| Greater Things > Books > The Man of Sin Revealed | by Sterling D. Allan |
> Appendices |
|
Appendix A: Letter to President Hinckley
Gordon B. Hinckley
President
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
47 E. South Temple St.
Salt Lake City, UT 84150
FAX ***April 3, 1997
Dear President Hinckley,
Having just finished reading your biography written by Sheri L. Dew, I add my voice to those who applaud you as a truly remarkable man whose devotion to God and His work is awe inspiring. Your stamina is a remarkable reflection of the stamina of the work in general. Future historians will hardly be able to mention the growth of the Church to its current stature without also mentioning the name of Gordon B. Hinckley. I add myself to the list of lives that have been deeply impacted for good through your influence on behalf of the Lord. I hold deep reverence and respect for your calling as well as for you personally and what you bring to that calling by the grace of God.
I should mention too that less than six months ago I had a dream in which you and I were in a room alone together for a brief moment. You spoke of your sincere love for me, and I likewise, expressed my heart-felt love for you. That was the extent of the dream, which further solidified the sentiment I hold toward you as a revered brother in the gospel.
My intent in writing this letter will hopefully coincide with the stated intent of the Book of Mormon (Morm. 7:9,10; 8:5), which highlights the need to "believe in Christ, and [be] baptized, first with water, then with fire and with the Holy Ghost." That is my objective. I pray and have faith that the Spirit of the Lord might convey to your heart through the mantle of your calling the sentiments I feel impressed to share from the trenches.
Your biography speaks of your faith-filled anxiety about facilitating the growth of the Church according to the God-given mandate while simultaneously bolstering the individual and decentralizing or minimizing the bureaucracy. As a lay person with no established credibility, I pray you will not consider me presumptuous to proffer for your prayerful consideration a most simple remedy, which accords with the most fundamental of gospel principles. While the remedy is remarkably simple, its implementation will require the miraculous intervention of the Lord -- just like anything of eternal significance.
The "poison of adulation" you properly address as requiring a constant vigilance to shun, is not something the CEO alone has to worry about. This poison is just as lethal to the flock as well. The larger the Church becomes, the more susceptible the fold will become to the tendency for unwholesome adulation, watching their prophet become more and more inapproachable by virtue of sheer numbers. It is much easier to revere a man as a humble fellow-servant of God in a room with six people than a stadium filled with 6,000 people. The sheer dynamics of the stadium tends toward unwholesome adulation unless sufficient vigilance is had by the assembly.
There is one simple thing to provide that vigilance, both for the man at the podium as well as for the flock assembled. Again, that remedy is totally scriptural, and lies at the foundation of the gospel we profess. This remedy simultaneously addresses the issue of massive growth and its tendency to increased bureaucracy.
It is simply this:
the bottom line.
What is the bottom line? What is the anchor of anchors, what is the only sure foundation?
Is it the family? is it the brethren? is it temples? is it the prophet? is it the church as an institution?
The answer of course is that Jesus Christ, our Savior, is the bottom line. As you said, "The Savior [is] the only solution to the world's ills" (Biography, p. 532). He is the anchor of anchors. There is no other name under heaven whereby man might be saved. And the way we build on that foundation, the way we come in at the gate, is not just a matter of physical baptism, but there must also be the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, bringing the mighty change of heart; and then pressing forward steadfastly with faith in Christ (3 Ne. 11; 2 Ne. 31; etc.). This is what constitutes membership in the body of Christ, nothing more, nothing less (D&C 10; 3 Ne. 11). The clarion call to be issued by those called after the holy order of God is that all mankind must be born again, born of the water and of the spirit (Alma 5:49; 36:24). This is also your solution for membership retention problems.
Though this most basic doctrine is not completely foreign to the Saints, it has not been implemented nearly to the level mandated by the definitions given plainly and repeatedly in the scriptures -- including statements made by latter-day prophets.
When the members internalize that Jesus Christ is their only sure anchor, and that the Holy Ghost will tell them all things that they should do, then they can place everything else in its proper place. They will appreciate the apostles and prophets as being a witness of Christ, but they will know that the most important relationship for them personally -- their bottom line -- is their relationship with the Lord as he speaks to them directly to their heart: their changed heart. That witness will include the Spirit testifying of the truth of the things spoken by the man at the podium which are true, tailoring them to that individual for the greatest impact. Then will the body of Christ grow and develop as it should, for then will Christ be the chief cornerstone, both of the church as a whole as well as of each individual within it.
