Brothers and Sisters I speak today to the precious youth of the church - though this talk will be equally applicable to their parents. While driving home from meeting a fellow network and referral marketing partner the other day I decided that instead of listening to my usual Mormon Tabernacle choir CD’s, I would turn on the radio to see what ‘the world’ is listening too.
I came across a music station and was utterly shocked at what I heard. While sitting in traffic I managed to scribble down some of the artist’s names and their words. My notes may not be precisely accurate but they do accurately portray the gist of what is being sung in these the latter-days.
The first song was by a woman named Rinahanna (or something similar) who used these words “It feels so good being bad, there's no way I'm turning back..... oh, you turn me on...” I was absolutely dumbfounded!! Satan must be laughing with glee as he inspires these songs and sees us listening to them. As a stake president I can assure you that in opposition to the message of this song being bad never feels good. You cannot do wrong and feel right – it is completely contrary to the plan of happiness.
Then a song came on from a woman that according to my notes is named Katy Sperry who sung about how she kissed another girl! And not only that but she claims to have actually liked it! Again this is completely opposite to the message of the gospel that the savior would have us teach.
While on the subject of kissing I would just like to clarify that in some circumstances a kiss may be appropriate. President Kimball said: “Even if timely courtship justifies the kiss, it should be a clean, decent, sexless one like the kiss between mother and son, or father and daughter.” Please keep this counsel in mind.
Then a song by ‘Kesha’ came on which compared love to drugs. This is a comparison that should never be made. Some of the lyrics I wrote down were as follows “I won't listen to any advice, mamma's telling me to think twice - but left to my own devices I'm addicted, it’s a crisis. My friends think I've gone crazy, my judgment is getting kind of hazy” Here she is singing of the damaging results of taking drugs. The song has nothing to do with the pure love that Christ would have us have in our hearts.
She then ended the song with the words “I like your beard”. Full time missionaries, general authorities and stake presidents are required to be clean shaven at all times. I will take this opportunity to ask the young men and in fact all men within the sound of my voice to follow this Christ like example.
While still stuck in traffic a song by a certain Spritney Bears came on. As I was listening to it I inadvertently found myself clicking my fingers through no conscious effort of my own and my right foot tapped on the gas pedal to the point where I almost hit the car in front of me. This is a clear indication and warning to me about how Satan gets into our minds and hearts. Brothers and sisters we must shun these so-called artists.
Now I do not wish to give the impression that all of today’s music is bad. A song by James Blunt came on and the words were so inspiring that I took the time to look them up. I am sure that this man is a member of the church and that he was in fact singing about the restoration. This artist would make a better role model for our youth. Here is a link to his song so you can follow along
These are some of his words with my comments in brackets:
My life is brilliant (Here Blunt is referring to the brilliant light of Christ that shines within his soul. This we can all have).
My love is pure (here unlike Kesha he is singing of the pure love of Christ, also known as charity).
I saw an angel, of that I'm sure. (Here he is likely speaking of Joseph Smith’s vision when the resurrected angel Moroni
You're beautiful; it's true (all resurrected beings are beautiful)
And I don't know what to do, Cause I'll never be with you. (Here James Blunt is showing us a glimpse of the wailing and gnashing of teeth that await those who do not live up to the standards the Lord has set for us)
There must be an angel with a smile on her face, when she thought up that I should be with you. (This refers to the pre-mortal life wherein angels rejoiced in the plan of salvation that was set forth by the Lord)
But it's time to face the truth, I will never be with you (again here is the lament of the fallen, but this need not be our fate brothers and sisters)
In the pamphlet ‘For the Strength of Youth’ we learn that unworthy music may seem harmless, but it can have evil effects on your mind and spirit. Choose carefully the music you listen to. Pay attention to how you feel when you are listening to it. Don’t listen to music that drives away the Spirit and encourages immorality.
Young people, you cannot afford to fill your mind with the unworthy music of our day. It is not harmless! It can welcome onto the stage of your mind unworthy thoughts upon which you may act.
You are a son or a daughter of Almighty God and should have self-respect. I now ask that you go through your IPods and delete those songs that are not in harmony with the teachings of the church. Such music ought not to belong to young people concerned about spiritual development. Go through your collection. Get rid of the worst of it and keep the best of it. Be selective in what you listen to. It becomes a part of you.
The Lord has said, “For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.”
I leave these thoughts and counsel with you, trusting that you will obey the pleadings of a stake president, and do so in the sacred and holy name of our lord and savior, even Jesus Christ, amen.
