Thank you so much for answering my question and being so open. I'm sorry if it was uncomfortable. Just goes to show people can learn and change. Love your channel and look forward to more vids!!
Gosh. You couldn't blame anyone coming out of this cult deeply troubled and confused. 👀 Sam has obviously managed to retain - or regain - his sanity. Thank you for educating folks on YT.
The honesty and authenticity in this video is incredible. I, too, was raised to be very judgmental and it was/is VERY hard to shake. 25+ years post religion, I still struggle with absolute acceptance because I was raised to believe certain people were sinners and that was that. I think the greatest gift is knowing you were taught wrong, and readjusting your thinking, and also working with your instinctive behaviours (such as cringing or flinching) because you come by those reactions very honestly. Bravo to you Sam! And well done with the explanations, Melissa.
I'm glad I came across your channel. I've loved your content! Thank you for tackling this difficult subject - despite it being uncomfortable, you handled delicately and with grace. You guys are great and I can't wait to see your channel grow! 😊
Im a native american and work alongside some of the flds guys at phaze concrete. Its good to know they think im cursed and a lesser being than them🤣 Great videos to inform about their beliefs. Very interesting regardless of how uncomfortable. Keep it up. Good job
Thanks for being honest! You guys should check out Year of Polygamy. It’s a podcast. They go into great detail about Mormon history, how exactly racial rhetoric was introduced, etc. I was shocked when I learned that certain original leaders married or had relationships with black women specifically. Even though it didn’t last long lol.
Thanks for watching! And we will check that out! It sounds super interesting! Melissa is super into Mormon history and has done a lot of research on specific church history topics so it sounds right up her alley!
Thank you for being so open with us (your viewers). It’s amazing that you reply back to us all and I really look forward to seeing you two and your videos.
Thank you so much! We are grateful for such awesome viewers who ask such great questions and allow us to answer them openly and honestly. Your support makes this such a great experience for us too!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy that’s awesome. You guys are the best. Next I think you guys should do collaborations with other people who have come from Polygamy backgrounds. There is a bunch of them I watch. It would be nice to see you guys do that and to compare the differences between the groups or even with people that have left the same group you were in and how your experiences were the same or different. It amazes me how even though people come from different groups their experiences are similar.
I have such respect for you for even addressing this. Many who didn't even have this strong a belief system refuse to talk about this. God bless you guys.
Very interesting video, thank you for sharing and I'm so glad you were able to outgrow those racist beliefs! Fun fact, (that's not actually fun at all lol) some of my racist extended family in the Dominican republic believe basically the opposite about interracial marriage. Instead of belieing that the darker skin person somhow brings down the lighter skin person they believe the lighter skin person brings up the darker skin person. So my father is Dominican and has darker skin and my mother is white. Those racist people believe that by having kids with my mother my father was "cleaning up" our bloodline. A horrible thing to believe but an interesting comparison to the beliefs of the FLDS church.
Also known as "bleaching the line". There is a novel written about this (former) value in African American culture called "Cane River" by Lalita Tademy. It's a good read.
Thank u for being so open I'm sure this was an uncomfortable topic! It's interesting to know even though they believe they are cursed they are still brothers and sisters.
Your honestly & authenticity is so admirable!! I've been binge watching your videos all week. On another note, do you like any different kinds of foods now like Chinese, Mexican, Italian food?
Just because I'm very interested in family history topics, I was wondering what nationalities are prevalent in the FLDS communities. Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge.
Interesting. As a child if I was racist or against a person based on their sexualityO would have been able to talk to God personally because my mom would have sent me to meet him. Thank you for this topic. Unfortunately lies similar to this is what turns people away from church. It was just another way of controlling the people. Sam we are glad you are free. A bad person is not determined by race that’s who they are. It upsets me when people say white or black people act like this…..
I've watched a ton of your videos. Thank you for sharing your life. It's interesting. After leaving the FLDS, obviously your spiritual belief didn't snap, so did lead into the LDS? If so, how were you received? Do you still believe that way? Do you have children? Does some of the ways you were raised rub off on your parenting choices? Are there tricks that non polyg families should know about? You two are so lovely. What made you decide to share your story? Do you hope your family and siblings see your videos? Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you so much for watching! We are actually going to be doing a video soon on my spiritual journey since leaving the FLDS. It is a lot to go over so we are just trying to figure out the best way to convey it all, but we should be answering those type of questions soon. Stay tuned! =) We have two beautiful children. My parenting has definitely been influenced by the way I was raised (here is a link to the video we did on some basic ways it has been changed ua-cam.com/video/wdtRmQ3yUrI/v-deo.html) Since the moment I left, people have been intrigued by my story and have always asked me questions. And then there have been a lot of people who told me that they were amazed that I was willing to be so open about such a sensitive topic. I have always been more than happy to share my story, and there has always been so much secrecy surrounding the religion I grew up in. I thought more people might want to learn more of what it was like for me. I also really enjoy sharing the good elements of growing up where I did, because the media often only shows the bad. So we decided to start this channel and share my story. =) Thank you again for all of your support!
