In yesterday’s post I mentioned briefly one of the verses (v10) in 1 Nephi chapter 14 that has always intrigued me regarding the great and abominable church. That phrase has been the subject of much study and debate over the years by many a student of the scriptures. I am certain it has been well discussed in priesthood quorums and Sunday school classes many times all over the church.
Here are verses nine and ten with Nephi quoting the angel:
“And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look, and behold that great and abominable church, which is the mother of abominations, whose founder is the devil. 10: And he said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth.”
You are probably aware that in the first edition of the book Mormon Doctrine that Bruce R McConkie identified the great and abominable church as the Catholic church. He was taken to task for his writings by the presiding Brethren of the church, including President McKay. The second edition of Mormon Doctrine changed that identification to be a bit more generic and not so specific.
To quote from the present edition:
“The titles church of the devil and great and abominable church are used to identify all churches or organizations of whatever name or nature – whether political, philosophical, educational, economic, social, fraternal, civic, or religious – which are designed to take men on a course that leads them away from God and his laws and thus from salvation in the kingdom of God.”
I recently received a copy of a treatise on the subject which presented an interpretation of the phrase that I had never before considered. The essay was written by Anthony E Larson a few years ago and published in one of his quarterly newsletters. To cut right to the heart of the matter, Mr Larson identifies the great and abominable church as orthodox science. I know, it sounds impossible at first, but think about in connection with Bruce R. McConkie’s definition.
What does orthodox science teach more than anything else? The ‘laws’ of science and the scientific method declare that logical, rational thinking and investigation are the only tools that lead to enlightenment and truth. The goal of science is to explain everything in terms of what can be observed – the empirical method. There is no place for God and his laws in orthodox science since religion employs faith rather than intellect.
To quote from the article:
“The science church established its own dogma or doctrine, which it promulgates through the universities. It found its ‘catechism’ in Uniformity or Gradualism as well as Natural Selection or Evolution. Its sacrament is Rationalism and Empiricism; the tenets of the Newtonian universe became its articles of faith. Latter-day Saints should readily recognize that all of the above named theories stand in direct contradiction to many tenets of the restored gospel.”
What do you think? Have you ever heard this identification of the great and abominable church before?
You can’t really escape the fact that the great and abominable church has its roots in the apostasy. But, of course, its definition is broader than that.
One of the great abominations of today is secularism. This is the systematic replacement of God with government. In other words, God gets thrown out the window so that man can sit on the throne.
It’s popular to say that evolution is an observable fact, but this is, of course, a gross misstatement. Micro-evolution — the adaption of species to environment, such as growing heavier fur in colder conditions — can be observed, but this is not evolution. The fact is, a dog with a heavier coat is still a dog. So-called micro-evolution would better be called variation within a species.
The theory of evolution actually is about macro-evolution, or vast changes of one species into another over time. The theory of evolution says, essentially, that given enough time and possibly need, a dog can change into a different creature — grow wings, become an ocean dweller, you name it. That’s macro-evolution, which cannot be observed today. Therefore, the theory of evolution is not testable by the empirical method, nor is it based on rational thought. It’s pure imagination.
Certainly, the theory of evolution is supported by hoaxes and misinterpreted data masquerading as evidence, but that does not make it scientifically valid.
So yes, the great and abominable church is secularism supported by pseudo-science … and the theory evolution is a huge chunk of that.