DOCTRINE and COVENANTS

Sections 84, 107; Official Declaration2

Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class

Joseph Smith on priesthood

The priesthood is an everlasting principle, and existed with God from eternity and will to eternity, without beginning of days or end of years. The keys have to be brought from heaven whenever the Gospel is sent. History of the Church 3:386

[The Melchizedek Priesthood is] a perfect law of theocracy, holding keys of power and blessings, [and] stood as God to give laws to the people, administering endless lives to the sons and daughters of Adam. History of the Church 5:555

Components of priesthood
Authority. The right to act in the name of God as his agent. Power. Having ones actions sanctioned by God. Keys. The right to direct or preside.

LDS view of priesthood different

Not vocational or professional. Not offered for money. Not held by a specialized, separate group. Not a priesthood of all believers.

Development of the priesthood

Priesthood offices revealed over time. Priesthood development in D&C obscured by textual editing.
D&C 107:5992, 99100: 11 November 1831. D&C 107:158, 9398: March/April 1835. Combined in 1835 D&C.

Development of the priesthood

6 April 1830: Deacon, teacher, priest, elder.
Joseph Smith, first elder; Oliver Cowdery, second elder.

4 February 1831: Bishop. 25 October 1831: High priest.

History of the priesthood

84:617. Moses priesthood line of authority:
Moses Jethro (father-in-law) Caleb Elihu Jeremy (Greek form of Jeremiah) Gad (probably not son of Jacob/Israel) Esaias (Greek form of Isaiah) God
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Abrahams ordination by Melchizedek

Why is it called the Melchizedek Priesthood?

When the names of God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, are used with reverence and authority, they invoke a power beyond what mortal man can comprehend. It should be obvious to every believer that these mighty namesby which miracles are wrought, by which the world was formed, through which man was created, and by which we can be savedare holy and must be treated with the utmost reverence. As we read in modern revelation, Remember that that which cometh from above is sacred, and must be spoken with care, and by constraint of the Spirit. (D&C 63:64.) So it is that the Holy Priesthood after the Order of the Son of God is called the Melchizedek Priesthood out of respect or reverence to the name of the Supreme Being, to avoid the too frequent repetition of his name. Elder Dallin H. Oaks, April 1986
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All priesthood is Melchizedek

(Answer to the question, Was the Priesthood of Melchizedek taken away when Moses died?) All Priesthood is Melchizedek, but there are different portions or degrees of it. That portion which brought Moses to speak with God face to face was taken away; but that which brought the ministry of angels remained. All the prophets had the Melchizedek Priesthood and were ordained by God himself. Joseph Smith, January 1841 (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith 180-81)

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Keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood

107:8. The right of presidency.
Independent Church auxiliaries, late 1800s1970. Prophecy of Joseph F. Smith, April 1906. Correlation program, 1961today.

107:18. Keys of all the spiritual blessings of the church. 107:19; 84:19. Key of the mysteries of the kingdom.
Mysteries of godliness vs. vain mysteries.
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Mysteries of Godliness
I advise all to go on to perfection and search deeper and deeper into the mysteries of Godliness a man can do nothing for himself unless God direct him in the right way, and the Priesthood is reserved for that purpose. Joseph Smith, May 1844 (HC 6:363)

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Keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood

107:19. Revelation and communion with heavenly beings. 84:19. Key of the knowledge of God.
[The Melchizedek Priesthood] is the channel through which all knowledge, doctrine, the plan of salvation and every important matter is revealed from heaven. Joseph Smith, October 1840 (HC 4:207)

84:2021. The power of godliness is manifest in the ordinances of the Melchizedek Priesthood.
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Melchizedek priesthood necessary for exaltation

Without this Priesthood, without its ordinances, without its powers, without its gifts, no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live. Therefore it is essential that, if a people should be exalted unto the presence of God, they should have this Melchizedek or greater Priesthood, and the ordinances thereof, by the means of which they are to be prepared, or they shall be prepared to enter into the presence of God the Father, and endure His presence. President George Q. Cannon, August 1884 (Journal of Discourses 25:292)

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The Aaronic Priesthood

107:13. Aaron, brother of Moses. 84:2326. Rejection of the greater priesthood by the children of Israel.
84:2728. John the Baptist and this power.

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The patriarchal priesthood

Joseph Smith, 27 August 1843. Held by Abraham, allowed him to talk and walk with God. To be had in fullness in the temple. New and everlasting covenant of marriage = patriarchal order?

