In about three weeks, we will hear a couple of dozen talks from LDS leaders at General Conference. On Nov. 5, just one month after those talks are delivered, American voters will head to the polls to elect a new president. Will any speaker at General Conference address the election or any of the related political issues it raises? And if so, what should they say? I’ll throw out some options below, but there is no easy answer. Given how consequential this election will be, one thinks that LDS leaders ought to say something. But what?
Say nothing. Just ignore the looming election and give the usual set of mildly encouraging talks on the usual set of topics.
Please vote. Brief mention of the upcoming election, simply encouraging LDS to get out and vote for the candidate of their choice. This is probably the most likely choice.
Emphasize political neutrality. Say a little more but focus on LDS political neutrality. Or should I say the myth of LDS political neutrality? Given the degree to which the LDS electorate and local leadership skews conservative Republican, it’s hard for anyone to say “The LDS Church practices political neutrality” with a straight face. In a highly partisan political environment, trying to stand on the middle ground invites flak from both sides.
Defend the Constitution. Elder Oaks already did this at length in 2021. Maybe no one was listening. Try it again? I suspect that liberal/Democratic listeners would hear “defend the Constitution by not letting Trump back into the White House,” while conservative/Republican listeners would hear “elect Trump so he can defend the Constitution.”
Good moral character? If they want to put a thumb on the scales of political neutrality, how about a talk on the importance of good moral character for our elected officials? That line used to be part of the annual LDS political neutrality statement, but was yanked about the time Donald Trump entered the political arena. That was a clear indication that LDS senior leaders quietly support Trump. If they want to change that perception, put that sentence back in and do it with some fanfare.
Say the names. This would break new ground, mentioning the candidates by name. As in, “… a choice between Vice President Harris and former president Trump.” Or, “… former president Trump, who lost a free and fair election in 2020.” Or even “… convicted felon Donald Trump.” This is probably the least likely choice. They won’t say the names.
On the one hand, the safest course is to say little or nothing. On the other hand, what good are prophets, seers, and revelators if they don’t address the big issues of the day? When the Constitution is hanging by a thread, don’t we expect LDS leaders to at least address it in Conference?
What, if anything, do you think LDS leaders should say in two weeks?
Wheat & Tares 
If they emphasize the US Constitution, you might as well pay the same amount of attention you pay to the Church’s official audit report.
Republicans claim they love the Constitution yet they support a guy who tried to steal the last election and is already signaling he’ll protest the next one if it doesn’t work out in his favor. What Constitution?
The Biden administration has been overturned in court case after case for pushing through executive action that Biden knew was unconstitutional (student debt relief for example).
If you want to advocate your candidate or party don’t use the Constitution as a crutch. We see you.
Dave B.:
You just cannot help yourself…..Political “soapboxing” under the guise of having a Mormon context. Article of no worth…..
My guess is say nothing. At most a sort of veiled allusion to supporting the law and perhaps the Constitution. The climate is so divided now that people know that a simple phrase can trigger reactions and backlash and could be socially costly. The leaders don’t want to thrust any political belief into relevance, which might ripple down into local levels and cause division in an already fragile membership.
It used to be different at church. Church-goers could usually count on their fellow attendees to be conservative and back Reaganist policies. Now that’s no longer the case. While the membership still tends conservative in many regards, it is divided over Trump.
grizzerbear55, to each his own, but I think the OP is fair game. He is speculating on what we might hear at GC, and history shows that sometimes we do hear political talks at GC. My ward is actually quite liberal, and Harris will probably win, but we hear nothing political from our pulpit and in our lessons, so I am not sure that I agree with the OP on how much the membership and local leadership skew Republican. Maybe they do in Utah. I am interested to see if any political is said at GC, and if so how it will be couched.
“Every nation has the government it deserves,” the French writer and diplomat Joseph de Maistre declared in 1811. Since the primary function of government is to make laws, it follows that every nation has the laws it deserves.
The words of de Maistre are no less true today than they were in 1811. The reason we have politics running amok is because the great mass of the public has become lazy and indolent. Indeed, the masses have rejected self-sufficiency and self-reliance and instead, have devoted their lives to seeking immediate gratification.
Being a good voter takes more effort than it does to watch a hot dog eating contest. It takes study and preparation. If the Church wants to make a difference, it will tell members to change out of their sweatpants and crocs mentality.
Members must actually put some thought into voting. Mindless voting is not enough.