Is this "curse" of people of colour also taught in the mainstream LDS Church? Well done for making this video. White people need to face these awful assumptions head on, so that we can teach our children tolerance and kindness.
As a member of the LDS church, no, we don’t believe that POC are cursed. In the scriptures it says the word “cursed”, but we don’t believe that word is meant literally. We don’t believe they are cursed at all. We recognized that meanings of words have changed through time, and the original word written could have also been lost in translation.
As another member of the LDS church, I would disagree with Rachel a bit and say this has been taught in the mainstream LDS church to some degree. But, as with most things, it's complicated. I was definitely taught as a teenager (not too long ago) that people of sub-Saharan African descent were the descendants of Cain. I wasn't taught that they were less faithful in the pre-existence, but I know lots of folks who were taught that and was generally aware of that belief. Generally these beliefs are kind of old, outdated, and definitely not canonical these days. But they still lurk in some dark corners of Mormanity. Mormon theology has a lot of racial issues that cross the different offshoots. This includes some of the storyline in the Book of Mormon as well as the Bible. And, as with many conservative groups in the 20th century, the mainstream LDS church was pretty backwards about race for a long time. It wasn't until 1978 that the LDS church started ordaining black men to the priesthood, or allowing anyone with any Sub-Saharan African descent to enter the temples (the most sacred spaces where the most important rituals for salvation are performed). And even into the 21st century some leaders and teaching manuals still discouraged interracial marriage, mostly citing the "unnecessary burden" of different cultural expectations. This article from the mainstream LDS church's website does a pretty good job explaining the history of racist beliefs and practices in the church. While the church has never formally apologized for its past sins of this nature, they do now officially "condemn all racism, past and present." www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays/race-and-the-priesthood?lang=eng
Maybe they don't advertise it, but the same believes go for the LDS church too, right? Isn't it in the scriptures or has one of the prophets they believe in had another convenient revelation from God to clean up a messy history?
Very good video. I just asked a question n a newer video before seeing this about race; we grew up near an Amish couple who couldn't conceive, and had several mixed race adopted children that they raised. Josiah is still a member, he took over the family farm. Is married w/kids now. But I know it was...very accepting & very rough for them all at the same time
I don’t remember where I read or saw this but it was Warren Jeffs talking about the gentile music of The Beatles and how they became very popular, but it was dangerous bc The Beatles were heavily inspired by R&B music/Black artists.
Thank you for being honest and sharing your lived experience. I have a question, do you still believe that there are many different races of humans or is it possible that there is only a single race and that the colour of our skin pigmentation is just a reflection of which latitude on earth a person and their ancestors have lived on? Do you think it's possible that the amount and type of exposure our direct ancestors and we have had to our sun impacts the colour of our skin? We are exposed to more of our sun’s rays closer to the earths equator but we experience less exposure as we move closer to either the north or south poles, is it possible that this is why we see different human skin colours depending on where our ancestors have lived for generations?
Such a great question! We are just now opening our eyes to the possibilities of the creation story not being the truth and are trying to learn all we can. I can't say that we know for sure what we believe on this, but we are enjoying learning about other theories like this one! =)
I want to share something if it will help. I lived closer to the equator and tanned GREAT! Meaning I could get brown skinned very easily/quickly without burning and no sunblock "needed" at all. As I got older , and moved further from the equator, I had more trouble being able to get that nice brown tan. It takes ALL summer to get one, that's laying out in the sun daily too. And I'm not THAT far from the equator but still far enough in my opinion. I'm only in SC ! But still drastic difference from when I was in Cuba in the 80s.
I don’t usually comment, but I just want to acknowledge that talking about race and racism takes courage and character, and it’s really good to see that. What’s the saying? Good on you?
P.S., I’m glad it’s uncomfortable, bc if it wasn’t, you’d either be not coming from a place of authenticity, or else a total sociopath. These topics should be uncomfortable for us! They are already so so uncomfortable and sometimes scary for BIPOC. Discomfort is how we grow, and learn, IMO. Not that we can’t learn fun things in fun ways too, but just meaning this particular instance, I do think discomfort is maybe even required, in order for us to stay connected to the same natural human emotions that eventually find themselves transformed into action steps for social justice (which can look a bazillion different ways, including your video). Anyway, thanks for being awesome! You make it easier for others to do likewise, and that is not a small thing.
Interesting how they misinterpret that scripture. The mark was not a curse. It was to protect Cain. Cain's punishment was that he was to be a wanderer.
