Why Haven't I Heard This in Church?
You've likely read controversial things online about the Church that you've never heard in church before. Why? Well, the biggest reason is that most are total falsehoods mixed with half-truths and twisted to look like very plausible facts. But what about the stuff that is true that you don't hear about in Sunday school?
You can read my opinion, or watch this excellent video on the topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQQR8uVmBPY
It's important to keep in mind a couple of questions when exploring this topic:
1) What is the purpose of attending church?
2) Who are the current church manuals geared toward?
In answer of the first question, let's start with the obvious. Church is for worshiping our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Most of our true worship happens in sacrament meeting where we partake of the vicarious symbols of Christ's body and blood, thus renewing our covenant with the Father through Christ's atonement. The singing, the baring of testimonies and teaching each other the doctrines of the Kingdom all add to the worship experience.
Church is also for strengthening ourselves and others. Obviously, this occurs in sacrament meeting as well, but a large portion of it happens in our classes - whether they be relief society, priesthood quorums, or Sunday school. In recent decades, the Church has gotten on a several year routine with rotating topics. Only one of those years is devoted to the Doctrine and Covenants - of which only a small part devoted to Church history.
That brings us to our next question: Who are the current church manuals geared toward? It is often very obvious that the lessons spelled out in these manuals are not geared toward experienced Latter-day Saints who have many years of gospel and church history study under their belts. Rather, they are geared toward new and semi-new converts. Everything is simplified. But why? One only needs to look at the numbers.
In the last 20 years, Church membership has exploded - especially in areas where people are the most humble (Central/South America, Africa, the Philippines, etc.). I served my mission in the Dominican Republic, so I know what it's like to have a bishop who is in his mid twenties over a ward where 75% of the members have joined in the last ten years. I also know what it's like to bring an experienced member to a missionary discussion or bring the investigator to church - only to have said "experienced" member start talking about doctrine and history that they themselves do not understand.
"Milk before meat, brothers and sisters."
That seems to be the message that has been coming from the First Presidency for a long time.
We simply have too many new members attending church to have several weeks a year devoted to complex doctrine and history. We also seem, as a people, to never really get down the basics of the Gospel. If you look into the past, you can see many times when lesser-known historical topics have been addressed by Church leaders, but the trend in recent decades to simplify materials has likely been a direct response to surging membership numbers.
Should there be a class for older members where they can discuss the meat? Perhaps. I know I might like it (but at the same time, it would probably drive people crazy because there are always the class members with crazy theories, etc.). Also, what about those new members who truly benefit from having more experienced members in their class?
Church leadership is very aware of these issues. In recent years there have been serious efforts to help more experienced members find access to good scholarship on difficult history questions (like the "Gospel Topics" essays on lds.org and the Joseph Smith Papers). This, to my mind, is sending a distinct message: self-study. The Lord and the brethren want us to learn things on our own - just as we have always been counseled to do (especially with the study of scriptures).
As we are sensitive to new members and their needs, let's be proactive and study the topics we want to study on our own. There are great resources out there. Then, we will be in a better position to share what we have learned in constructive ways with those around us.
In conclusion, have Church materials and manuals become too simplified? For some, yes. For the grand majority of international Church membership, no. Has the Church tried to make amends for more experienced members recently? Yes. Let's be grateful for what we have and make good use of it.
You can read my opinion, or watch this excellent video on the topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQQR8uVmBPY
It's important to keep in mind a couple of questions when exploring this topic:
1) What is the purpose of attending church?
2) Who are the current church manuals geared toward?
In answer of the first question, let's start with the obvious. Church is for worshiping our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Most of our true worship happens in sacrament meeting where we partake of the vicarious symbols of Christ's body and blood, thus renewing our covenant with the Father through Christ's atonement. The singing, the baring of testimonies and teaching each other the doctrines of the Kingdom all add to the worship experience.
Church is also for strengthening ourselves and others. Obviously, this occurs in sacrament meeting as well, but a large portion of it happens in our classes - whether they be relief society, priesthood quorums, or Sunday school. In recent decades, the Church has gotten on a several year routine with rotating topics. Only one of those years is devoted to the Doctrine and Covenants - of which only a small part devoted to Church history.
That brings us to our next question: Who are the current church manuals geared toward? It is often very obvious that the lessons spelled out in these manuals are not geared toward experienced Latter-day Saints who have many years of gospel and church history study under their belts. Rather, they are geared toward new and semi-new converts. Everything is simplified. But why? One only needs to look at the numbers.
In the last 20 years, Church membership has exploded - especially in areas where people are the most humble (Central/South America, Africa, the Philippines, etc.). I served my mission in the Dominican Republic, so I know what it's like to have a bishop who is in his mid twenties over a ward where 75% of the members have joined in the last ten years. I also know what it's like to bring an experienced member to a missionary discussion or bring the investigator to church - only to have said "experienced" member start talking about doctrine and history that they themselves do not understand.
"Milk before meat, brothers and sisters."
That seems to be the message that has been coming from the First Presidency for a long time.
We simply have too many new members attending church to have several weeks a year devoted to complex doctrine and history. We also seem, as a people, to never really get down the basics of the Gospel. If you look into the past, you can see many times when lesser-known historical topics have been addressed by Church leaders, but the trend in recent decades to simplify materials has likely been a direct response to surging membership numbers.
Should there be a class for older members where they can discuss the meat? Perhaps. I know I might like it (but at the same time, it would probably drive people crazy because there are always the class members with crazy theories, etc.). Also, what about those new members who truly benefit from having more experienced members in their class?
Church leadership is very aware of these issues. In recent years there have been serious efforts to help more experienced members find access to good scholarship on difficult history questions (like the "Gospel Topics" essays on lds.org and the Joseph Smith Papers). This, to my mind, is sending a distinct message: self-study. The Lord and the brethren want us to learn things on our own - just as we have always been counseled to do (especially with the study of scriptures).
As we are sensitive to new members and their needs, let's be proactive and study the topics we want to study on our own. There are great resources out there. Then, we will be in a better position to share what we have learned in constructive ways with those around us.
In conclusion, have Church materials and manuals become too simplified? For some, yes. For the grand majority of international Church membership, no. Has the Church tried to make amends for more experienced members recently? Yes. Let's be grateful for what we have and make good use of it.