In another thread came the following inquiry:

"Question for Steve Benson: I just picked up Sheri Dew's biography on your grandfather at a yard sale. I wanted to know before reading what you thought of it. How accurate is it? Were you impressed with the research?"

(posted by Roger "Question for Steve Benson," on "Recovery from Mormonism" discussion board, 14 August 2015)

Roger, I hope you didn't spend too much on the book at that yard sale, given that it misses the mark by yards and yards and yards.
_____


--Some Background on How the Book Came to Be

It was "researched," sanitized and written by Sheri Dew, with assistance from Flora Parker (my first cousin and offspring of Beverly Parker, daughter of Ezra Taft Benson).

Attempts by Reed Benson (my uncle and oldest child of ETB0 to assist in the writing of his father's biography were effectively rebuffed. Reed was an enthusiastic, committed, rabid-beyond-any-stretch-of-reason Bircher who never met a Commie conspiracy theory he didn't like. He was also a close political confidant of my grandfather and, in fact, helped compose his sermon, "Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet." (see: http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,287920,287920#msg-287920)

I have been reliably informed that Reed became royally upset when Dew--rather than himself--was tapped out to put together ETB's Mormon Church-approved life story. In other words, the "fix-it" fix for the faithful was in.

Reed being cut out of the writing loop largely explains, in my opinion, why Dew's puff production on the life and times on Ezra Taft Benson lacks in any meaningful or honest detail about his over-the-edge political views--as well helps explain why the book is noticeably short in specifics as to ETB's open and deep sympathies for the John Birch Society, Which ETB told me was second only to the Mormon Church in stemming the spread of Communism worldwide. (see http://www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon419.htm)

If Reed had actually been involved in spinning ETB's biogrpahical tale, you can bet your bottom Bircher buck that it would have been filled with much more right-wing reactionary richness.
_____


Below are some examples from Dew's final and highly-selective production.

A. Dew's Downplaying of the Racist Elements of Ezra Taft Benson's Dealing with Mormon Blacks

In 1940, my grandfather was appointed the first president of the newly-organized Washington [D.C.] stake. According to Dew's Church-published biography on ETB, he proved to be "forward-thinking" as he dealt with the "many and complex" problems facing the stake. (Sheri L. Dew, "Ezra Taft Benson: A Biography" [Salt Lake City, Utah: Desert Book Company, 1987], pp.157-58).

Dew failed to mention that one of those "problems" had to do with Black women sitting too close to White women during Relief Society lessons.

In a letter to "President Ezra T. Benson, Washington [D.C.] Stake," dated 23 June 1942, the First Presidency issued him a directive to segregate the races during Mormon class time:

"Dear President Benson:

"Through the General Board of the Relief Society, who reported to the Presiding Bishopric, and they to us, it comes to us that you have in the Capitol Reef Ward in Washington two colored sisters who apparently are faithful members of the Church.

"The report comes to us that prior to a meeting which was to be held between the Relief Societies of the Washington Ward and the Capitol Ward, Bishop Brossard of the Washington Ward called up the President of the Relief Society of the Capitol Ward and told her that these two colored sisters should [not] be permitted to attend because the President of the Capitol Ward Relief Society failed to carry out the request made of her by the Bishop of the other ward.

"We can appreciate that the situation may present a problem in Washington, but President Clark recalls that in the Catholic churches in Washington at the time he lived there, colored and white communicants used the same church at the same time. He never entered the church to see how the matter was carried out, but he knew that the facts were as stated.

"From this fact we are assuming that there is not in Washington any such feeling as exists in the South where the colored people are apparently not permitted by their white brethren and sisters to come into the meeting houses and worship with them. We feel that we cannot refuse baptism to a colored person who is otherwise worthy, and we feel that we cannot refuses to permit these people to come into our meeting houses and worship once we baptize them.

"It seems to us that it ought to be possible to work this situation out without causing any feelings on the part of anybody. If the white sisters feel that they may not sit with them or near them, we fell very sure that if the colored sisters were discreetly approached, they would be happy to sit at one side in the rear or somewhere where they would not wound the sensibilities of the complaining sisters. We will rely upon your tact and discretion to work this out so as not to hurt the feelings on the part of anyone.

"Of course, probably each one of the sisters who can afford it, has a colored maid in her house to do the work and to do the cooking for her, and it would seem that under these circumstances they should be willing to let them sit in Church and worship with them.

"Faithfully your brethren,

[signed]

"Heber J. Grant
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
David O. McKay"

The First Presidency was apparently impressed with my grandfather’s willingness to do as he was told, however.

A year later, he was called into the Quorum of Twelve Apostles (Lester E. Bush, Jr., compilation of "scattered" and incomplete "notes" on the "history of the Negro in the LDS Church," pp. 241-42; see also, Bush, "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine: An Historical Overview" [Arlington, Virginia: Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought], reprint of original article in "Dialogue," Vol. 8, No. 1, Spring 1973, p. 43)
_____


B. Dew's Minimalistic Reporting on the U.S. Presidential Draft Ticket of White and Delightseom Ezra Taft Benson and White Supremacist Strom Thurmond

In 1966, an organization spearheaded primarily by John Birchers and known as the "1976 Committee," nominated my grandfather as its choice for President of the United States, with avowed racist and South Carolina senator Strom Thurmond as his running mate.

At the time of the announcement, I remember the excitement among the Benson clan at the prospect that the grand patriarch of our family might become the president of the country. I recall buttons and bumper stickers being passed around and my grandfather smiling proudly amid all the buzz.