So in Genesis 4:15 it says that Cain was "marked". The early LDS prophets, (who were the founding leaders of the LDS and FLDS), particularly Brigham Young, taught that this mark was of dark skin.
This wasn’t just an early teaching as the LDS church refused sealings and endowments for anyone black until 1978, teaching the same “mark of Cain,” and did so in 1995, when we left.
This is not in the Bible before Mormonism. It was added in the 1800s by Mormons. Christians do not believe this because it’s not in any of our early manuscripts.
I am curious, you mentioned in the video of flds and laws that the community was mainly family. So... did the leaders ever put relatives together for marriage? If so were there issues with birth defects, etc.? I have never seen visual special needs children or people in general. Were they just kept secret? Disappear? Raised as the rest, I just haven't seen them?
There were some relatives that were married. It seemed that they tried to keep very closely related people not married (like no first cousins). You may never see the special needs children out and about, because they don't take them shopping with them, but the community still had them and they were raised as the rest. There was even a special school for those with special needs.
Well done Sam. I could feel your embarrassment. I’ve taught all my children that no matter what colour other are, they have a heart, brain and feelings. They are no different to anyone else.
What about the LDS church? I identify as Black but I'm biracial. My mom's family is LDS and I've never been able to embrace their religion. I know that Blacks are allowed in the church now but they weren't for some time. It's a topic that I don't feel comfortable talking to my family about because they automatically get defensive.
@Sam & Melissa (Growing Up in Polygamy)/2 s - I know to a degree with Amish culture, there is inbreeding as the population of Amish is quite small in the United States. I realize the Amish belief are different the FLDS beliefs (Or the LDS for that matter!). Although the FLDS has a large population, there are many many 1/2 brothers and 1/2 sisters because having same father and different mother. With the large families in the FLDS sects and so much being siblings and 1st cousins to each other in each compound/sect (not sure what to call it), is there concern of inbreeding at all because of this?
A great topic, handled with repect and authenticity. You may already be aware, but neither the story of Cain nor Ham mention a curse of dark skin. It is a misrepresentation that is so easily discredited by looking up these passages on-line or looking in a bible. In fact Cain's decendents were all supposed to have been drowned according to further comment. It was a much later scholar that linked Ham to Africans. However, it should be noted that the use of religion to reinforce abhorrent belief is not new. Thank you for such a brave video. The content on this channel is exceedingly high quality and very balanced.
Well said. The fact that people use religion to perpetuate wrong thinking is especially egregious, because it blinds people to the true religion, which can only be found by reading the Bible for yourself to see if things are so (as the Beroeans did in Acts 17:11)
Very interesting. Thank you. The role of native Americans in the book of mormon is another aspect and also I believe quite a lot of fundamentalist mormons went to places like Mexico to escape persecution so inevitably speak Spanish and probably some had hispanic wives. I think I read a book by one lady brought up down there and one of her father's wives was a young local girl.
The LeBarons? They were very integrated with Mexican wives. They did seem to value the white children more in the books I read (there are 5 I have read so far).
From 1849 to 1978 the LDS Church prohibited men of black African decent from being ordained to the priesthood. It seems the Mormon god, is a learning God.
What did/do ya'll believe about Jews? I noticed they call non-flds "gentiles" and we as Jews consider anyone who is not Jewish a Gentile and I notice some terminology that is similar. Did you believe in Replacement Theology? Please be as comprehensive as you can as to the belief about Jews in general and specifically. Or where you not taught anything at all? Please add if LDS believe the same on this.
Why do some of the FLDS members do missionary work in foreign countries, like yourself, when you stated you spent time in Chile 🇨🇱 where there are many brown & black people?
So my mission was actually for the LDS church, which I joined after I left the FLDS. I know it is a little confusing, but the LDS church (often referred to as Mormons) are the ones that do missionary work around the world, and they have denounced the teachings of past prophets that preach racism.
Here's the thing about the Bible: first of all, you don't even have people of lighter pigmentation mentioned in the Torah. All of them were of dark pigmentation
Would be interesting to know what family you’re taking about that was Hispanic. But there also is a lot of Native American blood in our bloodline. Just sayin. 😊
Yah, I can't remember their names! Funny enough I was always told that I had Native American in my bloodline, but I got my DNA tested and have NONE! haha
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy that is interesting. I have no idea who you are and still can’t tell from everything you have said. Guess I’ll keep listening and see if I can tell. 😅
Some bloodlines haven't been mapped in DNA. It's possible(even if a very small possibility)that your heritage hasn't been documented through DNA. Also DNA is odd...you can have many different variances, but not every one will show. And there are Native cultures allover the world.