I would pay good money to see someone in GC do a Biblical takedown of Trump. You know, the kind of epic burn prophets were known for delivering in the scriptures. Like when John the Baptist called called the Pharisees a “generation of vipers” or when Jesus would spend whole paragraphs on “Woe unto you because you suck.” Or when Nathan said to David, “Thou art the man.”
I know it’ll never happen and I know to some extent, most powerful people deserve some criticism and I wouldn’t want to see it become a habit. It’s a can of worms they probably shouldn’t open.
But Trump is such a transparently odious villain, a cad of Dickensian proportions who has made a career out of ripping people off, who lavishes cruelty on everyone but his most debased sycophants, a bosom buddy of Epstein who never met a woman he couldn’t objectify or demean, a boastful groper, a known rapist, a debauched, lecherous, adulterous Narcissus, a laughably irreligious pretender who looks visibly uncomfortable around Bibles, the poster boy for hypocrisy, a racist, sexist, petty, power-mad, lying, festering garbage bag of a man.
If prophets were ever meant to call the wicked to repentance, I can think of few people who deserve it more and I think it would do the members some good to hear it. Policies and partisanship aside, I wish we could all agree, “Just don’t be like this guy.”
Given the recent assassination attempts, they may say something about “bringing down the temperature” in political rhetoric, try to connect with those we disagree with, blah blah blah. Of course they won’t acknowledge or apologize for their contributions to polarization or widespread black-and-white thinking among LDS churchgoers.
If the Church is what it claims to be it is time to stand up. Stand up to the white supremacists who are members in good standing. Quit spending time worrying about yoga pants and spend more time disciplining those who are militants and dangerous.
Of course the difference in emphasis is that the bad guys are men and the yoga pants are on women. I would have thought that abusing priesthood power is more egregious than what women wear, but what do I know?
What should they say? They should condemn Trump in no uncertain terms and announce they’re revoking temple recommends (or perhaps even membership) for anyone who’s supported him unless they repent post-haste.
What will they say? Nothing more than the vaguest handwaving about the importance of voting or the need to love people who have different views.
The church has already clearly instructed members to vote Republican by adding the most recent transgender policy to the handbook so close to the election. It reads like the Republican backed Utah and Idaho bathroom laws forbidding transgender people from using a public bathroom that matches their identity. It excludes transgender people from working with children, as if they were pedophiles. It excludes them from the classes of their choice and clearly signals the church’s support for members wanting to exclude them and misgender them. It specifically says bishops won’t be allowed to counsel people how to address them, period.
This is very clearly culturally Republican. It’s not based on scientific reality. It’s nothing but politics. It’s also extremely authoritarian taking discretion away from bishops and SPs and requiring them to contact Area Authorities and get their agreement for tiny exceptions and accomodations, if they hoped to help a transgender person.
Probably in conference there will be more talks that focus on the heterosexual cisgender temple attending eternal family, and covenant path, which is just another signaling of the same issue, and more talks guilting parents for failing with their children or allowing them to engage in trends and fads (another Republican talking point claiming parents are making children transgender).
I have a transgender loved one. While this person doesn’t attend church (thank God for that), this doesn’t mean that their family members and friends like myself, that do attend, are not affected by such rhetoric. We feel unwelcomed too by such talk and policies.
I am afraid of listening to conference because I will be very sensitive to this issue. I love my church community and hope to continue attending. There are many good people there, and I hope my presence as a known advocate of transgender people will remind my friends and family to follow Christ. For this reason I won’t watch conference. I was emotionally injured last October when I tried to watch. It took a while to heal up until I could stand the emotional risks of church attendance.
I went to conference last year praying that RMN would use his power and bully pulpit to remind people to follow Jesus Christ and treat marginalized people well. I even prayed that he would remind us that transgender people are children of God and deserving of our love and support. I experienced “Think Celestial” as a betrayal… wrong or right I was traumatized.
To have the church set an example of exclusion of transgender people and even put it in policy with zippo wiggle room is a clear political signal. It will result in increased exclusion of transgender people, and more will die by suicide or violence, both in and outside the church. Our example does not go unseen. It has an effect on the general political rhetoric and actions of others. The blood of transgender people is on the robes of our church leaders.
Yes. I wish they would speak loudly in support of compassionate, law abiding leaders. I expect those general authorities that do try to do this will be swimming upstream, and not completely unified with RMN and DHO.