Thurmond was the prominent White supremacist who had himself run for president in 1948 on the platform of the States' Rights Party, commonly known as the "Dixiecrats." The primary goal of Thurmond's earlier presidential bid was to preserve racial segregation. As he declared at the time, "All the laws of Washington and all the bayonets of the Army cannot force the Negroes into our homes, our schools, our churches." (Jeff Jacoby, "The Death of American Racism")

Thurmond later became a strident opponent of civil rights, famously filibustering a 1957 civil rights bill for a record 24 hours and 18 minutes. (Robert Tanner, "Dixiecrats fueled by racial politics, Civil rights spurred Thurmond's 1948 bid for presidency," Arizona Republic, 14 December 2002, sec. A., p. 9)

In an effort to understand the nature of the group that had hand-picked its Benson-Thurmond ticket, I retrieved from my father's personal office files a news article announcing the formation of this "1976 Committee." Across the top of the article was handwritten the note, "for your memory book."

According to the article, the "1976 Committee" had derived its name from the belief of its members that it was "necessary to head off some sort of conspiratorial one-world, socialist take-over of the United States by 1976."

This fear was rooted in its claim that "the U.S. Communist party's recently professed plan [is] to promote the establishment of state socialism in this country in its next ten-year plan by 1976." (Neil Munro, "Benson-Thurmond Team Pushed by Holland Group, "1976 Committee" Limited, undated)

The Committee's motto was "Stand Up for Freedom . . . No Matter What the Cost." Its stated goal was to launch "a ten-year course to restore the American Republic."

In its campaign literature (copies of which littered my home during that time) my grandfather and Thurmond were billed as "the best team of 68" and "the team you can trust to guide America."

Invoking the powers of heaven, the "1976 Committee" described Ezra Taft Benson not only as "unquestionably . . . a scholar and patriot [but] . . . primarily a man of God." He was heralded as "one of the Twelve Apostles of the worldwide Mormon Church," "a kind and compassionate man," one who "does not impose his standards on others" and "an outspoken and thoughtful critic of liberalism, socialism, and Communism."

The "1976 Committee" touted Thurmond was as a popular and renowned public servant, a decorated WWII combat veteran who was dedicated to "military preparedness" and a person determined to formulate "an effective policy to eradicate Communism from the Western Hemisphere."

Among the priorities of the "1976 Committee" were:

--opposition to "international Communist activities;"

--support for pulling the U.S. out of the United Nations;

--warnings about Communist control of the civil rights movement;

--accusations that the U.S. Supreme Court of "waging war" against America;

--advocacy for U.S. retention of the Panama Canal;

--complaints of liberal bias in the media;

--inveighings against Communist "infiltration" of the nation's churches;

--calls for a return to economic the gold standard; and

--resistance to nuclear disarmament treaties with the Russians.

Not coincidentally, much of the "1978 Committee's" recommended literature was published by the John Birch Society. ("The Team You Can Trust to Guide America," campaign brochure published by "The 1976 Committee," 222 River Avenue, Holland Michigan 49423, undated; and "The 1976 Committee," campaign brochure, undated)

Historian D. Michael Quinn adds a Benson-Bircher connection that Dew fails to mention, where, at one point " . . . Benson wrote to his 'Dear Friends' at the Birch national headquarters.” [Quinn notes in footnote 355, p. 469, that this ETB letter to the Birch national headquarters “was in response to a get-well card with messages from each Birch staff member”]. (D. Michael Quinn, “The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power,” Chapter 3. “Ezra Taft Benson: A Study in Inter-Quorum Conflict” [Salt Lake City, Utah: Signature Books, in association with Smith Research Associates, 1997]. pp. 110-11; and p. 469, fn 349-355)

Not everyone in the leadership of the Mormon Church was thrilled as either the Benson family or Birchers at the prospects of Ezra Taft Benson running for President of the United States--especially amid claims that my grandfather had won the support of then-LDS president, David O. McKay.

According to First Presidency counselor Hugh B. Brown, Ezra Taft Benson had "a letter from President McKay endorsing his candidacy" and feared "it would rip the Church apart" if my grandfather released it publicly as part of a presidential bid. (Hugh B. Brown, interview with BYU professors Ray Hillam and Richard Wirthlin, 9 August 1966, transcribed "from Rough Draft Notes," fd 6, Hillam papers, and box 34, Buerger papers, and quoted in Quinn, "The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power," pp. 96-97, 461)

My grandfather's official biographer Dew offered a benign, sparse and misleading account of the controversy, claiming that McKay merely advised Ezra Taft Benson to neither encourage or discourage efforts by the "1976 Committee" to draft him.

Grassroots momentum for the Benson-Thurmond ticket began building in early 1967, but eventually died out when it became apparent that Richard Nixon was the Republican front-runner. (Dew, "Ezra Taft Benson: A Biography," pp. 383, 392, 394; see also, Francis M. Gibbons, "Ezra Taft Benson: Statesman, Patriot, Prophet of God" [Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1996], pp. 244, 247-48)
_____


C. Dew's Whitewashing of a Promoted White House Ticket of Racist Ezra Taft Benson and Segregationst George Wallace

As a preface to this section, see a three-part account of my grandfather's racist views:

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,761567,761570#msg-761570

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,761567,761572#msg-761572

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,761567,761575#msg-761575

In 1968, my grandfather gave me a copy of the platform of George Wallace's American Independent Party. I remember that it was adorned with a broad-winged eagle across the top and printed in red, white and blue. He told me that the principles of Wallace's party were "closer to those of the Founding Fathers than either the Republicans or the Democrats."

