Prophetic Counsel In Our Day

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As I began to immerse myself in the topic of liberty and our God given agency, I started to study the words of the prophets regarding the freedoms we enjoy in this country. The more I read the more I realized that the prophets and apostles in past decades have been very direct, explicit, and abundant both in their comments about freedom, as well as in their warnings about the threats we face in preserving it. This is clearly evident in the last posting on this site.

However, in the most recent past the warnings have not been as frequent, nor as direct. This was somewhat puzzling to me and caused me to do a great deal of pondering. After a few conversations with others who have expressed the same puzzlement, I thought I would take a moment and share some of the thoughts and feelings I have had on this matter. This is a case in which each of us need draw our own conclusions after making it a matter of individual study and prayer. Nevertheless, I hope the following thoughts on the matter can help direct your thinking and perhaps dispel some confusion.

Following are five thoughts you might want to consider:

First- The worldwide membership of the church has grown significantly in the past few decades. Whereas the majority of the membership was at one time centralized in the United States, it is now much more widely spread across the globe. In times past the message to the membership of the church could be directed primarily to citizens of the United States, and be focused on issues exclusive to our country. The brethren now must focus their comments and counsel to an increasing number of saints in other countries. It would not be wholly appropriate to reserve General Conference addresses for the saints in the U.S. only. Consider that, according to the official church website, there are 13.5 million members of the church in the world today. Only about 5.9 million members (or 44% of total church membership) are located in the U.S.

Second- We have been warned abundantly in the past of these very real dangers to our freedom. These warnings have been well documented and preserved, and are readily available to us today. Does what we have been given not suffice to properly warn us of the dangers with which we will contend in maintaining our freedoms? It sometimes feels like we are asking the Lord that if He’ll only tell us one more time, then we will believe and take action. If we are not prepared to heed the instructions we’ve already been given, will we be any more inclined to do so if the instructions are given yet again?

Consider the many warnings we have been given over the better part of the past 100 years about food storage. These warnings have become less frequent and less explicit in recent years. Do any among us consider this evidence that food storage is no longer an imperative? Of course not. We know that all the prophecies have not yet been fulfilled and our need to be self-sufficient in supporting our families is more important now than ever. It may very well be that the Lord has given so much warning of our need for temporal preparation that the prophets are now content to let the warnings of the past suffice, with occasional reminders to keep us on the correct path. Could this not be the case in reference to the preservation of our freedoms as well?

Third- There has been no reprieve whatsoever in the counsel to study and heed the teachings found in the Book of Mormon. This volume of scripture is replete with examples of governments becoming corrupt and the people losing freedoms. The Book of Mormon is but a small sample of the records kept by the Nephite nation over a span of 1,000 years, not to mention the records of the Jaredite civilization. As Mormon, who saw our day, was choosing what to include in the portion of the book we would receive, we cannot suppose he would waste precious space with things that would not be vital to us. We must then ask ourselves why he chose to include such histories as Captain Moroni’s struggle to preserve freedom, or of Amalikiah, the evil Nephite dissenter who used fraud and deceit to become king of the Lamanites and then sought to overthrow the freedom of the Nephites. Why did Mormon choose to include the accounts of secret combinations seeking to take over the government or of King Noah’s tyrannical reign over his subjects? There are clear parallels here between the words of the prophets in our dispensation. If it could be said 50 years ago that the Book of Mormon was written for our day, is it any less applicable today?

Fourth- I believe the brethren do continue to issue warnings about those influences that erode our freedom. They may not use the same direct language as the brethren used throughout the 20th century, but the warnings are most certainly there for those who have an ear to hear. Keep in mind that at various times the counsel of prophets has been given in such a way to allow only the spiritually attuned to comprehend their meaning. Even the Savior often placed His teachings within parables that required effort on the part of the listener to understand. If the Lord instructs his servants to speak boldly and directly at one time, and to refrain from a more direct approach at another, it does not minimize the importance of the message being delivered.

Consider the following examples.
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In the August 2005 issue of the Ensign, Gordon B. Hinckley stated the following.
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“The Book of Mormon narrative is a chronicle of nations long since gone. But in its descriptions of the problems of today's society, it is as current as the morning newspaper and much more definitive, inspired, and inspiring concerning the solutions of those problems. I know of no other writing which sets forth with such clarity the tragic consequences to societies that follow courses contrary to the commandments of God. Its pages trace the stories of two distinct civilizations that flourished on the Western Hemisphere. Each began as a small nation, its people walking in the fear of the Lord. But with prosperity came growing evils. The people succumbed to the wiles of ambitious and scheming leaders who oppressed them with burdensome taxes, who lulled them with hollow promises, who countenanced and even encouraged loose and lascivious living. These evil schemers led the people into terrible wars that resulted in the death of millions”
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Consider what President Hinckley is saying here. He may not have directly warned U.S. citizens to guard against creeping socialism in our nation, but he did warn against evil, scheming political leaders who oppress with burdensome taxes, issue hollow promises, and countenance and encourage loose and lascivious living. The presence of such political leaders led to the downfall of entire nations as chronicled in the Book of Mormon. I don’t find it difficult to relate this warning to the need to defend the political freedoms guaranteed by our constitution.

