Got your attention? Good. Buckle up for a wild ride (especially you lurkers here from Mortified Mo-ville)

There are many, of course, mired in LDS fear and trembling, who, to this day, believe that being gay, or maybe being gay (or worse, being audacious enough to act on the reality of being gay) is a wicked, evil, sinful and naughty, naughty thing. Too bad some at the top of the Mormon Church apparently didn't get the memo. If only such eternal information had been shared with:

A) Mormon President Brigham Young (with regard to his drag queen son, Brigham Morris Young);

B) the Mormon Church First Presidency (with regard to the sexual orientation of LDS Church Patriarch Joseph F. Smith); and, yes, even with . . .

C) Mormon Church founder Joseph Smith, whose attitudes and actions in helping to establishprecedent for LDS Church doctrine and practice were hardly classifiable as anti-homosexual.

Let’s go through the ABCs on Mormon Church High Command homosexuality.
_____


Part 1

A. Brigham Young's Drag Queen Son

Below is a photograph of Mormon Church president Brigham Young's naughty cross-dressing son, Brigham Morris Young (who, by the way, founded the Mormon Church's Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association and appeared in his drag queen roll in Mormon wards in Salt Lake City):

("Here is a Photo of Mormon Leader Brigham Young's Son in Drag," posted by Andy Towle, 3 August 2013, under "Brigham Young, Drag Queens, Mormon, News," at: |http://www.towleroad.com/2012/08/here-is-a-photo-of-mormon-leader-brigham-youngs-son-in-drag.html; see also, "The Abominable and Detestable Crime Against Nature:
A Revised History of Homosexuality & Mormonism, 1840-1980," at:
by Connell O'Donovan, 1904/2004, at: http://www.connellodonovan.com/abom.html)


Additional some background on Brigham Morris (whom the Mormon Church has never denounced for his supposed sexual debauchery):

". . . Brigham Morris Young, son of Brigham Young, [is shown here dressed] in drag as Italian opera diva 'Madam Pattirini,' . . . It is a photographic placard which advertised 'her: appearance at the Sugar House Ward, a Mormon “meeting house' in Salt Lake City, Utah. Lord have mercy. . . .

"Brigham Morris Young was his 35th son and founded the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA), the predecessor to the Young Men program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . . . . You can't make this stuff up. He performed as Pattirini in north and central Utah venues from 1885 to the 1900s. He could produce a convincing falsetto, and many in the audience did not realize that Pattirini was Young.

"He did marry one wife and had children of his own."

Some additional biographical details on Brigham Young's wayward son:

"Although [no] direct evidence [has been found] that Brigham Morris Young was a homosexual, he certainly crossed Mormon gender barriers without any negative repercussions, whenever he appeared in public as the Italian opera diva 'Madame Pattirini, circa 1901. Born in 1858, the 35th child of Brigham Young and the first and only child of Margaret Pierce, he married Celestia Armeda Snow, the daughter of Lorenzo Snow, in the Endowment House in 1875. They had 10 children, eight surviving to adulthood.

"During the early 1870s 'Morris' Young drove a horse-drawn streetcar for a living. One popular stereotype of the time was that streetcar drivers were effeminate homosexuals (and in fact, Walt Whitman found many of his male lovers amongst the streetcar drivers of New York City, including his long-time companion, Peter Doyle, who drove a streetcar in Washington DC for many years). Interestingly, Morris drove the streetcar between the Utah Central Railroad Depot and the Wasatch Municipal Baths, which [has been] documented [as] an active 'cruising' area for homosexual men (who went there looking for anonymous sexual encounters), at least as early as the 1880s.

"From the 1880s to the early 1900s, Morris appeared frequently in his drag persona. His son, Gaylen Snow Young, wrote that, '[h]e would sing in a high falsetto voice. He fooled many people.' [Mormon historian] Dean C. Jessee notes that Morris was 'often called to perform at stake and ward social functions, where he frequently posed as "Madam Pattirini," a great female opera singer. An extant invitation lists B.M. Young as manager of "a Grand Character and Dress Ball" held in the large room of the Brigham City Woolen Factory in 1889.' Morris Young also served on the General Board of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA).

"Another, even earlier cross-dressing Mormon, was pioneer Almerin Grow, who lived in both Salt Lake and Weber Counties during the late 1850s. In this case however, Grow's cross-dressing was not for entertainment purposes, like that of . . . Brigham M. Young before him; and it was definitely viewed as transgressive. Sometime after 1857, Grow became a follower of Joseph Morris, a schismatic Mormon leader who designated himself as the seventh angel of the apocalypse and taught that the Second Coming was imminent.

"Grow had already been excommunicated and rebaptized so many times that Brigham Young had publicly (yet humorously) suggested that the next time Grow be rebaptized in the Jordan River, he be drowned immediately thereafter to ensure he be saved 'while in the faith.' Around 1858, Grow 'gave' his 12-year-old daughter, Amy Grow, to Amos Milton Musser. Young then commanded Musser to move south with her and 'never return,' because he was becoming increasingly mentally unstable, as evidenced by 'his acts of extracting all his teeth, wearing his wife's clothing, etc.' Some measure of mental stability must have eventually returned, as Grow remained faithful to the Morrisites, even serving on a mission to Turkey in the 1870s, long after Joseph Morris himself was killed."

("The Abominable and Detestable Crime Against Nature":
A Revised History of Homosexuality & Mormonism, 1840-1980," at:
by Connell O'Donovan, 1904/2004, at: http://www.connellodonovan.com/abom.html)
_____


A. The Gay Life and Times of Mormon Church Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith

The following list of indicators is taken from "'CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS on Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith’s Homosexuality,'
compiled by Connell O'Donovan, with the generous assistance of D. Michael Quinn":

--"[circa] 1926 to [circa] 1929

"Joseph Fielding Smith was in a sexual relationship with Norval Service, a student at the University of Utah. (See Quinn, p. 369)


--"1927-1933

"According to Cynthia Blood's University of Utah transcripts, she took Speech and Drama classes from Joseph F. Smith. In an August 19, 1989, interview I held with her, Cynthia claimed that 'everybody on campus knew' that Maud May Babcock and Joseph F. Smith, both from the university's Drama Department, 'were q****,' but it was pretty much 'unspoken.' Blood reported that 'Professor Smith flitted amongst the boys and Maud flitted amongst us girls. We adored it! I guess we were all a little q**** back then.' When I asked her what she meant by that, she replied, 'Oh, we all had crushes on each other at one time or another.' I asked if the boys did too. "I suppose, in their own way--but they didn't call them crushes. I do remember two young men who mooned over each other for several months. I don't remember their names. But they were real handsome boys. Very intelligent, very proper all the time.' Drama students? I asked. 'Oh yes. Yes they were.'


--"1929

"Joseph F. Smith became a member of the General Board of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association (YMMIA). This may have prompted the termination of his sexual relationship with Norval Service. . . .