40 comments:
In our musical choices, we can choose the back seat, or we can choose the front seat.
Brother and sisters, which seat will we take?
Daniel,
When my husband and I were dating we chose the backseat every time. It caused much wailing. But no gnashing of teeth. We weren't THAT freaky.
President, it is with some trepidation that I touch on a matter that may be sacred, not secret.
On the last two occasions on which I have visited here, I have perceived a change in the countenance shown in your photograph, even one like unto that of Charlton Heston after returning from the mountain of the Lord in The Ten Commandments. Whether it is visible to all who come here, or only through the eyes of my understanding, I feel it is incumbent on me to testify that, as sure as my name is Anonymous, we are truly privileged to receive your counsel in this forum.
President PN,
I think you are mostly right on. And I'd like to add more to what you said, backing it with an expert in the field... A former satanist. He saw the use of satan filled music from a perspective few of us get to see... So check out his words & experience.
http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Evils%20in%20America/Rock-n-Roll/john_todd.htm
CLICK ON LINK ENTITLED:
John Todd - a former Illuminatist: The Witchcraft of Rock & Roll (28 Min. Video)
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VINCE, if you're still on this blog, you might really want to check this link!
Excellent counsel President. I remember one Youth dance I was helping chaperone. They had specifically hired an "LDS" dj, so the music would be appropriate. No need to supply an approved list of songs. It was SO hilarious when this member-dj started blasting "Afternoon Delight". LOL! I saw one bishop's wife practically break olympic records trying to get up on the stage to shut that song off.
Again this will take multiple posts.
Hello Sweetie and company -
Sweetie, I actually watched a good portion of this video 2-3 years ago. I don't remember watching it all but it has come to my remembrance since if I am not mistaken. I don't have the time to watch it now but may over the weekend.
As for your comment with the higher leaders of the Church not being as blunt as they were decades ago, I will now share my opinion.
I have read somewhere online that during David O. McKay and Ezra's presidencies that the government had begun to pressure the Church to stop speaking so bluntly about the evils of government. For example, I have Ezra’s book “An Enemy Hath Done This” and have read that until recently the brethren or Ezra were told to stop publishing the book 2-3 decades ago. I am not exactly sure of the timeline. If you are interested, a Jewish American writer named Myron Fagan wrote a piece about the Illuminati in the 70s. Here is the Youtube link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7Uqn09DUPU. He isn’t a Mormon yet towards the end of his essay or piece he says something very interesting. He talks about how the National Council of Churches has essentially found “people” to become pastors. He says that they have been paid to manipulate the story of Christ and make it “mysterious”. Now, I believe that “he who has the gold makes the rules.” The president of the United States doesn’t run things in my opinion but has orders from his masters. So, I believe this council was set up to not only keep statistics about churches but to also manipulate or infiltrate all the different religions. He says that you should stay clear of all churches involved with it and then he says something that may seem very odd to people. He said that the only church I’ve seen without this “Judas infiltration” is the Mormon church. This is very interesting to me. The whole article is worth reading or viewing.
I don’t know all the actually beliefs of the fellow commentators here but I have numerous stories of this sort. See, I can understand why the majority of Americans are so disgusted with religion in fact I understand why most of the Western world feels similar. Yet I see here where the Church continues to shine. We are headed to a time in the world that is unprecedented and I feel that the Church is one of the only few organizations that is prepared. Zero debt and a huge producer of commodities through various farms. What I am trying to say here is that I have recently been trying to introduce the Church to others by talking to them about political and economic issues such as the US debt and wars etc. This “economic recovery” is a sham entirely and I believe that much of the world but mainly the western world will be severely humbled. The US dollar is on its last limbs as well as the American empire. Although I do not have an official Bachelors or Master’s degree I consider myself an economist. I see how so many people and governments are going to be sorely devastated yet I see how the Church will grow in leaps and bounds just like the scriptures say. This gives me comfort although I wish the world was at peace. As many members who are doubting their faith now or leaving I believe even more will return to the Church during these hard times. This is a guess of mine and I could be completely wrong about this.
Here is an interesting quote from Brother Hyde when he was an Apostle.
“There is more salvation and security in wheat, than in all the political schemes of the world, and also more power in it than in all the contending armies of the nations. Raise wheat and lay it up in store till it will bring a good price; not dollars and cents, but kingdoms, countries, peoples, tribes, and tongues. "They have sold themselves for naught, and must be redeemed without money!" It will take wheat to redeem them! Raise wheat and lay it up securely and it will preach the "gathering" more eloquently, successfully, and extensively than all the missionaries that we can send out to sweep through the nations, with the proclamation of the judgments of God abroad in the land!”
