Anarchy and D&C 134
A Different Pro-Anarchy & Anti-Government Interpretation
When I say anarchist principles, to some anarchist they may say “there’s only one anarchist principle: no rulers,” and that everything else is simply derivative of this. This may be true, and perhaps it might be apt to call them “libertarian principles” instead. Many anarchists view anarchy as the application of “libertarianism” and its principles of liberty to their fullest extent in all aspects of life, that anarchy is the natural endpoint of libertarianism, perhaps not unlike many Marxists view “communism” as the fullest application of “socialism.” However one wants to define the terms, whether it be “libertarian principles” or “anarchist principles,” it really is neither here nor there to me in the long run, for I personally view “libertarianism” and “anarchism” as one and the same. Call them the principles of liberty if you will, but for clarity’s sake, since this piece is an attempt to rescue “anarchy” from its tainted and tarnished definitions at the hands of the authoritarians/statists, I shall use the term “anarchist principles” primarily. And frankly, though this piece is for anyone and everyone, it is primarily an attempt to, as stated, rescue “anarchy” from it’s tarnished and vilified definitions at the hands of statists for the sake of the Mormons by connecting these principles with the Book of Mormon and showing how the doctrines taught in the Book of Mormon and one and the same with the principles of anarchy. It’s to show Mormons that what they think they know about anarchy is entirely mistaken and misguided, having been fooled and tricked by the satanic/devilish authoritarian slavers into seeing it as something satanic and thus evil and undesirable. It’s to convert mainstream, everyday Mormons to the cause of anarchy by showing them it is in actuality in harmony with the teachings found in their scriptural doctrines. But, it is also an attempt to show already converted anarchists, especially the agnostic or even the atheists that the principles found in the Book of Mormon are anarchist in nature, that anarchy is in full bloom within the Book of Mormon and thus to convince them that A.) what they think they know of Mormonism is mistaken and misguided and that they should not dismiss the book simply because it is a “religious text.” In short, there is much anarchists can learn from the Book of Mormon and its teachings of “God” despite it being a religious text.
Many anarchists will say “no gods, no masters,” and as such dismiss or fervently loath religion and religious texts as they interpret them from the sad experience of tyranny many of those religions have unleashed upon the world. They will see “God” through the lens off those evil human actors who passed off the works of Satan as the works and deserts of God and thus tend to see God as some distant tyrant they want nothing to do with. But what if, perchance, God is real, is a real human entity who has become perfected over eons of living by the principles of anarchy/liberty, and thus is not only far from being a tyrant, but is a loving parent who is an anarchist and simply wants the best for us and thus encourages us to choose the route of anarchy as well and follow him voluntarily because we see the goodness of his teachings and ways? What if everything the Mormons and the anarchists thought they knew of God was mistaken and misguided? I hope to be able to show both groups that perhaps there is more to God than what they currently think they know about him by showing the principles of anarchy in the Book of Mormon and thus showing Mormons and anarchists alike that there is much they need to learn to rethink about themselves and about each other and learn not to see each other as enemies or poor misguided saps who have simply bought into a cult and refuse to see reality. Either way, the purpose is not to convert atheist anarchists to become Mormons, or atheists theists, but rather, to show them that there is much in the way of anarchy in Mormonism by way of its scriptures and scriptural teachings about how to live one’s daily life by showing examples of those in ancient times who lived their daily lives by the principles of anarchy and prospered or lived their lives by the ways of satanic authoritarianism and perished from the inherent violence such living requires and results in. For that is what scriptures are, stories of past inhabitants of this world who chose good (the ways of God, ie.e anarchism) and the favorable results of doing so, and those who chose evil (the ways of Satan, authoritarianism, tyranny, statism, and aggressive violence) and their undesirable results ending in suffering and violent death. They are stories of past people’s lives meant for us to learn certain principles from and apply those principles to our own lives. And it just so happens that those principles taught in the Book of Mormon for people to apply to their own lives today are quite anarchistic.
This endeavor to highlight the anarchist principles found within the Book of Mormon will perhaps prove to be most useful in persuading Mormons themselves of the goodness of anarchy, that it is not something to be feared or disdained, but rather, lauded and upheld as in harmony with the principles of the teaching of Christ and the doctrines taught in the Book of Mormon. This endeavor is for non-Mormons, too, who are unfamiliar with the connections between anarchism and the Book of Mormon Christian principles, but the the primary target in convincing and persuading readers to see what I see in the connections between anarchism and the Book of Mormon and the Christianity based off on it are the Mormons themselves. For Mormons have long bought into the propaganda about anarchy statists and authoritarians have hammered into their heads since government run grade school, which they think is backed by scripture itself, namely in D&C 134. So before I delve into the Book of Mormon itself, I must first address D&C 134. For the non-Mormon/LDS reader, the D&C is short for the book of scripture called Doctrine and Covenants, which Mormons believe are a collection of modern day revelations given to the prophet Joseph Smith and subsequent prophets by God to clarify for his modern day flock of believers the principles of old for them to understand and apply in the modern times and world. They are also collections of new revelations of new previously unknown truth for the purpose of guiding modern believers in the world they live in. The D&C was mostly written between the 1820s-30s and 1844 when Joseph Smith was murdered by the state government of Missouri. D&C 134 outlines the beliefs held by Jospeh Smith and his then fledgling church on the roles of government. I hope to show modern day Mormons how they are wrong in thinking D&C 134 condemns anarchy and condones authoritarian government. I hope to show that, at best D&C 134 actually supports anarchy and the anarchy principles found in the Book of Mormon, or in the very least, is illogical in its arguments & principles and must either be read a different way in order for it to make sense or scrapped altogether. The last option is not one that need be done. Instead, seeing D&C 134 from a different light, through the principles of anarchy found in the Book of Mormon itself, understanding its vocabulary & the realities of government differently can render it in support of anarchy.
