Seems like they’re in a pickle. If Mormons rely on Joseph Smith’s authority as a prophet to legitimize their reorganization of the church and reinterpretation of Scripture, they cannot very well disavow that authority when it comes to racist verses. Either he was rely enough to break off from the rest of Christianity to follow only him, or he wasn’t. If he wasn’t reliable when it came to the racist parts, why should anyone think he was reliable enough to follow off into the hinterlands on matters of salvation?
“Seems like they’re in a pickle. If Mormons rely on Joseph Smith’s authority as a prophet to legitimize their reorganization of the church and reinterpretation of Scripture, they cannot very well disavow that authority when it comes to racist verses. Either he was rely enough to break off from the rest of Christianity to follow only him, or he wasn’t. If he wasn’t reliable when it came to the racist parts, why should anyone think he was reliable enough to follow off into the hinterlands on matters of salvation?”
Excellent point!
What 'pickle'?
They ignore bigger stuff than this these days!
The problem comes from the modern-day article of faith that anything with racist connotations is automatically false and evil.
What happens if they just go "OK, our scriptures are racist. So?"
If you want really racist stuff, take a look at the Hindu caste system, and its theological underpinnings.