I believe that this quote will shortly come to pass as the currencies of the world are being greatly devalued. Many people do not understand economics. They don’t understand the evils of a central bank nor do they understand gold and silver’s real place in the economy. Alan Greenspan himself said that gold is inseparable connected with economic freedom. A traitor? Unfortunately it seems this way. As the Fed prints more money our dollar continues to be devalued. Other countries’ currencies have similar effects because their currency is essentially valued in regards to our dollar. So when the US dollar loses value than so does most currencies around the world. Some are immune to this such as China but they are printing money also. Why do I write these things? Well, the recent highs in gold and silver and really all commodities are not because of increased demand although there is some but are because currencies around the world are losing value. Everything, for the most part, that we need to live will be going up astronomically and gold and silver will protect you from this.
This is why it is so important to be out of debt, have food storage and garden. I am not sure how I came to this subject although I try daily to explain this to people. They don’t seem to get it and continue to believe 100% what the main stream media is telling them.
Let me leave you with two quotes that in my opinion are happening right before our eyes. Again, not sure how many people think my writings are hogwash but it is nice to write to people who will take the time to read it nonetheless.
"There will be two great political parties in this country. One will be called the Republican, and the other the Democrat party. These two parties will go to war and out of these two parties will spring another party which will be the Independent American Party. The United States will spend her strength and means warring in foreign lands until other nations will say, “Let’s divide up the lands of the United States,” then the people of the U.S. will unite and swear by the blood of their fore-fathers, that the land shall not be divided. Then the country will go to war, and they will fight until one half of the U.S. army will give up, and the rest will continue to struggle. They will keep on until they are very ragged and discouraged, and almost ready to give up—when the boys from the mountains will rush forth in time to save the American Army from defeat and ruin. And they will say, “Brethren, we are glad you have come; give us men, henceforth, who can talk with God.” Then you will have friends, but you will save the country when its liberty hangs by a hair, as it were." – Joseph Smith Junior - Autobiography of Mosiah Hancock
And…
As recorded by A. Milton Musser:
"...Prophet Joseph said that the next great (U.S. civil) war after the war of the rebellion (the Civil War of the 1860's between the North and the South) would commence in a little town now called Chicago but at that time it would have grown to be a very large city. And another brother told me that the Prophet said that the cause of the next great trouble of the United States would be the depreciation of the currency of the United States. I believe I have given you all the facts in as short and concise manner as possible."
Enjoy and goodnight!
Vince, thank you for your input but go easy on the comments!! Many of them went into the spam folder which I have now cleaned up.
Heather, you are right that taking the back seat in our music choices will cause much undue wailing.
Anonymous I am glad you have noticed changes in my countenance during the last couple of visits here. A similar brightness came upon Brigham Young shortly after Josephs' martyrdom.
Thank you for the links Sister Sweetie.
Sister Pillinger sometimes even LDS DJ's do not have the proper spirit of discernment when it comes to music choices. The bishops wife did the right thing in switching that particular musical number.
I went to a NIck Cave and the Bad-Seeds concert when I was a counsellor in Young Womens and when I mentioned it to the YW Pres. she looked at me disapprovingly and said sarcastically "Well, I'm sure you felt the spirit there!". Isn't sarcasm one of the deadly sins President P?
It certainly is Maureen. Sarcasm is the lowest form of humor and has absolutely no place within the one true church of God.
Although this was a personal revelation, intended only for me, I wish to share with the readers of this blog a rule of thumb that the Spirit taught me for selecting music. When a song comes on, I ask myself, "Would President Monson listen to this song?" As it turns out, in most cases he wouldn't; he prefers hymns and songs from musicals (recent anti-mormon musicals notwithstanding).
This rule has been my musical Liahona. As I have obeyed this prompting with exactness, I have been blessed with increased ability to resist temptation as well as with a perfect recall of all the lyrics from 'Oklahoma'.
President... My husband just bought U2 tickets. Will he still be able to have his temple recommend renewed?
Thank you Brother Hume - if we could all live by this standard the world would be a much better place.
Anonymous I am unfamiliar with U2. Are they a christian band, from BYU perhaps?
Well, one of their best known songs is called 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' so.....
Vince,
What's your email address? Let's talk more outside the spam filter so pres PN won't have to exercise his clicking mouse fingers in excess.
I thought the south park episode about bono of U2 taking the biggest crap pretty much says it all!
