This is BS, why is this in the paper?

Alan was the main guest speaker at our regional youth conference in the Reno area in 1976 or 77, I think. I was one of the youth leaders and got to spend some time with him. For many of us he was the first Black mormon we had ever met, let alone the first Black we had spent any time around. He was amazing- very funny, entertaining, but we told his conversion story and bore his testimony-well, he touched so many lives that to this day we remember his appearance. He is a great example to this day- and still funny!

Anti-

Let's see since it's in the Mormon Times I'll let you figureout why it's in the paper.

Anti-Mollie- check it one more time, its on a site called MORMONtimes.com. Do the math buddy, its a story about LDS people on a site dedicated to the LDS faith.

I also remember Bro. Cherry as a youth conference speaker - Squaw Valley California, probably about 1972 or 1973. He did a comedy routine and presented a lecture or workshop. In relation to not being allowed to hold the priesthood at that time, I remember he said he didn't care who led us to the celestial kingdom, he just cared about getting there. Truly a humble man who helped strengthen my testimony at a critical time in my life.

I am still puzzled at the reason for non-whites not holding the Preisthood? There is nothing in The Book of Mormon that states it. Is there something WRITTEN in the D & C? I have not been able to find it. Paul speaks of women not being in a position of authority.Nothing about blacks.Was this some sort of "tradition" about non-whites? The BOM does speak of God "darkening thier skins" for sin & rebellion.

Is the LDS Priesthood and Blacks issue a glass half-full or half empty?

Considering the fact that Blacks have only been officially allowed to hold the priesthood for about 30 years, but were officially DENIED holding the priesthood for well over 138 years, it is half-EMPTY!

ONLY if the LDS Prophet himself officially and publicly apologizes for the past RACIST BAN against Blacks will anyone I know in the Black community have any respect for LDS/Mormons.

Bro. Cherry was very vocal about his FLDS leanings. I wonder what he would have thought about the Texas raid?

It's so good to get an update on brother Cherry. I was the one who called him on the phone the morning of the press conference announcing the expansion of the priesthood. I remember saying, "I guess you'll probably go right over to the bishop and see about getting the priesthood." His answer was one that has always stuck with me. He said, "I need to take some time first. It's such an incredible responsibility that I'm not sure I'm ready for it." Wow, did I learn something that day. Nothing about pride or position - everything about humbly serving. Thank you Alan for your example and your life.

To Proud Black Man. If you do a little bible study you will find that through out history at times the priesthood was only given to a few. In the old testement for thousands of years only the Isrialites where aloud to hold the priesthood and only one trib of the Isrialites at that. The Leivites. That didn't even change when the Saivior started his ministry. The gospel for that matter as well as the priesthood didn't go to the gentiles untill Peter recieved his famous revelation. We as LDS don't fully understand the Lords perpuses but we have learned to trust him. It had nothing to do with bigitry. Though I will say there are bigots who belong to the church, just as there are nerrow minded people in all faiths who still go around believing mormons still have horns and will go to hell.

Not to diminish the value or weight of the decisions leading to the blessing of the priesthood upon all races. I'd like to see it put into more perspective.

Consider the fact that no one has been officially allowed to hold the priesthood for about 170 years, but were officially DENIED holding the priesthood not only since the death of the apostles about 2000 years ago but also since the time of Moses thousands years before, unless you were of the Levite family, then I guess everyones cup is Half empty.

I am not of the levite family, but I wont hold my breath on a formal appology for the BAN against non-levites.

Brother Cherry was the speaker at a fireside at my parents home in the late 1960's or early 70's. He told a wonderful story about his conversion, and bore his testimony. I was deeply touched with his spirit, and am gratified that his life seems to be going well.

As to Lee's question concerning the Priesthood, we can only speculate as to the reason for blacks not holding the priesthood; there is no scriptural basis. The stories about Pharaoh not holding the priesthood in the Book of Abraham are based simply on the fact that Pharaoh wished to claim priesthood linage through his mother (despite what others may have claimed or preached). I believe that priesthood was withheld simply because we whites were not willing to accept others as our brothers. Early in Church history, the LDS Church had more than enough problems to cope with without getting in the middle of the slavery debate.

Perhaps Proud Black Man, you can take consolation in the knowledge that for many years the blacks were not further indoctrinated into our evil, cultist behavior. I am, however, truly sorry for racial bias which you may have been subjected to over the years. Sorry.

Apologies. I meant "Consider the fact that no one has been officially allowed to hold the priesthood until about 170 years ago."

