We call upon Senator Harry Reid to do the right thing, allow current FLDS members to testify at the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing in their own behalf, and on behalf of their community. They should have the right to answer allegations leveled at them during this hearing.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has the right to know the whole truth, not just pieces of the truth offered to the committee by dissidents (please refer to the FLDS website for further information regarding this testimony); it also has a responsibility to open the way for the truth to be told.
Please contact your Senators and make your feelings known about this travesty of justice. If you are from Utah, you can call or email Senator Orrin Hatch at:
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT); Phone: (202) 224-5251
Email form:
http://hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Offices.Contact
There are 18 other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee:
Sen. Jon Kyl [R-AZ]; Phone: Phone: (202) 224-4521
Sen. John Cornyn [R-TX]; Phone: 202-224-2934
http://cornyn.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
Chairman
Sen. Patrick Leahy [D-VT; Phone: (202) 224-4242
Email address without using a form: senator_leahy@leahy.senate.gov
President
Sen. Arlen Specter [R-PA]; Phone: (202) 224-4254
http://specter.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
Sen. Joseph Biden [D-DE]; Phone: (202) 224-5042
http://biden.senate.gov/services/contact/
Sen. Samuel Brownback [R-KS]; Phone: (202) 224-6521
http://brownback.senate.gov/CMEmailMe.cfm
Sen. Benjamin Cardin [D-MD]; Phone: 202-224-4524
http://cardin.senate.gov/contact/
Sen. Thomas Coburn [R-OK]; Phone: 202-224-5754
http://coburn.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactSenatorCoburn.Home
Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]; Phone: (202) 224-2152
http://durbin.senate.gov/contact.cfm#contact
Sen. Russell Feingold [D-WI]; Phone: (202) 224-5323
http://feingold.senate.gov/contact_opinion.html
Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D-CA]; Phone: (202) 224-3841
http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactUs.EmailMe
Sen. Lindsey Graham [R-SC]; Phone: (202) 224-5972
http://lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.EmailSenatorGraham
Sen. Charles Grassley [R-IA]; Phone: 202.224.3744
http://grassley.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.Home
Sen. Edward Kennedy [D-MA]; Phone: (202) 224-4543
http://kennedy.senate.gov/senator/contact.cfm
Sen. Herbert Kohl [D-WI]; Phone: (202) 224-5653
http://kohl.senate.gov/gen_contact.html
Sen. Charles Schumer [D-NY]; Phone: 202-224-6542
http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/contact/webform.cfm
Sen. Jefferson Sessions [R-AL); Phone: (202) 224-4124
http://sessions.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ConstituentServices.ContactMe
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R; Phone: 202-224-2921
ABC 4
“I really respect the church’s position on it, I really do, and I feel like I understand their need to distinguish themselves from those who choose to practice polygamy today.”
Mary Batchelor says that she is independent. She believes in the principle but she does not practice it, and she says, she’s Mormon.
“I think it’s ironic that the church feels comfortable telling people that they can’t be considered Mormon, when they themselves have experienced the same thing from Christian denominations telling them they can’t be called Christian, and they obviously clearly do believe they are Christian. I clearly do believe I’m Mormon.”
To watch the entire news clip, go here: http://www.abc4.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=84321@video.ktvx.com
NEWS RELEASE
July 9, 2008
Contact: Anne Wilde
Community Relations, Principle Voices
Email: Principlevoices@comcast.net
“FUNDAMENTALIST MORMON” IS THE CORRECT TERM CONTRARY TO LDS CHURCH CLAIMS
The Principle Voices Coalition has learned that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has sent a letter to media outlets asking that the term “fundamentalist Mormon” not be used. In the recent past, the Church has insisted that we instead be defined as “polygamous sects”, even though most of us are not (and do not refer to ourselves as) polygamists.
We strenuously object to any efforts to deprive us and others of the freedom to name and describe ourselves by terms of our own choosing. Fundamentalist Mormons have been referred to by that name since the 1930s, often by the Church itself. We are proud of our Mormon heritage. Plural marriage is only one of the tenets of our religion, the Gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through Joseph Smith.
