Why do anti-Mormons keep harping on how terrible theh Mountain Meadows massacre was?

Question

Why do anti-Mormons keep harping on how terrible theh Mountain Meadows massacre was, but seem to condone the Haun's Mill massacre, and even the assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith?

Answer 1

I will tell you what any christian will tell anyone who has unforgiveness int heir live, that was in the past and you must leave th epast behind and move forward, the mormons must stop it with their persecution mania and move forward, they have to forgive those that hurt and murdered and killd them and get on with their lives or they will forever be stuck in bitterness. I should know, many mormns did things to me and I feel stuck and can't move foreard and I fell like I am always looking back to my mormon roots and I just want to leave that part of my life behind and get on with my life but looking back will make it hard to leave it behind.

Answer 2

Why is anything outside your experience "Anti"?
Haun's Mill and Smiths assassination were abhorrent pages in history, and there is no excuse for them whatsoever. History is written by the victor, so it's important to keep the memory alive as a reminder to the next generation.
So was Mountain Meadows. Because it was viewed as a revenge killing for Haun's Mill, plus the whole mormon experience east of the Mississippi, it was a terrible act. Brigham had ordered a state of siege for Utah, Federal troops were marching to the state, and the unfortunate massacre has been linked to the church leadership.
You do understand that loyalty to the prophet was paramount back then. It's merely a chant or mantra now, but the early members fought and died for Joseph and Brigham. They would certainly kill for them in that highly charged period. Mormon farmers would not particularly get up and kill a wagon train of travelers for the hell of it, do you think? John D Lee was not a typical modern mormon running an insurance company, he was a hands down rough and tumble pioneer who swore undying loyalty to Smith and Young. The only other loose cannons were Rockwell and Bennett.
It's also the apparent cavalier attitude the church projects in their desire to downplay that unfortunate episode that keeps getting attention.

Answer 3

Short and sweet: The average anti-Mormon is as utterly ignorant of history as everyone else in the modern US, thus the other incidents you mention do not exist for them. Furthermore, the average anti-Mormon has, by definition, formed a negative impression of the Mormon community and for this reason is motivated to disrespect and defame them. This is true regardless of whether the anti-Mormon in question is coming from a fundamentalist Christian or a fundamentalist liberal (ie, "pc") background.

One thing that is conspicuously absent from all debates about Mormonism, pro or con, is the simple, stubborn fact that Deserat's inclusion into the United States was a result of naked military aggression by the United States. When the Mormons came to Utah, there were no White settlements, no railroads, no US Army forts; there was no US presence, period. The closest thing to a government in the region was the loose authority of Amerindian chieftains. The Mormon leaders negotiated the original treaties with the native tribes that the US Govt would later base it's own treaties with them on. The replacement of Mormon sovreignty (the State of Deserat) with US sovreignty was a result of a US invasion in 1857, the so-called "Utah War".

I'm not a Mormon or any other sort of Christian; I'm just a secular conservative who lived among liberals long enough to be thoroughly bored by their dumbass belief-system. Anti-Mormonism is one of the numerous predjudices that the champions of "Tolerance" not only harbor but actively promulgate....

Nimadan

Answer 4

HHuans Hill, how many people died there about 20, they actually had a chance to defend themselves except one young boy, however Mountain Meadows they were tricked into surrendering and when they were allegedly being led to safety, the mormon men were told to do there duty and kill everone in cold blood. As for Joseph and Hyrum Smith, How many people have been murdered by the LDS doctrine of blood atonement? Hundred if not thousands. So no one cares much about them being killed. However no murder is good murder and we dont harp on it. It just is another reason why your church is not a good church

Answer 5

I don't "harp" on the Mountain Meadows Massacre. I have my suspicions that Brigham Young was the mastermind, but I don't have proof, so I leave it alone. I don't condone the Haun's Mill massacre either. No matter what the Mormons/LDS were like back then, the events at Hauns Mill were atrocious as was the extermination order in Missouri. I just think it is ironic that Mormons/LDS will parade around the fact of Haun's Mill and the extermination order but deny the wrongdoings of their own church. I think the assassination of Joseph Smith was murder, even if he was a con man.

Answer 6

Well, it was. But I for one do not condone those other two events you mentioned. Bad people do bad things. Brigham Young once bragged that the LDS church had the best people and the worst devils, and seemed equally proud of both. I have read that he visited the site of the massacre and had a monument to it torn down. A sign there said, "Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord." Brigham allegedly remarked, "Yes, and I have taken a little." I cannot really blame him for feeling that way, considering the way the Mormons had been treated, including his Master being murdered. But that was not exactly forgiving or turning the other cheek. But to ere is human.