In one of his post-Obergefell speeches on religious freedom (outside of GC), Oaks conceded that religious freedom did not extend to allowing county clerks to refuse to do their jobs (i.e. issue marriage licenses to all qualified applicants, including same-sex couples). He could do something equally specific now, and the second assassination attempt on Trump allows him to frame it as a “both sides” approach (although only one of the sides is a problem within the membership). It could go something like this:
Say a candidate you voted for in the past disappoints you, perhaps even by taking unconstitutional actions. When I say “defend the constitution” I obviously do not mean that you should attempt to assassinate that candidate as one such person recently did. Similarly, when a candidate loses and has exhausted all of his [deliberately gendered] legal remedies, defending the constitution means conceding that you lost. One cannot, in the name of defending the constitution, ask election officials to find you more votes or encourage your supporters to violently intimidate elected officials who are trying to fulfill their constitutional duties.
lpf, some of the loudest pro-Trump voices that I know are women. I don’t know anyone that I would label white supremacist, but I bet that women are found in their midst. I may have misread you when you wrote that “the bad guys are men and the yoga pants are on women,” but I am not sure that men = bad and women = good in all places, in all times, in all discourses, and in all settings. The truth might be a little more nuanced.
As a male who practices yoga and regularly wears yoga pants, I find the sexist association of women and yoga pants deeply troubling.
Yoga pants are a lightweight women’s version of football pants.
“If the Church is what it claims to be it is time to stand up. Stand up to the white supremacists who are members in good standing. Quit spending time worrying about yoga pants and spend more time disciplining those who are militants and dangerous.” – Ipf
The judgements against the September 6, Ordain Women, and Sam Young are not that long ago historically. I’d bet the farm (if I had one) that the target populations that the church organization would define as the “militants” and “dangerous ones” are the activists). These activists cared for the church organization, thought about church doctrine, cared for the church culture, and had connections to the church organization that drove their engagement and care.
The church organization considers it’s job to discipline the members and discourage activism outside specific gender-role-performance channels.
I name a few of the distinctive ones, but my list is very, very short, very random, and very incomplete.
Georgis, I thought I had replied, but apparently it didn’t go through. Fair enough about women also being supremacists. If that is true, then IMO the church should be disciplining ALL of them for actions much worse than not wearing garments all the time and wanting women to have more authority( Ordain Women) and protecting children (Sam Young).
There’s no real speculation needed here – the church will do exactly what it always does. It won’t directly say anything overtly political, especially at GC. It will, however, have some reference to AoF 12 and how we should all be civically engaged. Nelson will probably make some plea against political violence. That will be about it.
Firstly, that’s what they always do. Secondly, significantly less than 50% of the church actually lives in the US now, even though it’s headquartered here…so it doesn’t make sense for a primarily international church to weigh in on US politics beyond the usual calls for civility and engagement.
What they SHOULD do may be different, but it’s extremely unlikely the church will do anything different this time around.
No matter what they say in GC, it’s no secret where most of the US church membership stands politically – somewhere between 70-75% of US members identify as Republican…so 70% (+/- 5%) of voting US church members will vote Republican. It doesn’t matter if it’s Trump on the Republican ticket or Snooki from Jersey Shore. It doesn’t matter because people vote AGAINST the party they’re scared of rather than voting FOR the person they actually want leading the country, so they can easily justify their vote even when the candidate is deplorable (and both sides do this).
One big difference between LDS and other Restoration churches is organization. Modern Church of Christ and Disciples of Christ are slightly organized chaos in comparison. No one issues proclamations for the members to follow.
No creed but Christ, no book but the Bible. And baptism in free flowing water. That’s it. No politics.
Pirate Priest
Having Mormon astronauts doesn’t make the Church interstellar. I am not an anthropologist, but I question whether the Mormon church is international. I suspect that the majority of people who self identify as Mormon are in the inter-mountain west. And the fact that the vast majority of the leadership in an authoritarian church come from that culture, makes me guess that the church is a wee bit parochial.
It may yet become international, but it’s still a Utah church run by male geriatrics.
What I think they should say would just mirror my political views (vote for whoever shows good moral character by how they treat others, especially those on the margins of society, how they respect the law, who presents hope in the form of positive change, and has actual plans to do so.) Dream on.
What I think they will say is Dave’s #2 -” remember to vote”.