From what I am hearing about U2 I would definitely counsel you to destroy those concert tickets. Please spend the evening relaxing to the sounds of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
Pres., I found an album by some anti-Mormon group calling themselves "The Osmonds." The album is called "The Plan" and, much like 1970's Battlestar Galactica, seems to exist only to make God's Plan of Happiness seems stupid and facile.
I urge all good Mormons to boycott these so-called "Osmonds."
Sweetie - Would you mind sharing yours instead? :)
I am not a fan of giving my main one over the net. If you are not as well I could create another or something like that.
As a child I was tempted twice to hum "Jesus Christ Super Star" {who in the hell do you think you are}
I resisted as long as I could and then gave in did the humming while I vacuumed.{to camouflage the sin}
I was discovered and rebuked by my father. A cherished childhood memory.
Dear, kind and gracious President Paternouster,
I am sorry that you had to experience the evils of worldly music. Your story reminds me of our Lord and Savior, even Jesus Christ, and his willingness to suffer for us.
I know this experience must have been traumatic for you as it would be for any true disciple of Christ. Take comfort in knowing that your sacrifice is not in vain. Just knowing that radios are capable of transmitting such damaging messages, I have taken them out of my car and house and replaced them with for the strength of youth pamphlets.
I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that your blog is the reason the Lord inspired Al Gore to invent the internet.
Thank you Goldarn. I believe I have heard of that group and understand they spend a lot of time with the sinners in Las Vegas.
Brother Jenssen your father did well to rebuke such blatant and outright blasphemy.
Thank you Ryan. Such sacrifice is never easy and like I said in the post it almost made me hit the car in front of me. But I take my calling to warn the saints of such dangers very seriously. I am glad you appreciate the blog.
President,
I too have noticed a change in your countenance. It is as though you have, as Gandalf the gray, endured the challenges of the world to become white and pure. I am sure that exposing yourself to worldly music and other evils has served the same purpose for you as facing the Balrog served for Gandalf. I have no doubt that in my hour of need, when the orcs (evils) of this world are knocking at my door, you will show up to protect me. How marvelous it is to know we have a true stake president living on the earth today!!
In keeping with the theme of the post, here is another song that reminds me of the pure love of Christ.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGl5Q6OH_1I
Vince,
I'm in the middle of reconfiguring my computer - if you could set up temp email that would be best for now. I look forward in exchanging ideas with you.... We see things so similarly...
Is anybody out there? Just nod if you can hear us!
Sweetie - I set up the email stkprez@gmail.com, haha!
Anyone can email me if they'd like.
By the way, are quoting Floyd?
As a youth I was told that everything I saw or heard would stick in my head and ultimately affect me, even if I didn't realize it. When I was younger I never really paid much attention to the words of songs or thought too much about what they were really saying. As I have gotten older I have become much more aware and now I understand why I was given this council. I have since re-listened to the music of my youth and I have to say there is much of it I am not comfortable with anymore. As I look back on some of the decisions I have made I can see how some of the “subliminal” messages affected me and caused me unnecessary struggles. I'm not sure if I completely agree with your interpretation of James Blunts song but I can see how you could get those messages from the words you chose to highlight.
I didn't know that I could learn about the restoration from listening to James Blunt. I should start listening to him more often! I should probably stay away from the radio though, would downloading from itunes be safer? Oh wait a miunite, I remember some leader warning against using iPods too much. I think I need some more council on this matter President.
Vince & Everyone,
Yes, floyd song.... I thought appropriate timing.... Not to mention appropriate for music topic.
Thx Vince I'll email you sunday! (Btw, cute addy!)
The world is blessed to have leadership like you that watched over our spiritual security. So often the youth get caught up in the catchy music of the era that they don't realize how the subtle words are leading them along the path of destruction.
My younger brother used to be the DJ for stake dances a few years ago, and included in his list of songs was "The Reason" by Hoobastank. Everybody at the dance believed it to be a wonderful love song, and I even once thought it to be a possible representation of our love for the Savior. ie. the Savior is the reason for us to change who we used to be, referring to true conversion.
But one sister present was spiritually-sensitive enough to grasp the intended meaning of the song, and realized that the singer was actually singing about having to leave his girlfriend, as in move out on her. Yes, the singer was living with his girlfriend out of wedlock.
Satan is clever, and he will drag us speedily to hell, and we may not even realize it is happening. Please instruct our youth to be sensitive to the spirit and be aware of when these subtle hints are being sent. We can't allow an ounce of unrighteousness to surround our lives, or we too may find ourselves on the path of destruction.
