INVESTIGATIVE REPORT: The Church's newest friends -- multi-billion dollar frauds and felons

"Choose your friends wisely. They will provide the foundation of spiritual strength that will enable you to make difficult, extremely important decisions correctly when they come in your life." [1]

“Choose your friends wisely, for you will tend to be like them.” [2]

"I have found that the right friends have a powerful influence on your life. Choose your friends wisely. Make certain they will help build within you the right standards with which to govern your life." [3]

"Choose good friends. Friends help to determine your future. You will tend to be like them and to be found where they choose to go. Remember, the path we follow in this life leads to the path we follow in the next." [4]

"Choose friends who have high ideals. Choose friends who will help you to be good." [5]

We Mormons have been fed a steady diet of “Choose your friends wisely" since we were kids. As adults, we realize its importance, as our children spread their wings and undertake their own social interactions.

Logically, we can and should conclude that the church is doing the same; that it, too, is "choosing its friends wisely."

In my past posts, I've highlighted some of the church's friends: 

• "Government authorities" who may require "us to give up certain freedoms" [6]
• United Nations member states who develop and implement plans without even the remotest scintilla of thought regarding God. [7]
• The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. [7]
• "Medical experts and government leaders" like the Centers for Disease Control, who have developed plans to remove non-vaccinated family members from their own homes and indefinitely quarantine them in a government facility. [8]
• Pro-abortion, pro-socialist organizations. [9]
• Policymakers who protect baby killers. [10]

Now added to the list: The manufacturers of the Covid-19 injections. 

In the First Presidency's August 12, 2021 letter [11] to members re: wearing masks and getting immunizations, church leaders told members, "We know that protection from the diseases they cause can only be achieved by immunizing a very high percentage of the population" and "To provide personal protection from such severe infections, we urge individuals to be vaccinated. Available vaccines have proven to be both safe and effective."

One of the church's official investment arms -- Ensign Peak Advisors (EPA) -- has added to the church’s list of "friends" (companies it trusts, and would refer 16 million others to) those who manufacture the Covid-19 injections. In the U.S., that would be AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna and Pfizer.

Tithing-Paid Investments in Covid-19 Injection Manufacturers

Not only has the church glowingly referred these business’ products (Covid-19 injections) to its members, but the Church has also invested OUR tithing money in those very same Covid-19 injection manufacturers in the form of stocks. 

In his Sept 14, 2021 decision in James Huntsman v Corporation of the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, federal judge Stephen Wilson legitimized James Huntsman's equating tithing to investments made by EPA. Quoting from his ruling:

"In 1991, the President of the Defendant's church, Gordon B. Hinckley, explained that Defendant would set aside a portion of the tithing funds paid to the Church as a rainy day fund."

"In 1997, Defendant [the church] incorporated Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc. ("EPA") to be the Defendant's primary investment vehicle for the Defendant's reserve tithing funds. The reserve tithing funds would be invested in stocks, bonds, and securities." [My emphasis]

"First, [David] Neilsen [a former Senior Portfolio Manager at EPA from 2010 to 2019] conflates tithing funds with earnings on invested tithing funds. Specifically, he states that "EPA's senior leadership and other EPA employees referred to and revered all funds of EPA as 'tithing' money, regardless of whether they were referring to principal or earnings on that principal." [34; my emphasis]

Here is how much the church (via EPA) has invested our tithing payments in these companies over the last couple of years:

	2019-12-31 [12]	2020-03-31 [13]	2020-06-30 [14]	2020-09-30 [15]	2020-12-31 [16]	2021-03-31 [17]	2021-06-30 [18]
AstraZeneca	$2,834,000	$1,044,000	$1,044,000		$8,747,000	$8,188,000	$9,866,000
Pfizer	$80,705,000	$86,321,000	$86,321,000	$95,869,000	$157,683,000	$152,578,000	$163,008,000
Johnson & Johnson	$645,924,000	$501,068,000	$501,068,000	$465,903,000	$530,704,000	$524,249,000	$499,776,000
Moderna				$5,355,000	$3,504,000	$3,707,000	$3,399,000
TOTAL	$729,463,000	$588,433,000	$588,433,000	$567,127,000	$700,638,000	$688,722,000	$676,049,000

Callings

In fact, the church called Richard Hutchings as an Area Seventy for the North America Northeast region in April, 2019.   [19]  Hutchings is Executive Director for pharmaceutical sciences for Pfizer, responsible for oncology and anti-viral development. [20]

Fines

On the surface, people might say, "OK, so what?"

