Restore the balance of power between stake and central church priesthood leadership

Reform Action #5 of 20   (see overview page)

See the article The Principles of a Zion Community.

D&C 107 explicitly dictates that the “stake high council” is to be entirely “equal in authority” to the traveling twelve (12 apostles), first presidency & central stake in Zion. The church needs to obey this scriptural mandate for essential autonomy or balanced power of the “Stake” structure.  The revelations given to Joseph Smith on the Church political structure far more resemble the Evangelical government structures than the current LDS or Catholic hierarchies with a perfect balance of power between the Stake government and the central church government. Tight hierarchy is often necessary when an organization is young & unstable but just as Protestantism was the natural and destined progression of Catholic hierarchy, its now time for the church to follow our own scriptural mandates and reform our priesthood structures by bolstering stake influence and reducing centralization & institutionalization efforts from SLC (especially for seasoned/mature regions).  As well as expanding the influence of the patriarchal order of the priesthood.

36 The standing high councils, at the stakes of Zion, form a quorum equal in authority in the affairs of the church, in all their decisions, to the quorum of the presidency, or to the traveling high council.

37 The high council in Zion form a quorum equal in authority in the affairs of the church, in all their decisions, to the councils of the Twelve at the stakes of Zion. (D&C 107:36–37)

Reasoning:

Imbalance in central & local government structures promotes social instability and religious apostasy in regions where the general church membership is as spiritually mature as the leadership. The Doctrine and Covenants specifies that the Stake or “Standing High Councils of the Church” are to be “equal in authority” with the “Traveling High Council of the Church” (or “twelve apostles” as we call them–D&C 107:24–37). This is meant to create a perfect balance of power between local and central church leadership.  Our scriptures promote an ecumenical organization (Christian union or democracy) as revealed to Joseph and early American statesmen (multiple but equal states/stakes united in a union by a scriptural constitution-see D&C 107, D&C 101:80, D&C 109:54) — not an autocratic state.  The current over-centralized system which mimics ancient Jewish & medieval institutional monarchies or the pre-reformation Catholic system is expressly forbidden & forewarned of in our scripture ( 1 Sam 8, Mosiah 23:6–9, Jacob 5:48, 2 Ne 28:12–14; 1 Ne 13:4–9, Acts 23:1–5, D&C 123:7). At this point in our history this over-centralization in seasoned areas of the church has caused a disconnect & power struggle between LDS church leadership and certain spirit-filled aspects of the people.

The stake is a complete unit of the church and has the exact same power and authority (over its members) as the traveling twelve do over the church (D&C 107:36), but this balance is NOT currently maintained in the Church. Members universally have vastly more faith in the traveling “12 apostles” than the stake “12 apostles” (ie. the stake’s high council, see D&C 107 for clarification on our misuse of these titles). This has had a STRONG tendency to backfire as mature members see the follies of church leadership’s past mistakes. I dare say that currently stake High Council’s NEVER fulfill their “equal” role as a check and balance to centralized authority and autocratic dominion. The current general authorities of the church have been raised to celebrity and even demigod status. (Demigod: a person so important as to seem to approach the divine or be godlike in some way.) This leader-worship is a form of idolatry, which leads to apostasy when members learn of the follies of leadership. The current imbalance has members and local leadership expecting to be “commanded in all things” by Church Headquarters, which stems from an imbalanced emphasis on the source of spiritual power. In both political and religious hierarchical environments, when power structures become too lofty, cutting leadership off from equalizing human interaction with the populace— social instability, power mongering, leader worship and mass apostasy will always be the result. (This same political disconnect between leadership and the people is currently imbalancing the U.S. government structure as well.)

It can not be overstressed how detrimental the current idolization of the president of the High Priesthood (prophet), and traveling high council (12 apostles) is. Giving these men god-like status, and creating the idea in the mind of the youth that the majority of their words and actions are “the mind, and will of the Lord”, causes many to leave our communion when they are confronted with repeated contradictions and episodes of church history with prove how completely fallible and human they are. When a church or nation humbly asks their people to respect their leaders best efforts, it preserves the people’s agency. When a church or nation (such as North Korea, historical China, Egypt, Babylon or Medieval Europe) manipulates a people into obedience by an impressed belief that their leaders actions are synonymous with divinity—agency is subverted. An increasingly large number of members are becoming sensitive to this imbalanced, disregard of D&C 121:41 and are leaving.

Great sacrifice engenders great respect.  Christian/LDS scripture suggests the highest levels of heaven are justly filled with those who sacrificed and suffered the most on earth (as symbolized by Christ). Although they are undoubtedly wonderful people, current church General Authorities (who receive quite generous church stipends and overwhelmingly live in large east-bench SLC and Bountiful homes, with above-average incomes; sitting in their large throne-like chairs in General Conference), are quickly losing the respect from outsiders for their increasingly lack economic and organizational humility. If these good men would monetarily and authoritatively humble themselves, their example would go a long, long way in gaining & retaining church membership” (D&C 24:18–19, Luke 22:35, Luke 9:58, Alma 39:11–12).

We need to find effective ways to balance local authority with centralized authority… people need to feel like their agency & inspiration matters. (ie. led by agency through personal group revelation, not autocracy or some kind of “divine dictatorship”).