Latter Day Saint martyrs
Latter Day Saint martyrs are persons who belonged to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) or another church within the Latter Day Saint movement who were killed or otherwise persecuted to the point of premature death on account of their religious beliefs or while performing their religious duties.
Although the term "martyr" is not frequently used in Latter-day Saint terminology, Latter Day Saints recognize a number of prophets, apostles, and other religious persons as recorded in the Bible, including both the Old Testament and New Testament, and Book of Mormon as martyrs within the same religious tradition (albeit at an earlier time) to which they subscribe.[1] For Latter Day Saints, the most notable martyr is Jesus Christ. Other scriptural examples include Abel ("the first martyr"),[2] John the Baptist, James, the brother of John, Stephen whose stoning is recorded in the Book of Acts, Abinadi,[3] women and children of Ammonihah,[4] etc.[5] Latter Day Saints also acknowledge as "Early-day Saint" martyrs those early Christians who were killed for their faith prior to or as a result of the Great Apostasy.
The most notable post-Biblical Latter Day Saint martyrs are Joseph Smith, Jr. and his brother, Hyrum Smith.[6]
Individuals who die "in the Lord's service" are believed to be rewarded with eternal life: "And whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name’s sake, shall find it again, even life eternal."[7] Joseph F. Smith, LDS Church president, declared: "I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel ... in the great world of the spirits."[8]
In 1989, following the death of two missionaries in Bolivia, LDS Church apostle L. Tom Perry noted that from 1831 until 1989, "only seventeen LDS missionaries [were] killed by assassins." Also at that time, apostle M. Russell Ballard "indicated that of the 447,969 missionaries who have served since the days of Joseph Smith, only 525—about one-tenth of 1 percent—have lost their lives through accident, illness, or other causes while serving. 'When you contemplate that number,' he said, 'it appears that the safest place to be in the whole world is on a full-time mission.'"[9]
Missionaries who died from illness or accident are not listed. However, depending on the circumstances of their death, they could be deemed "martyrs" for having died while in religious service.[10][11][12][13][14]
Many Mormon pioneers and other early church members who suffered privation and early death on account of their religious beliefs would likely qualify as "martyrs." However, they are too numerous to list here. This list also does not include early Mormon settlers who were killed in encounters with Native Americans during the Mormon settlement of the American West.
List of Latter Day Saint martyrs
Death date | Location | Name | Church | Cause of death | Age at death |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 7, 1832 | Pomfret, Vermont | Joseph B. Brackenbury (missionary) | Church of Christ | Poisoning | 43 |
October 25, 1838 | Battle of Crooked River, Missouri | Gideon Carter | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Killed in battle | |
October 25, 1838 | Battle of Crooked River, Missouri | Patrick O'Banion | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Killed in battle by John Lockhart | |
October 25, 1838 | Battle of Crooked River, Missouri | David W. Patten (apostle)[15] | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Killed in battle | 39 |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Hiram Abbott | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Elias Benner | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | John Byers | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints |
Massacre |
|
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Alexander Campbell | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Simon Cox | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Josiah Fuller | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Austin Hammer | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | John Lee | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Benjamin Lewis | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Thomas McBride | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre; shot by Jacob Rogers; body hacked apart with a corn knife | 78 |
November 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Charles Merrick | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre; died about 4 weeks afterward from wounds | 9 |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Levi Newton Merrick | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | 30 |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | William Napier | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | George S. Richards | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Sardius Smith | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre; top of skull blown off from musket shot by William Reynolds | 10 |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | Warren Smith | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
October 30, 1838 | Haun's Mill, Missouri | John York | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Massacre | |
May 27, 1840 | Nauvoo, Illinois | Edward Partridge (bishop) | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Persecution[16] | 46 |
June 27, 1844 | Carthage Jail, Illinois | Joseph Smith, Jr. | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Mob assassination | 38 |
June 27, 1844 | Carthage Jail, Illinois | Hyrum Smith | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Mob assassination | 44 |
July 30, 1844 | Nauvoo, Illinois | Samuel Harrison Smith (one of Eight Witnesses) | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints | Attributed to internal injuries sustained while fleeing a mob on horseback on the day his brothers were murdered[17][18] | 36 |
July 9, 1856 | St. James Township, Beaver Island, Michigan | James Strang (president of the church) | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) | Shot on June 16, 1856 by Thomas Bedford, a member who Strang had had flogged for adultery; Strang died in Voree, Wisconsin | 43 |