--"1942, October 8

"Joseph Fielding Smith was ordained 'Patriarch to the Church' by LDS President Heber J. Grant. . . . . Joseph's ordination also dismayed several Mormons who knew that Smith was having sexual relations with other men. Ralph G. Smith reported that Joseph F. Smith 'was known to be a homosexual. My brother, John [Gibbs Smith], was very, very upset because he was Captain of the anti-vice squad at the Salt Lake City Police Department. Why, he says, the man’s got a record. He says, we’ve had many women call in and complain about him molesting their little boys [all over 18] at the school at the University of Utah.' (Ralph G. Smith interview, as reported in Quinn, p. 387 n. 23) Winifred Haymond (or 'Freda Hammond,' 1907-1983, never married), a friend of Norval Service, reported that she was 'stunned' at Smith’s appointment as Patriarch.


--"1942, November

"In a biography of the new Patriarch, the 'Improvement Era' concluded with the statement that, 'We all feel sure that the new Patriarch will uphold the traditions of the Church, be a credit to his family, and magnify his calling in the spirit of humility, prayer and faith.’”


--"1943, March 11

"Some time prior to this date, Byram Browning had an intimate relationship with Patriarch Smith, whether overtly sexual or not is unknown. On this date, Browning entered into military service in the Navy.


--"1946, February 26

"Bro. Browning called to report visit with Jos. F. S." (George Albert Smith diary, 'GASD') . . .


-"1946, April 15

"'LeGrand Chandler of St. George came [--] called to see me about Joseph F. Patriarch.' (GASD)

"[LeGrand Chandler was the uncle of Byram Browning. Since Browning was still in Shelton, Virginia, in the Navy at this time, presumably he had contacted his family by letter or other means and confessed his relationship with the Patriarch, which led to this meeting between his uncle and the LDS Church president.]


--"1946, May 1

"'Jos. Patriarch met Presidency [and] left for home.' (GASD)


--"1946, May 3

"'Ruth Smith called. Jos. ill.' (GASD) . . .


--"1946, May 27

"Diary of Frank Evans, financial secretary to the First Presidency, referred to talking with Ruth Pingree Smith 'regarding Joseph's illness,' and insisting that she call on Evans (a friend since childhood) if there was anything he could do to assist her.


--"1946, May 29

"Due to Patriarch Smith's inability to come to his office in Salt Lake City, the First Presidency asked three stake patriarchs to give blessings to people requesting them through the Church Patriarch's office. (J. Reuben Clark office diary, 'COD)


--"1946, June 16

"'Spoke at Orchard Ward Davis Co[unty] Visited with Jos. F. He is not very well.' (GASD)


--"1946,June 29

"Joseph Fielding Smith diary referred to the problems he was having of late as 'a recurrence of his old trouble in his back.' Smith’s back problems were likely psychosomatically related to the stress surrounding his sexuality.

--"1946, July 10

"'Met in office with Council of Presidency [and] Twelve. Jos. Patriarch case considered. Bad situation. Am heartsick.' (GASD) JFS's diary entry for this date did not mention what the Presidency decided, except that it was a profound 'shock' to him.


--"1946, July 11

"'Met in Church Council room with Presidency and Twelve. . . . Discussed condition of Patriarch Jos. F.' (GASD)
.

--"1946, July 12

"'First Presidency met with Patriarch Smith at 3:00 pm.' (COD)


--"1946, July 30

"COD says Clark met with Patriarch Joseph F. Smith's brother-in-law, Harold Bennett, and 'gave him facts' about the Patriarch's case.


--"1946 - September 6

"'Harold Bennett drove me to see Patriarch Jos F. Smith. a pitiable case.' (GASD)


--"1946, September 16

"'At office 8:15. Met with Presidency & Jos F. Patriarch & Ruth[,] Browning & son present. AE Bowen also listened in. Regret that the evidence is not satisfactory." (GASD) "Jos. Patriarch[,] First Presidency[,] Mr. Browning & a boy." (COD) Ruth refers to Ruth Pingree Smith, Mr. Browning is Lorenzo D. Browning, and the "boy" is his son Byram, recently returned from WWII naval service.


--1946, September 18

"'Hyrum Smith and Harold Beecher came to consider Joseph Patriarch's position.' (GASD)


--"1946, October 3

"As reported in both the 'Improvement Era' and the front page of the 'Deseret News,' Patriarch Joseph F. Smith wrote a letter to Pres. George Albert Smith, officially requesting to be released from his position:

"'Centerville, Utah, 3rd of October, 1946.

"'President George Albert Smith
47 East South Temple Street
Salt Lake City, Utah

"'Dear President Smith:

"'As you know I have been very ill for many months. While I am slowly gaining strength and hope soon again to be able to do some work, I do not know when, if at all, I shall be able to stand the full drain upon my energy incident to the office of Patriarch to the Church.

"'As you know the duties of the Patriarch entail heavy exhaustion. Since but one man holds that office, if he is measurable incapacitated, its work must in that degree suffer.

"'I know, of course, that one neither resigns nor asks to be released from such a calling out of personal considerations, any more than one requests appointment or asks for office. My chief desire is that the work of the Lord shall prosper.

"'Bearing these things in mind, I am writing to say that if you desire me to carry on I shall do my best. If, however, in the circumstances, you should feel that the interests of the Church would be best served by releasing me at this time, I want you to feel at liberty to do that. I am therefore writing this letter to let you know you have my full support for whatever you decide.

"'I am grateful for the Lord's goodness to me and mine.

"'Ever praying the Lord's choicest blessings upon you, I am sincerely your brother,

"'Joseph F. Smith'

"After quoting this letter in the 'Improvement Era,' the First Presidency made the following formal response:

"'After careful and prayerful consideration, and with deep regret and sympathy for his condition, the First Presidency with the expressed assent and approval of the Council of the Twelve, have decided, under all the circumstances, that Brother Joseph F. Smith shall be released from his duties as Patriarch to the Church.'


--"1946, October 6

"'Tabernacle and Assembly hall filled. Jos F. Smith released. A sad happening.' (GASD)


"--1946, October 25

"'Orval Adams called to say that Wallace and George Spencer wanted him to speak to the father of "this boy" and if the father said no, the boy would not need to be spoken to. Pres. Clark agreed with Mr. Adams that he should not do this but that Pres. Smith was the one. Bro. Adams said he would tell Geo. that Bro. Smith would do that.' (COD) 'Phoned Joseph Patriarch. He feels better.' (GASD) . . .


--"1947, January 25

"'Talked on Phone to Ruth Smith.' (GASD)



--1947, January 31

"'Ruth P. Smith came in to talk about Joseph.' (GASD)


--"1947, March 19

"George Albert Smith instructed that the ex-Patriarch's salary continue to be sent to him monthly until the end of December, when it should stop. (Frank Evans diary)


--"1947, April 3

"Voted to sustain…Eldred Smith" as the new Patriarch to the Church. (GASD) . . .


"1947, August 6

"'After supper walked and called to see Jos. Fielding.' (GASD)

--"1947, August 20

"'Talked to Ruth Smith on phone.' (GASD)


--"1947, December 6

"While at Honolulu, Apostle George F. Richards noted in his diary that 'Pres. Woolley' (Ralph Woolley, the mission president) showed him a First Presidency letter instructing that ex-Patriarch Joseph F. Smith not function in any Church capacity. (George F. Richards diary)



--"1947, December 31

"'Had long interview at 11:00 am with Jos. F. Smith, who flew here from Hawaii to attend the Nat'l Speech Ass'n Convention.' (GASD) . . .