Dew's book contains little in terms of deep or detailed disclosure concerning the following:

As it turned out, George Wallace himself had made serious attempts to generate Ezra Taft Benson's interest in joining his third-party presidential ticket as Wallace's running mate.

This was the same George Wallace who, when running for Alabama's gubernatorial seat in 1962, defiantly declared, "I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say, segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever."

The same Wallace who, in defiance of a federal court order, infamously stood in the doorway of the University of Alabama, flanked by armed state troopers, in an unsuccessful attempt to block two African-American students from registering for class.

The same Wallace who, faced with another federal court order to integrate his state's schools, commanded police to prevent their opening but was thwarted when President Kennedy again nationalized the Guard to enforce the decree.

The same Wallace who was governor when state troopers unleashed dogs, tear gas and whips on African-Americans marching from Selma to Montgomery. (Richard Pearson, "Former Ala. Gov. George C. Wallace Dies," in "Washington Post," 14 September 1998, sec. A, p. 1)

The same Wallace whose presidential platform my grandfather described as being closest to the hearts and minds of our Elohim-inspired Founding Fathers.

Actually, Wallace and the 1968 platform of his party was more accurately described as follows:

"The American Independent Party was a [white supremacist . . . ultra-conservative] . . . organization founded in reaction to the 1960's civil rights movement and the Supreme Court's overturning of 'separate, but equal' (Plessy v. Ferguson) statute that forced integration." (see Daniel A. Mazmanian, "The Effect of Parties in Presidential Elections" [New York: Franklin Watts, 1974], p. 130).

Candidate Wallace was described as "a pronounced racist who . . . ran his campaign on a platform of state's rights and increased defense spending and gained a large following of voters in Southern states.

"The political purpose of Wallace's campaign was to force one or both of the major party candidates, Nixon and Humphrey, to a more conservative position on the issue of state's rights. Wallace wanted the federal government to give the states the power to decide whether of not to desegregate." (ibid.) Elections")

Wallace strongly requested that my grandfather join him in that fight--and, in response, my grandfather gave serious consideration to the offer.

After support of efforts by the "1976 Committee" to draft him and Strom Thurmond on a presidential ticket had fizzled, my grandfather began jockeying into position to be offered the spot as Wallace's vice-presidential mate.

In February 1968, he and my Uncle Reed met behind closed doors at Wallace's governor's mansion in Montgomery to examine the possibilities. After the meeting, Wallace sent a letter to President McKay requesting his "permission and blessings," coupled with "a leave of absence" for Ezra Taft Benson, so that my grandfather could join Wallace in their bid for the Oval Office.

McKay refused.

Later that year, Wallace approached my grandfather again hoping to convince him to join him on the ticket. Wallace was steered a second time to McKay in his efforts to get my grandfather's boss to change his mind.

McKay held firm. (George C. Wallace, letter to David O. McKay, 12 February 1968, and McKay to Wallace, 14 February 1968, cited in Quinn, "Extensions of Power," pp. 99, 102, 463; and Dew, "Ezra Taft Benson: A Biography," pp. 398-99)
_____


D. Dew's Porcelain-Prophet Presentation of the Mormon Church Hierarchy's Negative Response to ETB's "Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet" Sermon

A veritable firestorm erupted behind the scenes in the wake of ETB's incendiary sermon--a controversy which pulled the First Presidency into the fray via an officially-attempted skinback, and which ultimately resulted in ETB being required to explain himself before a meeting of all the General Authorities.

It is a matter of record that ETB's “Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet” sermon was not well received by the Mormon Church's highest levels of hierarchy.

As Quinn writes:

“. . . [A]t BYU [in February 1980] he [Benson] delivered a 'devotional talk' which proclaimed that right of the LDS prophet to speak and act politically. The First Presidency immediately issued a statement that Benson was misquoted. However, it was difficult to finesse his words for the capacity BYU audience in the 25,000-seat Marriott Center or for the thousands of other Utahns who listened to the broadcast on radio and television of Benson's 'Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophets.' To most observers, Benson's 1980 talk at BYU was an announcement of his own future intentions as Church president.

“On 5 March the First Presidency released a statement 'reaffirm[ing] that we take no partisan stand as to candidates or political parties and exercise no constraint on the freedom of individuals to make their own choices in these matters.' The Church's spokesperson claimed that 'there is not connection between this [First Presidency] letter and a speech by Apostle Ezra Taft Benson to Brigham Young University' a few days before. Those connected with LDS Church headquarters knew otherwise.

“Kimball's son [Edward L. Kimball] affirms that the Church president [Spencer W. Kimball] bore no will feeling toward his long-time associate but 'was concerned about Elder Benson's February 1980 talk at BYU.' The president wanted 'to protect the Church against being misunderstood as espousing ultra-conservative politics or--in this case--espousing an unthinking 'follow the leader' mentality.

“A General Authority revealed that although President Kimball asked Benson to apologize to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, they 'were dissatisfied with his response.' Kimball required him to explain himself to a combined meeting of all General Authorities the following week.” [Quinn writes in footnote 353, p. 469, that “[i]n 1980 a General Authority reported to George T. Boyd the apologies which Kimball required of Benson. Boyd's letter to me (Quinn), 24 September 1992, requested that I not identify his source. Boyd--an in-law of Spencer and Camilla Kimball--also reported this conversation to BYU professor Duane Jeffery early in 1980”].