Today, there are more than 16,663,663 members of the LDS church, AKA Mormons, worldwide who all sincerely believe and daily works of scripture that are chalk full of the principles of anarchy. If these Mormons can be converted by evidenced reason & logic to learn to read D&C 134 from an anarchist perspective and see the anarchy dripping from the Book of Mormon and other LDS scripture, then anarchists will have gained a large numbered formidable allie in the cause of spreading the good news of anarchy and the peace and prosperity anarchy allows to develop, dare I say the “Zion Society” so many Mormons long for and look to under Christ. But Christ won’t come and guide us in this anarchist Zion Society unless we are significantly ready to accept it and live by it, let alone even know HOW to live by it’s principles. Christ isn’t waiting for things to get so bad he has to come and clean it up; Christ is waiting to come until we clean ourselves up, cast off the chains of evil statism and aggressive, coercive government, and adopt a voluntarist way of life in interacting with people and working together with them. But with over 16 million converted anarchists who daily read the principles of anarchy found in their scriptures, who have been converted to understand statism and coercive, aggressive government is evil and anarchy is good (and not the other way around), anarchy will significant headway and deal a major blow to the authoritarian statists in the world that perhaps they’ll never fully recover from. Over 16 million more anarchists in the world would be a very good thing for anarchy. So while this writing is for everyone, it is also aimed primarily at converting Mormons to see the light of the “gospel of anarchy” and how it is synonymous & harmonious with the gospel and teachings of Jesus Christ” himself. Convert the Mormons/LDS members into anarchists & you have a sizable chunk of a very evangelical part of the world population ready to help make the world that much more free not only by living free but by doing whatever they can to help bring the world to the virtues of anarchy. I hold no delusions of grandeur. I realize the tentacles of aggressive, coercive, authoritarian government reach far, wide and deep into the LDS community, as much so as it does elsewhere. I realize my message will likely fall mostly on deaf ears. But with a little luck, perhaps a few LDS readers might see the reason and logic in what I say concerning anarchy and its presence in the Book of Mormon and other LDS scripture and doctrine and spread those ideas to those in their own lives, until the message spreads far and wide over time. And with a little luck, perhaps some non-LDS, agnostic, and/or atheist anarchists will receive my message on anarchy and the Book of Mormon approvingly. Either way, I do what I do and write what I write because I can and because I feel it important to do so, even if no one else feels the same way, even if many mock and ridicule me from either side. So be it.
So, for the benefit of the modern practicing Latter Day Saint, AKA Mormon who claims to be a devout follower of and believer in the scriptures as well as a “good, law abiding, obedient civilian,” I shall endeavor to remove the roadblock to anarchy that is D&C 134 and try to explain how D&C 134 doesn’t actually say what it is typically interpreted as saying and that it actually is closer in principle to anarchy than to obedient, servile statism. This can be seen if one looks at it from a slightly different perspective by altering how one interprets it’s vocabulary. Most Mormons, indeed, most human beings alive today have been indoctrinated by the status quo regime of aggressive, violent, coercive government to see the world under its control through euphemisms that have been carefully crafted to paint the statist world in a certain, favorable, “common sense” light, even though it is anything but favorable or common sense. To see the statist, coercive government dominated world for how it really is, i.e. warlordism and slavery, one must learn to see through those euphemisms and relearn the definitions of certain words one has been using wrongfully for most of his/her life. Words like “government,” “anarchy,” “crime,” “magistrate,” “president,” “elections,” “sovereignty,” “law,” “rebellion”/“sedition,” “order,” “chaos,” “violence,” etc, one must see these as, often, the opposite of what they are commonly defined as. To see the anarchic principles inherent in D&C 134 and the Book of Mormon, one must relearn what these words mean for what they are in actuality and practice. One must learn to see that the so-called “good guys” that we have all been indoctrinated for years and decades by schooling and TV/movies to see and sincerely believe to truly be the “good guys” are in actuality the true, real criminals and monsters. One must be able to learn to see that for most of our entire lives, we have been brainwashed to believe good is evil and evil is good, indoctrinated in such a manner by these very criminals and monsters so that they may maintain their positions of wealth and power over others (i.e. magistrates, presidents, sovereigns, judges, politicians/legislators, bureaucrats, police, and all manner of government officials) so they may continue in their crimes and get fat off the masses of the world population. As will be shown, either D&C 134 must be seen from this new light, or it must be scrapped altogether as illogical and entirely incompatible with the rest of the teachings of the LDS scriptures regarding the agency and freedom of the individual that in actuality support anarchy. Once the hurtle of D&C 134 is cleared and it is seen from this new perspective, Mormons/Latter Day Saints will see that what they already believe from the LDS scriptures is remarkably anarchist and most of what they learn about anarchism, from me or from any other anarchist will hit home and be extremely familiar. And this will honestly be the same for non-Mormon/LDS, agnostic or atheist anarchists. There is so much anarchy or anarchy principles is Mormon theology and doctrine already, including scripture, that once what anarchy actually is has been made clear to them, they will find themselves in so many situations nodding their heads in agreement and recognizing principle after principles. In short, like most human beings, Mormons/members of the LDS church are just as close and ready, if not more so than the typical person to receive anarchy and its way of voluntary, peaceful living given the commonalities and sameness between principles of living taught in the Book of Mormon and other scripture and anarchy/voluntaryism. Mormons are probably 80-90% already converted to anarchy and voluntarism, they just don’t know it because they don’t know what anarchy and voluntarism is or they’ve been taught erroneous ideas about by those who wish to preserve power over them so as to control them and live off their hard work. Indeed, not only is it LDS scripture that contains so much of anarchism and voluntarism as it is, but so much in their church structure, ranging from the “Church Welfare” system to notion that there is no clergy and that the LDS church is run by voluntary actions by voluntary members who are “called” to those positions, all of that is anarchy/voluntaryism. And if a worldwide church ran solely on voluntary action by its lay members can grow as large as it has and continue to grow, and build so much and give so much to people in need, all through voluntary contribution and action by its members, then society, ranging from local to the world can accomplish the same growth and community creation upon voluntary action, that “government” or societal organization/interaction can run off the same voluntary principles.
