Does The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hide information?

I know of people who claim that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is keeping its history, finances, plans, and policies hidden. When I served as a missionary answering feedback about the Church's LDS.org website, people often wrote in accusing us of "hiding" information from them. 

Were we? Of course not! I found that each of these accusers demanded that the information they wanted be on the home page. If it wasn't on the home page of the website, then they claimed, "You are hiding it!" I tried to patiently explain about menus, and the need to navigate through layers of information. I even showed how to use the search feature, but the response was still that anything that wasn't right on the home page was "hidden-- on purpose". 


I wondered what these people were like. They seemed to see evil everywhere and ascribe dark motives to everyone except themselves. I've heard that you see in others what is within yourself. Scary!

I also was surprised that these people seemed to have little concept of research and how to study. They just wanted to be spoon fed. They would order me to answer all their questions and do their research for them. Wearily, I once again explained how to navigate lds.org to find answers to their questions. This usually did little good. They wanted simply to turn on a screen and have what they wanted right there in front of them without their having to make any effort at all.  I wondered if these were people who relied only on social media to keep them informed. Scary, again!

Reality is that there is a lot of information out there. LDS.org is one of the largest religious websites in the world. It simply is not possible to have all the information on the home page. This doesn't make it "hidden" any more than information in a book is not available unless you open the book, turn to the right chapter, and then the right page. Learning takes effort. That is just how it is.

Another complaint from these people was that information was being "hidden" because it wasn't taught to them in Sunday School. Since I knew these things when I had only been a member of the Church for a couple of years, I wondered where they had been. Much of the information was there in our Sunday School manuals and in our scriptures, but you do have to read them. Also, in a short class time, only the major concepts and history can be covered. 

If you have other questions, then you need to do more research on your own to find the answers. This research used to be the province of the theologians and history professors of the Church, but now many of the historical papers are available to everyone online at lds.org and other reputable sites. Of course, you do still have to read them.

My experience has been that though the Church has made mountains of records available, few people make the effort to find and read this information. Yes, to them it is "hidden" and ever will be. 

Gospel Topics

Plans for Gospel Topics on LDS.org (informative video)

Church History

Newsroom

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