$100 Billion in the Savings Account of the LDS Church Part 4

Looking for a resource written for young people. That explains the Mormon religion from a biblical worldview. Only reason why no one pertains by Mormonism research ministries. Eric Johnson addresses basic LDS doctrine while answering important questions such as, is it okay to date my woman friend. This book will help you better understand what can otherwise be a complicated religion. Mormonism 101 for teens available at the Utah lighthouse bookstore in Salt Lake City for purchase online and MRM.org .1 naming this commandment examines the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from a biblical perspective view .1 Mormonism is sponsored by Mormonism research ministry since 1979 Mormonism research ministry has been dedicated to equipping the body of Christ with answers regarding the Christian faith in a manner that expresses gentleness and respect. And now, your host for today's viewpoint on Mormonism welcome to this edition of viewpoint on Mormonism. I'm your host Bill McKeever found her director Mormonism research ministry with me today is Eric Johnson my colleague MRM this week.

We were looking at in an article that was first published by the Washington Post titled Mormon church has misled members on 100 billion tax exempt investment fund whistle blower alleges I think we pretty much exhausted.

That story, but it does raise an interesting concept. Eric and that is it's well-known that the church because it's so large is also a very wealthy institution and we've introduced the Michael Quinn's book.

As you mentioned yesterday. Michael Quinn is not an enemy of the church.

Even though he was excommunicated from the church in 1993. He still considers himself to be as was mentioned yesterday a DNA Mormon and he's written a lot of fascinating books on the LDS leadership in the church at large in this book that we are referring to.

Recently is one that came out in 2017 which deals with the church as a corporate entity that title is the Mormon hierarchy wealth and corporate power will since were talking about this hundred billion dollars that was discovered or made known by this whistleblower who work for this investment company owned by the church.

Let's talk a little bit about the fact that the Mormon church that we know is a very wealthy institution.

How does it spend its money, and how did it spend its money, let's say, even in the early years. I find this to be fascinating because some of the things that the Michael Quinn talks about would certainly crush a lot of the stereotypes that many members have regarding their own church and one of those stereotypes has to do with this myth that the LDS leadership is not compensated for the time that they give to the church. Many members of the church still to this day incest that their leaders the general authorities are volunteer workers for the church but Quinn doesn't believe that he gets right into it and page 2 of his book. I say even maybe some of the people who are getting compensated will not admit that I was talking to mission president's wife and she insisted that she was a volunteer even though there is compensation, not a salary per se, but they get their expenses reimbursed, and so we've talked about that before the show to six figures.

What that mission president will get so even the people who are getting the compensation are not acknowledging that and I think it's because there's a big semantical game going on here in Quinn talks about that and I don't want to get ahead of ourselves.

But let's look at what he has to say on the bottom of page 2 of this book. He says beginning in 1836 quote unquote hireling priests was a derogatory reference to modern Christianity's ministers and publications by the Mormons. Let me stop you. There it was, not just in publications by the Mormons. That's kind of the stereotype was talked about in the Mormon temple ceremony prior to 1990.

There was a character in the temple, who represented a Christian minister and of course it was alluded in the ceremony itself that Lucifer was paying these Christian ministers to preach. Written another words, having a paid ministry is certainly something that is a part of what they would cold the great apostasy. He goes on and mentions Luke 10 seven which says that the laborer is worthy of his hire and Quinn writes from September 1830 to November 1834 Joseph Smith repeated that New Testament phrase in four written documents he dictated as revelations from God. The last doctrine and covenants section 106 verse three specified that such financial support or higher was for any church officer who would quote devote his whole time to this high and holy calling" will let me just read from section 106 and since the reference that Mr. Quinn uses in section 106. This is supposedly a revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet at Kirtland, Ohio on November 25, 1834, and its referring specifically to a Mormon member by the name of Lauren a Cowdrey. It says it is my will that my servant Warren a Cowdrey should be appointed and ordained a presiding high priest over my church in the land of freedom in the regions roundabout. It says in verse three and devote his whole time to this high and holy calling, which I know given to him seeking diligently the kingdom of heaven and its righteousness, and all things necessary, shall be added thereon to for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Now when we read of the laborer being worthy of his hire in this section.

It has a reference to Matthew 1010 and of course the context is certainly speaking that a person who is working to do a certain job should rightfully be compensated for the labor that they are giving towards that job.

