Eugene Orr is a founding member of the Genesis Group and was the second counselor in the first Genesis Group presidency.
Born a Southern Baptist, Eugene moved to Utah as an adult. It was here where he met Lei, a White Latter-day Saint who introduced him to the missionaries. In their first meeting, the missionaries taught Eugene the first and second missionary lessons; they also made some hurtful comments about Blacks. But Eugene knew through the Spirit those comments weren’t true, and so he remained curious and continued to learn about the gospel. Lei introduced Eugene to another Black member of the Church named Darius Gray, and together they discussed the Church’s racial restrictions. Afterward, Eugene asked himself if he believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
“I decided to fast and pray as the missionaries had suggested. … I prayed and fasted, and on the third day the still, small voice spoke to me, and I knew without doubt that the Book of Mormon and the Church were true. I have come to know that voice as the Holy Ghost; He had testified to me then and many times. The Spirit Himself bore witness, and I could not deny, hide, or forget. That was how I received my testimony.”
He continues, “After all these years, through every trial, every tribulation, every joy, and every blessing, I have remained firm and solid in my belief. I determined that I would never sway from God and His truth for as long as I lived.”
Eugene was baptized on Saturday, August 24, 1968, at the Tabernacle in Salt Lake City. He later married Lei and raised a family with her. Today, at 76 years old, Eugene has been a member of the Church for 54 years and lives in Canada. This excerpt has been adapted from Eugene’s essay in My Lord, He Calls Me: Stories of Faith by Black American Latter-day Saints, edited by Alice Faulkner Birch, and tells the story of how the Genesis Group began.
As [my wife and I] began to learn of other Black members of the Church, I found myself eager to make a connection with them. Soon, my wife had reached out to six other members and invited them to our home for what we called the “Black Mormon Reunion” in 1969. The following year, 1970, we organized another gathering, and Sister Lucille, also a Black member, opened her home to 48 Black brothers and sisters. At our third gathering in early 1971, we met at Rose Park in Salt Lake City, with 38 Black Church members in attendance.
At this gathering, I met Brother Ruffin Bridgeforth, who had been a member of the Church for about 18 years, and the Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Spencer W. Kimball. The Black Latter-day Saints decided to start meeting weekly, and each member agreed on taking turns hosting the group in their home. These meetings were meaningful opportunities for Black Saints to fellowship with one another, learn, and grow in the Church. We were building a community that supported the Black Latter-day Saint experience, which was so needed. Though we believed in the gospel, we did not feel a sense of belonging. Many of us were in interracial relationships, which had negative implications for some Church members. Black people were often treated as invisible and avoided. Although the Church encouraged racial integration, America and the Church still had a long way to go to reach true integration and inclusion. …
In May 1971, I reconnected with Darius Gray and Brother Ruffin. I invited them to meet with me in fasting and prayer to ponder why Black men in America were denied the priesthood within the Church. I was eager to ask this and other questions to the leadership of the Church. We fasted and prayed, and soon we had an answer to our prayers—we were to approach the prophet with our concerns.
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Being a skillful writer, Brother Darius drafted a letter to our prophet, who was President Joseph Fielding Smith at the time. Then we reached out and secured an appointment with his secretary for May 10. Brother Darius and Brother Ruffin elected me to be the spokesperson at our meeting, which I embraced. I think they saw in me a fire and desire to disrupt and fight for better. So I shared with the prophet’s secretary our questions and concerns. At the end of the meeting, he promised to relay our message to President Smith and arrange a meeting with him.
Weeks passed and there was no follow-up. I was growing impatient, so I decided to go to his office again. This time I did not leave until I had a confirmed meeting day and time.
