Joseph C. Phillips on Bill Cosby

Fabulous commentary on the relationship between character and reputation. You can draw a parallel between Bill Cosby and Joseph Smith. do you throw out his brilliance as a founder of a religion because of his character flaws (such as encounters with teenagers?). In this commentary, the answer seems to be yes to the public.

What came to my mind was that God sees the full landscape of what Bill Cosby did in his life — the serial rapes, but also the good he did. I think God will see the many ways I have tried to serve humanity myself and will weigh that against my less activity in the church (if that even matters to him) on judgment day. Time will tell — I am glad that I believe God is likely more merciful regarding character flaws than the public eye is.

Thanks for adding a synopsis for the video. I wanted to do that myself but I was posting from a phone (slow) with no spell check (flying without a net).

But, obviously, if this were all coming out after Cosby’s death, it would fall to others to preserve his legacy. What do people who are concerned about Joseph Smith’s legacy need to do now?

Culturally we like to tie everything together; if the BoM is true, JS was a prophet, if JS was a prophet the church is true. In some ways the church has become an extension of Joseph Smith.

Making the substitution:

The church’s legacy will be determined by the character the church demonstrates now, in this moment.

History is just that, history. The flaws are out there, the strengths are out there. Do I let the failings of people in the past color my views on the present? Do I do the math to determine whether the benefits of what they did outweighed the negatives? Do I try to ignore the past and only look at the here and now?

Phillips’ parting comment is also a call to action. He’s calling on people to reevaluate Cosby based on what he does going forward but he’s also calling on Bill Cosby to show character. Relating that back to the church, maybe we can wipe the slate clean and reevaluate based on what the church does going forward. By their fruits ye shall know them, the fruits of history are no longer edible. What’s on the tree today? What grafts can be done to make tomorrow’s fruit better?

I really would like to see more “character” come from the church now.

Me, too.

I just listened to a BYU speech by Steven Harper from June’s BYU Women’s Conference. I think it was called “Seekers Wanted.” I thought, Great, He’s a young guy who’ll really speak to problems caused by historical warts. He had a graphic with “Facts” that lead to wrong “Assumptions.” I’m going to pick the one nearest and dearest to my heart – polygamy – to express my disappointment. The “fact” was: “Joseph Smith was sealed to many women.” The (erroneous, he’s saying) “assumption” was: “Joseph Smith exercised unrighteous dominion over women.”

Leaving aside the question of what conclusions to draw from the facts, the apparent inability of Steven Harper as proxy for the church to clearly and honestly summarize plural marriage in a sentence or two leaves me feeling quite pessimistic. “Joseph Smith was sealed to many women.” You’re kidding me, right? That’s your “fact?”

The church writes essays in which the pain and heartbreak of polygamy is whittled down to “misunderstandings.” And the well-documented distress of Emma Smith is a reaction to lots of…. uh, “sealings?” Why is the church surprised that so many people aren’t in the mood to do the math Nibbler is talking about?

I want to stay in the church. I feel like begging our leaders to get real about this issue. Please show the respect I assume they have for women by cutting the euphemistic, attention-shifting language used to describe polygamy. I think it’s the only way to preserve Joseph Smith’s legacy. Polygamy is part of the historical record, but it needs to be just that – history, not a doctrine so offensive that modern people are repelled. Detach it so Joseph Smith’s legacy can stay aloft.

I have no real legacy in my family if my kids aren’t free to honestly name my shortcomings and mistakes. I think it will only heighten their appreciation for the good I did.