--"1948. January 7

"'Interview with . . . Jos. Fielding Smith at 10:30 a.m.' (GASD) [Quinn believes this refers to Apostle Joseph F. Smith, however I do believe it refers to the former Patriarch]


--"1948, March 15

"George Albert Smith authorized retroactive payment of ex-Patriarch Smith's monthly allowance up to March 1. This was in response to Joseph's request for this financial assistance. (FED)



--"1950, August 16

"At Honolulu, '[i]n the afternoon, by pre-arrangement, Joseph F. Smith, former Patriarch of the Church, came to the Woolley home, and he and I stayed up in my room and had a long talk together concerning many things, particularly with reference to his problems.' (GASD)



--"1952-1954

"John Reese, a then-closeted gay Mormon from Utah, lived in the Honolulu Stake with Joseph F. and Ruth Smith and befriended them (especially Ruth). Ruth eventually revealed to John that her husband had been having homosexual affairs and that is why he had been released. John understood that they had been 'exiled to Hawaii] by Church leaders, to keep Joseph out of the spotlight of scandal. He was told that one of Joseph's sexual partners was a man named Wallace. (A man named Wallace A.G.-- born in 1907 and married in 1931--was a close colleague of Smith's in the Drama Department at the University of Utah for several years. Wallace was the manager of the Drama Club while Joseph was the president).


--"1957 - April 10
Jay A. Quealy Jr., president of the Honolulu Stake, asked to restore ex-patriarch Joseph F. Smith to Church activity. President David O. McKay answered that his decision "will have to await the outcome of my talking with other people involved in this case." (David O. McKay office diary, "MOD")


--"1957 (?), April

"Typed, undated document, with no explanation except that it’s heading is 'Joseph F. Smith of Honolulu,' found in the 1959 First Presidency files, although it's from 1957:

"'The parents L. D. Browning--13185 W******** Place, Garden Grove, Calif.

"'The boy--Byram Browning--1102 East N******--Fullerton, California. married and two children.'


--"1957, May 9

"In a telephone conversation, Pres. McKay gave permission to Pres. Quealy of the Honolulu Stake for Joseph F. Smith to speak at his son's missionary farewell. (MOD)


--"1957, July 10

"The First Presidency instructed Bishop Lowell Christensen of the Waikiki Ward that Joseph F. Smith may have ward responsibilities because Joseph had already confessed 'and has forsaken his sins.' Pres. McKay stated that Joseph F. Smith had never been formally disfellowshipped or excommunicated. (MOD)


--"1957, December 9

"Pres. McKay authorized Pres. Quealy to use his own judgment in allowing Smith to serve in the Church, inasmuch as 'Joseph F. Smith has recently confessed to his wife and wrote a full confession to the First Presidency.' President McKay said that there need not be any formal announcement or action for this reinstatement, since no formal action had ever been taken against him. (MOD) According to Quinn’s correspondence with me, Smith soon became a member of the Stake High Council.


--"1958, April 13

"Ruth Pingree Smith wrote Pres. McKay, expressing appreciation that her husband could now serve actively in the Church. She added, 'I know, better than anyone else, the trial our family has been to you and to the authorities.' [Ruth P. Smith to McKay letter, also misfiled under 1959]


--"1979, October 4

"Eldred Gee Smith was placed on emeritus status by the First Presidency and no new Patriarch was called to replace him. At his death, the office of Patriarch to the Church, which once rivaled that of the President of the Church, will cease to exist. . . ."


("CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS on Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith’s Homosexuality," Connell O'Donovan, comp., "with the generous assistance of D. Michael Quinn," including sources, at: http://www.connellodonovan.com/smith.html)
_____


(Part 2 follows)

Part 1: http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1421938,1421938#msg-1421938

Part 2: http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1421938,1421940#msg-1421940



Edited 8 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/2014 12:26AM by steve benson.

Part 2

C. Homosexuality and the Early Mormon Church

For historical evidence of inclinations, actions, doctrines and practices among the early leaders of the Mormon Church that could hardly be classified as anti-gay, one need look no further than the histories of LDS Church presidents Joseph Smith and Brigham Young

In a previous thread, RfM poster "1 and one" asks:

"[Was] Joseph Smith sealed to other men? [I] heard this as a rumor. Is it true? Are their any sources that mention it?"

("Joseph Smith Sealed to Other Men?," Date: 13 August 2010, 01:50, Author: "1 and one," Recovery from Mormonism bulletin board, at: http://www.exmormon.org/)


Historian D. Michael Quinn provides answers to that question--and much more--in his explosively-detailed book, "Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example" (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1996, 477 pp.)

The devastating, documented detail that Quinn provides effectively knocks today's Latter-day Quaints off their high and hypocritical Mormon moralistic horse, as he lays out historically-devastating facts concerning LDS Church founder Joseph Smith's(as well as other early high-ranking Mormon leaders') attitudes and actions on what are for today's homophobic Mormons an exceedingly awful array of same-sex topics, including:

--Mormon Temple Sealings of Men to Other Men

--Claims of Authorization of Sealings of Mormon Men to Mormon Men

--Claims of Mormon Temple Same-Sex Eternal Sealings

--Joseph Smith's "Revelations" of Eternal Friendship Covenants Between Men

--Joseph Smith on Same Sex-Marriage

--Joseph Smith's Toleration of Homoeroticism in the Mormon Church's Highest Leadership Circles

--Accusations Against Joseph Smith of "Immoral Acts" with Other Men

--Joseph Smith and "Homosocial" Relations Between Mormon Men

--Joseph Smith and Loving Same-Sex Bed Partners

--Joseph Smith and Same-Sex Kissing

--Joseph Smith's Intense Love of Young Men


Below are Quinn's findings in his own words--and better yet--in the words of Joseph Smith and Company:

--Mormon Temple Sealings of Men to Other Men--

"In 1954, the sociologist Kimball Young first suggested that Mormon marriage 'sealing' ceremonies (which began in 1843 and bind husband and wife for 'time and eternity') included same-sex marriage. For example, Brigham Young preached in 1862: 'I will here refer to a principle that has not bee named by me for years. With the introduction of the Priesthood upon the earth was also introduced the sealing ordinance.' Although modern readers would expect to hear next about eternal marriage, Young did not mention marriage or women. Instead, he said: 'By this power men will be sealed to men back to Adam.' In another sermon he preached that 'we can seal women to men [without a temple], but not men to men, without a Temple.'

