It is absolutely wonderful to be amongst you young people this evening. You were ordained to come forth in the fullness of times to be leaders in the Lord’s kingdom upon the earth. You are to defend the Church and its teachings always looking to the Church’s official website for direction. The Lord has great plans for you that will come to pass as you stay on the straight and narrow path of the gospel.
I wish to speak on a topic of great importance this evening. As a professional triathlete I probably understand more than most the importance of keeping the body clean and pure. I thank the Lord that I still maintain my youthful looks and vigour and attribute this largely to my keeping of the Word of Wisdom and not defiling myself in any way. I have always considered my body to be a temple of God where his holy spirit can dwell.
As I was pondering what to say tonight I felt impressed to share an experience with you to warn you of one of the great dangers and pitfalls of our day. Some time ago I was approached by a newly married return missionary named John who was utterly horrified to discover on his wedding night that his bride had a permanent tattoo on the back of her neck covered only by her hair. Cindy, who had always suffered from low self esteem, had done this when she was 17 in order to fit in with her peers and “be cool”. When she started dating John just 6 months later she was so afraid that he wouldn’t love her if he found out that she wore her hair in a manner to cover it up and never mentioned the tiny flower.
Two months later as John helped her out of her wedding dress he went completely pale and almost fainted upon the discovery that he had married someone who had disfigured and desecrated her body in such a manner. He knew from the Ensign that *“tattooing the body is analogous to spraying graffiti on one of our beautiful temples.” Having just been at the temple earlier that day John went into a state of shock and wondered if he had been betrayed. I tell you this in an attempt to impress upon your minds, young friends, that Cindy’s disobedience to the Lord had ended up ruining her wedding day and causing many bitter tears in the days that followed.
When I asked Cindy to join John and I in my office she explained “At first I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. It was the most beautiful flower I had ever seen, but now I am completely ashamed of it.”
I was able to show Cindy the link at lds.org where we learn that **“Those who have a tattoo wear a constant reminder of a mistake they have made. They might consider having it removed.”
This thought was very comforting to both John and Cindy who were unaware that tattoos could be removed.
I assured them both that this was definitely possible. In fact The New Era informs us of this saying ***“Although methods have been developed to remove tattoos, they are expensive, painful, and can leave scars. ” Cindy asked if the scars would be worse than the little flower on her neck. John was able to assure her that a permanent scar would be a small price to pay to remove a permanent tattoo. He also assured her that when we follow the counsel such as that given by our leaders on lds.org only then can we find true happiness and joy.
I pointed out that in addition to this The New Era warns that ****“Having a tattoo or body piercing can also be offensive to others. As members of the Church, we are instructed not to give offense....A pure body, unmarked, is not offensive.”
Cindy felt terrible and started to shed tears at the thought of all those poor innocent souls who would be offended if they found out she had a tattoo.
We also learned from this article that “Some members of a congregation may be distracted from the reverent feelings they come to church services to gain, by the piercings or tattoos of those called upon to participate in the program.”
Cindy assured me that she would always be extra careful to keep the tattoo covered until it was removed so as to not distract members from the feelings of reverence that they had come to Church to enjoy.
My young brothers and sisters this situation and all of the associated heartache could so easily have been avoided had Cindy heeded the words of the Lord in the first place. Latter-day prophets have strongly discouraged the tattooing of the body and those who disregard this counsel show a lack of respect for themselves and for God. The Apostle Paul taught of the significance of our bodies and the great danger of purposefully defiling them when he wrote “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”
Please do all you can to keep your bodies clean and free from alcohol, tea, coffee, skinnny jeans and tattoos that you may enjoy life to the fullest and be free; this is my prayer which I leave with you in the sacred and holy name of our Lord and Saviour, even Jesus the Christ, amen.
* http://lds.org/ensign/1999/02/i-have-a-question?lang=eng
**http://lds.org/study/topics/tattooing?lang=eng
*** http://lds.org/new-era/1996/06/qa-questions-and-answers?lang=eng
****http://lds.org/new-era/2001/02/more-than-skin-deep?lang=eng
I'm such a happy vandal, having adorned my temple with so much graffiti, I'd never make it back
ReplyDelete*** NOTE TO THE READER OF THIS BLOG **
ReplyDeleteThis is NOT a website sanctioned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Nor is "President Paternoster" a stake president within the Church. Rather, this site is farce, and not good farce, at that.
