By Jerald and Sandra Tanner

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On February 19, 1981, the Mormon Apostle Bruce R. McConkie wrote a letter to Eugene England which contains some remarkable statements concerning Brigham Young (the second President of the Mormon Church) and his Adam-God doctrine. In this 10-page letter Apostle McConkie frankly admitted, “Yes, President Young did teach that Adam was the father of our spirits and all the related things that the cultists ascribe to him.” Those who are acquainted with Mormon theology will recognize that this is an admission that Brigham Young taught that Adam was God the Father. Apostle McConkie’s revealing statements seem to mark the end of a cover-up which has lasted for over a hundred years. [Letter reproduced in our book, LDS Apostle Confesses Brigham Young Taught Adam-God Doctrine (PDF).]

When we began our research on Mormonism, the General Authorities of the Church emphatically denied that Brigham Young taught the Adam-God doctrine. On May 13, 1966, Hugh B. Brown, a member of the First Presidency, wrote a letter in which he claimed that Brigham Young was misquoted: “The Adam-God doctrine is not the doctrine of the Church, and the reports on that subject as published in the Journal of Discourses are not accurate.” In our book, Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? we demonstrated that it was ridiculous to claim that Brigham Young was misquoted in his Church’s own publications. Furthermore, we presented new evidence from the journals of early Mormon leaders which demonstrated conclusively that Brigham Young taught that Adam was God and that Jesus Christ was his son. A number of scholars did research on the subject and reached the same conclusion. In an article recently published in Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, the Mormon scholar David John Buerger concluded that,

Young clearly believed that Adam was the father of the spirits of mankind in addition to being the first procreator of mankind’s physical bodies; . . . and that Adam was the spiritual and physical father of Jesus Christ. (David John Buerger, “The Adam-God Doctrine,”Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Spring 1982, page 45)

In the new enlarged 1982 edition of Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? we observed:

As time goes on, more and more evidence that Brigham Young taught the Adam-God doctrine is coming to light. In the face of this material, an increasing number of Mormon scholars are now willing to concede that the doctrine was taught. Even Apostle Bruce R. McConkie appears to be weakening. In a letter to “Honest Truth Seekers,” Apostle McConkie declared:

Some prophets—I say it respectfully—know more and have greater inspiration than others. Thus, if Brigham Young, who was one of the greatest of the prophets, said something about Adam which is out of harmony with what is in the Book of Moses and in Section 78, it is the scripture that prevails (Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? page 178-C).

Although we felt Bruce R. McConkie was softening his position on the Adam-God doctrine, we never dreamed that he would completely cave in on the issue. We must admit, in fact, that we were astonished when we read his letter to Eugene England. Although the General Authorities of the Church had stubbornly fought against the ideas expressed in chapter 10 of Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? for many years, we suddenly found ourselves gazing on a letter written by a Mormon Apostle which verified almost everything we had written in that chapter. Apostle McConkie began his letter by stating: “This may well be the most important letter you have or will receive.” On page 4 he calls the Adam-God doctrine a false doctrine, but he admits that it is based on “plain and clear quotations” which are found in the Church’s own literature:

In that same devotional speech I said: “There are those who believe or say they believe that Adam is our father and our God, that he is the father of our spirits and our bodies, and that he is the one we worship.” I, of course, indicated the utter absurdity of this doctrine and said it was totally false.

Since then I have received violent reactions from Ogden Kraut and other cultists in which they have expounded upon the views of Brigham Young and others of the early Brethren relative to Adam. They have plain and clear quotations saying all of the things about Adam which I say are false. The quotations are in our literature and form the basis of a worship system followed by many of the cultists who have been excommunicated from the Church.

On the same page of this letter, Apostle McConkie goes on to quote from a speech he gave at Brigham Young University on June 1, 1980, in which he equates the Adam-God doctrine with the worship of idols or false gods. On pages 5 and 6, Bruce R. McConkie holds up Brigham Young as a great prophet, but then he has to concede that he taught false doctrine with regard to Adam:

. . . I am a great admirer of Brigham Young and a great believer in his doctrinal presentations. . . . He was a mighty prophet. . . . He completed his work and has gone on to eternal exaltation.

