The Prosperity Gospel, its Place in Mormonism, and Why the Church is Dumping It

Last Updated on 1/24/2013 by TruthIsReason Let me explain up front why I have spilled so much digital ink over this subject. Its because I believe it to be of great importance in the everyday lives of many people. What a person believes about the causes of material prosperity can drastically affect their educational and career paths, their priorities, their interests, their self-esteem, their political views, the way they vote, the ways in which they view and treat others, and more. While these factors are personal for each of us, they cant help but spill over into the society around us. I am confident that my own upbringing with regards to this topic put my life on a much different path than it would have taken otherwise and experience tells me that the same is true for many others. My hope is that the future will bring more discussions on this topic in the Mormon community than there have hitherto been. With that in mind, let us proceed In an upcoming book, the author of the NY Times Bestseller Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, Amy Chua, and her husband both professors at Yale Law School will argue that there are eight cultural groups that attain worldly success more readily than others. This already-controversial position holds that this success is the result of a triple package a set of three qualities that these groups all have in common: 1) a superiority complex, 2) insecurity, and 3) impulse control. Six of the eight groups are ethnic while the other two are Mormons and Jews. As it turns out, the three traits above are not the only things these two religious groups have in common that could be contributing to their worldly success; there is at least one more: they both have scriptures that draw strong connections between wealth and righteousness a concept that has come to be known as the prosperity gospel. The prosperity gospel, or prosperity theology, is the belief found in some modern Christian movements (and in some strains of Judaism) that God wants his people to be materially prosperous and will thus reward them with wealth in exchange for their faith and righteousness. In keeping with widely accepted interpretations of the New Testament, most denominations eschew this notion and, as a result, most ministers who preach it are non-denominational and notoriously include televangelists and leaders of mega-churches. In multiple Old Testament passages (such as Deuteronomy 11:13-28, 28:1-13, 30:9-10, Malachi 3:10-12, Joshua 1:8, Psalms 1:1-3), the Israelites were promised every material blessing under the sun if they would keep the Law of Moses. For modern Jews, these scriptures are arguably still in force. For traditional Christians, however, since the Law of Moses was fulfilled by Christ, these verses no longer apply and, according to most interpretations, there is nothing in the New Testament to replace them with. Mormons, on the other hand, have plenty to replace them with since the Book of Mormon is chock full of
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such promises along with examples of the promises being fulfilled when its protagonists, the Nephites, live righteously (well look at these shortly).

Prosperitys Codification in Scripture

Now its true that most of these examples of prosperity theology are found during the time when the Nephites practiced the Law of Moses between 600 BC and 34 AD however, from a Mormon perspective, this is actually an irrelevant nuance. The Book of Mormon is not divided into two testaments like the bible is since the entire book was written specifically for our day and age. In fact, the prophet Moroni, who was the son of the man after whom the book is named, tells us that he was able to see our modern society (Mormon 8:34-41) and that he compiled the book from records so voluminous that less than 1% of their contents could be included (Words of Mormon 1:5). The implication is that anything that was valuable enough to make the cut is very important for us to understand today. Supporting this point are the words of the first prophet to write in the book, Nephi, who said that he would give commandment to the authors who came after him to not write things which are not of worth unto [mankind] (1 Nephi 6:6). Additionally, some of these prosperity passages (see the last four in the list below) are either found after the time when the Law of Moses was in effect or are in regards to people who did not have the law (the Jaredites in the Book of Ether), further showing that the prosperity doctrines they speak of were intended to be independent of the Law of Moses and thus applicable to Mormons today. The promise made to Nephi on the first pages of the Book of Mormon is that if he and his people keep [Gods] commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise to which they were being led (1 Nephi 4:14, 2:20). This promise is subsequently quoted and referenced all throughout the book in the commentary that its narrators give on the Nephite civilization. In regard to the many passages that speak of prosper[ing] in the land, Sherri Dew, the CEO of church-owned Deseret Book and former counselor in the churchs Relief Society General Presidency, told the Salt Lake Tribune in early 2012 that "When you study the verses that surround it, in almost every case it's clear that it is referring to spiritual prosperity, meaning an increased knowledge of heaven and more answers to prayers." This assertion, however, is simply untrue. Of the 30+ verses that contain some variation of this phrase, there is no unambiguous indication that it should be understood in a spiritual sense. In a number of them, however, it is clear that it should be understood in a material sense. For example: And they did prosper exceedingly, and they became exceedingly rich; yea, and they did multiply and wax strong in the land. And thus we see how merciful and just are all the dealings of the Lord, to the fulfilling of all his words unto the children of men; yea, we can behold that his words are verified, even at this time, which he spake unto Lehi, saying: Blessed art thou and thy children; and they shall be blessed, inasmuch as they shall keep my commandments they shall prosper in the land. (Alma 50:18-20)