PS: Remember April General Conference 2020? A time we all needed hope and insight when much of the world was shut down? Get ready for a conference unlike any other: a multi-media tribute to the 200th anniversary of the first vision. If little was said at that crazy time, I have little hope that something meaningful will be mentioned this October conference ahead of a contentious and critical election in the US.
The church may have more members outside the US than inside, but it is still 100% plus an American church. We force our culture on members everywhere. So, we have an American church is Germany, an American church in Russia, an American church in Japan. We use the same hymns and the same “priesthood uniform” of white shirt and tie. Nothing sillier than a lavalava with a white shirt, tie and suitcoat, and yet Polynesians are one of the few cultures that tries to combine their own culture into Mormon/American culture. And talk about white supremacy and Christian Nationalism, have you actually read the BoM and its strong promotion of Manifest Destiny? Oh, we are soooooo much an American church.
As far as what will be said in Conference, I agree with lws329. They just announced policy of exclusion the second, not excluding families with gay parents this time, but firmly excluding anyone who is trans. Call it POX.2. That clearly signals that the church stands officially with Republicans. So, with the evil Democrats wanting to give those scary trans people, gasp, human rights and an ability to pee when not in the privacy of their own homes, it is clear that all faithful Mormons should vote straight Republican. I too have a trans loved one, who does not dare transition enough that she can no longer pass as male when around her good faithful mom and dad. So, she binds her breast to go visit her parents. Well, she does the same to take the car in for repairs because she understands male privilege …but then that is a different issue.
So, the church’s message is clear. Hold your nose and vote for Trump because we as a church and society do not want to be forced to accept that trans people are children of God we should love.
Mosiah 11 describes the government of King Noah and why the people supported his “tax & spend” program. Noah and his priests lived off the taxes they collected from the people. But the people gladly paid, and why? Verse 7 explains:
“Yea, and they (the people) also became idolatrous, because they were deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests; for they (Noah & his priests) did speak flattering things unto them.”
And there you have it. The nature of politics is for politicians to tell the people the things the people want to hear. And when people are flattered, they are easily deceived. And when people are deceived they give away things that are precious, like their freedom, for the vain promises of their political leaders.
Abinadi was not just rejected by King Noah and his priests. Abinadi was first rejected by the people of Lehi-Nephi!
I don’t see the LDS leadership able to say anything of substance about the lies and deceptions of American politics without being criticized by factions of the American membership. The vanity that pervades American culture is present in the American membership.
Unfortunately, the American vanity is made even worse because the people are deceived to believe that their party is righteous and the other party is the one that must be blamed. If LDS leaders openly observed this reality and stated both major American political parties were complicit in destroying the liberty of the people, how would you respond?
I doubt that RMN will be there. I hope DHO with his judge hat on will condemn Trump, as a danger to the rule of law. That he may even advocate for Harris, a legal type. He tried it last time but was too oblique. Surely he is aware of the danger. If he has any claim to being a prophet, seer, and revelatory, now would be the time to show it, like bible and bom prophets did, and like the prophet in waiting.
I would show some moral background, unlike the plausible deniable usual stuff. It may even get the church some publicity.
It is becoming more obvious that Trump has lost his grasp on reality. He is happy to accept all sorts of lies, and not consider the consequences of his actions.
Should Oaks wish to influence (Mormon) voters in an (officially) neutral way that rebuffs MAGA, all he would need to say is that the non-establishment clause in the US constitution was actually inspired by god, and this so as to protect human agency. “Thus, in this unique way, God acted as both muse for this constitution, and chief defender of our right to choose Him and His Church.”
He could then issue a warning that no member could rightly think themselves so inspired by god as to “force His children to follow Him against their will.”
Mormons will get the message because, for all their disavowals, Republicans have not been at all subtle in challenging democratic barriers between Church and State.
A second Trump Presidency would absolutely borrow heavily from Project 2025. Let’s not kid ourselves.
To elaborate (and as the OP suggests) the church doesn’t need to officially declare against MAGA to influence what issues are foremost on Mormon voters’ minds.
We should expect church officials then to emphasize those issues that concur easiest with whatever party they wish to direct their audience to support.
Charity towards immigrants? Democrats. Church’s official position on personal LGBTQ+ expression? Republican. Respect for democratic elections: Democrats. Concern trolling over abortion or IVF: Republican.
edit: in all honesty, at best we’ll probably hear more about Nelson’s 100th birthday than anything of substance related to the election- and that’s me being charitable.
