******************** BY COMMON CONSENT ******************** VOLUME 7, NO. 4 CONFERENCE TIME It's general conference time again, and the faithful will be gathering, first at the Confer ‑ ence Center, in stake centers, and in living rooms to hear two days of addresses and sermons. Then the reallyfaithful will gather for the semi-annual conference critique to mull over the messages, compare this conference to past conferences, to tease out (possibly hidden) meanings in the messages, to deduce new directions or intensifications of the old ones, and, in general, to make sense out of this oldest public ritual of Mormonism. Janice Allred will chair this participatory event, which will convene Monday evening, October 8, 2001, in the story room on the second floor of the main library, 209 E. 500 South, Salt Lake City, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. THE FALLING OF A FINAL AXE? Margaret Toscano, speaking to a packed house at the August Sunstone Symposium, described the "surreal" experience of being called in to a disciplinary council by Dale R. Blake, president of South Cottonwood Stake, whom she had met exactly once before and in whose stake neither she nor any member of her family had ever attended church. She was excommunicated for apostasy in time for Thanksgiving, 2000. . The experience was mystifying, she says, because it seemed so unmotivated coming eight years after the excommunication of her husband Paul in September 1993. Yet the trial October 200| itself was carefully scripted from a literal out‑ line of issues developed in a particular se‑ quence. Called as a witness was Kerry Heinz, the stake president who had excommunicated Paul, and who testified that he had “wamed” Margaret not to speak or write any more about Mother in Heaven. This prior warning, coupled with transcripts of unpublished talks and pub‑ lished presentations, constituted "evidence" that Margaret had willfully disobeyed priest‑ hood authority in continuing to promulgate "false doctrine," one of the three definitions of apostasy. The evening was filled with the forms of courtesy that "masked the violence," with the entire room of fifteen men rising whenever she stood and many compliments to Margaret about her"reasonab|eness" and "passion." But her efforts to supply a context for discussing the history of doctrinal changes were quickly interrupted with snapped orders that she was not to "lecture" the court. President Blake dismissed as "obscene"a carefully researched presentation Margaret had done on depictions of goddesses in various cultures and refused to entertain any notion that nudity was not offensive per se in all cultures. Robert Rees and Daniel Rector respond‑ ed to Margaret‘s paper. Daniel's response revisited his own bruising experience as pub‑ lisher of Sunstone, when his temple recom‑ mend was confiscated in 1991 afterthe maga‑ zine published a summary of news accounts printed nationwide of changes to the endow‑ ment ceremony.
Transcript
********************BY COMMON CONSENT********************VOLUME7, NO. 4
CONFERENCETIMEIt's general conference time again, and
thefaithfulwill be gathering, first at theConfer‑ence Center, in stake centers, and in livingrooms to hear two days of addresses andsermons. Then the reallyfaithfulwill gather forthe semi-annual conference critique to mullover the messages, compare this conferenceto past conferences, to tease out (possiblyhidden)meanings in the messages,to deducenew directions or intensifications of the oldones, and, in general, to make sense out ofthis oldest public ritual of Mormonism.
Janice Allred will chair this participatoryevent, which will convene Monday evening,October 8, 2001, in the story room on thesecond floor of the main library, 209 E. 500South, Salt Lake City, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.
THE FALLINGOFA FINALAXE?MargaretToscano, speaking to a packed
house at the August Sunstone Symposium,described the "surreal" experience of beingcalled in to a disciplinary council by Dale R.Blake, president of South Cottonwood Stake,whom she hadmetexactly once before and inwhose stake neither she nor any member ofher family hadever attended church. Shewasexcommunicated for apostasy in time forThanksgiving, 2000. .
Theexperiencewasmystifying, shesays,because it seemed so unmotivated comingeight years after the excommunication of herhusband Paul in September 1993.Yet the trial
October 200|
itself was carefully scripted from a literal out‑line of issues developed in a particular se‑quence. Called as awitness was Kerry Heinz,the stake presidentwho hadexcommunicatedPaul, and who testified that he had “wamed”Margaretnot to speak or write anymoreaboutMother in Heaven.This priorwarning, coupledwith transcripts of unpublished talks and pub‑lished presentations, constituted "evidence"that Margaret had willfully disobeyed priest‑hood authority in continuing to promulgate"false doctrine," one of the three definitions ofapostasy.
The evening was filled with the forms ofcourtesy that "masked the violence," with theentire roomof fifteenmenrisingwhenever shestood and many compliments to Margaretabouther"reasonab|eness"and"passion."Buther efforts to supply a context for discussingthe history of doctrinal changes were quicklyinterruptedwith snapped orders that she wasnot to "lecture" the court. President Blakedismissedas "obscene"acarefully researchedpresentationMargaret haddoneon depictionsof goddesses in various cultures and refusedto entertain any notion that nudity was notoffensive per se in all cultures.
RobertRees and Daniel Rectorrespond‑ed to Margaret‘s paper. Daniel's responserevisited his own bruising experience as pub‑lisher of Sunstone, when his temple recom‑mendwas confiscated in 1991afterthemaga‑zine published a summary of news accountsprinted nationwide of changes to the endow‑ment ceremony.