And we multiplied exceedingly and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground the word of the Lord was verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land. (Jarom 1:8-9) And I did cause that the men should till the ground, and raise all manner of grain and all manner of fruit of every kind. And I did cause that the women should spin, and toil, and work, and work all manner of fine linen, yea, and cloth of every kind and thus we did prosper in the land (Mosiah 10:4-5) Then we also find passages like the following. Notice that, in each of them, people were materially blessed and/or prospered (or promised that they would be) as a reward for their righteousness, usually to the point of becoming wealthy. Also notice that, in most of them, it is clear that God himself was blessing his people with the prosperity and therefore, it was not merely coming as a natural consequence of righteous living like some have suggested: The Lord in his great infinite goodness doth bless and prosper those who put their trust in him. Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people, yea, in the increase of their fields, their flocks and their herds, and in gold, and in silver, and in all manner of precious things of every kind (Helaman 12:1-2) They did abound in the grace of God And the Lord did visit them and prosper them, and they became a large and wealthy people. (Mosiah 27:5-7) And we did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things, according to the law of Moses. And the Lord was with us; and we did prosper exceedingly; for we did sow seed, and we did reap again in abundance. And we began to raise flocks, and herds, and animals of every kind. (2 Nephi 5:10-11) After having been such a highly favored people of the Lord Yea, and after having been delivered of God out of the land of Jerusalem, by the hand of the Lord and they have been prospered until they are rich in all manner of things (Alma 9:20-22) Helaman and his brethren went forth, and did declare the word of God with much power unto the convincing of many people of their wickedness, which did cause them to repent of their sins and to be baptized unto the Lord their God And the people of Nephi began to prosper again in the land, and began to multiply and to wax exceedingly strong again in the land. And they began to grow exceedingly rich And they did pray unto the Lord their God
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continually, insomuch that the Lord did bless them, according to his word, so that they did wax strong and prosper in the land. (Alma 62:45-51) "But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them..." (Jacob 2:18-19) Ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it. (Mosiah 2:41) And they did work in all manner of ore, and they did make gold, and silver, and iron, and brass, and all manner of metals And they did have silks, and fine-twined linen; and they did work all manner of cloth And never could be a people more blessed than were they, and more prospered by the hand of the Lord. (Ether 10:23-28) And how blessed were they! For the Lord did bless them in all their doings; yea, even they were blessed and prospered they had become exceedingly rich, because of their prosperity in Christ. (4 Nephi 1:18-23, 100-200 AD) Such promises and desires on Gods part to bless his people with wealth are recorded in more modern LDS scriptures as well. In revelations to Joseph Smith, we read: It must needs be that the riches of the earth are mine to give (D&C 38:39, 1831 AD) I have much treasure in this city for you... I will give this city into your hands... and its wealth pertaining to gold and silver shall be yours. Concern not yourselves about your debts, for I will give you power to pay them... For there are more treasures than one for you in this city. Therefore, be ye as wise as serpents and yet without sin; and I will order all things for your good, as fast as ye are able to receive them. (D&C 111, 1836 AD. In case youre wondering, no, this treasure never surfaced.) It has been pointed out that most of these passages refer to particular people in particular circumstances from centuries past, but we have to remember that the same is true of the vast majority of the scriptures. Moreover, these verses convey a consistent message about Gods character, his desires for his people, and the way he operates and, as the Book of Mormon declares, God changeth not; if so he would cease to be God (Mormon 9:19). We also learn from it that we should liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning (1 Nephi 19:23). How are we to affirm Gods constancy, liken the scriptures unto us, and profit from them if we disregard some of them and decide that theyre no longer applicable?
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Now that weve established this doctrines place in the scriptures, lets see if the church or any of its highest leaders have ever actually taught this or the idea that prosper[ing] in the land should be understood in a material sense in General Conference. A relatively recent example comes from 1979 when N. Eldon Tanner, the First Counselor in the First Presidency, gave an entire Conference talk on the subject. He was certainly qualified to speak on it since he brought the church from the brink of bankruptcy when he took over as its CFO in 1963 and started it down the path to becoming the extremely wealthy church/holding company that it is today. This talk was later quoted by Apostle James E. Faust (who later became the Second Counselor in the First Presidency) in 1986 and by official church manuals including one from 1994, one from 2000, and one from 2004. Here are some excerpts from it: What I would like to share with you today are my observations about the constant and fundamental principles which, if followed, will bring financial security and peace of mind under any economic circumstances. First, I would like to build a foundation and establish a perspective within which these economic principles must be applied. One day a grandson of mine said to me: I have observed you and other successful men, and I have made up my mind that I want to be a success in my life. I want to interview as many successful people as I can to determine what made them successful. So looking back over your experience, grandpa, what do you believe is the most important element of success? I told him that the Lord gave the greatest success formula that I know of: Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you (Matt. 6:33). Some argue that some men prosper financially who do not seek the kingdom first. This is true. But the Lord is not promising us just material wealth if we seek first the kingdom Material blessings are a part of the gospel if they are achieved in the proper way and for the right purpose We must first seek the kingdom and use what wealth we are blessed with to help build up that kingdom The payment of tithing is a commandment If we obey this commandment, we are promised that we will prosper in the land. This prosperity consists of more than material goods In 1985, Apostle Russell M. Nelson, suggested that the reason why many in developing nations suffer from a lack of prosperity in the temporal sense is because they grovel in ignorance of God and his commandments and are oblivious to the divine teaching stated in the scriptures not once, but thirty-four timesthat people will prosper in the land only if they obey the commandments of God.