To help the Mormons/LDS see this anarchy and voluntaryism they already know and believe and that it can and should be applied beyond their church life, there is only one major hurtle they need help overcoming: they must learn how to unthink what they have been indoctrinated to think about the nature and need of “government” by the violent, aggressive government authoritarians who have controlled their education and media for the entirety of their lives. Slave owners will do anything to justify and preserve their unequal status above the slaves, including preventing education, controlling what is learned, or outright threatening violence against any who they deem a danger to their system. We saw it in the past with White European and African chattel slavery, especially with the latter. And we still see it today with modern day slavery, for despite what is commonly believed, slavery didn’t end with the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution. Slavery continued and continues on to this day, only in a slightly different form so as to make it seem like the slaves are free and get to participate in their own governance. The reality is quite the opposite, sadly, whether one points to the regulatory and permit/license driven state or to the income tax and other types of legalized theft called “taxation” or the myriad other examples of the government controlling your life and your property in almost every aspect to demonstrate it. Slave owners don’t want slaves to know they are slaves, so they will go to any lengths to keep that knowledge from them and get them to not even think of that being a possibility. For the casual Mormon who contests this fact that we are all slaves to those in power in government, I merely point to the Book of Mormon example of King Limhi and his group of Nephites who were descended from those who left Zarahemla (Zeniff & company) to return to the land of their inheritance among the wicked Laminates who sought to enslave them and keep them there as slaves by requiring them to give up a percentage of their annual crop yield and set guards around their communities to ensure they obeyed and to keep them from escaping. How is out society with its myriad of enforcers of laws that steal from us in one way or another and control our flow in and out of the country any different? They aren’t. If Limhi and his people were slaves, “in bondage” to the Lamanites, then we today, even in America, most certainly are, too. Slavery comes in a variety of forms, but at its essence there is the root aspect behind it: someone else controls your life and takes what you have earned by force or threats of violence for themselves or to give to others. That you may get to “vote” for your slave masters/thieves who then decided how much they will steal and where, when, and in what manner does not make you any less a slave.
Before we can do so, we must first briefly highlight what these principles of anarchism/voluntarism found in the Book of Mormon and other LDS scripture so one knows them when read.
Impatient Readers thus far, Mormon or no, may ask: “what are these principles of anarchy found in the Book of Mormon? You keep mentioning them but haven’t explained what they are yet!” To which I respond, patience, for they shall be explained, but for the impatient reader, in short, they can be found in D&C 121: 39-45:
39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
40 Hence many are called, but few are chosen.
41 No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;
42 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—
43 Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;
44 That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death.
45 Let thy abowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distill upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
They are also found in D&C 58: 27-29:
27 Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
28 For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
29 But he that doth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.
These verses are a good summary synopsis of the principles of anarchy. In short, for the impatient reader, the principles of anarchy as found in the Book of Mormon, which shall be explained in detail shortly, are “active voluntaryism,” where in one does not use force and violent aggression against his/her fellow human beings but recognizes their sovereignty and uses patient persuasion and evidenced reason and actively chooses to be an agent of freedom and good by actively choosing to do good to others, including not violating their rights through the use of aggressive violence towards them. Again, once we have finished with D&C 134, these principles of anarchy as found in the Book of Mormon will be explicated in greater detail as we go through the Book of Mormon part by part, story by story.
Now that we have the framework of the principles of anarchy, let’s examine that major hurtle to Mormons in accepting anarchy, D&C 134, and learn to see if from a different light that shines on the anarchy and voluntarism already built into it as well as the rest of Mormonism and its doctrine and scripture.
Anarchy & D&C 134
D&C 134 says the following:
1 We believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; and that he holds men accountable for their acts in relation to them, both in making laws and administering them, for the good and safety of society.
2 We believe that no government can exist in peace, except such laws are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life.
3 We believe that all governments necessarily require civil officers and magistrates to enforce the laws of the same; and that such as will administer the law in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people if a republic, or the will of the sovereign.
4 We believe that religion is instituted of God; and that men are amenable to him, and to him only, for the exercise of it, unless their religious opinions prompt them to infringe upon the rights and liberties of others; but we do not believe that human law has a right to interfere in prescribing rules of worship to bind the consciences of men, nor dictate forms for public or private devotion; that the civil magistrate should restrain crime, but never control conscience; should punish guilt, but never suppress the freedom of the soul.
5 We believe that all men are bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments; and that sedition and rebellion are unbecoming every citizen thus protected, and should be punished accordingly; and that all governments have a right to enact such laws as in their own judgments are best calculated to secure the public interest; at the same time, however, holding sacred the freedom of conscience.
6 We believe that every man should be honored in his station, rulers and magistrates as such, being placed for the protection of the innocent and the punishment of the guilty; and that to the laws all men owe respect and deference, as without them peace and harmony would be supplanted by anarchy and terror; human laws being instituted for the express purpose of regulating our interests as individuals and nations, between man and man; and divine laws given of heaven, prescribing rules on spiritual concerns, for faith and worship, both to be answered by man to his Maker.
7 We believe that rulers, states, and governments have a right, and are bound to enact laws for the protection of all citizens in the free exercise of their religious belief; but we do not believe that they have a right in justice to deprive citizens of this privilege, or proscribe them in their opinions, so long as a regard and reverence are shown to the laws and such religious opinions do not justify sedition nor conspiracy.
8 We believe that the commission of crime should be punished according to the nature of the offense; that murder, treason, robbery, theft, and the breach of the general peace, in all respects, should be punished according to their criminality and their tendency to evil among men, by the laws of that government in which the offense is committed; and for the public peace and tranquility all men should step forward and use their ability in bringing offenders against good laws to punishment.
9 We do not believe it just to mingle religious influence with civil government, whereby one religious society is fostered and another proscribed in its spiritual privileges, and the individual rights of its members, as citizens, denied.
10 We believe that all religious societies have a right to deal with their members for disorderly conduct, according to the rules and regulations of such societies; provided that such dealings be for fellowship and good standing; but we do not believe that any religious society has authority to try men on the right of property or life, to take from them this world’s goods, or to put them in jeopardy of either life or limb, or to inflict any physical punishment upon them. They can only excommunicate them from their society, and withdraw from them their fellowship.
11 We believe that men should appeal to the civil law for redress of all wrongs and grievances, where personal abuse is inflicted or the right of property or character infringed, where such laws exist as will protect the same; but we believe that all men are justified in defending themselves, their friends, and property, and the government, from the unlawful assaults and encroachments of all persons in times of exigency, where immediate appeal cannot be made to the laws, and relief afforded.
There is a lot to unpack here, but let us start with the most important verses, #’s 2 & 5, which state that “no government can exist in peace, except such laws are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life,” and that “all men are bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments.” WHILE protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments.” Pray tell, what government is that? What government in the history of human governments has ever protected the inherent and inalienable rights of the individuals, including the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life, by the laws of said government? Surely not government in the US; not now, not 100 years ago, not even at the founding of the country and the framing of the current US Constitution. There has never been a government in the history of mankind and human governments that has protected these rights, and thus there has never been a government in the history of mankind and human government that has thus existed in peace. This is because of the very nature of government, what it is in actuality and in practice: coercive, aggressive violence and threats thereof to aggressively violate the natural rights of humanity in order to justify and secure its very existence. Indeed, the very nature of “government,” if one is to consult the expertise of anarchist philosopher Larken Rose, is where one group of people claim the right and authority to rule over other human beings and make laws, or dictates for those they rule over, often for the financial benefit of the former, which dictates are enforced by actual violence or threats thereof.
