April 20th

Apr 20, 1837 - Wilford Woodruff writes: "Spent this day in the house of the Lord in prayer and fasting with the congregation of the Saints. Much of the power, gifts, and graces of the gospel was poured out upon us. Speaking and interpeting of tongues was manifest in the Congregation. One brother sung a lengthy song in tongues & sister Hide interpeted the same. It was great & glorious. Much of it was respecting the fame of Joseph and his magnus works.

Apr 20, 1851 - Alpheus Cutler is excommunicated for leading group opposed to Brigham Young.

Apr 20, 1856 - Wilford Woodruff writes: "I met with the Presidency & Twelve in the prayer Circle. After prayers President Young asked those who were going away if they were satisfied with him & felt satisfied that He was keeping up with the spirit of the times. They all said they were. They asked if he was satisfied with them. He said he was. He Advised Elder G A. Smith not to indulge in Arguing any point question or principle which he did not believe for the sake of Argument or to draw something out of others as it was dangerous ground. Brother Smith thanked him for his Advise & promised to follow it. Brother G. A. Smith spoke in plainness of his feelings concerning some principles of Elder O. Pratt wherein he differed from President Young concerning the creation of Adam out of the Dust of the Earth & the final consummation of knowledge & many other things. I am afraid when he comes to write he will publish in opposition to President Youngs views but he promised he would not. Many remarks were made which Thomas Bullock took & it is filed in the Historians office."

Apr 20, 1862 - First Counselor Heber C. Kimball writes in his memorandum book: "April 20, 1862, The Lord told me that Adam was my father and that he was the God and father of all the inhabitants of this Earth."

Apr 20, 1867 - Heber C. Kimball sys that "Joseph Smith told him that He Joseph Smith would meet in old Jerusalem with all the Prophets and Apostles from father Adam down to our day. All the leading men of this day will be there."

Apr 20, 1879 - President John Taylor tells the Juab Stake Relief Society, "The Saints were only on the verge of the greatness that awaited them, and while the men would be Kings and Priests, the women would be Queens and Priestesses, all acting mutually, through the ordinances of the Gospel, as saviours upon Mount Zion."

Apr 20, 1882 - U.S. House of Representatives votes to refuse George Q. Cannon as Utah's delegate, due to his polygamy, according to Edmunds Act. Cannon is first Mormon to be formally denied public office to which he is legally elected. Within months federally-appointed judges remove all known polygamists from civil office in Utah.

Apr 20, 1889 - Wilford Woodruff writes in his journal: "I was suffering from a deadly faintness. Brother Cannon laid his hands upon my head and administered in prayer. I received much benifit therefrom, as well as a cup of tea which I drank. . . . While the team stopped to water at one place there was an old couple who had what appeared to be a favorite dog. Just as the Coach was starting from the water trough Mr Badlam Said to the old gentleman 'look out for your dog!' At the same time Mr Swan made cries such as a dog would utter if he were run over. It was very laughable to see the faces of the old people. They thought their dog was being killed under the wheels of the coach."

Apr 20, 1893 - Apostle Marriner W. Merrill writes: "I met with the Priesthood, First Presidency, Twelve, Presidents of Stakes and Counselors, and Presiding Bishopric, in the Temple at 10 a. m. today, all fasting. We remained in the Temple until 6 p. m. All joined in the Prayer Circle clothed (115) in the Celestial Room, the largest Circle ever convened or got together in the Church. . . . We had a glorious time and all felt well and all testified at these meetings to sustaining the First Presidency in all things, political as well as all other matters."

Apr 20, 1897 - Wilford Woodruff writes: "At 3.30 pm. my daughter Alice took some medicine that Dr Shipp prescribed for her, without water and it burned her mouth and throat being a strong acid. Gave her some strong coffee and she felt better but her mouth & throat pained her for some time."