That's the context that we've been talking about this hundred billion dollar fund of investment money that the church has in and sign peaks and we have references in the doctrine and covenants that bishops are supposed to be paid but we have to understand, there are thousands of men who are serving as bishops or branch presidents in the different wards and branches throughout the world who get no compensation and I'm just wondering if were going to say that the laborer is worthy of his hire, then what about those men who put out such effort. They might not give 40 hours a week, but I'm sure that this mean if your eye a bishop of award you have up to 500 people.

It's gotta be at least 3040 could be 50 hours on top of your real job. Forget the hours about being compensated for the headache of being over 500 people I got to be really strenuous and intense at times for these bishops.

I feel for them and I can understand that that is a pretty important position on a local level, but even though the doctrine and covenants says that these local leaders should be given a just remuneration for all their services. The church really doesn't do that any longer, and perhaps that is why these forms of like 100 billion that we been talking about are even made possible because the money coming in through the tides is not going towards compensating these local leaders for all that they're doing in the local congregations. Even though we know for a fact the upper echelon are being compensated, but as I mentioned earlier, we still come across Mormons who insist that that's not true. On page 3.

Later on in Quinn's book he writes as early as December 1837 a conference in Missouri formally voted for or sustained in a common consent, a resolution to provide remuneration.

It would be a quote fund ready at all times to assist the poor with and also to compensate the servants of the Lord for their services in attending to the business of the church and for other necessary purposes." He goes on and says in 1944 the Centennial of Joseph Smith's murder in Illinois. The Midwest publishing house of the Utah church printed a handbook of the restoration stating quote the great body of officers in the church serve without salary contributing their time and often there means to the prosecution of their work. Only the general authorities of the church and others who devote substantially all of their time to its work are compensated in the main, it operates without a paid ministry." No, that's an interesting statement and folks you need to be reminded.

This was printed in 1944 okay right in the middle of the 20th century. But let's go over that statement again. How many average Latter Day Saints know that the statement even exists I would probably say that very very few would even know that it exists, who is ever heard of a handbook on the restoration I had I had neither.

But when it says the great body of officers in the church serve without salary contributing their time and often there means to the prosecution of their work. Only the general authorities of the church and others who devote substantially all of their time to its work are compensated in the main, it operates without a paid ministry but yet we have heard general authorities who fall into that category.

Denied that there paid anything at all.

I think Joseph Fielding Smith was one of those, I think.

Also Thomas Monson was also a leader in the church that denied that they were receiving compensation. The fact is, of course, they were receiving compensation. How could a person who was devoting substantially all of their time to the work of the church be able to pay their bills if they were being compensated are we going to assume, for instance, that it general authorities such as Gordon B. Hinckley, who was the president of the church and worked his entire life for the church had enough money squirreled away for his retirement that he was able to cover his own expenses during that entire period in which he was the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or we have codewords now instead of saying salary because if you ask mission president's wife if she received a salary shall say know it and is not a salary but they're here the codewords and and this is what Quinn writes at the bottom of page 3. It sometimes been called a stipend by the late 20th century is preferred designation was living allowance or church allowance, not billing me ask you this.

If you receive a living allowance, then I guess you're not being paid because it's not a quote unquote salary CI I disagree that whether you're getting a salary or whether getting a living allowance. That's money you're going to use for your living expenses and so it's money that you receive and you should pay income tax on the money that you receive.

And I think you're absolutely correct.

I just wish that Latter Day Saints would be more informed on the subject and quit telling people that their leaders get virtually nothing, even the word stipend becomes really a bit dishonest because it is compensation and and let me just say this. In closing, I really don't have a problem with LDS leaders being compensated. I don't see that that is any sign that the church is in a state of apostasy, especially when you have first Corinthians chapter 9 where Paul takes the time to discuss the importance of a paid clergy, allowing them to focus on the duties of the church. I don't have a problem with that at all. I do have a problem. However, when you tell me that the leadership is getting nothing, when in fact they are getting something while one of the appendices appendix 4 on page 174.

Go through and list the net value of what the leaders of the church died with and what they're worth in 2010 money order to talk about it tomorrow. Thank you for listening. If you would like more information regarding this research ministry. We encourage you to visit our website www.mrm.org you can request a free newsletter Mormonism research. We hope you join us again as we look at another viewpoint is how would you like to have Mormonism research ministry gesture church in the subject of Mormonism.

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