"Such statements caused his sociologist grandson to observe, 'Here is evidence of deep, psychological Bruederschaft [brotherhood]. There are obviously latent homosexual features in this idea and its cultural aspect has many familiar parallels in other religions.' Kimball Young added that Mormonism 'had strong homosexual components' but acknowledged: 'Most Saints, including Brigham himself, would have been shocked by such an interpretation.' The grandson regarded homosexuality as unappealing as the Mormon practice of polygamy that was the topic of his book." (pp. 136-37)


--What Brigham Young Meant by the Phrase "Men Will Be Sealed to Men"--

". . . [S]ociologist [Kimball Young] misunderstood Brigham Young's statements about 'sealing men to men,' which referred to the nineteenth-century LDS practice of spiritual adoption. By this ordinance, a man (usually an apostle) became the spiritual father of the adopted man and of the adopted man's wife and children (if any). In social terms, this was an institutionalized form of mentor-protege' relationships between Mormon men. In its early stages under Brigham Young's direction, this adoptive sealing of men to men also involved obligations of financial support. One of Brigham Young's adopted sons was John D. Lee. As was customary in the first adoption ceremonies of 1846, Lee temporarily added the surname of his adopted father to his own. In these respects, this early Mormon ordinance is very similar to the celibate same-sex marriages of sub-Saharan Africa today." (p. 137)


--Mormon Men-to-Men Sealings vs. "Spiritual Adoption" Sealings--

". . . Brigham Young also indicated that some pioneer Mormon men had special covenants with each other, independent of the adoption ordinance. 'No man had a right to make a covenant to bind men together,' Young said in 1848. He added that 'God only had that right and by his commandment to the persona holding the keys of revelation could any man legally covenant & all covenants otherwise were null & of no effect.'" (p. 140)


--Claims That Joseph Smith Authorized Sealings of Mormon Men to Mormon Men--

"A generation after [Brigham Young's grandson and sociologist] Kimball Young, Antonio A. Feliz wrote: 'I found that Joseph [Smith] began a practice of sealing men to men during the last two years of his life in Nauvoo.' Feliz concluded that Joseph Smith secretly provided for a same-sex ordinance of companionship or sealing, which Brigham Young later changed to the father-son adoption ordinance. His evidence involves the funeral service for missionary Lorenzo D. Barnes in which all notetakers said Joseph Smith referred to an unidentified 'Lover' of Barnes, rather than to a wife. Feliz elaborated on this in a 1985 article in the newsletter of 'Affirmation,' the society of Mormon lesbians, gays, and bisexuals; in his 1988 autobiography 'Out of the Bishop's Closet;' in a 1992 story by the 'Salt Lake Tribune;' and in his 1999 paper at Salt Lake City's Stonewall Center, a community resource for lesbians, gays, and bisexuals.

"Barely two years after Barnes's death, Apostle Wilford Woodruff visited his English grave site and commented that Lorenzo's 'fidelity was stronger than death towards his Lover.' Woodruff added: 'I thought of his Lover, his Mother, his Father, his kindred & the Saints for they all loved him.' From this, Feliz concluded that 'we can only speculate on the identity of the person with whom he shared an intimate relationship in Nauvoo prior to his mission to England.'

"However, there are aspects of the Lorenzo Barnes case that undermine Feliz's assertions. Woodruff's diary also quoted from love poetry and love letters that Barnes wrote n January 1842 to Susan Conrad, 'his intended.' Sixteen years old when Barnes left her in Nauvoo for his English mission in 1841, Susan Conrad was 'the friend' and 'Lover' of whom Joseph Smith spoke in the 1843 funeral services for Barnes. She later married a man name Wilkinson and moved from Nauvoo to Utah, where Apostle Woodruff sometimes reminisced with her about Barnes. Even less known is that Barnes had returned to his hometown n Ohio while en route to his mission assignment. There in October 1841 another Mormon performed the civil marriage for Barnes and Amanda Wilson, who may have been one of his former students. Thus, Barnes was already married when he wrote the 1842 love poetry and letters to his sixteen-year-old 'Lover' Susan Conrad. Lorenzo D. Barnes may have been a polygamist at heart, but his experience had nothing to do with homoromantic attachments or a homomarital ceremony.

"Still, it is true that Joseph Smith's 1843 funeral sermon for Barnes never once mentioned husband-wife relationships. That was remarkable in a sermon on loving relationships in this life and in the Resurrection during which the prophet repeatedly spoke of 'brothers and friends,' fathers and sons, mothers, daughters, and sisters. Smith's silence concerning husbands and wives was deafening in this sermon about attachments of love. Feliz appropriately asked why. I do not agree that the answer involved same-sex ceremonies, but I do see this as the first Mormon expression of male bonding. George Q. Cannon forty years later called it 'greater than the love of a woman.'

"I know of no historical evidence that Mormonism's founding father ever said an officiator could perform a marriage-like ordinance for a same-sex couple. Nevertheless, I realize that some believing Mormons regard it as emotionally appealing or spiritually inspiring for there to be a priesthood ordinance to seal same-sex couples similar to Mormon's opposite-sex ordinance of marriage 'for time and all eternity.'" (pp. 138-39)


--Claims of Mormon Temple Same-Sex Eternal Sealings--

"Aside from the 1833 covenant of friendship in the School of the Prophets and Brigham Young's possible reference in 1848, I [Quinn] have no evidence that there were any same-sex covenants of eternal companionship among nineteenth-century Mormons. However, as previously indicated, nineteenth-century Mormon missionaries may have unknowingly baptized Aikane boys in Hawaii (or their equivalent in Tahiti) who had previously entered same-sex marriages. Also, tens of thousands of twentieth-century converts to the LDS Church in sub-Saharan Africa have come from areas in which celibate same-sex marriage ceremonies are common." (p. 140)


--Joseph Smith's "Revelations" of Eternal Friendship Covenants Between Men--

"[On 27 December 1832], Joseph Smith announced a revelation that included a covenant between men 'to be your friend . . . forever and ever. . . .

"[On 24 January 1833] [t]he male-only School of the Prophets commenced in accordance with [the] revelation on 27 December 1832." (p. 407)


--Joseph Smith on Same Sex-Marriage--

"Joseph Smith's published revelations contained no reference to same-sex marriage. . . .

"[However,] Joseph Smith . . . once referred figuratively to himself as married to a male friend. Beginning in 1840, twenty-nine-year-old Robert B. Thompson became the prophet's scribe and personal secretary. Their relationship was so close that Smith told his friend's wife: 'Sister Thompson, you must not feel bad towards me for keeping your husband away from you so much, for I am married to him.' She added that 'they truly love each other with fervent brotherly affection.' Concerning Thompson's death in 1841 Smith made this unusual explanation to his next secretary during a discussion of 'loose conduct' and sexual transgressions: 'He said [Robert B.] Thompson professed great friendship for him but he gave away to temptation and he had to die.'" (p. 136)


--Joseph Smith's Toleration of Homoeroticism in the Mormon Church's Highest Leadership Circles and Charges Against Smith of Committing "Immoral Acts" with Men--

"The first known instance of homoerotic behavior in the [Mormon Church] First Presidency involved John C. Bennett [who was] an assistant counselor . . . . They 27 July 1842 edition of the 'Wasp,' a Church newspaper at Nauvoo, Illinois, claimed that Bennett had . . . engaged in sodomy.

"Second, it claimed that the Prophet Joseph Smith had tolerated Bennett's homoeroticism.

"Third, the Church newspaper even printed one apostle's implication that Joseph Smith himself had also engaged in an 'immoral act' with a man.

"These are the actual words (written by Smith's brother William, an apostle): 'Gen. [Joseph] Smith was a great philanthropist [in the eyes of Bennett] as long as Bennett could practice adultery, fornication, and--we were going to say (Buggery,) without being exposed.' At that time the word 'buggery' was a slang word and legal term for 'sodomy,' or posterior [sexual relations] between men. Later statements by Brigham Young and Bennett himself indicate that this 1842 publication was not libeling Bennett.