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other music is acceptable. Still, manybishops and stake presidents have ruledthat, at least in their area of responsibility,only hymnswill be used.
Why?Simple. Fortheaveragebishop,there are enough problems on the sched‑ule and enough demands on his limitedtime that preplanned, cookie-cutter meet‑ings are a welcome timesaver. So what ifthe meetings are boring? It's the truechurch~isn't that enough? And when themusic chairman asks if Sister Jones canplay in sacrament meeting, it‘s comfortingto be able to turn to a handy rule that treesthe bishop from the necessity to decide ifSister Jones's music is appropriate. It'sless work to have a rule than to acquireand exercise taste and judgment. If someGA said something sometime somewhereabout music (or any other topic), all wehave to do is look it up and do what hesays. No thought, effort, expertise, prayer,or spiritual struggle required
So the bishop‐«or the stake presidentor the stake music director~tells the musicdirector, “Nothing but hymns." “After all,Elder Packer likes them,” mutters the bish‑op to himself. "How can I go wrong?”
Well, here‘s how. By insistingonmak‑ing the music decisions, the bishop (orstakepresident,orwhoever) is takingawayfrom the music director the opportunity tomagnify hercalling. Dittoforthemusicians.
But rememberwhenJethro toldMosesthat he needed to let others help him gov‑ern the children of Israel? It wasn't justMoses who was suffering. The peoplethemselves would ‘wear away" if they gottoo dependantonMoses! (Exod. 18:12‐23)
Taking decisions‐significant andimportant decisions--away from peoplelimits their growth. And afterall, that is oneof the great purposesof our life on earth. Ithas been suggested that theWar in Heav‑
en ls still going on.We are still, each of us,often confrontedwith the seductively easypath of unthinking agreement with author‑ity. In a way, of course, obedience is diffi‑cult. However, it isdeceptively comfortableto surrender oneswill to other men, espe‑cially to obviously good men.
The problem is this: As we shouldhave learned in the War in Heaven, thereis only One towhomwe can safely surren‑der our personal will. No wonder BrighamYoung warned the Church about the dan‑gers of following the Church leaders‐in‑cluding himself‐just because they areChurch leaders.
To put it simply‐We cannot grow byblind obedience, even by blindobedienceto correct counsel, and growth is what isrequired if we are ever to be fit for theCelestial Kingdom. The easy, reflexive,unthinking way was not the path that theSavior proposed. Following any path buthis will not develop in us the strength wewill need to be with him someday.
We've gone from hymns to the War inHeaven. Is it really all that important? Yesand no.We are commanded to attend sac‑ramentmeetingto renewourcovenantwiththe Savior by partaking of the sacrament.Everything about the meeting should pointus toward that experience, help us under‑stand its significance, and lift us towardhim. In a way, it doesn't really matter whatmusic is performed or sung, as long as itpoints us toward the Savior. On the otherhand, when Joseph Smith paraphrasedPaul in stating that the Saints seek aftereverygood andpraiseworthy thing, hewasreminding us that one of the goals of thegospel is to make us better‐more like theSavior himself. We can and should prog‑ress from the milk of the gospel to moresolid fare. Perhaps instead of seeking tosuit the lowest common denominator in
musical taste in the congregation, musicdirectors should aspire to present the bestmusic that can be performed. Like theadmonitionto readthe best books, nofixedlist should be furnished. The hymnbook isa guide andfurnishes a variety of excellentmusic‐but it's not all there is.
In the end, it may notmatterto anyoneelse in the ward whether I play "Jesu, JoyofMan'sDesiring"or "WeAreAll Enlisted."But I amembarrassed to give lessthan mybest, lessthan thewardmembersdeserve,less than the Lord requires of me. It is veryfrustrating that someone else has decidedfor me that I will not be allowed to givewhat I can give. My growth in the gospelhas been limited, yet still I feel the need togrow.
Enoughsaid: I'mgoing to go practice!
A Story and ThreeWishes:Musings onWorthinessand the Sacrament
FrancesLeeMen/ave
The StorySt. Paul's Episcopal Church is the
setting. Christmas Eve midnight mass isthe time. Much to the surprise of EpiscopalBishopJohnShelbySpong,whowas offici‑ating that evening, a rabbi and his wifecame forward with hands outstretched toreceive the bread andwine of the commu‑nion service. They were given the sacra‑ment since it was the bishop's practice torefuse no one who came forward to thealtar.
Bishop Spong and the rabbi had awarm relationship. Their congregationshad worshipped together. Nevertheless,the bishop was a little surprised. BishopSpong describes their chance meeting
about a week later.Bishop: "Joe, we were so pleased to
have you and your wife at church onChristmas Eve. Thank you for coming."
Rabbi: "I'll bet you were a little sur‑prisedwhenwedecidedto receivecommu‑nion."