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The oath of the priesthood

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The covenant of the priesthood

84:33a. Requirements: 1. Obtain the priesthood. 2. Magnify ones calling. 84:33b38. Blessings: 1. Be sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies. 2. Become the sons of Moses and of Aaron. 3. Become the seed of Abraham. 4. Be of the church and kingdom. 5. Become the elect of God. 6. All they who receive this priesthood, through his servants, receive the Lord. 7. They who receive Christ receive his Father. 8.They who receive the Father receive the Fathers kingdom. 9. Therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
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The First Presidency

107:22. A quorum of three Presiding High Priests, chosen by the body of the Church. 81:2. Holds the keys of the kingdom. 107:9. Has the right to officiate in all Church offices. 107:6566, 91. Church President is president of all the high priests, and presides over the whole Church.
Authority delegated to stake presidents.

107:8284. Calling a disciplinary council for a Church President who has transgressed.

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The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

18:2627, 3740. June 1829: Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer called to search out the Twelve. 18 January 1835: Joseph declares selection of Twelve Apostles to begin. 14 February 1835: First Presidency ordains Three Witnesses to choose the Twelve.

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The first Twelve Apostles (February 1835)

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Thomas B. Marsh David W. Patten Brigham Young Heber C. Kimball Orson Hyde William E. McLellin 7. Parley P. Pratt 8. Luke S. Johnson 9. William Smith 10. Orson Pratt 11. John F. Boynton 12. Lyman E. Johnson

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The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

107:23. Special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world. 107:24. Equal in authority and power to the First Presidency.
Unitedly hold the same keys as the First Presidency.

107:33. Act under the direction of the Presidency of the Church. 107:33. A Traveling Presiding High Council. 107:58. Ordain and set in order all the other officers of the church. 107:27. Decisions must be unanimous.

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Decisions made by the First Presidency & the Twelve

When a matter comes before the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in a temple meeting, one thing that is determined very quickly is whether it is of serious consequence or not. One or another of us will see in an apparently innocent proposal issues of great and lasting consequence. It is clear from the revelations that the decisions of the presiding quorums must be by the unanimous voice of the same. Unless this is the case, their decisions are not entitled to the same blessings (D&C 107:27, 29). In order to ensure that to be the case, matters of consequence are seldom decided in the meeting where they are proposed. And, if the proposal is a part of a larger issue, sufficient time is taken to bring us all along so that it is clear that each of us has either a clear understanding of the issue or, as is often the case, has a very clear feeling about it. . 23

Decisions made by the First Presidency & the Twelve

It would be unthinkable to deliberately present an issue in such a way that approval depended upon how it was maneuvered through channels, who was presenting it, or who was present or absent when it was presented. Often one or more of us is away during regular meetings. We all know that the work must proceed and will accept the judgment of our brethren. However, if a matter has been studied by one of the Quorum in more detail than by the others or he is more familiar with it either by assignment, experience, or personal interest, the matter is very often delayed until he can be in on the discussion. And, always, if one of us cannot understand an issue or feels unsettled about it, it is held over for future discussion.

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Decisions made by the First Presidency & the Twelve

I remember occasions when a delegation was sent to the hospital to discuss with a member of the Council who was ill some urgent matter that could not be delayed but which needed that unanimous consent. There are occasions, as well, when one of us will leave the meeting temporarily to call one of our number who is abroad to get his feelings on a matter under discussion. There is a rule we follow: A matter is not settled until there is a minute entry to evidence that all of the Brethren in council assembled (not just one of us, not just a committee) have come to a unity of feeling. Approval of a matter in principle is not considered authority to act until a minute entry records the action taken usually when the minutes are approved in the next meeting.

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Decisions made by the First Presidency & the Twelve

Sometimes an afterthought keeps one of us restless over a decision. That is never dismissed lightly. It cannot be assumed that that restless spirit is not in fact the Spirit of Revelation. That is how we functionin council assembled. That provides safety for the Church and a high comfort level for each of us who is personally accountable. Under the plan, men of very ordinary capacity may be guided through counsel and inspiration to accomplish extraordinary things. Elder Boyd K. Packer, February 1991

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First Presidency & Quorum of the Twelve

107:7981. Collectively, the highest council in the Church.