"Previous actions and statements by Joseph Smith could also be construed as his toleration for Bennett's various sexual activities. On motion of John C. Bennett on 5 October 1840, the general conference (presided over by Smith) voted that no one could be judged guilty of a crime unless prove 'by two or three witnesses.' Such a burden of proof helped shield Bennett's sexual exploits. . . . This was Bennett's way of shielding his own sexual activities with both women and men."

"In January 1841, Smith also dictated a revelation about Bennett: 'his reward shall not fail, if he receive counsel; and for his love he shall be great, for he shall b e mine if he do this, saith the Lord' ('Doctrine and Covenants' 124:17)

"Later in 1841, the prophet further eroded the ability of anyone to investigate or punish Bennett's sexual conduct: 'If you do not accuse each other, God will not accuse you. If you have no accuser you will enter heaven. If you will not accuse me, I will not accuse you.' Then in words that must have warmed Bennett's heart, Smith continued his sermon by saying: 'If you will throw a cloak of charity over my sins, I will over yours--for charity covereth a multitude of sins. What many people call sins is not sin.'

"It must have seemed to Bennett and others that the LDS president put those charitable words into action when he appointed John C. Bennett as assistant counselor to the First Presidency in April 1841. That was a month after one of the bishops of the Church privately reported to Smith his investigation at Bennett's former residence: 'his wife left him under satisfactory evidence of his adulterous connections.' If Joseph Smith had not heard that his new counselor was practicing 'buggery,' he at least knew of Bennett's reputation for adultery.

"On the next page of the July 1842 'Wasp,' the Church newspaper described Smith's reaction to Apostle Orson Pratt's vote against a resolution defending the prophet's chastity: 'Pres. Joseph Smith spoke in reply [on July 22]--Question to Elder Pratt, "Have you personally a knowledge of any immoral act in me toward the female sex, or in any other way?" Answer, by Elder Pratt, "Personally, toward the female sex, I have not."' Since this same issue of the 'Wasp' had already raised the topic of Bennett's 'buggery' and the prophet's alleged toleration of it, Smith's 'in any other way?' was an implicit challenge for Pratt to charge him with 'buggery' as well. Pratt declined to answer whether Joseph Smith had committed 'any immoral act' with someone other than a woman, but also declined to exonerate the prophet form such a charge. That indicates the depth of Pratt's disaffection,which resulted in his excommunication from the LDS Church within a month."

"Assistant [First Presidency] Counselor] John C. Bennett was 'disfellowshipped (denied Church privileges) and later 'excommunicated' (removed from Church membership). His homosexual activities were publicly revealed two months later."

"Two years later, Nauvoo's two LDS newspapers printed Apostle Brigham Young's reference to John C. Bennett's bisexual conduct: 'if he had let young men and women alone it would have been better for him.' One of Bennett's 'young men' was twenty-one-year-old Francis M. Higbee to whom Brigham's sermon specifically referred. . . .

"Joseph Smith forgave Higbee in 1842, and homoerotic activities were not among the specific charges for which the thirty-seven-year-old Bennett was dropped from office and excommunicated that year. . . . Mormonism's founding prophet also revised the common interpretation that God destroyed Sodom because its inhabitants preferred sex between men. According to Smith, God destroyed Sodom 'for rejecting the prophets.'" (pp. 266-68, 408-10, 412)


--Joseph Smith and "Homosocial" Relations Between Mormon Men--

"Throughout most of the nineteenth century, Mormon congregations were . . . segregated by gender. After he spoke to Nauvoo's citywide Sunday meeting in 1843, Mormon founder Joseph Smith criticized the fact that there were 'men among the women, and women among men' in the congregation. In 1859, Brigham Young proclaimed the Salt Lake Tabernacle's eating arrangement as the standard for all Mormon congregations: women sitting to the north (or right) of the center aisle, and men sitting to the south (or left), with children in the front benches. That seating pattern continued for decades in LDS congregations." (p. 67)


--Joseph Smith and Same-Sex Bed Partners--

"In fact, the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith enjoyed bedtime snuggling with male friends throughout his life. Early in 1826, the twenty-year-old bachelor board with the Knight family, whose eighteen-year-old son later wrote: 'Joseph and I worked together and slept together.' IN an 1843 sermon, Smith (then the husband of many wives) preached that 'two who were vary friends indeed should lie down upon the same bed at night locked in each other['s] embrace talking of their love & should awake in the morning together. They could immediately renew their conversation of love even while rising from their bed.'

"That was how Apostle Wilford Woodruff recorded his prophet's words. The official 'History of the Church' still renders Smith's words this way: 'it is pleasing for friends to lie down together, locked in the arms of love, to sleep and wake in each other's embrace an renew their conversation.' The night before he was murdered by a mob in 1844, Smith shared a bed with thirty-two-year-old Dan Jones, 'and lay himself by my side in a close embrace.'"

"Smith's successor, Brigham Young, even dreamed of sleeping with non-Mormon men as a way of resolving conflict. In 1858 the Church historian wrote: 'Prest. Young said he dreamed last night, of seeing Gov. [Alfred] Cumming. He appeared exceedingly friendly, and said to Prest. Young we must be united, we must act in concert; and commenced undressing himself to go to bed with him.'" (p.87)

"[While] . . . for the vast majority of Americans, such same-sex sleeping arrangements were nonerotic, . . . [n]evertheless . . . . true that the phrase 'sleeping with' had a sexual meaning for Mormons as early as the 1840s. . . . [D]ue to necessity [such as close quarters or lack of space] or personal preference, Mormon culture and LDS leaders both continued to encourage same-sex sleeping arrangements. . . .

" . . . Mormonism's founder . . . encouraged same-sex friends to sleep in 'the same bed at night locked in each other['s] embrace talking of their love' . . . ." (p. 89)


--Joseph Smith and Same-Sex Kissing--

"Some Mormon leaders . . . had ardent dreams of same-sex kissing. For example, in 1847 Brigham Young dreamed that he met the deceased Joseph Smith and 'kissed him many times.' In 1896 stake president Charles O. Card recorded: 'I dreamed that president Woodruff & I met & embraced each other & Kissed each other in a very affectionate manner & I remarked he was the sweetest man I ever kissed. It thought in our embrace it was from the pure love of the Gospel.' Despite the homotactile dimension of this dream, Card was a polygamist who had no known homoerotic experiences." (p. 92)


--Joseph Smith's Intense Love of Young Men--

" . . . [D]espite his well-earned reputation of emotional intimacy with women, Joseph Smith also shared love of similar intensity with young men. In the autumn of 1838, Smith stayed two weeks with the family of John W. Hess, who later wrote: 'I was a boy then about fourteen years old. He [Joseph Smith] used to take me up on his knee and caress me as he would a little child.' As a result, Hess wrote: 'I became very much attached to him, and learned to love him more dearly than any other person I ever met, my father and mother no excepted.'