Quinn reports further on the ETB-caused furor:

“The entire Benson family felt anxious about the outcome of this meeting [the one where President Kimball was requiring ETB to explain himself in front of all the Mormon Church's General Authorities). They [the Benson family] apparently feared the possibility of a formal rebuke. Benson's son [and my father] Mark (the Freemen Institute's 'Vice President in Charge of Development') wrote him a note that morning: 'All will be well--we're praying for you and KNOW all will be well The Lord knows our heart.' [original emphasis]

"The meeting went well for Benson who 'explained that the had meant only to reaffirm the divine nature of the prophetic call.' Benson's biographer [Dew] indicates that the most effusively supportive General Authority in attendance was Apostle Boyd K. Packer: 'How I admire, respect and love you. How could anyone hesitate to follow a leader, an example such as you? What a privilege!'

Dew, however, conveniently leaves out critical elements of the controversy which led to the negative reaction of the First Presidency to ETB's BYU sermon. Instead, she attempts to explain it away by writing that “[w]hile the talk generated a great deal of publicity, for his part President Benson had intended it to simply underscore President' Kimball's prophetic call."

Dew goes on to faithfully report:

"During the April 1980 monthly meeting of the General Authorities, President Benson explained that he meant only to reaffirm the divine nature of the prophetic call. It was a faith-building, emotional experience. His family was aware of his concerns and had been praying for him. When he returned to his office that day, he found a phone message from Reed and a brief letter from Mark: 'All will be well—we're praying for you and KNOW all will be well. The Lord knows your heart. There was also a brief message from Elder Packer: 'How I admire, respect and love you. How could anyone hesitate to follow a leader, an example such as you? What a privilege!'" (Quinn, "The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power,” Chapter 3, “Ezra Taft Benson: A Study in Inter-Quorum Conflict," pp. 110-11; and p. 469, fn 349-355; and Dew, “”Ezra Taft Benson: A Biography," Chapter 22, "The Expanding Church" p. 469, original emphasis)

**********


Conclusion: The Dews and Don'ts of Honest Biography Writing

The devil is in Dew's details (or, better yet, in the lack thereof).

As now-dead LDS Apostle Boyd K. Packer declared in his infamous 1981 sermon to a gathering of Mormon Church educaters, entitled, "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect":

"Some things that are true are not very useful."

Thank you, Sister Dew, for doing what you were told to Dew.



Edited 12 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 04:03AM by steve benson.

This is a fascinating post, Steve...

...and, because there are to me personal connections (my maternal relatives were great fans of your grandfather, and were also fans of everything politically important that he stood for), this one-of-a-kind, inside view of what was actually going on within the Benson family, and behind the scenes, is truly amazing to me. (When I was growing up, I NEVER imagined that one day I would have the opportunity to read anything like this...or that I would EVER be able to truly understand the events of back then as they unfolded.)

Thank you.

This is awesome info, Steve, and thank you for posting it! I haven't read the Dew biography, but I was listening to a Mormon Expression podcast on ETB and wonder if some things they said were true.

They said that ETB was sent to Europe to get him out of the United States because he was causing embarrassment to the church with his political rants. Is this the real reason he was made European mission pres?

Also, they said that in a certain meeting with the 12 he presented a bunch of John Birch stuff and President McKay literally stood up and walked out of the room, followed by the other members of the 12. Is this true, and do you know any more about this meeting?

Apostle Joseph Fielding Smith' wrote a private letter to an Idaho Congressman, hoping that sending ETB into European Mission exile would purify his blood.

First, this background involving First Presidency member Hugh B. Brown:

"U.S. under-secretary of state W. Averill Harriman asked Hugh B. Brown how long Ezra Taft Benson would be on his European mission. Pres. Brown reportedly replied: 'If I had my way, he'd never come back!' (Brown statement to Harriman and Richard D. Poll in Salt Lake City, 25 Oct. 1963, quoted in Poll's letter to D. Michael Quinn, 13 Aug. 1992)"
_____


Then, the above-mentioned letter from Joseph Fielding Smith:

"Joseph Fielding Smith identified Benson's European mission as intentional exile. The Quorum of Twelve's president wrote to Congressman Ralph R. Harding (Idaho) on 30 October: 'I think it is time that Brother Benson forgot all about politics and settled down to his duties as a member of the Council of the Twelve.' JFS also said, 'He (Benson) is going to take a mission to Europe in the near future and by the time he returns I hope he will get all of the political notions out of his system.' (Smith to Harding, 30 Oct. 1963, photocopy in folder 2, box 4, King Papers, and in folder 22, box 5, Buerger Papers)"
_____


And this, as part of the anti-ETB backlash, from an LDS Institute director:

"One of the directors of an LDS institute of religion wrote: 'May a dumb spirit possess Bro. E.T.B.' (George T. Boyd, associate director of the LDS institute of religion in Los Angeles to 'Dick' [Richard D. Poll], undated but written ca. 18 Oct. 1961 and answered 24 Oct)"
_____


Then, this, again noted by J.F. Smith:

"Joseph Fielding Smith wrote: 'I am glad to report to you that it will be some time before we hear anything from Brother Benson, who is now on his way to Great Britain where I suppose he will be, at least for the next two years. When he returns I hope his blood will be purified.' (Wilkinson diary, 14 Dec. 1963; Joseph Fielding Smith to Congressman Ralph Harding, 23 Dec 1963)"

(source for the above: "The Snubbing of Ezra Taft Benson," at: http://www.greaterthings.com/Topical/ETB_snubbing.htm)
_____


Finally, a temple meeting walkout of General Authorities from a presentation being given by ETB:

"Between July 1972 and Dec 1973:

"While Harold B. Lee was in the [First] [P]residency, he evidently even gave an embarrassing rebuke to Apostle Benson during a meeting of General Authorities in the Salt Lake Temple.

