Look closely at these two photographs. Which picture shows the most people? Yes, the one on the left is Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009. The other is Trump’s inauguration in 2017. Both photos were taken from the top of the Washington Monument at noon on January 20th of their respective years. The pictures were taken by the National Park Service as a part of the official record of the federal government.
I have to ask the question above, and ask my readers to look at those pictures yet again, because the issue is still relevant today. Too many Americans still willingly believe lies and deny reality because of one man.
Donald Trump essentially claimed that the picture on the right showed more people. And he was supported by his Press Secretary at the time, Sean Spicer. No other member of his administration spoke up to disagree with him. Every other member of the Republican Party, nationwide, by staying silent, tacitly supported this lie.
This was, of course, only the beginning of the lies, and the distortions of reality, (and the bullying, and the grandstanding, and the gaslighting) perpetrated by the Trump administration.
The path to being cast out
Interestingly, Joseph Smith once described the unpardonable sin against the Holy Ghost as “he has got to say that the sun does not shine, while he sees it.” In other words, a key component of being forever lost is the ability to confidently deny reality.
I am not saying that supporting Trump necessarily makes one a son of perdition, but I am saying that ignoring or excusing or justifying blatant lies, accepting a false reality, and denying the truth, is a dangerous position to put oneself into. It is the same type of behavior that got Lucifer’s supporters cast out of Heaven with him.
I advise all of you to be careful what you do, you may by and bye find out that you have been deceived. Stay yourselves, do not give way. You may find out that some one has laid a snare for you.
Joseph Smith, April 7, 1844
In March 2019, the Pew Research Center reported that “about half of Mormons (52%) approve of his (Trump’s) job performance.” In the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13) Jesus taught that five (half) of the ten virgins (who represent the members of the Church) were foolish and unprepared for the Lord’s coming. These five were not allowed entrance to the marriage. I believe this parable speaks to our day.
Recognizing the trap
Someone has, indeed, “laid a snare” for the members of the Church of Jesus Christ; and at least half of us have become trapped in it. Donald J. Trump, in his personal behaviors, his lack of character, his narcissism, his utter inability to repent of anything, and especially his constant lies, deceptions, and cover-ups, is the antithesis of everything we, as Latter-day Saints, stand for.
Even if one claims to ignore Trump’s “personal qualities” in order to support a “conservative agenda,” you are deceiving yourself. Before Trump, conservatives supported NATO and opposed Putin, supported free trade and opposed tariffs. And, believe it or not, it was Nixon who created the Environmental Protection Agency that Trump has eviscerated.
The most frightening thing about Trump supporters generally is that the more disgusting, or irrational, or bombastic, or perverse he becomes, the more they seem to love him. Nothing will dissuade them from worshiping their hero. He is the focal point of a mass psychosis and he adds fuel to the fire daily.
I believe that any Latter-day Saint who, despite the volumes of evidence regarding Trump’s utter lack of moral character, still supports him and makes excuses for him, is in sore need of repentance. The Book of Mormon warns us about ambitious men just like Trump. We need to wake up and heed the warnings. I fear a continued stubborn denial of the truth will lead many “Saints” to destruction.
Sons of perdition … willfully and utterly pervert principles of righteousness and truth with which they were once endowed, and transform them into principles of evil and deception. Joseph Smith declared, “You cannot save such persons; you cannot bring them to repentance” (TPJS, p. 358).
Encyclopedia of Mormonism
Sources: Lisa Rein, “Here are the photos that show Obama’s inauguration crowd was bigger than Trump’s,” The Washington Post, March 7, 2017.
John Swain, “Trump inauguration crowd photos were edited after he intervened,” The Guardian, September 6, 2018.
Philip Schwadel and Gregory A. Smith, “Evangelical approval of Trump remains high, but other religious groups are less supportive,” Pew Research Center, March, 18, 2019.
“Discourse, 7 April 1844, as reported in the Times and Seasons,” The Joseph Smith Papers.
Rodney Turner, “Sons of Perdition,” Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 1992.
Thank you, Bryan!
It was an inspiring and very emotional Conference for me, yet not one word, not one peep about Donald Trump and his shredding of the constitution. I guess each of us is on our own.