Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Randy Mankin of the Eldorado Success · Public domain · source
Name	Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Founded	1930s
Founder	John W. Woolley, Lorin C. Woolley
Headquarters	Short Creek, Arizona–Utah border, Hildale, Utah, Colorado City, Arizona
Classification	Restorationism, Latter Day Saint movement schisms
Theology	Mormonism, Polygamy in Mormonism
Area	United States
Founder title	Founders

Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is a religious group that emerged from schisms within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over the discontinuation of plural marriage. The group is centered in the border communities of Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah (historically called Short Creek) and has been the subject of sustained media, legal, and scholarly attention. Its leaders and members have intersected with notable political, legal, and social institutions in the American Southwest.

History

The movement traces intellectual roots to early twentieth-century figures such as John W. Woolley, Lorin C. Woolley, and J. Leslie Broadbent, who opposed policies of Heber J. Grant and later presidents of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that led to the 1890 Manifesto and the 1904 Second Manifesto. In the 1930s and 1940s, leaders including Joseph W. Musser and Rulon C. Allred influenced splinter groups that emphasized the continuation of plural marriage, while figures such as Ervil LeBaron and Joel LeBaron founded competing polygamist sects. The Short Creek community was established in 1913 and became a focal point after a 1953 raid by the Arizona Department of Public Welfare and the Arizona National Guard, events which echoed earlier conflicts involving Utah Territory governance and inspired coverage by Life (magazine). The community later gained national attention during the administrations of Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton when federal and state agencies interrogated its practices.

Leadership disputes in the late 20th century involved personalities like Rulon Jeffs and Warren Jeffs, with the latter's rise provoking interventions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Utah Division of Child and Family Services, and prosecutors in Arizona and Utah. The 2000s brought high-profile criminal prosecutions, asset seizures, and civil suits, intersecting with legal doctrines developed in cases before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the United States District Court for the District of Arizona.

Beliefs and Practices

The group upholds doctrinal continuities with early Joseph Smith–era teachings, emphasizing revelations attributed to figures like Brigham Young and practices found in the Doctrine and Covenants (Latter Day Saint movement). Plural marriage—derived from 19th-century interpretations of Book of Mormon texts and D&C 132—is central, alongside strict codes of dress and gender roles influenced by historic Mormon pioneers and leaders such as Wilford Woodruff and John Taylor. Rituals include prayer, marriage sealing concepts resonant with Temple (LDS Church) theology, and community-oriented labor reminiscent of United Order experiments. The movement has maintained eschatological teachings reflecting Second Coming of Christ expectations and draws on scriptural authorities cited by early Latter Day Saint movement leaders.

Socially, the group enforces internal norms through communal institutions that parallel conservative Utah cultural patterns while diverging sharply from mainstream The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints positions, notably on polygamy, women's roles, and separation from external civic institutions like Arizona Department of Public Safety interventions.

Organization and Leadership

The community historically organized around a hierarchy of priesthood authority claims tracing to successors of Lorin C. Woolley and followers of John W. Woolley. Prominent leaders have included Rulon Jeffs and his son Warren Jeffs, whose tenure as a self-styled prophet consolidated control over marriage practices, property, and internal adjudication. Governance has involved councils of elders, patriarchal authorities, and de facto theocratic structures in Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah, interacting with municipal entities such as the Mohave County, Arizona and Washington County, Utah administrations. Splinterings produced rival groups and figures including the Apostolic United Brethren, Centennial Park, and the Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness of Times.

Financial and property arrangements have been tied to collective assets, businesses, and land holdings, which became focal points in legal disputes involving institutions such as the Internal Revenue Service, state taxing authorities, and civil courts in Arizona and Utah.

Legal Issues and Controversies

The group has been subject to multiple criminal prosecutions and civil investigations, including charges of sexual assault, child abuse, bigamy, and fraud pursued by prosecutors in Mohave County, Arizona and Washington County, Utah. Notable legal events included the 1953 Short Creek raid, the 2004-2008 prosecutions of leaders, and the 2007-2008 asset forfeiture actions. Law enforcement involvement included the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Marshals Service, and child protection agencies such as the Utah Division of Child and Family Services.

Civil litigation has encompassed custody disputes, human trafficking claims, and constitutional challenges invoking the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and precedents from the United States Supreme Court involving free exercise jurisprudence. Media investigations by outlets including The New York Times, Associated Press, and documentary filmmakers precipitated further scrutiny and legislative responses in Arizona and Utah addressing welfare, marriage age, and child protection statutes.

Demographics and Communities

Membership estimates have varied widely, with academics and journalists citing figures ranging from several hundred to a few thousand adherents concentrated in Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah, as well as satellite communities in Blanding, Utah, El Dorado County, California, and limited enclaves elsewhere in the Intermountain West. Sociological studies by scholars associated with institutions like Brigham Young University, University of Utah, and Arizona State University have examined kinship networks, educational patterns, and economic arrangements tied to businesses and land ownership. Demographically, communities exhibit high birth rates, large household sizes, and intra-community marriage patterns similar to other polygamist groups such as the Apostolic United Brethren. Migration, prosecutions, and internal schisms have produced fluctuations in population and the emergence of dissident groups and survivor advocacy organizations.

Category:New religious movements Category:Religious organizations based in the United States