OH I have a question for Melissa (who I know was raised mainstream LDS)... not sure if it applies to Sam as I'm not sure that this was taught in his sect. But I know LDS believe Native Americans are descendants of Jesus and of course this has all been disproven by DNA. Melissa, can you can expand on this and how you were raised, and your feelings about things that you were taught in the Book of Mormon that were so grievously untrue that you now know to be untrue (not unlike the Mark of Cain thing). Book of Mormon is full of so many odd beliefs... up to and including the "get your own planet" thing, posthumously baptising Jews killed in the Holocaust and how polygamy was conveniently determined to be changed by the prophet right around the time statehood was being offered to Utah if they ditched polygamy. God I have so many questions!! LOL
(Melissa Responding) I don't think I have enough room in this comment section to express everything I think on the subject hahaha. I will say, I was super heartbroken as I learned that things that I had believed to be historically accurate in both the Book of Mormon and the Bible were not historically true at all. We might just have to do a video on some of these things in the future or have a LIVE specifically for people to ask questions about my upbringing if there are enough people interested in that? =)
I'd love a video of some of the beliefs as set out in the LDS faith, compared to what you now know as the truth. Just started watching your videos, I liked and subscribed straight away! Fascinating stuff, and it resonates with me as I was a committed Christian for most of my life but am now atheist. Like you, I respect all religions as long as people are not being harmed by them. Sorry for long reply I could comment for hours on this! Xx
I had a coworker who was raised LDS. She lived in Utah her whole life but at 18 went to college in California. She met a Hispanic man fell in love got married and had a baby. Her family completely disowned her and hasn’t ever met her husband or child. It’s so sad and disappointing this is going on in 2022 still
It seems like you’re mixing up politeness with racism. Telling your church members to be polite to people while explicitly teaching that those people are less worthy, less good, than the white race- is real actual super bad racism. It’s not less racist if they are polite about their racism. When you’re explaining that FLDS teaches respect to people they think are literally beneath you- it reads as minimizing the racism. Your should not do that. Also- how do you feel now as inactive LDS members? You’re aware that this particular teaching was also a part of mainstream LDS for a super long time. How do you square that?
The FLDS do mix politeness with racism. Our entire video was talking about what the FLDS views are, not ours. They told us to "respect them" while teaching us racist beliefs. That was not me minimizing racism at all. It was me sharing what I was taught. We don't have to square any feelings about racism in a church we don't believe in, that includes the FLDS and the LDS. We are not racist and believe that racism is unacceptable. Period.
Thank you sharing. As an African American woman, I love hearing about different cultures and sociology.
I can tell this was uncomfortable for you but it’s great that you’re willing to deal with that to get info out. Mad props to you both.
Totally agree. I respect them.
Thank you so much for answering my question and being so open. I'm sorry if it was uncomfortable. Just goes to show people can learn and change. Love your channel and look forward to more vids!!
Thank you so much for being willing to ask the hard questions! Thanks for all the support! Keep the questions coming! =)
Gosh. You couldn't blame anyone coming out of this cult deeply troubled and confused. 👀 Sam has obviously managed to retain - or regain - his sanity.
Thank you for educating folks on YT.
The honesty and authenticity in this video is incredible. I, too, was raised to be very judgmental and it was/is VERY hard to shake. 25+ years post religion, I still struggle with absolute acceptance because I was raised to believe certain people were sinners and that was that. I think the greatest gift is knowing you were taught wrong, and readjusting your thinking, and also working with your instinctive behaviours (such as cringing or flinching) because you come by those reactions very honestly. Bravo to you Sam! And well done with the explanations, Melissa.
Thank you so much!
Thank you for having such an open dialogue about race and how you grew up. So non-judgmental, honest and refreshing.
Thank you so much!
I'm glad I came across your channel. I've loved your content! Thank you for tackling this difficult subject - despite it being uncomfortable, you handled delicately and with grace. You guys are great and I can't wait to see your channel grow! 😊
Im a native american and work alongside some of the flds guys at phaze concrete. Its good to know they think im cursed and a lesser being than them🤣
Great videos to inform about their beliefs. Very interesting regardless of how uncomfortable. Keep it up. Good job
Working closely with you might help to question that particular belief, it's easier to believe things about people you don't know.
@@powderandpaint14correct.
Thank you for making this video. It's super exciting and interesting to see someone speaking so honestly about life in the FLDS.
Thank you for watching!
This was a great effort and appreciate your willingness to try and clarify.
Thanks for being honest! You guys should check out Year of Polygamy. It’s a podcast. They go into great detail about Mormon history, how exactly racial rhetoric was introduced, etc. I was shocked when I learned that certain original leaders married or had relationships with black women specifically. Even though it didn’t last long lol.
