July 7, 1844 - Mormon leaders barely restrain Orrin Porter Rockewll from murdering apostate Robert D. Foster. William Clayton records: "I reasoned with Rockwell and tried to show him the folly of his conduct inasmuch as the Governor had said that if one of those men were assassinated the whole city would be held responsible, . . ."

July 7, 1852 - Endowment ordinances are recommenced in the Old Council House, the first permanent public building erected in Salt Lake City, which also houses the territorial legislature and the territorial public library. Three years later the Endowment House is constructed in the northwest corner of Temple Square and is dedicated to the sole use of administering endowments.

July 7, 1855 - Brigham Young attends a meeting, in Salt Lake City, of the Universal Scientific Society and hears an address "by Dr. Richardson, upon the Subject of Concubinage as related to the Patriarchs of old etc." Young afterward expresses "his approbation and the joy and pleasure he felt at what he witnessed."

July 7, 1860 - Brigham Young's office journal records: "Bro. Greenwood called in and reported Bp. L. E. Harrington was very sick and had sent him up for counsel about Bro. Gordons first wife, and bro Smith as it was supposed there had been an improper intimacy. The Ward had cut them off. The President said her husband should divorce her, and Smith & her should be baptised and then they should marry."

July 7, 1861 - Heber C. Kimball, in a sermon recalling past persecutions of the Saints, preaches: "After all these hardships and trials we started for this country, and what did the Government then require of us? Five hundred men were called to go and take part in the Mexican war, and that too at a time when we were all living in our waggons: many were sick, and some were dying;" This perpetuates the myth that the Mormon Battalion was a favor that the Church did for the government when in reality it was a favor that the government did for the Mormons at Church leaders' request.

July 7, 1863 - Brigham Young speaks about future complex of twenty-four temples in Independence, Missouri: "A tower upon Each then a main high Tower in the center [with] gardens on the top of the Towers with fruit & flowers growing thereon." On July 8, 1861 he said the temple complex will cover ten acres of land.

July 7, 1878 - Apostle Joseph F. Smith preaches from the Tabernacle pulpit: "Some people have supposed that the doctrine of plural marriage was a sort of superfluity, or non-essential to the salvation or exaltation of mankind. In other words, some of the Saints have said, and believe, that a man with one wife, sealed to him by the authority of
the Priesthood for time and eternity, will receive an exaltation as great and glorious, if he is faithful, as he possibly could with more than one. I want here to enter my solemn protest against this idea, for I know it is false. . . . Therefore, whoever has imagined that he could obtain the fullness of the blessings pertaining to this celestial law, by complying with only a portion of its conditions, has deceived himself. He cannot do it."

July 7, 1887 - First Counselor George Q. Cannon calls a meeting of a committee of apostles. "President Cannon stated that President Taylor's health was in such a precarious condition that he was utterly incapable of attending to business natters; and stated that it was necessary for us, as leading officials in the Church, to take such actions regarding financial and other matters as we considered for the best interest of the people, without consulting President Taylor. President Cannon referred to Brother John W. Taylor as to the condition of his father, Brother Taylor having recently paid him a visit, and he (Brother Taylor) endorsed the statement of President Cannon to the effect that President Taylor was utterly incapable of attending to business matters." Cannon asks for and receives $2000 from the Church to help the ailing OGDEN HERALD. Later, Moses Thatcher comments to Apostle Heber J. Grant that Cannon's transactions might need to be investigated later since, he claimed to have learned, they were not all "as straight as they might have been"

July 7, 1890 - Apostle Abraham H. Cannon writes: "At S[unday] S[school] Union Board Mtg. 'The question was asked if partaking of the Sacrament would cause a forgiveness of sins. A question card used in Sunday Schools said it would. Father (Geo. Q. Cannon) said that partaking worthily of the Sacrament would gain for the Saint a forgiveness of sins, as well as a repentant spirit and humble prayer would bring the same blessing, yet this is not the ordinance instituted for the forgiveness of sins, and any question or answer which conveyed such an idea is incorrect.'"

July 7, 1893 - First Counselor George Q. Cannon sends a telegram from England to Salt Lake City with the single word "UNSUCCESSFUL" for the message. Cannon had met with Baron Rothschild, his brothers, and other leading financiers in search of a long term loan for the Church, but the prevailing American panic and the European ignorance of Utah affairs made a loan impossible. After reading the telegram Apostle Francis M Lyman writes: "This word is very discouraging. Money matters are very tight, banks and mercantile institutions are going broke on every hand."
In Provo, Utah Apostles John Henry Smith and Brigham Young Jr. assist a stake high Counsel in deciding the Case of Williams Vs. Jones. Apostle Smith writes "It was decided that S.S. Jones pay Williams $700.00 in full of all accounts."

