The God Makers II
Encyclopedia
The God Makers II is a documentary styled film produced by Ed Decker
and Jeremiah Films
. The film claims to be an exposé of secrets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The film is a follow-up to Decker’s earlier film The God Makers.
A photo of the Salt Lake Temple
is shown twisting and distorting. A voiceover by Decker comments on his earlier films The Godmakers and Temple of the Godmakers, stating that the earlier films “caused mayhem” and suggests that his films caused the LDS Church to “modify several so-called unchangeable sacred doctrines” as a result.
Decker introduces himself with the statement that he was an active member of the LDS Church for 19 years.
by the church resulted in the formation of many fundamentalist splinter groups who continue the practice today. A series of interviews follows with men and women from some of these fundamentalist groups as they relate their experiences with polygamy.
Thelma Greer, identified as a “Former Mormon” and author of Mormonism, Mama and Me, talks about her great-grandfather John D. Lee
.
A man identified only as “Art, Polygamist, Mormon Fundamentalist Prophet and Leader” is interviewed as he stands in front of the LDS Church Office Building in Salt Lake City.
Lillian LeBaron Chynoweth relates her experiences living in a polygamous fundamentalist group. Chynoweth, identified in the film as “Lillian, Former Mormon Fundamentalist,” was the daughter of Ervil LeBaron
. LeBaron was the leader and prophet of the Church of the Lamb of God, although the name of the church is not identified in the film and is instead referred to by Chynoweth as the “Mormon Church.” Chynoweth states that the group was sincere in practicing “all aspects of Mormonism” and describes her father as controlling every aspect of their lives through revelation.
James R. Spencer, identified as a “Former Mormon” and the author of Beyond Mormonism, states that any “horny” Mormon needs to be polygamous.
” is discussed. Decker states that the concept of blood atonement “glorifies the atoning power of the blood of the Mormon sinner,” and refers to statements regarding “blood atonement” made by LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie
in his book Mormon Doctrine
, claiming that McConkie contradicts himself on a single page.
Chynoweth relates the account of the murder of her husband, her brother-in-law, and his eight-year-old daughter by her half-brothers. She states that their names were “on the list to be atoned for” because her father believed that they were “traitors to God’s cause.” At the end of Chynoweth’s interview, she states that if anything happens to her that the “Mormon” church will be responsible. Immediately following this statement, a text overlay states that shortly after the interview, Lillian was found dead in her home of a gunshot wound.
since it was first published. In addition, Decker states that LDS Church leaders have ”covered up thousands of historical and archeological errors,” while contrasting this with the statement that the Bible
is “historically and archaeologically” accurate. Interspersed with Decker’s comments are statements from David Breese, author of Know the Marks of a Cult.
Greer states that Mormon men are promised that they will have “unlimited eternal sex” and that the Mormon woman is promised a life of “eternal pregnancy.” Greer also states that if Mormon men do not marry in a Mormon temple that “they will be castrated” and “made eunuchs” as the result of “an operation” that will take place after they reach heaven. Decker later follows up on this theme by stating that the goal of every Mormon man is to “enjoy everlasting, celestial sex with thousands of goddess wives.”
No supporting evidence is provided for this creative material.
, Sackett states that he wants to warn the Jews about the “deception and misrepresentation that was employed in building this Mormon edifice” and claims that the true purpose of the structure is to proselytize the Jews. Sackett also makes a number of statements that he claims represent Mormon beliefs, including the following:
related practices, which involved filming a woman wearing a pyramid on her head and a man who appears to be having a seizure
. During this segment Heinerman states that “people of the new age movement are often more open to the truths of Mormonism.”
” places LDS members under bondage.
, listed as “Author, Former Mormon, Former Satanist,” appears in front of the Los Angeles Temple. Schnoebelen states that he was a former “high priest of Satan” who attended the temple, and that he was “ultimately very satisfied by it because [he] thought that this was in fact a profound satanic initiation ceremony.” Both Schnoebelen and Decker equate Mormon temple practices
with Satanism. Regarding these allegations of satanic practices, Decker states that the “LDS Church has officially acknowledged that we were right,” apparently referring to the Pace memorandum
.
Decker discusses the Mormon ordinance of baptism for the dead
, stating that this is “when the dead are called up to convert to Mormonism,” and that the dead will “seek out” those who enter the temple.
