Was the priesthood ever restricted from the descendants of Ishmael?

Question

Dear Gramps,

Are there any indications of a priesthood restriction on the descendants of Ishmael? As I understand, his mother was Egyptian.

Brian

Answer

Dear Brian,

The only restriction on those qualified to receive the holy priesthood was imposed on the descendants of Cain. That restriction was carried through the flood through the blood of the daughter of Egyptus, the wife of Ham, and a descendant of Cain. The earliest Egyptians were prohibited from receiving the priesthood because of their lineage.

There never has been a restriction of the priesthood to any other race. That original restriction on the seed of Cain was removed in a revelation from the Lord to President Spencer W. Kimball, and on June 8, 1978 the declaration that the priesthood would from henceforth be available to every worthy man in the church without regard to race or color was accepted by a general conference of the Church.

Gramps