Facing your Goliath on the battlefield

"...for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands."

(See, 1 Samuel 17:45-47 in context).

NOTE TO READERS: This article is an adaptation from a previous article I had published at another blog, and a teaching given by Mormon President Thomas S. Monson. The relevance shares insights in furthering our understanding in facing the challenges in life. Whether one wants to admit it: life is a battle we are engaging in. We either let it defeat us, or we rise and continually prove to be the victors in managing and directing our own life.

"I... like to think of David as the righteous lad who had the courage and the faith to face insurmountable odds when all other's hesitated, and to redeem the name of Israel by facing that giant in his life - Goliath of Gath." President, Thomas S. Monson.

 What Goliath stands between us and our happiness? 

The story of David and Goliath is a very profound story of facing one's greatest enemy. The courage to stand alone with only a simple weapon at hand. With faith in Israel's God, David stood face to face with the giant warrior of the Philistines. A shepherd with only five stones and a sling against a Giant clads in battle armor and brandishing weapons of war. To the onlooker, David appeared foolish. Appeared to be on a suicide mission. Yet, there he stood, a young boy facing the greatest enemy of his people. As the account goes, David not only slays Goliath, he decapitates the giant's head.

Many people, today, face their Goliath. Whether it is substance use, abuse, traumatic experiences from childhood, rejection, broken-heart, death, or any other significant loss. Armed with only simple means of defending oneself proves to be vital in our fight to continue to endure and overcome our own obstacles in life.

Facing a well-protected giant

Goliath appears to be more powerful when we appear to be suffering. For the individual - it is the courage and faith to stand alone to battle and overcome. Meaning, it is not merely enough to slay - it is to overpower and subdue one's fear. To decapitate it. How is this accomplished?

Just like in the story of David and Goliath, David recognized that the enemy he faced was not merely going to be slain by his own hand. David recognized that it took a greater power than himself to stand there and face the giant of the Philistines. "I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty God" is what David declared.

Higher power and divine inspiration

Recognizing the need of a higher power is not so much about having a sense of religious conviction or experience. The need for a higher power is the recognition that it is going to take something greater than ourselves and greater than the power of our adversity over our lives. We may be armed with simple tools, yet when placed in the hands of one who seeks to rely on their higher power, those simple weapons turn into the greater blessings of defense against the constant slandering of our Goliath. What are these simple tools? The Shepard boy went to the stream and carefully selected five specific smooth stones.

Selecting our smooth stones from the stream of life

Stone of Courage

There are two courses in life we may take up our journey. The first is an easy road, well-traveled, conforming to social standards, and easily paved by other individuals who made the journey. It is not our chosen path. The second path we may take up is a journey where we are required to forge our own path. It appears to be impossible, impenetrable, and raises a sense of hopeless. We either surmise it is difficult and opt for the easy, well-traveled path, or become courageous to forge our own path.

The stone of courage gives us the strength to face and overcome our fear and sense of helplessness in life. It provides the means in which, despite our fears, we move forward toward our own sense of purpose and meaning.

Stone of Effort

This stone is two-fold. It is our mental effort and our physical effort. Mental effort in that it takes energy to silence the critical voice in our heads. The voice of judgment, ridicule, criticism. The effort here is capturing our thoughts and challenging them. Physical effort reflects our ability to physically push through to continue toward the realization of our goal. Working to save money, climbing out of our own sense of suffering, endure hardship.

Stone of Humility

This particular stone recognizes our limitations, our weaknesses, and shows our sense of gratitude toward something that is more powerful than our own volition and ability to overcome. It is our ability to recognize the need to surrender and give our own will over to something that provides personal revelation and guidance in our own lives. For the Christian, this is God. For others, a higher sense of consciousness.

Stone of Prayer and meditation

Through our sense of humility, we come to recognize the need to consistently meditate and enter into prayer. It helps keeps us humble, ground us, and connect us to a higher sense of purpose and revelation.

Stone of Duty

The final stone we select is duty. Engaging in facing and overcoming our own adversity and obstacles that bar us from achieving a life of meaning and purpose requires a sense of duty. We continue to follow through with our commitment, whether we may like the presenting circumstances or not.

The Sling of Faith and staff of virtue

These five stones are not enough. We need to have the power the sling of faith offers. Couple this with the staff of virtue, we are steady and ready to face whatever obstacle we may face.

So, how do these stones help bring down the Goliaths in our path?

• Stone of courage destroys our fears

• Stone of effort destroys indecision and procrastination

• Stone of humility will destroy pride/ego and envy

• Stone of prayer and meditation will destroy obstinate

• Stone of duty collides with and destroys anything that threatens our self-respect

Decisions are to be made purposefully

It is when we face adversity in our lives that decisions to go one way or another make a difference. We face battles daily. Our victory does not happen by default. When we move toward a more conscious understanding of living life, we understand that we are to anticipate any challenges and decisions needing to be made.

Do we hide, tremble in fear, or take up the staff of virtue, the sling of faith, and carefully select our stones that will help us defeat whatever Goliath stands in our way?

LDS History | African Americans and the Priesthood Ban of the 19th Century

 

The Priesthood Ban and Race in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: A Historical Perspective

In the NBC Rock Center program Mormon in America, a statement was made suggesting that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) historically treated Black members as second-class citizens. During a segment focused on a typical Mormon family, journalist Kate Snow stated:

"Remember as late as 1978, Black Mormons were second-class citizens. Banned from the priesthood and barred from the temple."

This comment arose during Snow's interview with Al Jackson, an African American and active member of the Church. When asked about being one of the few Black members in a predominantly white congregation, Jackson responded simply that it did not bother him. This exchange, however, underscores broader questions surrounding the history of the priesthood ban—questions many sincere individuals outside the faith have posed:

• Why were Black members excluded from holding the priesthood until 1978?
• How did such a policy come into existence?
• Why did it take so long for the ban to be lifted?

