!Word!of!Wisdom?!Do!
you! use! strong! drink! as! the! Lord! directs?! Do! you! only! eat! meat!
during!winter!and!famine?!Do!you!eat!hot!soup!or!drink!hot!choc;
olate,! which! was! once! unacceptable?! Do! you! drink! beer,! which!
was!acceptable?!If!our!behavior!is!supposed!to!model!our!beliefs,!
we!must!not!take!very!seriously!the!Word!of!Wisdoms!claims!of!
divine! origin.! Research! has! since! proven! some! of! the! counsel! in!
the!Word!of!Wisdom!to!be!correct.!Other!parts!are!wrong.!Let!us!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!Means!of!Preserving!Health!and!Preventing!Diseases,!printed!by!Collins,!Perkins!!
and!Company,!1806.!
68 !See!previous!footnote.!
69 !This!may!help!explain!the!inclusion!of!some!of!the!more!peculiar!Word!of!Wis;
dom!directives,!directives!that!might!indeed!have!been!useful!for!their!time,!such!
as!the!instruction!to!eat!meat!only!in!winter.!
67

!
32!

T HOU! S HALT! Q UESTION !

keep! the! good! stuff! and! toss! the! rest.! Lets! not! blame! God! for!
scriptures!that!are!noticeably!incorrect.!
!
***!
!
Relying!on!scriptureancient!or!modernwithout!question;
ing!is!dangerous.!The!scriptures!contain!some!very!good!teachings!
surrounded! by! alarmingly! harmful! teachings.! They! present! a!
smorgasbord!of!stories!from!which!members!of!all!faiths!pick!and!
choose.! Latter;Day! Saints! are! no! exception.! We! are! told! to! not!
question!revelation!but!we!do!it!anyway,!using!our!moral!compass!
to! discard! doctrines! that! are! ethically! wrong! or! do! not! make!
sense.!Why!pretend!otherwise?!Since!there!are!great!stretches!of!
written!revelation!we!pay!no!attention!to,!how!is!our!treatment!of!
scripture!different!than!our!treatment!of!any!other!book?!!
I!believe!the!scriptures!can!be!beautiful!and!uplifting,!just!like!
many!other!books.!They!can!also!be!bizarre!and!immoral,!just!like!
many!other!books.!If!I!were!a!loving!God,!I!would!be!mightily!an;
noyed! to! hear! my! people! blame! me! for! the! genocides! and! other!
terrible!commands!in!scripture.!I!believe!in!questioning!scripture!
and!abandoning!the!misconception!that!all!of!it!is!the!word!of!God.!
!