The Whore of all the Earth

Brothers and Sisters before getting into the topic of the day I just wanted to take a minute to state that I appreciate the hundreds of weekly letters, emails, cards, faxes and voice messages in support of my blog.  I enjoy them all immensely and the postman is delighted with the extra load.  To the few who asked about donations I should clarify that blogger hosts this site for free and, like most humble followers of Christ, I am unconcerned with laying up for myself treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal.  Any donations sent to me will be returned.  If you feel compelled to make a donation please consider giving directly to my charity of choice even Brigham Young University.  This can be done directly at http://www.ldsphilanthropies.org/byu/ I also encourage donations that help fund the building of the City Creek Mall in downtown Salt Lake City.  Thank you in advance for your understanding in this matter.

While I cannot possibly respond to all letters and inquiries this particular one from a gentleman in the United States of America caught my attention and I feel it deserves a response.

Dear President Paternoster,

I was recently reading a book entitled “Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans - A Mormon Example” by D. Michael Quinn and was quite shocked when I read this on page 319:

“A little-known irony is that the LDS Church had a long-term relationship with several of Salt Lake City's houses of prostitution on Commercial Street since 1891. This created conflict within the Mormon hierarchy. Because the Brigham Young Trust Company's officers had "elected to let [i.e. lease] buildings to whores," Apostle Brigham Young Jr. angrily resigned in January 1897 as vice president of this LDS company that bore his father's name. At a meeting in the Salt Lake temple four months later, the First Presidency and apostles discussed Young's resignation and "the matter of the Brigham Young Trust Co. having fitted up a first class whore-house and President [George Q.] Cannon being President of the company was brought up.

The LDS Church's connection with houses of prostitution remained an uncomfortable secret until 1908 when the Salt Lake Tribune proclaimed that the Brigham Young Trust Company "filled these houses on Commercial Street." This article noted that the church-owned Clayton Investment Company continued to lease these houses of prostitution and that the LDS Church's annual rent was $2,400 from just one of these brothel leases. At that time $2,300 was the purchase prices for a "12-room modern house, 3 blocks from the Temple".... The LDS holding company did not divest its houses of prostitution until 1941”

President can you confirm to me that this is true?  Did the Church knowingly rent out prostitution houses until 1941 and if so why did they charge such high rents (the annual rent per whore house was enough to buy a modern house outright)?  Was the Church really making such excellent profits from prostitution?

Sincerely,

Brother Smith

Below is my response:

Dear Brother Smith,

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints vehemently opposes sexual sin in all of its malicious varieties.  In the book of Alma we learn that sexual sin is next only to murder in the Lord for in talking to his son about Isabel the harlot Alma stated “Know ye not, my son, that these things are an abomination in the sight of the Lord; yea, most abominable above all sins save it be the shedding of innocent blood or denying the Holy Ghost?”

Brother Smith, many evil things that have and are being done by other churches in the latter days in order to get gain were foretold in the Book of Mormon.  All other Churches according to 1 Nephi 14:10 are part of what the Lord calls 'the whore of all the earth' and anyone not belonging to our church is a member of this great church, which is the mother of abominations.  Allow me to quote some verses from Mormon chapter 8 keeping in mind that these verses pertain to these other churches, but not ours:

“O ye wicked and perverse and stiffnecked people, why have ye built up churches unto yourselves to get gain? …and your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts.

For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted.

O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies—because of the praise of the world?”

As you can see Brother Smith none of these accusations apply to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We do not love money or spend it adorning our Church buildings more than we love the poor and needy.  In fact we have just announced the building of a much needed multi million dollar temple in war torn Congo which will allow the saints to seal their many dead and dying to them for time and all eternity.

Now let’s talk more specifically about your question; it is very important to understand certain things about the author of the book you are reading, D. Michael Quinn.  As a stake president I oversee stake and ward historians and thus am qualified to state that Quinn was and is a very amateur historian who lacks in both the spirit of the Lord and in tact.  You see Quinn was given access to the Church archives some years ago which was a great mistake that I am sure the Church will never make again.  Quinn went on to publish his findings without regard to the damaging effect this would have on faithful members of the Church.  A professional historian, one who is properly trained, would know to publish an unbiased view of the Church showing only the faith promoting parts.  In this way the reader would be free to decide for himself that the Church is, and indeed always has been, a beacon of truth in these the latter days.

Most importantly Brother Smith you must remember that the Church excommunicated Quinn for publishing truths that were not in harmony with the gospel of Jesus Christ.  To add to this he has tendencies of a homosexual nature.  He claims to believe in the Church all the while working to expose its darkest secrets.  I for one will not tolerate such people.      

I would exhort you and all readers of this blog (as per Alma 39:11) to ‘Suffer not yourself to be led away by any vain or foolish thing’.  Please refrain from reading vain and foolish material written by Church historians whom the Lord has removed from his kingdom through excommunication.

Lovingly,

President Bill Paternoster