Thanks for watching! And we will check that out! It sounds super interesting! Melissa is super into Mormon history and has done a lot of research on specific church history topics so it sounds right up her alley!
Thank you for being so open with us (your viewers). It’s amazing that you reply back to us all and I really look forward to seeing you two and your videos.
Thank you so much! We are grateful for such awesome viewers who ask such great questions and allow us to answer them openly and honestly. Your support makes this such a great experience for us too!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy that’s awesome. You guys are the best. Next I think you guys should do collaborations with other people who have come from Polygamy backgrounds. There is a bunch of them I watch. It would be nice to see you guys do that and to compare the differences between the groups or even with people that have left the same group you were in and how your experiences were the same or different. It amazes me how even though people come from different groups their experiences are similar.
I have such respect for you for even addressing this. Many who didn't even have this strong a belief system refuse to talk about this. God bless you guys.
i would be interested in their views on the lgbtq+ community and how your views have changed since you left.
This is an important issue to raise, I agree.
Color isn't related to sin so apples and trampolines here
@@suzanarozanadana Both vloggers have made it clear that viewers should feel free to raise questions.
@@suzanarozanadana are you saying that being LGBTQ+ is a sin?
@@laurenrichard8344 no
Very interesting video, thank you for sharing and I'm so glad you were able to outgrow those racist beliefs! Fun fact, (that's not actually fun at all lol) some of my racist extended family in the Dominican republic believe basically the opposite about interracial marriage. Instead of belieing that the darker skin person somhow brings down the lighter skin person they believe the lighter skin person brings up the darker skin person. So my father is Dominican and has darker skin and my mother is white. Those racist people believe that by having kids with my mother my father was "cleaning up" our bloodline. A horrible thing to believe but an interesting comparison to the beliefs of the FLDS church.
That is so interesting! Thank you for sharing!
Also known as "bleaching the line". There is a novel written about this (former) value in African American culture called "Cane River" by Lalita Tademy. It's a good read.
Thank u for being so open I'm sure this was an uncomfortable topic! It's interesting to know even though they believe they are cursed they are still brothers and sisters.
Wow what an amazing video. Thank y’all both so much for discussing this with such grace and sensitivity. I really appreciate y’all.
Your honestly & authenticity is so admirable!! I've been binge watching your videos all week. On another note, do you like any different kinds of foods now like Chinese, Mexican, Italian food?
We love all three of those foods a lot now and like to find unique food to try :)
What a difficult topic to be so honest about. I’m happy you were able to find truth through your own experiences 🙌💕. Wonderful couple.
Thank you for making the video people can change💕
How did i only find your channel today.. absolutely fascinating
Aww thanks! We are glad you found us! =)
Tough topic, but handled with transparency and authenticity. What a wonderful world if we all took the time to learn and grow!
Just because I'm very interested in family history topics, I was wondering what nationalities are prevalent in the FLDS communities. Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge.
I'm not sure about the other families, but I have had my DNA analyzed and I am mostly Northern European, particularly Swedish and English. =)
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy Thanks for sharing
Question for another video: How can people outside the FLDS best help those who have left to get established in the outside world?
Great video idea! Thank you!
Excellent question!
Interesting. As a child if I was racist or against a person based on their sexualityO would have been able to talk to God personally because my mom would have sent me to meet him. Thank you for this topic. Unfortunately lies similar to this is what turns people away from church. It was just another way of controlling the people. Sam we are glad you are free. A bad person is not determined by race that’s who they are. It upsets me when people say white or black people act like this…..
I've watched a ton of your videos. Thank you for sharing your life. It's interesting.
After leaving the FLDS, obviously your spiritual belief didn't snap, so did lead into the LDS? If so, how were you received? Do you still believe that way?
Do you have children? Does some of the ways you were raised rub off on your parenting choices? Are there tricks that non polyg families should know about?
You two are so lovely. What made you decide to share your story? Do you hope your family and siblings see your videos?
Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you so much for watching!
We are actually going to be doing a video soon on my spiritual journey since leaving the FLDS. It is a lot to go over so we are just trying to figure out the best way to convey it all, but we should be answering those type of questions soon. Stay tuned! =)
We have two beautiful children. My parenting has definitely been influenced by the way I was raised (here is a link to the video we did on some basic ways it has been changed ua-cam.com/video/wdtRmQ3yUrI/v-deo.html)
Since the moment I left, people have been intrigued by my story and have always asked me questions. And then there have been a lot of people who told me that they were amazed that I was willing to be so open about such a sensitive topic. I have always been more than happy to share my story, and there has always been so much secrecy surrounding the religion I grew up in. I thought more people might want to learn more of what it was like for me. I also really enjoy sharing the good elements of growing up where I did, because the media often only shows the bad. So we decided to start this channel and share my story. =)
Thank you again for all of your support!
