The Day Of The Lamanites

"For years they have been growing delightsome, now they are growing white and delightsome, as they were promised."

According to the Book of Mormon, published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ancient America became inhabited by two major people groups: the Nephites, the people of God, and the Lamanites, the enemies of God (about 589 B.C.). The Lamanites, or American Indians as they are now more commonly known, were said to be a white people at one time just as their brethren the Nephites. However due to their rebellion and hardness of heart, God cursed them with a "skin of blackness" to make them "loathsome" unto the white Nephites, who today are represented by the Mormons.

The Book of Mormon clearly lays out the nature, cause, reason, and purpose of dark skin as borne by the Native American people. "And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity. For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticting unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them. And thus saith the Lord God: I will cause that they shall be loathsome unto thy people, save they shall repent of their iniquities. And cursed shall be the seed of him that mixeth with their seed; for they shall be cursed even with the same cursing. And the Lord spake it and it was done." (2 Nephi 5:21-23) As one can see, the nature of the dark skin was a curse, the cause was the Lord, the reason was because the Lamanites "had hardened their hearts against him," and the purpose was to make them "loathsome" unto God's people who had white skins. It is obvious from this passage that dark skin in Mormon scripture is something less than desirable to have and is viewed as the direct result of sin. The Book of Mormon also makes it reasonable to conclude that the darker one's skin is, the worse off one is. It expresses this idea as it records an account where the threat of being darker than the Lamanites was leveled against the white people of God if they failed to repent of their sins. "O my brethern, I fear that unless ye shall repent of your sins that their skins will be whiter than yours, when ye shall be brought with them before the throne of God." (Jacob 3:8) Needless to say, dark skin is not something one would desire to have in light of Mormon scripture.

Now having a background of what Mormonism teaches about the nature and origin of the dark skin of the Americah Indians, let us examine the prophecy that it would one day be removed if they joined themselves with God's people (the Mormons). " And it came to pass the those Lamanites who has united with the Nephites were numbered among the Nephites; And their curse was talken from them, and their skin became white like unto the Nephites; And their young men and their daughters became exceedingly fair, and they were numbered among the Nephites, and were called Nephites. And thus ended the thirteenth year." (3 Nephi 2:14-16) The promise was that if they (the Lamanites) would repent (see 2 Nephi 5:22) and join themselves with God's people they would have their curse removed and receive white skins. Although this is abundantly clear in the passage, many Mormons deny the fact that this is really what is talking about. They want to say that this is talking about a spiritual change, not a physical one. However this is not the case. It definitely speaks of a literal physical change (skin color) that results from a spiritual one (conversion). This is not a matter of personal interpretation but rather the official position of the Mormon church, as we will see in a statement made by former Apostle and Prophet Spencer W. Kimball in an official church publication.

"The day of the Lamanites in nigh. For years they have been growing delightsome, and they are now becoming white and delightsome, as they were promised. In this picture of the twenty Lamanite missionaries, fifteen of the twenty were as white as Anglos; five were darker but equally delightsome. The children in the home placement program in Utah are often lighter than their brothers and sisters in the hogans on the reservation.

At one meeting a father and mother and their sixteen-year-old daughter were present, the little member girl- sixteen- sitting between the darker father and mother, and it was evident she was several shades lighter than her parents- on the same reservation, in the same hogan, subject to the same sun and wind and weather. There was the doctor in a Utah city who for two years had had an Indian boy in his home who stated that he was some shades lighter than the younger brother just coming into the program from the reservation. These young members of the Church are changing to whiteness and to delightsomeness. One white elder jokingly said that he and his companion were donating blood regularly to the hospital in the hope that the process might be accelerated." (Spencer W. Kimball, "The Day of the Lamanites," The Improvemant, Era, Dec. 1960, p. 923)

Now if this prophecy was not meant to be taken literally, why does Mr. Kimball, who was an Apostle at the time, take it as such? Kimball expounds upon what he viewed as its literal fulfillment as he speaks of some of the converted Indians being "as white as Anglos." In addition, he says that one member of the church who was exposed "to the same sun and wind and weather" conditions as her parents was "several shades lighter" than they were. He then closes things out by recounting a joke concerning two white elders regularly donating blood to the hospital with the hope of speeding up the process. Kimball leaves no room for anything but a literal interpretation. One has no choice but to adopt this interpretation if one wants to be true to the teachings of the Mormon church.

Knowing now that the Native American people were literally prophesied to turn white upon joining the Mormon church, what should one conclude from the matter? First of all, where are all the white Native American Moromons? If the Mormon church is the true Church, as it claims to be, we should see dark skinned Native American people who join the church becoming white like "Anglos". Secondly, one should ask themselves: could a church that holds to such beliefs rally be of God? The Bible teaches that "God is no respecer of persons" (Acts 10:34) and nowhere mentions dark skin as being as curse. The Mormon church claims that the Bible has lost many "plain and percious truth". Is one of those "plain and percious truths" that God is racist? It must be, if the Book of Mormon is true. The fact is that there are no Native American Mormons who are turning "white and delightsome'" and the idea of dark skin being a curse is nowhere to be found in the Bible. The racist ideas expressed in the Book of Mormon are the signature of the heart of sinful man, not the heart of the holy Creator of heaven and earth. Due to this, and the fact that this is a failed phophecy, the Book of Mormon cannot be the inspired Word of God nor can the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints be the true Church of God.

The true Church is not a building or an organization but rather the redeemed people of God, who are cleansed from their sin not their skin. The Apostle Paul, when engaging his Jewish countrymen, asked this question concerning the Gentiles: " What then? are we better than they?" (Romans 3:9) His reply, to his countrymen's displeasure: "No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one." (Romans 3:9-12) The Bible teaches that everyone is found in the same condition before the eyes of God--sinners. Whether they be black, white, yellow, brown or red, nono of them are righteous. Righteousness comes by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone and his one time substitutionary atonement on the cross (Ephesians 2:8-9, Hebrews 10:12-14). It is imputed to the sinner by God and not earned through some system of works or racial privilege (Romans 3: 19-4:8). Racial bigotry is an evil of man and has no place in the realm of biblical Christianity.