Posted on 11/10/2012 7:59:09 AM PST by Colofornian
MessageToEagle.com - Normally, as a matter of personal preference I don’t get into politics, but when we have a presidential campaign that begins to cross over into the strange twilight zone of religious weirdness that centers on the one person who’s going to control the most powerful government and army on the face of the earth, well, it brings up some unusual scenarios to wonder about.
It is being reported in the media today that former presidential candidate Mitt Romney only wrote a victory speech for Election Day; presumably a harried, last minute scramble to revise his speech was being suggested as the reason behind the Romney-Ryan campaigns’ sluggish reluctance to concede their party’s unthinkable defeat.
Electoral Votes:
Barack Obama: 303 Mitt Romney: 206
Curiously, one has to wonder whether it was Romney’s obsession with polls and tracking data that lead to this overextension of hubris; his unshakable faith that he would be the next president of the United States—or could it have been Romney’s Mormon faith itself that lead him to believe victory was all but assured by some divine mandate?
Ascending to the office of the presidency has always been a coveted part of the mission of the Mormon Church, which began with its founder Joseph Smith, who as a young man experienced a close encounter with a being from another planet named Moroni, who descended from the heavens and instructed Smith to found a new religion (as seen on History Channel’s Ancient Aliens, S3E01)—today, in Ufology, such a happenstance would likely be classified as a contactee CE5 level event.
“I saw a pillar of light . . . which descended gradually until it fell upon me” – Joseph Smith.
In 1844 Joseph Smith, an apparent UFO contactee and the founder of the Mormon Church, brazenly launched his own political campaign for President of the United States. His stated goal was to overthrow the U.S. Constitution, and bring about a Mormon theocracy to the Nation.
Smith’s candidacy was always long shot, but that didn’t stop him from rallying his people to help clinch his destiny to be an independent commander in chief of the “army of God”.
Smith prophesied that if the U.S. Congress did not bow to his demands that “they shall be broken up as a government and God shall damn them.” He foresaw the emergence of “the one Mighty and Strong”—a leader who would “set in order the house of God”.
Smith’s call for a “theodemocracy where God and his people hold the power to conduct the affairs of men in righteous matters” evidently did not sit well with the majority of voters in the United States, and brought down a lot of bad press and hostility upon the Mormons. Smith’s presidential campaign was cut short while he was sitting in jail facing charges of treason and inciting a riot; an angry mob broke into the jailhouse and brought him to justice by shooting him to death.
Out of this early chapter of U.S. history developed what has became known in the Mormon Church as the “White Horse Prophecy”—a controversial prediction that someday a great Mormon leader, who, at a time when the U.S. Constitution “hangs like a thread as fine as a silk fiber”, would be elected President.
I know a little bit about Mormonism and their beliefs. I grew up and lived in Salt Lake City most all my life, I sat through many days of LDS seminary at public schools, and I also attended a private Mormon school as a teenager.
My family has roots in the Mormon pioneer heritage and early history. My ancestors, the Neff’s, came to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. My great-great-great-grandfather John Neff, Sr. settled Neff’s canyon in East Millcreek, Utah. He was also a close friend of Brigham Young and accompanied him into Northern Utah to proselyte amongst the Native Americans there. His daughter, Mary Ann Neff, married the notorious Mormon gunslinger and Utah folkhero Orrin Porter Rockwell.
Orrin Porter Rockwell was one scary-looking son of a bitch . . .
Rockwell served as a loyal henchman to Church founders Joseph Smith Jr. and Brigham Young—and was affectionately nick-named ‘Ol’ Port’ the ‘Destroying Angel of Mormondom’.
In his despicable and sordid history, Ol’ Port was intimately connected to political assassinations, revenge-killings, and gruesome Indian massacres. He’s praised for having avenged the Prophet Joseph Smith’s murder by shooting one of the conspirators with his musket while riding astride a horse.
There have been a few failed attempts in various movies and books to elevate the psychopath to the status of a gritty American hero of the old west —fortunately, none of them have really stuck.
A few of the many curious tenants of Mormonism I heard growing up in Salt Lake City were as follows . . .
*Cain, the killer of his brother Abel, is alive and wanders the earth, wearing no clothing but being covered by hair, and that LDS Church apostle David W. Patten encountered him once; and that reported sightings of Bigfoot can be explained by this story.
