Wilford Woodruff (the 4th President of your Church out-of Goodness Christ out-of Second-big date Saints) is probable best-known having their providing of the 1890 Manifesto you to definitely requisite relief from the practice of polygamy for the the brand new chapel. Because of it, he is possibly probably one of the most controversial prophets from the Mormon believe. If you find yourself an effective devout person in the LDS church just who battles that have polygamy, you actually are particularly thankful so you’re able to Woodruff to take the initial actions in order to putting and you may stop towards habit. If you are a Mormon fundamentalist which however thinks from the principle out of plural matrimony, you truly get a hold of Woodruff’s procedures as the cowardly and maybe also treacherous. Anyway, their heritage is actually inextricably linked with how the guy become the method one to contributed to the termination of polygamy on church. It may been while the a shock upcoming to learn that Woodruff is actually maybe close so you’re able to more plural wives than any most other leader throughout the chapel. Yes, he’s upwards truth be told there towards the top of the list. The catch, not, is the fact that the most of those sealings would be to lifeless women and you will performed of the proxy.
An extremely Patriarchal Birthday, if you ask me!
I found so it facts from inside the David J. Buerger’s The fresh Secrets out-of Godliness: A history of Mormon Temple Worship, which details the introduction of this new forehead ceremonies plus the suggests they own come changed over the years. This will be a great book and i strongly recommend it to some body who’s curious about new theological and you will historical history of contemporary time Mormon temple praise. One of several improvements so you can forehead worship are new introduction of endowments toward deceased, which have been first did with the eleven January 1877 from the St. George Forehead. Less than a couple months after that, Wilford Woodruff had written in the log he had been required from the disclosure to execute proxy endowments regarding St. George Forehead into of a lot dry feminine he’d had sealed in order to your:
Assist my servant Wilford name upon the newest virgins, maidens, daughters & parents within the Zion, and you can permit them to enter into my Holy Forehead to your initial day of February, the afternoon one to my personal slave Wilford has heard of day allocated to help you guy, about three score ages and you can 10, and there permit them to found their washing and you can anointing and you may endowments for and you will account of the spouses that happen to be dead and now have already been close on my slave Wilford, otherwise those people who are are closed to help you him, and this should be acceptable unto myself saith the lord, and the inactive regarding my slave are redeemed on the heart world and start to become willing to fulfill my personal slave on duration of their Upcoming . . . Now go to and you may create so it work and all sorts of might be finished with respect to the attention of your center. Revelation filed because of the Wilford Woodruff in his journal, step one March 1877 Spelling and you may punctuation corrected, focus my own personal.
The brand new 267 Undetectable Brides out of Wilford Woodruff
Accordingly, towards step 1 February 1877-in the affair from their 70th birthday celebration-Woodruff is actually followed by 154 female to visit an event from the St. George Temple to execute proxy endowments to possess dry ladies who got become otherwise was are close in order to Woodruff due to the fact plural spouses. In the celebration, Woodruff details inside the journal:
I became around encircled that have one hundred and you may fifty four virgins, Maidens Daughters and you may Moms and dads when you look at the Zion on the ages of fourteen for the Aged Mother tilting abreast of their particular Team. All of the got built for the intended purpose of entering into the fresh Temple of your own Lord and also make me personally a birthday gift when you're wash and anointed and receiving their endowments to have and also in behalf of one hundred or so and you can thirty off my spouses who were inactive plus the fresh soul industry, most that has been sealed if you ask me. . . . When they got most of the developed together regarding the Development Place We exhibited me ahead of all of them dressed up within my light doe skin temple dress. I around delivered unto them a preliminary address. . . . You’re now inside endowment instead men along with you, but we will furnish one-man a keen Adam. . . . We experienced the fresh endowments of the day a lot more like are in the eyes than a real possibility. This type of 154 siblings was bu siteye uДџrayД±n in fact led to around three veils and you can about three regarding all of us . . . the using forehead clothes, got them from around three veils. . . . Chairman More youthful try establish at temple during the witnessing the fresh new ceremonies. . . . At close of the labor from the forehead We . . . was listed in the center of a shock group had up into occasion. The room adorned and you will a desk lay laden up with every privileges from life, surrounded by nearly a hundred of these who have been choosing endowments for my inactive through the day. President Young sat at direct of the dining table enclosed by his relatives and once true blessing try questioned, there can be shown before me personally something special away from a birthday celebration bridesmaid pie, about three tales higher, adorned toward giants of field on elephant down, and ornamented with two silk sheets covered with posted poetry written towards event. Wilford Woodruff Diary, step one February 1877 Spelling and you can punctuation fixed, emphasis my own. Cited passages located more than six pages.