"As reported by Henry D. Taylor, an Assistant to the Twelve, individual apostles were delivering formal presentations on various subjects to the assistants. Benson’s assigned topic was the church’s youth program, but he began presenting charts and quotes to show Communist influence in America and the need to teach anti-Communism to Mormon youth.

"Lee walked out while Benson was speaking, soon followed by the other apostles. Taylor and the other Assistants to the Twelve were the only ones who remained seated during Benson’s presentation."

("Ezra Taft Benson Chronology During the Joseph Fielding Smith, Harold B. Lee and Spencer W. Kimball Administrations," by Clair Barrus, at "World Without End," 9 May 2015, http://www.withoutend.org/ezra-taft-benson-chronology-5/#sthash.54pbvSNe.dpuf)



Edited 7 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 04:14AM by steve benson.

Man, if JF Smith was bothered by ETB's rants, you know it was BAD. And what's with JFS' yammering about "purification"? It sounds exactly like Gen. Jack D Ripper in the film Dr Strangelove.

Dr.Fielding Strangelove, or how I learned to shelve it and love the BOM.

Reading about the leadership in this era does make me feel somewhat like living inside the movie. Kudos to you, Steve, and your family for managing to safely untangle from such a bizarre network of people.

I had a copy of her book but when I recently learned that the church is not true, I threw it out. It was even an autographed copy of the book.

However, on a personal note, I met ETB in Washington DC in the 70's when he gave a fireside at the Stake center next to the temple. He did a lot of good in helping people in Europe after WWII. Since my family was in Europe, even though they were not LDS, I still appreciated his service there. I thought he was a man of the times. He lived through major societal upheavals with the wars, great depression, civil rights revolution, and even black members getting the priesthood in the church, etc.
I also got my mission call from ETB, with a stamped signature, of course. One of the things I most admired about ETB was that he didn't mince words or sit on the fence about anything. Of all the prophets in my 36 years in the church, he was my favorite. I learned a lot from him. Considering that the truth of the church is now trickling out, I have yet to examine my memories of ETB and his teachings on the BoM. Promoting that book was one of the high points in his ministry. I wonder, how much did he really know about JS and the book's origin? Steve: do you have any insights on this question?

That said, over the years since having left Mormonism, I've been asked what, if anything, I was able to conclude from my own experiences and observations regarding the so-called "special witness" of my grandfather/LDS Church president, Ezra Taft Benson, as well regarding the allegedly unique testimonies of other Mormon General Authorities.

For instance, RfM poster "No Longer a Believer" asked:

"Steve, did your grandfather consider himself to be a legitimate prophet of God? I'm curious to know how a prophet of God could reconcile that he is a prophet notwithstanding he never had a visit from the big guy in the sky, for I'm certain that we agree that Pres. Benson never received such a visit, and he must have wondered why he never did.

"Or, did he know that he was not a prophet but had to keep appearances?

"Or, did he believe he was a true Prophet but that prophets don't receive heavenly visitations anymore? (This is what I tend to think)

"Thanks if you can help me understand the view of the Brethren. Ever since I found out it is not true, my head is spinning trying to make sense of it."

A similar question was also asked by RfM poster "OntheFence," who wanted to know what information I might have regarding the expression of personal testimonies from Mormon apostles that could help illuminate their personal positions when it came to belief in Mormonism:

"I discovered this site about 5-6 months ago and, as you can guess, have found it and the various links I have followed to be quite injurious to my ever more fragile faith.

"While the historical information and analysis I have encountered (which obviously differs markedly from what I have been exposed to in the past) have had a significant impact, I have found the material supplied by Steve Benson to be the most intriguing. To be able to interview two apostles (especially Apostles Maxwell and Oaks) would be major fantasy for me. You indicated that the testimonies provided by these leaders were weak at best.

"What about similar experiences with your grandfather? Did he ever describe direct revelation or the basis of his devotion to the church? In your opinion, are most of the Quorum of the 12 solid believers or do you think that there are some closet doubters among them?"

In response, based on my own interactions with my grandfather--as well as with other high Mormon Church leaders--my assessment of their personal "Prophet Show and Tell Time" is this:

Testimonies from Mormon apostolic leadership supposedly indicating their "Special Witnesses" status for Christ are, well, unimpressive. In fact, I would characterize their expressions of devotion and knowledge as constituting a non-special witness to what they claimed to be true. (I am thinkibng specifically of those which I personally heard, in private discussions with Dallin H. Oaks, Neal A. Maxwell and Bruce R. McConkie).

I could pose the question another way:

Mormon General Authority leadership may believe the LDS Church is "true," but do they really know it? And are they forthright with the Mormon membership about what they say claim either believe or know?

That said, this is my assessment of my grandfather's root Mormon beliefs: My grandfather's testimony of Mormonism, as expressed to me repeatedly over the years in personal discussions and correspondence, was rooted in the following on handful of basic personal beliefs:

--ETB on the Book of Mormon

My grandfather fervently believed that the Book of Mormon was the revealed word of God and an actual historical document. From what I was able to observe, he never, for a moment, questioned its authenticity.

