There are three reasons I am writing this article on blood atonement.

The first is to cover a few historical facts, although I won’t delve too deeply into them—just enough to provide context.

The second is to show how I viewed this concept growing up and the role it played in my psychology as I was leaving the FLDS religion. I’ll share a few stories from when I was reflecting on these times.

Thirdly, I want to explore whether the FLDS would have ever reached the point of practicing blood atonement.

If you want to skip down to my personal view and story feel free to do so.

Real quick before we jump in, my podcast this week is titled 5 Keys to Becoming a Great Cult Leader, so I hope you will check that out right here.

A Few Words From Brother Brigham

Since you’ve been skipping out on reading your Journal of Discourses, I’ll help you catch up by any means necessary! And no, that doesn’t include blood atonement. Don’t worry, I’m joking.

Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.

Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 4, pages 220-221:

“All mankind love themselves, and let these principles be known by an individual, and he would be glad to have his blood shed. That would be loving themselves, even unto an eternal exaltation. Will you love your brothers or sisters likewise, when they have committed a sin that cannot be atoned for without the shedding of their blood? Will you love that man or woman well enough to shed their blood? That is what Jesus Christ meant…

I could refer you to plenty of instances where men have been righteously slain in order to atone for their sins. I have seen scores and hundreds of people for whom there would have been a chance if their lives had been taken and their blood spilled on the ground as a smoking incense to the Almighty, but who are now angels to the devil until our elder brother Jesus Christ raises them up—conquers death, hell, and the grave…..

This is loving our neighbor as ourselves; if he needs help, help him; and if he wants salvation and it is necessary to spill his blood on the earth in order that he may be saved, spill it. Any of you who understand the principles of eternity, if you have sinned a sin requiring the shedding of blood, except the sin unto death, would not be satisfied nor rest until your blood should be spilled, that you might gain that salvation you desire. That is the way to love mankind.”

Just so you understand, the FLDS stand 100% behind the teachings of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young.

My Personal View

“Blood atonement” sounds pretty bad.

But growing up, from my youngest years, I would have rather died than commit adultery or deny the Holy Ghost.

As I got older, around 13–15, I became more interested in the mission of “redeeming Zion.”

A big part of that was considering how the future would unfold as we accomplished our goals.

My understanding was that when the wicked were destroyed and the kingdom of God was established, there would be the shedding of blood for those who committed certain wrongs.

The most obvious part was that he who kills would be killed.

Then it gets more complicated.

A person who is part of the Church would be killed for committing adultery, fornication, or apostasy.

There was only one sin I understood could not be forgiven: “denying the Holy Ghost and proving a traitor to the brethren.”

The idea behind that is, if your blood is shed, you will have endured a suffering that would otherwise take hundreds or even millions of years in the afterlife to repent of.

So, outside the Church, the only bloodshed would be for those who murdered someone.

That said, it was my understanding that in many places on earth, particularly in the Americas, no one would be outside of the Church. There would be no government apart from the Church.

How That Affected Me Leaving

It takes everyone some time to leave the FLDS.

But it took me a good five years to think it through.

I absolutely took it seriously. So let me share some of the things I was thinking about.

It was these very sermons from Brigham Young that I would ponder often—not just this one, but several.

The question I asked myself: Why would I give up everything and become a person who not only committed fornication but also turned “a traitor to the brethren”?

For me, it was something I wasn’t willing to risk until I had thought it over for a longer period.

As a 10–15-year-old, I remember thinking about this. I figured Uncle Isaac would probably be told to take one of the hunting rifles and shoot the people who committed these crimes.

I fully understood that we were not in an era when that was happening but fully expected it to one day come to pass.

My hope is to help people understand just how seriously I took “staying clean and pure.”

It was with the understanding that having my blood shed was better than touching “any of the daughters of Father Adam without permission.”

Another Story

Around 2021, I was traveling from North Dakota down to Utah.

I had gone on two or three dates up in Fargo and had certainly gone past my dad’s guideline of “never looking at a girl to lust after her in your heart,” a quote from Jesus.

