Mormons & Other Groups
The Mormons
The Utah Lighthouse Ministry, P O Box 1884, Salt Lake City, UT 84110 http://www.utlm.org/ has excellent information on the Mormons and allegations of ritual abuse.
In “Satanic Ritual Abuse and Mormonism” (Tanners), 60 victims in the Mormon church discuss seeing or participating in alleged ritual abuse activities (this number could possibly include 800 total participants, the number of people in each survivors’ story added together).
The stories of Betty Rhoton and Merradyth McCallister describe alleged ritual abuse in the Mormon church, the Mormon church may have attempted to cover up McCallister’s story, and ex-communicated her from the church. Their stories include alleged torture, ritual abuse, and mind control. McCallister also had relatives in the Masons and Eastern Star. For more information, see S.M.A.R.T. Issue #6 http://ritualabuse.us/2008/10/issue-6-january-1996/
The following article (written by S.M.A.R.T.) is compiled from information and quotes from the journal article “Deviant Scriptualism and Ritual Satanic Abuse Part Two: Possible Masonic, Mormon, Magick, and Pagan Influences,”by professor Stephen A. Kent, Department of Sociology, University of Alberta, Edmonton (Canada). His article was originally published by Religion (1993) 23, 355-367, c 1993 Academic press Limited. At the end of this article, further information about the author and journal will follow this article.
Warning: this article contains descriptions of rituals, please read with caution.
“…This study compares portions of people’s accounts (using interviews and diaries from several alleged survivors), with doctrinal precedents for satanic ritual souse in deviant interpretations of Masonic, Mormon, Magick and Pagan traditions… Just as parts of the Bible may provide direct inspiration or justification for satanic worshipers, so too may some of these same parts provide additional sanctification of satanic worship through aberrant Freemasonry.” (Page 355)
“…. at least five survivors from allegedly three separate groups have indicated that male ritual abusers whom they remember were also Masons” (S.M.A.R.T. note: other studies have shown incidences of Masons allegedly ritually abusing children as high as 33 percent of the total number of reported cases of ritual abuse, see S.M.A.R.T. Issue #1 http://ritualabuse.us/2008/10/issue-1-march-1995/ ).”One person specifically recalls a satanic catechism session that seemingly took place in a Masonic lodge.” (Page 355)
The article goes on to discuss the word “Jahbulon,” which is used in the 13th and 17th degrees of the Scottish rite. Masons agree this word is compounded of the names of three deities, the middle word Ba’al, and the original Masons that devised the word in the 1830’s knew the word Ba’al ‘was the devil’. “…with this mythological interpretation now in place, one easily could see how deviant Freemasons could either sanctify practices involving child-sacrifice to Ba’al or Molech or perhaps could be inspired to engage in them.” (Page 356)
Freemasonry believes that King Solomon directed the Masons in the construction of their temple. In the Biblical passage 1 Kings 11: 4-8, King Solomon “turned to the worship of Ashtoreth and Molech when he reached old age.” (Page 356) In the Bible, these gods are seen as evil.