Decker claims that Joseph Smith, Jr. was a sorcerer and fortune teller and that “[i]t is therefore quite natural to surmise that Smith’s followers would be involved in the same practices that he advocated.” Decker also claims that Smith was convicted of sorcery and “crystal ball gazing or fortune telling” by courts in New York.
Decker states that Smith traveled to the hill Cumorah
annually to “conjure up the spirit” of the angel Moroni from the dead. A picture of a decomposed skeletal body in a coffin is shown as Decker suggests that there is “strong evidence” that Smith had to dig up the body of his brother Alvin
and bring part of his body to the hill in order to obtain the golden plates
.
Decker claims that Smith used “blood sacrifices in his magic rituals” in order to locate treasure. Decker quotes C. R. Stafford, while Stafford quotes earlier critics.
Decker states that Smith was found to be in possession of a “magic talisman” at the time of his death that would bring him “wealth, power and success in seducing women.”
patient named Charles Van Damme is interviewed. Van Damme claims that he arranged women and drugs for church leaders (including Gordon B. Hinkley). These comments are interspersed with video of several people carrying protest signs near Temple Square
in Salt Lake City. Commenting on the lack of news responding to these allegations, Decker states that the church executed “an extraordinary media blackout” and that they “stopped the hottest story of the ’80s.” Decker further states that the “Mormon church” has the “ability to control virtually all media programming with their minds.”
, "the second book and film are worse than the first: they include an explicit call to hatred and intolerance that has been denounced as such by a number of Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish organizations." Among the critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that challenged the film were Jerald and Sandra Tanner
, despite Sandra Tanner’s involvement in the first God Makers film. When Decker was denounced by Jerald and Sandra Tanner, he went so far as to accuse them of being in the pay of the LDS Church and even of being "demonized
" themselves. Decker and his associates offered to exorcise the Tanners’ demons, and expressed great sadness when they refused.
The film provoked bomb threats against LDS meetinghouses and death threats against members.
outside the old city of Jerusalem. The center was constructed in 1984, and teaches curriculum concerning Near Eastern history, Hebrew and Arabic language, and the Gospels in the New Testament. Part of the agreement which allowed its construction was that students are forbidden to proselytize. If a student breaks this agreement, he or she is sent home. The center was closed during the period between 2000 and 2006 due to security concerns as the result of the Second Intifada and reopened in 2007.
is briefly described in Jon Krakauer
’s book Under the Banner of Heaven. Although not explicitly named in the film The God Makers II, the list that Chynoweth referred to was called The Book of the New Covenants, and was written by Ervil LeBaron before his death in prison. The document contained a list of individuals that LeBaron believed deserved to die. Upon receipt of the list by several of his sons, they proceeded to administer this punishment.
With regard to the statement of Lillian Chynoweth’s death after the completion of the film, The God Makers II does not make it clear that she committed suicide in 1992, and instead leaves the impression with the viewer that she was murdered as the result of the “blood atonement” threat. The Tanners take issue with the manner in which this is presented in the film, stating, "[t]his statement certainly suggests to all those who see the video, that Lillian Chynoweth was murdered in cold blood. What the producers of The God Makers II fail to tell the viewer is that Lillian took her own life. Also
The “Mormon Church” Chynoweth refers to on film is the “Church of the Lamb of God” but the film does not make this clear, so the viewer is left to infer she was speaking about the LDS Church. The Tanners, who do make the claim that the LDS Church practiced “blood atonement” in the 19th century, state, “[u]nfortunately, The God Makers II has presented the material concerning blood atonement in a way that has caused many people to believe that the Mormon (LDS) Church is still involved in the practice”.
The LDS Church claims that this doctrine was never practiced in the 19th century church at all, and formally repudiated the allegations of this practice in 1889.
The allegation that Joseph Smith dug up and took with him a part of his brother Alvin’s body to the hill Cumorah is unconfirmed. Fawn Brodie in her biography of Smith: No Man Knows My History accepts Joseph Smith Sr.’s story on face value where he states that the family, “heard a rumor that Alvin’s body had been exhumed and dissected. Fearing it to be true, the elder Smith uncovered the grave on September 25, 1824 and inspected the corpse.”