In 2001, President Hinckley quoted a young man who grew up in poverty, served a mission, and then took part in the churchs Perpetual Education Fund. The quote contained ellipses, showing that Hinckley had been selective about which parts of the young mans words he wanted to include. Here is one of those parts: Once I graduate and get a job in accounting, I will work toward higher education in international business I have read many times in the Book of Mormon the words the Lord told the prophets, that as we keep the commandments, we would prosper in the land. This is being fulfilled. I am so grateful to God for this great opportunity to receive what my brothers and sisters did not have And I am excited to repay the loan to see others be so blessed. I know the Lord will bless me as I do it.

Yesterdays Doctrines Become Todays Folk Teachings

As prominent as this theme is in the LDS scriptures and in the past teachings of church leaders, the church now appears to be moving away from it. Why would it want to do that? Probably for a number of reasons that well get to soon. For now, lets look at what leads me to believe that this shift is actually happening. The first indicator that the church is deserting, or at least de-emphasizing, this way of thinking is the fact that the use of the famous phrase prosper in the land in General Conference has been declining to the point where its now almost never used at all. If we divide the last 40 years into decades and count the number of Conference speakers who used the phrase in each decade, we get the following:

# of General Conference Speakers Who Say "Prosper in the Land"

7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1974-1983 1984-1993 1994-2003 2004-2013 R = 0.9902

