But Stephen waved this idea away. “I don’t know who told you that those were Joseph’s bones. Perhaps they are Hyrum’s, but Joseph was resurrected only a few years after his death. Of course, he would be. Why would God not make use of one of his most valiant servants, a man powerful in the priesthood?”
I was annoyed by this argument. I didn’t really care whether the bones in the grave we had visited were real. But I seriously doubted that a resurrected Joseph had told John Taylor to send the priesthood keys not to the next church president but to some random group of men. Why would God work in such a backhanded way?
“So now you have those priesthood keys?” Kurt asked, red-faced and genuinely angry now. “And the church itself doesn’t? You’re saying all the men in the church who think that they have the power to call God’s blessings down on their children are wrong? You’re saying that the very temples that seal couples and families together throughout the world don’t have the keys to do so?”
Rebecca had tensed and was looking back and forth between her husband and Kurt.
Stephen leaned in to Kurt, making me acutely uncomfortable since he was now crowding my space, as well. “I’m making you feel attacked, Kurt, and I don’t intend to do that. Of course, the mainstream LDS church has continued to do the work of God since the Manifestos, as far as is possible under the legal restrictions that it follows. Milk must be drunk before meat for most of the world, and that is what your church is. The church of milk, which is nothing to be ashamed of.”
Kurt was boiling mad by now. I thought about Kenneth going through all of this rigmarole. It would have bothered him a lot less because he no longer believed in Mormonism and had had his name removed from the records of the church. But wouldn’t Kenneth have seen how much these accusations would bother Kurt? Or had Stephen deliberately hit harder at Kurt than he had at Kenneth?
“The Lord will never allow the prophet to lead us astray,” Kurt said. “We’ve been promised that. God would take the prophet’s life before that happened, and raise another in his place.”
Considering the policy and all the other times the prophets had said things that turned out to be wrong, like about blacks and the priesthood, I wasn’t sure I could agree with Kurt on this anymore. Though that didn’t mean I agreed with Stephen, either.
“Ah, well. If you cannot believe that Wilford Woodruff or any other prophet has been wrong, I must talk to you about this in a different way.” Stephen had pulled back at last, allowing me to take a breath. He templed his hands and closed his eyes for a moment. Then he said abruptly, “Did you know that I lost my parents when I was only eighteen years old?”
I stared at him, surprised at the sudden vulnerability in his moist eyes. Then I looked at Rebecca, who had tensed at this reference. Why? Was this too personal for her?
“My younger brother, Edward, died in the same tragedy, a house fire on this very property.” He gestured to the window that looked out on the compound. “It was a horrific life event, and I was never the same afterward. I suffered from depression for many years, something I didn’t share with anyone.” His brow creased with sorrow.
I hated that he was making me feel sympathy for him. I only wanted to feel sympathy for his wives and children. After all, a tragic past didn’t mean he wasn’t an abuser, I reminded myself.
Stephen continued, “But that sorrow is part of the reason I clung to my religion so desperately. I had to believe that I would one day be reunited with my parents and brother. And the first time I went through the temple, I saw a glimpse of my father, a flash of the coat he used to wear as I was going through the veil into the celestial room.” Reliving the moment itself, he lifted his right hand as if he was raising the cloth curtain to move through to the other side. “I heard my mother’s voice the next time I went. After that, I went to the temple as often as I could, because it was as close to heaven as I could get in this life. I wouldn’t give up my access to the temple lightly, you must understand.”
Kurt had his arms folded across his chest. In contrast, Stephen had his arms spread wide open, as if he were inviting everyone into his heart.
“But as I read and studied more about the gospel in an attempt to make sure that I was living every law in accordance with God’s will, I became convinced that polygamy was right.” He pointed to his substantial bookcase full of church books, including History of the Church and Journal of Discourses, books I kept meaning to get around to reading, except that they were so many volumes long. And also, I preferred fiction, which seemed in severely short supply on the shelves here. Did Rebecca ever have a chance to read a juicy murder mystery? Probably not.
“The first time I mentioned living the Principle to Rebecca, I was terrified.” Stephen’s voice had gone very soft, and I could see a tremor on the left side of his face.
Something about his dramatic whisper made me wonder if he had practiced this speech down to the tiniest detail, like an actor playing a part.