My husband and I first met Alan Cherry at the Rego Park Ward in Queens, NY back in the 1970's. I was so delighted to read this update on Brother Cherry and his family. He is a wonderful man.

Wow. The mormons are just making it very hard for anyone to have any respect for them. It must be a real tough time in slc as the church begins to unravel.

Alen Cherry is a real cool guy, I only regret never having met him. He quite possibly holds the age record for a single male missionary post-World War Two. Probably there is someone else who beats him, but I have no clue.

It seems that this is the end of the series and that makes me sad. I really have enjoyed these articles. I would say they have been the best in the Mormon Times ever. Of course, it is young.

I think the Mormon Times should send someone here to Detroit to do a story on Monte Louis or Frank Varner.

To Lee:

It was not Non-Whites who did not hold the priesthood but people of Sub-Saharan African descent.

That does not answer your puzzlement, but there were plenty of Tongans and Samoans as well as many Latinos and Asians holding the priesthood before 1978. Well, OK, we could argue that there were not enough Tongans or Samoans holding the priesthood, but they were holding the priesthood. So were Fajians, although not nearly as many, and Fajians are just as dark as Blacks. As far as I know even the Negritos in the Phillipines were allowed to hold the priesthood. I do not know if any people from that group had joined the church by 1978, but I do not know of any policies that would have prevented them holding the priesthood.

On the other hand in Tonga at least in the 1950s they did not ordain men as elders until they were married. Since there was no temple in Tonga this did not create a problem that some of you have probably thought of. For this reason Elder Groberg's one companion on his mission, Feki, was only a priest.

To Lee:

You are not alone in not understanding the restriction on the priesthood. Those who have studied it the most, such as Darius Grey, will tell you we do not understand why it existed.

To Lee:

The Book of Mormon does not say "Darkening their skins" but "a Skin of blackness". If you go to the Genesis Group web-site they have a whole article where they explain how black is always used figuratively in the scriptures (the same with white).

One inportant thing in this respect is the skin of blackness is connected with the scales that will fall from the eyes of those who accept the gospel. I do not know anyone who thinks that Laman and Lemuel were actually given scally eyes that they then passed to their children.

On this same matter, as my mom told me when I was young, African-Americans are not black, they are dark brown and people of European descent are only white when they have full blown leprosy.

The closest a scriptural passage comes to addressing this issue is Abraham 1:21-24. Also it may be possible to compare this with what Noah says to Ham. However these passages seem to bring up more questions than answers when read so the true answers are not here.

For whatever its worth I think in the above mentioned passage daughter is being used to mean descendant.

As Darius Grey points out in one of his common presentations the Israelites have definante descent from Ham. This is especially clear for Jesus who descended from Rehad among others. I am less willing than Brother Grey is to assume that descendant of Ham=African. He does show pictures of Egyptians with very African features, however there are some Pharoahs who in different painting (of the same Pharoah) appear with typical African features and also with features we associate more with the modern inhabitants of Syria. This shows that one if not both of the depictions do not give us a true picture of what these people looked like.

Also, the blood of the Canaanites as mentioned in Abraham refers to descent from Canaan the son of Ham. The passages give us no easy answers.

Last night I was reading The Manifesto of the Mob, it is also referred to as "The secret constitution" you can find a copy of this in the "Joseph Smith, History of the Church of Jesus Christ of LDS, Period I (SLC, 1902)374-376. Arguments pertaining to the Mormons' sympathy toward blacks and other issues can be found therein." Are you aware that part of the hatred towards the Mormons was their stand against slavery? They were trying to help blacks get out of slavery, you know how angry this would have made slave owners. I was having a discussion with my step-son, he was talking about how the first part of the 1900's there was still a lot of bigotry. Why don't the blacks thank the Mormons for helping out their ancestors, even when the Mormons were struggling themselves? Why do you have to be angry because you were not first in line? I have never been asked to serve in a presidency in the LDS church, I am 54 and a strong leader, should I be hateful because I have been left out or made to wait?
I remember that day in 1978 very well, I wept for joy.

People having the priesthood, spend so much time going to meetings, how do you have much time to actually serve? Instead of being a BETTER means to serve, it seems like a hinderance to me.

If you want to serve, find a cause that moves you, and just go out and do it. You don't need any priesthood for that.

The priesthood provides both a definition of service and a means of executing that service.

Picking a "good cause" is no substitute for personal "spiritual development." I am not saying anything particularly Mormon. (I'm not Mormon.) Every belief system tries to define some path for spiritual development.