The story of the exhumation of Alvin’s remains gained new life with the “discovery” of Mark Hofmann
’s forged Salamander Letter
. The forger is believed to have borrowed heavily from the affidavit of Willard Chase, published in the book Mormonism Unvailed
in 1834. Chase states that the angel told Joseph Smith, Jr. to bring his brother Alvin
with him to obtain the plates. Alvin died on November 19, 1823, well before Smith’s second visit to the hill on September 22, 1824. Although Chase’s statement makes no further comment regarding Alvin, Hofmann’s forgery adds a claim that Smith said to the angel, “he is dead shall I bring what remains but the spirit is gone.” This statement reintroduced speculation regarding the exhumation of Alvin’s body for the purpose of satisfying the requirements for obtaining the plates. Jerald and Sandra Tanner
point out that the only known source of such a requirement is the discredited Salamander Letter and suggest that Decker relied upon this letter as the source of his claim.
Author Dan Vogel
, in his book Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet
, speculates that the allegation is in fact true and that Joseph Smith Sr. stated there was a rumor, or even started it himself, merely to create a pretext for the exhumation. Vogel suggests that the family would not have had to dig up Alvin’s grave in order to see if it had been tampered with. Further, accepting Chase’s testimony in Mormonism Unvailed
, Vogel states that the timing of the exhumation (September 25, close to the equinox during which Lucy Mack Smith states Joseph Jr. made his visits to Cumorah) further suggests it was part of an attempt to secure the golden plates.
Ed Decker
Ed Decker , also known as John Edward Decker, is an American counterculture apologist and evangelist known for his studies, books, and public presentations of the perceived negative aspects of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Freemasonry...
and Jeremiah Films
Jeremiah Films
Jeremiah Films is a media production and distribution company founded by Christian conservative Patrick Matrisciana, based in Jacksonville Beach, Florida and has been managed by his son since 2009....
. The film claims to be an exposé of secrets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The film is a follow-up to Decker’s earlier film The God Makers.
Introduction
The introductory segment contains the following warning:
Due to the nature of the subject matter, this program is recommended for mature audiences. All the following information pertaining to Mormon theology can be verified using Mormon publications.
A photo of the Salt Lake Temple
Salt Lake Temple
The Salt Lake Temple is the largest and best-known of more than 130 temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the sixth temple built by the church, requiring 40 years to complete, and the fourth operating temple built since the Mormon exodus from Nauvoo,...
is shown twisting and distorting. A voiceover by Decker comments on his earlier films The Godmakers and Temple of the Godmakers, stating that the earlier films “caused mayhem” and suggests that his films caused the LDS Church to “modify several so-called unchangeable sacred doctrines” as a result.
Decker introduces himself with the statement that he was an active member of the LDS Church for 19 years.
Financial power of the LDS Church
The LDS Church is described as a huge business enterprise. John Heinerman, author of “Mormon Corporate Empire” describes various business ventures that the church is involved in. Heinerman states that 25% of the church’s holdings are in agribusiness. John L. Smith, Director of Utah Missions, Inc. states that the men at the top of the “Mormon empire” are extremely wealthy and hold a lot of the corporate power in the country.Polygamy
Decker states that Joseph Smith, Jr. “actively enjoyed at least 27 other wives” and describes his first plural wife as a “barely pubescent teenaged relative.” Decker relates how the cessation of this practice1890 Manifesto
The "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially disavowed the continuing practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
by the church resulted in the formation of many fundamentalist splinter groups who continue the practice today. A series of interviews follows with men and women from some of these fundamentalist groups as they relate their experiences with polygamy.
Thelma Greer, identified as a “Former Mormon” and author of Mormonism, Mama and Me, talks about her great-grandfather John D. Lee
John D. Lee
John Doyle Lee was a prominent early Latter-day Saint who was executed for his role in the Mountain Meadows massacre.-Early Mormon leader:...
.
A man identified only as “Art, Polygamist, Mormon Fundamentalist Prophet and Leader” is interviewed as he stands in front of the LDS Church Office Building in Salt Lake City.
Lillian LeBaron Chynoweth relates her experiences living in a polygamous fundamentalist group. Chynoweth, identified in the film as “Lillian, Former Mormon Fundamentalist,” was the daughter of Ervil LeBaron
Ervil LeBaron
Ervil Morrell LeBaron was the leader of a polygamous Mormon fundamentalist group who ordered the killings of many of his opponents, using the religious doctrine of blood atonement to justify the murders...
