“[T]he people in Utah who professed the Mormon religion were at and for some time before the Mountain Meadows massacre [the mass murder of 120 men, women, and children on September 11, 1857 in southern Utah] full of wildfire and zeal, anxious to do something to build up the kingdom of God on earth and waste the enemies of the Mormon religion . . . The killing of Gentiles [non-Mormons] was a means of grace and a virtuous deed . . .
“The Mormons believe in blood atonement. It is taught by the leaders, and believed by the people, that the Priesthood are inspired and cannot give a wrong order. It is the belief of all . . . that the authority that orders is the only responsible party and the Danite [member of a Mormon hit squad under the orders of the Mormon hierarchy–at the time, headed by Brigham Young; an ex-bishop I know says it’s still in existence] who does the killing only an instrument, and commits no wrong . . .
–“Last Confession and Statement of John Doyle Lee”
(Lee was a prominent early Mormon and Danite who was scapegoated and executed for the Mountain Meadows Massacre. He was the only one ever punished for the mass murder.)