Most of the posts here are written by quasi-apostates who mock those who are sincerely striving, albeit imperfectly, to follow Jesus.
Caveat utilitor.
*******ATTENTION READER OF THIS BLOG*****
ReplyDeletePRESIDENT PATERNOSTER IS INDEED AN INSPIRED MAN OF GOD. HE IS INDEED A STAKE PRESIDENT. ANTI-MORMONS WILL DO ANYTHING TO PERSUADE YOU TO NOT HEED HIS TRUTHFUL AND INSPIRED TEACHINGS HERE. READ ON...
P.S. the greater sin here, yes, even greater than that of the tattoo on Cindy's delicious body, was that she obviously LIED in her temple recommend interview in order to gain admittance into the house of the Lord. Her true and faithful stake president would have never allowed her to desecrate such a holy place if he had known beforehand of her vile body graffitti.
I know this is true. In the name of Summers Eve,
Amen.
"As members of the Church, we are instructed not to give offense?" That's ridiculous. If we are bold but not overbearing, we will offend those who choose to resist the Truth we have to share.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I don't know who edits these Ensign articles!
First time commentator, first time website reader.
ReplyDeleteYou are all sad, sad, people, without lives of meaning and purpose, and without humor.
This website, in short, blows, and you're all going to hell.
Thanks. Peace out!
You must also warn your readers about the statement in the New Era: "Will it introduce you to a circle of friends that are better left alone, such as a gang?" Yes, that small flower on your stake member's neck got her dangerously close to joining a gang!!! Little do you know what innocent design, be it flower, hummingbird, or fairy, can pull you into a gang. They look for people with tattoos to bring into their groups. I testify of that.
ReplyDelete*** NOTE TO THE READER OF THIS BLOG **
ReplyDeleteThe anonymous poster at the beginning of these posts is a paid employee of a known evangelic church whose job it is to obfuscate the truth. He is also a known chronic masturbator and blasphemer.
If John would have taken Cindy skinny dipping before their wedding day, he may have discovered her tattoo and been able to avoid this unhappy union. Sad story indeed. There's absolutely nothing with admiring the temple before entering it.
ReplyDeleteI know for a fact that the Lord would not allow anything to be printed in the Ensign that is not 100% correct. Before God would let that happen, he would strike somebody dead. ("It is better for one person to perish") We have been promised as members of the one True Church, that God will not allow us to be led astray. That includes Church approved magazines. God does not lie. If he did, he would cease to be God. Then where would that leave us?
ReplyDeleteIt may not be apparent to some of you skeptics how a seemingly small thing like a tattoo could bring about someone's downfall, but it can.
Lot's wife probably thought it was a small thing to "look back" when she was told not to. Now she will spend eternity as pillar of salt.(Genesis 19:26) I don't even know if having her Temple work done will do her much good.
It makes me very sad to think of the miserable life that lays in store for this young girl. She will carry Satan's mark on her neck for the remainder of her days. She is marked for life by this one very poor decision.
Please do not listen the the misguided people who come on this site and try to imply that what the Lord has said is not important. How could Pres. Paternoster be trying to lead anyone astray by quoting the Lord's magazine? Stay committed to live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God. When God's words seem contradictory, follow what the modern prophet says. That is why we have prophets.
Peace and happiness lies in obedience.
President Paternoster, God truly knew you in the post mortal belly of your mothers womb!
ReplyDeleteWhat A Timely Treasure of Truth. Let me bestow upon your readers my experience with marking one's body, particularly a body with the blood of Cain.
Whilst in my teen years living on the West side of Chicago, I marked my body with a tattoo of an Acorn, just right behind my left ear. I really like acorns. One day in a convenience store shopping for some lip balm, I was attacked and hit over the head with a 24 count case of Colt 45 Malt Liquor. I woke up in the hospital 40 days later. I had fractures to my skull and had left temporal alcohol poisoning as some of the malt liquor had seeped into my my brain.
I was told by the investigating officer that I had been mistaken an "Acorn" gang member by a rival. I had never heard of this "Acorn" gang. Again, I really really like Acorns for their esthetic visual value and the spiritual ambiance they project.