"Even more profound was the lifelong effect of a three-week visit Smith made to the Taylor home in 1842, beginning on the nineteenth birthday of William Taylor (a younger brother of LDS president John Taylor). 'It is impossible for me to express my feelings in regard to this period of my life,' William Taylor began. 'I have never know the same joy and satisfaction in the companionship of any other person, man or woman, that I felt with him [Joseph Smith], the man who had conversed with the Almighty.' That was an extraordinary statement in view of Taylor's marriage at age twenty-two and his four subsequent plural marriages. Decades later, Taylor explained: 'Sometimes in our return home in the evening after we had been tramping around in the woods, he [Joseph Smith] would call out: "Here, mother, come David and Jonathan."'

"In that way Mormonism's founding prophet referred to the most famous male relationship in the Bible. David said of his boyhood mentor Jonathan: 'thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women' (2 Sam. 1:26). Jonathan and David already had wives when the two you men 'kissed one another and wept one with another' (20:41). Consistent with Smith's David-and-Jonathan reference to young Taylor, a Mormon woman described the Mormon prophet's last words to forty-two-year-old George W. Rosecrans as Smith was traveling to his certain death in Carthage Jail in June 1844: 'If I never see you again, or if I never come back, remember that I love you.'

"For more than a thousand years, David and Jonathan have been revered as sexual lovers by Jews and Christians who valued homoeroticism. However, because David was a teenage polygamist and Jonathan fathered at least one child, most Bible readers and scholars regard David and Jonathan as platonic (or nonerotic) lovers. Likewise, m any regard the Bible's Song of Solomon as spiritual allegory rather than sexual imagery.

"First Presidency counselor George Q. Cannon paraphrased David's expression of male-male love during a sermon on Utah Pioneer Day in 1881: 'Men may never have beheld each other's faces and yet they will love one another, and it is a love that is greater than the love of woman.' Cannon, like other nineteenth-century Americans, then emphasized the platonic dimension of this male-male love: 'It exceeds any sexual love that can be conceived of, and it is this love that has bound the [Mormon] people together.'" (pp. 112-13)

**********


Conclusion on Homophobic Mormon Sexual "Confusion"

So, there you have it.

True-believing homophobes (TBHs) might not want to consult the history books when it comes to Joseph Smith's and Brigham Young's attitudes on homosexualityl—or on the drag queen career of Young’s 35th son, Brigham Morris, or the so-called gay “illness” of Church Patriarch Joseph F. Smith. TBHs are in for a rude awakening and might even lose their testimonies—testimonies that's so shaky in the first place that you can rest assured they are lurking here. Is that you, Boyd?

:)
_____


Part 1: http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1421938,1421938#msg-1421938

Part 2: http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1421938,1421940#msg-1421940



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/03/2014 10:37PM by steve benson.

Good read... Thanks Steve!!!

IIRC, Evan Stephens- who wrote many LDS hymns- was gay as well, eventually running off to New York (I think) with a "blond Viking". I heard that at a Sunstone conference many years ago. Does anyone have references?

"Interestingly, Evan Stephens (director of the Tabernacle Choir) also used the word 'chum' and 'boy-chum' in 1919 to describe his many intimate same-sex relationships with other Mormon youths, from John J. Ward onward (see below). The Oxford English Dictionary notes that from the 1600s to the mid-1800s, the word 'chum' (etymologically from 'chamber-mate') referred specifically to both prisoners and students who share sleeping chambers. Only after the mid-1800s did the word begin to refer generally to a 'friend.' Since prisoners and British students are notoriously transgressive in their sexual behavior, 'chum' certainly could have had an 'underground' sexualized meaning. Dr. John Egan of the University of New South Wales recently wrote . . . that 'the word 'chum' in Canadian French is used to connotate both a [homosexual] boyfriend or a good mate/pal' among '[gay]men in Montréal and Québec City.' . . .

"Evan Stephens (1854-1930), Utah's most prominent musical composer as well as the conductor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir from 1890 to 1916, came 'across the plains' while a child and is consistently rumored to have been 'Gay.' Beyond oral tradition amongs the Mormon Gay community, there is a large amount of contemporary, circumstantial evidence to support this claim. Stephens, born in Pencader, Wales, and migrating with his family to Utah in 1867, never married, which in polygamous Utah was a difficult status to maintain, especially for someone as prominent as Stephens. Instead of marrying, he filled his life with his two great passions: 'love of friendship and music.' Stephens's friendships always centered on passionate love and desire for other, usually much younger, men.

"Stephens went so far as to publish his autobiography (which amounts to little more than an explicit account of the development of his desire to bond passionately with other men) in a periodical for Mormon children--without any apparent reprisal from the Church. In this lengthy autobiography written in the third person and published in the 1919 'Children's Friend,' Stephens told Mormon children about his youth while in Willard, Utah, where he discovered music through a local all male ward choir--another instance of homosociality fostering same-sex desire. Stephens recounts that he became "the pet of the choir. The men among whom he sat seemed to take a delight in loving him. Timidly and blushingly, he would be squeezed in between them, and kindly arms generally enfolded him much as if he had been a fair sweetheart of the big brawny young men. Oh, how he loved these men[;] too timid to be demonstrative in return, he nevertheless enshrined in his inmost heart the forms and names of Tovey, Jardine, Williams, Jones and Ward." . . . 'The Children's Friend' [was] a very q**** place for Evan Stephens's 'coming out,'

"John J. Ward . . . was the same age as Stephens, and the two young men became friends. However, their friendship soon developed into something much more profound, as Stephens' autobiography attests. For example, when the entire Mormon community in Willard (except for the Ward family) moved to Malad, Idaho, 20-year-old Evan refused to go with his family and instead chose to remain with his 'chum,' John. They eventually built a small cabin and moved into it together. In this same autobiography, Stephens calls Ward the first of his 'life companions' with whom he shared his 'home life.' . . . The phrase, 'The Last Flower,' comes from a poem which Evan wrote in honor of his mother, in which he calls himself the last flower in her garden, being the youngest of her 11 children.

"Gay Mormon historian, Michael Quinn, has thoroughly covered the relationships Stephens had with many of the young men in the Tabernacle Choir. Recently however, I discovered yet another possible 'boy-chum' of Stephens, Appollos B. Taylor (1854-1936). An online history of the Larsen family recounts that after Benjamin Taylor (father of Appollos) homesteaded in Willard, Utah, 'Evan Stephens, who afterward was famous as a musician and choir leader in the Tabernacle for years, was one of the young men who lived with him [Benjamin]. He [Evan] and Appollos herded sheep on the hills for several years. He was so impressed with the grandeur of the high mountains and rugged peaks just east of the farm. One of his beautiful anthems, "Let The Mountains Shout For Joy" had the Taylor farm for its setting.'

"Stephens also avidly transgressed Mormon gender boundaries wtih frequent vocal performances in drag as a woman (usually an "old maid"), singing convincingly in a high falsetto. At least two of his drag performances took place in the Tabernacle on Temple Square."

"Evan Stephens' Temple Apron

"Around 1987, I [Connell O'Donovan] was living with Leila Rawlinson Trumbo Ethington (granddaughter of Col. Isaac Trumbo, an ex-Mormon greatly responsible for Utah gaining statehood) in her home on 2nd Avenue (between N and O Streets) in Salt Lake City. She was 84 at the time and all of her life Leila had always had close friends who were Gay men. In the early 1970s she opened up her home as a boarding house for several young , Mormons, including several Gay men and one Lesbian (mainly members of one family). I was the last youth to pass through her inviting home which we lovingly dubbed 'The Leila T. Ethington Home for Wayward Boys and Cats.' She had a very warm spot in her heart for strays of all kinds.

