I'm optimistic about the future. Things always get better.
That said, I think many of our intellectuals have been carried off to Babylon to promote their theories in a manner pleasing to the world (i.e., they agree with the critics), but I think that will prove temporary. Eventually they will return to the teachings of the prophets.
Maybe it will happen in the next 10 months.*
Or maybe the problems will have to get much worse first. We'll see. But I wanted my final pre-hiatus post to summarize one of the most serious problems we face.
_____
For some time now, I've documented specific examples of what I used to call revisionist Church historians creating false historical narratives and deleting certain events, terminology and teachings from the current narratives. We've looked at how the M2C citation cartel censors the teachings of the prophets about the New York Cumorah, etc.
The effort is coordinated across many departments and groups. I'm lumping them all together as the "De-Correlation Department."
The De-Correlation Department decides what information and teachings from Church history need to be featured, emphasized, and promoted, and what information and teachings need to be to suppressed, ignored, and rationalized away.
To the extent they engage in this activity, the M2C citation cartel is part of the De-Correlation Department. The revisionist Church historians are part of the De-Correlation Department. The creators of media, visitors center displays, lesson manuals, web pages, and the Gospel Topics Essays are part of the De-Correlation Department.
I posted the latest example to my Saintsreview blog, here:
https://saintsreview.blogspot.com/2019/08/rewriting-d-28-30-32.html
New readers here may be unaware of how effective the De-Correlation Department has been. For example, have you heard of Letter VII or the rest of the first published history of the Church, written by Oliver Cowdery?
Probably not, if you rely on the De-Correlation Department. See http://www.lettervii.com/.
During Joseph Smith's lifetime, he made sure that all the members had access to Letter VII and the other essays on Church history. Now you can read them in Joseph's own journal in the Joseph Smith Papers. Here is where Moroni told Joseph that the record was written and deposited not far from his house:
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/history-1834-1836/69
These essays were published in the Gospel Reflector, the Times and Seasons, the Millennial Star, the Prophet, and the Improvement Era. But they have never been published in the Ensign. The rising generation will never heard about them.
Just as readers of Saints never learned about the New York Cumorah, the mission to the Lamanites, etc.
It would be wonderful if the De-Correlation Department decided to "re-correlate" these important teachings. But I suspect a lot more people will become confused about Church history and Book of Mormon historicity before the De-Correlation Department returns to the teachings of the prophets.
(My team may publish some of my legacy posts and previously unpublished posts while I'm gone.)
_____
* As many readers know, I've accepted an assignment outside the U.S. and won't be blogging for 10 months, although there are plenty of legacy blogs to recycle and nearly 150 I've written but never posted.
That said, I think many of our intellectuals have been carried off to Babylon to promote their theories in a manner pleasing to the world (i.e., they agree with the critics), but I think that will prove temporary. Eventually they will return to the teachings of the prophets.
Maybe it will happen in the next 10 months.*
Or maybe the problems will have to get much worse first. We'll see. But I wanted my final pre-hiatus post to summarize one of the most serious problems we face.
_____
For some time now, I've documented specific examples of what I used to call revisionist Church historians creating false historical narratives and deleting certain events, terminology and teachings from the current narratives. We've looked at how the M2C citation cartel censors the teachings of the prophets about the New York Cumorah, etc.
The effort is coordinated across many departments and groups. I'm lumping them all together as the "De-Correlation Department."
The De-Correlation Department decides what information and teachings from Church history need to be featured, emphasized, and promoted, and what information and teachings need to be to suppressed, ignored, and rationalized away.
I posted the latest example to my Saintsreview blog, here:
https://saintsreview.blogspot.com/2019/08/rewriting-d-28-30-32.html
New readers here may be unaware of how effective the De-Correlation Department has been. For example, have you heard of Letter VII or the rest of the first published history of the Church, written by Oliver Cowdery?
Probably not, if you rely on the De-Correlation Department. See http://www.lettervii.com/.
During Joseph Smith's lifetime, he made sure that all the members had access to Letter VII and the other essays on Church history. Now you can read them in Joseph's own journal in the Joseph Smith Papers. Here is where Moroni told Joseph that the record was written and deposited not far from his house:
https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/history-1834-1836/69
These essays were published in the Gospel Reflector, the Times and Seasons, the Millennial Star, the Prophet, and the Improvement Era. But they have never been published in the Ensign. The rising generation will never heard about them.
Just as readers of Saints never learned about the New York Cumorah, the mission to the Lamanites, etc.
It would be wonderful if the De-Correlation Department decided to "re-correlate" these important teachings. But I suspect a lot more people will become confused about Church history and Book of Mormon historicity before the De-Correlation Department returns to the teachings of the prophets.
(My team may publish some of my legacy posts and previously unpublished posts while I'm gone.)
_____
* As many readers know, I've accepted an assignment outside the U.S. and won't be blogging for 10 months, although there are plenty of legacy blogs to recycle and nearly 150 I've written but never posted.
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