Mere Mortals, Divinely Appointed

On occasion, former CNN talk show host Larry King interviewed former LDS President, Gordon B. Hinckley. One such interview happened in 2007. I remember so vividly sitting in my friends' living room, eagerly awaiting the words of a man I revered so highly.

I was not disappointed.

Larry King is a kind, easygoing type of guy, always respectful, a great fit for President Hinckley. The two of them covered many topics through the course of their interview, including the former Priesthood ban on black men of African descent. When Larry King asked the prophet to explain the reason for that ban, he calmly and cheerfully replied, "It's the way early church leaders interpreted the doctrine."

This response leaves room for various interpretations, one being the possibility that the early leaders interpreted the doctrine incorrectly. Maybe they were just wrong.
                                                                                                           
What a wonderfully liberating idea! Maybe they were just wrong.

In our church, we raise our right arms to the square to sustain members to many different positions. We sustain someone called to be a nursery leader. We sustain someone called to be a relief society greeter. We sustain someone called to be a Sunday School teacher. In like form, we sustain those chosen to be general leaders of the church, including the 12 apostles and members of First Presidency.

When we raise our arms to the square to sustain our brothers and sisters, we offer our support. We promise to do all we can to help them in their callings, to ease their burdens, and to pray for them. We promise to follow their leadership, whether they are leading the youngest among us in the nursery or serving in positions of leadership for the worldwide church.

What we do not do when we sustain these people is imply in any way that they are perfect. All of them are human beings, living in a fallen state, striving to do their best, but yes, falling short on occasion here or there. Each of them relies solely on the infinite atonement of Jesus Christ, without which not a single one of us could make our way back to our Heavenly Parents.

That includes the general leadership of the church. This may seem obvious. However, one unfortunate thing that sometimes happens in our church is that we forget that our general leaders are human beings. We come to believe, expect, even require them to be perfect. Those outside our faith sometimes accuse of of worshiping Joseph Smith. We don't, of course, any more than we worship our current president, Russel M. Nelson. But I think the reason some may think we do stems from this tendency to deify our general church leaders.

When we deify our prophet, his counselors, or members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, we do a huge disservice to both them and us.

For them, it creates an impossible environment in which to work. Imagine feeling that you have to be perfect or others might lose their testimonies and fall away from the church, yet knowing full well you can't be. What ridiculous and unproductive pressure to place on these poor servants! They devote their lives to building the kingdom, serving tirelessly and relentlessly, often at advanced ages, all on our behalf. Can we cut 'em some slack? They're mere mortals, with the same struggles and temptations, conflict and strife as you and me. With their overwhelming responsibility, I'll bet they are profoundly grateful that on those occasions that they miss the mark, make a poor decision, or move in the wrong direction for just a second, they have the glorious doctrine of repentance on which to lean. They can go to bed with the assurance that tomorrow is another day, and that their savior suffered in a garden and died on a cross to make it possible for them to try again.

For us, deifying our leaders, whether general or local, can lead to a dangerous slippery slope of hero worship, that's neither productive nor real. I have a friend who joined the church along with her husband early in their marriage. Their stake president at the time was pivotal in their process of investigating the church, taking the missionary discussions, and ultimately choosing to be baptized. I think he might have even baptized them himself. A few years later, he made some unfortunate choices in his life that led him to leave the church entirely. What if my friend had believed this leader to be perfect? What if her testimony had been based on this man, rather than on her savior? She might have left right along with him, rather than serving faithfully in the church all these years, raising a lovely family of four children, and sending three of them on full-time missions.

I have tender memories of Seth in the nursery, marching around holding a flag or banner of some sort, joyously singing "Follow the Prophet; he knows the way!" The obvious question is how do we follow our leaders, fully sustain and support them, without falling into the trap of believing they are incapable of human error? I don't have a perfect answer for everyone (and I don't have to), but I can tell you what works for me.

First, I can sustain church leaders with heart and hand. I can pray for them to lead according to the Father's will and work alongside them to build the kingdom.  Second, I can listen to their counsel, honestly listen to it, with an open mind and heart. I can pray to seek ways that counsel might apply to me personally and to my  family, rather than brushing it aside. And third, I can remember that they are human beings, mere mortals, striving to follow their savior just like me, but divinely appointed to lead at this time.

May I end by quoting Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, whose words happen to be the general title of this entire blog:

"And, to be perfectly frank, there have been times when members or leaders in the Church have simply made mistakes. There may have been things said or done that were not in harmony with our values, principles, or doctrine. I suppose the Church would be perfect only if it were run by perfect beings. God is perfect, and His doctrine is pure. But He works through us--his imperfect children--and imperfect people make mistakes."

Yep, Elder Uchtdorf; you are correct: "There is room for you [and me] in this church."