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PrevPrevious EpisodeLyman Wight & Mormon Colonies in Texas (Part 2 of 8)
Next ExpisodeMormon Pioneers in Texas & End of Wightites (Part 4 of 8)Next

More on the Zodiac Temple in Texas (Part 3 of 8)

Table of Contents: More on the Zodiac Temple in Texas (Part 3 of 8)

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We’re continuing our discussion of the Mormon settlement in Zodiac, Texas.  Historian Melvin Johnson describes reading the registers from RLDS Archives that document the many temple ordinances that were completed.  He also told me that there was more than one Endowment House in Utah!

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GT :  Oh, 1874, so, essentially, what we’re saying here is between 1846 and 1874, at least in the LDS church, there was no temple to do this. But they would do some of these ordinances outside the temple, on a case by case basis, essentially.

Mel:   Correct, and then, of course, the Endowment House was built to be a bridge between that and when the temples came online. Orson Hyde was very jealous of that, so he had an endowment house built down in Sanpete County.

GT:   Oh, wow. I didn’t know that.

Mel:   Yeah, there were a number of them. And maybe the Endowment House was built earlier than what I think and I need to look at that…

He also discusses a recent forgery on the Zodiac Temple.

Mel:   There is a forgery called Zodiac Temple records, Rituals and Rites by John Hawley. It’s 32 pages written of these supposed rites and rituals in the Zodiac Temple. One: John Hawley was not the clerk of the temple. His brother-in-law, John Young was. And secondly, Zodiac was like Kirtland and Nauvoo and early Utah, in that all of the ritual and rites ceremony was oral. It was not written down until 1874 for the opening of the St. George temple.

Does it have ties to Mark Hofmann? Check out our conversation….

Zodiac Temple - More on the Zodiac Temple in Texas (Part 3 of 8) - Mormon History Podcast
Historian Mel Johnson tells more about the Zodiac Temple in Texas and the Wightites.

Don’t miss our other conversations with Mel!

276: Lyman Wight & Mormon Colonies in Texas (Johnson)

275: Intro to Hawley (Johnson)

 

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More Podcasts with these Guests:

  • Hawley Leaves LDS for RLDS
  • John Hawley's Polygamy Wrestle (Part 7 of 8)
  • Brigham Knew About MMM?
  • Mormon Pioneers in Texas & End of Wightites (Part 4 of 8)
  • Lyman Wight & Mormon Colonies in Texas (Part 2 of 8)

Get more information on the people and things discussed in this episode:

  • Guest: Melvin Johnson
  • Denomination: Wightites
  • Theology: Temple Ordinances
  • Pioneers
  • Historical Mentions John Pierce Hawley, Lyman Wight, Mormon History
  • Tags: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of Latter Day Saints, forgery, GT Podcast, iTunes, John Pierce Hawley, Latter-day Saints, LDS, LDS Church, Lyman Wight, Mormon, Mormon Church, Mormon schisms, Republic of Texas, Texas Temple, Wightites, Zodiac Temple

Tell me when the next episode drops!

PrevPrevious EpisodeLyman Wight & Mormon Colonies in Texas (Part 2 of 8)
Next ExpisodeMormon Pioneers in Texas & End of Wightites (Part 4 of 8)Next
  • Date: May 14, 2019
  • Guest: Melvin Johnson
  • Denomination: Wightites
  • Theology: Temple Ordinances
  • Pioneers
  • Historical Mentions John Pierce Hawley, Lyman Wight, Mormon History
  • Tags: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of Latter Day Saints, forgery, GT Podcast, iTunes, John Pierce Hawley, Latter-day Saints, LDS, LDS Church, Lyman Wight, Mormon, Mormon Church, Mormon schisms, Republic of Texas, Texas Temple, Wightites, Zodiac Temple
  • Posted By: RickB

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Rick Bennett is the friendly, independent historian at the heart of Gospel Tangents LDS Podcast: The Best Source for Mormon History, Science, and Theology. When he isn't interviewing Mormon scholars, prophets, and others, he is teaching math and statistics at Utah Valley University. He also freelances as a research biostatistician in the fields of Dermatology and Traumatic Brian Injuries, as well as in the network television/cable T.V. industries as a sports statistician. Rick holds a Master of Statistics Degree from the University of Utah.

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