Is this "curse" of people of colour also taught in the mainstream LDS Church? Well done for making this video. White people need to face these awful assumptions head on, so that we can teach our children tolerance and kindness.
As a member of the LDS church, no, we don’t believe that POC are cursed. In the scriptures it says the word “cursed”, but we don’t believe that word is meant literally. We don’t believe they are cursed at all. We recognized that meanings of words have changed through time, and the original word written could have also been lost in translation.
As another member of the LDS church, I would disagree with Rachel a bit and say this has been taught in the mainstream LDS church to some degree. But, as with most things, it's complicated. I was definitely taught as a teenager (not too long ago) that people of sub-Saharan African descent were the descendants of Cain. I wasn't taught that they were less faithful in the pre-existence, but I know lots of folks who were taught that and was generally aware of that belief. Generally these beliefs are kind of old, outdated, and definitely not canonical these days. But they still lurk in some dark corners of Mormanity.
Mormon theology has a lot of racial issues that cross the different offshoots. This includes some of the storyline in the Book of Mormon as well as the Bible. And, as with many conservative groups in the 20th century, the mainstream LDS church was pretty backwards about race for a long time. It wasn't until 1978 that the LDS church started ordaining black men to the priesthood, or allowing anyone with any Sub-Saharan African descent to enter the temples (the most sacred spaces where the most important rituals for salvation are performed). And even into the 21st century some leaders and teaching manuals still discouraged interracial marriage, mostly citing the "unnecessary burden" of different cultural expectations.
This article from the mainstream LDS church's website does a pretty good job explaining the history of racist beliefs and practices in the church. While the church has never formally apologized for its past sins of this nature, they do now officially "condemn all racism, past and present." www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays/race-and-the-priesthood?lang=eng
Thanks for being truthful and informative.
Maybe they don't advertise it, but the same believes go for the LDS church too, right? Isn't it in the scriptures or has one of the prophets they believe in had another convenient revelation from God to clean up a messy history?
Very good video. I just asked a question n a newer video before seeing this about race; we grew up near an Amish couple who couldn't conceive, and had several mixed race adopted children that they raised. Josiah is still a member, he took over the family farm. Is married w/kids now. But I know it was...very accepting & very rough for them all at the same time
I don’t remember where I read or saw this but it was Warren Jeffs talking about the gentile music of The Beatles and how they became very popular, but it was dangerous bc The Beatles were heavily inspired by R&B music/Black artists.
Wow… I had never heard that rhetoric about dark skin. Racism is built into religion a lot more than I realized.
I think it is because of culture
Well done for answering a sensitive question in a clear way. You both looked so uncomfortable but did a good job 🤨
💜💜💜from Oklahoma and Ty for being so open and honest and things
Thank you so much for watching!
Fyi this is in LDS doctrine as well, except they've distanced themselves from it (apparently).
Yes, back in the 70s I believe when they went through a lawsuit.
2024 LDS do try to convert Black and Hispanic ethnicities
I can see how hard this is to talk about because it can be hard to talk about. I commend you for doing it.
Thank you for being honest and sharing your lived experience. I have a question, do you still believe that there are many different races of humans or is it possible that there is only a single race and that the colour of our skin pigmentation is just a reflection of which latitude on earth a person and their ancestors have lived on? Do you think it's possible that the amount and type of exposure our direct ancestors and we have had to our sun impacts the colour of our skin? We are exposed to more of our sun’s rays closer to the earths equator but we experience less exposure as we move closer to either the north or south poles, is it possible that this is why we see different human skin colours depending on where our ancestors have lived for generations?
Such a great question! We are just now opening our eyes to the possibilities of the creation story not being the truth and are trying to learn all we can. I can't say that we know for sure what we believe on this, but we are enjoying learning about other theories like this one! =)
I want to share something if it will help. I lived closer to the equator and tanned GREAT! Meaning I could get brown skinned very easily/quickly without burning and no sunblock "needed" at all. As I got older , and moved further from the equator, I had more trouble being able to get that nice brown tan. It takes ALL summer to get one, that's laying out in the sun daily too. And I'm not THAT far from the equator but still far enough in my opinion. I'm only in SC ! But still drastic difference from when I was in Cuba in the 80s.
What religion are y’all now
I don’t usually comment, but I just want to acknowledge that talking about race and racism takes courage and character, and it’s really good to see that. What’s the saying? Good on you?
P.S., I’m glad it’s uncomfortable, bc if it wasn’t, you’d either be not coming from a place of authenticity, or else a total sociopath.