May 13, 1857 | near Van Buren, Arkansas | Parley P. Pratt (apostle) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Shot and stabbed by Hector McLean, the ex-husband of one of Pratt's plural wives | 50 |
July 21, 1879 | Varnell, Georgia | Joseph Standing (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Mob murder | 24 |
August 10, 1884 | Cane Creek, Tennessee | William S. Berry (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Mob assassination | 46 |
August 10, 1884 | Cane Creek, Tennessee | John H. Gibbs (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Mob assassination | 32 |
August 10, 1884 | Cane Creek, Tennessee | W. Martin Conder | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Mob assassination | 20 |
August 10, 1884 | Cane Creek, Tennessee | John Riley Hutson | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Mob assassination | 27 |
May 4, 1912 | Diaz, Galeana, Chihuahua, Mexico | James D. Harvey | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Shot and killed | 49 |
August 27, 1912 | Colonia Pacheco, Mexico | Joshua Stevens | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Killed by Mexican rebels | |
1915 | San Marcos, Hidalgo, Mexico | Rafael Monroy (branch president)[19] | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Execution by Liberation Army of the South | |
1915 | San Marcos, Hidalgo, Mexico | Vicente Morales[19] | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Execution by Liberation Army of the South | |
October 27, 1942 | Plötzensee Prison, Germany | Helmuth Hübener | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Executed for anti-Nazi activities | 17[20] |
August 20, 1972 | Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico | Joel LeBaron (president of the church) | Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness of Times | Shot and killed by Daniel Jordan on the orders of Ervil LeBaron, Joel's brother and a rival fundamentalist Mormon leader | 49 |
October 1974 | Austin, Texas | Gary Darley (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Murder by an unidentified individual (Robert Elmer Kleason was convicted for the crime but his conviction was later overturned); presumably dismembered with chainsaw[21] | 20 |
October 1974 | Austin, Texas | Mark Fischer (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Murder by an unidentified individual (Robert Elmer Kleason was convicted for the crime but his conviction was later overturned); presumably dismembered with chainsaw[21] | 19 |
May 10, 1977 | Murray, Utah | Rulon C. Allred (head of church) | Apostolic United Brethren | Shot and killed by Rena Chynoweth and another woman on orders of Ervil LeBaron, a rival fundamentalist Mormon | 71 |
December 15, 1979 | North Charleston, South Carolina | Elizabeth King (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Found beaten and shot to death in a car in a parking lot | 66 |
December 15, 1979 | North Charleston, South Carolina | Ruth Teuscher (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Found beaten and shot to death in a car in a parking lot | 65 |
February 1987 | Lisbon, Portugal | Roger Hunt (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Shot and killed by a security guard who thought he had stolen a car | 19 |
May 24, 1989 | La Paz, Bolivia | Todd Ray Wilson (missionary)[9][22] | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Assassination in terrorist attack by Zarate Willka Armed Forces of Liberation | 20 |
May 24, 1989 | La Paz, Bolivia | Jeffrey Brent Ball (missionary)[9][22] | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Assassination in terrorist attack by Zarate Willka Armed Forces of Liberation | 20 |
May 27, 1990 | Dublin, Ireland | Gale Stanley Critchfield (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Stabbed to death | 20 |
August 22, 1990 | Huancayo, Peru | Manuel Antonio Hidalgo (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Assassination in terrorist attack by Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement | 22 |
August 22, 1990 | Huancayo, Peru | Cristian Andreani Ugarte (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Assassination in terrorist attack by Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement | 21 |
March 6, 1991 | Tarma, Peru | Oscar Zapata (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Shot and killed after getting off a bus | 20 |
October 17, 1998 | Ufa, Russia | José Manuel Mackintosh (missionary) | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Stabbed outside the lobby of a building where he and his companion had been visiting Church members | 20 |
January 2, 2006 | Chesapeake, Virginia | Morgan W. Young (missionary)[23] | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Fatal shooting | 21 |
See also
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Notes
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Doctrine and Covenants 138:40
- ↑ Mosiah 12:1-17
- ↑ Alma 14:1-11
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Doctrine and Covenants 135:1
- ↑ Doctrine and Covenants 98:13
- ↑ Doctrine and Covenants 138:57
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.. Concerning Adolf Haag, John Alexander Clark, Edgar D. Simmons, and Emil J. Huber.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ LaRene Porter Gaunt and Robert A. Smith, “Samuel H. Smith: Faithful Brother of Joseph and Hyrum,” Ensign, August 2008, pp. 44–51.
- ↑ The sole remaining Smith brother, William, later charged that Brigham Young had arranged for Samuel to be poisoned to prevent his accession to the presidency of the church. Jon Krakauer (2003). Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith (New York: Doubleday) p. 194; D. Michael Quinn (1994). The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power (Salt Lake City, Utah: Signature Books) pp. 152–153; William Smith, "Mormonism: A Letter from William Smith, Brother of Joseph the Prophet", New York Tribune, 1857-05-19. William Smith's accusations did not lead to police investigations into the death of Samuel Smith.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Hübener was the youngest person sentenced to death by Volksgerichtshof.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
References
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