Edit: Martin, my thinking is that those plates were not really solid gold, but a sort of alloy, and the total weight was probably not much over 40 pounds. They are called the "golden" plates, but that really refers more to their color than content. Probably more like brass. Still, five miles is quite a ways to jog carrying a 40 pound pack even. Another version of the story says he had a horse and wagon with him that he used to transport the package.

I am an ex-Mormon btw. Also an ex-7th Day Adventist. Ex Baptist, ex-Unitarian, ex-New Ager. Was almost a JW. Currently in the Church of Christ.

Answer 7

John D. Lee, Brigham Young's adopted son, tricked the "Gentiles" into believing that the Mormons were there to protect them from the Indians. Then on a signal from one of the Mormons each of them shot the Gentiles in cold blood and shot into wagons at women and children.

"One of Lee's lieutenants cried out as he shot the defenseless victims, "O Lord, my God, receive their spirits. It is for Thy kingdom that I do this."

The Mormons spared only 17 small children out of 136 men, women and children. After breakfast they returned to the scene of the carnage and discovered that the Indians had scalped the dead and bashed in their skulls."

Both massacres were terrible. I don't condone either. It seemed, however, that the mob in the HM massacre was honest about their murderous intentions and didn't trick the Mormons into trusting them and then give them no way to defend themselves.

Answer 8

The Mountain Meadows bloodbath exchange right into a tragic adventure, and the Mormon Church has expressed be apologetic approximately for the involvement of a few Mormons contained in the bloodbath. some argue that Brigham youthful, the chief of the Church, ordered the execution. those declare that because of the fact Brigham youthful exchange into the chief of the Church, the Church as a company is as a bring about charge for the bloodbath, and so cutting-factor Mormons are likewise culpable. there is no convincing evidence that Brigham youthful performed a place contained in the making plans or execution of the bloodbath. a number of those in touch contained in the making plans of the Mountain Meadows bloodbath have been worried that Brigham youthful had no longer authorized an attack. They despatched a messenger to Brigham youthful asking what they could desire to do. If Brigham youthful had already authorized the bloodbath, why could the locals seek for his council a 2d time? contained in the letter Brigham youthful despatched decrease back to those that have been making plans the bloodbath, he reported: "In regard to the emigration trains passing by our settlements, we could desire to no longer intervene with them until eventually they're first notified to maintain away. you are able to desire to no longer meddle with them. The Indians we anticipate will do as they please yet you ought to attempt and shield solid emotions with them." regrettably, this letter arrived 2 days after the bloodbath, 2 days too previous due. If Brigham youthful ordered the bloodbath, why did he tell locals that they could desire to pass away the wagon prepare on my own? An eyewitness reported that Brigham youthful wept whilst he discovered of the bloodbath. The Mountain Meadows bloodbath exchange right into a foul tragedy, yet there is no convincing historic evidence to implicate Brigham youthful’s involvement.

Answer 9

whoa whoa whoa

if you want to know what mormons claim, you should ask a mormon, not some guy that hasn't heard of the mmm.

http://www.mormon.org

as far as the "harping" goes--i guess it's just fresh material. you don't have to go back very far to the massacre that was perpetrated by a group of mormons but not given the go-ahead by their religious leader.

the massacre was awful, but do you remember the crusades? the pope gave his blessing for the christians to forcefully take the holy land. the pope. if that was recent history, it would far outway the scandal of the mmm.

Answer 10

Robin. it's not that we assume that everyone knows about these things, but there are ANTI-Mormons out there. not just people who aren't mormon, or don't know about us, or that just don't like us. there are people who spend their time researching all the bad things they can find about us, to use against us in arguments and stuff.

they act like they know everything there is to know about the church, so they would definatly know about Haun's Mill, and the assassination.

they just don't care as much about those things, cuz it doesn't give them fuel for their fires.


and, honestly, (Im not sure who said that mormons keep whining about these things) Mormons dont bring those things us a lot. sure, they happened, so your going to hear about them, but honestly, you dont see us going around suing decendants of the people who did it. or going on national television to demand an apology. its in the past, and we try to leave it there.

Answer 11

Why don't you post sites so people will know what those are? You're assuming that because they know one thing, the Mnt Meadows Massacre that they must know all the others.

I guess people here just think that if they know something that everyone knows it and that must mean people are just being "anti-"whatever or just being mean. It could very well be that they are ignorant of those things.