Remember those quotes about choosing your friends wisely? That's where these relationships take a strange and (to be frank) dangerous turn:

Pfizer: Paid out $2.3 billion in 2019 for fraudulent marketing, then the largest health care fraud settlement and the largest criminal fine ever imposed in the United States. Pfizer pled guilty to misbranding the painkiller Bextra with "the intent to defraud or mislead". [21] Total pay outs over time for all drug-related fines: 71, totaling $4.6 billion. [22]

Johnson & Johnson: Agreed to pay a $2.2 billion fine to resolve criminal and civil allegations relating to the prescription drugs Risperdal, Invega and Natrecor. The government alleged that J&J promoted these drugs for uses not approved as safe and effective by the FDA, targeted elderly dementia patients in nursing homes, and paid kickbacks to physicians and to the nation's largest long-term care pharmacy provider. [23] Total pay outs over time for all drug-related fines: 58, totaling $4.2 billion. [24]

AstraZeneca: Was fined $520 million to resolve allegations that it illegally promoted the antipsychotic drug Seroquel. [25] Total pay outs over time for all drug-related fines: 21, totaling $1.14 billion. [26]

Moderna: Four fines totaling $311,972. [27]

All totaled, the church has not only made friends with, but has also invested in, four pharmaceutical manufacturers who have racked up combined fees of almost $10 billion. 

And on top of it all, it's told its members -- and the world -- to trust these very same companies into which it has invested tithes for our "personal protection."

Some Serious Questions Arise

President Nelson gave a speech at BYU on April 23, 2009. It's title: “Neither Trust in the Arm of Flesh”. [30]  There, he quoted two scriptures: “Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm” [31] and "neither trust in the arm of flesh.” [32]

What happened in between April 23, 2009 and the First Presidency's Covid letter of August 12, 2021 which made trusting in the arm of flesh a divinely-endorsed spiritual strategy?

Would church leaders be comfortable with you making such friends?

How does the church interpret this scripture, including giving "money be given to the exchangers"?

"And while they were yet laying the foundation thereof, they began to say among themselves: And what need hath my lord of this tower? And consulted for a long time, saying among themselves: What need hath my lord of this tower, seeing this is a time of peace? Might not this money be given to the exchangers? For there is no need of these things. And while they were at variance one with another they became very slothful, and they hearkened not unto the commandments of their lord. And the enemy came by night, and broke down the hedge; and the servants of the nobleman arose and were affrighted, and fled; and the enemy destroyed their works, and broke down the olive trees." (D&C 101:47-51)

Where are we told in the scriptures that it's actually fine with the Lord for the Quorum of the Twelve Businessmen to invest tithes in pharmaceutical manufacturers?

3 Nephi 13:19-20 (which I assume the Brethren still believe is divinely inspired) says, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal; But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal." How are pharmaceutical investments "treasures in heaven"?

Revelation 9:21 and Revelation 18:23 both mention the word “sorceries,” which in Greek is pharmakeiOn, or drugs or enchantments. Go here to read more about what God has to say about those who use and peddle pharmakeiOn. (Note they aren't my words, but God's).

We are also told to "Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven." (D&C 121:45)

(The definition of virtue is "behavior showing high moral standards"). [28]

How does the church show "high moral standards" when it invests in pharmakeiOn manufacturers which are convicted felons having paid billions in fines?

How does the church show "high moral standards" when it promotes to 16+ million members (and more) pharmakeiOn which has consistently displayed horrendous adverse events in those using it? [33]

A woman (who took the Pfizer jab a week before) experienced Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, which doctors have attributed to the vaccine. She had "no previous medical history.” [29] How does the church explain its investment in, and promotion of, this injection which almost killed this woman? 

Where is God in ANY of this?