. LeBaron was the leader and prophet of the Church of the Lamb of God, although the name of the church is not identified in the film and is instead referred to by Chynoweth as the “Mormon Church.” Chynoweth states that the group was sincere in practicing “all aspects of Mormonism” and describes her father as controlling every aspect of their lives through revelation.
James R. Spencer, identified as a “Former Mormon” and the author of Beyond Mormonism, states that any “horny” Mormon needs to be polygamous.
Blood atonement
A practice referred to as “blood atonementBlood atonement
In mormonism, blood atonement is a controversial doctrine that teaches that murder is so heinous that the atonement of Jesus does not apply. Thus, in order to atone for these sins, the perpetrators must have their blood shed upon the ground as a sacrificial offering...
” is discussed. Decker states that the concept of blood atonement “glorifies the atoning power of the blood of the Mormon sinner,” and refers to statements regarding “blood atonement” made by LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce Redd McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death...
in his book Mormon Doctrine
Mormon Doctrine (book)
Mormon Doctrine is an encyclopedic work written in 1958 by Bruce R. McConkie, a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was intended primarily for a Latter-day Saint audience and is often used as a reference book by church members because of its comprehensive nature...
, claiming that McConkie contradicts himself on a single page.
Chynoweth relates the account of the murder of her husband, her brother-in-law, and his eight-year-old daughter by her half-brothers. She states that their names were “on the list to be atoned for” because her father believed that they were “traitors to God’s cause.” At the end of Chynoweth’s interview, she states that if anything happens to her that the “Mormon” church will be responsible. Immediately following this statement, a text overlay states that shortly after the interview, Lillian was found dead in her home of a gunshot wound.
Changes to the Book of Mormon
Decker refers to “4000 changes” in the Book of MormonBook of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
since it was first published. In addition, Decker states that LDS Church leaders have ”covered up thousands of historical and archeological errors,” while contrasting this with the statement that the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
is “historically and archaeologically” accurate. Interspersed with Decker’s comments are statements from David Breese, author of Know the Marks of a Cult.
Spirit wives and “celestial sex”
The film include segments of the animation video from God Makers, which depicts God the Father surrounded by numerous, blonde, identical “spirit wives” who are caring for “spirit children.”Greer states that Mormon men are promised that they will have “unlimited eternal sex” and that the Mormon woman is promised a life of “eternal pregnancy.” Greer also states that if Mormon men do not marry in a Mormon temple that “they will be castrated” and “made eunuchs” as the result of “an operation” that will take place after they reach heaven. Decker later follows up on this theme by stating that the goal of every Mormon man is to “enjoy everlasting, celestial sex with thousands of goddess wives.”
No supporting evidence is provided for this creative material.
BYU Jerusalem Center
Chuck Sackett, identified as “Former Mormon” and author of What’s Going on in There? appears outside of Jerusalem dressed in Mormon temple clothing. Referring to the BYU Jerusalem CenterBrigham Young University Jerusalem Center
The Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies , situated on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem, Israel, is a satellite campus of Brigham Young University , the largest religious university in the United States...
, Sackett states that he wants to warn the Jews about the “deception and misrepresentation that was employed in building this Mormon edifice” and claims that the true purpose of the structure is to proselytize the Jews. Sackett also makes a number of statements that he claims represent Mormon beliefs, including the following:
- a claim that Mormons believe that they are the only “true Jews” on earth today.
- a claim that Mormons believe that they all come from the tribe of EphraimTribe of EphraimAccording to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Ephraim was one of the Tribes of Israel. The Tribe of Manasseh together with Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph....
.
- A statement that, upon baptismBaptism (Mormonism)In Mormonism, baptism is recognized as the first of several ordinances of the gospel.-Overview:Much of the theology of Mormon baptism was established during the early Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr...
, Mormons believe that their blood actually changes to the blood of Israel. The video accompanying this statement does not show a baptism, but instead shows two men in dressed in white, one of whom is making hand motions over the other.
New Age practices
The film shows what are said to be New AgeNew Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
related practices, which involved filming a woman wearing a pyramid on her head and a man who appears to be having a seizure
Seizure
An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain". The outward effect can be as dramatic as a wild thrashing movement or as mild as a brief loss of awareness...