These topics should be uncomfortable for us! They are already so so uncomfortable and sometimes scary for BIPOC. Discomfort is how we grow, and learn, IMO. Not that we can’t learn fun things in fun ways too, but just meaning this particular instance, I do think discomfort is maybe even required, in order for us to stay connected to the same natural human emotions that eventually find themselves transformed into action steps for social justice (which can look a bazillion different ways, including your video).
Anyway, thanks for being awesome! You make it easier for others to do likewise, and that is not a small thing.
Interesting how they misinterpret that scripture. The mark was not a curse. It was to protect Cain. Cain's punishment was that he was to be a wanderer.
Could you let us know what scripture you mean with cain and able? Not doubting you at all just very intreated
So in Genesis 4:15 it says that Cain was "marked". The early LDS prophets, (who were the founding leaders of the LDS and FLDS), particularly Brigham Young, taught that this mark was of dark skin.
This wasn’t just an early teaching as the LDS church refused sealings and endowments for anyone black until 1978, teaching the same “mark of Cain,” and did so in 1995, when we left.
This is not in the Bible before Mormonism. It was added in the 1800s by Mormons. Christians do not believe this because it’s not in any of our early manuscripts.
Thank you for sharing. Does someone who has freckles or a skin issue like eczema have a curse according to FLDS?
No
I am curious, you mentioned in the video of flds and laws that the community was mainly family. So... did the leaders ever put relatives together for marriage? If so were there issues with birth defects, etc.? I have never seen visual special needs children or people in general. Were they just kept secret? Disappear? Raised as the rest, I just haven't seen them?
There were some relatives that were married. It seemed that they tried to keep very closely related people not married (like no first cousins). You may never see the special needs children out and about, because they don't take them shopping with them, but the community still had them and they were raised as the rest. There was even a special school for those with special needs.
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy thank you for answering
If you look up Elissa Wall, she was forced to marry her first cousin in the FLDS, so it did happen.
Jesus died for every person in the world! Color means nothing to God... He created them all ❤
1.Jesus is not God.
2. he wasn't white.
You're ASSUMING....
So very interesting! New subscriber! Love this channel🤍
Welcome!! Thank you so much!
Thank you!
You and Sam are such a nice young couple. God bless you
How do flds view people with disabilities?
Very kindly. One of my mothers actually taught children with disabilities.
Well done Sam. I could feel your embarrassment. I’ve taught all my children that no matter what colour other are, they have a heart, brain and feelings. They are no different to anyone else.
What about the LDS church? I identify as Black but I'm biracial. My mom's family is LDS and I've never been able to embrace their religion. I know that Blacks are allowed in the church now but they weren't for some time. It's a topic that I don't feel comfortable talking to my family about because they automatically get defensive.
Sam, if your child was to marry a person that was not white, would you support their marriage?
And/or someone of the same sex?
I would ABSOLUTELY be supportive!
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy Thank you! Please, both of you, keep sharing your stories. You are both educating and inspiring.
@Sam & Melissa (Growing Up in Polygamy)/2 s - I know to a degree with Amish culture, there is inbreeding as the population of Amish is quite small in the United States. I realize the Amish belief are different the FLDS beliefs (Or the LDS for that matter!). Although the FLDS has a large population, there are many many 1/2 brothers and 1/2 sisters because having same father and different mother. With the large families in the FLDS sects and so much being siblings and 1st cousins to each other in each compound/sect (not sure what to call it), is there concern of inbreeding at all because of this?
A great topic, handled with repect and authenticity. You may already be aware, but neither the story of Cain nor Ham mention a curse of dark skin. It is a misrepresentation that is so easily discredited by looking up these passages on-line or looking in a bible. In fact Cain's decendents were all supposed to have been drowned according to further comment. It was a much later scholar that linked Ham to Africans. However, it should be noted that the use of religion to reinforce abhorrent belief is not new. Thank you for such a brave video. The content on this channel is exceedingly high quality and very balanced.
Well said. The fact that people use religion to perpetuate wrong thinking is especially egregious, because it blinds people to the true religion, which can only be found by reading the Bible for yourself to see if things are so (as the Beroeans did in Acts 17:11)
Very interesting. Thank you. The role of native Americans in the book of mormon is another aspect and also I believe quite a lot of fundamentalist mormons went to places like Mexico to escape persecution so inevitably speak Spanish and probably some had hispanic wives. I think I read a book by one lady brought up down there and one of her father's wives was a young local girl.
The LeBarons? They were very integrated with Mexican wives. They did seem to value the white children more in the books I read (there are 5 I have read so far).
From 1849 to 1978 the LDS Church prohibited men of black African decent from being ordained to the priesthood.
It seems the Mormon god, is a learning God.
What did/do ya'll believe about Jews? I noticed they call non-flds "gentiles" and we as Jews consider anyone who is not Jewish a Gentile and I notice some terminology that is similar. Did you believe in Replacement Theology? Please be as comprehensive as you can as to the belief about Jews in general and specifically. Or where you not taught anything at all? Please add if LDS believe the same on this.