"Leila had become a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir around 1925, after Evan Stephens had retired as its director. (She is listed on the official choir website as Leila T. Senior since she was married to Clement Senior at that time.) However during her years in the Choir, she met and befriended Stephens, who eventually told her that he himself was 'that way' (her words), meaning he was homosexual. She told me she often visited his beautiful estate on State Street, with its boating pond and beautiful grounds, where he held many social events especially for the young people of the Church and Choir.

"When Stephens died October 27, 1930, Leila knew that his non-Mormon housekeeper (Sarah Daniels) would have no idea how to dispose of his temple garments and robes properly, so Leila went to his home to take care of those items of ritual apparel. Leila disposed of all his temple clothing except for his temple apron. She kept this because there was a note stuck to it that indicated he had worn that very apron during the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple on April 6, 1893. (Note that Stephens had also composed the music to The Hosanna Anthem, with words by C.L. Walker, specifically for the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple, and I believe it has been sung at the dedication of every LDS temple worldwide since)."

(Connell O'Donovan, "The Abominable and Detestable Crime Against Nature: A Revised History of Homosexuality & Mormonism, 1840-1980," at: http://www.connellodonovan.com/abom.html: and Connell O'Donovan, "Evan Stephens' Temple Apron," at: http://people.ucsc.edu/~odonovan/evan.html)
_____


Mormon apologists, of course, beg to differ with the above intepretation of Stephens' sexual orientation:

"[Evan Stephens'] Alleged Homosexuality . . .

"In his book, 'Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth Century Americans,' published in 1996, gay historian D. Michael Quinn expresses his view that Stephens had homosexual relationships and that these were tolerated by the LDS Church hierarchy. Elsewhere, Quinn has theorised that the unmarried Stephens had intimate relationships and shared the same bed with a series of male domestic partners and travelling companions.[He claims that some of these relationships were described under a pseudonym in The Children's Friend, a church magazine for children. However, Quinn has admitted that it is possible Stephens never engaged in homosexual conduct.

"Several other Latter-day Saint scholars, including George L. Mitton and Rhett S. James, have called Quinn's research on Stephens into question. They argue that Quinn has engaged in an opportunistic distortion of LDS Church history; they deny any acceptance from previous leaders of homosexual behaviour; and state the teachings of the current leadership of the Church 'is entirely consistent with the teachings of past leaders and with the scriptures.' Specifically, they disagree with Quinn's theory that Stephens was involved in intimate relationships with other men, or that the article in 'The Children's Friend' was about these relationships. They point to it instead as reflecting normal youthful respect for older males. They also point out that Stephens's relationship with his great niece, Sarah Daniels, undermines Quinn's claims. Specifically, Stephens maintained a large number of students as residents in his household to prevent the image of impropriety with Daniels, since if he had lived alone with her without other witnesses around, it would have opened him up to accusations of a scandalous relationship. They state that Stephens 'is known only as a strictly moral Christian gentleman.' Mitton and James also point out that the death of Stephens's fiancee led him to remember her through his music, and that this was a very real and deep-seated emotional connection for him.[3] Ray Bergman—who was in one of Stephens's youth choirs and personally knew him—also disputes any claims that Stephens was a homosexual."

("Evan Stephens,"at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Stephens)


For Quinn's research findings on Stephens, see: D. Michael Quinn, "Male-Male Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Mormons," at: https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dialoguejournal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsbi%2Farticles%2FDialogue_V28N04_119.pdf



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/2014 01:09AM by steve benson.

Note: Most transvestites are heterosexual

. . . engaged in activities that have led some (in this case, the gay author of the article quoted in this thread) to suggest or even suspect that Btigham Morris may have been gay:

"Although [no] direct evidence [has been found] that Brigham Morris Young was a homosexual, . . . [d]uring the early 1870s [he] drove a horse-drawn streetcar for a living. One popular stereotype of the time was that streetcar drivers were effeminate homosexuals (and in fact, Walt Whitman found many of his male lovers amongst the streetcar drivers of New York City, including his long-time companion, Peter Doyle, who drove a streetcar in Washington DC for many years). Interestingly, Morris drove the streetcar between the Utah Central Railroad Depot and the Wasatch Municipal Baths, which [has been] documented [as] an active 'cruising' area for homosexual men (who went there looking for anonymous sexual encounters), at least as early as the 1880s."

It pays to read the entire post. :)



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/2014 06:45PM by steve benson.

steve benson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> . . . engaged in activities that have led some (in
> this case, the gay author of the article quoted in
> this thread) to suggest or even suspect that
> Btigham Morris may have been gay:
>
> "Although direct evidence that Brigham Morris
> Young was a homosexual, . . . uring the early
> 1870s drove a horse-drawn streetcar for a
> living. One popular stereotype of the time was
> that streetcar drivers were effeminate homosexuals
> (and in fact, Walt Whitman found many of his male
> lovers amongst the streetcar drivers of New York
> City, including his long-time companion, Peter
> Doyle, who drove a streetcar in Washington DC for
> many years). Interestingly, Morris drove the
> streetcar between the Utah Central Railroad Depot
> and the Wasatch Municipal Baths, which documented
> an active 'cruising' area for homosexual men (who
> went there looking for anonymous sexual
> encounters), at least as early as the 1880s."
>
> It pays to read the entire post. :)

He was gay because he was a streetcar driver? Bit of a stretch, don't you think?

. . . of sexual orientation based on certain professions and those invovled in them within historical settings. Whether accurate or not in this case (and the author notes that it does not qualify as definitive proof), that nonetheless was the stereotype of the time and thus bears historical examination. Plus, the area in which Brigham Morris drove his horse-drawn conveyance happened to be a place were one-night-stand male sex partners were commonly available and a well-known location to hang out for pick-up. A great place for a drag-queen son of the Mormon Church president/founder of the YMMIA to frequent, eh? :)

You don't seem to read very carefully. I suspect that may be a selective tendency of your part. Anything to protect the Mormon high and mighty, I guess.

(Speaking of history, it bears noting that the posting history of this site shows you as having only posted once--and, coincidentally enough, this being the only thread where you have done so. Fishy: http://exmormon.org/phorum/search.php?2,search=poilu,author=,page=1,match_type=ALL,match_dates=30,match_forum=2,match_threads=0)



Edited 9 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2014 03:21AM by steve benson.

The Great State of Desert-rat, where polygamy and polyandry were legal but same sex unions of any kind were verboten.

Isn't it marvelous how Mormon doctrine always conforms to contemporary legislation?

Temple sealings for SS couples can't be too far away, folks.

Just hope I live to see it.

I have always been curious about why they terminated the office of Patriarch of the Church. Why did they do that?

cludgie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have always been curious about why they
> terminated the office of Patriarch of the Church.
> Why did they do that?


The spectre of too many doofuses uttering the same rote blessings was beginning to wear thin when mormies began comparing and scrutinizing the silly things.

Another we never taught that moment in Morg history.

Delete, erase.

Never mind the the one true prophet's pop was patriarco numero uno.

