Last night I started to watch on Netflix the TV mini-series American Primeval. I was drawn to the programme because back in 2020, I was a tutor at St Albans Cathedral on the Certificate in Theology course, teaching a unit on Heresies and one of the sessions I gave was entitled Cults, Sects and Movements, where I covered the Mormons, inevitably, in a very superficial manner. The American Primeval story is based around the Utah War of 1857, of which I knew nothing, so I was fascinated to see how this TV series handled the clash between the Mormons and the United States Government.
I first encountered the Mormons when I was approached on a street in Chichester, zillions of years ago, by Mormon missionaries. I remember the engagement with a smartly dressed young woman and man because it ended in an argument. Perhaps, foolishly, I challenged the basis of their beliefs on the grounds that there was no actual evidence to support their claims - I am a child of the scientific community where corroborated data rules the roost. Surprisingly, the young woman got very very angry and started berating me: this was not the normally polite Mormon missionaries. So, I am afraid, we parted on bad terms.
If you are not familiar with the Mormons (though you might have been to see the musical The Book of Mormons) here is a reminder of who they are and what they stand for. The Mormons, technically The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, is a Christian-based religion founded in the United States in the early 19th century. It was established in New York State by the charismatic Joseph Smith (1805-1844) in 1830.
At that time there was a Protestant religious revival in the US known as the Second Great Awakening. It was based on the familiar sentiment that the established church offered a corrupt form of Christianity. Joseph Smith claimed that an angel, named Moroni, directed him to a set of gold plates transcribed in a secret code, which only he could translate. A Book of Mormon sits on my shelf but I have to admit it is largely unread because it is, in my view, pretty nonsensical. Anyway, it purports to describe, ancient peoples of the Americas, who Jesus Christ visited after his resurrection.
Smith gradually gathered followers, across various US states but he also faced considerable hostility. In 1844, after being imprisoned in Illinois, Joseph and his brother Hyrum were shot to death by a riotous mob who stormed the gaol. Following Smith’s death, the leadership of the Mormons passed to Brigham Young (1801-1877). Young belonged to a farming family and was brought up in a strict Protestant household. He was probably attracted by the puritan element of the Mormon Church. Paradoxically, the Church of the Latter-day Saints believed in polygamy and the marriage of juvenile girls and Young had at least 56 wives and 57 children (in theory the Mormons gave up polygamy in 1890).
With increasing violence against the Mormons, Young decided to escape Federal authority and organised a trek westward to Utah, the territory that had recently been taken from the Spanish. Despite immense difficulties, the Mormons reached Utah and were able to found Salt Lake City, which was their Zion, a New Jerusalem.
The US Government was still hostile to the Mormons mainly because of the practice of polygamy but also with regard to the level of autonomy the Mormon Church claimed. In 1857 the animosity boiled over into military action. The worst atrocity of the fighting was when the Mormon militia attacked a civilian emigrant wagon train at Mountain Meadows and, after false negotiations, massacred 120 men, women and children in order to hide the fact that the Mormons were involved.
Although there were no significant battles or casualties between the Federal government and the Mormons, the war dragged on into 1858 when there was finally an agreement that permitted government troops to be stationed in Utah in exchange for a pardon for the Mormons who had been part of the rebellion against the US. Federal jurisdiction was partly established over the territory but the Mormons were largely left to govern themselves.
American Primeval weaves a fictional story among the events that lead up to the Utah War. The series is very violent, the sets authentic (though filmed in New Mexico) and it specialises in making all the actors look as if they haven't washed for weeks. In accordance with the times, the series gives a sympathetic portrayal of the Native Americans, in this case the Soshone, who are caught up in the war. However, it is very critical of the Mormons' behaviour: for example, Brigham Young is portrayed as a manipulative, lying megalomanic who orchestrates Mormon violence and mayhem. I suspect Young's declaration in 1852 that he was a "firm believer in slavery", ensured the scriptwriter was going to trash him.
Today Brigham Young is widely regarded, at least, by the Mormon Church as a strong, decisive leader who played a crucial role in shaping the early development of the church and its doctrines. It is argued that his determination to lead the sect to Utah ensured the Church of the Latter-Day Saints survived to the present day.
PS. Some years ago when I was still full-time at a UK university, I was offered a sabbatical year at the University of Utah. I gave it serious thought, as I really liked one of the academics there, but when I learnt the state was 'dry', I decided to decline, which probably says a lot about me!
Comments