Indeed, Larken Rose goes so far as to say that “government” doesn’t exist and is a literal figment of the imagination of would be tyrants who create myths and doctrines to justify their attempts to violently rule over everyone else. As he explains, if the authority to rule over others does not in reality exist as we are all individual human beings and thus our own individual rulers and sovereigns over ourselves, then government in reality does not exist. And anything calling itself a government, which cannot exist, is in reality just a gang of bullies and criminals/warlords claiming the right and authority to rule over everyone else and enforcing that claim, that “authority” to rule by threats of violence on those who do not obey their dictates. Thus, the inherent and inalienable rights of the individual human being cannot exist under a system of criminals who use mercenaries and task masters, i.e. police and militaries, even the very citizenry itself to make threats of violence against those who disobey, i.e. under a “government.”
Thus, going back to verses 2 & 5 of D&C 134, governments cannot in law protect the inherent, inalienable rights of the individuals who make up the people as they must by necessity violate those rights on a daily basis in order to exist and thus they cannot exist in peace because the nature of government, for all government is aggressive, coercive violence against innocents in order to compel them to obey whatever edicts the ruling class makes. So, in reality, there never has been, there is not, and there never can be a “government” under which the laws protect the inherent and inalienable rights of all human beings because “government” by nature is a group of criminals claiming the authority too rule over everyone else, which by nature of such a claim inherently strips the inherent and inalienable right of each individual to rule over themselves. If one is to be protected in one’s free exercise of conscience, right & control of property, and protection life, among one’s other natural rights, one cannot be forced by aggressive, coercive violence to obey edicts from a ruling class, for such edicts, or laws as they are called, strip from the individual these very rights. One only need look at taxation to see this reality; taxation is the basis for the financial existence of all coercive human governments and by nature takes from individuals the right & control of property, as well as protection of life, for we need our property to acquire the means of protecting our lives. These forcefully stolen revenues, stolen by government officials at the threat of violence toward those who don’t pay, forcefully taken by armed thugs making good on those threats - these revenues are then used by governments to continue to enforce said taxation laws, i.e. future theft, thus forcing individuals to continuously fund the enforcement of not only the robbery of themselves, but the robbery of their neighbors, thus violating the consciences of all those who express dissent and opposition to such a racket as government and taxation. And no such violent, coercive government can exist without coercive taxation.
But let’s look at another example, say something as mundane as occupational licensure or zoning laws. Such laws infringe upon the right and control of property, as well as protection of life by dictating how one can and can’t use one’s property and how and where one can and can’t make a living using one’s property, thus bottlenecking how one protects one’s life by controlling and narrowing how one can provide for his/her life. And again, such laws violate the rights of conscience by prohibiting one from the sincere belief that one has the right to make a living from one’s own property by having a business on one’s own property where one lives/dwells, forcing people to obey such arbitrary laws against one’s conscience. Or say one wanted to have church meetings out of one’s home; zoning laws prohibiting such would not only violate the right to control one’s property. But would prohibit one from exercising his/her conscience on said private property.
The reality is that violent coercive governments by their nature violate the natural rights of individuals by their very existence in order to exist & secure their future existence and they only fuel themselves so that they may grow and prosper. Therefor, they cannot exist in peace because violence cannot and does not equate to peace. These 2 verses alone in D&C 134, verse 2 & 5, render D&C 134 illogical and impossible…IF one does not learn to interpret the word “government” in a different light. And if verses 2 & 5 are utterly illogical and impossible, then so is verse 1, for if governments are instituted for the benefit and safety of mankind, by making laws that protect the rights of the individual, and thus maintaining peace, since no violent, coercive government can accomplish the latter 2 goals (protection of individual natural rights and thus peace), no government can be for the benefit and safety of mankind since ALL human governments are built upon the foundation of violent, aggressive, coercion. The only “government” that could achieve any of of those goals, the benefit and safety of mankind by protecting the natural rights of individuals and thus maintaining peace would a purely voluntarist one where no aggressive violence and coercion was exercised in order to enforce its rules and each individual was 100% completely sovereign over one’s life, i.e. anarchy. To some anarchists, like Larken Rose, such an institution would cease to be “government” and thus cannot be called such if purely voluntary. More will be said on this momentarily.
Then there’s the notion that violent, coercive governments were instituted for humanity by God, humanity’s creator, our literal loving, merciful parent, the very being who gave us our agency to chose good or evil of our own accord, coercing no person to heaven. According to LDS theology, there was a war in Heaven, i.e. the premortal life, where Satan sought the glory and power of God and his Son, Christ, by seeking to strip his fellow siblings, us, humanity, of our agency and forcing us to be and do good in this life, thus forcing us back to Heaven after our time on this earth was done. Satan, after seeking to become such a tyrant, was thrust from Heaven out of the presence of God, wherein he took up his abode on this earth to temp and ensnare mankind and drag them to hell with him by getting them to choose evil instead of good. Whatever one believes of this story of the creation of Satan and heaven, hell, and heavenly wars, the moral of the story is that Stan became evil by seeking to be a power hungry, authoritarian tyrant who sought to use force and violence against others, which is exactly what human government is. The moral is that God, or good, favors agency and choice and thus makes no threats of violence against the disobedient, forcing no one back to heaven. And if God coerces no human being to chose Him and His ways of righteousness, patience, peace, persuasion, and freedom, then why would he institute inherently violent and coercive institutions called government in which one group of people claim authority to make rules for the rest of humanity under them and bind them under their arbitrary rule by violence? No such a creation can logically come from anything other than Satan and the satanic violent human beings looking to justify and ensure their lucrative positions of power and wealth as rulers over other human beings, making rules for everyone else and then exempting themselves from said rules. No violent, coercive government that uses violence and aggression to enforce its rules and fuel and ensure its continued existence could come from a non-aggressively violent, non-aggressively coercive Deity that refuses to force his own creations to choose Him and His ways of peace and persuasion. It is nonsensical.