. . . of the Church Patriarch after the disastrous and potentially explosive tenure of Joseph F. Smith, the Mormon Church's official gay Patriarch--coupled with the Office having been the center of long, rocky disputes involving family factions vying for dynastic privilege.

At the time that Joseph F.'s gay orientation was becoming of subject of a whisper campaign behind the scenes (but before the full extent of his gay orientation and activities became known by the Church's highest leaders), the hereditary/dynastic protocol established for service as the Church Patriarch called for Eldred G. Smith (the son of the sixth Patriach of the Church, Hyrum Gibbs Smith), to be appointed to this office. According to established Church procedure, this was to have taken place for Eldred in 1932, when his father died. Instead, Church President Heber J. Grant left the position open for the next 10 years (although two "acting" Patriarchs where chosen to serve in the Office during that time period, including one who was not a Smith family heir).

To the dismay of some who were aware of Joseph F.'s gay bent and behavior, he (Joseph F., who was a distant cousin of Eldred) was eventually tapped out to be Patriarch of the Church. This move greatly upset Eldred, who felt he (Eldred) had been robbed of the office that he regarded as justly his. Ultimately, however (after the Joseph F. homosexual sex scandal had been put to bed, so to speak), the First Presidency put Eldred in as Church Patriarch. AFollowing Eldred being retired and placed on emeritus status in 1979, the Spencer W. Kimball First Presidency dissolved the Office of the Church Patriarch altogether.

The reason given by sympathizers with the "Holy Grail" status of Eldred for him 'being put out to pasture was that he was regarded as by Mormon authorities to be a "murmurer" and therefore was "once again expendable to the Church."
_____


Below are relevant elements of the timeline leading to the eventual closing down of the Office of the Presiding Patriarch:

--"1932

"Eldred Gee Smith should have become Patriarch in 1932, at the death of his father. However, Pres. Heber J. Grant was 'evidently reticent' to have him be the new Patriarch, so the important ecclesiastical office was left vacant for a decade. . . .


--"1942, October 8

"Joseph Fielding Smith was ordained 'Patriarch to the Church' by LDS President Heber J. Grant. When Eldred's distant cousin, Joseph F. Smith, became the Patriarch, Eldred Gee Smith reportedly 'lamented that he had lost the most priceless thing he had hoped for,' becoming the next Patriarch. . . .


--"1947, April 3

"'Voted to sustain…Eldred Smith' as the new Patriarch to the Church. (GASD)


--"1947, April 6

"(sustained) Eldred Smith as Patriarch to the Church." (GASD)


--"1947, April 10

"(Set apart). . . .Eldred G. Smith, Patriarch to the Church." (GASD) . . .


--"1979, October 4

"Eldred Gee Smith was placed on emeritus status by the First Presidency and no new Patriarch was called to replace him. At his death, the office of Patriarch to the Church, which once rivaled that of the President of the Church, will cease to exist."


NOTE:

Other explanations have been offered for (1) the extended vacancy of the Office of the Church Patriarch under the tenure of Heber J. Grant (when Grant tried to get his son-in-law ordained as Patriarch) and for (2) the Office's eventual dissolution under the tenure of Spencer W. Kimball:

"From the time Grant was ordained as President of the Church in 1918, through today, the Office of Presiding Patriarch has dwindled in importance and, largely, authority. As [D. Michael] Quinn concludes his discussion on the role of the Presiding Patriarch, he adds this statement:

“'Whenever a Patriarch after 1844 tried to magnify his presiding office, the Twelve and First Presidency recoiled in apprehension. However, when individual Patriarchs seemed to lack administrative vigor, the Twelve and First Presidency criticized them for not magnifying their office. Few men could walk such an ecclesiastical tightrope.

"'For various reasons the First Presidency and Twelve were in conflict with seven out of eight successors of the original Presiding Patriarch, Joseph Smith, Sr. The hierarchy finally resolved the situation on 6 Oct 1979 by making Eldred G. Smith an 'emeritus' General Authority without replacing him. This permanently 'discontinued' the Office of Patriarch to the Church. . . . Vacating the office in 1979 ended the conflicts. However, according to Brigham Young’s instructions, the 1979 action made the Church vulnerable: 'It was necessary to keep up a full organization of the Church all through time as far as could be. At least the three First Presidenc[ies], Quorum of the Twelve, Seventies and Patriarch over the whole Church . . . so that the Devil could take no advantage of us.' It is beyond the scope of this analysis to assess such metaphysical vulnerability. Administratively, however, the decision to leave the Patriarch’s office vacant after 1979 streamlined the hierarchy and removed a source of nearly constant tension."


Sources

--"CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS on Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith’s Homosexuality," Connell O'Donovan, comp., "with the generous assistance of D. Michael Quinn," at: http://www.connellodonovan.com/smith.html


-- Vern G. Swanson, "Dynasty of the Holy Grail: Mormonism's Sacred Bloodline," under "Legal Heirs According to the Flesh" [2006], p. 353, at: )http://books.google.com/books?id=Pa1mMcw6NNUC&pg=PA353&lpg=PA353&dq=Eldred+Gee+Smith+brother+of+Joseph+Fielding+Smith+Church+patriarch&source=bl&ots=u6hjkrQVuj&sig=Xlyttz027s4HW4I8EMd3MXdxJOs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=fc5ZVNLMLoK7iQLFjoGgDQ&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=Eldred%20Gee%20Smith%20brother%20of%20Joseph%20Fielding%20Smith%20Church%20patriarch&f=false;


--Jim Whithead, "The Mormon Delusuion," vol. 2 second edition (2010), p. 262, at: ooks.google.com/books?id=H6YYAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA262&lpg=PA262&dq=Eldred+Gee+Smith+brother+of+Joseph+Fielding+Smith+Church+patriarch+D.+Michael+quinn&source=bl&ots=FH-rCis_2Y&sig=L5YnoLl76aF0iKQI_KybyHUVyOs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=p9JZVLq5KaiBiwLi9oDIBw&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=Eldred%20Gee%20Smith%20brother%20of%20Joseph%20Fielding%20Smith%20Church%20patriarch%20D.%20Michael%20quinn&f=false


--"D&C 59:21: Confess His Hand in All Things," 12 January 2010, at: http://truthmarche.wordpress.com/2010/01/12/dc-5921-confess-his-hand-in-all-things/



Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2014 04:30PM by steve benson.

Couldn't have been David Oh! McKay's presidency. Must have been the little closeted guy... Kimball, right?

Good research Steve,but I'm still unclear about which FP put Eldred G.Smith out to pasture? DOM died in 1970 and Patriarch EGS didn't get retired/emeritus until 1979.Since,I haven't read Dr.Quinn's book on the subject,I'm unclear if the office of Patriarch was diminished under Mckay Like you point out or if it was later under SWK-FROM memory I seem to recall that prior to 11979 members were told to get their PB from their local stake Patriarch? Anyway,I'm just curious?

Thanks. I've gone back and made the correction. For some reason, I was thinking that McKay was still around in 1979 but you're right--he died in 1970 and, in fact, was incapacitated in the later years of his "reign." So, Spencer W. Kimball ended up having to clean up the Mormon gawd-awful mess.



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 11/06/2014 05:26AM by steve benson.