Ironically, the LDS Church has been justifiably uncomfortable with repeated assertions by members of some Christian denominations that Latter-day Saints are not Christians. In many ways, we consider ourselves to be adherents to Mormonism (and Christianity) no less than were Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and John Taylor. What distinguishes us from the modern, mainstream Church is that we have endeavored to observe the original, fundamental precepts of the restored Gospel, while the Church itself has, since the early 1900s, repudiated several of them.
—————————————————
The Principle Voices Coalition - contact: Anne Wilde
The Apostolic United Brethren - contact: David Dye
The Davis County Cooperative Society - contact: Carlene Cannon
The Work of Jesus Christ (Centennial Park) - contact: Marlyne Hammon
and numerous independent fundamentalist Mormons
To contact any one of these representatives, please send your emails to: Principlevoices@comcast.net, and we will forward them for you. Thank you.
###
Despite differing in many respects now from its earlier teachings and practices, the LDS Church still has much in common with fundamentalist Mormons (which is founded in early Mormonism).
Both groups share a belief in the same set of scriptures - the Bible, the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price.
They revere many of the same prophets, including Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and John Taylor. They accept their teachings notwithstanding the LDS Church’s later denunciation of many of those teachings. They both believe in the necessity of Priesthood authority.
Fundamentalist Mormons are not one homogeneous group, but are comprised of many smaller groups, or independents who are not affiliated with any group (or church). These groups/independents have their own beliefs/practices which differ from each other, similar to the various Christian denominations (i.e. Catholic, Baptist, Protestant, Episcopalian, Protestant, Lutheran) that all consider themselves “Christian”. For further explanation, refer to our page explaining the different groups:
Diversity of fundamentalist Mormons
Fundamentalist Mormons
*They can be found in every level of society and in almost all communities. They include doctors, dentists, teachers, lawyers, accountants, nurses, secretaries and college professors.
* Many celebrate public holidays, serve in their respective military services and actively interact with and respect those of other beliefs and faiths.
* Many wear regular modern clothing and have contemporary hairstyles, while others wear distinctive clothing (just as do other religious groups such as the Hutterites or Amish). In either case, most fundamentalist Mormons adhere to high standards of modesty.
Family
* Fundamentalist Mormonism teaches that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God, and that a man’s having more than one such marriage is ordained of God.
* The majority of fundamentalist Mormons do not believe in arranged marriages, and those groups who do recommend possible spouses to their members still ultimately leave the decision to the individual. The decision of whom to marry is an individual choice.
* Men and women are co-equal in their relationship. There are, however, divine patriarchal and matriarchal roles as emphasized in the standard works of scripture.
* Child and spousal abuse are seen as serious sins, and are not tolerated by the doctrines of fundamentalist Mormonism or amongst the majority of those who consider themselves fundamentalist Mormons.
Polygamy
* Contrary to the assertions of the LDS Church, one can be a polygamist and a Mormon. Joseph Smith, the first president of the Church was a polygamist and arguably the first ‘Mormon’, as were his successors, Brigham Young, John Taylor, and the next three successive Church presidents. Joseph Smith taught that, if a Hindu or Muslim converted to Mormonism, he would be welcome, along with his wives. Sadly, the LDS Church now excludes such families from fellowship and the saving ordinances of God.
* The standard doctrine of the Church has evolved into monogamy, and yet the Church still embraces polygamy for the after-life. LDS men can be sealed to more than one woman in the temple, with the expectation that they will have multiple wives after this life. In fact, some of the current LDS general authorities have been sealed to multiple women (Apostle Dallin Oaks among them).
* Fundamentalist Mormons practice polygamy today in much the same way Mormons practiced polygamy in 19th-century Utah. Women still choose whom they wish to marry, when to marry or not, and are entirely free to leave. The majority of fundamentalist Mormons are actually not living polygamously at all (hence, they are not polygamists), and most who do practice polygamy have only two wives.