Satan is the master of the earthly kingdoms, the (violent, aggressively coercive) governments of the world, government in general. He creates them, controls them for his own purposes to spite God and ensnare & enslave as many of God’s children as possible in sin & evil through them, almost in a Pinnochio Pleasure Island fashion in which he promises all the “fun” power and treasures of the world in exchange for doing his bidding, i.e. murder, theft, torture, kidnap, war, and all manner of harm towards others. We can know the governments for the world are his from other scriptural accounts, including the following: Matthew 4: 8, 1 Nephi 13-14, Gaddianton Robbers chapters in 3rd Nephi
Matthew 4:8
Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”
Satan comes to tempt Jesus while he’s weak in body from fasting, and at one point shows him his kingdoms of the world with all their glory and riches and offers them to him to control if he but worship and obey Satan and give him the power of the Christ and God. If they weren’t Satan’s to begin with, they wouldn’t have been his to give. And if they weren’t Jesus’s/God’s, then they must have been Satan’s. For Satan believes himself to be the master of this world and all its governments of power and wealth, which are his attempts to mimic the creative power of God, who created mankind and all the worlds that exist for mankind to inherit for themselves. God creates worlds and people, and sets them to govern themselves using his teachings. Satan attempts to mockingly mimic His power by creating earthly kingdoms that use the strength of men to violently conquer and murder each other in order to obtain control and power over the riches of the earth. In Moses 4 in the Pearl of Great Price, it is told how Lucifer, second son of God became Satan, by seeking to overthrow God’s power for himself and stripping away the agency of mankind, Satan and Christ’s fellow siblings, forcing mankind through violent, aggressive coercion to return to the presence of God after their sojourn here on earth, coercing them into salvation by taking freedom of choice from them and making them his slaves:
Moses 4:
1 And I, the aLord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That bSatan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the cbeginning, and he came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will dredeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely eI will do it; wherefore fgive me thine honor.
2 But, behold, my Beloved aSon, which was my Beloved and bChosen from the beginning, said unto me—cFather, thy dwill be done, and the eglory be thine forever.
3 Wherefore, because that aSatan brebelled against me, and sought to destroy the cagency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be dcast down;
4 And he became aSatan, yea, even the bdevil, the father of all clies, to ddeceive and to blind men, and to lead them ecaptive at his will, even as many as would not fhearken unto my voice.
For this rebellion and attempted mutiny to obtain God’s power to coercively rule over his fellow siblings, us, mankind, and make us his slaves, Satan was cast out of heaven and cast down to this earth, where he would be the tempter of mankind so as to give mankind a true choice between good and evil. And in that roll as the tempter, Satan has been given free reign to do his best to tempt mankind but not coerce them into choosing who they shall follow, him, or Christ/God, including creating earthly governments filled with violent, aggressively coercive power and wealth to tempt human beings with and ensnare and enslave them to Satan and his ways (lying, cheating, stealing, murdering, torturing, destroying, etc.) in exchange for control over those earthly governments and the ability to rule over their fellow human beings in evil tyranny. All this, his earthly governments and their power and riches Satan tempted Jesus Christ with, saying he’d be given control over it all if only Jesus traded in his power from his father, God, and put Satan in charge as the God of this world and worship him. Jesus, who created worlds and people and creatures without number in concourse with God of course wisely said no, seeing Satan’s earthly kingdoms and riches for what they were, paltry attempts to mimic the true power Christ had as the Son of God.
But the point is, these earthly kingdoms and their riches, the governments and their empires of the world, soaked in the blood of their fellow human beings in their attempts gain control over those riches and their fellow human beings, to rule over them as dictators, these belong to and are the creation of Satan. Government as we know it, a group of human beings who claim all authority and control over the world, its wealth, and its inhabitants, to control according to their will using violent, aggressive coercive - this government comes from Satan, for they mimic Satan’s attempts to seek God’s power in the pre-earth life, the so-called “war in heaven” in order to enslave mankind to his will and deny us our freedom as individual human being and children of God. So the notion that such governments were instituted of God for the benefit of mankind and that mankind owes its obedience to them is a ludicrous, false notion that reeks of Satan and his lies.
We also see that Satan is in control of all the earthly governments/kingdoms/nations in 1st Nephi 13-14.
1 Nephi 13:
1 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld many nations and kingdoms.
2 And the angel said unto me: What beholdest thou? And I said: I behold many anations and kingdoms.
3 And he said unto me: These are the nations and kingdoms of the Gentiles.
4 And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the aGentiles the formation of a bgreat church.
5 And the angel said unto me: Behold the formation of a achurch which is most abominable above all other churches, which bslayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a cyoke of iron, and bringeth them down into captivity.
6 And it came to pass that I beheld this agreat and babominable church; and I saw the cdevil that he was the founder of it.
7 And I also saw agold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine-twined blinen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlots.
8 And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the gold, and the silver, and the silks, and the scarlets, and the fine-twined linen, and the precious clothing, and the harlots, are the adesires of this great and abominable church.
9 And also for the apraise of the world do they bdestroy the saints of God, and bring them down into captivity.
1st Nephi 14:
9 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 adevil.
10 And he said unto me: Behold there are save atwo churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the bother is the church of the cdevil; wherefore, dwhoso 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 ewhore of all the earth.
11 And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the whore of all the earth, and she sat upon many awaters; and she had dominion over ball the earth, among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people.
12 And it came to pass that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were afew, because of the wickedness and abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters; nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God, were also upon ball the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw.
13 And it came to pass that I beheld that the great mother of abominations did gather together multitudes upon the face of all the earth, among all the nations of the Gentiles, to afight against the Lamb of God.
14 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were aarmed with brighteousness and with the cpower of God in great glory.
15 And it came to pass that I beheld that the wrath of God was apoured out upon that great and abominable church, insomuch that there were wars and rumors of wars among all the bnations and kindreds of the earth.
16 And as there began to be awars and rumors of wars among all the nations which belonged to the mother of abominations, the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold, the wrath of God is upon the mother of harlots; and behold, thou seest all these things—
17 And when the aday cometh that the bwrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots, which is the great and abominable church of all the earth, whose founder is the devil, then, at that day, the cwork of the Father shall commence, in preparing the way for the fulfilling of his dcovenants, which he hath made to his people who are of the house of Israel.
“The church of the devil,” “the whore of all the earth,” “the great and abominable church,” “the mother of harlots,” “Babylon the Great and Mighty,” etc., these are all names for the governments/nations/kingdoms of the earth at which Satan, the devil is at the helm, using violent, aggressive, coercive and slavish government to gain control of the world and its riches, tempting human beings to seek the seats of power in those governments in order to rule over their fellow human beings as their slave masters so as to make war upon other governments in the attempt to conquer the whole of the earth and control it for themselves.