Nonetheless, as Joseph Smith so pointedly taught, a prophet is not always a prophet, only when he is acting as such. Prophets are men and they make mistakes. Sometimes they err in doctrine. . . . Sometimes even wise and good men fall short in the accurate presentation of what is truth. Sometimes a prophet gives personal views which are not endorsed and approved by the Lord.

Yes, President Young did teach that Adam was the father of our spirits, and all the related things that the cultists ascribe to him. This [i.e., Brigham Young’s teaching on Adam], however, is not true. He expressed views that are out of harmony with the gospel. But, be it known, Brigham Young also taught accurately and correctly, the status and position of Adam in the eternal scheme of things. What I am saying is, that Brigham Young, contradicted Brigham Young, and the issue becomes one of which Brigham Young we will believe. The answer is we will believe the expressions that accord with the teachings in the Standard Works.

On page 7 of his letter, Apostle McConkie went so far as to say that if Mormons follow the “false portions” of Brigham Young’s doctrines, they are in danger of losing their souls:

This clearly means that people who teach false doctrines in the fundamental and basic things will lose their souls. The nature and kind of being that God is, is one of these fundamentals. I repeat: Brigham Young erred in some of his statements on the nature and kind of being that God is and as to the position of Adam in the plan of salvation, but Brigham Young also taught the truth in these fields on other occasions. And I repeat, that in his instance, he was a great prophet and has gone on to eternal reward. What he did is not a pattern for any of us. If we choose to believe and teach the false portions of his doctrines, we are making an election that will damn us.

According to Bruce R. McConkie’s reasoning, Brigham Young could teach the Adam-God doctrine and go “on to eternal reward,” but those who accept this doctrine today stand in danger of losing their souls. While Apostle McConkie refers to the Adam-God doctrine as “heresy” and says that the “devil” keeps it alive, President Brigham Young claimed that it came directly from God. Over twenty years after he first publicly proclaimed the Adam-God doctrine, Brigham Young emphasized that God Himself had revealed the doctrine to him:

How much unbelief exists in the minds of the Latter-day Saints in regard to one particular doctrine which I revealed to them, and which God revealed to me—namely that Adam is our father and God—. . .
(Deseret News Weekly, June 18, 1873)

On October 8, 1861, Brigham Young said:

Some years ago, I advanced a doctrine with regard to Adam being our father and God. . . . It is one of the most glorious revealments of the economy of heaven, . . .
(“A Few Words of Doctrine,” unpublished manuscript in the Brigham Young Collection, LDS Archives, as cited by David John Buerger in “The Adam-God Doctrine,” page 29).

The Mormon Church’s own publication, Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star, clearly stated that the Adam-God doctrine was the word of the Lord:

. . . Adam is our Father and God, . . . the Prophet and Apostle Brigham Young has declared it . . . it is the word of the Lord. (vol. 16, page 534)

Brigham Young was certainly not the only early Mormon leader who had a testimony to the doctrine. According to David John Buerger, Heber C. Kimball, a member of the First Presidency, claimed that,

“[T]he Lord told me that Adam was my father and that he was the God and father of all the inhabitants of this earth.” (Buerger, “The Adam-God Doctrine,” page 27)

George Q. Cannon, who later became a member of the First Presidency, claimed the doctrine was revealed to him. David John Buerger informs us that,

In an 1870 meeting, “Elder Geo[rge] Q. Cannon fully endorsed the doctrine that Father Adam was our God and Father. . . .” Indeed, “the above doctrine had been revealed to him, so that he knew it was true.” (Ibid., page 31)

Joseph Fielding Smith, who later became the sixth President of the Church, also endorsed the doctrine. Mr. Buerger points out that many Church leaders continued to believe the Adam-God doctrine after Brigham Young’s death. Even Lorenzo Snow, who became the fifth President of the Church, still maintained a belief in the doctrine a number of years after Brigham Young’s death:

Contrary to many later perceptions, Brigham Young’s death in late August 1877 did not mark the end of the Adam-God doctrine. . . . many of the Church’s leading authorities unquestionably retained a belief in Brigham’s teachings . . . in the 1890s one also finds brief but supportive references to the doctrine by Apostles Brigham Young, Jr., Franklin D, Richards and Lorenzo Snow. Amidst discussions treated below, for example, Snow is reported as leading “out on Adam being our Father and God. How beautiful the thought it brot. God nearer to us.” To this Richards added that “it made him thrill through his whole body it was new & it was inspiring.” (Ibid., pages 33-34)

As time went on, of course, the Mormon leaders said less and less about Brigham Young’s teachings on Adam. In 1897, the Apostle Franklin D. Richards wrote a letter in which he remarked:

This, like many other points of more advanced doctrine, is too precious a pearl to be cast before swine. But when the swine get hold of them, let us rescue them by the help of the Spirit as best we can. Thinking it may be convenient to you to have President Young’s sayings on that subject, I enclose a copy from his sermon in the first Volume of the Journal of Discourses.
(Letter from Apostle Franklin D. Richards to Ephraim H. Nye, dated Dec. 18, 1897, as cited in Buerger, “The Adam-God Doctrine,” page 37)

If Bruce R. McConkie had lived in the days of Brigham Young, he would have found himself in hot water because of his opposition to the Adam-God doctrine. Apostle Orson Pratt, who was contemporary with Brigham Young, got into serious trouble because he made statements which are similar to those which have come from the pen of McConkie (see Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? pages 174, 175 and 178-B).

Another doctrine which Brigham Young taught that Bruce R. McConkie opposes is the idea that God progresses in knowledge. In a sermon delivered in the Tabernacle on Jan. 13, 1867, Brigham Young stated:

. . . Brother Orson Pratt, has in theory, bounded the capacity of God. According to his theory, God can progress no further in knowledge and power; but the God that I serve is progressing eternally, and so are his children: they will increase to all eternity, if they are faithful.
(Journal of Discourses, vol. 11, page 286)

In his letter to Eugene England, Apostle McConkie wrote:

On Sunday, June 1, 1980, I spoke at one of the multi-stake firesides in the Marriott Center on the subject, “The Seven Deadly Heresies.” In that talk I said:

There are those who say that God is progressing in knowledge and is learning new truths.

This is false-utterly, totally, and completely. There is not one sliver of truth in it (page 2).

On page 5 of the same letter, McConkie cites a speech he gave in which he suggested that the idea of God progressing in knowledge “borders on blasphemy.” On pages 6 and 7, Apostle McConkie says that Brigham Young will have “to account” for his teaching concerning God progressing in knowledge:

Yes, Brigham Young did say some things about God progressing in knowledge and understanding, but again, be it known, that Brigham Young taught emphatically and plainly, that God knows all things and has all power meaning in the infinite, eternal and ultimate and absolute sense of the word. Again, the issue is, which Brigham Young shall we believe and the answer is: We will take the one whose statements accord with what God has revealed in the Standard Works.

I think you can give me credit for having a knowledge of the quotations from Brigham Young relative to Adam. . . . I think you can also give me credit for knowing what Brigham Young said about God progressing. And again, that is something he will have to account for. As for me and my house, we will have the good sense to choose between the divergent teachings of the same man and come up with those that accord with what God has set forth in his eternal plan of salvation.

Apostle McConkie seems to be threatening Eugene England with some type of serious ecclesiastical action if he continues to disseminate Brigham Young’s doctrine concerning the progression of God. On page 2 he warns:

I want you to know that I am extending to you the hand of fellowship though I hold over you at the same time, the scepter of judgment.

On pages 8 and 9 of the same letter, McConkie gives this threatening admonition:

If it is true, as I am advised, that you speak on this subject of the progression of God at firesides and elsewhere, you should cease to do so. If you give other people copies of the material you sent me, with the quotations it contains, you should cease to do so. . . .

Now, I think I have said enough in this letter so that if you are receptive and pliable, you will get the message. . . . Perhaps I should tell you what one of the very astute and alert General Authorities said to me when I chanced to mention to him the subject of your letter to me. He said: “Oh dear, haven’t we rescued him enough times already.”

