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Plant Diet Education for Latter-day Saints
Joseph Smith introduced what is now Section 89 of the Doctrine & Covenants in the year 1833 in Kirtland, Ohio. Doctrine and Covenants Section 89 stated prohibition to "strong drink" (liquor) and wine consumption nearly 200 years before the medical community listed all alcohol consumption as being harmful to human health, and stated prohibition to tobacco consumption over one hundred years before tobacco was first known to be harmful. The later validation of these counsels by the health community is often referenced by church members as being evidence of Joseph Smith's revelatory gifts as a prophet of God. His revelation, however, pays reference to several more things than only liquor, wine, tobacco, coffee, and tea, and if one has already gained a testimony of the benefits of this counsel, it would be well to consider paying heed to the counsel contained in the rest of the revelation received by Joseph Smith as well.
Whenever anyone mentions "The Word of Wisdom", they are either typically referencing the text of the original Section 89 of the Doctrine & Covenants, or they are referencing the official Word of Wisdom stance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. These two uses of the terminology have overlap, but they are not the same, and it is useful to make note of how exactly they differ:
With regards to the official Word of Wisdom stance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the consumption of items listed is typically prohibited for receiving church baptism or a temple recommend, and any members or prospective members who partake of such substances are encouraged to seek addiction recovery support. The only condition under which any of these substances are permitted is under a designated medical treatment plan.
A good question to ask then is, "Why the difference? Why has the Church added additional things to the original list of prohibited items in Section 89?" My answer is that it is well understood that any addictive substance -- not just the liquor, tobacco, wine, coffee, and tea that the members had access to in the 1830s -- is destructive to human health and safety, and it is deemed that members must be free of any dependency of these items to have a range of needed control of free agency to keep covenants.
An additional question would be, "Why does the Church not also mandate dietary restrictions in order to receive approval for baptism or temple attendance, when diet is a part of Section 89 as well?" My belief is that church leaders do not wish to add additional hurdles to baptism and temple access relating to the Word of Wisdom than to abstain from addictive non-food substances. It appears that church leaders place higher priority on abstaining from harmful non-food substances than they do on diet, which I think to be justified by the structure of Section 89, as the very first verses of counsel all relate to those addictive non-food substances which are prohibited:
This could be seen as suggesting that ridding ourselves of harmful (non-food) substances is of more immediate importance to our physical (and spiritual) health than what foods we choose in our diets -- which is an opinion that medical and other health professionals seem to share. In my advocation of others to choose better dietary habits, I do not advocate for membership or temple restrictions to ever be placed on account of dietary choices -- D&C 48:15 specifically counsels us to not forbid others from eating animals.
While staying away from liquor, wine, tobacco, and coffee & tea are listed first in Section 89, dietary choices are still given the most text and verses, and so diet should still be considered an integral part of the Word of Wisdom. Those members who have successfully avoided or rid themselves of any and all prohibited substances (a wonder- ful feat for anyone to accomplish), still ought to consider taking a look at the counsel contained in those subsequent verses: Eating edible and nutritious vegetables/plants, described as wholesome herbs; fresh and unprocessed fruits and vegetables, described as herbs in season and fruit in season; all types of grains, as well as fruit of the vine, and anything that produces fruit (product of plant) whether above the ground and below, which would include nuts, beans, and seeds of edible plants, as nuts, beans, and other seeds are all "that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground". And also that the Lord is pleased when we only use animals for food during times of famine and extreme hunger.
Why aren't church leaders advising members on diet like they used to?
Since the time that it was more common for high-level church leaders to counsel against meat-eating, the Church has grown by millions of members, in hundreds of countries, languages, and cultures. I believe church leaders reasonably wish to speak less than before in order to not be seen as dictating what others eat (and therefore violating D&C 48:15.) Church leaders also have liability issues to worry about, as counsel that could be construed as medical advice potentially leaves them open to legal action under complaint of practicing medicine without a license. When church leaders are now questioned on the dietary verses of Section 89, their usual response is to only recommend reading then prayerfully making one's own decision.
What then makes you think you can talk to other members about diet when church leaders aren't?
While church leaders maintain a mostly neutral stance regarding human diet as it relates to the Word of Wisdom, it does not follow that we as individual members must retain that same level of neutrality in order to be in harmony with the teachings of the Church. Because church leaders understandably choose to no longer expound on diet, the only avenue for members to receive Word of Wisdom-inspired dietary information is through fellow members.
Aren't you aware that other members might not like hearing this?
Our current Church missionary model is to send tens of thousands of missionaries all over the world to talk to anyone they can of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon. In many (if not most) areas of the world, the number of people open to hearing such a message is less than one in a hundred (the other percentage usually feel varying degrees of annoyance when approached by missionaries.) Despite this, we deem the field to be "ripe and ready to harvest", and that missionaries are successful so long as they "plant seeds" and try to "find the one."
So far in my sharing of Word of Wisdom-inspired dietary info, I have found there to be a much greater portion of members open to the message than one-in-a-hundred. It seems to me that many members have spent years looking for information similar to this but "have known not where to find it." I have spoken to one member who stated that my information resolved years of spiritual confusion and distress for them. Another member told me that my information was a direct answer to prayer, and later after adopting a fully plant diet they experienced remission of symptoms of an illness suffered throughout their entire adult years. Another member told me that much of this information was something he had believed in for some time, but that he had not ventured to mention to other members. But the most common response I have received from those who have read my shared information is that it directly inspired them to make better choices for themselves.
What about members who don't like this?
Church members who don't like the idea of altering their diet can be given all the reassurance in the world that dietary choices do not and will never affect their church standing, salvation, or exaltation. They can be assured that choice of diet is not and never will be a determining marker of worthiness for baptism, priesthood ordination, holding a church calling, serving a mission, receiving a temple recommend, or keeping temple covenants.
The Spirit of the Word of Wisdom
There is another meaning one might have when referring to the Word of Wisdom -- namely "the spirit of the Word of Wisdom". Church leaders speak on this aspect of the Word of Wisdom as well, describing it as doing all we can to keep our bodies healthy as temples of God, which encompasses many more things than simply what the official Church stance prohibits or what Section 89 states. Other things involving body intake & nourishment that are not included in either of the other two guidelines could be considered as: drinking lots of clean water, breathing in lots of fresh air, soaking in ample amounts of sunlight, abstaining from caffeine, and never misusing over-the-counter medication.
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