Education
* Fundamentalist Mormonism teaches that adherents should seek out both spiritual and secular knowledge. However, spiritual knowledge is considered of greater value.
* Fundamentalist Mormons take full part in public and private education, both at the school and university level. Some fundamentalist Mormons also home-school their children (as do some LDS Church members) to ensure a high level of education is imparted and that good values are taught.
* Fundamentalist Mormon communities own and/or operate private schools, charter schools and colleges. Some of these are notable for their academic achievements.
* Many fundamentalist Mormon groups offer scholarships and assistance where possible to students.
Church Government
* Historically there is a great deal of affiliation between members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and fundamentalist Mormons. The majority of Fundamentalist Mormons trace their ancestors to Mormon pioneers.
* Some fundamentalist Mormon groups are governed by a lay clergy at the congregational level.
* Fundamentalist Mormon groups have governing councils which seek inspiration from God to serve their fellow members.
* Several Fundamentalist Mormon groups have women’s organizations and youth groups.
Community Involvement
* Fundamentalist Mormons living in the United Stated believe in the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and endeavor to uphold its ideals and protections.
* Fundamentalist Mormons may exercise their personal convictions independent of a group, or work together in groups, to promote industry and morality, and they advocate civil rights.
* Fundamentalist Mormons have run for various political offices, and have served as mayors, city councilors, judges, firemen and police officers.
Service
* Fundamentalist Mormons believe in being good Samaritans and in helping those in need.
* Many fundamentalist Mormons have volunteered their assistance, resources and skills in times of disaster.
* Fundamentalist Mormons have also made monetary and other donations to a variety of non-profit organizations (worldwide), charities and other good causes, for the relief of suffering of God’s children around the world.
We regret that others would - in an attempt to try and distance themselves from fundamentalist Mormons - promote misconceptions about them.
We acknowledge the good the LDS Church does. Its members remain our fellow Mormons, and we their brothers and sisters in the Gospel.
A coalition of polygamous groups is taking issue with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ objections to the term “fundamentalist Mormon.”In a statement issued Wednesday, the group Principle Voices said it strenuously objects to what it calls “efforts to deprive us and others of the freedom to name and describe ourselves by terms of our own choosing.”
Last month, the LDS Church appealed to the news media and the public to make the distinction between it and the Fundamentalist LDS Church, whose YFZ Ranch in Texas has been the subject of widespread media attention.
“Mormons have nothing whatsoever to do with this polygamous sect in Texas,” said Elder Quentin L. Cook, a member of the LDS Church’s Quorum of the Twelve. “The fact is that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially discontinued the practice of polygamy in 1890: 118 years ago. It’s a significant part of our distant past, not of our present.”
“People have the right to worship as they choose, and we aren’t interested in attacking someone else’s beliefs,” Elder Cook said. “At the same time, we have an obligation to define ourselves rather than be defined by events and incidents that have nothing to do with us. It’s obvious we need to do more to help people understand the enormous differences that exist between our Church which is a global faith and these small polygamous groups.”
Principle Voices said that the term has been used since the 1930s.
“We are proud of our Mormon heritage,” the group said. “Plural marriage is only one of the tenets of our religion, the Gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through Joseph Smith.”
Principle Voices is comprised of representatives of the various polygamous sects in Utah and Arizona, including the Bluffdale-based Apostolic United Brethren, the Davis County Cooperative Society, the Work of Jesus Christ in Centennial Park, Ariz., and independent groups.
There are an estimated 37,000 people in Utah and surrounding states who refer to themselves as “fundamentalist Mormons,” according to an unofficial census conducted by the group. While most do not practice polygamy, they adhere to doctrine that allows it.
A recent survey commissioned by the LDS Church found that there is confusion about the two groups. The survey said that 36 percent erroneously believed the FLDS Church was part of the LDS Church, while 29 percent correctly said the two groups were not related at all and 29 percent were unsure.