. During this segment Heinerman states that “people of the new age movement are often more open to the truths of Mormonism.”
Goddess wives and the temple
Decker states that, “The goal of every Mormon man is to become the duplicate of the Mormons' concept of God: to reign over planets and solar systems and enjoy everlasting, celestial sex with thousands of goddess wives.” Decker claims that temple attendance is required to achieve this goal, but that 75% of LDS members will never enter a temple. He also suggests that the requirement to wear “sacred temple underwearTemple garment
A Temple garment is a type of underwear worn by members of some denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, after they have taken part in the Endowment ceremony. Garments are worn both day and night and are required for any previously endowed adult to enter a church temple...
” places LDS members under bondage.
The occult
William SchnoebelenWilliam Schnoebelen
Rev. William Schnoebelen is an American Messianic Christian apologist, author, teacher and lecturer. He is best known as a strong critic of Mormonism, Freemasonry and Wicca. Once primarily published by Chick Publications, he has authored publications in over 14 countries...
, listed as “Author, Former Mormon, Former Satanist,” appears in front of the Los Angeles Temple. Schnoebelen states that he was a former “high priest of Satan” who attended the temple, and that he was “ultimately very satisfied by it because [he] thought that this was in fact a profound satanic initiation ceremony.” Both Schnoebelen and Decker equate Mormon temple practices
Endowment (Mormonism)
In Mormonism, the endowment is an ordinance designed to prepare participants to become kings, queens, priests, and priestesses in the afterlife. As part of the ceremony, participants take part in a scripted reenactment of the Biblical creation and fall of Adam and Eve...
with Satanism. Regarding these allegations of satanic practices, Decker states that the “LDS Church has officially acknowledged that we were right,” apparently referring to the Pace memorandum
Pace memorandum
The Pace memorandum was a 1990 memorandum written by Glenn L. Pace, a general authority in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , describing to a committee of the church the complaints of sixty members of the church that claimed they had been subjected to satanic ritual abuse by family...
.
Decker discusses the Mormon ordinance of baptism for the dead
Baptism for the dead
Baptism for the dead, vicarious baptism or proxy baptism is the religious practice of baptizing a living person on behalf of one who is dead, with the living person acting as the deceased person's proxy...
, stating that this is “when the dead are called up to convert to Mormonism,” and that the dead will “seek out” those who enter the temple.
Decker claims that Joseph Smith, Jr. was a sorcerer and fortune teller and that “[i]t is therefore quite natural to surmise that Smith’s followers would be involved in the same practices that he advocated.” Decker also claims that Smith was convicted of sorcery and “crystal ball gazing or fortune telling” by courts in New York.
Decker states that Smith traveled to the hill Cumorah
Cumorah
Cumorah is a drumlin in Manchester, New York, where Joseph Smith, Jr...
annually to “conjure up the spirit” of the angel Moroni from the dead. A picture of a decomposed skeletal body in a coffin is shown as Decker suggests that there is “strong evidence” that Smith had to dig up the body of his brother Alvin
Alvin Smith (brother of Joseph Smith, Jr.)
Alvin Smith was the older brother of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Alvin took a leading role in helping the Smith family work toward paying their debts and building their home. His death in 1823 at age 25 resulted in his younger brother Joseph taking more of a...
and bring part of his body to the hill in order to obtain the golden plates
Golden Plates
According to Latter Day Saint belief, the golden plates are the source from which Joseph Smith, Jr. translated the Book of Mormon, a sacred text of the faith...
.
Decker claims that Smith used “blood sacrifices in his magic rituals” in order to locate treasure. Decker quotes C. R. Stafford, while Stafford quotes earlier critics.
Decker states that Smith was found to be in possession of a “magic talisman” at the time of his death that would bring him “wealth, power and success in seducing women.”
Allegations against church leaders
A dying AIDSAIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
patient named Charles Van Damme is interviewed. Van Damme claims that he arranged women and drugs for church leaders (including Gordon B. Hinkley). These comments are interspersed with video of several people carrying protest signs near Temple Square
Temple Square
Temple Square is a ten acre complex located in the center of Salt Lake City, Utah, owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In recent years, the usage of the name has gradually changed to include several other church facilities immediately adjacent to Temple Square...
in Salt Lake City. Commenting on the lack of news responding to these allegations, Decker states that the church executed “an extraordinary media blackout” and that they “stopped the hottest story of the ’80s.” Decker further states that the “Mormon church” has the “ability to control virtually all media programming with their minds.”