In 1999, President Hinckley stated the following.

“[The Constitution] is the keystone of our nation. It is the guarantee of our liberty. That original document, with the Bill of Rights, constitutes the charter of our freedom. Through all of the years that have followed we have had some ambitious men who have sought to subvert the great principles of the Constitution...”

To whom do we believe President Hinckley was referring in this statement, if not political leaders who pose a grave threat to our constitution and the freedoms it guarantees? Would President Hinckley take the time to outline this fact for us if there were not a reason for us to be aware?

Another statement from President Hinckley in 2007.

“[The war in heaven], so bitter, so intense, has never ceased. It is the war between truth and error, between agency and compulsion….His enemies have used every stratagem in that conflict. They’ve indulged in lying and deceit. They’ve employed money and wealth. They’ve tricked the minds of men. They’ve murdered and destroyed and engaged in every kind of evil practice to thwart the work of Christ.”
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The war between agency and compulsion is clearly seen in the efforts of collectivist philosophies based upon the fundamental premise of socialism. Proponents of socialism have indulged in lying and deceit. They have employed untold amounts of money and wealth, and they continue to trick the minds of men as they employ every kind of evil practice to achieve their ends. Do we not see in this a warning just as real as when President Benson warned us to eschew socialism in all its forms or spoke of secret combinations in our midst?
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Elder Thomas S. Monson, as a member of the first presidency stated the following in 1988.
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“We live in a complex world with currents of conflict everywhere to be found. Political machinations ruin the stability of nations, despots grasp for power, and segments of society seem forever downtrodden, deprived of opportunity, and left with a feeling of failure.”
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A political machination, it should be noted, is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “a scheming or crafty action or artful design intended to accomplish some usually evil end”.

To whom do we suppose President Monson was referring in this statement? It would be unwise to assume that these political machinations apply only to other countries, but the U.S. is somehow immune to such evils. If we assume President Monson was speaking to us, as much as to citizens of other nations, is this statement so different in content from when another member of the first presidency, J. Reuben Clark, stated that our real enemy is socialism, which embodies everything President Monson spoke of?

There are many other examples that could be given, but I think the aforementioned suffice to illustrate that the content of the warnings from our prophets have not changed in recent times, even if the language has changed. We cannot become so dependent upon being spoon fed from our leaders that we fail to digest what they are putting on our plates.

“He who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” (Matthew 11:15)

Fifth- Perhaps more important than any other consideration, what has been said by the prophets is vital to our welfare both in this life and in eternity. I know of no instance of a prophet or apostle in our day stating that the words of prophets and apostles in the 2oth century relative to threats to our freedom no longer apply. Even if there was never another mention made by a living prophet or apostle relative to the need to preserve the freedom of our nation and stand against the tyranny that threatens it, would that lessen the validity of what has been said in the past?
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When the Lord gave instructions that the doctrine of plural marriage should no longer be practiced by the saints, a prophet of God issued a proclamation making this known to the world. Had such a proclamation not been made by a living prophet, the law of plural marriage would still be in full force. In the absence of a prophetic statement nullifying or amending what has been said by past prophets of this dispensation, we ignore their council at our peril.

The Prophet Joseph Smith stated that the Constitution of our land would hang as if by a thread, and only the elders of Israel would be able to save it. Until this prophecy has been fulfilled, I believe it would be unwise to trifle with the warnings we’ve received from prophets and apostles who have been called of God by revelation to minister to us in this last dispensation. If we do not give heed, how will the elders of this church stand up to preserve our constitution?

President Brigham Young prophesied that "when the day comes in which the Kingdom of God will bear rule, the flag of the United States will proudly flutter usullied on the flag staff of liberty and equal rights, without a spot to sully its fair surface; the glorious flag our fathers bequeathed to us will then be unfurled to the breeze by those who have power to hoist it aloft and defend its sanctity. How long will it be before the words of the prophet Joseph Smith will be fulfilled? He said if the Constitution of the United States were to be saved at all it must be done by this people."

If we fall into the trap of believing that what the prophets have said applied only to an earlier day, we will be unable as individuals, or as a people, to bring these prophesies to fruition.

Finally, Elder Ezra Taft Benson, as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, delivered an address in the April 1965 session of General Conference entitled “Not Commanded In All Things”. In this address Elder Benson outlines seven ways in which the adversary is keeping good members of the church from standing up to engage in the fight to preserve our freedom. I would commend all to follow the link below and read this important talk.

If we follow the prophets, especially the living prophet, we will never be deceived and never go astray!

As I’ve pondered this issue, these are the considerations that have guided my direction and helped me determine my approach to the issue of defending liberty in our day. I hope this can be of some help to others who have asked themselves the same question.

Richard Parke