The FLDS Church is legally incorporated as the “Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.” The LDS Church excommunicates anyone who is a practicing polygamist today.
In a point-by-point statement published on the LDS Church’s Web site, the church noted the differences between the two faiths, including members who “wear regular modern clothing and have contemporary hairstyles.”
“Mormons practiced polygamy in 19th century Utah, but it differed in important ways from the way polygamous groups practice it today,” the LDS Church said. “A woman could choose to marry or not, and could leave such a relationship. Educational pursuits were valued. Two-thirds of plural marriages involved just two wives.”
Similar statements are made by Principle Voices about polygamous groups today.
“We regret that others would — in an attempt to try and distance themselves from fundamentalist Mormons — promote misconceptions about them,” said Mary Batchelor, the pro-polygamy group’s director. “We acknowledge the good the LDS Church does. They remain our fellow Mormons and we their brothers and sisters in the Gospel.”
E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com
SALT LAKE CITY — By JENNIFER DOBNER
Associated Press Writer
http://www.myfoxutah.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6945983&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
Polygamy-practicing fundamentalists with religious roots in early Mormon theology are rankled by the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ campaign to direct the way news organizations define those sects.
“We strenuously object to any efforts to deprive us and others of the freedom to name and describe ourselves by terms of our own choosing,” the Principle Voices Coalition said in a statement issued Wednesday.
“Fundamentalist Mormons have been referred to by that name since the 1930s, often by the church itself. We are proud of our Mormon heritage.”
Fundamentalists revere the same prophets as the mainstream Mormon church, including founder Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, both of whom practiced polygamy. They also share the mainline church’s use of the Book of Mormon as a primary text, along with the Doctrine & Covenants, in which plural marriage remains part of scriptural teachings.
On June 24, a Mormon church attorney sent a letter to newspaper, magazine and broadcast media outlets asking that the term “fundamentalist Mormon” be dropped from news reports.
The letter is primarily aimed at drawing a hard line between the Salt Lake City-based faith and the Utah/Arizona-based Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which practices polygamy and has been prominent in news reports since authorities in April raided the sect’s west Texas ranch and seized more than 400 children during an investigation of child abuse allegations.
“I don’t know how you can’t call them fundamentalist Mormons,” said John Walsh, a Mormon and religious scholar, who served as an expert witness for the state of Texas during the FLDS case. “A Mormon is someone who believes in the Book of Mormon … who has a belief that Joseph Smith was called of God in some way.”
From the fundamentalist point of view, they are the “real Mormons” because they continue to adhere to Smith’s original teaching that polygamy brought exaltation in heaven, said B. Carmon Hardy, a polygamy expert and retired history professor at California State University-Fullerton.
A Mormon church spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment on the coalition’s statement.
In 1890, a Mormon church manifesto denounced polygamy and opened the door for Utah’s statehood. But church leaders continued to privately sanction plural marriage for decades, scattering some Mormons to Mexico and other locations to continue the practice. The author of two volumes on polygamy, Hardy said it wasn’t until the 1920s that church leadership began to actively excommunicate known polygamists.
“These fundamentalists had good reason to look upon themselves as the most faithful,” Hardy said.
The raid on the FLDS’ Yearning for Zion ranch near Eldorado, Texas, led to two months of news reports that cast negative publicity on the 13 million-member mainstream Mormon church. A Mormon church-paid survey of 1,000 Texans found 36 percent believed the two churches were directly connected. That prompted the Mormons to launch a campaign of videos, stories and bullet-point explainers that seek to better define differences between Mormons and polygamous groups.
Among the difference the church outlines:
– The Mormon church excommunicates members found practicing it;
– Members wear regular, modern clothes and have contemporary hairstyles;
– The church encourages both secular and religious education;
– The church doesn’t practice or condone arranged marriages; and
– One cannot be a polygamist and be Mormon.
Principle Voices co-founder Mary Batchelor said fundamentalists take exception to the church’s list.