That said, however, I never personally heard or saw him analyze or critique the Book of Mormon in any real depth on issues relating to its alleged historicity, authenticity or reliability. While he preached fervently from the pulpit about "flooding the earth" the Book of Mormon;" and while he frequently quoted in his sermons from the Book of Mormon and from the D&C about the Book of Mormon, I never saw him regularly reading the LDS scriptures in the privacy of his own residence.

In private, his feelings about the Book of Mormon were not as resounding or convincing as they were when he was behind the pulpit. For instance, he did admit to me, one-on-one, that even though he insisted the LDS Church was not neutral on the question of organic evolution, one could argue for or against it from the same Mormon scriptures. In other words, for all his publicly-expressed confidence in the Book of Mormon, in this particular instance he was not nearly as emphatic or confident in private as he appeared in public about the surety of LDS scripture.

Nevertheless, his hesitancy on that question was not enough to shake his unbending faith in the authenticity of the gold plates. To my grandfather, they were without question the translated word of God, serving as a pillar of unshakeable, personal, testimonial faith.

Politically speaking, he also told me that ranking second only to revealed Mormon scripture in battling what he called godless Communism were the publications of the John Birch Society--which he also told me via personal correspondence every American should have access to.


--ETB on Obeying the Commands of Mormonism's Ranking Leadership

My grandfather unquestioningly believed and simply accepted that the highest leaders of the Church--most notably, the LDS President and the First Presidency counselors, together with the Quorum of the Twelve--were inspired by God in leading the affairs of the Mormon Church. He insisted that all must follow the Brethren devoutly--and without skepticism.

For example, when he called me one cold, wintry day in Provo, Utah (at the behest of my distraught mother) to tell me to break off my engagement, he introduced himself to me on the phone by saying, "Stephen, I'm not calling as your grandfather, but as the President of the Quorum of the Twelve." Then he told me to break off my marriage plans in order to show deference to my parents and to keep harmony in the family.

He did, however, privately acknowledge to me that the Mormon Church's highest leaders were human, that they made mistakes, that they did not always agree among themselves on doctrinal matters (such as on the official Church position on organic evolution) and that some matters about which they disagreed among themselves (again, such as with organic evolution) were not necessary to one's eternal salvation.

Still, he told me that obedience to the General Authorities--even if what they claimed to be true was, in fact, wrong--constituted a fundamental principle of the Gospel. He assured me that God would bless those who followed the Brethren, even when the Brethren were in error.

My grandfather also told me that he did not want me to publish anything that would undermine faith or testimony in the leaders of the Mormon Church. (This advice he gave me as I was doing a BYU undergraduate research paper at BYU on the LDS Church's official position on organic evolution). He also told me to "go easy on the Church" in my editorial cartoons, going so far as to both phone and write me to complain about them when he thought I had gone too far (such as, for example, when I was lampooning the LDS Church and its leaders during the Mark Hofmann "White Salamander" forgery scandal).

In short, my grandfather was more committed to the idea that obedience trumped truth than the other way around. He was reluctant to talk about Church hierarchy machinations behind the scenes. In order to protect his fellow Brethren in high places, he was even willing to make claims that he undoubtedly knew were not true--such as declaring that the Quorum of the Twelve was essentially always and amazingly united--more so, he insisted, than any group of men in the world--when he, in fact, was often the center of controversy, dispute, frustration and anger with such ranking fellow Church leaders as Hugh B. Brown, Joseph Fielding Smith and Harold B. Lee--particularly on matters of politics and ETB's desire to preach his personal, extremist gospel of John Birch-inspired anti-Communism at every possible opportunity.

Yet, my grandfather--in order to "protect the Brethren"--would also not answer direct questions that I put to him, such as whether the strident anti-organic evolution views of Apostle McConkie represented the official position of the LDS Church, deferring to McConkie while wryly and cagily telling me that he (ETB) had said enough on the subect. In other words, he covered the butt of his fellow high-ranking leaders when he felt he had to, needed to and was obligate to. In that regard, he was a poker player for the Lord, if you will, when it came to strate General Authority comrades.

--ETB on His Personal Revelatory Encounters with Deity

My grandfather never claimed to me (or anyone else of whom I was aware) that he had personally seen God, Jesus Christ or other divine beings. He did, however, emotionally inform me that he had had an experience in the Salt Lake temple (regarding the announcement by President Kimball on Blacks and the priesthood) that was too sacred to talk about. He told me that it was one of the most "spiritual" experiences of his life but that he would not delve into it at all, even though I requested that he do so.

He also informed those in attendance at a Benson family reunion in Nauvoo, Illinois, that there were other matters which he was not at liberty to discuss, either.

My grandfather was never intensely specific with me in revealing any particular personal experiences of his that formed the basis for his testimony of the truthfulness of Mormonism--other than to bear witness to knowing that truth of LDS claims through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.

At his core, his testimony of Mormonism was fundamental, simple and not deeply examined. He was born into the culture, traditions, beliefs and practices of Mormonism and was, when all is said and done, a true and sincere believer in LDS claims to ultimate truthfulness. What you saw was what you got.

Let me sum it up this way:

When all was said and done, Ezra Taft Benson was a TBM who believed from the beginning to the end.



Edited 8 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 11:00AM by steve benson.

That has me really intrigued: the most spiritual experience of his life that he claimed to have had in the Salt Lake Temple that he was not at liberty to discuss

It could have just been a super dreamy aka TBM moment after fasting or what not, when he, like other TBMs, thought they felt or saw God or Jesus etc., whether together or with others.