Responses to the film
The film The God Makers II provoked a number of responses from both supporters and critics of Mormonism, with both groups claiming severe inaccuracies in the information presented. Says Massimo IntrovigneMassimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne is an Italian sociologist and intellectual property consultant. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions , an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of tens of books and articles in...
, "the second book and film are worse than the first: they include an explicit call to hatred and intolerance that has been denounced as such by a number of Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish organizations." Among the critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that challenged the film were Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jerald Dee Tanner was an American writer and researcher who, with his wife Sandra McGee Tanner spent nearly fifty years annotating and publishing archival and evidential materials which, the Tanners claim, accurately portrayed the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, despite Sandra Tanner’s involvement in the first God Makers film. When Decker was denounced by Jerald and Sandra Tanner, he went so far as to accuse them of being in the pay of the LDS Church and even of being "demonized
Demonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
" themselves. Decker and his associates offered to exorcise the Tanners’ demons, and expressed great sadness when they refused.
The film provoked bomb threats against LDS meetinghouses and death threats against members.
Church involvement in business enterprises
One LDS reviewer of Heinerman’s book points out that his description of the church’s involvement in “agribusiness” is highly misleading, as it implies the production of food for profit, rather than acknowledging that the food grown on church owned farms is produced for the purpose of donating it to the needy through the Church Welfare System.BYU Jerusalem Center
A segment in the film focuses on the BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern studies located on Mount ScopusMount Scopus
Mount Scopus , جبل المشهد , جبل الصوانة) is a mountain in northeast Jerusalem. In the wake of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Mount Scopus became a UN protected Jewish exclave within Jordanian-occupied territory until the Six-Day War in 1967...
outside the old city of Jerusalem. The center was constructed in 1984, and teaches curriculum concerning Near Eastern history, Hebrew and Arabic language, and the Gospels in the New Testament. Part of the agreement which allowed its construction was that students are forbidden to proselytize. If a student breaks this agreement, he or she is sent home. The center was closed during the period between 2000 and 2006 due to security concerns as the result of the Second Intifada and reopened in 2007.
Blood atonement
Lillian Chynoweth’s description of the “blood atonement” administered by the followers of Ervil LeBaronErvil LeBaron
Ervil Morrell LeBaron was the leader of a polygamous Mormon fundamentalist group who ordered the killings of many of his opponents, using the religious doctrine of blood atonement to justify the murders...
is briefly described in Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer is an American writer and mountaineer, primarily known for his writing about the outdoors and mountain-climbing...
’s book Under the Banner of Heaven. Although not explicitly named in the film The God Makers II, the list that Chynoweth referred to was called The Book of the New Covenants, and was written by Ervil LeBaron before his death in prison. The document contained a list of individuals that LeBaron believed deserved to die. Upon receipt of the list by several of his sons, they proceeded to administer this punishment.
With regard to the statement of Lillian Chynoweth’s death after the completion of the film, The God Makers II does not make it clear that she committed suicide in 1992, and instead leaves the impression with the viewer that she was murdered as the result of the “blood atonement” threat. The Tanners take issue with the manner in which this is presented in the film, stating, "[t]his statement certainly suggests to all those who see the video, that Lillian Chynoweth was murdered in cold blood. What the producers of The God Makers II fail to tell the viewer is that Lillian took her own life. Also
The “Mormon Church” Chynoweth refers to on film is the “Church of the Lamb of God” but the film does not make this clear, so the viewer is left to infer she was speaking about the LDS Church. The Tanners, who do make the claim that the LDS Church practiced “blood atonement” in the 19th century, state, “[u]nfortunately, The God Makers II has presented the material concerning blood atonement in a way that has caused many people to believe that the Mormon (LDS) Church is still involved in the practice”.
The LDS Church claims that this doctrine was never practiced in the 19th century church at all, and formally repudiated the allegations of this practice in 1889.