Sources

1.   Malcolm S Jeppsen, "Who is a True Friend," April 1990 General Conference
2.   New Era, August, 2004
3.   L Tom Perry, New Era, February 1993
4.   Thomas S Monson, "In Harm's Way," April 1998 General Conference
5.   Ezra Taft Benson, "To the Children of the Church," April 1989 General Conference
6.   https://ldtruths.blogspot.com/2021/09/satans-plan-of-compulsion-has-new.html
7.   https://ldtruths.blogspot.com/2021/08/proof-church-is-embarrassed-about-god.html
8.   https://ldtruths.blogspot.com/2021/08/wise-and-thoughtful-recommendations-of.html
9.   https://ldtruths.blogspot.com/2021/08/follow-brethren-great-youre-now-un.html
10.   https://ldtruths.blogspot.com/2021/03/proof-elder-uchtdorf-supports.html
11.   https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/first-presidency-message-covid-19-august-2021
12.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498420000005/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak191231.xml
13.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498420000008/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak200331.xml
14.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498420000009/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak200630.xml
15.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498420000010/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak200930.xml
16.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498421000003/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak201231.xml
17.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498421000004/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak210331.xml
18.   https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001454984/000145498421000005/xslForm13F_X01/ensignpeak210630.xml
19.   https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2019-04-23/general-conference-april-2019-mormon-lds-area-seventies-2874
20.   https://grandmapalspocket.blogspot.com/2020/07/1248-pfizer-head-of-anti-viral-has-good.html
21.   https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justicedepartment-announces-largest-health-care-fraud-settlement-its-history
22.   https://violationtracker.goodjobsfirst.org/prog.php?parent=pfizer
23.   https://www.pandata.org/how-broad-is-covid-immunity
24.   https://violationtracker.goodjobsfirst.org/prog.php?parent=johnson-and-johnson
25.   https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/bigpharma
26.   https://violationtracker.goodjobsfirst.org/prog.php?parent=astrazeneca
27.   https://violationtracker.goodjobsfirst.org/prog.php?parent=&major_industry_sum=&offense_group_sum=&primary_offense_sum=&agency_sum=&agency_sum_st=&hq_id_sum=&company_op=starts&company=Moderna&major_industry%5B%5D=&case_category=&offense_group=&all_offense%5B%5D=&penalty_op=%3E&penalty=&govt_level=&agency_code%5B%5D=&agency_code_st%5B%5D=&pen_year%5B%5D=&pres_term=&free_text=&case_type=&ownership%5B%5D=&hq_id=&naics%5B%5D=&state=&city=
28.   https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/virtue
29.   https://www.dailyveracity.com/2021/08/19/covid-vaccine-causes-womans-skin-to-rot-according-to-doctors
30.   https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/russell-m-nelson/neither-trust-arm-flesh/
31.   2 Nephi 28:31
32.   D&C 1:19
33.   https://jabupdate.com/#adverse
34.   https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cacd.814559/gov.uscourts.cacd.814559.55.0_1.pdf

Follow the Profit: A New Way to Track LDS Church Stocks

When church members pay tithing, they have an expectation that the hard earned money they pay will be spent as the Lord has directed. These expectations are rooted in D&C 119:2, which gives us the scripturally-based purpose of tithing:

1. "For the building of mine house [temples]
2. and for the laying of the foundation of Zion [developing people who are of one heart, one mind and dwelling in righteousness with no poor among them]
3. and for the priesthood
4. and for the debts of the Presidency of my Church."

Here are some very basic questions about church finances:

Q: What is the church's income?
A: Today, the church receives as much as $7 billion in members' tithing each year. It is speculated that the church has over $100 billion in assets. [1]  

Q: How are tithes allocated?
A: Here's the church's own statement, dated May 22, 2018:

"The Church's Council on the Disposition of the Tithes is composed of the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the Presiding Bishopric. Together, they establish and administer the specific policies and budgets guiding the use of Church resources (see D&C 120:1). Those policies embody the following principles:

• Expenditures will not exceed forecasted revenue.
• The budget for operating expenses will not increase at a more rapid rate than anticipated tithing contributions.

Budgets for the Church's efforts are specifically approved and funds are appropriated by the Church's Budget and Appropriations Committee, a subcommittee of the Council on the Disposition of the Tithes."  [2]

Q: How are tithes audited?
A: Usually, large organizations hire outside accounting firms to audit their finances. However, the church has its own Audit Committee which does the job:

"Additionally, the Church Auditing Department, which is independent from all other Church departments, employs credentialed professionals to ensure that Church funds are administered and recorded in accordance with Church policies and standard accounting practices." [2]

Q: Do members get to see how the money is spent?
A:  Apparently so. The following is a transcript of an interview between Pres. Hinckley and a reporter (which can be viewed in its entirety here):

"REPORTER: In my country the...we say the people's churches, the Protestants, the Catholics, they publish all their budgets, to all the public.
HINCKLEY: Yeah. Yeah.
REPORTER: Why is it impossible for your church?
HINCKLEY: Well, we simply think that the...that information belongs to those who made the contribution, and not to the world. That's the only thing. Yeah." [3]

This is interesting because the church published its last financial report in April, 1959.

