On this day in Mormon History
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-- 185 years ago today - Feb 18, 1841 --
In England Wilford Woodruff receives a letter from his wife: "It was truly a feast to me to hear from my Dear wife [and] child . . . after being separated nearly two years from them."
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-- 180 years ago today - Feb 18, 1846 --
An article appears in the WARSAW SIGNAL concerning the endowment ceremony introduced in the Nauvoo Temple two months previously and says that participants in the endowment are "in a state of nudity throughout the ceremony, . .. ." Two months later, in the Apr 15, 1846, issue, a woman who signs her name "Emeline" writes a response. Although "Emeline" admits that she is breaking oaths and covenants she has made in the temple by revealing the contents of the ritual, she feels justified because church authorities were "the most debased wretches" and the that endowment was "nothing less than fearful blasphemy." Nevertheless, she denies that the ceremony takes place in a state of nudity, except for an initial robing ceremony during which only women were present and states that no indecency took place between men and women since they are admitted separately. Although she admits that she did not remember many of the details of the ceremony, she describes the rooms, some of the characters,
as well as the fact that there were oaths, obligations, and penalties. February 18, 1850. While her husband, William Clayton plays with the band for a dancing party, his youngest wife Diantha, at her husband's suggestion, dances with a certain Mr. Grist, a gentile. The band, however, plays a waltz, and the sensibilities of some good Saints are shocked to see the wife of William Clayton waltzing with a gentile. News of this reaches top authorities and two days later, after Clayton has gone to work, an apostle and another elder arrive at his home and confront Diantha. They accuse her of three serious errors unbefitting a Latter-day Saint: (1) waltzing with a gentile, (2) "harboring and encouraging" gentiles in her home during the past winter," and (3) "slandering the authorities of the church to the Gentiles." That evening Clayton writes to Brigham Young: "The peace of my family is in a great degree destroyed," for the priesthood leaders had given his young wife a "very severe
chastisement."
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Brigham Young organizes the pioneer's camp across the river from Nauvoo: "if the brethren could not bring their minds to perfect order, they had better leave the camp and I would have no feelings against them; that after dark no man must leave camp without the countersign, nor approach the guard abruptly; that every family must call on the Lord night and morning at every tent or wagon and we shall have no confidence in the man who does not." A lost and found is set up and a system of colored flags is announced to call various leaders to come for instructions and two cannons are brought into camp. Afterwards Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball and others "returned to Nauvoo . . . and met for prayer in the Temple."
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-- 175 years ago today - Feb 18, 1851 --
[Hosea Stout]
Went to se Major painting Parleys family group which looked splendid[.] It consisted of 7 wives & children (1)
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-- 165 years ago today - Feb 18, 1861 --
President Young & Orson Hyde had discussed the treatment for the cure of the Croup in children. The President said his medicine for the cure of the Croup was lobelia, consecrated oil & molasses. He remarked it was in the nature of lobelia to draw the disease to the stomach, and then puke it off He remarked lobelia should be used carefully because it was a stimulant, and after using large doses people felt exhausted. If a man had a sore upon his foot the lobelia would wither throw the disease out, or draw the disease to the stomach and then puke it out. Br[other] O. Hyde remarked that Spirits of Turpentine was very good for Croup. -- Salt Lake City (2)
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-- 150 years ago today - Feb 18, 1876 --
Sodomy or "crime against nature" becomes illegal in Utah Territory. Sodomy was defined as anal intercourse, a felony punishable by 5 years in prison. In 1907 the law changed the jail time to 23 years imprisonment. In 1923 hetero/homosexual oral sex added to sodomy statute. In 1953, sodomy is reduced from a felony to a class B misdemeanor. (3)
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-- 135 years ago today - Feb 18, 1891 --
Brothers Willard and Richard W. Young called and submitted a draft of a deed for the proposed university. We approved of it. There was some discussion concerning the name. They both favored calling the university 'Young University'. President [Wilford] Woodruff, Brother [Francis M.] Lyman and myself thought that would be a very good name. Brothers Lorenzo Snow and Jos[eph].. F. Smith did not seem to favor that name. They thought 'Brigham Young University' would be better. Brother [Heber J.] Grant did not express himself fully, though I rather think he favored the latter. The two points in my mind which made me favor calling it the 'Young University' are that the heirs seem to desire that name, and the name 'Brigham Young' is applied already to the college at Logan [Utah] and the academy at Provo [Utah], and the tendency would be instead of calling it 'Brigham Young University,' to call it the B.Y. University. (4)
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-- 115 years ago today - Feb 18, 1911 --
Former apostle John W. Taylor comes into Apostle John Henry Smith's office "very much angered at president Francis M. Lyman and the Twelve. . . . He demanded an Interview with Pres[iden]t Joseph F. [Smith] and me. He was quite wild. He staid over two hours. . . . He demanded that President J. F. Smith call the Counsel of fifty to protect him from the Twelve in his violations of the law [for polygamy]." On Mar 28, 1911 John W. Taylor is excommunicated. At his excommunication trial (conducted by the Quorum of Twelve) he asks that President Joseph F. Smith be called on his behalf but the Quorum refuses.
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-- 60 years ago today - Feb 18, 1966 --
[David O. McKay] Apostle Mark E. Petersen stated that the Church Information Service had received a bill for $25 for a color photograph of McKay for the cover o f American Opinion, "which is the John Birch Society organ…. Elder Petersen said that if my picture is so published it will certainly look as though the Church is endorsing the John Birch Society. ... I said that my picture should not appear on this magazine; that the Church has nothing to do with the John Birch Society. I authorized Brother Petersen to tell Brother Benson that he had brought this matter to my attention, and had been told by me to stop the printing of my picture on this magazine; that I do not want it used in that way. I said to Brother Petersen, "You are ordered in the presence of these men to stop it." I further said that I do not want to have anything to do with the John Birch Society; that the Church has had nothing to do with it in the past, and that so far as Brother Benson is concerned, I do not
think we would hear anything more about it. (5)
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1 - Diaries of Hosea Stout
2 - Brigham Young Office Journals, in The Complete Discourses of Brigham Young, Ed. Richard S. Van Wagoner, Smith-Pettit Foundation, Salt Lake City (2009), http://bit.ly/BY-discourses
3 - Timeline of Mormon Thinking About Homosexuality, http://rationalfaiths.com/timeline-of-mormon-thinking-about-homosexuality/
4 - George Q. Cannon, Diary, as quoted in Minutes of the Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1835-1951, Electronic Edition, 2015
5 - David O. McKay diary as referenced in Gregory A. Prince and Wm. Robert Write, David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press (2005)
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