On pages 8 and 9 of his letter to Eugene England, McConkie makes these emphatic statements:

It is not in your province to set in order the Church or to determine what its doctrines shall be. . . . it is my province to teach to the Church what the doctrine is. It is your province to echo what I say or to remain silent. You do not have a divine commission to correct me or any of the Brethren. The Lord does not operate that way. If I lead the Church astray, that is my responsibility, but the fact still remains that I am the one appointed with all the rest involved so to do. The appointment is not given to the faculty at Brigham Young University or to any of the members of the Church. . . . those at the head of the Church have the obligation to teach that which is in harmony with the Standard Works. If they err then be silent on the point and leave the event in the hands of the Lord. . . .

I advise you to take my counsel on the matters here involved. If I err, that is my problem; but in your case if you single out some of these things and make them the center of your philosophy, and end up being wrong, you will lose your soul. . . .

Now I hope you will ponder and pray and come to a basic understanding of fundamental things and that unless and until you can on all points, you will remain silent on those where differences exist between you and the Brethren. This is the course of safety. I advise you to pursue it. If you do not, perils lie ahead.

Notice that Apostle McConkie would have members of the Church “remain silent” even if the General Authorities “lead the Church astray.” If some members of the Mormon Church who lived in Brigham Young’s day had not opposed the Adam-God doctrine, it would probably be the official doctrine of the Church today. This alone should be sufficient to show that McConkie’s reasoning is fallacious. The Bible warns against such a teaching: “Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm. . .” (Jeremiah 17:5)

Now that Apostle McConkie has admitted that “President Young did teach” the Adam-God doctrine, Mormons should seriously consider the grave implications of the matter. This teaching is clearly a violation of the commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). In Deuteronomy, chapter 13, the Israelites were warned:

If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,

And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;

Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee
(Deuteronomy 13:1-5).

In his book, Mormon Doctrine, page 270, Apostle McConkie says: “There is no salvation in the worship of false gods. For such false worship the Lord imposed the death penalty in ancient Israel. (Deut. 13:6-11.)” Since McConkie admits that Brigham Young taught the Adam-God doctrine and says that those who believe it today do “not deserve to be saved,” we do not see how he can still maintain that Brigham Young was “a mighty prophet.” We feel that there is only one conclusion that an unbiased person could possibly reach—i.e., Brigham Young was a false prophet who tried to lead his people into serving another God. In his booklet, Adam Is God??? (PDF) Chris Vlachos points out that

if Brigham Young, Mormon prophet from 1847 to 1877, were a false prophet all along, then the claims of those who have sought to derive their priesthood authority through him are empty and void. If Brigham taught false doctrine, that cuts the ground from under Mormonism’s claim of latter-day prophetic revelation and the Mormon Church is not divinely led.

When we first received Apostle McConkie’s letter we were only thinking of printing some quotations from it, but as we examined this remarkable document more closely, we became convinced that it should be in the hands of the public. Therefore, we have photographically printed this startling 10-page letter as Part 1 of a booklet entitled, LDS Apostle Confesses Brigham Young Taught Adam-God Doctrine (PDF). Some may feel that the publication of this letter will tend to stir up more trouble for Eugene England. (McConkie has already stated that he holds “the scepter of judgment” over England’s head, and this could possibly relate to the loss of his membership in the Church and/or his job as associate professor in the English Department at Brigham Young University.) We feel, however, that our publication of the letter will undoubtedly provide protection for England. Bruce R. McConkie will probably think twice about making a rash move if he knows many people are aware of the situation. This would be very bad public relations for the Church.

In Parts 2 and 3 of this new booklet we have photographs of manuscripts in the Church Archives which prove that Brigham Young taught that Adam was God and that Jesus Christ was his son. These documents, which were suppressed for a century, absolutely destroy the argument that Brigham Young was misquoted on the Adam-God doctrine. One manuscript throws a great deal of light on the dispute that Apostle Orson Pratt had with President Brigham Young over the nature of God and the Adam-God doctrine.

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