Q: How is the money spent?
A: Here's The First Presidency:

"The vast majority of these funds are used immediately to meet the needs of the growing Church including more meetinghouses, temples, education, humanitarian work and missionary efforts throughout the world. All Church funds exist for no other reason than to support the Church's divinely appointed mission." [4]

D&C 119:2 (As Amended)

So, the Church's divinely appointed mission now includes the development of high-rise office buildings, luxury shopping malls, planned communities and other real estate developments, several businesses, numerous radio and television stations, an insurance company, cattle ranches, farms, stocks and forged documents.

I won't go into detail regarding these various investments; other articles have done an exemplary job of that (for example, see here). In response, the church has admitted that it "also sets aside funds each year for future needs. These funds are added to Church reserves, which include stocks and bonds, taxable businesses, agricultural interests and commercial and residential property." These "Investments can be accessed in times of hardship or to meet the emerging needs of a growing, global faith in its mission to preach the gospel to all nations and prepare for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ." [5]

The source if these funds? Again, church leaders disclosed, "the vast majority of its financial resources comes from the tithes and offerings of Church members." [2]

That means, by the church's own admission, your tithing money is spent on laying "up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt." [6]  Anyone paying these tithes is therefore complicit, to one degree or another, in these anti-scriptural endeavors.

I could write many, many posts regarding the incongruity between modern-day church expenditures and what the Lord originally intended in D&C 119:2. But today, I'd like to focus on just one portion of the church's assets: its stock portfolio.

The Definitive LDS Church Stocks Tracking Chart

For 22 years, Ensign Peak Advisors has managed the church's reserve investment fund.  For reasons the church declines to elaborate, [7] it never filed required government oversight paperwork until February 14, 2020 (although there is no evidence of intentional obfuscation, these are some pretty bright advisors who surely know the government expects these reports). 

These reports - filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission - are here: https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001454984

There, you'll see four reports, each filed on a quarterly basis in 2020. What you can't see is how these stocks have been traded from quarter to quarter. What stocks has the church purchased or increased, decreased or eliminated? 

To see that, I have downloaded each of the four reports and converted them into spreadsheets. Then I imported all four spreadsheets into an Access database, using their CUSIP as a common index field. Then I gave each stock issuer (for example, Microsoft) its own row, with each quarter's investment amount in the subsequent columns. After quarters 2, 3 and 4, I also listed the ?, or the percentage change from quarter to quarter.

OK, enough of the technobabble. 

Click here to access my Ensign Peak Advisors Tracking Chart

This spreadsheet has five tabs: Master Data, Top 20 investments, Winners (which stocks have increased), Losers (which stocks have decreased) and Pharma.

Top 20 tab: As of November 12, 2020, the church invested over a billion dollars each in Apple, Microsoft and Amazon. Both Apple and especially NVIDIA (a computer chip manufacturer) saw the church's stock purchases in them increase more than 20% between August and November, 2020.

Winners tab: between August and November 2020: Grocery Outlet, trucking company Schneider National, genetic testing company Natera then several pharmaceutical and therapeutics companies.

Losers tab: The church divested itself of over $79 million in stocks between August and November 2020. They're listed in the Losers tab.

Pharma tab: I list the 17 "COVID-19 RELATED" testing labs / vaccine developers which the church has invested in (red font; four of them are listed in the Top 20 tab). 72 other "CONFIRMED PHARMA" companies are listed in a blue font. Finally, 45 other Therapeutics companies are in a black font.

As you will see, the church is investing over $1.6 billion in tithed funds into COVID-19 testing or vaccine developers. Another $1.7 billion is invested in non-COVID-19 related pharmas, and just under $100 million in other therapeutics companies. All totaled, the church invests almost $3 billion, or 4% of its total portfolio, in these three sectors.

All spreadsheets will be updated on a quarterly basis as new SEC filings are submitted.

In a future post, I'll detail how the church is staunchly committed to vaccinations, including COVID-19 vaccinations. We'll examine the implications of this stance as it relates to these investments, the church's employees and members. 

