Vol. 8, No. 4, 1991

Articles on Mormonism

Rick Branch

As Mormonism explains, when Satan lost the election to become the savior of Mankind, he rebelled against the council of the gods and a war erupted in the pre-existence.

According to Alvin R. Dyer, who served as a Counselor in the First Presidency of the LDS Church, this war affected the progression of all Mankind.

"Once before in the distant past, before man was placed upon the earth, this same Satan, in the pre-mortal realm, gathered an army of followers totaling one-third of the spirits of that realm who supported him in rebellion against God, seeking to invoke a plan of earth-life existence that would deprive man of agency.

"At the same time Lucifer, or Satan, sought to usurp the power and honor of God the Father. This rebellion resulted in a war in heaven.

"Michael, the seventh angel in the presence of God the Father gathered together an army of those who accepted the earth-life plan of the Firstborn Son of God in the Spirit sustaining the will of God the Father, and quelled the rebellion.

"Satan and those who followed him were cast out of heaven and the presence of God as unworthy and unsuited for progression through earth-life existence as had been determined by the Gods.

"But, Satan and his hosts were not completely defeated at the time. They were, nevertheless, cast down as unembodied spirits of evil to live in the ambient areas of the earth, there to continue an active rebellion against God and Christ and all laws and systems of righteousness," (Who Am I?, pp. 525-526).

As Dyer explains, Satan, not being satisfied with the decision of the council of the gods, rebelled and attempted a coup in the pre-existence.

Although Satan convinced one-third of all the spirit children of God the Father and God's wives to revolt with him, he was eventually defeated. However, not before causing damage which would have eternal repercussions.

What are these consequences which resulted from the war in the pre-existence? Henry D. Moyle, of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, explains one of them during the 123rd Semi-Annual Conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah.

"I believe that we, as fellow workers in the priesthood, might well take to heart the admonition of Alma and be content with that which God hath allotted us.

"We might well be assured that we had something to do with our `allotment' in our pre-existent state. This would be an additional reason for us to accept our present condition and make the best of it. It is what we agreed to do.

"For that to be true, we had our own free agency in our pre-mortal existence, and whatever we are today is likely the result of that which we willed to be heretofore.

"We unquestionably knew before we elected to come to this earth the conditions under which we would here exist, and live, and work," (Conference Report, 4 October 1952, p. 71).

Thus, as Mormon Apostle Moyle has explained, a man is what he is today because of certain choices and actions he made during the pre-existence. Hence, it follows that those who find themselves blessed or cursed are so in direct relationship to those actions or choices that they made during the pre-existence.

Another LDS Apostle carried this idea to its next step in Mormon theology.

Melvin J. Ballard proclaimed, "Now, brothers and sisters, I would like you to understand that long before we were born into this earth we were tested and tried in our pre-existence and the fact that of the thousands of children born today, a certain proportion of them went to the Hottentots of South Africa, thousands went to the Chinese mothers, thousands to Negro mothers, thousands to beautiful white Latter-day Saint mothers.

"Why this difference, you cannot tell me that the entire group was just designated, marked to go where they did. That they were men and women of equal worthiness.

"Why is it in this Church we do not grant the priesthood to the Negro? It is alleged that the Prophet Joseph (Smith) said - and I have no reason to dispute it - that it is because of some act committed by them before they came into this life.

"It is alleged that they were neutral, standing neither for Christ nor the devil. But, I am convinced it is because of some things they did before they came into this life that they have been denied the privilege.

"The races of today are very largely reaping the consequence of a previous life," (The Three Degrees of Glory, pp. 21-22; emphasis mine).

Thus, according to Mormon theology, the reason why the Black race is black is because of their failure to fight on the side of Jesus in the pre-existent war. Rather, they stood passively watching the battle, fighting neither for Jesus nor for Satan.

Finally, concerning the reason for the various races, are the words found in a speech given by the LDS Apostle Mark E. Petersen.

"We cannot escape the conclusion that because of performance in our pre-existence some of us are born as Chinese, some as Japanese, some as Indians, some as Negroes, some as Americans, some as Latter-day Saints.

"These are rewards and punishments, fully in harmony with His established policy in dealing with sinners and saints, rewarding all according to their deeds," (Race Problems As They Affect The Church, 27 August 1954, transcript).

While it is true that in 1978, God the Father supposedly told the Mormon prophet, Spencer W. Kimball, Blacks could now hold the priesthood, the reason for the black skin has never been reversed in LDS theology!

This idea of various skin colors of course assumes that the pre-existent children of God the Father and God the Mother have mortal bodies. Thus the next step in Man's progression is the acquisition of bodies and becoming mortal.