“If, however, Masonic deviants wanted to find an allusion to Satan in their rituals, then they would be able to do so in the reference made in the third degree ritual to ‘that bright morning star’ which, biblically, was “Lucifer, son of the morning.’ (Isaiah 14:12) (page 356)
“…Masons frequently are willing to rent their lodges to appropriate individuals or organizations, and few if any questions would he asked about a fellow ‘brother’ who used the facilities (along with a few ëassociates’) from time to tine. Satanic rituals could occur in Masonic lodges (as at least some survivors suggest in their stories) without respectable members knowing anything about them.” (Page 357)
“The Masonic critic, Martin Short, observed that “(t)he works of Albert Pike… and Aleister Crowley show that men preoccupied with paganism, the devil, and the occult are attracted to Masonry, if only (as in Crowley’s case) on the way to somewhere else.” (Page 357) Kent’s article provides support for charges that Crowley was a Satanist, including his misogyny, his belief in sexual magick, his use of vaginal fluids, “…he provided instructions about worshipping a god of War and Vengeance, Ra-Hoor-Khuit … (King, 1977, p.135). He indicated that (t)he best blood (for use in worship) is of the noon, monthly; then the fresh blood of a child…. Crowley recorded that devotees were to “(s)acrifice cattle big and little; after a child’ (Crowley, 1972 p. 311)” (page 357). An evil spirit named Mercury informed Crowley and his magickal partner, Victor Neuberg, “‘that the supreme act of sexual magic involved the rape, ritual murder, and dissection into nine pieces of the body of a young girl. The resulting chunks of flesh were to be offered as sacrifices to the immortal gods’” (King, 1977, p. 85) (page 358)
Louise (a pseudonym), whose father was a Mason, remembers at age 3, “being sexually assaulted by a man in a crimson robe that her father brought to her. She also recalls an incident where she was placed on top of a white set of three steps . . . and sexually assaulted by numerous men. She also recalls seeing a young girl sacrificed and dismembered next to her on a table. Furthermore, she spoke about another incident in which thirteen men each placed an object into her vagina and caught the resultant blood and additional discharges in a container (Louise, 1992)” (page 357) Kent claims that Crowley’s rituals may provide an explanation for this.
Kent’s article also shows possible connections between deviant Mormonism and Satanism. (S.M.A.R.T. note: Several Mormon rituals were “borrowed” from Masonic rituals.) “The strongest (but not definitive) evidence that satanic rituals are being conducted in the context of deviant Mormonism appears in an internal memo about ‘ritualistic child abuse’ written by a Mormon bishop…. Bishop Glenn L. Pace …. indicated that he had “met with sixty victims. That number could be twice or three times as many if I did not discipline myself to only one meeting per week… All sixty individuals are members of the church. Forty-five victims allege witnessing and/or participating in human sacrifice. The majority were abused by relatives, often their parents.” (Pace, 1990 p. 1, reprinted in Utah Lighthouse Ministry, 1991 p.3) . . . The alleged perpetrators were Mormons, often ones in prominent church positions.” (Page 358) These included Young Women and Young Men leaders and members of the Tabernacle Choir.
“Many sections of standard Mormon scriptures recount incidences of individuals or groups receiving and using esoteric teachings reportedly from Satan in order to further their worldly power and domain…. In . . . the ‘Moses’ section of “Pearl of Great Price,” Cain receives secret, world-empowering teachings from Satan.” (Page 359) Some of these ‘teachings’ involve murder as a way of achieving worldly gain.
He discusses the ’secret combinations’ which supposedly help users gain worldly power. He cites the Gadianton robbers in the “Book of Mormon” (Helaman 6:23) as an example. “Thus, standard Mormon scriptures describe a group of people who had secret teachings from Satan that included requirements of ’secret murder’. They believed that these secrets gave them worldly power, and they passed along this esoteric knowledge to their children. Although these passages do not describe child sacrifice, other passages in Mormon scriptures do.” (Page 360) Examples cited are “Pearl of Great Price’s” Abraham 1:7 and “Book of Mormon” 4:14, 4:15 and 2:3 (for greater powers).
Deviant Mormons also might use as a source of alleged abuse the image of Satan teaching doctrines to Adam and Eve, while Satan claims he is ‘God of this world’ (Temple Ceremony in Sackett, 1982, p. 33) (page 360)
“According to Mormon theology, spirits need bodies to inhabit in order to develop to perfection, so that the fall of Adam and Eve… was a ‘good’ development…” (page 361) He cites “Book of Mormon 2 Nephi 2: 22-25 as a source.