*Blacks were neutral in the War in Heaven, and that is why they were not allowed to hold the Mormon priesthood before 1978.
*Albert Einstein supposedly once said that LDS Church apostle James E. Talmage was the smartest man he had ever met.
*The Second Coming was imminent, and when I was age 25 I would be living in the “Last Days” (I’m in my 40’s now).
And here’s where Mitt Romney’s presidential candidacy enters the picture—
I remember my 7th grade LDS seminary teacher sermonizing about the “signs” of the ‘Last Days’.
One of his favorite ‘signs’ that he liked to talk about was that a great Mormon leader would be elected President of the United States, and this would be a major indication that the Last Days were imminent, e.g. the White Horse Prophecy.
Some say that the White Horse Prophecy was written by Joseph Smith himself, while others dispute that claim. According to the Salt Lake City Tribune:
The disputed prophecy was recorded in a diary entry of a Mormon who had heard the tale from two men who were with Joseph Smith in Nauvoo, Ill. when he supposedly declared the prophecy. “You will see the Constitution of the United States almost destroyed,” the diary entry quotes Smith as saying. “It will hang like a thread as fine as a silk fiber.”
Not only will the Mormons save the Constitution, under the prediction, but the prophecy goes further, insinuating that Mormons will control the government.
“Power will be given to the White Horse to rebuke the nations afar off, and you obey it, for the laws go forth from Zion,” the prophecy says.
Publicly, the Mormon Church doesn’t officially endorse the ‘White Horse Prophecy’ as doctrine, and will deny anything to do with it (just as Romney has whenever it’s been brought up)—however, there’s a telling piece of Mormon dogma that people may find disturbing. It was set in place by Joseph Smith himself, and is referred to as “lying for the Lord.”
As an act of self preservation or to protect the Mormon Church, it is doctrinally permissive to lie about your beliefs or intentions. In other words the ends justify the means. Smith did it with regard to his polygamous lifestyle. Brigham Young did it when he claimed that only Paiute Indians were responsible for the Mountain Meadows Massacre.
Over and over again, Mitt Romney marginalized his devout Mormon background, and downplayed its significance throughout his entire campaign. But in the 1970’s the ‘Cougar Club’ at Brigham Young University declared their admiration of Mitt and predicted that he’d be the president of the United States one day. According to an article on Salon.com:
…the Cougar Club — the all male, all white social club at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City (blacks were excluded from full membership in the Mormon church until 1978) — was humming with talk that its president, Mitt Romney, would become the first Mormon president of the United States. “If not Mitt, then who?” was the ubiquitous slogan within the elite organization. The pious world of BYU was expected to spawn the man who would lead the Mormons into the White House and fulfill the prophecies of the church’s founder, Joseph Smith Jr., which Romney has avidly sought to realize.
With all this in mind, it’s hard not to look back and wonder . . .
Could Mitt Romney have been intending to run the United States as a Mormon theocratic state, as fortold by his Church’s prophet Joseph Smith?
Would a President Romney have executed the will of the people of the United States, and answered to the people—or would he only answer to God via the hierarchy of the Mormon Church?
What if a “revelation” or “vision” was received by the current President of the LDS Church (or Prophet), and passed on to ‘President Romney’ as a directive from God?–would Romney have executed that directive, even if it had gone against the will of the U.S. people, or the World?
Thankfully, this is probably one mystery we’ll never know the answer to . . .
Written by Dustin Naef - MessageToEagle.com Contributor
About the author: Dustin Naef has been a student of ancient mysteries and the paranormal for as long as he can remember. He has worked in screenwriting, graphic design and illustration, produced and designed video best-selling games, and is currently involved in the production of a film documentary and book about the mysteries surrounding Mount Shasta, California.
If you wish to follow Dustin Naef: Dustin's website: http://www.dustinnaef.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dustinnaef.mountshasta https://www.facebook.com/MountShastaFilm
Nana, could you post that pic of Mitt and Monson about the ‘connections’? I loved that one.
And not a single one of your references validate the WHite Horse Prophecy, but only the truth that it stole from, that the Constitution will indeed hang by a thread and be saved by members of the church among others.
No where do you state in your snippets that the WHP is true, nor that Mitt is the one.
Interpret as you wish, the truth is out.