The lesson the lord was trying to teach me is as follows:
Had I not further cursed my dark skin with yet another marking, I would have not lost 40 days and 40 nights of my life.
REDEMPTION:
Back then, tattoo removal was a thing of James Bond Movies. When I recovered, I went back to the tattoo artist and had him blot out the Acorn with a thick black ink, making it appear as a huge mole. It is unsightly, but I hope when I come forth in the morning of the first or god forbid, the second resurrection, that not only will the curse of Cain be lifted from my flesh, but that also of the blotted Acorn.
I use the blotted as I hope the lord will blot out this grievous sin made whilst in my youth.
President Paternoster, you may use this story for your talk in the next stake conference. I would like you to title it, " The Blotted Acorn". I would ask that you change my name to protect my innocence.
President,
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid I have a question that no one has yet been able to answer for me. As you are a conduit of the Lord's Spirit in these Latter Days, I pray that you will receive the inspiration I so desperately long for.
As you know, the words "Holiness to the Lord" gracefully adorn the holy Temple of our God and I was wondering: does the tattoo I received after I returned from my mission, "Holiness to the Lord" constitute a sin on my behalf?
I know my body is a temple, and therefore I looked to Heavenly Father's temples here on earth to verify what would be considered righteous tattoos and what would be regarded as filthy.
In examining the outside of the Salt Lake City temple I noticed there was a Compass & Square, the Big Dipper, and Holiness to the Lord engraved in the walls.
I have had each of these emblems tattood onto my own temple and now I need to know if I should have these removed.
If so, shouldn't those things be removed from the Salt Lake Temple, as well?
Thank you President.
I have to admit that the idea of a tattoo has been one of my temptations. It is because of the warnings that I was taught from a very young age, much like the ones you pointed out from the ensign and LDS.org that have helped me make the right choice not to have one. It is always better to avoid the sin then to have to deal with the consequences that follow sin. I think one of the most important points you make in this post is when you said that Cindy "had always suffered from low self esteem". I have always been taught that the spirit of a young woman is very tender and should be treated with the utmost respect, especially by those holding the priesthood. I'm concerned about the motivation this young man had in going to talk to you about discovering his new bride had a tattoo. In your post you said that on his wedding night "he went completely pale and almost fainted upon the discovery that he had married someone who had disfigured and desecrated her body in such a manner." You go on to say that he "went into a state of shock and wondered if he had been betrayed". It seems as though his motivation is more out of offense and a feeling of self-righteousness then out of a genuine concern for his wife. Having their marriage start out on this note may prove to be problematic for them through out their marriage. I'm sure this is something you have already realized and that the marriage counselling has already commenced. I do hope that the two of them will be able to find a way to trust each other with out having to sacrifice their own self worth to gain it.
ReplyDeleteA most excellent warning against something totally bogus!
ReplyDeleteTattoos may be confidently blanketed under the "avoid the very appearance of evil" umbrella---which we Mormons are quick to obey with order and exactness except in the case of secret signs & combinations, excessively opulent temples, and denying civil rights.
And tattoos are the gateway sin to full-fledged gang membership (groups whose teachings are contrary to the church)!
In my city alone, the streets run amok with the collateral damage from the ongoing feud between the Butterfly Mafia and the Tramp Stamps.
Attention brothers and sisters reading this blog. This man is indeed a man of God. We mormons are attacked viciously in the media. All these comments trying to disregard this blog as satire and a farce are just people pursuaded by the devil to try and bring down God's only true and living church. This is brought to you by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous (who said 'this website, in short, blows, and you're all going to hell'),
ReplyDeleteI should hope so! Was it not the Great Joe Smith who said something like 'the Telestial Kingdom is so great that if you were able to see it you'd kill yourself just to get there'? Even if he didn't, I followed Moroni's promise and believe it to be true... so it is now actually true.
Praise to the Man who will send me down, er, up to hell!
To; "this web site blows"
ReplyDeleteI would like to refer you to the May 23rd 2011 post by our beloved Pres. Paternoster. "The First Presidency has interpreted oral sex as constituting an unnatural, impure, or unholy practice."