This decline is statistically significant the odds are between 0.25% and 2.20% that random chance is to blame for it (applying various types of regressions yields correlation

coefficients ranging from .956 and .995, which, with 4 data points, correspond to one-tailed p-values between 0.0025 and 0.0220). A second indicator is the change in the way in which this phrase and the verses containing it are used. As shown above, church leaders used to use it in reference to temporal blessings, but it now seems that they use it exclusively in reference to spiritual blessings. The one Conference speaker who used it in the last decade was the Apostle Quentin L. Cook, who included it in two of his talks and in both cases, he immediately pointed out that an essential element of prospering is having the Spirit in our lives or something to that effect and then said nothing of material prospering (see the talks here and here). In addition, the word prosper by itself still appears somewhat regularly in Conference talks, but its almost always being used in a sense that is either spiritual or ambiguous or for the purpose of warning of the dangers of material prosperity. The only counterexamples from the last decade are a talk from the late Apostle Joseph B. Wirthlin from 2005, which also warned of the dangers of prosperity, and a talk from 2006 that well look at soon. These observations suggest that the message coming from the church on this topic is shifting. It appears as though the term prosperity is being redefined and the Book of Mormons verses regarding it are being reinterpreted. The third indicator that the church is abandoning the prosperity gospel is the fact that it has quietly eliminated all scriptures having anything to do with it from the Scripture Mastery portion of its seminary program. Scripture Mastery is a list of scriptural passages that seminary students are expected to memorize and pay special attention to since the church believes they provide an important scriptural foundation. When I was in seminary, one of these verses was Jacob 2:18-19, which promises that after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them. Another was Joshua 1:8, which reads: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. I still have vivid memories of chanting this verse at 7 am during my senior year in high school. I certainly should remember it; I won the scripture mastery contest that year and, as a result, my way was made prosperous with 16th row Lakers tickets from the teacher. These were the only two verses on prosperity included in scripture mastery and they were both replaced just a few months ago before the start of the 2013-2014 school year. As a result, such verses are now entirely absent from the 100 scriptures in the program. They were endangered and now theyre extinct. This is quite interesting in light of the fact that, as weve seen, prosperity theology is undoubtedly one of the main motifs found in the most correct of any book on earth, the Book of Mormon. Like Elder Nelson pointed out, the famous phrase from the book regarding it appears not once, but thirty-four times.

Finally, a fourth indicator is that many modern church members, including prominent ones like Sherri Dew, as shown earlier, are either ignorant of Mormon prosperity doctrines or believe that the doctrines arent actively taught in the church. Ned Hill, a mission president and former dean of BYUs well-ranked business school, has said I hope our people don't believe that. We don't teach it. Im not sure whether Hill is aware that the church used to teach it and that its scriptures still teach it, but I agree with him that the church doesnt teach it any more (except for in old manuals that will eventually be updated).

What about Tithing?

At this point, you might be thinking, Well, what about the Law of Tithing? Doesnt the church promise temporal blessings for keeping that commandment? Yes, it promises blessings, but gone are the days when it promises prosperity. The former can be limited to an assurance that a person will have what they need even during hard times (see Matthew 6:24-34) while the latter is necessarily a gift of abundance above and beyond those basic needs. The promises now being made by church leaders are occasionally ambiguous but always consistent with this former type of reward. For example, in the most recent session of General Conference, the Apostle David A. Bednar taught: We might want and expect a larger paycheck, but the blessing that comes to us through heavenly windows may be greater capacity to change our own circumstances rather than expecting our circumstances to be changed by someone or something else Sometimes we may ask God for success and He gives us physical and mental stamina. We might plead for prosperity, and we receive enlarged perspective and increased patience Not only do Elder Bednars words advocate more modest expectations of blessings, they could even be interpreted as refuting the old expectations of prosperity. We find similarly modest promises in the missionary pamphlet on tithing from 2007 as well as in this article from the March 2013 issue of the Ensign called The Blessings of Tithing. The article shares stories from a number of individuals and families who felt that they had either been enabled to make ends meet during hard times or been blessed in more spiritual ways in return for their tithing payments. We cant help but notice a stark contrast between this message and the one delivered by President Tanner in 1979. There was only one exception from the last decade to this rule of humble promises for paying tithing, and its not a very strong one since 1) it came over 7 years ago (2006) and 2) it came from a Seventy (Daniel L. Johnson) rather than from an apostle or prophet. Over 60 talks that speak of tithing have been given since that time. One criticism that some have raised regarding the ethicality of the churchs approach to teaching tithing is that the temporal blessings it frequently promises in return for paying it are seldom, if ever, accompanied with an acknowledgement of the fact that bad things can still happen to those who pay it, even at times as a result of paying it. For example, if a person has to decide between making a mortgage payment and a tithing payment, there is a
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real chance that choosing the latter will result in a scar on their credit report that wont heal for years to come. There is no scripture that promises that temporal blessings will come right when theyre needed in the way that theyre needed 100% of the time. (Arguably, there is no scripture that promises any blessings at all for paying tithing since Malachi 3 referred to the tithing portion of the Law of Moses, which was fulfilled by Christ and was a much different law of tithing than the one practiced in the LDS church today. It is also likely that Malachi 3 was speaking to the Levites or priests who were embezzling and selling tithes and not to Israel as a whole, but this is a matter for another essay.)

