Zioneer
Banned
So I've read in multiple sources that Elder Hugh B. Brown, First Counselor in the First Presidency of the LDS Church, tried to remove the priesthood and temple ban on people of African descent back in 1969, rather than 1978 when the Revelation on the Priesthood was received.
Apparently, while Church President David O. McKay was busy dying, Brown managed to convince the healthy apostles to secretly vote to get rid of the priesthood ban (considering it a policy and not a revelation), except for Elder Harold B. Lee, who was in Europe at the time, and didn't hear about the vote. Once Lee came back to Salt Lake, he apparently convinced the apostles that the ban was doctrine, and would require a revelation to remove. This would cause the ban to stay in place for 9 more years, and cause the LDS Church's reputation to suffer, caused the U.S. Justice Department to look into them, and caused their missionary work to suffer in countries with large black populations (like Brazil and South Africa). The ban would outlast both Brown and Lee.
It appears that all of the healthy apostles were originally in favor of Brown's removal of the ban, but Lee was single-handedly able to convince them otherwise. So what happens if Lee is unwilling or unable to convince them, or simply dies en-route to Salt Lake?
Apparently, while Church President David O. McKay was busy dying, Brown managed to convince the healthy apostles to secretly vote to get rid of the priesthood ban (considering it a policy and not a revelation), except for Elder Harold B. Lee, who was in Europe at the time, and didn't hear about the vote. Once Lee came back to Salt Lake, he apparently convinced the apostles that the ban was doctrine, and would require a revelation to remove. This would cause the ban to stay in place for 9 more years, and cause the LDS Church's reputation to suffer, caused the U.S. Justice Department to look into them, and caused their missionary work to suffer in countries with large black populations (like Brazil and South Africa). The ban would outlast both Brown and Lee.
It appears that all of the healthy apostles were originally in favor of Brown's removal of the ban, but Lee was single-handedly able to convince them otherwise. So what happens if Lee is unwilling or unable to convince them, or simply dies en-route to Salt Lake?