It was not easy attending the meeting. Security was not informed or expecting three Black men demanding to speak with the prophet. Saying we had an appointment alarmed them, and a flurry of activity ensued. We prevailed, and on June 8, 1971, at 8:00 a.m., Brother Ruffin, Darius, and I sat down with three Apostles: Elder Gordon B. Hinckley, Elder Boyd K. Packer, and Elder Thomas S. Monson. This meeting felt monumental to me. The questions we asked were (1) “Why do some Black men in other places in the world have the priesthood and not others?” (2) “When will the Black men in America receive the priesthood?” and (3) “What and how do we teach our children about the differential treatment of Black people in the Church?” Of course, no final resolution or answers came from this meeting, but the six of us decided to continue the conversation and agreed to meet every two weeks.
When we came together, Elder Hinckley sat behind his large desk, with me directly across from him. On Elder Hinckley’s right sat Elder Packer and Elder Monson, with Brother Ruffin and Brother Darius directly sitting across from them. We all intuitively took these positions, which aided a round-table discussion of ideas, mutual respect, curiosity, and critical thought, guided by the Spirit.
Not every meeting ended well. It got heated. Sometimes we simply had to walk away. Sometimes we would roar and sometimes cry. Together, we bent our knees in prayer, beseeching our Father in Heaven for guidance and patience. Other times we prayed in solitude, seeking strength and love. We learned to love and respect each other over time, and we agreed on a way forward.
On October 19, 1971, we held an assembly in Salt Lake City with the three Apostles. There were 175 people in attendance. It would have been magnificent if the congregation that day had brought together all the scattered Black members of the Church. Still, it was a beautiful and extraordinary meeting. The Black Mormon Committee decided on the name “Genesis Group,” which the Church leaders approved. The name was utterly profound and relevant as we believed that this meeting was truly the beginning of the Black member movement within the Church. After the meeting, Elder Hinckley set apart Brother Ruffin as the president of the Genesis Group. Elder Monson set apart Brother Darius as first counselor, and Elder Packer set me apart as the second counselor. We all conducted ourselves as though we held the priesthood, although we did not. The Genesis Group was permitted to gather in the evening of the first Sunday of each month.
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All the auxiliary callings were set apart by a stake president and a high council representative. Sister Lucille became our first Relief Society president. My wife, Lei, accepted the calling as her first counselor, Sister Mildred as her second counselor, and Sister Helena became secretary for both the Relief Society and Primary presidencies.
For all of us Black members, this formation of our own group and having our own Black presidency presiding over it was a giant leap toward racial equity in the Church and beyond. Having representation in our leadership was meaningful—even if it was at a microlevel. It renewed our hopes and dreams and reinforced our belief in the Church. Since Black men received the priesthood in 1978, Genesis has continued to meet on the first Sunday of the month, though it is no longer recognized as a branch in the Church.
In 1973, I finally had the honor of sitting with the prophet. Of course, the Church had mourned the passing of two prophets by then. We learned the prophet, President Spencer W. Kimball, would be visiting the ward of a dear friend of ours, so we put on our Sunday best and we walked into that ward. We found a pew near the front that would accommodate our family. Sadly, the White members on the pews in front and behind us got up and moved. It was a good thing we weren’t there for fellowship, or we would have been hurt and distressed by the actions of these sisters and brothers. We had come to see and hear the message of our prophet.
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As the meeting ended, President Kimball made his way over to our family and sat down with us. I like to think he remembered me from years back when he had joined us at our gathering at Rose Park. As he spoke with us, he gently held my daughter on his lap while inquiring about the well-being of my family. I will never forget this moment—how at ease and peace I felt. I will never forget how the rest of the congregation watched on—perhaps confused or ashamed. I had met the prophet, and he had held my child! From then on, President Kimball made a point of visiting my home during the holiday season to deliver a fruit basket. It was through President Kimball that the Lord bestowed the priesthood to the Black men of the Church.
My life as a Black man in the Church has been blessed. I am grateful for all the gifts our Savior has bestowed upon me and my family, for His help during those times of adversity and temptation, and even for complex tests and others ridiculing my faith. I have stumbled, and I have fallen, but always, no matter how dark it seemed, I knelt in prayer to my Heavenly Father. He has continually poured out His love for me, my wife, and my children. He has continually guided me.
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