I was following a minor trail of mormon esoterica and came across a quote, on Mormon*Curtin(dot)com regarding RfM. The post I'm going to quote from is from Dec. of 2007. It was in response to the OP, which was making fun of Mark E. Petersen claiming to have never seen his wife 'unclothed'. In the OP, the op said he was quoting a RfM'er, Chimes, and put up a copy of the post.
The alleged Chimes' posting can be seen at
http://mormon*discussions.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4358 (take out the *)
The basis for the Chimes post is the following quote:
"...many of our women now feel
obligated not only to display
they badly shaped knees, but
also their thighs as well.
"No woman looks as lovely
as when she is properly and
fully clothed. What woman can
suppose that ugly knees and
bony shoulder blades can add
luster to her charm?"
--Mark E. Peterson, A Fossil
"The Way to Peace", 1969
I tried to find the Chimes post here on RfM that was alluded to, but could not. I think it predates the current iteration of RfM's historical content.
The discussion there on Mormon*Curtain continued and here's the one that I want to share:
"RFM is well known as an
intellectual and ethical
asylum. Its credibility
is zero, corresponding to
its general tenor of
intellectual dishonesty
and shrill hysteria."
--Coggins7
Did this Coggins7 guy know you guys from back then or what!!!
In further buttressing his position as a Knight Templar of the only true church, Coggins7 offers a personal insight:
"It will probably be too much for the choir here if I mention that there has never been any official Church counsel regarding oral sex, and I have never personally heard of or received such counsel. The only time I ever heard of such was from...stories...that float around LDS culture from time to time.
"I've never seen it in an Ensign, never heard it mentioned in Conference, and throughout my youth; all the time I was active, it was never taught to me by a Bishop, an SP, or anyone else. It never came up in a worthiness interview for any position, including reception of the Priesthood."
Shockingly, Wikipedia says Coggin7's implication that there was never a ban is incorrect:
"In the early 1980s the church explicitly banned oral sex even for married couples as it was considered an "unnatural, impure, or unholy practice" which reflects verbiage for sexual misconduct in the Church Handbook of Instructions.
"In a 5 January 1982 First Presidency letter to bishops and other local leaders, it was explicitly stated that members who participated in any oral sex were barred from the temple unless they 'repented and discontinued' this practice.
"A follow-up letter nine months later on 15 October 1982 stated that the First Presidency had received numerous complaints of church leaders inappropriately 'delving into private, sensitive matters' and directed leaders to never inquire with 'explicit questions' about "intimate matters involving marital relations". The oral sex ban, however, was neither removed, modified, or clarified as the only additional directive to leaders was that 'if the member has enough anxiety about the propriety of the conduct to ask about it, the best course would be to discontinue it'."
--
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexuality_and_Mormonism#Oral_sexHere's the language from the January 05, 1982 letter that is at the crux of the matter: "The First Presidency has interpreted oral sex as constituting an unnatural, impure, or unholy practice."
The church, being the open, honest and sincere seeker of truth that it is, will sell you a copy of the typewritten letter, described on their site as
"Photocopy of a typewritten letter
signed by Spencer W. Kimball and
other members of the First Presidency
of the Mormon Church [YES! It says
'...of the Mormon Church'!]. Letter
includes guidelines for local Church
authorities when interviewing members
for callings, temple recommends, or
missionary service. Includes
instructions for local leaders to
avoid indelicate inquiries into marital
relations, as well as an interpretation
of oral sex as constituting an unnatural
or unholy practice."
--
https://findingaid.lib.byu.edu/digitizeRequest.php?des=528429And you know what? When all of this was pointed out to Coggins7 in that thread, he ignored it. He simply never addressed the issue of his ignorance again but he did go on to produce additional calumnies. Yay mormonism!
But at least he did get this one right...Right?
"RFM is well known as an
intellectual and ethical
asylum. Its credibility
is zero, corresponding to
its general tenor of
intellectual dishonesty
and shrill hysteria."
I've never been so proud before. <sniff> ...