Let’s Get Real with Stephen Jones The “Racial Curse” in Abraham Isn’t What You Think | Don Bradley E0052
Feb 19, 2026
Don Bradley, Latter-day Saint historian who studies early Mormon scripture, unpacks Abraham 1. He explores Abraham’s motives, the attempted human sacrifice, and why the phrase “cursed as pertaining to the priesthood” may have been misread. Hear recontextualization of Joseph Smith’s view, Kirtland-era evidence, and how the passage reshapes covenant and prophetic patterns.
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Abraham Was Seeking God Not Arbitrarily Chosen
- Abraham 1 gives a first-person backstory showing Abraham actively sought God rather than being chosen arbitrarily.
- Don Bradley stresses Abraham explicitly desires a home, posterity, knowledge, and priesthood, which reframes Genesis' third-person account.
Abraham's Near Sacrifice Explains His Trust
- Abraham 1 portrays an attempted human sacrifice of Abraham and a divine rescue that builds his trust for later sacrifices.
- Bradley links Abraham's prior rescue to why he trusts God in the binding of Isaac and frames it as Abraham's 'first vision'.
Don't Read Later Priesthood Bans Into Abraham 1
- The phrase 'cursed as pertaining to the priesthood' has been misread through later lenses; historical context matters.
- Bradley urges reading Joseph Smith's era forward, not imposing later priesthood-ban assumptions onto Abraham 1.