But what if it was something like this:

- an occasion when the FP or Q of 12 had red wine or other alcohol in the Temple which only they are permitted to have, mimicking the Last Supper, or Joseph and his early Kirtland Ohio temple goers, and they were simply high from booze?
-a naked orgy for the FP or Qof12 - a la Joseph smith style antics, a reward to keep the men interested and coming back for yet another year of painfully boring Mormon meetings and callings
-or another special/weird ceremony reserved only for the FP or Q of 12, which is off limits to general members (like the 2nd annointing or even weirder than that)?

Then again, his comments could have just reflected a typical brainwashed TBM ("I've had too many special spiritual experiences to deny it) or been a defensive comment to deflect further inquiry or investigation ("too sacred to talk about" BS)

I am fascinated, unbelievable, with your take on ETB's thoroughly uncompromising stand on the authentic historicity of the BoM. I remember him going on about it in some GC shortly after his coronation. and that is what got me off the fence and leave. In a backasswards way, I can thank him for my so much better, authentic and more rational life.

In many respects, I consider him to be the last "prophet" the church had, precisely because of his black and white thinking (which is certainly not unique) and willingness to stand by it. The weasels that follow will never again do that. Star Chamber (Correlation Committee) will see to that even if they don't self-enforce it.

I agree. there is something of respectable about sticking to what you believe and having strong opinions in the face of opposition. For Benson to hold to being so far to the right in the face of all the bretheren walking out in the meeting is particularly unusual. I sincerely admire him and his fight against liberals.

I'm just throwing this out there but since Benson didn't at all seem to care what people (even his friends) thought of him and seemed emotionally detached from people could he have had a mild form of Asperger's or something?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 01:27PM by steve benson.

poopstone Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I agree. there is something of respectable about
> sticking to what you believe and having strong
> opinions in the face of opposition.

Resolve can be something respectable even enviable, but when its resolve strictly for the sake of being resolute, then its really a waste, and waste is STUPIDITY.

I have to give acknowledgement ( NOT Credit) to Brigham Young, his soul was so foul and cankered with resolve to have his own MORmON kingDUMB at any cost .......to others, that he practically kicked his Brighamite MORmON Saint's asses across the plains to Zion Utah. (I'd like the chance to kick his ass in like manner.)

> For Benson to
> hold to being so far to the right in the face of
> all the bretheren walking out in the meeting is
> particularly unusual.

Its only unusual in comparison / contrast to the more typical more current latter day big talk and then really gutless weak kneed lame ass cave in when the slightest real pressure emerges behavior that more current Church leaders typically indulge in as they run the LD$ Inc MORmON business empire. Ala Gutless Gordon BS Hinckleys behavior - write a book about advocating "Standing for Something" and while also caving in on most every original key tenet of the organization that he headed.


Sure, those MORmON leaders expect/ demand the absolute purest resolve from their members in living the MORmON gospel, but when things start to get a little bit rocky then count on the LD$ Inc. MORmON BreathUrine leaders to collapse like a house of cards hit by a freight train, and after they collapse they still expect their MORmON members to hold to their old guard MORmON resolve. EBT's resolve was actually typical MORmON behavior as expected for run of the mill MORmON members.


>I sincerely admire him and
> his fight against liberals.
>
> I'm just throwing this out there but since Benson
> didn't at all seem to care what people (even his
> friends) thought of him and seemed emotionally
> detached from people could he have had a mild form
> of Asperger's or something?

Well, MORmONISM IS a form of mental illness, not necessarily Aspergers.

There is something that Sheri Dew SHOULD hide, unfortunately she does not.

I said that I have to examine my memories of ETB's teachings on the BoM considering the real facts, evidence, and truth that have come out since his passing. I recall hearing him in GC scolding the church for not reading the BoM and taking it lightly. I still respect him as a person even though he got it wrong. Believe me, before I learned the truth regarding JS's alternative lifestyle recently, I had that book in my home. I have since disposed of it. But unraveling what ETB taught with the truth of the BoM is painful. With all he knew, even if he truly believed in it, he had to know promoting something that is a lie, even if he accepted it, is misleading. I don't understand why he would do that? I agree that he was the last prophet, if the church ever had one to begin with.

<<...that you have in the Capitol Reef Ward in Washington...>>

<<[signed]

"Heber J. Grant
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
David O. McKay>>


And thus we see an example of how muddleheaded the Lord's Chosen were. Capitol Reef is in Utah. The Capital ward was in the Washington DC area.

I usually read everything but sorry, this is so offensive. I know it is history but I choose not to read further into this. I stopped at the paragraph suggesting that the "colored women" sit elsewhere in order to prevent injury to the "sisters' sensibilities."

This is disgusting. I know it is part of history but it is not worth the feelings of disgust to read it. I don't need read stuff about the KKK and the Holocaust either to know it happened. I choose not to dwell on the horror that is our history.

My grama rode a bus into the south to come get me after my abusive mother and brother nearly murdered me. I was so malnourished and sick that she asked the black men on the back seat if I could share their seat so that I could lie down. They moved for me and I thank them for sharing their space with me.

I choose not to dwell on the profoundly sad parts of our history - I feel a great love for people like the men in the back seat and, had I known of the church's rampant hypocrisy before baptism, I would never have joined this pretend religion. Maybe it is history and maybe that's the way it was but I don't see any need for this human to spend time in the stink. Obviously, I feel really strongly about this! I am so ashamed that white people could be so damn ignorant and mean.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 01:29PM by steve benson.