Such governments are not and cannot be of God for the benefit of mankind, and no God who gave human beings, His literal children, their agency (freedom) to choose Satan or God would institute governments built upon violence and aggression for some of his children to control and rule over the rest, enslave them, and keep them perpetually enslaved by denying them their freedom of choice and using threats of violence to compel them to obey. No, such governments are the creation of Satan, for as we have seen already, God’s ways are those of individual sovereignty and agency, the freedom of each individual to control his/her life and govern himself/herself, voluntarily choosing to use persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness and meekness, love unfeigned, and kindness in his/her interactions with fellow human beings. In other words, God’s ways are those of anarchy (no rulers) and voluntarism wherein each individual can maintain their agency and voluntarily choose God’s ways of voluntarily helping his/her fellow man or Satan’s ways of coercion and violence and receive his/her reward for his/her choice.
Author’s Note: there are many LDS members past and present who believe the church of the devil, the great and abominable church discussed in 1 Nephi 13-14 is the historical Catholic Church. Whether that be true or not is beside the point, and I personally don’t think there is one “religious” church that is the “great and abominable church of the devil,” just as I don’t believe there is only one anti-Christ. Rather, I view these things as umbrella labels for any organization or entity that matches their descriptions. But, even if one were to entertain the idea that The Catholic Church alone is the great and abominable church of the devil, an idea many hypocritical protestants of old would happily agree to, even if it were true, the historical Catholic Church was the established church of the Roman Empire and later of the nations and kingdoms of Europe and other parts of the world, wherein for centuries it alone controlled the governments of those kingdoms, acting as the world government for all those under its empire. So, whichever way you look at it, the great and abominable church of the devil is government, especially now that no one “religious” church controls the world any more in our era of “separation of church and state.” Indeed, I’d go as far as to argue government has become the new religion, the new God for so many who think they are being clever, wise and logical in rejecting the old religions of Semitic Judeo-Christianity. They’ve merely replaced it with a new religion and a new God, government, who’s founder and master is, ironically Satan. When Satan found he could not get humanity to kill and enslave each other over warring religions as religion lost its potency with the rise of the enlightenment and atheism, he switched tactics and used nationalism & government power and desires for world dominance to continue pitting humanity against each other in order to continue getting them to war with each other and kill and steal from each other and distract them from God and his ways of peaceful, loving, anarchy.
Taking these few verses alone and seeing the realities that no government can protect individual rights and thus exist in peace because of government’s inherent violent nature in which it must use violence to compel people to obey and thus violate their inherent human rights and their sovereignty as human beings, and that no such government could be instituted by a voluntarism and agency loving God, D&C 134 is already off to a bad start…IF we are to interpret its words using statist euphemisms. The reality of D&C 134 is that it was written by a fallible man, Joseph Smith Jr., who despite his brilliance and familiarity of the principle of anarchy as expressed so mightily in so many areas of the religion he created or “reorganized” on earth for Christ and its scriptural cannon, despite all his goodness, he was still nonetheless not born in a cultural and national vacuum. Joseph Smith was born and raised and came to adulthood just after the founding of the American Republic, when the propaganda about the consent of the governed through representative government and such was on high output, especially after the War of 1812, often called the “Second American Revolution.” It was only natural that Joseph Smith, Jr. would be brainwashed after having the constant propaganda of the ruling class that constituted the relentless attempt of said ruling class in Washington DC and its state equivalents to “legitimize” their “authority to rule” pounded into his head from birth by his parents, who themselves lived through the Revolution, and by society at large that he was forced to grow up in. Of course a man who grew up having the ruling class’s propaganda attempting to legitimate their “authority to rule” pounded into his head everywhere he went and looked would internalize it and turn around and bring it back into the religion he was creating. But that doesn’t make it right and it doesn’t make it “from God.” Thus, either D&C 134 is utterly flawed and must be scrapped altogether as scripture, OR perhaps looking at D&C 134 a different way, from an anarchist perspective, using anarchist vocabulary instead of statist propaganda euphemisms can help shed some light on what it really being said in D&C 134. And perhaps in doing so, it can be seen that D&C 134, far from upholding “human government” as we know it, actually upholds not “government,” but order and authority by means of anarchy and anarchist principles, i.e. voluntarism, the exact opposite of “government.”
Indeed, a shift in the vocabulary can help with this task. For example, instead of using “government,” in the verses of D&C 134, let us replace it with the words “systems of order based on principles of justice & human rights.” And instead of using “rulers,” “magistrates,” & “presidents/sovereigns,” we use “teachers” or “leaders.” Instead of “laws,” we use “principles”, and “suggest” or “nominate” for “enact.” And instead of “anarchy,” as used in verse 5, we use “chaos,” “disorder,” or lack of principles of justice.“ If we were to shift the vocabulary use in this way, we would start to get a very familiar picture, one in harmony with the principles of anarchy.
For example, it might look something like this:
We believe that voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights were instituted of God for the benefit of man; and that he holds men baccountable for their acts in relation to them, both in making societal wide principles of justice to be abided by voluntarily and administering them, for the good and safety of society.
2 We believe that no voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights can exist in apeace, except such societal wide principles of justice to be abided by are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the bfree exercise of cconscience, the right and control of property, and the dprotection of life [among other innumerable inalienable individual rights].
3 We believe that all voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights necessarily require teachers and leaders to remind and make regular the societal wide principles of justice to be voluntarily abided by of the same; and that such as will administer the societal wide principles of justice to be abided by in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people.
4 We believe that religion is instituted of God; and that men are amenable to him, and to him only, for the exercise of it, unless their religious opinions prompt them to infringe upon the rights and liberties of others; but we do not believe that societal wide principles of justice to be voluntarily abided by have a right to interfere in prescribing rules of aworship to bind the consciences of men, nor dictate forms for public or private devotion; that crime, i.e. aggressive violence and resultant harm against others should be restrained, but conscience should never be controlled; bguilt should be punished, but the freedom of the soul never suppressed.
5 We believe that all men are bound to asustain and uphold the respective voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights in which they reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the societal wide principles of justice to be abided by of such voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights; and that sedition and crebellion are unbecoming every citizen thus protected, and should be punished accordingly; and that all voluntary systems of order based on upholding freedom, justice, & human rights have a right to suggest such societal wide principles of justice to be abided by as in their own judgments are best calculated to secure the public interest, i.e the upholding of the rights and sovereignty of every individual human being; at the same time, however, holding sacred the freedom of conscience.
Etc., Etc.,
Changing a few of the words in this manner can help the reader see that D&C 134 actually supports anarchy and anarchic principles of self ownership and no rulers and not the aggressively coercive and violent government like we know it today.