“The inference is that the differences are wide,” said Batchelor, an independent who is not currently in a plural marriage. “We have a lot of those same values, we may not have millions of members, so we don’t have the same reach, but we are not that different.”
Batchelor said two pages of enumerated differences show a lack of understanding on the part of the Mormons.
“It stereotypes everybody based on what’s been printed in some newspapers,” she said. “We think that’s unfair. It generalizing.”
A survey by Principle Voices conducted in 2006 found roughly 37,000 self-described Mormon fundamentalists living across the West, including Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, South Dakota and Texas. The majority do not belong to any organized church.
Most fundamentalists live in average neighborhoods, wear modern clothes and hairstyles, encourage education and don’t practice arranged marriages, Batchelor said. Many engage in the wider community and trace their family roots to the early Mormon pioneers who founded Utah, she said.
In the statement, the coalition says what distinguishes fundamentalists from the mainstream church is their commitment to “original, fundamental” teachings that the Mormon church has repudiated in the last century.
“There is a disingenuous quality to what the Mormon church is doing now because they are having to deny so much of their history,” Hardy said.
From his studies, Walsh concludes that the main differences between Mormons and their fundamentalist cousins really boils down to differences in daily living, not theology.
“Obviously, Joseph Smith would be excommunicated today for practicing polygamy,” Mormon scholar Newell Bringhurst said. “That’s the supreme irony.”
——
On the Net:
www.lds.org
www.principlevoices.org
Those who worship with The Work of Jesus Christ in Centennial Park have to be prepared to preach on a moment’s notice.
During a priesthood meeting for male members of the church on June 21 the men were told to wear their “preaching clothes” to church the next day. And true to the announcement, church leaders called on random male members of the congregation the next day to come to the stand and deliver a message to the entire body at the Centennial Park church, located just across the highway and south of Colorado City.
Jonathan Dutson was among those to speak that Sunday. He says it’s common for church leaders to call on members of the congregation to speak because it reminds them that they must be ready at any time to explain their beliefs.
Those belonging to the Work of Jesus Christ believe they maintain the true Christian gospel as taught by Joseph Smith and as practiced in the early Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However they believe the mainstream LDS Church has deviated from the teachings of Smith, including the abandonment of plural marriage. Leaders in The Work of Jesus Christ - the priesthood council- say they have the true authority from God on earth.
Although they share a common origin with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the polygamist group based in Colorado City and Hildale, The Work of Jesus Christ and the group that became the FLDS parted ways in 1986.
While many outsiders may focus on the practice of polygamy, members of The Work say their beliefs all come down to legitimate authority from God. Like members of both the LDS Church and the FLDS Church, they do not believe that authority continued after the death of the apostles Christ called when he walked the earth. Instead they believe the authority was restored in the early 1800s to Joseph Smith, a man they all revere as a prophet.
Among the principles Smith taught was the doctrine of plural marriage as described in the Old Testament. The LDS Church officially abandoned that practice in the late 1800s, citing a revelation from then prophet Wilford Woodruff that God wanted the practice to cease. But members of some current polygamous groups - including The Work - say Woodruff’s predecessor John Taylor authorized a few men to carry on the practice of plural marriage underground, organizing them as a priesthood council in 1886.
When the mainstream church began excommunicating those who practiced plural marriage in the 1930s, the underground priesthood council and its followers broke away from the LDS Church and created a congregation of their own on the Utah/Arizona border in what was known as Short Creek.
In the priesthood council, the most senior member serves as president of the church, the man who holds the “keys” and authority from God to lead the church. The Work and the FLDS Church began to split in the late 1970s and early 1980s because of a difference on this subject.
The two groups were united under Leroy S. Johnson as leader of the priesthood council. But a rift formed in the council and Johnson asked two members of the council, J. Marion Hammon and Alma A. Timpson, to step down.
