Ezra Taft Benson and the State of Israel - Brandeis Institutional ...

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Gentiles, and it will be again inhabited by the Jews as a nation.” 15More recently,LeGrand Richards, fellow apostle of the Church during Benson's time as Secretary ofAgriculture, said in a letter, “There is no question but what the Lord is moving to returnthe Jews to their land of promise.” He continued, “that 'mystical force' [driving the Jewsto Palestine] comes from the Lord for the accomplishment of His purposes.” 16Later EzraTaft Benson, who would become the prophet and president of the Church from 1985-1994, would carry on that support of the Jewish State, and often commented on the factthat prophecy was being fulfilled in Palestine.In order to understand the continuity of Benson's perspectives concerning theState of Israel with his Mormon background, and how it differs from other Christiannotions, it is important to note various commonalities between the leaders and theirteachings about the gathering of the Jews to Palestine. First is the fact that the gatheringof the tribe of Judah is decidedly separate from the gathering that the Latter-day Saintsthemselves were participating in, and would not simply be a spiritual but a physicalgathering. Brigham Young went so far as to specify that the restoration of the Jewishpeople would not come about through Mormon efforts at conversion: “Jerusalem is not tobe redeemed by our going there and preaching to the inhabitants. It will be redeemed bythe hand of the Almighty.” 17Likewise, Orson Hyde, early apostle of the Church, felt thatthe gathering would be accomplished by political means. He visited Palestine in 1841 todedicate the land for the “gathering of the Jews” (Hyde's visit will be discussed at lengthlater in this chapter), and in a letter to Parley P. Pratt later that year, he commented on the151617Glanz, Jew and Mormon, 106.LeGrand Richards, letter to Francis W. Kirkham, 31 January, 1958, L. Tom Perry Special Collections,Brigham Young University Library (Provo, Utah).Ricks, “From Joseph to Joseph”, 99.8
future gathering. “It was by political power and influence that the Jewish nation wasbroken down, and her subjects dispersed abroad,” he noted, “and I will hazard theopinion that by political power and influence, they will be gathered and built up.” 18Thus, the understanding that the Jews would be gathered to Palestine without Mormonintervention, but with Mormon awareness and support, and that it would be a physical,even political, gathering, pervaded Mormon doctrine.Another recurring theme of interest among the earlier quotes is the notion of the“redemption” of the land, as well as the people. Far from being simply a gathering, therestoration of the Jews in Palestine represented an actual redemption of the land andpeople from the “gentiles.” This concept of redemption of the land played heavily in thebeliefs embraced by Ezra Taft Benson regarding the formation of the State of Israel,along with the conviction that the political events that brought about that restoration andredemption were, in fact, fulfillment of prophecy, and evidence of the Lord's approvaland involvement.Yet not every view expressed by Mormon leadership was so entirely sympatheticto the Jewish situation. While remaining committed to the surety of the gathering of theJews to Jerusalem, Orson Pratt also tended slightly to the old Christian notion of Jewishculpability for rejecting the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and thus the historic persecution by thenations must continue until they repented of that critical transgression. “If those Jewswould repent and turn to be converted. . . they had a hope of having their sins blotted out.. . but until then they must remain in torment.” 19 Likewise, fourth prophet and presidentof the Church, Wilford Woodruff, highlighted the Jews' rejection of the Messiah as cause1819Orson Hyde letter to Parley P. Pratt, published in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, March, 1842,vol. 2, no. 2.Glanz, Jew and Mormon, 78.9
Page 2 and 3: AcknowledgementsI am indebted to Pr
Page 4 and 5: Table of ContentsIntroduction - 1Ch
Page 6 and 7: elationship in any depth.In researc
Page 8 and 9: friendships with various Israeli le
Page 10 and 11: Joseph Smith taught that Latter-day
Page 14 and 15: for their long suffering. Yet, he,
Page 16 and 17: focus on both the fulfillment of pr
Page 18 and 19: Smith and Brigham Young, as previou
Page 20 and 21: Smith, the members of the group “
Page 22 and 23: Jews.'” 46Benjamin further descri
Page 24 and 25: Chapter 2: Benson's Religious Leade
Page 26 and 27: audiences. The first, called, “Je
Page 28 and 29: Benson's sense of kinship for the J
Page 30 and 31: eturn of the Jews to the land of Pa
Page 32 and 33: general mention of his efforts at s
Page 34 and 35: Or perhaps it did not aid in his ap
Page 36 and 37: about Jews and Israel, throughout t
Page 38 and 39: and Peter Grose describe the frustr
Page 40 and 41: Israel's victory in the Six Day War
Page 42 and 43: the Messiah. Indeed, both Benson an
Page 44 and 45: those visits, as opposed to those o
Page 46 and 47: U.S. agricultural products on credi
Page 48 and 49: The American public, though divided
Page 50 and 51: States.” 133Indeed, a Gallup poll
Page 52 and 53: with Britain and France, for their
Page 54 and 55: many Americans that Israel was now,
Page 56 and 57: those experiences to give validity
Page 58 and 59: Benson, “I want you to pray to Go
Page 60 and 61: gathering. Some of those themes inc
Page 62 and 63:
Ben Gurion and Levi Eshkol, both of
Page 64 and 65:
sending “two Mormon Books,” and
Page 66 and 67:
Yet Ben Gurion's next letter, dated
Page 68 and 69:
on this occasion with Shimon Peres
Page 70 and 71:
cultivate land for crops in the 194
Page 72 and 73:
attitude in the Synagogue Light art
Page 74 and 75:
United States, his views on Israel
Page 76 and 77:
eminded the host that he had not be
Page 78 and 79:
Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
Page 80 and 81:
"Though Thy servant is now far from
Page 82 and 83:
BibliographyAlteras, Isaac. Eisenho
Page 84 and 85:
Madsen, Truman G. “Mormon Attitud
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