I feel prompted by the spirit to admonish you not to refer to this unholy and impure practice on this site. If we wanted to expose ourselves to things of that nature we could visit some of the web sites you visit when you are not engaged in your battle against the only true Church even the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter daye Saints
This young woman can and should have this tattoo removed. But through all generations of time and throughout all eternity she will remain a licked cupcake.
ReplyDeleteMy wife has had a small tattoo of Fabio on her **** ever since I've known her. She admitted to me that she, like Cindy, had very low self esteem at the time that she got it. Now that I've learned that she can have it removed, I made an appointment for her this very morning. Thank you President Paternoster. Without your timely information, I might have had to live with Fabio staring up at me forever. We still have a problem with her calling me Fabio in private moments, but I'm not so sure we can fix that.
ReplyDeleteWould a tattoo of Mormon Prophets be acceptable? I pray that it will be as I plan to do the same as this fine brother.
ReplyDeletePres. Paternoster forgive me for I have sinned. As I was walking past the bulletin board in our ward building last night I notice the CES fireside flyer with Boyd K. Packer's picture on it. I had a weak moment and desecrated the picture with a nazi moustache and glasses. I made a prophet, seer and revelator look like Adolf Hitler...I even snickered out loud. I fear that I have committed a sin as grievious and serious as masturbation (which of course is next to murder)...I wish I would have masturbated instead. Please forgive me...I cannot go to my Bishop as he will question my motives. I will try not to do it again (nazi moustache)....not masturbation..
ReplyDeleteamen
The purpose of all these articles in the Ensign, New Era, Friend, etc... is not to let the sinner know that their act (tattoo, sleeveless shirts, coffee,etc...) is offensive, but to let the believer know that they should be offended by such.
ReplyDeleteStake President, I have a question for you. My friends who are also Mormon, say that they have a sure-fire way to create beautiful body art that does not involve ink at all - they instead do it by strategically placing zits in the shape of holy images. One of them has the image of Joseph Smith on his back - the zits were very large and they left scars in the permanent outline of Our Beloved Prophet. And this beautiful and dare I say Sacred body art will be resting forever against his Temple Garments once he is Endowed.
ReplyDeleteDo you and the Brethren in your Stake support Zit body art, President Paternoster?
This kind of story really gets under my skin. As a precious daughter of beloved heavenly parents, I have never defiled my body with "tats," as the gentiles at my school call them. I wear clip-on earrings to avoid even the appearance of evil (I believe that if the women sitting on the stand behind President Hinckley hadn't already had their ears pierced, he would not have been forced to allow 1 set of earrings for women, so I have chosen a higher level of obedience by not having mine pierced at all.) Also, I have never worn a tank top, even to bed or under a more modest shirt. Yet, here I am at the age of 28, and I've never had a boy hold my hand, or try to kiss me (of course I would rebuff any such untoward advances, but it would be nice to have a chance to do so), and I never seem to get past the first date stage with any of the boys that ask me out.
ReplyDeleteNow I hear that this "Cindy" (I'm sorry, but that is even a slutty name) who probably has 4 earring holes besides her perverse body art is married to a righteous priesthood holder in the temple, and I am still sleeping alone with only Teddy for comfort.
I feel to cry out as our beloved prophet did from Liberty Jail, "Oh God, why hast thou forsaken me?" I pray for a man to love me, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to have a husband picked out for me in the millenium, and I really wanted to be a first wife. Do you have any words of reassurance, yea even of inspiration for me President? Even for me....
a lowly sister in the one true church?
why people have so many issues against tattoos designs . i mean they are personal and other gets no harm because of tattoos then why people can not have a positive approach towards tattoos .
ReplyDeleteAs a Mormon for 24 years.this story is absolutely ridiculous and completely wrong to teach to kids...what message is this??!are you kidding me? My husband is a tattoo artist and about to join the church. He is covered in art and it makes not ONE bit of a difference to who he is and how he presents himself. If we spent more time teaching our children humility charity and love we would have a much better world than constant judgement and wrongly charged guilt towards those not cookie cutter images of the church. The lord loves all and it is shameful and blasphemous to not do the same
ReplyDeletetattoos designs are not responsible for evil curse the bodies
ReplyDelete