I was listening to some country music, but I started feeling a bit guilty, so I chose a random training from my dad and turned it on.

Whether by coincidence or not, it was one of Dad’s moral trainings—and a pretty deep one.

I started feeling insanely guilty, and for the rest of my trip, I couldn’t really relax.

In my mind, I was wondering if I had crossed the point of repentance. And I hadn’t even touched a girl.

But I had seen some porn—not a lot, but enough for a kid who never had the internet and then scrolled it nonstop. I’ll save that for another article.

You have to understand that my attitude in that moment was literally what Brigham Young said: “All mankind love themselves, and let these principles be known by an individual, and he would be glad to have his blood shed. That would be loving themselves, even unto an eternal exaltation.”

There were times when, if my dad had told me that was my only path to repentance, I would have absolutely supported it and been willing to die.

So I can definitely see why I decided to stick around for a few more years.

Would Blood Atonement Have Happened in the FLDS?

Dad was big on restoring every former ordinance of the Priesthood. At times, he talked about restoring the ancient practice of burnt offerings or sacrificing animals in a metaphoric ordinance to God. These are verses Dad would refer to:

Pearl of Great Price, Moses 5:6–7:

“...the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me.”

“And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth.”

So I think that animal sacrifices would have come first.

We can’t know anything for sure, but I have my own thoughts about this.

Many people don’t like how I see my dad as a person not just after “sex, money, and power.”

But maybe this will help you understand why a person with a vision of conviction, in another dimension, is far worse.

My theory is that in 2006, when Dad dedicated the temple, his vision had so far faced few reality checks.

If he had stayed free, chances are it wouldn’t have faced many more until things got pretty bad.

With all the crazy visions Dad had about men—sending them away—no doubt when he started performing these more intense ordinances, it would have messed things up even more, especially because they would have included some sexuality.

So, with Dad’s absolute control, there’s little doubt in my mind that the unchecked vision in his mind would have led to blood atonement.

Here’s How I Assume It Would Have Happened

I don’t think Dad would have ordered people killed—at least not in the beginning.

I think as time went on, after Dad gave men ordinances “unto eternal life,” some men would have made mistakes—or even just in Dad’s mind they would have.

So let’s take an example: A man who has been through the ordinances does something like get too close to a woman in some way or commits some sin against Dad himself.

Dad reads Brigham Young’s words, which he’s already well acquainted with, and then has a dream. Then he gets a revelation that this man’s only path to repentance is the shedding of his blood.

Like Brigham said, “Will you love that man or woman well enough to shed their blood? That is what Jesus Christ meant.”

I think Dad would have gone to the man and told him what the Lord said. Dad would have expected one of two results: 1) the man gets angry and fights against Dad, or 2) he submits and is killed.

And knowing my own psychology and belief in my religion, I can certainly see that many men would have submitted themselves to be killed.

Further Reflections on Blood Atonement

It isn’t like we walked around thinking about “blood atonement.”

One thing I do want to mention quickly: It was my understanding that women were given much more forgiveness before blood atonement.

It was also my understanding that a woman could not commit a sin of perdition like a man. That is, until the last couple of years I was there, when Dad started saying that women of perdition go to Saturn and men of perdition to Neptune. I might have gotten those planets wrong, but it was something like that.

I only say this because many people assume that men “have it so much better.” Sure, I do think they have more autonomy in life, but not psychologically. Almost all the extremely loyal men would have submitted to blood atonement if God required it. I know I would have, simply because I believed that much in my religion.

If you wonder why physical labor is a “relief” and why FLDS men aren’t as lazy, it’s because physical work is considered good—it’s a break from the mental side of it. You feel happy and carefree when you get out and do some hard work.

I don’t speak for other FLDS men, but that’s how it was for me.

A Few More Stories

I remember in 2011 when one of Uncle Lyle’s boys left the FLDS for a girl and ultimately committed what we considered the horrible act of fornication. I don’t remember who it was, but a group of us boys were talking about it.

“He’s going to really regret it. He gave up everything he had for 10 minutes of pleasure,” one of Uncle Lyle’s boys told us, quoting what Lyle had said. And of course, we agreed.