"Furthermore, I want to say to you, we may not be able to reach it right away, but we expect to see the day when we will not have to ask you for one dollar of donation for any purpose, except that which you volunteer to give of your own accord, because we will have tithes sufficient in the storehouse of the Lord to pay everything that is needful for the advancement of the kingdom of God." (Joseph F. Smith, Conference Report, Apr. 1907, p. 7)"

QUESTIONS

Based on the aforementioned facts, I have the following questions:

• How does the church's investments in these various sectors (see italicized text above) square with the scriptural definition of tithing found in D&C 119:2?
• When was D&C 119:2 amended to include real estate and other investments? When was this revision presented to the church for a sustaining vote per the Law of Common Consent?
• What interesting points did you find in these spreadsheets?
• Why did Pres. Hinckley say that budgetary "information belongs to those who made the contribution," but the contributors (tithe payers) haven't seen that information since April, 1959?

SOURCES

1.  https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/jan/30/from-book-to-boom-how-the-mormons-plan-a-city-for-500000-in-florida; https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/08/mormon-church-gets-7-billion-year/324727/ 
2. https://web.archive.org/web/20181010221649/https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-finances-and-a-growing-global-church
3.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGktXV346G8&feature=youtu.be 
4.  First Presidency statement, Dec. 17, 2019
5.  Gérald Caussé, "In the Lord's Way: The Spiritual Foundations of Church Financial Self-Reliance," Mormon Newsroom, Mar. 2, 2018
6.  3 Nephi 13:19-20; Helaman 8:25; 3 Nephi 27:32
7.  https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2020/03/07/lds-church-discloses/ 

CHECK THE COMMENTS BY LATTER-DAY
TRUTHS BELOW FOR UPDATES TO THIS POST

Gross or Net Tithing - Actually It's Neither

It is THE eternal debate in the church:

"Should we pay net or gross tithing?"

I can understand why people are so concerned about this very pressing issue. For most people, money is tight. The difference between gross and net tithing can mean the inclusion or exclusion of a variety of many things to an individual or family.

Let's turn to the scriptures, and see what they say, shall we?

D&C 119

On July 8, 1838, Joseph Smith requested of the Lord, "O Lord! Show unto thy servants how much thou requirest of the properties of thy people for a tithing." The result was D&C Section 119. In it, the Lord answered two primary questions: How much are Saints expected to pay in tithing, and what is the money to be used for?

The second answer was straightforward: Tithing money is to be used for (1) the building of a temple, (2) laying of the foundation of Zion and for the priesthood, and (3) the debts of the Church's Presidency.

Nowhere in D&C 119 is the church allowed to invest its funds. This would be in contradiction to the words of God, where we're instructed to "lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt." [1]

That's not all. D&C 119 makes no stipulations for the funding of:

• Meetinghouses [2]
• Humanitarian work [2]
• Missionary efforts [2]
• Broadcast facilities
• Agricultural reserves
• Real estate

Neither does it make provision for funding full-time salaries. It's perfectly natural that these are not funded, because Jesus' original apostles worked without purse nor scrip, yet still had living expenses and even taxes to pay (to Rome). Why are apostles today any different? Here is what the Lord said:

"Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;

As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;

Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;

Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them." [3] 

But I digress. Perhaps a more thorough examination of these outlays may be appropriate in a subsequent post.

"GROSS OR NET?" THROUGHOUT HISTORY

The first response the Lord provided to Joseph addressed how much He expected the Saints to offer. The answer was also straightforward: (1) offer all their surplus property into the hands of the bishop of my church in Zion, and (2) "one-tenth of all their interest annually" thereafter. To ensure it stayed this way, He suffixed his command by saying, "and this shall be a standing law unto them forever, for my holy priesthood, saith the Lord." [4]  

Elsewhere, the Lord defines "surplus" as the part of one's income that is "more than is necessary for their support." [5]

OK, fine. But what is one's "increase"?

The Lord's insistence that tithing be based on interest is consistent with what He told Abraham to do:

"Abram paid unto him [Melchizedek] tithes of all that he had, of all the riches which he possessed, which God had given him more than that which he had need." [6] 

So, did Abraham pay tithes based on his gross income? No. Did Abraham pay tithes based on his net income? No. He paid tithing on "more than that which he had need," which sounds a lot like "more than is necessary for their support." In other words, his surplus.

