The Shakers, Marriage, and the Second Coming in D&C 49

A few years ago I was building a desk and used a round file to try to square up a mortise that was out of alignment. It did not work because the file is made for curves and the mortise needed a chisel. I spent an extra hour making the hole worse before I admitted I was using the wrong tool.

I thought about that file when I read D&C 49. The Shakers believed some things that were wrong, but they were not bad people. They were trying to be holy. The problem was they were using the wrong tool for the job. They added requirements God never gave and called it devotion. Section 49 does not mock them for trying. It corrects them with the straight tool instead of the round one.

Wherefore, for this cause the Lord commanded the elders to reason with them according to the truth he should give them. (D&C 49:4)

The instruction is to reason with them according to truth, not according to their own assumptions. That is a lesson I still need to remember when I talk to people I disagree with.

What Does D&C 49 Teach About Marriage

The Shakers believed that celibacy was a higher form of holiness. They did not marry. They did not have children. They thought the kingdom of God meant leaving the family behind.

Verse 15 addresses that directly. The Lord says marriage is ordained of God unto man. He does not say it is permitted or allowed. He says it is ordained, meaning it was built into the design from the beginning.

And again, verily I say unto you, that whoso forbiddeth to marry is not ordained of God, for marriage is ordained of God unto man. (D&C 49:15)

I am a husband and a father and I know what marriage has cost me in sleep and money and patience. I also know what it has given me that I could not have gotten any other way. The Lord did not create marriage as a consolation prize for people who were not spiritual enough. He created it as the structural beam that holds the house together.

The revelation goes on to say that marriage is for the purpose of filling the measure of creation. That links back to the Genesis mandate to multiply and replenish the earth, and it was always the plan. Celibacy is a gift for some people in some circumstances, but making it a rule for everyone means subtracting something God put into the design.

LDS View on Shakers and Celibacy

I find the Shakers easier to understand than I want to admit. Adding rules to your faith feels productive. It feels like you are taking things seriously. The problem is that not every rule that feels serious comes from God.

Section 49 draws a line around marriage and says this is enough. Do not add to it and do not take away from it. The design already works the way it was meant to.

I think about this when I see people adding requirements to their faith that are not there. It is easy to think more restriction equals more devotion. But the Lord seems to care about whether we follow the design He gave more than whether we make ourselves uncomfortable enough to prove we are serious.

The same logic applies to the Shaker belief about the Second Coming. They believed Christ had already returned in the form of Mother Ann Lee. Section 49 describes the actual Second Coming as unmistakable. The heavens will shake. The earth will tremble. It will not be subtle and it will not be debatable.

Doctrine and Covenants 49 Meat and Diet

Verse 18 addresses the Shaker teaching that eating meat made a person spiritually unclean. The Lord says animals and fowls and fish are ordained for the use of man for food and for raiment. He does not say everyone must eat meat. He says no one should forbid it as a religious requirement.

And wo be unto man that sheddeth blood or that wasteth flesh and hath no need. (D&C 49:21)

This is a practical verse that applies whether you hunt or buy meat at the store. The Lord is not against hunting or raising animals for food. He is against waste, against killing for sport, against treating the creation as something to use up rather than steward. That matches what I learned growing up about how you treat a resource you did not make. You take what you need. You do not take more.

I grew up around people who hunted and fished. The ones who did it right treated the animal with respect, used what they took and did not leave meat in the field. That is what verse 21 is getting at. The problem is not using the earth but wasting it.

Signs of the Second Coming in D&C 49

The closing verses of this section describe a day when everything changes. The heavens will shake and the earth will tremble and every eye will see Him.

I have been in the helicopter when the weather shifted fast. One minute the visibility was fine and the next minute I could not tell where the horizon was. That kind of change is unsettling because it happens at a scale you cannot control. You can only ride through it.

The Second Coming will not be subtle or debatable afterward. It will rearrange the ground underneath you.

But the chapter does not end with the shaking. It ends with a call to continue in steadfastness. Wait for it. Do not let the noise pull you off. The Shakers thought they had already seen the end of the story. Section 49 says the real ending is still coming and it will be impossible to miss.

How to Reason with People of Different Faiths LDS

The approach this revelation takes toward the Shakers is worth paying attention to. It does not insult them. It does not dismiss their sincerity. It simply states what is true and lets the correction stand on its own.

I try to remember that when I find myself frustrated with someone whose beliefs are different from mine. The goal is not to win an argument. The goal is to tell the truth clearly enough that someone who is looking can find it.

That is hard work requiring patience people do not always have. The Lord gave a similar instruction about record keeping and gathering in The Coffee Can Wisdom of D&C 48, and the same principle applies here. This is the work the elders were sent to do in 1831 and it is the same work we are still doing now.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does D&C 49 mention eating meat

The revelation was correcting the Shakers and others who believed avoiding meat was a requirement for holiness. The Lord clarified that animals were created for human use, though He also warned against wasteful killing.

What does D&C 49 say about marriage

The Lord calls marriage ordained of God. He refutes the idea that celibacy is a higher form of holiness. Marriage is part of the original design of creation and is essential for the earth to be filled as planned.

How should we reason with people who have different beliefs according to D&C 49

The instruction is to reason with them according to the truth God has given, not by accepting their incorrect assumptions as a starting point. Stay grounded in revealed doctrine while remaining respectful of the person you are speaking with.

I think about that mortise I tried to fix with the wrong file. It took me longer than I want to admit to realize the problem was not the wood. The problem was the tool I was using. Section 49 says the same thing about the Shakers. They had the right intention but the wrong tool. The revelation handed them the one that actually fits.
— D.