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The Seventy
28 February 1835. First Quorum of the Seventy organized. 107:25. Especial witnesses unto the Gentiles and in all the world.
Special: Particular; peculiar; different from others. Designed for a particular purpose. Especial: Distinguished among others of the same class or kind; special;principal; particular.
Noah Webster, American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828

107:26, 34. Equal in authority to the Twelve, act under their direction.
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The standing high councils

107:36. A quorum equal in authority to the First Presidency and the Twelve.

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The Presiding Bishop

Holds the keys of the Aaronic Priesthood, under direction of the First Presidency. 107:16. Only a literal descendant of Aaron has a legal right to this office (cf. 68:1521). 107:1517; 6971. No literal descendant? A high priest may officiate in this office. 107:76. A literal descendant of Aaron may serve without counselors.
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The Presiding Patriarch

107:39. The Twelve to ordain evangelical ministers.
An Evangelist is a Patriarch, even the oldest man of the blood of Joseph or of the seed of Abraham. Wherever the Church of Christ is established in the earth, there should be a Patriarch for the benefit of the posterity of the Saints, as it was with Jacob in giving his patriarchal blessing unto his sons. Joseph Smith, June 1839 (HC 3:381)

124:124. Patriarch holds the sealing keys also. 107:4057. Office of Patriarch handed down from father to son.
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The Presiding Patriarch

124:9192. Office held by Joseph Smith, Sr., then Hyrum Smith and his descendants. Office discontinued in October 1979.

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Official Declaration2
Revelation to President Spencer W. Kimball, sustained by First Presidency and the Twelve on 1 June 1978.
Reversed the Churchs policy regarding priesthood ordinations of men of African descent.

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History of blacks and the priesthood

Joseph Smith ordained or authorized the ordinations of several black men.
Elijah Abel (180884), elder and seventy.

Ordinations of black men stopped, 184750.

No specific revelation. Widespread American belief that blacks the descendants of Cain through Noahs son, Ham.

Priesthood ban policy and doctrine.

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History of blacks and the priesthood

Questions and concerns about the ban increase after World War II.
Spread of the gospel in Africa and Brazil.

Matter of prayer by the First Presidency beginning in 1954.

President David O. McKay, late 1960s: I have prayed and prayed and prayed, but there has been no answer.

Revelation received 1 June 1978, in Thursday temple meeting of the First Presidency and the Twelve.
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On the 1978 revelation

There was a hallowed and sanctified atmosphere in the room. For me, it felt as if a conduit opened between the heavenly throne and the kneeling, pleading prophet of God who was joined by his Brethren. The Spirit of God was there. And by the power of the Holy Ghost there came to that prophet an assurance that the thing for which he prayed was right, that the time had come, and that now the wondrous blessings of the priesthood should be extended to worthy men everywhere regardless of lineage. Every man in that circle, by the power of the Holy Ghost, knew the same thing. It was a quiet and sublime occasion. There was not the sound as of a rushing mighty wind, there were not cloven tongues like as of fire (Acts 2:23) as there had been on the Day of Pentecost. But there was a Pentecostal spirit, for the Holy Ghost was there. 36

On the 1978 revelation

No voice audible to our physical ears was heard. But the voice of the Spirit whispered with certainty into our minds and our very souls. It was for us, at least for me personally, as I imagine it was with Enos, who said concerning his remarkable experience, And while I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind. (Enos 1:10.) So it was on that memorable June 1, 1978. We left that meeting subdued and reverent and joyful. Not one of us who was present on that occasion was ever quite the same after that. Nor has the Church been quite the same. All of us knew that the time had come for a change and that the decision had come from the heavens. The answer was clear. There was perfect unity among us in our experience and in our understanding. President Gordon B. Hinckley, May 1988
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On the 1978 revelation

Forget everything that I have said, or what President Brigham Youngor whomsoever has said in days past that is contrary to the present revelation. We spoke with a limited understanding and without the light and knowledge that now has come into the world. We get our truth and our light line upon line and precept upon precept. We have now had added a new flood of intelligence and light on this particular subject, and it erases all the darkness and all the views and all the thoughts of the past. They dont matter any more. It doesnt make a particle of difference what anybody ever said about the Negro matter before the first day of June of this year [1978]. It is a new day and a new arrangement, and the Lord has now given the revelation that sheds light out into the world on this subject. Elder Bruce R. McConkie, August 1978
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DOCTRINE and COVENANTS

Next week: Sections 87, 90, 100101, 103, 105

Hurricane Utah Adult Religion Class