One still might look at verse 6 of D&C 134 and say, “aha! They used the word “anarchy” in a negative light, as something we should strive to avoid and because it means terror and chaos. This is again a product of Joseph Smith writing D&C 134 having been raised in the culture and statist society of the United States, which had a government, or a group of ruling class criminals who sought to use propaganda and myths and stories of heroism and patriotism to instill in the minds of their victims, the “governed,” the “ruled” the legitimacy of the ruling classes’s “authority” to rule. Of course a group of criminals who want to use violence to rule over everyone else to steal from them and claim the world in its entirety as their own would want to describe the lack of said “government” as “chaos” & “terror,” where violence and brute force rules. And they naturally chose “anarchy” as the evil taboo word to describe life without their “system” of ruling, without their “government.” The thick irony is that it is their very system of “government,” their alleged authority to rule over everyone else that is inherently dependent on violence and terror and chaos, not anarchy. Anarchy simply means no rulers & none of their coercive government dependent on violence to exist and enforce those rulers’ will. Anarchy is not disorder & chaos & terror; anarchy is in actuality the very thing the deceivers of the ruling class say THEIR system of “government” is, a system or order and protection of justice and of freedom, rights, and individuals and societies and thus a system of peace, peaceful living, and prosperity. The ruling class has simply twisted the words to be the opposite of what they really are, just as Satan does in calling evil good and good evil. In this case, Satan’s minions, i.e. the ruling class, call anarchy chaos and violent terror and chaos and violent terror order and peaceful living, i.e. “government." So, suffice it to say that in writing D&C 134, Joseph Smith Jr., was nearly there, being so close to writing about anarchy and its principles of peaceful living, such as found in the Book of Mormon. But his fallible humanity as well as his having been raised in an extremely propaganda heavy, imperialist nation that sought to rule as much of the world as it could by a few of its citizens, the rich and wealthy ruling class, such things meddled with his brain and caused him to put some things in D&C 134 that really oughtn’t to be there. Or perhaps it could be said he was confused so as to word things so poorly due to that ruling class propaganda influence he was surrounded by coming of age in the Early Republic just after the War of 1812. Either way, D&C 134, as it is written right now, if statist euphemisms are used to define it wording, does harmonize with the rest of the principles of anarchy found in the Book of Mormon, which will shortly be discussed. D&C 134 could be interpreted to be more harmonious with the principle of anarchy as expressed in the Book of Mormon IF one alters the vocabulary a bit. The principles of anarchy are in there in D&C 134, they just have to be fleshed out a bit more in other areas by using different vocabulary words instead of statist, ruling class euphemisms used to try to legitimize their authority to rule over others.
Personally, I opt for the redefining of the terms used. I think D&C 134 is perfectly fine and has enough saving graces in it as it is, but we must learn to look at those saving graces first and foremost and use them to help us interpret and redefine the words being used in the rest of the context, as I have attempted to do in the last few paragraphs. I personally think in doing so, D&C 134 ceases being a condemnation of anarchy as it is commonly misunderstood to mean (i.e. disorder, chaos, violence, terror, no rules, etc.) and instead becomes a praising proponent and a guide book of anarchy as it really is, i.e. a way of peaceful interrelation living between human beings that is based on order, voluntary agreements, principles of justice, mercy, non-aggression, individual self-ownership, and which is even entirely compatible with hierarchy and authority so long as it is voluntary and retains self-ownership. I personally believe there was inspiration from God in Joseph Smith, Jr. writing this section down but that Joseph Smith’s cultural and social human lens clouded his ability to interpret the revelation correctly or write it out clearly in the way it was intended by God and instead he wrote in the way HE understood it but which was not the way it was meant to be understood. Or put differently, I personally believe that some of that inspiration of anarchy from God, an anarchist himself, slipped through despite the American lens of the scribe that wrote it. We just have to learn to redefine those problematic terms that make D&C appear to be non-sensical and illogical if interpreted by the common meanings of today.
That is how I, as a Latter Day Saint anarchist who takes much inspiration from Mormon scripture makes sense of D&C 134; I interpret it through an anarchist lens using anarchist vocabulary and principles that are already there in the section but which must be fleshed out and then used to interpret the rest of the passage. And in doing so, D&C 134 ceases to be illogical and problematic regarding anarchy and instead becomes supportive of it.
Then, of course, another third possible way to interpret D&C 134 and it’s semantics and uses of words like “government” is to assume government doesn’t actually mean a centralized, inherently aggressive, violent, & coercive “authority,” or rather, it doesn’t need to be interpreted that way. There is a possible interpretation of the word “government” used therein to mean something more akin to the verb “govern,” as in to “govern” oneself or govern one’s emotions, to control and regulate but not in a violent, coercive manner, like a church government, a corporate or business government, a club government, or some other voluntary basis of getting things accomplished and overseeing the system of said voluntary organization and its parts & members. Some anarchists, like Larken Rose, would not call that “government,” as he has a very specific definition of that term that excludes anything done on a voluntary basis. Rose differentiates between “voluntarism” and “government,” seeing the two are polar opposites; fair enough. I understand well his point in differentiating the two. But, others, and the English language in general, would call “voluntarism” or a voluntarist society wherein its structure of getting things accomplished through hierarchical yet still voluntary oversight and regulation as “government.” I don’t particularly hard and fast attach myself to one definition over the other, so it I am not making an argument that the word “government” SHOULD be interpreted in the Rosian manner or in the other manner described here, Larken Rose’s “Voluntarism.” But what I AM arguing is that if government here is interpreted to be the Rosian definition of “Voluntarism” instead of the violence and coercion based definition, D&C 134 can make a lot more sense from an anarchist perspective. Either way, the reality is that most Mormons, including very likely the LDS Church leadership (dare I say, it’s government?) interpret D&C 134 wrongfully, by unfortunately seeing “government” as used in the chapter as the inherently violent and coercive system of control of others that we live under today, which is actually warlordism, though they don’t recognize they are doing this. Of course, when described this way, according to what government is in reality, warlordism, Most Mormons, let alone most people would not dare support such. But sadly, most Mormons and most people do not yet see this reality of government, the so-called “violence inherent in the system.”