“Easily deviant Mormons could attempt at face value Lucifer’s claim that he is the ‘God of this world” and devise an altered Temple Ceremony to venerate him (as the accounts that both Pace and I have heard suggested has happened)” (page 362)
The article concludes with a section on Egyptian and Pagan influences, followed by a final section on the reality of the occurrence of ritual abuse and its possible connection to spiritual deviance. No specific conclusions are drawn, but sources such as the False Memory Syndrome Foundation, Jones, 1991 and Loftus and Ketchamp, p. 1991 are mentioned as possible explanations for ritual abuse memories not occurring and/or being “contaminated.” “While I concede the point to skeptics that alleged victims might use the sane passages that I identified to fabricate or otherwise construct false memories, I remain unconvinced that many of the people with whom I have worked had sufficient scriptural exposure to have done so…. It is entirely possible that intergenerational Satanists do exist . . . we cannot know what (if any) relationship exist between actual perpetrators’ satanic and the religious justifications that exist for them… (assuming, of course, that they are real).” (Page 364)
Other articles available by Stephen Kent are “Deviant Scripturalism and Ritual Satanic Abuse – Part One: Possible Judeo Christian Influences and Diabolic Debates; A Reply to David Frankfurter and J.S. Lafontaine.” The second article is a follow-up and answer to criticisms of his Deviant Scripturalism articles.
The journal Religion can be obtained by writing Academic Press Limited, High Street, Foots Cray, DAl4 5BP England.
Mormon Article
The next article shows the possible connections between Mormonism and Satanic Ritual Abuse. Most of the information for this article was published by the Utah Lighthouse Ministry, a group that publishes newsletters and books exposing the Mormons and their practices.
Warning: Rituals are described in detail, read with caution.
Please note: all unproven allegations are alleged.
The following information is taken from “Evolution of the Mormon Temple Ceremony 1842 – 1990″ by Jerald and Sandra Tanner.
From pages 143-151 (appendix C), the Tanners show that Joseph Smith was originally a Mason. Because the Mormons made “small innovations” in the rituals, they were no longer allowed to have a Masonic lodge.
“There can be no question that the “Five points of Fellowship” were derived from Freemasonry.” (Page 29) Mormons in Utah were not allowed to join the Masons because “Joseph Smith stole part of the Masonic ritual and included it in his temple ceremony.” (Page 144). The book also shows similarities between the Mormon “The First Token of Aaronic Priesthood” and the Masonic oath in the First Degree, and “The Second Token of the Aaronic Priesthood” and the Masonic Second degree. Other similarities are shown between other grips, vows, signs, use of aprons, anointing ceremonies, etc. “Other parallels … could be shown, but these should be sufficient to convince the reader that Joseph Smith borrowed from the Masons when he established the endowment ceremony.” (Page 148)
The following information comes from “Satanic Ritual Abuse and Mormonism” by Jerald and Sandra Tanner. In the book the Tanners discuss a secret memo from the church written on July 19, 1990 by Bishop Glenn L. Pace to the “Strengthening Church Members Committee” on the subject of Ritualistic Child Abuse. The memo is found on pages 7 – 18. Here are some excerpts from the memo.
“I have met with Sixty victims. That number could be twice or three times as many if I did not discipline myself to only one meeting per week… All sixty individuals are members of the church. Forty-five victims allege witnessing or participating in human sacrifice. The majority were abused by relatives, often their parents . . . One individual has memories of participating in rituals as a full-time missionary… Children are put in a situation where they believe they are going to die–such as being buried alive or being placed in a plastic bag and immersed in . . . the abusers tells the child to pray to Jesus . . . and nothing happens . . . then she is rescued… (by) a representative of … they remember robes and candles… seeing other …babies …children are baptized by blood. They have been brainwashed with drugs, hypnosis, and other means to become suicidal as soon as they start to tell their secrets. They have been threatened… that if they don’t do what they are told their brother or sister… (or) parents will die… They have told me the positions in the Church of members who are perpetrators… Young Women leaders, Young Men leaders, bishops, a patriarch, a stake president, temple workers and members of the Tabernacle Choir… Assuming each one comes from a coven of 13, we are talking about the involvement of 800 or so … on the Wasatch Front…”
The following information comes directly from Merradyth McCallister. She (allegedly) came from a family of generational incest. She was raised by her father in Salt Lake City and (allegedly) incested by him until she was 17 years old. Her father’s grandfather was from Kentucky and was a Mason, her father’s aunt from Nevada was in Eastern Star.
