Was Ross LeBaron a Mormon Fundamentalist?

“I have been associated with the Fundamentalists since 1936” – Ross Wesley LeBaron wrote to Fundamentalist leader Margarito Bautista in December 1958 – “but have stood a hundred percent on my own feet.”[1] Almost 27 years later, LeBaron would give a more detailed – and probably more honest – account of his early association withContinueContinue reading “Was Ross LeBaron a Mormon Fundamentalist?”

DeWayne Hafen: Interview to Dale Von Atta, 1978

As a teenager, DeWayne Hafen helped Ross LeBaron in his machine shop while LeBaron taught him about the Church of the Firstborn. When Hafen met him again as an adult, LeBaron was hesitant to ordain Hafen. The reason was Hafen’s previous affiliation with The Church of the Firstborn of the Fullness of the Times. EvenContinueContinue reading “DeWayne Hafen: Interview to Dale Von Atta, 1978”

Edsil Allred: Patriarchal Blessing of Ross LeBaron, 1934

This patriarchal blessing received by Ross LeBaron at age 19 is the first of two recorded blessings he obtained from LDS stake patriarchs. A mimeograph copy of the blessing printed by Ross LeBaron was given to Mormon collector James Wardle and can be seen or downloaded here. Transcript Central, Arizona   February 9, 1934 Blessing, givenContinueContinue reading “Edsil Allred: Patriarchal Blessing of Ross LeBaron, 1934”

Articles of Faith of the Church of the Firstborn

ARTICLES OF FAITH of THE CHURCH OF THE FIRST-BORN 1. We believe in Michael, the Eternal Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ, and in Joseph Smith, the Witness or Testator. 2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam`s transgression; for He partook of mortality, that He mightContinueContinue reading “Articles of Faith of the Church of the Firstborn”

Steve McKinley: Ross LeBaron On The Endowment

Steve McKinley recollects a conversation with Ross W. LeBaron about the endowment in 1995. The “ambiguous answer” given by Ross, according to Steve, made him “feel better about the changes [made by the LDS Church] in the endowment”. He says he realized that “the reason the endowment was taken away by the Lord was becauseContinueContinue reading “Steve McKinley: Ross LeBaron On The Endowment”

Ross LeBaron: Keys of The Priesthood

  THE KEYS OF THE PRIESTHOOD “What are the keys of the priesthood”?  “This generation is not worthy to know”.  John Taylor. Neither is this generation. Ross W. LeBaron. There is a very good reason why the orders of the priesthood were not taught in plainness. All one has to do is to look aroundContinueContinue reading “Ross LeBaron: Keys of The Priesthood”

Ross LeBaron: The Heir of Joseph Smith

REVELATION given to Ross W. LeBaron, at East Mill Creek, Utah, in the spring of 1940. While walking home, a distance of about two miles, I was praying to know whether it was the Lord’s will that my sister Lucinda should marry John Butchereit or not. My father would not give his consent, but IContinueContinue reading “Ross LeBaron: The Heir of Joseph Smith”

Steve McKinley: Ross LeBaron’s Teachings on Agency

“Steve, do you know why the planets stay in orbit?,” Ross LeBaron asked. In this interview, Steve McKinley tells about meeting Ross LeBaron for the first time and his teachings about agency. Reference McKinley, Steve. Interview given to Antonio Trevisan on April 11, 2014.

The Improvement Era: Excommunication of Ross LeBaron and Thelma Cox, 1944

In its November 30, 1944 edition, The Improvement Era announced the excommunication of Ross Wesley LeBaron and his wife Thelma Elena Cox LeBaron. Their names were part of a list of 33 men and women who had been excommunicated from the LDS Church in the previous months of 1944. The Church magazine stated they hadContinueContinue reading “The Improvement Era: Excommunication of Ross LeBaron and Thelma Cox, 1944”

Christopher Blythe: The Crafting of a New Religious Movement

The following is an excerpt from historian Christopher Blythe’s master thesis on Ross LeBaron, submitted to the Utah State University in 2009. In his work, Blythe characterizes Ross LeBaron as “a religion maker in the same sense as Joseph Smith or Jesus Christ, in that he brought forth new concepts, which diverged from previous orthodoxContinueContinue reading “Christopher Blythe: The Crafting of a New Religious Movement”