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Letter: Here’s how the LDS Church should address skin color and its doctrine

(Jeremy Harmon | The Salt Lake Tribune) President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints appears with NAACP leaders Leon Russell, center, and Derrick Johnson on May 17, 2018, where the two groups emphasized a need for greater civility and called for an end to prejudice.

When I first heard of the hoax apology letter I was deeply saddened by the pain this causes to so many within our church. I am further troubled by how few members of the LDS Church seem to be aware of the pain this hoax has caused for many of our fellow members.

While only a start, I offer three ideas that, I believe, would go a long way in moving us beyond the past that still haunts us.

The first is for the church to issue a letter to be read in all congregations reiterating that cursing based on skin color is not a correct doctrine and that this must not be taught in any of our church meetings.

Second, the church should remove all cross-references within the LDS canon of scripture that erroneously tie skin color to a curse (i.e., Genesis 4:15a).

Thirdly, the church should dedicate a worldwide training to this very topic, taking the opportunity to teach local leadership on the importance of ministering to all, including the need to eliminate this false doctrine from our Sunday school and auxiliary lessons.

Matt Henderson, Concord, NC