Following Johnson’s death in 1986, Rulon T. Jeffs assumed the prophetic leadership position of the FLDS Church, saying Johnson had taken the priesthood authority away from Hammon, the most senior member of the council. The group that became known as The Work believed that Hammon retained his authority so they chose to follow him and Timpson. They split from Jeffs’ followers and formed the community of Centennial Park in recognition of the 100 years since the formation of the priesthood council that enabled plural marriage to continue.
Although The Work split from the FLDS Church many years before Rulon T. Jeffs’ son Warren S. Jeffs assumed the leadership in 2002, most members of The Work have sought to distance themselves even further from the post-Johnson FLDS Church and the allegations of underage marriages and other criminal behavior.
Hammon and Timpson have both passed away but members of The Work believe they passed on their authority to a new priesthood council that currently leads the church. The names of these leaders are not publicly known.
Church services
With the recent attention given to polygamous groups that claim to practice Mormon fundamentalism, some might expect church services at one of these sects to be some sort of fantastical event led by a charismatic, law-defying prophet type. But the weekly services of The Work of Jesus Christ are not all that different from many other Christian religions.
As the members gather in the modest church building at the southern edge of Centennial Park they greet each other with warm “hellos” and handshakes. A 25-voice choir sings hymns common to the Christian world and those that share a history with the LDS Church. “Welcome, Welcome Sabbath Morning” and “Come Listen To A Prophet’s Voice” are among the selections they sing, accompanied by Marlyne Hammon, who also serves as the church’s spokeswoman, on the piano.
While members of The Work still dress modestly, most have more of a contemporary look than their neighbors across the highway in Colorado City. While some of the women pull their hair back in either buns or braids, many would not stand out in a crowd of women in the middle of St. George. And in recognition of the announcement made in the previous day’s priesthood meeting, the men and boys all wear dark suits.
Portraits of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and other church leaders hang on the walls. A U.S. flag stands on the podium. The words “Holiness to the Lord” are printed on the lectern.
The choir sings “Secret Prayer” and “Did You Think To Pray?” as the benches fill and families begin to sit in overflow seating in the adjoining cultural hall. A group of men, who are apparently priesthood leaders, sit at the front of the chapel on the podium.
The services begin with announcements about community game nights and water shortages before the entire congregation sings “I Stand All Amazed” as the opening song. A leader conducting the service asks another man from the congregation to offer an opening prayer. As the man begins to pray he raises his right arm to a square, asking for blessings on the priesthood council and a sister congregation in Salt Lake City.
Following the prayer the leader mentions the previous night’s announcement about wearing “preaching clothes” and begins to call men from the audience.
As one of the speakers, Dutson references his gratitude for worshipping at the feet of the priesthood leaders. He then mentions a quote he heard on ESPN radio that the biggest lie ever told was that the devil is not real.
“I hope and pray that we will not be caught in that lie,” Dutson says.
Nathan Burnham, the next speaker, follows Dutson’s remarks by mentioning that the devil is “constantly picking at us.” He says those who are parents need to step up and be responsible for they all will have to face in the afterlife the consequences of their actions in this life.
Later in the meeting an older member of the church, Walter Dixon, also talks of the devil, saying he uses science to battle religion. Dixon says that true science is a search for the truth.
Dixon also talks about how he first began to follow the priesthood council decades earlier while living in Salt Lake City. He says he was in darkness before discovering the light found in The Work of Jesus Christ.
“Nothing else is of any importance,” he says. “Priesthood is everything. Without it there is nothing of value to me.”
Following the meeting Burnham says he was born in Bountiful and raised in Hildale. He was a child at the time of the 1986 split between groups and has an older brother who remained a member of the FLDS Church. Despite their differing beliefs, Burnham says he is on friendly terms with family members in the FLDS Church.
“We all still have Thanksgiving dinner together,” he says. “We still love each other.”
He says his faith teaches him how to treat others and explains the purpose of life.
“The gospel explains to my mind where we came from, why we’re here on this earth and where we’re going,” he says. “My parents showed me by example how beautiful the gospel is.”