July 7, 1901 - Lorenzo Snow presides at Salt Lake Temple's monthly fast meeting, "and Sister Lillie T. Freeze sang in tongues."

July 7, 1903 - Apostle Rudger Clawson tells other apostles at their quarterly meeting "that the practice of self-abuse existed to an alarming extent among the boys in our community who attended the district schools, and also, he doubted not, the church schools. He felt that the boys and girls should be properly instructed in regard to this evil."
Apostle Hyrum M. Smith remarks that "Business men of the church in furnishing work should invariably give Latter-day Saints the preference, but this is not always done, . . ."

July 7, 1906 - ex-Queen Liliuokalani of Hawaii is baptized. Although she is first monarch to convert to Mormonism, she also joins other churches in her last years.

July 7, 1909 - Joseph F. Smith, son of Hyrum Smith who led similar effort in 1842-43, instructs twelve to investigate and suppress new plural marriages.
Carl A. Badger and Louise A. Badger call on Apostle Heber J. Grant with the news that their sister Bessie had recently married into plurality with one of Elder Grant's former European missionaries.

July 7, 1912 - Alma W. Richards is first Mormon athlete to receive national recognition. He wins gold medal (high jump) at Olympics, and in 1954 is inducted into Helms national Hall of Fame and U.S. Track and Field Hall of Fame.

July 7, 1934 - CHURCH SECTION article "The Catawba Indians--A Mormon Tribe" notes that 95 percent of this South Carolina tribe converted after first contact with LDS missionaries fifty-one years earlier. Tribe's chief Samuel Blue is also president of Catawba branch.

July 7, 1946 - Almost two years after Americans dropped atomic bomb on Hiroshima, U.S. serviceman Boyd K. Packer performs first baptism of Japanese converts in Japan.

July 7, 1954 - Second Counselor J. Reuben Clark gives an address titled "When are the Writings or Sermons of Church Leaders Entitled to the Claim of Scripture?" In it he states, ". . . even the President of the Church, himself, may not always be 'moved upon by the Holy Ghost,' when he addresses the people. This has happened about matters of doctrine (usually of a highly speculative character) where subsequent Presidents of the Church and the peoples themselves have felt that in declaring the doctrine, the announcer was not moved upon by the Holy Ghost'. . . . even the President of the Church has not always spoken under the direction of the Holy Ghost, for a prophet is not always a prophet . . . in our own Church, leaders have differed in view from the first. . . . not always may the words of a prophet be taken as a prophecy or revelation . . ." This may have been given in response to recent, public addresses by Joseph Fielding Smith which dogmatically labeled evolution as false.

July 7, 1958 - Barton Kay Kirkham is executed for double murder in Utah. Before his execution he writes in a letter: "The Doctors said I felt justified when I killed those people and they are right. I did. It was revenge I was after. The love that I was denied because my parents spent so much time doing church work and they still do, and forcing me to stay home and lead the life they wanted me to live. I got my revenge and I am not sorry now and never will be…. I've had enough of it, I want to die. I'm fed up with it all. I did kill those people to hurt my parents and their good standing in the church."

July 7, 1972 - Quorum of Twelve sustains Harold B. Lee as church president with N. Eldon Tanner and Marion G. Romney as counselors and ordains Lee. From 1918 until this day, all LDS church presidents are born in Utah. Lee is first LDS president born in Idaho and first to reach adulthood in twentieth century. Romney is first member of First Presidency born outside U.S. (Mexico) since Charles W. Nibley's death in 1931.

July 7, 1978 - NEW YORK DAILY WORLD prints an article about the previous month's LDS announcement granting Blacks the priesthood: "Scrapping a 148-Year Old Racist Tradition."

July 7, 1990 - End of Wimbledon tennis tournament where LDS player Rich Leach and partners win men's doubles and mixed doubles. At Wimbledon in 1995 Leach wins his "29th doubles title."

July 7, 1995 - Award-winning author Brian Evenson announces his resignation as BYU English professor to join faculty at Oklahoma State University. Because of anonymous student's complaint to an apostle about violence and "darkness" in Evenson's published work, BYU's officials were requiring him to cancel his most recent book contract with New York publisher Knopf or face termination. BYU's spokesperson comments: "The University's sense of mission and Brian's sense of mission were quite divergent."

July 7, 1996 - Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges re-certifies BYU's accreditation for ten years, despite committee's acknowledgement of faculty complaints that academic freedom is severely limited on this LDS campus.

July 7, 2005 - The OGDEN STANDARD EXAMINER reports: "About $400 was reported stolen from a cash register in the cafeteria of the Ogden Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to Ogden Lt. Tony Fox."

July 7-8, 1834 - Joseph Smith ordains David Whitmer as his successor "on conditions that he (J. Smith jr) did not live to God himself."

Good to see these again, Baura.