Why do some of the FLDS members do missionary work in foreign countries, like yourself, when you stated you spent time in Chile 🇨🇱 where there are many brown & black people?
So my mission was actually for the LDS church, which I joined after I left the FLDS. I know it is a little confusing, but the LDS church (often referred to as Mormons) are the ones that do missionary work around the world, and they have denounced the teachings of past prophets that preach racism.
They are running out of White people to convert it is purely an economic decision
Ridiculous isn’t it. Thank you for discussing it.
The LDS do realize Jesus was a brown/tan man right?
Here's the thing about the Bible: first of all, you don't even have people of lighter pigmentation mentioned in the Torah. All of them were of dark pigmentation
What did the church teach about non-heterosexuality?
i wanted to ask this but i didn’t feel comfortable
Well hopefully now you know, that no question is too uncomfortable haha. Ask away! =)
What do you believe about Jesus ?
Yeah but Jesus was dark skinned also wasn’t He? I give you props on speaking on such a sensitive subject.
Lol their belief is that Jesus is as fair skinned as Snow White. The delusion is real
Would be interesting to know what family you’re taking about that was Hispanic. But there also is a lot of Native American blood in our bloodline. Just sayin. 😊
Yah, I can't remember their names! Funny enough I was always told that I had Native American in my bloodline, but I got my DNA tested and have NONE! haha
@@GrowingUpinPolygamy that is interesting. I have no idea who you are and still can’t tell from everything you have said. Guess I’ll keep listening and see if I can tell. 😅
Some bloodlines haven't been mapped in DNA. It's possible(even if a very small possibility)that your heritage hasn't been documented through DNA. Also DNA is odd...you can have many different variances, but not every one will show. And there are Native cultures allover the world.
OH I have a question for Melissa (who I know was raised mainstream LDS)... not sure if it applies to Sam as I'm not sure that this was taught in his sect. But I know LDS believe Native Americans are descendants of Jesus and of course this has all been disproven by DNA. Melissa, can you can expand on this and how you were raised, and your feelings about things that you were taught in the Book of Mormon that were so grievously untrue that you now know to be untrue (not unlike the Mark of Cain thing). Book of Mormon is full of so many odd beliefs... up to and including the "get your own planet" thing, posthumously baptising Jews killed in the Holocaust and how polygamy was conveniently determined to be changed by the prophet right around the time statehood was being offered to Utah if they ditched polygamy. God I have so many questions!! LOL
I would really like to know about this too.
(Melissa Responding) I don't think I have enough room in this comment section to express everything I think on the subject hahaha. I will say, I was super heartbroken as I learned that things that I had believed to be historically accurate in both the Book of Mormon and the Bible were not historically true at all. We might just have to do a video on some of these things in the future or have a LIVE specifically for people to ask questions about my upbringing if there are enough people interested in that? =)
I'd love a video of some of the beliefs as set out in the LDS faith, compared to what you now know as the truth. Just started watching your videos, I liked and subscribed straight away! Fascinating stuff, and it resonates with me as I was a committed Christian for most of my life but am now atheist. Like you, I respect all religions as long as people are not being harmed by them. Sorry for long reply I could comment for hours on this! Xx
I heard that even the last Mormons are racist as well, their books have many racists stuff. Part of my family was lds and they were pretty racist too.
I had a coworker who was raised LDS. She lived in Utah her whole life but at 18 went to college in California. She met a Hispanic man fell in love got married and had a baby. Her family completely disowned her and hasn’t ever met her husband or child. It’s so sad and disappointing this is going on in 2022 still
It seems like you’re mixing up politeness with racism. Telling your church members to be polite to people while explicitly teaching that those people are less worthy, less good, than the white race- is real actual super bad racism. It’s not less racist if they are polite about their racism. When you’re explaining that FLDS teaches respect to people they think are literally beneath you- it reads as minimizing the racism. Your should not do that.
Also- how do you feel now as inactive LDS members? You’re aware that this particular teaching was also a part of mainstream LDS for a super long time. How do you square that?
The FLDS do mix politeness with racism. Our entire video was talking about what the FLDS views are, not ours. They told us to "respect them" while teaching us racist beliefs. That was not me minimizing racism at all. It was me sharing what I was taught. We don't have to square any feelings about racism in a church we don't believe in, that includes the FLDS and the LDS. We are not racist and believe that racism is unacceptable. Period.
That way of thinking is foolishness
I can definitely tell that this video has no ill intent but, please don’t refer to black people as “blacks”, It’s offensive.
WOW!
The truth hurts, doesn't it
I'm Sam and Melissa's #1 fan! Fight me ;)