Allegations of sorcery and necromancy
Joseph Smith was never “convicted” or even tried on charges of sorcery, crystal ball gazing or fortune telling. In 1826 a written complaint was filed against Smith as a “disorderly person.” This resulted in what is referred to as the “1826 trial” of Joseph Smith. The charge was “glass looking,” in reference to Smith’s use of a stone to assist in the search for treasure during the time that he worked for Josiah Stowell. Contradictory accounts of the trial exist, and the outcome is not specified.The allegation that Joseph Smith dug up and took with him a part of his brother Alvin’s body to the hill Cumorah is unconfirmed. Fawn Brodie in her biography of Smith: No Man Knows My History accepts Joseph Smith Sr.’s story on face value where he states that the family, “heard a rumor that Alvin’s body had been exhumed and dissected. Fearing it to be true, the elder Smith uncovered the grave on September 25, 1824 and inspected the corpse.”
The story of the exhumation of Alvin’s remains gained new life with the “discovery” of Mark Hofmann
Mark Hofmann
Mark William Hofmann is an American counterfeiter, forger and convicted murderer. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, Hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the Latter Day Saint movement...
’s forged Salamander Letter
Salamander Letter
The Salamander Letter was a document created by Mark Hofmann in the early 1980s.The letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of Latter Day Saint movement that surfaced in the early 1980s...
. The forger is believed to have borrowed heavily from the affidavit of Willard Chase, published in the book Mormonism Unvailed
Mormonism Unvailed
Mormonism Unvailed is an anti-Mormon book published in 1834 by Eber D. Howe. The title page proclaims the book to be a contemporary exposé of Mormonism, and makes the claim that the historical portion of the Book of Mormon text was based upon a manuscript written by Solomon Spalding.The...
in 1834. Chase states that the angel told Joseph Smith, Jr. to bring his brother Alvin
Alvin Smith (brother of Joseph Smith, Jr.)
Alvin Smith was the older brother of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Alvin took a leading role in helping the Smith family work toward paying their debts and building their home. His death in 1823 at age 25 resulted in his younger brother Joseph taking more of a...
with him to obtain the plates. Alvin died on November 19, 1823, well before Smith’s second visit to the hill on September 22, 1824. Although Chase’s statement makes no further comment regarding Alvin, Hofmann’s forgery adds a claim that Smith said to the angel, “he is dead shall I bring what remains but the spirit is gone.” This statement reintroduced speculation regarding the exhumation of Alvin’s body for the purpose of satisfying the requirements for obtaining the plates. Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jerald and Sandra Tanner
Jerald Dee Tanner was an American writer and researcher who, with his wife Sandra McGee Tanner spent nearly fifty years annotating and publishing archival and evidential materials which, the Tanners claim, accurately portrayed the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
point out that the only known source of such a requirement is the discredited Salamander Letter and suggest that Decker relied upon this letter as the source of his claim.
Author Dan Vogel
Dan Vogel
Daniel Arlon Vogel is the author of a number of books related to early Mormon history. He is a former member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, an atheist and a skeptic.- Joseph Smith biography :...
, in his book Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet
Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet
Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet is a biography of the formative years of the founder of Mormonism written by Dan Vogel. The book covers the period of Smith’s life up until 1831. Vogel casts Smith in the role of a magician, who perhaps believes in his own ability to perform magic while using...
, speculates that the allegation is in fact true and that Joseph Smith Sr. stated there was a rumor, or even started it himself, merely to create a pretext for the exhumation. Vogel suggests that the family would not have had to dig up Alvin’s grave in order to see if it had been tampered with. Further, accepting Chase’s testimony in Mormonism Unvailed
Mormonism Unvailed
Mormonism Unvailed is an anti-Mormon book published in 1834 by Eber D. Howe. The title page proclaims the book to be a contemporary exposé of Mormonism, and makes the claim that the historical portion of the Book of Mormon text was based upon a manuscript written by Solomon Spalding.The...
, Vogel states that the timing of the exhumation (September 25, close to the equinox during which Lucy Mack Smith states Joseph Jr. made his visits to Cumorah) further suggests it was part of an attempt to secure the golden plates.
External links
- The God Makers II on Google Video
- The God Makers II DVD produced by Jeremiah Films
- The God Makers II: Under Fire From Within and Without, Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Salt Lake City Messenger, April 1993.
- Charges Against the God Makers by the NCCJ: A Response Ed Decker's response to criticism of The God Makers II.