Well, to whatever degree that the past is the best predictor of the future, one might look at past general conferences before major happenings, such as before World War One or Two or 1929 stock market collapse or the 1918 flu epidemic. The messages were the same anodyne messages we hear today.
ji,
I think there’s truth in what you say. But even so, I’m of the opinion that it’s our collective failure to live up to the things the prophets *do* say that will be our final undoing if were not repentant. Rampant fatherlessness will bring us down faster and harder than any other kind of meltdown, IMO.
@ji
What do does the scholarship on Mormon Studies/religion’s influence on politics say on the subject? More importantly, why?
(Asking b/c as I honestly don’t know)
You very well could have the gist of it, but it’s likely a lil more complex.
I just went and reviewed April 1941 — there was an acknowledgement of on-going war in Europe, and some advice for young men and young women to still plan for their futures even though there were uncertainties.
@Suzanne Neilsen & Anna
Sure, senior LDS leadership is still mostly old white guys from the Jell-O belt. And yes, the church undoubtedly has the lingering aroma of American protestantism. That doesn’t make its international expansion imaginary. Even the church itself has acknowledged that most of its growth is now happening outside the US.
Despite all my criticisms of Nelson, he really has successfully made the church more unified and cohesive internationally, often at the expense of church’s traditional core.
The question was whether the church would “go political” at GC because of the unrest in American politics. The answer is no. Not beyond the broad general comments that are always made in major election years. They’re not going to livestream commentary about American politics in 70+ languages at a worldwide religious conference (and then publish it in print 100+ languages shortly after).
Instead of politics, we’ll get
– More about garments. (I’m taking bets on whether yoga pants will get a specific mention.).
– 57 flavors of blind obedience.
– Backhanded “nice voice” talks from the Relief Society and YW leaders.
– Lots of mentions about Pres Nelson turning 100, with the requisite amounts of sycophancy.
– A dozen or so new temple announcements.
– One semi-significant policy change that gets a few gasps from the audience. (Very possibly about changes to garment designs based on all the noise about them.)
– One new attempt at a catchy slogan.
– Three or four talks that are actually about following Jesus
I love general conference. I love the calm straightforward counsel of wise leaders. There is so much shouting–so much noise in the world that it’s hard to make heads or tails of it. Give me the clear doctrines of the Kingdom–the words of Christ–to help me become grounded, rooted, established, and settled.
I don’t have much to add. I’ll just put in my “sustaining vote” on the side of very vague and open to interpretation statements on the election. I agree with lws329. I think there will be ample anti-lgbtq+ dog whistling going on that will scream to most Mormons that they are “correct” to continue voting Republican. LHCA: I remember that conference clearly with little or no prophetic direction in the midst of Covid. It was quite a gut punch. ji: I was researching conference talks during that period (about 1917-1920) and it seemed to me there were quite a few mentions of current events including the Spanish flu, the war, labor unrest and communism. Nothing too substantial, but more than we get today, for sure.
i agree with others that there will be plenty of references and adulation about RMN’s 100th birthday and associated party. It’s so twisted that his admonition to “reach out to the one” was quickly encapsulated in the handbook as “let someone else be the one to reach out to the transgendered and marginalized. God didn’t mean that “one” for heaven’s sake!”
We, as members will probably be accountable for not standing up more to that kind of high-jacking of the Saviors name. Just my opinion
I think the most likely option is just a reminder to vote and a plea for civility.
lws329 was right on with her comment about the Church deliberately timing the release of its anti-trans policies just before the election. Yeah, that’s a signal of where the Church is at on the culture war issues. I find it very disappointing.
About the international Church issue — American politics are relevant worldwide. I’ve seen many people in Europe, Australia, and South America say that they’re forced to follow US politics because of the impact the USA has worldwide. I would guess that Church members living outside the USA would be very interested in hearing whether the Church supports the Republican efforts to install a theocracy or not. I saw some articles about how Trump’s election in 2016 emboldened the far-right movement in Europe. US politics resonate internationally.
Also, I get a kick out of grizzerbear showing up to complain about political posts. The name of the post clearly said it was going to mention politics. Rather than just not wasting his time, he makes the effort to click into a post that he knows will annoy him, scrolls down, and leaves a comment. Like, maybe just don’t click on the post? Save yourself some time and a spike in your blood pressure?