One of the primary reasons that this plain and simple doctrine of Christ is not appreciated nearly as it should is because of the way many members have abrogated their birthright of personal revelation by deferring their bottom line to "the prophet." This is manifest in such ways as saying, "The prophet will never lead us astray" (Decl. 1), instead of, "The Holy Ghost will tell you all things that you should do" (2 Ne. 32). For such individuals, the prophet actually takes the place of god, becoming their bottom line, because he is more trusted by them than their own anchor in the Lord. The Savior said, "Let every man stand or fall, by himself, and not for another; or not trusting another. Seek unto my Father, and it shall be done in that very moment what ye shall ask..." (JST-Mark 9:44,45).
When the prophet ["the eye" (9:46)] is the bottom line, then the adulation will be to him instead of Christ and lead to a burgeoning bureaucracy that will eventually fall, revealing to the world its folly, for it is not built on the only sure foundation. When the Savior is the bottom line, then the body of Christ will be properly fitted together and will be able to withstand every dart of the adversary: both as a whole as well as individually. There is no other safe course than in Christ.
When the anchor is in Christ, then each individual in a general sense becomes a prophet, an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, bearing witness of His name; and the decentralization of bureaucracy is as natural as a child being weaned from its mother's breast. When the anchor is in the prophet, or a focus on the family, or any other thing which is subject to the folly of human weakness, then that house will fall, and great will be the fall thereof (3 Ne. 27:11).
The individual is immovably strong only when his/her heart has been changed through Christ and then remains so through continued faith in Christ. Only with such changed individuals will the family become strong, and the nation, and the world.
This is what we have to offer the world. This is the glorious and simple message of the gospel. This is your remedy.
Though there be many things of importance, "there is one thing which is of more importance than they all," and it centers on "the Redeemer": hence, "this is the testimony which is in [us]..., that [we] must repent, and be born again." (Alma 7:7,13,14; see also 2 Ne. 2:7,8.)
The reason the implementation of this remedy will require a miracle, is because there has been raised an entire generation of members of the Church who have not understood this as it is taught so plainly and frequently in the scriptures. False traditions in the actual walk and talk have spoken louder than the doctrine. Turning this around will be no small feat. It will require a miracle, a revival, a renaissance.
Such a revival is prophesied (e.g. D&C 45:28; 113:7-10; 133:57-59), and indeed already underway on a grassroots level, both within and without the Church. Whether or not the Church as a whole implements this shift toward Christ will determine the extent to which we as a people will incur the wrath of God for being as salt that has lost its savor.
I am fully convinced that the prophecies are conditional and that our agency is a huge determining factor. I sorrow at the thought of the prophecies unfolding in their fury on this people who have been given so much light but have chosen to turn from that in preference for trust in the arm of flesh. My heart is especially saddened when I read of those who will become sons of perdition by knowingly opposing such plainness. They will not have been able to fall to this level without having first risen to great heights, rendering marvelous service.
Bearing witness of Christ and of his atonement, no matter how frequent and sincere, is not sufficient nor compatible when at the bottom line the people hold the prophet as the one they trust the most, not God. The learned testimony borne by the beautiful children of the Church, which innocently highlights "the prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley," but almost never mentions the Savior, except in the cursory close, is perhaps the most revealing reflection of the current priorities of the mainstream membership. Your phenomenal gifts of diligence, ambition, health, and optimism make this tendency to adulation even more strong.
So long as "just follow the brethren" rings louder than, "the Holy Ghost will tell you all things that ye should do," then the leader cult is running full throttle and will result in a catastrophic fall. Because of your mantle, you, of all men, with the help of Almighty God, are in a position to reverse this crushing trend.
I pray that you might be given the necessary strength to stand the course as a prophet, seer and revelator of the Lord Jesus Christ, and point souls to Him, that he might change their hearts and speak to each of them personally (e.g. Isa. 59:21; 30:21). This would solve your dilemmas and bring you more joy than you have tasted thus far in all your marvelous experiences.
The Lord is God, let us worship Him and none other.
That is my humble conviction and suggestion. May it be a blessing to you and your tremendous flock through the merits of Jesus Christ is my fervent prayer.
Your brother and friend in Christ,
Sterling D. Allan
click here to continue with book (Appendix B: "Every Word" Chiasm)
< Previous | GT home | Man of Sin -- Home | Contents | Next > |
