The Curse of Dark Skin

The source of this uniquely Mormon doctrine has its roots in the Mormon scriptures. Some very good 
insight can also be found in an old book published way back in 1931 called "The Way To Perfection." 

I will discuss "The Way to Perfection" near the end of the text, but for now let's turn to the Mormon 
scriptures.

The first time we hear about the curse of dark, or black, skin in the Book of Mormon is 2 Nephi 5:21. 
It is said that God cursed the Lamanites with black skin so they would not be enticing unto the Nephites.

Even though Alma 17:14 describes the Lamanites as being a wild, ferocious, plundering, robbing, and 
murdering people, God felt the need to change their skin color to make them not enticing to the Nephites ... 
as if their immoral acts were not sufficient enough to deter the Nephites into wanting to become like 
them. It is also stated in 2 Nephi 5:23 that the Nephites would also be cursed with the dark skin if they 
married with the Lamanites.

The Lamanite babies that were born to the dark-skinned Lamanites also had the sign of this curse.

How black skin is not attractive to the white-skinned Nephite people is a discussion for another time.

In Alma 3:6-7, it is recorded that the skins of the Lamanites were dark, "according to the mark which 
was set upon their fathers, which was a curse upon them because of their transgression and their 
rebellion against their brethren, who consisted of Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph, and Sam, who were just 
and holy men. And their brethren sought to destroy them, therefore they were cursed; and the Lord 
God set a mark upon them, yea, upon Laman and Lemuel, and also the sons of Ishmael, and 
Ishmaelitish women".

In the Bible, the Israelites who conquered the land of Canaan and later apostatized were not cursed 
with dark skin to separate themselves from those sons of Jacob who remained faithful to God's 
covenant. Even in the LDS teaching of the period of the Great Apostasy, white people did not turn 
black and black people did not turn white.

So that is how things progressed in the Book of Mormon.

There is a case in Alma 23:18 where the curse was removed from the Lamanites and it did no more 
follow them.

According to 3 Nephi chapters 11 through 30, Jesus is said to visit the Nephites somewhere in the 
Americas sometime around 34 A.D.

According to 4 Nephi 1:6, twenty-five years had passed away since Jesus ascended back into 
heaven, from there to visit all the other lost tribes of the house of Israel. In 4 Nephi 1:10, we learn 
that all the people of Nephi had become "an exceedingly fair and delightsome people". In other 
words, they became white-skinned. See the footnote 10a. It links to 1 Nephi 13:15, 2 Nephi 5:21, 
and Mormon 9:6.

In 1 Nephi 13:15, the Gentiles who are said to have discovered America (aka Christopher Columbus) 
were physically white like the Nephites before they were slain at the great battle with the Lamanites. 
The spiritually-dark Nephites were slain because they had slidden into apostasy.

Let's specifically look at Mormon 9:6. "O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto 
the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having 
been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day."

In Jacob 3:8, one also learns that the skin color of the Lamanites could be whiter than those of the 
Nephites when they would appear before God's throne.

According to 4 Nephi 1:14-17, 66 years had passed since the arrival of Christ to the 'Americas' 
(100 years from the birth of Christ). This was time when the happiest people on earth lived in the 
'Americas.'  Only righteous people existed. There were no Nephites, no Lamanites, "nor any manner 
of -ites."

From around 100 A.D. to 200 A.D., the period of righteousness reigned. In the 201st year, sin 
began to creep into the church (4 Nephi 1:24). In the 110th year, a small group of people separated 
and took upon themselves the name of 'Lamanites' (4 Nephi 1:20). In the 231st year, the designation 
of 'Nephites' had come back (4 Nephi 1:35). 3 other divisions also came about (Jacobites, Josephites, 
and Zoramites).

4 Nephi 1:45-46 records that the Nephites had become wicked like the Lamanites. There were no 
righteous except for only 3 disciples. Moroni 9:20 records that the Nephites even exceeded the 
wickedness of the Lamanites. The Nephites were said to have raped the Lamanite women, torturing 
them unto death, and then eating their flesh (Moroni 9:9-10). And in none of this did their skin color 
become dark.

According to Mormon 1:13-14 (circa 322 A.D.), "wickedness did prevail upon the face of the whole 
land" and "there were no gifts from the Lord, and the Holy Ghost did not come upon any, because 
of their wickedness and unbelief."

This was a period of total apostasy.

The Mormon Jesus had failed to prevent Satan from destroying his church again like Latter-day Saints 
believe Satan destroyed the first century church in Palestine.

In Mormon 2:14, we learn that the Nephites cursed God and wished they would die. The Lamanites 
on the other hand resorted to offering up the Nephite women and children prisoners as human sacrifices 
to their idols (Mormon 4:15). Mormon 4:12 even records that these people were the most wicked of 
any of the tribes of Israel (Mormon 4:12).

The Book of Mormon never describes the return of the curse of black skin upon the Nephites and the 
Lamanites.