I think we should include singing in the shower as also inappropriate. While we are in an unclothed state we should act solemn.
"Don't drop your guard in the shower!"
I can digitally edit any music for future dances :-) SqueakyCLEANLyrics.blogspot.com :-)
is this blog some kind of pathetic attempt to parody a Stake President? I sure hope so. honestly, I can't tell if you guys are being serious or not.
first of all, being clean-shaven is NOT a Christ-like example. Jesus had a beard. we all know this.
and for the record, it's downright ridiculous of you to ask "all men within the sound of your voice" to be clean-shaven. how dare you make this kind of call? it's church leaders like you who confuse the saints by making these kind of comments.
and why are you intentionally misspelling these names (Spritney Bears)? are you trying so hard to let the world know how unworldly you are that you are unaware of her name, or are you ignorantly afraid of being under attack for using her name without permission, or are you just making a failed attempt at humor?
and don't blame Britney Spears for being a shitty driver.
CLINT: the singer was living w/ his girlfriend out of wedlock???? OMG are you serious??
BRO JENSSEN: your comment about not singing in the shower is ridiculous.
I think you guys are confused. is this what Utah culture is like? do you realize that most Mormons are not as confused as you? no wonder everyone hates the church!
At anonymous: Surely you do not think we would be commenting on this link unless our dear President Paternoster were really who he says it is. Do not think it unseemly that he should ask men "within the sound of his voice" to be clean-shaven, and please do not suppose that it is not in his bailiwick to do so. We fully expect that the President will soon be one of the new members of the Quorum of the Twelve to be called after Boyd K. Packer finally kicks the bucket. (His lights are already winking out, know what I mean?) I mean, since the church called one of those godless Germans to be an apostle, surely they can accommodate a someone from the Isles, be he Brit or Irish. Sure, an Irishman in the Twelve is a bit of a stretch, considering all their drunkenness and the like, but the day WILL come.
Dear President,
As I was going over the For the Strength of Youth program with my son, Brayden (Age 13), we read the part about music and what should be appropriate for dances or just listening to. We talked about what type of music might be good and wondered if there was a list of songs that others might suggest would be in line with the same standards. After performing a number of searches on the Internet, we came to the conclusion that we were on our own.
A few days later I woke with the idea of create a new website that would allow people to share songs that they thought would be appropriate and follow the standards of For the Strength of Youth program. After a few days of pulling our ideas together and some long hours of development we would like to introduce you to LDSMusicCharts.com
LDS Music Charts is an online resource to help identify popular music that is in line with the standards found in the For the Strength of Youth program. The ultimate goal is for this site to be a resource for youth committees to be able to suggest songs to be played at Stake Dances and for leaders to feel confident that the songs that are being played are appropriate. Used correctly and leaders can tell both youth and dance DJs that they can only play songs that are found on LDS Music Charts.
The site is divided up into three main categories: Hot 200 (songs you might hear on the radio), Dance 500 (the perfect playlist for any stake dance) and LDS 100 (a list of LDS Artist that are in but not of). Every song is also added to its genre so that you can see all Country or All Pop songs on the list.
Everyone can view the any of the list on the site, but if you sign into the site using your Facebook or Twitter account you can do the following:
• Suggest Songs
• Review Suggested Songs (the system doesn't let you review your own suggestion)
• Listen to a full length stream of the song (you cannot download any music from the site)
• Read the lyrics a song
• Vote of if you like or don't like a song (the system ranks songs based on likes and don't likes)
• Add songs to your own favorites list
• View your LDS Music Profile
• View recent logins and their LDS Music Profile
• View are Blacklist (songs that have been suggested but might not be in line with the For the Strength of Youth program)
• Flag a song that might not be appropriate or just needs its settings updated
Although everyone can help to make sure the music on the site is appropriate, we do have a select group of individuals who regularly monitor the site and review songs that have been suggested or approved to make sure they are up to par.
I also want to point out that we are not trying to make any money on this site. We are just trying to create a resource that will help identify good music that our youth can listen to. Music that is both popular and in line with the standards we are asking them to live. I really hope you will see the value in our site and would like to chat with you about it and see if you have any questions or suggestions.
You can find the site located at: http://www.ldsmusiccharts.com
Thanks for your time,
Ryan Riley
it seems you ignored the part in the james blunt song when he says "She could see from my face that I was fucking high"
You need to check your James Blunt song.....he references at the beginning of being "F"ing High!! So your message is understandable and I agree but you also need to make sure you check lyrics or not just go by the "radio edit" of a song.
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