These would make an excellent 24 hour 'sticky' at the top of the forum. RfM is pretty rough for a meek, TBM lurker, but these daily posts as a sticky would make great 'gateway' posts, hopefully causing a closer perusal by the curious.

Always glad to see your voice here, which unfailingly strikes me as one of the most reasonable on the 'net.

Cheers

Human

Thank you for your kind words (and also topping too)

---July 7, 1878 - Apostle Joseph F. Smith preaches from the Tabernacle pulpit: "Some people have supposed that the doctrine of plural marriage was a sort of superfluity, or non-essential to the salvation or exaltation of mankind. In other words, some of the Saints have said, and believe, that a man with one wife, sealed to him by the authority of the Priesthood for time and eternity, will receive an exaltation as great and glorious, if he is faithful, as he possibly could with more than one. I want here to enter my solemn protest against this idea, for I know it is false. . . . Therefore, whoever has imagined that he could obtain the fullness of the blessings pertaining to this celestial law, by complying with only a portion of its conditions, has deceived himself. He cannot do it."

===========

So no matter how often devout modern Mormons go to the temple and no matter how much effort they put into keeping their Eternal(R) monogamous marriages intact, they'll always be second-class citizens behind those old guys who were able to collect wives the way that some people collect postage stamps. It's always very uninspiring to see how weak-kneed and timid the Mormon God has always been in the face of determined opposition from politicians. The U.S. Government said "boo!" and the Mormon God jumped and cowered--and completely retreated. The key to eternal exaltation was really, really important, but what could the Mormon God do? The U.S. Government said no to it--and the Mormon God meekly complied. Such a good citizen.

After the umteenth time of my Bishop trying to tell me that I was throwing away my exaltation and eternal family, I pointed out to him that according to his scriptures, that unless his wife dies before him and he gets sealed to another before he dies, he too will lose those blessings.

"July 7, 1954 - Second Counselor J. Reuben Clark gives an address titled "When are the Writings or Sermons of Church Leaders Entitled to the Claim of Scripture?" In it he states, ". . . even the President of the Church, himself, may not always be 'moved upon by the Holy Ghost,' when he addresses the people. This has happened about matters of doctrine (usually of a highly speculative character) where subsequent Presidents of the Church and the peoples themselves have felt that in declaring the doctrine, the announcer was not moved upon by the Holy Ghost'. . . . even the President of the Church has not always spoken under the direction of the Holy Ghost, for a prophet is not always a prophet . . . in our own Church, leaders have differed in view from the first. . . . not always may the words of a prophet be taken as a prophecy or revelation . . ." This may have been given in response to recent, public addresses by Joseph Fielding Smith which dogmatically labeled evolution as false."

J. Reuben Clark had a great head on his shoulders in that instance. :-D

everyone should think for themselves, use their best judgment, and not rely on Church Leaders who may or may not be inspired at any given time, or, in other words, there really is no point to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, unless you really enjoy paying 10% of your income to support a bunch of pretentious guys in business suits who don't know what they're talking about.

Yeah, I'd say Clark got that right. ;o)

July 7, 1958 - Barton Kay Kirkham is executed for double murder in Utah. Before his execution he writes in a letter: "The Doctors said I felt justified when I killed those people and they are right. I did. It was revenge I was after. The love that I was denied because my parents spent so much time doing church work and they still do, and forcing me to stay home and lead the life they wanted me to live. I got my revenge and I am not sorry now and never will be…. I've had enough of it, I want to die. I'm fed up with it all. I did kill those people to hurt my parents and their good standing in the church."


WOW--- very telling

please keep these coming, I read them all..thanks

"The question was asked if partaking of the Sacrament would cause a forgiveness of sins.----yet this is not the ordinance instituted for the forgiveness of sins, and any question or answer which conveyed such an idea is incorrect.'"

Because some sins cannot be repented of unless you entertain your BP with every sordid detail!!!

Like sex and lust and sex and ..........especially if you are a minor!!!!!

Because God cannot mete out 'punishment' or forgive... the BP and the whole ward gets to participate in character assassination and get their egos off on having people jump through public humiliations hoops.... not partaking of the sacrament, no giving of public prayers (they probably have never been called upon to give prayers anyway, but that doesn't matter) and not attending the private weddings of their family and friends in the Temple!!!!

Wow thanks for this! These are great.

Wow Baura, that was fabulous. As I was reading through, I was thinking of those smarmy desk flip calendars they sell at Deseret Book and all over the place with moments in Mormon History, verses from Book of Mormon, Bible, etc.

Wouldn't it be FABULOUS to have an ex-mormon calendar with tidbits like these on it? How could anybody object to having a calendar around which has Mormon History quotes in it? Just because they make the church look more like what it really is? Just because they tell the truth = anti Mormon?

Anagrammy