Hey Frank, will you say the prayer today? No? Please? PLEASE? Thanks.

Today, let's start with what used to be the introduction to this revelation. This is the first three verses of the section.

1 Word of Wisdom, for the benefit of the council of high priests, assembled in Kirtland, and the church, and also the saints in Zion?

2 To be sent greeting; not by commandment or constraint, but by revelation and the word of wisdom, showing forth the order and will of God in the temporal salvation of all saints in the last days?

3 Given for a principle with promise, adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints, who are or can be called saints.

So let's get to a main beef of many people. In verse 2, it says that this is a greeting, not a commandment. However, in the lesson manual, it says, "President Joseph Fielding Smith said, 'The Word of Wisdom is a basic law...'" How did it move from greeting to law? Was the prophet Joseph wrong? Did God just trick him? We know that Joseph was drinking wine in the jail right before he was killed. By today's standards, he certainly wouldn't be allowed in the temple. Brigham Young also was known to drink, particularly with friends and visiting dignitaries. Clearly, Brigham understood this to be a general guideline, and not a commandment. Does anyone know why this became a commandment?

Yes, Sally. Like you, I have heard that Heber Grant was such a hard-core prohibitionist that he determined that the Word of Wisdom should be a commandment. I also understand that there is a significant amount of discrepancy in how individual leaders interpret the Word of Wisdom and how people are judged by those individual leaders. Who thinks that God would randomly change greetings to laws and also reverse laws to turning them into heinous sins?

Thanks for your thoughts Jeff, I understand from our previous conversations that you think polygamy would be hot, but we're not here to talk about that today.

Okay, let's move on to talk about some other things. Let's just kind of work through some of the highlights.

Verses 5-7 talk about not drinking wine or strong drinks, except for drinking wine with the sacrament, at which time the wine should be pure. Many mistakenly think that "pure wine" is unfermented grape juice. I don't have the foggiest idea from when that idea sprang. Anyone here have any ideas on that?

Yes Randy, I do suspect there is a connection between the desire of LDS folks today to presume all alcohol is bad and this idea.

Joseph drank wine right before he was killed. Brigham drank wine regularly, even accepting it as tithing through the late 1800's. Aren't we told to follow the example of the prophets? Oh, but don't forget what former Secretary of Agriculture Benson told us. A living prophet is more important than a dead prophet. This is particularly true since God appears to randomly change what is commandment and what is not commandment.

What about beer? In verse 17, it talks about using barley for mild drinks. Many today interpret that as Postum. In years gone by, it was definitely interpreted as beer, but with Heber Grant, beer was brought into question for the first time. As a prohibitionist, he did not want to allow people into the temple who drank beer, even after Prohibition was lifted.

With regards to tobacco, there is a fair amount of evidence pointing to the destructive nature of tobacco. It seems as though one would be wise to avoid this herb, except for cattle. How many of you use this for your cattle? What, no one has cattle? I thought the D&C was written, along with the Book of Mormon, for our time. Well, I have actually used it on cattle. It helps to settle an upset stomach in cattle. I find that kind of ironic because the first time a friend of mine tried chewing tobacco, he barfed all over the place.

Hot drinks..., let's look at that. What is a hot drink? Or even more basic, what does the word hot mean?

Rebecca. Thanks temperature is one. Frank. Yes spiciness or hotness, like peppers is another. That would be like the Scoville scale used to measure pepper "hotness." Anyone else?

Jeff, you are right. Brigham wanted to minimize the economic influence of coffee and tea in the region, so he defined hot drinks as coffee and tea. What about iced tea and ice coffee? Yes, he still defined that as a hot drink... It defies my use of the word hot and any of the dictionary uses of the word hot. Hmmmm....

It is fairly commonly understood that "strong drinks" are distilled alcohol. That is why this section says "for the washing of bodies." But Brigham had an alcohol still. What did he do with that? Some say he used it for creating tradable alcohol. Others say that he partook occasionally. Perhaps we should give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he was creating alcohol for wounds, such as the castration wounds that were occasionally inflicted upon men, uncompliant to his or other leaders commands.

Herbs and fruits are good. We see that in today's research as well, so good points.

Meat, now this is a controversial topic. If we are to use it sparingly, why do we have a Ward barbeque with Sally and Tom's famous ribs? What about some of the insights with vitamin B12 deficiencies prevalent among vegans? Why would the guidance from God be so devoid of useful information on this point?

How about grains? Are we talking whole grains here or processed prepared grains like those that we get at ward gatherings? What about the impact of grains on the glycemic index?

Yes, Samantha, I understand that the food pyramid that so many LDS folks thought was inspired confirmation of the use of grains has been changed. Refined grains act much like sugar on spiking insulin and causing weight gain. Whole grains in fact have been reported to have a similar, but less dramatic impact. Whom do you trust? Today's best science or a 170-year-old greeting?

Well, we are running a little late today, let's dispense with the prayer. Sorry we didn't get more covered. If you want to skip Priesthood Meeting or Relief Society, let's meet out under oak tree out back and continue our conversation.