A Tree that Bringeth Not Forth Good Fruit

Now back to that question we touched upon earlier: Why the change? If American Mormons are attaining worldly success at noticeably higher rates than average folks, why would the church run the risk of ruining that good fortune by modifying its approach to the concept of prosperity? I think its probably because there are at least four types of issues created by this concept that collectively outweigh any good that might come from it. The first category of issues is doctrinal. One of the challenges that this message creates for many reflective Latter-day Saints is that its difficult to reconcile with the teachings of Jesus and his apostles in which righteousness and salvation are never associated with temporal wealth but the opposite association is made regularly. For examples, see Luke 1:52-53, 6:20,24, 16:19-25, 18:10-14, 2 Corinthians 8:9, 1 Timothy 6:9-11, James 2:5-7, 5:1-5, and Revelation 3:17 (confusingly, a few such verses can also be found in the Old Testament and Book of Mormon see Ecclesiastes 10:6 and 2 Nephi 9:30). In another New Testament passage, Jesus once told a young rich man that in order to inherit eternal life, he needed to sell everything he had, give the money to the poor, and follow him. When the man refused to do this, Jesus declared How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!... It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. (Mark 10:17-27) In this view, God would have to be crazy to ruin his humble, obedient servants by giving them riches. Nevertheless, there are some prosperity preachers, as theyre often called, who use the verses immediately following these (Mark 10:28-30) to teach that he does just that: Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospels, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

But Jesus could not have possibly intended these verses as these preachers interpret them for at least four reasons: 1. He had just finished promising the young man that he would have treasure in heaven, not on earth, for sacrificing his worldly treasures. 2. He had just finished talking about how hard it is for the rich to be saved, so for him to then declare that following him leads to riches would make very little sense. It would imply that following him actually lowers ones odds of salvation. 3. The rewards he spoke of did not only include houses and lands, they also included brothers, sisters, and mothers. Therefore, he could not have been speaking in the literal, material sense. If you know of a way for a person to increase the number of mothers they have, please fill me in! 4. This statement was in response to his disciple Peter telling him that he and his cohorts had left their possessions to follow him and teach the gospel, meaning that the rewards Jesus was promising in return for such sacrifices would be bestowed upon them. If Jesus had been promising material wealth, these disciples would have become wealthy during their lives, but instead they remained poor until their martyrdoms. See Hebrews 11:32-39 for a graphic depiction of the poverty and suffering endured by God's greatest biblical servants. As Peter later said to a handicapped man, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus of Nazareth rise up and walk. (Acts 3:6). Peter had spiritual treasures and this was what Jesus had promised him. His point was that those who sacrificed their possessions and relationships for him and the gospel would receive spiritual blessings whose value would be many times greater than the value of what they gave up. Of course, Mormonism promises such spiritual riches as well but it breaks from and conflicts with New Testament teachings when it lumps in material riches and allows the allure of filthy lucre (a term that appears five times in the New Testament and zero times in the Book of Mormon) to become a motivating force behind the obedience of its people. The second set of issues cultural issues affects the health of the Mormon community in ways significant enough to be noticeable to outsiders (and insiders) and measurable by sociological studies. As BYU professor of organizational behavior, Warner Woodworth, told the Salt Lake Tribune two years ago, many [members] definitely believe that the more righteous they are, the more money God will give them because he wants them to be successful. He added that this mentality has led to multilevel marketing schemes and scams, to overspending and under-giving, to conspicuous consumption and to a disregard for the poor. While this assessment may seem harsh, statistics seem to bear it out. While reading the following figures, keep in mind that according to the church, 68% of Utahns are church members, and somewhere between 58% and 62% of Utahns self-identify as Mormon:
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In 2012 and 2011, Utah ranked 4th in the nation in bankruptcies per capita. In this article on the bankruptcy rates of various states in 2005 and 2011, the author is noticeably baffled by the fact that Utah, a Mormon state with high median incomes and little gambling that does not have exceptional bankruptcy exemptions, also has a high bankruptcy rate. The United Way of America ranked Utah 3rd from last in the nation in per-capita giving to nonreligious charities in 2003 (the most recent ranking of its kind that I am aware of). Utah leads the nation in multi-level marketing companies (MLMs) per capita. MLMs have highly problematic business models and are considered by many to be fraudulent since most of them are essentially pyramid schemes disguised with an often dubious product. It is intrinsically impossible for an MLM organization as a whole to be profitable, and diligent research has shown that 99.7% of all participants lose money while the few at the top rake in the spoils.