At one point, there was a big deal in Dad’s house when he called and said one of the boys was walking around looking at the mothers at night.

Today, it’s pretty funny to me because I realize an FLDS woman dressed in nightclothes still has, like, 75 layers of clothing on.

But no one would confess. That’s when I started thinking harder about this whole “commit adultery” thing, because it was my understanding that blood atonement was the best thing for anyone who did that.

It was also around the time of puberty for me, so it made my thoughts churn pretty hard. I was really scared at that point of doing something immoral, and had begun to understand the beauty of women, even with their really long dresses and three pairs of underwear—not that I looked at them or desired anything.

I just felt drawn to them in a way I had never felt before, because I was always trying to get away from the mothers. Of course I didn’t understand my feelings at the time and wouldn’t for several years. But I’ll have to write more about this another time.

A Few More Reflections on Blood Atonement

“Basic to both animal and human sacrifice is the recognition of blood as the sacred life force in man and beast.” —Robert L. Faherty

For a more in-depth analysis of sacrifices throughout history, I recommend this article written by Robert L. Faherty, which I skimmed before writing this.

Early Mormon doctrine mostly does away with the mythical gods and theories supporting most human or animal sacrifices.

However, my argument is that the blood atonement teachings from early Mormonism, combined with the absolute terror that can reign from one man’s rule, create a horror no one has fully seen—but one that will likely be seen at some future point.

Never have Mormon leaders advanced that far. The early leaders understood its present consequences for their own survival. The modern Mormon Church is squeamish about maintaining the idea. And modern-day offshoots haven’t had the control or the time to reach that point.

But as long as Mormonism remains the center of one’s theology, and a person follows the teachings of Joseph Smith with exactness—which few can—there will always be the opportunity to be led into a vision that will make other cults look weak, potentially sustaining their beliefs and even bloodshed for hundreds of years.

Mormonism, with its ideas of blood atonement, will almost always—as long as there are men to argue against it—be a cause for contention. In centuries to come, it will fuel true crime stories and Netflix documentaries.

Conclusion

The supernatural experience is one that few modern-day people fully encounter. Because of that, “blood atonement” sounds like a scary thing to say.

But in times past, and in future times, such sayings will be all too familiar. While we enjoy our peace, we should not overlook the small corners of the earth—the secret societies where we know not what is taking place.

Mormonism, if believed in the fullness of Joseph’s teachings, has the power to take a more intense person into a vision they cannot pull out of—and into a peace they cannot explain.

Included in that is blood atonement for the sins of adultery and other grievous sins against the doctrines of Mormonism.

While today no blood atonement occurs in the lives of Fundamentalist Mormon groups, the foundation of it is understood in their hearts and will remain there.

And the chance of an intense religious person like Warren Jeffs taking blood atonement to its full realization will almost certainly happen in future centuries.

So while there is peace, enjoy it. And when you have the opportunity to consider another point of view—albeit heart-wrenching—we should try to ensure that we ourselves maintain an open mind.

Which is the most beautiful of all gifts to enjoy.

Helpful links:

• Blood atonement – Wikipedia
• Mormon church statement on blood atonement – Deseret News
• Mormonism and doctrine/Repudiated concepts/Blood atonement – FAIR
• Brigham Young Blood Atonement Sermon: Journal of Discourses Vol. 4, p.215-221
• Blood atonement – Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Did the Ancient Aztecs Really Perform Human Sacrifice? | HISTORY
• A History Of African Blood Rituals • The Blood Project
• Sacrifice – Rituals, Offerings, Blood | Britannica
• Why was a blood sacrifice required in the Old Testament sacrificial system?
• The Psychology of Sacrifice | Martha Blake NCPsyA
• The rise of blood sacrifice and priest-kingship in Mesopotamia: A ‘cosmic decree’? – ScienceDirect
• Blood Atonement and the Early Mormon Church
• Brigham Young and “blood atonement”: What’s the deal? – Saints Unscripted

You would also enjoy this article titled: Communion With Satan: Here Is The Terrifying Truth

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