The truth is that there is no definitive answer to these questions. The LDS Church has not provided an official explanation as to why the ban existed. While some historical context and theological speculation offer partial insights, the Church's leadership has made clear that no definitive revelation or doctrinal justification underpins this practice. To understand this issue, one must examine the historical, cultural, and social contexts of race and slavery in America, as well as the early development of Mormonism within that environment.

Historical Context: Race, Slavery, and Early American Society

A valuable resource for members of the Church exploring these issues is BlackLDS.org, a website dedicated to addressing racial myths and misunderstandings. As stated on the site:

"We strive to build the Gospel vision that we are all children of God, of great and equal worth in His sight."

The site includes a historical timeline that provides a broader view of American history, slavery, and the rise of Mormonism. This timeline highlights key events, such as:

• 1832-1836: Elijah Abel, a Black man, is baptized, ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood, and called as a Seventy—making him one of the earliest known Black leaders in the Church. He also served as a missionary in Ohio.
• 1838: A mob manifesto against the Church in Missouri arises after W.W. Phelps publishes an article advocating for the freedom of enslaved individuals. This tension contributed to Missouri Governor Lilburn Boggs issuing the infamous "Extermination Order" against the Saints.
• 1844: Joseph Smith, the Church’s founder, publicly advocates for the abolition of slavery, an uncommon position in a society deeply divided over the issue.

The timeline demonstrates that early Mormonism grew within a broader American society steeped in racial inequality. Slavery was not only legal but often justified through religious interpretations. Even among abolitionists, the belief persisted that African Americans were inherently inferior and incapable of fully integrating into white-dominated society.

**The "Curse of Cain" and "Curse of Ham"

Much of the racial ideology that influenced early American Christianity—including Mormonism—stemmed from interpretations of the Bible. The so-called "Curse of Cain" and "Curse of Ham" were widely cited to justify the enslavement and subjugation of Black people. These ideas predated Mormonism and were common among many Protestant denominations. For example, Josiah Priest’s 1843 book Slavery as it Relates to the Negro posited that God created the three "primeval complexions" (red, black, and white) through supernatural intervention. According to Priest, Ham—Noah’s son—was divinely "born black," marked as inferior, and destined to be a servant.

Such beliefs underpinned broader societal acceptance of slavery and racial inequality. Protestants, including Southern Baptists, often used these interpretations to argue that slavery was biblically justified. These views inevitably influenced early members of the LDS Church, who were primarily converts from Protestant backgrounds.

The Priesthood Ban: Origins and Speculation

The priesthood ban—restricting Black men from holding the priesthood and participating in temple ordinances—is believed to have emerged during Brigham Young’s leadership after the Saints relocated to Utah. However, no official revelation or doctrinal pronouncement from Joseph Smith or subsequent prophets instituted this policy. Instead, it appears to have arisen organically within the cultural and societal norms of the time.

Historical records suggest two prevailing explanations for the ban:

1. The "Curse of Cain" Doctrine: This belief linked Black skin to the biblical curse placed upon Cain and his descendants.
2. Pre-Mortal Neutrality: Some leaders speculated that Black individuals were "neutral" in the pre-mortal life during the war in heaven, resulting in their earthly lineage being marked. However, this idea was explicitly rejected by later leaders, including the First Presidency in an 1895 letter.

It is important to note that these explanations were never officially canonized and are now regarded as "folk doctrine."

Societal Influence on the Ban

The priesthood ban likely reflects broader societal pressures rather than doctrinal origins. In 19th-century America, granting Black men equal ecclesiastical authority would have been culturally radical and potentially detrimental to the Church's growth and stability. The ban may have served as a means to navigate a racially segregated society without alienating potential converts or provoking further persecution.

Some scholars suggest the ban was less about punishing Black individuals and more about reflecting American society’s inability to treat African Americans as equals. The racial divide persisted well into the 20th century, reinforced by systemic discrimination and segregation. The lifting of the priesthood ban in 1978 coincided with significant societal progress during the Civil Rights Movement, suggesting that American society had finally begun to embrace the principle of racial equality.

1978: Revelation and Change

On June 8, 1978, under the leadership of President Spencer W. Kimball, the priesthood ban was lifted through divine revelation. The announcement, later canonized as Official Declaration 2, stated:

"He has heard our prayers, and by revelation has confirmed that the long-promised day has come when every faithful, worthy man in the Church may receive the holy priesthood, with power to exercise its divine authority… without regard for race or color."

This revelation marked a turning point for the Church, affirming the principle that all are equal in God’s eyes.

Criticism and Presentism

Critics often argue that the priesthood ban reflects institutional racism. However, such arguments often employ "presentism"—judging past actions by modern standards. While today’s society rightfully condemns racism, historical perspectives reveal that early Latter-day Saints were no more racially biased than their contemporaries. Indeed, Joseph Smith’s advocacy for abolition and the inclusion of Black members like Elijah Abel demonstrate that the early Church was ahead of its time in some respects.

Conclusion

The priesthood ban remains a complex and sensitive issue. While no definitive answer exists for its origins, it is clear that cultural, social, and historical factors played a significant role. The LDS Church has since denounced all forms of racism and emphasized the universal worth of every soul. Ultimately, faith in God’s wisdom invites members to focus on the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the eternal promise of unity and salvation.

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References:

• BlackLDS.org: Historical timeline and resources on African American Latter-day Saints
• FAIR Wiki: Mormonism and Racial Issues: Blacks and the Priesthood
• Official Declaration 2, Doctrine and Covenants
• Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2011). Abnormal Psychology (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill