💰 The Religion Business vs. the True Church of Christ
💰 The Religion Business vs. the True Church of Christ
I watched a documentary interview the other day — The Religion Business by Nathan Appel. And boy, it landed like a brick. He laid it out plain: a lot of churches today don’t run like the body of Christ anymore. They run like corporations. Big money machines. Pastors in million-dollar homes. Private jets “registered as churches.” IRS loopholes that keep the books closed tight from the very people who donate.
One number stuck with me: about $1 trillion flows into churches worldwide every year, and only about 6% of it goes to actual charity. The rest fuels the machine — salaries, buildings, brands, lifestyles.
And this isn’t just “other people’s churches.” Nathan pointed straight at the LDS Church as an example of how institutions can gather up huge wealth and real estate, all protected by tax exemptions and hidden behind closed doors. That hit me hard, because I’ve lived inside this story.
📖 How I Taught on My Mission
When I was a young missionary in 1971–72, we used to tell people:
“Nobody in our church gets paid. Not a dime. This is Christ's true church! Just like in the New Testament — the disciples went out with no purse, no scrip.”
We believed it. We taught it with confidence. The Saints fed the missionaries, just like in the early days. And it felt right.
So years later, when I found out the top leaders do get stipends, housing, and benefits, it hit me in the gut. Not because folks don’t need to eat, but because we taught the exact opposite as proof that the church was pure.
📖 “Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses… for the workman is worthy of his meat.” (Matthew 10:9–10)
📖 “When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing.” (Luke 22:35)
🏰 From Restoration to Corporation
Let’s rewind. Joseph Smith started something marvelous. The Restoration was real. He was to take the gospel to the Lamanites. It didn’t all happen then — Missouri troubles, timing wasn’t right — but the foundation was spiritual.
After Joseph, Brigham Young stole the reins. And let’s be honest, it wasn’t just one successor. Many other churches sprang up, all holding to the Book of Mormon. So this idea that “we have the Book of Mormon, therefore this church must be true” doesn’t hold up. Plenty of churches honor that book.
But Brigham turned the whole thing into a money system. By today’s standards, he would’ve been a billionaire, funded by the tithes of the people. The Saints lived in mud houses while Brigham built mansions — the Beehive House, the Lion House, even a home in St. George. And to this day, the streets of Utah carry his name.
📖 “Woe be unto him that buildeth up churches unto himself to get gain.” (2 Nephi 26:20)
📖 “They shall rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries.” (2 Nephi 28:13)
📖 “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth… but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” (Matthew 6:19–20)
🤐 Stories We Weren’t Told
A few weeks ago, my dear wife said something that cut right through me:
“Joseph Smith never practiced polygamy.”
Those were her exact words. And that alone proves the Church kept it hidden for me. For years in Utah, it was all about Brigham. Joseph was pushed aside. The truth about polygamy was buried.
History backs this up. In the Temple Lot case of the 1890s, Brigham’s church tried to prove Joseph taught and practiced polygamy. This is when the false affidavids were invented. They lost. Testimony and evidence showed it was Brigham who introduced and enforced it. Yet later the LDS Church rewrote the story, making Joseph the fall guy.
And just like with leader salaries, just like with Boyd K. Packer’s “best light” comment — we weren’t given the whole truth.
📖 “He commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for… men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain.” (2 Nephi 26:29)
📖 “The truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32)
🕊️ The True Church
Here’s the bottom line:
The Kingdom of God is not a corporation. It’s not a balance sheet, not a PR office, not a billion-dollar hedge fund.
The true church is spiritual. It is the Church of the Firstborn — men and women who hear His voice, who receive the baptism of fire, who follow Christ directly.
📖 “And they who are the church of the Firstborn… are made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant.”(D&C 76:54, 69)
📖 “The church did meet oft… and their meetings were conducted after the manner of the Spirit.” (Moroni 6:5–9)
📖 “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
That’s the difference Nathan Appel was pointing to. And that’s the same difference the Book of Mormon warns about: beware of churches that get gain, beware of leaders who heap up wealth, and beware of any institution that mistakes brand for Zion.
💬 What Members Say
I read through some of the LDS comments on that video. Good people. Honest hearts. They want to defend the Church because it has done a lot of good. And it’s true — there are many sincere bishops, Relief Society presidents, and leaders who sacrifice and love.
But many comments said things like: “The Church gives billions to the poor every year!” The numbers don’t back that up. Less than 1% of what they take in ever goes out.
Others pointed to the hundreds of temples being built as proof that God’s kingdom is rolling forth. But the Book of Mormon doesn’t teach Zion is built on temples. In fact, it warns against pouring resources into costly buildings while the poor remain in need.
📖 “Why have ye built up churches to yourselves to get gain? … Behold, ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?” (Mormon 8:36–37)
And in some of the comments, people were pushing back, saying, “The Church doesn’t need to see our bank statements. It’s all on the honor system.” And that’s true — you don’t hand over your checkbook to the bishop. But let’s be honest, it’s not really voluntary either. To get a temple recommend, you still have to declare yourself a “full tithe payer.” If you don’t, you’re out.
So in practice, it’s forced. Even the widow who can barely scrape by is told, “Pay something, or you can’t enter.”
The Savior never charged admission. He lifted the poor, He blessed the widow, He gave freely. That’s the difference between His gospel and the system we see today.
📖 “Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? … Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer.” (Isaiah 58:7, 9)
⚡ So What Do We Do?
We were told leaders weren’t paid — turns out they are.
We were told Joseph started polygamy — history is now showing it was Brigham, not Joseph.
We were told to trust the system — but the system looks more like business every year.
The Savior hasn’t changed. He still speaks. He still calls. He still offers a new birth by fire and Spirit.
That’s the real church. That’s the Church of the Firstborn.
And that’s where I’m putting my heart.
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