Identifying the likely mediators of these unintended consequences of prosperity doctrines is not hard to do. If righteousness leads to being prospered by God, then those who are not prosperous must not be righteous (per the intuitive logical principle of modus tollens). This can lead to feelings of unworthiness, despair, and envy among the poor while causing the wealthy to look down on them with judgment and a sense of superiority and selfrighteousness thus creating bitter tensions between those of different socioeconomic classes. It can burden people with a stressful, obsessive need to achieve, advance in their careers, maximize their incomes, keep up with the Jonses, ignore charitable causes, and overextend themselves financially in order to assure themselves, others, and God that they are as righteous as anyone else. The next set of issues comes in the form of conflicts with statistics and common experience. If those who keep Gods commandments are blessed with prosperity, then we should expect to find a positive correlation between the prosperity of a nation/state and how devoted to God the people in that nation/state tend to be. What the data actually shows, however, is the opposite. In various studies, when the religiosity levels of various countries have been plotted against their indicators of wellbeing such as income levels, the Human Development Index, and the Successful Societies Scale, negative correlations that are both strong and statistically highly significant have been consistently found. Similar analyses comparing our 50 states against each other have yielded the same results. Since the first and great commandment is to love the Lord thy God, how is it that countries in which only 17% of people are religious are prospering exceptionally while those in which 99% of people are religious are wallowing in abject poverty? This is hard to make sense of if traditional Mormon prosperity doctrines are true. Similarly, for members who expect temporal blessings for keeping the Word of Wisdom, it may come as a surprise to find out that those who drink alcohol tend to have higher
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incomes by 10% to 17% than those who abstain. The reality of the matter is that simple experience and observation of the modern world around us teach a very different lesson about success than what many of us have grown up being taught, and that lesson is this: Worldly success is much more determined by how educated, connected, motivated, opportunistic, and privileged (meaning the extent to which a person was raised by and around others who have these traits and opportunities) a person is than by how righteous they are, especially if we're talking about the Mormon definition or any traditional religions definition of the word "righteous". The fourth and last set of issues is PR issues. If you want to know how most people who are aware of prosperity theology feel about it, just Google the term prosperity gospel (with the quotation marks) and find out. You should get over a million hits, most of which argue passionately against it for ethical, theological, and/or logical reasons, some of which have been touched upon in the paragraphs above. Since the rise of televangelism and megachurches in the late 20th century, such teachings seem to be increasingly viewed as fraudulent and manipulative by both the traditional Christian and secular communities. Suffice it to say that the idea is far from popular, and it seems very possible that the church is trying to distance itself from it in order to protect its image. Some may wonder why the church would care about what the rest of the world thinks but we have to remember that the rest of the world is where it draws its converts from. Bad press and a bad image are bad for missionary work. Many members and critics believe the church is too concerned with its image from a scriptural standpoint and much has said about this in books, blogs, podcasts, and chat rooms. The following example is instructive on how deep this concern runs: After the churchs public image was dealt a heavy blow by its involvement in getting Prop 8 passed in 2008, it was so determined to repair it that it hired two big-name advertising agencies the following year and then subsequently copied a Scientology ad campaign. The Im a Mormon campaign launched in 2010 is practically identical in format to the I Am a Scientologist campaign launched just a year earlier (see my article Mormon and Scientologist Ad Campaigns: Who Copied Who? for more on this). If the church will do something like that to boost or protect its image, it shouldnt be hard to believe that it would quietly change or drop one of its teachings for the same end. Now lets come back one more time to that question from earlier: Why the change? In four books of scripture, Jesus and John the Baptist declared that the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Whether the churchs reasons for distancing itself from the prosperity gospel have more to do with the negative effects it has had on Mormon culture, its inconsistency with a number of scriptures, statistics, and bits of common sense, the harsh criticism it has received from the Christian and secular communities, a combination of the above, or something else entirely is hard to say. It seems likely, however, that upon realizing and examining some of the sour fruits of this tree, church leaders decided it was time to break out the axe.