Sadly, most Mormons have been conditioned by indoctrination within and without the LDS Church to see D&C 134 as saying “a violent and coercive system of control over society is necessary to stave of “anarchy,” which they would define as “violent & coercive chaos.” Most Mormons sadly mix up or conflate the two words and “systems,” “government” and “anarchy,” seeing “government” as “order” & “protection of rights”/“safety” when in reality the exact opposite is true; in reality, anarchy is order, freedom, and protection of rights while “government” is violent, chaotic, mob rule or warlordism, whichever form of tyranny happens to develop under its inherently violent coercive system of rule by fear. Ironically, in many places, both mob-rule and warlordism have become the norm in most of the world, wherein warlords going by euphemisms like “presidents,” “governors,” “legislators,” “judges,” “sheriffs,” “prime ministers,” “monarchs,” etc., use mob rule, or majoritarian tyranny to ensure their positions as warlords, i.e. “democracy.”
But Most Mormons today don’t yet understand that reality & thus tend to misinterpret D&C 134 & thus misinterpret people like me when we call for anarchy. I know that this is how most Mormons see D&C 134 because I myself used to see it that way. I used to condemn anarchy because I used to not understand it. Before I had anarchy explained to me and I understood the true nature of anarchy and “government,” I bought in to the statist and authoritarian propaganda that “government” ensured peace, order, and freedom while anarchy meant or lead to disorder, chaos, violence, and tyranny. I used to eschew the word “anarchy”/“anarchist” and wanted nothing to do with it; this is because I didn’t understand it. In short, dear reader, I was once like you. But, over time, experience, and much humility, I came to understand what both “anarchy” and “government” truly meant, being in reality the inverse of the statist/authoritarian propaganda, and I…repented of may ignorance, becoming a true convert to “anarchy” and the peace, freedom, & order it leads to. And if I, someone who did all I could to eschew the word “anarchy” could see the error of my ways, see reality as it truly is, and change, then so can anyone else. As we shall see, the principles of anarchy clearly presented in the Book of Mormon, which I argue and firmly believe are the basis of Christ’s message and thus for Christ’s restored “gospel” on the earth - these principles tell us we must look at D&C 134 differently from how it’s traditionally seen & interpreted, for it makes no sense otherwise and is logically unsound otherwise. You can’t have a “peaceful, violent coercion dependent government” that ensures the rights of individuals. The two notions just can’t exist together in reality and are like oil and water. And thus D&C 134 cannot logically be interpreted as being in support of violent coercion dependent government. Rather, government has to, logically and morally, be interpreted as voluntary self control and nothing more for D&C 134 to have any sensical meaning and thus any value as scripture. For it makes no sense whatsoever for an all loving, all merciful, all just parent God to institute aggressively violent coercion dependent “government” for the benefit of his children, humankind and each individual’s rights. No, to be in harmony with the notions of God being an all loving, all merciful, all just parent deity who gave humankind its agency for individuals to choose, the notion that God instituted “government” for the benefit of mankind and his rights must be interpreted in the sense of “government” meaning voluntary self-control and voluntary collaborations in order to create order and progress.
Now, there may be some LDS who say, “what about Article of Faith 12?” The same applies here to Article of Faith 12 as D&C 134 is the foundation upon which AF12 is built. But, let’s look briefly at AF12 as well as AF13 and see what they have to say about each other.
Article of Faith 12 says:
12 We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
However, Article of Faith 13 is just as important in helping us understand AF12. It says:
13 We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.
Now, kings, presidents, rulers, magistrates, “the law,” these are all aspects of government, offices and functions. We have already established beyond any doubt that government is built upon and run by aggressive violence or threats thereof. In order for government to exist, it must have these offices listed above in AF12, and these offices are responsible for creating government’s main function, declaring & enforcing “the law.” And part of this “law” these offices must declare and enforce are “revenue collection edicts,” i.e. taxes, which this government and its offices must have in order to maintain its existence. And it has already been clearly demonstrated that taxation is literally a group of men pointing a gun or threatening to point a gun at the head of a neighbor, saying, “give us your property so we can fund our efforts to keep stealing from you so we can have this job of stealing from you; if you don’t we’ll steal more property, kidnap you & throw you in a cage, or kill you.” Taxation of is theft at the point of a gun or the threat thereof. And the rest of these “laws” that these kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates enforce must be done so by the same threats of aggressive violence toward any who might say no, all the while making the same threats of violence against the same victims in order to rob them so as to have the revenue and thus man-power to make the other threats of violence regarding the other “laws” of said government. Thus, government is in its essence aggressive violence, wherein its officers steal/rob, kidnap, hold hostage, unjustly restrain & imprison, murder, torture, and otherwise enslave innocent humans beings in order to maintain its existence so as to keep doing those things and benefit off the hard work and property of others through theft. Article of Faith 13 says we Mormons believe in being honest, chaste, benevolent, and virtuous, and in “doing good to all men." Threatening violence against innocent people who have not harmed anyone so as to steal their property, or actually stealing their property, kidnapping them, restraining them, imprisoning them, denying them the ability to provide for themselves, torturing them, taking them from their family, or murdering them and enslaving them - none of these actions are honest, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, or “doing good to all men.” Therefore, if that is what kings, presidents, magistrates, and rulers do, and it is most assuredly what they do, along with their army of law enforcement officers, then we cannot logically and consistently believe in Article of Faith 13 AND Article of Faith 12 simultaneously, for AF13 in effect nullifies AF12. And as we’ve seen, D&C 134 nullifies AF12 as well since it is the foundation of AF12 and D&C 134 is just as incoherent and illogical in itself as AF12 and AF13 are in relation to each other.
Thus, if we Mormons are to believe in being honest, chaste, virtuous, and benevolent and in “doing good to all men,” we cannot in good faith, conscience, nor logically believe in kings, presidents, magistrates, rulers, and in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law when these very things require us to violate the above principles as they are all inherently based in aggressive violence or threats thereof. Thus, another fatal blow to government and another win for anarchy and voluntarism, which are inherently based upon the above principles of AF13 as well as those found in D&C 121:41-45. Anarchy and voluntarism are Christ’s and God the Father’s way as they allow for and require that the agency of the individual remain intact for them to choose good or evil, Christ/God or Satan, and be free to to use that agency to act and not be acted upon as slaves, like under government. God forces no man to heaven, and he cast out Lucifer, Son of the Morning to become Satan for his rebellion in Heaven wherein he attempted to steal God’s position and glory and enslave us, his brethren by denying us our agency and forcing us to choose and do good, thus forcing us back to heaven. God favors agency and freedom of the individual, and anarchy and voluntarism alone provide for those to remain intact so his individual children can indeed be free agents to choose and act for themselves and receive their rewards for doing so. Satan’s way is violent, aggressive, coercive government. God’s way is anarchy and voluntarism. Amen.