Nice try. You guys tried to tie Mitt to the so called “prophesy” that never was.
- - - - - -
FAIL Rip. The prophecy is engraved in the LDS owned/run museum at the Liberty Jail (where it was given). The leaders have consistently taught it in General Conference.
Give it up, like it or not, the prophecy existed and is false.
Romney underestimated the depth of evil that he was up against.
- - - - —
I think it was more that he really believed his god would make this happen and he didn’t have to try. He thought he was fulfilling prophecy and expected it to be handed to him. The arrogance of Mormons NEVER ceases to astound me.
Sounds an awful lot like the Muslim doctrine of taqiyya. It’s OK to lie to infidels to protect the Muslim faith.
- - - - -
That is exactly what it is and it is pervasive.
When I was training to be an LDS missionary, I was given a list of LDS doctrines/beliefs NOT to teach or to outright lie about if it was brought up.
When asked why if we (as Mormons) had the only truth (as they teach) we couldn’t’ be honest. My instructor said “If we were honest, no one would join”.
ETB was senile and bedridden the last few years of his life...
Other Mormon leaders made the decisions and signed his name to documents...
5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
I will render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and to God that which is God's but I WILL NOT compromise one iota on the truth of God's word nor in matters of morals or integrity.
Christians throughout history have fared worse under worse circumstances than we're facing now but have kept their eyes on the prize.
Ironically, as I'm typing, the hymn, *It is Well with My Soul* is playing.
I almost died from an infection just over a month ago and I fear neither what man can do to me or death.
In Christ we are more than conquerors.
Our mission, or mandate now as I see it, is to win as many into the kingdom before God brings down the curtain.
Thank you guys. For many of us, both ex-mormon and/or in ministry to the LDS, part of our calling is to warn others about what the LDS church really teaches.
For me, it is personal. As a teenager, all I knew about the LDS church was what my best friend told (lied) me. My ignorance and nominal Christianity (I wasn’t born again) coupled with the beautiful lies the missionaries told me led me to join. After I joined, I started to find out what they really believed and I bought it. Leaving was long and painful but God used Mormonism to break me to the point I accepted Christ.
I don’t want others fooled the way I was.
Thanks for your response, Rip.
On the first point, I guess I gotta ask you: If there wasn't some attempted acknowledgment of speaking forth some future event, why did official Lds general conference speakers bring it up
-- by my count at least 22 times (21 of which were positive...almost of a "forecast" nature)...
...over the course of 50 years? (October 1912-->April 1963)
If Lds consistently held their general conferences thru ALL the war years, then that's 104 conferences! For the White Horse Prophecy to get a positive mention in 21 out of 104 consecutive general conferences, that's a "batting average" of over .200 (over 20%).
...nor that Mitt is the one...
Well, that's easy to say now.
That's not what the white Cougar Club was saying in the 1970s...
From the article: ...in the 1970’s the ‘Cougar Club’ at Brigham Young University declared their admiration of Mitt and predicted that he’d be the president of the United States one day. According to an article on Salon.com: …the Cougar Club — the all male, all white social club at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City (blacks were excluded from full membership in the Mormon church until 1978) — was humming with talk that its president, Mitt Romney, would become the first Mormon president of the United States. “If not Mitt, then who?” was the ubiquitous slogan within the elite organization. The pious world of BYU was expected to spawn the man who would lead the Mormons into the White House and fulfill the prophecies of the church’s founder, Joseph Smith Jr., which Romney has avidly sought to realize.
Ya gotta understand, too, that these Cougar Club members were taking their cue from Mitt's father, who ran for POTUS in 1968. In 1967, George Romney said:
“Anyone can look at the words of the Prophet Joseph Smith... Brigham Young and others.... I have always felt that they meant that sometime the question of whether we are going to proceed on the basis of the Constitution would arise and at this point government leaders who were Mormons would be involved in answering that question.”- George Romney, interview in “A Man’s Religion and American Politics: An Interview with Governor Romney,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Autumn 1967, v. 2, p. 25
Now, certainly George Romney broadened it beyond one person...and said "leaders" plural...but we all know Mitt Romney would have put a Mormon or two in his Cabinet had he been elected.
But I'll ask you what the Cougar Club members asked each other in the 1970s: "If not Mitt, then who?"
I think you may be right.
