Opinion: The independent way...

Adam and Eve Kneeling at an Altar.

By Chadwick LaVerl Hyde

For many years I’ve walked the paths of fundamental Mormonism. I’ve adopted doctrines that were long since abandoned by those in the mainstream church.

I’ve preached discourses from the writings of the restorative prophets. And without shame, mind you. Being an independent doesn’t mean that I bristle against one-man rule. And it doesn’t mean that I accept every council-driven decision without guidance.

It doesn’t mean I am a devout libertarian politico abandoning all else. I do believe in free agency. It is the guiding force in the lives of our Heavenly Father, Michael-Adam; Jesus Christ, the holy ghost, and many of us in the work of the fulness of the gospel. I do believe priesthood is a group endeavor and that Zion is not solitude—although it can be at times. Our father in heaven showed us that when he came to earth to organize and populate it.

One of the main points to the independent fundamentalist Mormon beliefs are that priesthood is a sacred function of a family kingdom. It existed prior to 1830 and was fully reestablished upon the earth thereafter. When I look out at the churches and the peoples of our faith I do so with an eye of love and understanding. I love to love fundamentalist Mormons. I love their faith. Their perseverance. Their ability in faith to pull water from rocks, blood from turnips, results from actions. Their blessing is always a lasting legacy of posterity on this earth and the worlds to come. Their men will be Adams—first man! Kings, priests, and gods in their own kingdom. Their women will be Eves—mother of all

living. Queens, priestesses, helpmeets of god on earth, creators of flesh and homes, sanctifiers and beautifiers of the earth.

For that is what a goddess is. Only the priesthood and faith in the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ can give us that. Sealings, baptisms, rebaptisms, ordinances, covenants, endowments and all other blessings temporal and spiritual (for they are the same) flow from this truth…this reality!

But what are we as independents? Who is our model, our mentors our heroes. We look to the dispensation heads, to the Enochs, the Abrahams, the Moses’, the Peters down to the Joseph Smith Juniors, but we really miss the point. The world doesn’t need 100,000 or even 1,000,000 dispensation heads. They need family heads and that takes a little recalibrating. Instead of seeking one man,

become the man the Lord needs where you are and build the Zion necessary to accomplish it.

My point is that “one man” inevitably runs into a “My way vs. the Lord’s way” conflict. It is inevitable. Do we throw out “one man?” No! Joseph is the dispensation head. He holds the keys under Christ to this dispensation. The priesthood must flow through him or Oliver or someone connected to Christ in

this work during this dispensation. There is plenty of organization in simply trying to conform to the standards that were given by Christ through Joseph Smith Jr.

But what about continuing revelation! I hear this often. It is the single most important and single least understood concept in our religion. D&C 50:21-22 states, “Wherefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth. Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together.” Truth does come through priests, but only through the Spirit of truth, and understanding one another is more important than mortal positioning. 

What I am saying is that Joseph Smith Junior is important, to us, our work and our salvation and exaltation. And those now on this earth called to exhort us to righteousness as well. But the most important thing to me, as a fundamentalist Mormon is not to be the Moses in the crowd, but rather the Jethro. Being the Jethro is a counselor position. It resembles so many things of divinity. Leaders are necessary where there is weakness. But still small voices of support are necessary where there is strength. Pray for strength and then become a support. Before Moses was Jethro. Before John the Baptist or even Jesus there was the promptings of the angel Gabriel (whom we are taught was Noah).

Being a Jethro or an angel Gabriel is a stewardship much more than being a charismatic civic leader. It is family dependent, outcome driven, love-dependent and it seeks at its very core devotion over compliance. It fosters, engenders and preaches devotion to principle, ordinance, Messiah, priesthood, brotherhood in god, sisterhood in family. 

It is the still small voice behind thrones, palaces, kingdoms, and priests. It is the hallmark of the independent faith, and it is the highest ideal of god and his work on this earth. If there is one thing I preach on this earth of practical value to fundamentalists it is this—we need to be Jethros, for the Lord to call the Moses’. We choose it to happen. We choose the leadership that god gives to us through our faith. Become the still small support, become the voice of counsel to the mighty. Be the living incarnation of what our Father always was and always is. Power to the powerful. Virtue to the virtuous. Wisdom to the god fearing; and quiet, steady, and sure counsellorship to those that would don the mantle of our heavenly father and Christ.

If we are to ‘make pure those that bear the vessels of the Lord’ than it is my humble suggestion that meekness replace dominion. Meek is not weak, meek is Nephi removing Laban’s head when the Lord said “yes!” and Nephi said “wait??!!”. Nephi choice was meek not weak. But meek is also climbing on top of a cross to be nailed to it. Meekness is the strongest of all desires to be obedient to our heavenly father, Michael. Let’s be meek like them. That’s the independent way.

In Jesus name, Amen.

You can reach Chadwick at fundamentalistmag@gmail.com.