Apr 20, 1912 - Apostle Anthony W. Ivans writes in a letter to a Mormon socialist: "I have no quarrel with Socialists, I am not blind to the abuses which exist in the world and the great necessity for social and economic reform I believe Socialists to be sincere in their efforts to improve the conditions of the masses, but I have no confidence in the success of the movement. Reform is coming, but it will not come through that source."

Apr 20, 1923 - Apostle George F. Richards writes: "I had the unwritten ordinances of the Endowments typed today by Bro. Jos. Anderson under the direction of Duncan M. McAllister. This is done by the authority of the First Presidency. A copy is to be kept in the Presidents' Book at each temple."

Apr 20, 1950 - Apostle George F. Richards writes: "I obtained permission from President Geo. Albert Smith for my Sons Oliver and Ray and their wives to receive their Second Anointings."

Apr 20, 1961 - First Presidency and Twelve approve rebaptism and full reinstatement of priesthood blessings for John D. Lee, only executed participant in Mountain Meadows Massacre. Ordinances occur on May 8-9, 1961.

Apr 20, 1966 - BYU student Stephen Hays Russell organizes a dozen other John-Birch-Society students in a room of BYU's Wilkinson Center to spy on professors for the administration. A non-student chapter leader of the Birch Society acts as guard for this organizing meeting of the BYU spy ring, the only time all would be together at once. These student-spies included the president of BYU's Young Americans For Freedom, three other members of YAF, and also Cleon Skousen's nephew. At the group's initial meeting, Russell tells his Birch associates that "the General Authorities" authorized this espionage. Later, he specifies several times that "Brother Benson was behind this." Russell later reports the BYU spy-ring's findings to Ezra Taft Benson.

Apr 20, 1967 - BYU president Ernest L. Wilkinson tells faculty meeting he is distributing questionnaires to local bishops asking for a list of students who were "inactive in the church or . . . not living the standards of the church" This information exchange between bishops and university personnel continues for four years,

Apr 20, 1974 - Reed C. Durham, Jr. gives presidential address to Mormon History Association (MHA) at Nauvoo, in which he emphasizes Joseph Smith's Jupiter talisman and its relationship to magic and Freemasonry. Durham also recites a Masonic legend that was available to Joseph Smith which has many parallels to the story of the coming forth of the BOOK OF MORMON. As immediate result, officials at LDS information center in Nauvoo remove Angel Moroni form spire of center's detailed model of Nauvoo temple. Following architect's drawings the model shows angel holding Masonic symbols of compass and square, but those symbols are absent when angel-replica is reinstalled on model. Shortly afterward LDS president Spencer W. Kimball releases Durham as institute director and requires him to write letter of apology and retraction. Durham is told by "the brethren" do no more research on the subject and to give out no information. Durham remains faculty member of Salt Lake Institute of Religion but declines to attend future meeting of MHA, even one honoring all of its former presidents.

Apr 20, 1977 - Polygamist leader Ervil LeBaron tells a meeting in Dallas, Texas that the Lord wants members of the group to prepare for a mission to Utah. He decrees that on May 3, the funeral of rival-leader Rulon Allred would be held in Salt Lake City at which his brother Verlan LeBaron should be killed. The self-proclaimed prophet of God announces that Allred's murder should be done by the group's two prettiest women. The floor is opened to nominations and Rena Chynoweth and Ramona Marston, are chosen. They murder Allred on May 10. Four days later Allred's funeral is held in the Bingham High School auditorium--the only facility in the area large enough to accommodate the thousands of mourners. Verlan LeBaron, attends the funeral but does not find out until much later that the mass presence of the news media and tight police security has saved his life. Assassins, sent by Ervil, backed out after surveying the situation.

Apr 20, 1986 - CHURCH NEWS article "Church Acquired 45 Documents from Hofmann" lists forty-eight documents that the Church had acquired directly from Mark Hofmann. The "salamander letter" is not on the list because Steven Christensen had acquired it from Hofmann, then given it to the Church.

Apr 20, 1995 - U.S. postage stamp promoting environment, designed by fourteen-year-old Brian Hailes of Millville, Utah.

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