Her daughter in a Logan County Police Report reported that a bishop (twice) and his wife (once) (allegedly) raped and drugged her between the ages of 12 and 13 at a Christian girl’s camp.
Betty Rhoton, the mother of Cinda Rhoton, was (allegedly) drugged, tortured and ritually abused by the Mormons and helped Cinda Rhoton escape from the Mormons. Betty and Cinda witnessed the (alleged) torture and rape of the children by the same bishop and his wife.
The following information comes from “Occult Ritual Abuse – Fact or Fantasy?” also written by Jerald and Sandra Tanner. The information comes from Chapter VIII -Ritual Abuse in Oklahoma and a lot of the information was originally submitted by Merradyth and Jack McCallister of Oklahoma City (pages 179-198).
“In June of 1963, my husband Jack, had (allegedly) been sexually molested by his bishop (a bishop of the Oklahoma Ward who died in the 1960’s) for two years between 15 – 17… In June of 1993, our son, Scott, was 23 years old and recently returned from an honorable mission. He told my husband about (allegedly) being sexually molested between the age of 15 – 17 by the same bishop as Rhoton’s children…In September of 1993, the three of us talked to our Stake President. He threatened us to “either stop talking to Church members about this or I’ll draw up the papers to have you excommunicated.”
“…we went to the police and filed felony charges against Ron Phelps….they believed Scott and recognized the deception used by typical pedophiles with multiple….a criminal background check revealed Ron Phelps had been arrested for indecent exposure prior to being called as bishop in 1980 (the charges were later dropped). He was recently arrested in an Oklahoma University restroom in Norman, Ok. on December 3, 1993. He did ‘unlawfully, willfully and wrongly solicit, induce and entice one John Bishop, an undercover police officer, to commit an act of lewdness…”‘
Mr. McCallister, who also served as a Mormon bishop, claims that there were three other persons molested by Bishop Gardener . . . The Oklahoma newspaper, The Yukon review reported “Yukon’s Jack and Merradyth McCallister and fellow church member Mary Plourde, realizing they face excommunication for speaking out against the church, have accused Ron Phelps and other unnamed church leaders of ritually and sexually abusing children.”
“In a letter to another bishop, dated July 29, 1994, Mrs. McCallister wrote the following:….This issue is not about vengeance or forgiveness. I love my Church . . . 1 have decided if I can’t warn the parents within the system the only other choice is to warn them from sources outside the Church’s information network. I am willing to sacrifice my membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints rather than be bound by silence from spiritual intimidation.”
“On August 2, 1994, the same bishop she wrote the letter to sent a letter to Mrs. McCallister informing her that she had been excommunicated…. Jack McCallister beat the church to the punch and withdrew his membership … he wrote: “… I refuse to place the reputation of the church ahead of the safety of our children. I refuse to protect (alleged) child sexual molesters in high places.”
“Another member of a Surrey Hills church has publicly accused church leaders of sexually abusing her children – both at the church and during youth group … Mary Plourde… believes her children have been abused since 1989 by the ex-bishop of the Surrey Hills church… (she was ) excommunicated … August 9, 1994″
“…church members who sided with … (Cinda Rhoton) have now implicated 15 to 20 other families in the church as being part of the alleged Satanic ring, and allegedly committing ritual abuse against the three children and herself… her children were kept in cages,…witnessed a ‘wicked’ witch stab a baby, and were forced to have oral sex with their father… she had been forced to prostitute herself… and had been a victim of mind control.” (The Surrey, Feb. 26, 1994)
“Cinda Rhoton … was interviewed on KFOR-TV. When she was asked if she had ever seen a baby killed, she replied, “Yes I have.” … treatment of the children: They tortured them with needles. They used ropes…. they also (allegedly) sexually abuse children… that sexual abuse was verified when Cinda Rhoton’s children were examined: “And, indeed, medical examinations of the children state sexual abuse. The eighteen-month old boy with rectal scarring, the four-year old boy with a hernia scar and an abrasion across the back of his head, and the five-year old girl with a callused vagina . . . The Piedmont Police chief, Don Payne… (said) ‘There’s not much doubt in my mind that the children were (allegedly) physically and sexually assaulted and molested and… (it) may have been in a cult or satanic manner, and may include multiple suspects.”‘
The following information comes from Cinda Rhoton’s court case against her husband, where she won custody of her children from him. (Pages 184 – 197)
In the court case, allegations of physical and verbal abuse against the husband are mentioned. He also threatened that her parents would kill her (Cinda) and threatened that someone would kill her youngest son.