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Change Is the Only Constant

President Tanner titled his seminal 1979 talk on financial prosperity that we quoted earlier Constancy Amid Change a title whose irony is now apparent. If your view of Mormon doctrine has been that it is an oasis of unchanging, infallible truth in a windy desert of evershifting sands, you might be surprised upon finding that the church would change its teachings on a concept as important and fundamental as the rewards for righteousness. But believe it or not, this kind of change is actually par for the course. In 2011, BYU professor Charles Harrell published a book called This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon Theology sold by Deseret Book in which he carefully traces the development of practically every area of church doctrine and shows that The principal doctrines defining Mormonism today often bear little resemblance to those it started out with in the early 1830s. In his review of the book, Kevin Barney, a board member of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought and the Mormon apologetic organization FAIR, wrote: It has become a commonplace that trying to get a handle on Mormon theology is like trying to nail Jello to a wall. And there is a significant amount of truth to that perception. The problem is that people are expecting there to be a systematic theology, like the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which provides a definitive statement of the official theology of the church. But there is no such thing as a systematic Mormon theology. The only way to approach Mormon theology deeply and with comprehension is to consider it both developmentally and historically. And now, on the fundamental topic of blessings for righteousness, we see the church moving away from the Book of Mormon view toward the New Testament view. For years, many have expressed a belief that the church is in a process of mainstreaming, meaning that it is downplaying or discarding its more controversial doctrines in order to become more accepted by the public (particularly by the Christian community from which it draws most of its converts). If this is true and it almost certainly is in my opinion could its desertion of the prosperity gospel simply be a part of that process? If church leaders hope to move the membership away from a prosperity mindset, Id say they have their work cut out for them. The fact that nearly all bishops, stake presidents, mission presidents, and general authorities are well off does little to dispel this way of thinking. The same could be said of the churchs recent expenditure of $5 billion to build a high-end shopping mall and luxurious high-rise apartment buildings that include multimillion-dollar penthouses in downtown Salt Lake City. How is a faithful lower class member to avoid feeling at least a little unworthy for not being able to shop at the Lords mall? While not every Mormon believes in or thinks about this doctrine, it certainly has a noticeable effect on Mormon culture, as weve shown. If the church truly is working to distance itself from it, will its members eventually follow suit? Time will tell, but in the meantime, one can only hope.
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The question that lies before you now is Who and what will you believe? Will you believe past church leaders and the Book of Mormon or current church leaders and the New Testament on what rewards you should expect for a life of diligent commandment keeping? Will these blessings include material prosperity or be limited to spiritual prosperity? Choose wisely many aspects of your life might just depend on it. TruthIsReason Please send questions, comments, and corrections to TruthIsReason7@gmail.com

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