The Lamanites were not a white-skinned people when the LDS Church says that the Lamanites are 
the principle ancestors of the native American Indians. The Nephites are said to be white however 
when they are slain in the great Lamanite-Nephite war story in the Book of Mormon.

The curse of dark skin was not mentioned at all in the great Jaredite civilization that was also said to 
have come to a choice land above all other lands.

When you compare the 1830 version of the Book of Mormon with today's version, you will see a 
small editing change in 2 Nephi 30:6. The word "white" in the phrase "they shall be a white and a 
delightsome people" has been changed to "pure.". The fact that white has been changed to pure 
reflects the LDS belief that white skin is symbolic of purity whereas black skin is symbolic of impurity.

The Way to Perfection

What has the Mormon Church taught in relation to the Negroes being denied the Priesthood?

It took some time to find this book published way back in 1931 by Joseph Fielding Smith. For 
obvious reasons, it is not published by the Mormon Church today.

As we have seen earlier from a Youtube video, the former President of the Mormon Church, Gordon 
B. Hinckley, admitted that he did not know why the Negroes were denied the Priesthood.  The 
1931 text makes it obviously clear. You would figure anyone who is anyone of high importance in 
the LDS Church would be very familiar with this book.

Let's examine some key passages in chapters 15 and 16.

Chapter 15 is entitled, "The Seed of Cain." Chapter 16 is entitled, "The Seed of Cain After the 
Flood."

"Not only was Cain called upon to suffer, but because of his wickedness he became the father 
of an inferior race" (p. 101).

"Millions of souls have come into this world cursed with black skin and have been denied the 
privilege of Priesthood and the fulness of the blessings of the Gospel. These are the descendants 
of Cain" (p. 101).

"Moreover, they have been made to feel their inferiority and have been separated from the rest of 
mankind from the beginning" (p. 101).

"But what a contrast! The sons of Seth, Enoch and Noah honored by the blessings and rights of 
Priesthood! And the sons of Cain, denied the Priesthood" (p. 102).

"In the spirit of sympathy, mercy and faith, we will also hope that blessings may eventually be given to 
our Negro brethren, for they are our brethren - children of God - notwithstanding their black covering 
emblematical of eternal darkness" (p. 102).

"The curse placed on Cain was continued in his posterity and that through the seed of Ham this curse 
was brought through the flood" (p. 103).

"Some of the brethren who were associated with the Prophet Joseph Smith declared that he taught 
this doctrine" (p. 103).

"President Brigham Young, answering a question put to him by Elder Lorenzo D. Young in a meeting 
held December 25, 1869, in Salt Lake City, said that Joseph Smith had declared that the Negroes 
were not neutral in heaven, for all the spirits took sides, but the posterity of Cain are black because 
he (Cain) committed murder" (p. 105).

"When all the other children of Adam have had the privilege of receiving the Priesthood, and of coming 
into the Kingdom of God, and of being redeemed from the four quarters of the earth, and have received 
their resurrection from the dead, then it will be time enough to remove the curse from Cain and his 
posterity" (p. 106).

"He (Cain) sinned against the light ... moreover, he was cursed and his posterity after him because he 
cut off Abel in his youth without posterity" (p. 106).

"It was well understood by the early elders of the Church that the mark which was placed on Cain 
and which his posterity inherited was the black skin" (p. 107).

"The Book of Moses informs us that Cain and his descendants were black" (p. 107).

"President George A. Smith, speaking of the Negro race, in a discourse, September 23, 1855, 
said: When Cain brought a curse upon his own head and that of his household, his after generations 
bear the same curse. The curse that came upon Canaan, the son of Ham, was extended to a great 
portion of the human race, and has continued to the present day" (p. 109).

"This doctrine did not originate with President Brigham Young but was taught by the Prophet 
Joseph Smith" (p. 110).

"The Indians have greater cause to complain of the treatment of the whites, than the Negroes, or 
sons of Cain - D.H.C., 4:501. But we all know it is due to his teachings that the Negro today is 
barred from the Priesthood" (p. 111).

Apparently all this information slipped the mind of former President Gordon B. Hinckley before 
and during his interview.

"The Negro may be baptized and enter the Church; and some of these unfortunate people have 
been baptized and have proved their faithfulness and worthiness before the Lord, in this their 
second estate" (p. 111).

I do not believe that the Negro race is an unfortunate people. But I do believe that it is unfortunate 
that Latter-day Saints cannot obtain this highly insightful book from more bookstores.

It is almost as if the LDS Church is trying to remove part of its historical teachings. Maybe this 
would account for the fact that even a Mormon President is in the dark about some church history. 
Now since he is in the dark, you can imagine the state of the ordinary lay persons.

In Jacob 3:8, white skin will be a sign of one's spiritual purity as they appear before God's throne 
for judgment. Or maybe this is just for the Lamanites/Native American Indians?

In the meantime, it appears that the curse of Cain still remains on the Negro race even though the 
Mormon Church extended the Priesthood to them in 1978. According to the published declaration, 
there is no mention of the curse being removed - for their skin is still dark.