I agree, I’m having my sons read “The Harbinger” one of the best books I have ever read and it explains a lot of things going on right now, plus it is a good way to get people to start thinking more about God.
Because you’re confusing the White Horse Prophecy with what was actually said in all those addresses over the years.
To know the difference is the key.
Seek first to understand, then to be understood.
The White Horse Prophecy will be fulfilled and the United States will collapse within the next four years.
Rip you keep quoting ONE leader when we can quote DOZENS of others (including prophets) that say the opposite. Want quotes?
The WHP was big talk when I was at BYU (and Benson was prophet) and every LDS I know thought Mitt was the fulfillment of it. The masses believe it.
Although you may be right that it won’t be saved in Washington, since according to the LDS, the Mormon theocracy would rule from Independence, Missouri.
BTW, you still haven’t explained if it was ‘debunked’ why the LDS church still has the prophecy engraved on the wall at their Liberty Jail museum (that they built, own and run).
THANK YOU! I’m gonna steal this for future use. ;)
From Steve Benson:
Other Mormon leaders made the decisions and signed his name to documents...
"By 1993, my grandfather was on his last mental and physical legs, being in full decline on both counts.
He exhibited only brief moments of awareness of his surroundings and was unable to carry on meaningful conversations, including with members of his own family.
I personally witnessed his condition deteroriate to this state over the course of several years.
By 1993, he had had a suffered from series of significant health setbacks, including blood clots on the brain, a stroke and a heart attack, all of which had been downplayed to one degree or another by the Church.
My grandfather eventually died in May 1994, barely a year after the conference to which you refer.
By September 1993, even Apostles Oaks and Maxwell were personally (but only privately) confirming the reality of ETB's increasingly debilitated state.
In a visit that month with my wife, Mary Ann, and I in Maxwell's Church Administration Building office, Oaks admitted that my grandfather's health was declining steadily (a fact that we both, as well as our children, already knew from personal visits with him in the confines of his apartment overlooking Temple Square).
Oaks said the Quorum of the Twelve rotated in pairs each week to visit my grandfather at the apartment, with the purpose of only to check in on how he was doing, not to engage in adminstrative action or to discuss major issues, since my grandfather was incapable of doing any such thing.
Maxwell said that when Church members asked him how the prophet was doing, he would reply only that "he is not in pain."
Either Maxwell or Oaks (I would have to go back and check my notes from the visit) also told us that major administrative decisions were not being made, given the inability of my grandfather to be involved in the process.
I asked Oaks why he didn't come out and set the record straight on my grandfather's health, especially since the Church Public Relations Department, headed by Don LeFevre at the time, was issuing press releases significantly misrepresenting my grandfather's actual mental and physical condition.
Oaks responded by waving dismissively in the direction of the the Church Office Building (which we could see through the windows of Maxwell's office) and saying, "I don't know what goes on over there in the high rise."
I then asked Maxwell why he didn't speak up on the actual state of my grandfather's health.
Maxwell replied by saying he already had several responsibilities and "didn't need any more."
Oaks then urged me to deal with the issue of my grandfather's health through "back channels," rather than in the public square (a sure-fire remedy for deep-sixing the whole thing).
I chose not to follow that advice.
A few weeks later, during 1993 October Conference, I encountered Don LeFevre of the Church PR Department and asked him why he was releasing statements about the health of my grandfather that were clearly not true.
LeFevre told me, "All my statements have been approved by my superiors."
I responded, "Don, that doesn't make them true."
LeFevre simply replied, "Steve, this is a difficult job."
It is a matter of public record (thanks to the reporting of the Salt Lake Tribune) that--in direct contravention of established protocol for the transfer of power in the event that the Church president should die OR become incapacitated--Hinckely and Monson had the power of attorney over LDS corporate affairs shifted to them in the Church's incorporation documents a few years before my grandfather's death (see Talmadge's treatment of Church governance procedures in Articles of Faith).
Instead of having the First Presidency dissolved and an acting president installed to administer the affairs of the Church in a situation when the sitting president was unable to perform his duties, Hinckely and Monson had legal authority to run the Mormon empire transferred directly to them by the highly unusual method of employing my grandfather's autopen signature machine on Church incorporation documents (see an account of this episode in Quinn's Extensions of Power).
It's rotten, folks--to the core."
Written like this I can believe it.
Oops...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.