“Kay Gillette, who worked with Cinda’s children, has a Master’s degree in psychology. She felt that it was likely they had been ritually abused… Gillette then graphically describes that Blake (Cinda’s three year old son) told her he was forced to perform oral sex on the man…. (Gillette also testifies) In ritual abuse…. cages are used because they are terrifying and because children are isolated. Sometimes they use cages to leave them for a long period of time where they don’t get to sleep and they don’t get to eat . . . whoever finally, quote, rescues the children from the cages… the child bends a little bit because they are so relieved to be out of the cages.”‘
“… Kay Gillette then said that Blake demonstrated with the dolls how his father had anal sex with him…” The children also had ropes put around their necks and much of the testimony is about the children being put in cages.
A witness testifies that Cinda was also put in cages and that she was given shots in the cages. One of the children also drew a picture showing the bishop previously mentioned as an alleged abuser in a robe with a pentagram on his head, and another drawing show the children and Cinda in cages. Several people also testified that Cinda was a battered woman.
The social worker Beula Love testifies, ‘Cinda is a very suggestible person. She grew up in an authoritarian home, she went to an authoritarian university. She was very compliant . . . she’s never been taught how to confront an issue’….Mind control certainly could have been a factor in her remaining in the relationship.
Dr. Richard Sternlof… PH.D. in clinical psychology from the university of Oklahoma, worked with Cinda and her children. (he testified):….Sad to say, that these things… have happened to these children. It’s not a fantasy, it’s not an imagination. It’s something that, in my opinion, very strongly believed that actually happened to the children…. (Heath’s (Cinda’s son) statement about the abuse) was done in a way and with the level of anxiety in this child that my clinical assessment would be that it was true.
A witness testified: “Dr. Sternlof claimed that Jennifer said her father forced oral sex upon then … what Kay Gillette, I think, told me was that when she (Jennifer) finished the drama, the baby was taken and the witch stabbed the baby and then put the baby in the ground.”
The case ended with a settlement that there would be no contact between the father and the children. The Piedmont Police Chief wanted to bring the abusers to justice. But “it would put a great deal of pressure on Cinda Rhoton and her children and could cause more trauma than they would be able to withstand…. It is certainly deplorable that crafty people can sexually abuse children to the point that they are unable to testify against those that have abused them.”
On page 162 and 163 of “Occult Ritual Abuse: Fact or Fantasy”, “a former Mormon…. claimed that his father was involved in Masonry when he was a child. … (they showed him) a copy of I) Duncan’s Masonic Ritual and Monitor. When he arrived at page 119… he was shaken to the core. The drawing on that page is supposed to represent…Hiram Abiff is shown lying blindfolded with a group of men encircling . . . lost control of himself and began to weep uncontrollably…. (he) explained that when he was young he went through the ritual pictured in the . . . The ritual he was forced to participate in was apparently something derived from Masonry that was extremely terrifying. Even though his father had broken some of his limbs, he felt that he loved him and eventually rescued …”
“When we discussed this… with Linda Walker, she stated that a Mormon woman had sent the same material from “Duncan’s Masonic Ritual and Monitor.” She alleged that the Mormon woman had also taken part in this type of ceremony and was actually buried alive . . . one of the victims of satanic ritual abuse claimed that the group his mother was involved with had combined elements of both Mormonism and Masonry into their ritual.”