At the time D&C 119 was revealed, John Corrill was serving alongside Elias Higbee as Church Historian.[7]  This is how he described the implementation of tithing:

"If a man gives for the benefit of the Church, it is considered a voluntary offering.  Yet the law requires or enjoins a consecration of the overplus, after reserving for himself and family to carry on his business." [8]

"Overplus," which is defined as - you guessed it - "a surplus or excess."

In 1855, Brigham Young reminisced about how tithing was implemented "When the revelation which I have read was given in 1838, I was present, and recollect the feelings of the brethren. . . . The brethren wished me to go among the Churches, and find out what surplus property the people had, with which to forward the building of the Temple we were commencing at Far West. I accordingly went from place to place through the country. Before I started, I asked brother Joseph, 'Who shall be the judge of what is surplus property?' Said he, 'Let them be the judges themselves. . . .'"  [9]

There's that word "surplus" again!

A CHANGED "STANDING" LAW

The first liberalization of the 1838 tithing revelation was instituted by the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in November, 1841. Then, the initial donation was reduced to only "one-tenth of all a man [possesses, and] 1/10 of increas[e] afterwards."  [10]

(You'll note the usage of the word "increase" instead of "interest," which are considered synonyms).

I've read no objections or commentary by Joseph Smith regarding this modification, so I would assume that it still didn't violate the Lord's standing law.

But two and a half years later, tragedy struck: Joseph Smith, Jr. was martyred on June 27, 1844.

And that's where the story gets interesting.

On August 15th, 1844, just six weeks of Joseph's martyrdom, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles issued an epistle, (signed by Brigham Young, President of the Twelve) which entirely did away with surplus-based tithing and replaced it with income-based tithing:

"Therefore, as soon as the Twelve have proceeded to a full and complete organization of the branches abroad, let every member proceed immediately to tithe himself or herself, a tenth of all their property and money, and pay it into the hands of the Twelve; or into the hands of such bishops as have been, or shall be appointed by them to receive the same, for the building of the Temple for the support of the priesthood according to the scriptures, and the revelations of God; and then let them continue to pay in a tenth of their income from that time forth, for this is a law unto this church as much binding on their conscience as any other law or ordinance. And let this law or ordinance be henceforth taught to all who present themselves for admission into this church, that they may know the sacrifice and tithing which the Lord requires, and perform it; or else not curse the church with a mock membership as many have done heretofore. This will furnish a steady public fund for all sacred purposes, and save the leaders from constant debt and embarrassment, and the members can then employ the remainder of their capital in every branch of enterprize, industry, and charity, as seemeth them good; only holding themselves in readiness to be advised in such manner as shall be for the good of themselves and the whole society; and thus all things can move in harmony, and for the general benefit and satisfaction of all concerned."  [11] 

Five months later, in January 1845, another Quorum of Twelve's epistle highlighted "the duty of all saints to tithe themselves one-tenth of all they possess when they enter into the new and everlasting covenant: and then one-tenth of their interest, or income, yearly afterwards."  [12]

Then, two weeks later, the Twelve voted to exempt themselves, the two general bishops (Newel K. Whitney and George Miller) and the Nauvoo Temple Committee from any obligation to pay tithing.  [13]

THE TWELVE

We are told that "The Twelve are a Traveling Presiding High Council, to officiate in the name of the Lord, under the direction of the Presidency of the Church, agreeable to the institution of heaven; to build up the church, and regulate all the affairs of the same in all nations, first unto the Gentiles and secondly unto the Jews.". [14] It is written: President [Joseph] Smith gave the following decision. They are the Twelve Apostles, who are called to the office of traveling high council, who are to preside over all the churches of the Saints among the Gentiles, where there is no presidency established, and they are to travel and preach among the Gentiles, until the Lord shall command them to go to the Jews. They are to hold the keys of this ministry, to unlock the door of the kingdom of heaven unto all nations, and to preach the Gospel to every creature. This is the power, authority and virtue of their apostleship." [15] 

To reinforce this fact, "The president then stated that the Twelve will have no right to go into Zion or any of its stakes and there undertake to regulate the affairs thereof where there is a standing High Council." [16]

Today, "In addition to their primary responsibility to be special witnesses of the name of Christ throughout the world, the apostles have heavy administrative responsibilities as they oversee the orderly progress and development of the global Church."  [17]

QUESTIONS

Based on the aforementioned facts, I have the following questions:

• Joseph Smith told a gathering of the Twelve that they only had authority "where there is no presidency established,", and in fact were not even to go into any organized stakes where there is a standing High Council. But now they have administrative responsibilities over the entire global Church. Where is the revelation that supersedes Joseph Smith's instructions, and when was it presented for a vote to the church as a whole per the Law of Common Consent?
• Tithing was pretty clearly defined in the scriptures and statements by Joseph Smith that it's based on one's surplus, not income. Where is the revelation (the basis for the 8/15/1844 epistle) that supersedes those scriptures (including the Lord's standing law to the church) and Joseph Smith's instructions, and when was it presented for a vote to the church as a whole per the Law of Common Consent?
• What does "a standing law forever" mean to you?
• Where is the revelation that exempts the Twelve and others from having to pay tithing? When was it presented for a vote to the church as a whole per the Law of Common Consent?
• If we are to receive profound blessings for paying tithing, then aren't those blessings naturally withheld to the Twelve, who are not obligated to pay tithing?
• If Joseph were asked if tithing should be based on gross or net income, what do you think he'd say (and what would be the factual basis for your answer)?

CHECK THE COMMENTS BY LATTER-DAY
TRUTHS BELOW FOR UPDATES TO THIS POST 

 1.   3 Nephi 13:19-20; Helaman 8:2
 2.   "The vast majority of these funds are used immediately to meet the needs of the growing Church including more meetinghouses, temples, education, humanitarian work and missionary efforts throughout the world. All Church funds exist for no other reason than to support the Church's divinely appointed mission." (First Presidency statement, Dec. 17, 2019)
 3.   Ezekiel 34:7-10
 4.   D&C 119:4
 5.   D&C 42:33
 6.   JST Genesis 14:39
 7.   Scott G. Kenney. "John Corrill (1794-1840)". Saints Without Halos. Retrieved 2010-08-12; Susan Easton Black (1997). "Corrill, John". Who's Who in the Doctrine and Covenants. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft.
 8.   John Corrill, "A Brief History of the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints", published in 1839.  Reprinted in its entirety in The Joseph Smith Papers, Volume 2-The Histories
 9.   Journal of Discourses 2:306; http://jod.mrm.org/2/298
10.   Meeting of seven members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles with English immigrant Joseph Fielding at Nauvoo, Illinois, 31 Nov. 1841, minutes, archives, Historical Department, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah; Arrington, Great Basin Kingdom, 18, and Swainston, "Tithing" in Encyclopedia of Mormonism 4:1482 overlook this as a liberalization of the requirement in the 1838 revelation.
11.   Joseph Smith et al., History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Period I: History of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, and. . . Period II: From the Manuscript History of Brigham Young and Other Original Documents, ed. B. H. Roberts, 7 vols. (Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1902-32; 2d ed. rev. [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1978]), 7:251; Arrington, Great Basin Kingdom, 18; http://www.boap.org/LDS/History/History_of_the_Church/Vol_VII; https://archive.org/stream/historyofchurcho03smitrich/historyofchurcho03smitrich_djvu.txt
12.   History of the Church, 7:358
13.   Heber C. Kimball diary, 29 Jan. 1845, in Stanley B. Kimball, ed., On the Potter's Wheel: The Diaries of Heber C. Kimball (Salt Lake City: Signature Books/Smith Research Associates, 1987), 94; Nauvoo Trustee-in-Trust Tithing and Donation Record, 220-222 (29 Jan. 1845), LDS archives. For the term general bishop and its meaning in early LDS history, see Journal of Discourses, 26 vols. (Liverpool and London: Latter-day Saints' Book Depot, 1854-86), 22: 34 (O. Pratt/1880); D. Michael Quinn, 'Evolution of the Presiding Quorums of the LDS Church,' Journal of Mormon History 1 (1974): 34; Dale Beecher, 'The Office of Bishop,' Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 15 (Winter 1982): 103; Quinn, Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, 69-71
14.   D&C 107:33
15.   "Minutes and Discourses, 27 February 1835, as Reported by Oliver Cowdery," in Minute Book 1, 88, https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/minute-book-1/92 ; as quoted in https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/quorum-of-the-twelve
16.   Minute Book 1,p. 187, May 2, 1835; https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/minute-book-1/191#source-note 
17.   Church news release, "Russell M. Nelson: New President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles", July 15, 2015, https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/russell-m-nelson-new-president-of-the-quorum-of-the-twelve-apostles