-- Oct 15, 1987
William Law: Baptized by proxy into LDS church 14 July 1987, and priesthood was restored to him before proxy endowment 15 Oct. 1987 (1)
-- Apr 1, 1988
William E Mclellin: Baptized by proxy, into LDS church 1 Apr. 1988 and restored to priesthood before his proxy endowment on 6 Apr. (1)
-- During July 1989
John C Gaylord: Baptized by proxy into LDS church 25 June 1981, and priesthood restored before proxy! endowment 19 July 1989. (1)
-- Oct 26, 1991
Benjamin L Clapp: Baptized by proxy again 30 Apr. 1991 and priesthood again restored before proxy endowment 26 Oct. 1991. (1)
-- During March 1994
Bernard Kouchel writes to Stephen Kendall, Director, Family History Library decrying the baptism of Holocaust victims. (2)
-- During Spring 1994
Avotaynu: The International Review of Jewish Genealogy.
Mormons Baptize Holocaust Victims Letters exchanged by Gary Mokotoff and Church Elder J. Richard Clark.
[Gary Mokotoff] "Baptism is a Christian ceremony that is particularly repugnant to Jews. It reminds us of the centuries of persecution against Jews where our ancestors were given a choice; be baptized or suffer death."
[Elder J. Richard Clarke] "In light of the concerns raised in your letter, we have reviewed our procedures regarding temple ordinances for the dead and have adopted the following refinements: first, that temple ordinances be performed only at the request of family members; and second, that family members wishing to perform such ordinances also have permission from the nearest living relative before proceeding." (2)
-- Jul 8, 1994
Jewish Forward, New York City.
Front page article by free lance writer Bill Gladstone, former president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada. The article was also published in The Canadian Jewish News, the leading Jewish newspaper in Canada.
[The issue of posthumous baptisms of Jewish Holocaust victims now becomes a nationally publicized issue.] (2)
-- During September 1994
The reply to Bernard Kouchel in response to his March letter to the Church decrying the baptism of Holocaust victims.
"The church is keenly aware of those not of our faith who are concerned over the practice of temple ordinances for the dead. The First Presidency of the Church has asked members, as far as possible, to honor and protect individual privacy. In 1972 they wrote: "Persons submitting names for other than direct ancestors [should] have obtained direct approval from the closest living relative of the deceased before submitting records pertaining to persons born in the past ninety-five years." Reminders of this policy appear each time Church computer programs and our other resources are used."
/s/ A. Gregory Brown
Manager, Communications
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (2)
-- Apr 28, 1995
News Release -- Salt Lake City, Utah and New York, New York
Joint News Release by The Church of The Latter-day Saints and The American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors
The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints and the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors have reached an agreement over the issue of the posthumous baptisms of Jewish Holocaust victims by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The final agreement will be signed at the New York Office of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations on Wednesday, May 3, 1995, at which time a press conference will be held by the leaders of both groups.
"The issue came to the attention of the Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors as a result of an article in a Jewish newspaper which stated, correctly that a Jewish Holocaust victim who was killed in Gurs (France) concentration camp was posthumously baptized by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," said Ernest Michel, Chairman of the World Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and an authorized representative of the American Gathering. [ED: Jewish genealogical community activists had much earlier discovered the baptisms, and brought it to Michel's attention.]
As a result of this article, Mr. Michel in behalf of the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, initiated discussions with the Church which extended over a period of several months.
"From the very beginning these discussions were conducted in a positive and friendly manner," Michel said. "They concluded in today's agreement between the Church and the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors," he added.
In a statement issue today, the Church agreed, among other actions to be taken, to remove from the next issue of its International Genealogical Index the names of all known Jewish Holocaust victims who are not ancestors of living members of the Church. The American Gathering agreed to communicate with and inform major Jewish organizations as to its agreement with the Church. Four other major Jewish organizations have also approved this agreement.
"For more than a century the First Presidency of the Church has taught that members of the Church have a solemn responsibility to identify their deceased forebears and to provide temple ordinances for them regardless of ethnic background or origin," said Elder Monte J. Brough of the Church's Presidency of the Seventy and executive director of its Family History Department.
"However, in violation of Church policy, lists of Jewish Holocaust victims and other non-related groups and individuals have been submitted for temple ordinances. The First Presidency directed in March 1991 that temple ordinances for Jewish Holocaust victims be discontinued," Elder Brough said.
"Unfortunately, subsequent submissions of lists of Jewish Holocaust victims were made by certain individuals and posthumous baptisms in contravention of Church policy occurred," he added.
As a consequence of these discussions and the First Presidency's directive, the Church has agreed to:
* Remove from the next issue of the International Genealogical Index the names of all known posthumous baptized Jewish Holocaust victims who are not direct ancestors of living members of the Church.
* Provide a list of all Jewish Holocaust victims whose names are to be removed from the International Genealogical Index to the American Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Commission, the N.Y. Holocaust Memorial Commission, the Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles and Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Israel, and confirm in writing when removal of such names has been completed.
* Reaffirm the policy and issue a directive to all officials and members of the Church to discontinue any future baptisms of deceased Jews, including all lists of Jewish Holocaust victims who are known Jews, except if they were direct ancestors of living members of the Church or the Church had the written approval of all living members of the deceased's immediate family.
* Confirm this policy in all relevant literature produced by the Church.
* Remove from the International Genealogical Index in the future the names of all deceased Jews who are so identified if they are known to be improperly included counter to Church policy.... (2)
Endnotes:
1 - Quinn, D. Michael, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, Appendix 6, Biographical Sketches of General Officers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1830-47, http://amzn.to/origins-power
2 - A chronicle of the Mormon-Jewish controversy; The LDS Agreement: A JewishGen InfoFile, http://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/ldsagree.html
LDS History Chronology: Unconventional Baptisms
Mormon History Timeline: Forms of Rebaptism in LDS History
http://lds-church-history.blogspot.com/
