Joseph White Musser (March 8, 1872 – March 29, 1954) was a
Mormon fundamentalist
Mormon fundamentalism (also called fundamentalist Mormonism) is a belief in the validity of selected fundamental aspects of Mormonism as taught and practiced in the nineteenth century, particularly during the administrations of Joseph Smith, Bri ...
leader.
Musser was born in
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
, to
Amos Milton Musser (an
assistant LDS Church historian) and Mary E. White. He is known for his
Mormon fundamentalist
Mormon fundamentalism (also called fundamentalist Mormonism) is a belief in the validity of selected fundamental aspects of Mormonism as taught and practiced in the nineteenth century, particularly during the administrations of Joseph Smith, Bri ...
books,
pamphlet
A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a hard cover or binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' or it may consist of a ...
s and magazines, as well as being considered a prophet by many Mormon fundamentalists.
LDS Church service
On June 29, 1892, Musser was called to the 16th
Quorum of the Seventy
Seventy is a priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Traditionally, a church member holding this priesthood office is a "traveling minister" and an "especial witness" of Je ...
, and two years later in April 1895 served a
mission
Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to:
Organised activities Religion
*Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity
*Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
in
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
, having been
set apart by
Brigham Young, Jr.
Brigham Young Jr. (December 18, 1836 – April 11, 1903) served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church), president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) fr ...
,
Heber J. Grant
Heber Jeddy Grant (November 22, 1856 – May 14, 1945) was an American religious leader who served as the seventh president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Grant worked as a bookkeeper and a cashier, then wa ...
, and
John W. Taylor.
On Thanksgiving Day 1899, in the company of four other couples, Musser and his wife, Rose Selms Borquist, received their
Second Anointing
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the second anointing, or second endowment, is the pinnacle ordinance of the temple and an extension of the endowment ceremony. Founder Joseph Smith taught that the function of the ordinance was to ensure salvation ...
at the unusually young age of twenty-seven, under the direction of
Lorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow (April 3, 1814 – October 10, 1901) was an American religious leader who served as the fifth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1898 until his death. Snow was the last president of the L ...
. Musser was later told by
apostle
An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστÎλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
Brigham Young, Jr.
Brigham Young Jr. (December 18, 1836 – April 11, 1903) served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church), president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) fr ...
that he had been sent by the
President of the Church
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the President of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It was the office held by Joseph Smith, founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed succe ...
,
Joseph F. Smith, to tell Musser that if he did not enter into the principle of
plural marriage
Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more tha ...
he would lose his blessings (presumably, the blessings promised in the Second Anointing). This likely suggested to Musser that living plural marriage was a pre-requisite qualification for the blessings of the Second Anointing, regardless of the previous administration of the ordinance.
In November 1901, Musser was made president of the 105th Quorum of Seventy, and would later also serve as a
high councilor
A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name "stake" derives from the Book of Isaiah: "enlarge the place of thy tent; stretch forth the curtains of thine h ...
in the Uintah, Wasatch and Granite
Stakes (being set apart by president Joseph F. Smith). "On 16 February 1903 Patriarch John M. Murdock ordained Musser to the office of High Priest. He was then the husband to two women; both marriages were post-Manifesto". Musser was also the
Duchesne Duchesne is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Joseph Duchesne (c. 1544–1609), French physician and chemist. Physician-in-ordinary to King Henry IV
* André Duchesne (1584–1640), French historian
* François Duchesne (1616†...
Uintah
branch president
A branch president is a leader of a "branch" congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
The calling of branch president is very similar to the calling of bishop, except that instead of presiding over a ward, the ...
beginning in 1906.
Wives and post-Manifesto plural marriage
Musser married his first wife, Rose S. Borquist in the
Logan Temple
The Logan Utah Temple (formerly the Logan Temple) was completed in 1884, and is the fourth temple built by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second temple built in the Rocky Mountai ...
in June 1892, and his second wife, Mary C. Hill, in March 1902. But upon marrying his third wife, Ellis R. Shipp Jr., in July 1907, he caught the attention of the ''
Salt Lake Tribune
''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871."
History
A ...
'', which announced the marriage on its front page. His support of continued plural marriages, in violation of the
first
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
second Manifesto
The "Second Manifesto" was a 1904 declaration made by Joseph F. Smith, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), in which Smith stated the church was no longer sanctioning marriages that violated the laws of ...
s of the LDS Church, led him to be called before the
Quorum of Twelve Apostles
A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...
of the church in July 1909, but this did not lead to any
disciplinary action
In a deliberative assembly, disciplinary procedures are used to punish members for violating the rules of the assembly.