Bishop: "l was. Tell me what thatmeant to you."' Rabbi: "We thought about it a lot
before we did it, Jack, but let me ask yousomequestions to showyou howwe cameto that decision. Was not the communionservice of the Christian Church said tohave originated in the Last Supper, whichwas supposed to be a Jewish Passover?"
Bishop: "Yes, that is a major strand inour tradition."
Rabbi: "Werenotall those fellowswhoattended the Last Supper Jews?"
Bishop: "Yes, they were."Rabbi: "Were any of those disciples at
the meal baptized or confirmed?"Bishop: "Not to my knowledge."Rabbi: "Well, we figured that if
unbaptizedJewscould receivecommunionfrom Jesus at the start of the Christianfaith, then we could receive it from you inthanksgiving for the dialogue that hadbrought us close together again!"1
Three WishesI wish we would remember Jesus is
our host at the sacrament service-that wewould imagine it is Jesus who is offeringeach one of us the bread and water. Thedeacons, the priests, the bishopric wouldbe important facilitators; however, theinvitation to eat the bread and drink thewater would be coming from Him.
I wish that withholding of the sacra‑mentwould neverbeusedasadisciplinarytool. Excommunicatedor disfellowshippedmembers would be free to take the bread
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with its shatten‘ng loss of civilian life has simplymade the same point in unmistakable terms.But one of the earliest FamilyHome EveningManuals in the mid-19603 contained thisverse:
He drew a circle that shut me outHeretic, rebel, a thing to floutBut love and I had the wit to winWe drew a circle that took him in.in claiming that the three greatest threats
to the church are homosexuals, feminists. andscholars (“so-called intellectuals"). Packerhassaid that such individuals "have made majorinvasions into the membership of the Church,"Theword "invasions" exquisitely bespeakstheCallicebus imageof the false external threat tothe border.
The Book of Mormon chillingly describesthe nearly complete destruction of Nephitesociety just prior to the appearance of JesusChrist when the people divided into tribesbased on their kindreds (3 Ne. 721-14). In theZion society that followed Christ's visit, therewere nosuchdelimitations. “noranymannerof‐ites" (4 Ne. 1:17).
Surely it is this last image that the scrip‑tures mean in the commandment/promise]prophecy that "Zion must increase in beauty.and in holiness; herbordersmustbe enlarged. . . (D&C 82:14; emphasis mine).
MormonAlliance1511 Roberts 51'.Salt 1.0K: Ci'i’,MT
3 ‘1" :
mMovrmns.Wefio‘a leflmsasum.seen.mdadouinn, Same‐Sax Dynamics Among Nineteenth-CenturyAmari‑consoqMormonExampb(chhgo:UniversityotIllinoisPrass,1996);Corviell(”Rockv')O'Donwan.“"theNaorrlinableand [ v e r s a t i l eCrimeAgahstNanire ‘ :AanerHlsuyoiHormsemmyaramnm.lw1980:(http://wwwaffinnationnrglabomination. h im) ;andMaxineHanks.ed.WomanandAutho/ity:Re‐EmeryingMonnonFanl'nism(SaltLakeCity:Signatureaools, i992).learliole.'WhatThoughOurRightsHaveBeenAssiled‘rMormons.Politlw.Same-SexMarriage.andQumralAhuseinmeSandwich Islands(Hawaii),MmeWsRighSLawRepalfer16. no.2 (1997): 129-203.documentsthe Church'sinvetvementInHawaiianlegislationandtheoourblaheadoffamove‑ment toward legalizinggaymarriage.
2 SeeDoctrineWm “Emernsfmm1 1 1 m mbyPresidentWillardWoodruflRegardingtheManitestn.‘followingOfficial Declaration 1.
3. Forthe addressto theAll‐ChurchCoordinating Council inwhichPackerrnadethisstatementandalsoIssuedhisdenunciationofgays.feminists.andsd'lohrs.see:<lfimjlmmanirmationotg/packer.‑h i m )and<huijvwwmmug/rwsiettss/mss.htm>;alsorepodedinSaltLake Tribune, 20 September 1993.
i'StalTrHC(1W) FlankGorshinplaying" C o t n m mBelle"inepisode;'LetThatBeYourL a gBattiefleld'(episode#70) firstairedJanuary 10, 1969. Lokai played by Lou Antonio, <http1lvmwmallsoffamemmlhtml/ television__88.html>.
#WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW)ORGANIZATIONAL STATEMENT
TheMormonAlliancewas incorporatedonJuly4.1992Itspurposesareto identifyanddocumenteoclesiastimllspiri»tualabuse. to promotehealingandclosurefor itssurvivors.tobuildmoresensitiveleadership,to empowerLDSmemberstoparticipateWithmoreauthentic‘fly inMormonism.andtofostera healthier religious community.
ByCommonConsent isthequarteriy newsletteroi theMormonAllianoe. Plasesendallcorrespondenceaboutarti‑cles. subscriptions ($30 per year; includes annual CaseReports).andreportsotecclesiastical andspiritualabusetoMormonAlliance, 1519RobertaStreet.Salt LakeCity. UT84115, or Lavina FieldingAnderson, <[email protected]>.