Granted - it does give us evidence. BUT don't we have enough evidence already without bringing this up. Honestly, we have the stupid rock now! My dogs chew rocks, too!

I guess you have to continue beating a dead horse, though since TBMs are so blind.

But when a dog has chewed a bone enough, it buries it and looks for a frog or lizard or mole or the food bowl.

I am not saying to bury this but I am saying that it is so disgusting to me that this dog is leaving this bone to others. I, for one, again state that reading this is not worth the feelings of disgust I feel.

So, what am I doing reading this again? Oh, well . . . stupid stupid dog chewing on a rotten bone! This time, I leave this thread to other dogs to chew.

By beating the horse can we demonstrate that he's really dead, and not just resting.

If you don't like what Steve Benson says don't read what he

writes. It's really simple. You're expectation that he

edit his words to suit your wishes is very unrealistic to

say the least. He doesn't make this shit up, he just reports it

and in so doing has helped many thousands leave the church.

Your overreaction to this is puzzling to say the least. You

can't blame him for your reaction, There is a whole board here

who didn't react the way you did, I'm thinking its your problem.

The Mormon Cult denies its own Racism.

Theses stories need to be told and retold to the thousands who come here never having heard these facts about the Mormon Cult.

... and value of acquainting themselves with the facts.

The Mormon Church is into censoring information. I'm disappointed to see that you are too.

Sorry but I don't think Steve owe's you an apology. He is NOT responsible for your happiness. You are.

3 parts:

1. Quit expecting me to censor information for you (the Mormon Cult does that, not me).

2. Quit reading what you say you shouldn't be reading (you keep on coming back for more).

3. Move on to the fiction department at Deseret Book (and say hi to Sheri Dew for us).

P.S. You owe history a big fat apology.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2015 10:38PM by steve benson.

Very interesting info. My grandma on my mom's side was a secretary for etb in DC during his Sec of Ag days. I'm sure she fit right in because she was a racist hag. Wouldn't surprise me if she was one of the ward members complaining about the black sisters sitting with the white n delightsome ones.

Great thread Steve. Thanks again. I have another question for you about your grandfather. Today in church they presented him as a loving and doting husband and father. Yet it seems to me he could not have been home very often due to his calling and political demands. What kind of father and husband and grandfather was he?

. . . but home or abroad, he kept in contact through regular correspondence--and when physically present, through presiding over our large anid regular Benson family reunions. He was revered by his dutiful Mormon family as prophet, seer, revelator, fine husband, great dad and nice grandpa (although back in the 1950s when he was President Eisenhower's Secretary of Agriculture, his wife admitted on national TV that he wasn't home very often-- whereupon she was heralded on the set by Ezra for being a real trooper--to which she agreed).

He clearly loved us and cared about us. I would personally visit with him often. As a kid, I did family yard work with him and, as an adult. had many conversations with him in person and through his letter writing to me. He spent much time with me and gave me many books from his personal library and mementos from his travels.

Yet, he was, to a fault, a stern and domineering taskmaster in our uber-patriarchal family system. Because of his high profile in the church, we were under constant watch and admonishment from him at the top and then down through the family ranks to be properly behaved, good examples and unquestioningly obedient. He warned us to "leave no empty chairs" in our eternsl family circle in the Motmon hereafter. This was a central theme in our ETB dominated and led family activities.

Under his priesthood reign, we were always being measured and assessed by him In terms of personal political and religious righteousness. He would call us on the carpet when he thought we were straying.

In my case, he intervened in an attempt to end my engagement (which my mother had vehemently opposed from the start). We got married anyway when he changed his mind and told me to go ahead and not worry about what my mom thought. We ended up getting divorced.

We were expected to toe the line in all things. He wrote me on official church stationery, as well as phoned me, to chastise me for political cartoons of mine that he disliked (one on the Hofmann forgery scandal, in particular).

Yes, he "Mormon gospel loved" his family, but we were always under his judgmental LDS eye.

Despite that, when the Mormon church started using him as a prop and lying about his mental and physical health in his waning years, I called it out on its lies because he didn't deserve that kind of manipulative mistreatment.

Then, when I eventually realized that the entire Mormon church was built on lies, I wanted out and left, regardless of lineage--which doesn't trump lies. Knowing Grandpa like I did, he would have been royally pissed (having once called me a "turd"), but I had to do what I had to do.

After all, he always told me to be true.

☺️



Edited 32 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2015 02:38PM by steve benson.

After reading this all I can't believe that I belonged to a cult that promoted this kind of BS. As for the Sheri Dew whitewashed history, it really is a shame Reed didn't get to write it I bet it would be more interesting.

The one thing that stands out the most, and I think you have eluded to in the past, is the ETB was a true believer, and he didn't just try to keep the fairytale going by lying and telling fake testimonies.

When someone is so entrenched in Mormonism it is hard to fault their motivations for controlling family relationships. They are so worried about "leaving an empty seat" that they will do anything to avoid losing a member in the magic kingdom.

Even though his feelings of truthfulness about Mormonism were misgiven, he held his family in the patriarchal grip because he was a true believer. I don't think that is true with most GA's now, they perpetuate the myth to keep the corporation afloat instead of true belief in the Mormon Church.

That is fascinating reading, Steve. Thanks for posting it. Especially the 1942 letter when he was the SP in DC.

You should write the definitive biography of ETB.

NormaRae Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You should write the definitive biography of ETB.

I most emphatically second this!!!

Steve,
We are the same age. I always enjoy hearing your recollections about the GA's who were in charge when I was a youth/young adult.