Codes and rules
According to Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (RONR), discipline could include censure, fine, suspension ...
against him.
According to Musser, in 1915 he was given authority to perform plural marriages by "an apostle." He was excommunicated from the LDS Church by the high council of the
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
-based Granite Stake on March 21, 1921 for attempting to take Marion Bringhurst as his fourth wife.
In May 1932, Musser married again, this time Lucy O. Kmetzsch, and on the May 14, 1929, he was ordained an apostle in the
Council of Friends
The Council of Friends was an organization described by Joseph Smith in early 19th-century Mormon theology. He viewed the organisation as being part of a world government which would guide and direct the Kingdom of God (Zion) on earth during the ...
by
Lorin Calvin Woolley
Lorin Calvin Woolley (October 23, 1856 – September 19, 1934) was an American proponent of plural marriage and one of the founders of the Mormon fundamentalist movement. As a young man in Utah Territory, Woolley served as a courier and bodyguard ...
, the then-leader of the Mormon fundamentalist movement.
In the 1930s and 1940s, Musser was responsible for editing the Mormon fundamentalist publication, ''
Truth Magazine''. His promotion and practice of plural marriage led to his incarceration by the U.S. federal government between May and December 1945.
Controversy
A concessionary document he and some of his fellow polygamist inmates signed (which they were told was limited to the period of their parole) during their time in prison led to some dissension between those who would sign and those who would not.
In late December 1949, with the death of
John Yeates Barlow
John Yeates Barlow (also known as John Yates Barlow) (March 4, 1874 – December 29, 1949) was a Mormon fundamentalist leader in Short Creek, Arizona.
Childhood
Barlow was born in Panaca, Lincoln County, Nevada, to Israel Barlow and his English- ...
, Musser became the leader of the Mormon fundamentalists. However, upon his May 1951 decision to select
Rulon C. Allred
Rulon Clark Allred (March 29, 1906 – May 10, 1977) was a homeopath and chiropractor in Salt Lake City and the leader of what is now the Apostolic United Brethren, a breakaway sect of polygamous Mormon fundamentalists in Utah, Colorado, and ...
as an apostle, some other members of the presiding Priesthood Council felt they were being bypassed. Other leaders also took issue at Musser's condemnation of the practices of underage and arranged marriages that were going on in the
Short Creek, Arizona
Colorado City is a town in Mohave County, Arizona, United States, and is located in a region known as the Arizona Strip. As of the 2020 census, the population of the town was 2,478, down from 4,821 in 2010. At least three Mormon fundamentalis ...
Mormon fundamentalist community. This split deepened in July 1951 with the call of
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
apostle
Margarito Bautista, and in January 1952 Musser created a new Priesthood Council including
Owen A. Allred
Owen Arthur Allred (January 15, 1914 – February 14, 2005) was the leader of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist polygamist group centered in Bluffdale, Utah. He came to this position following the murder of his brother Rulo ...
, and others, including the apostles he had already called.
Musser was the leader of the Short Creek community during the
Short Creek raid
The Short Creek raid was an Arizona Department of Public Safety and Arizona National Guard action against Mormon fundamentalists that took place on the morning of July 26, 1953, at Short Creek, Arizona. The Short Creek raid was the largest mass a ...
.
Upon Musser's death on March 29, 1954,
the fundamentalists in Short Creek refused to accept the leadership of his appointed successor, Rulon Allred, and instead
LeRoy S. Johnson
Leroy Sunderland Johnson (June 12, 1888 – November 25, 1986), known as Uncle Roy, was a leader of the Mormon fundamentalist group in Short Creek, which later evolved into the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS Chu ...
became their leader, while the fundamentalists in Mexico and the Salt Lake City region remained faithful to Allred. Some of those who supported neither group became
independent Mormon fundamentalists.
Works
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See also
*
List of Mormon fundamentalist leaders
Mormon fundamentalist leaders are those who lead (or have led) a Mormon fundamentalist group.
Early Mormon leaders
These leaders were the first three Presidents of the Church of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church):
*Jos ...
Notes
References
*.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Musser, Joseph White
1872 births
1954 deaths
19th-century Mormon missionaries
20th-century Mormon missionaries
American Latter Day Saint leaders
American Mormon missionaries in the United States
Burials at Salt Lake City Cemetery
Mormon fundamentalist leaders
Mormonism-related controversies
People excommunicated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
People from Duchesne, Utah
People from Salt Lake City
People from Short Creek Community
Prophets in Mormonism
Religious leaders from Utah