Warren Jeffs: Fallen Prophet He was the "President and Prophet, Seer and Revelator"--the highest ranking official in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints. As the leader of a radical polygamous sect, Jeffs led by example; among his 70 wives were his own stepmothers as well as teen and pre-teen girls. When called to account for allegedly arranging illegal marriages between his followers and underage girls, Jeffs fled, landing on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List. Caught in a routine traffic stop, Jeffs began a five year journey through the judicial system. Today he is serving a life sentence for aggravated sexual assault of a pre-teen girl and 20 years for the sexual assault of a young teenager. But from his prison cell he's promised to cast doom upon America in a torrent of apocalyptic storms and earthquakes. (Courtesy www.biography.com)
Want more? Google Warren Jeffs on this blog, many posts!
Thoughts?
Want more? Google Warren Jeffs on this blog, many posts!
Thoughts?
Thank the Lord for the girl that made the prank call. I can see the same blank stare in Meri and Robyn has I see in these women. Not a fan of theirs but feel sad to see anyone that unhappy is sad. I think Janelle and Christine have just diconnected and remain happy because of their kids.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to watch. I have read all the articles on here. The moderators have kept up with the FLDS and Warren Jeffs sentencing. Very interesting, but I need to watch and put more together.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Kristie, but they certainly werent prepared, and need to have a better system, and take women and thier children together, or in a better way.
Agree!
ReplyDeleteFor some reason, my Cox cable doesn't get bio anymore. Anyone know if this will be online anywhere?
ReplyDeleteNot sure if they are the same shows or not, but here are some links to documentaries about Jeffs:
Deletehttps://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=&source=hp&q=warren+jeffs+documentary&oq=warren+jeffs+&gs_l=hp.1.3.0l10.1589.3370.0.7153.13.10.0.3.3.0.174.1194.3j7.10.0...0.0.Ppme5rAgZQI
I will watch for it.
ReplyDeleteI love this blog! I've been sort of lurking around for a while and I've learned so much about polygamy and the many different kinds of fundamental Mormonism. On the subject of people whose lives have been ruined by the FLDS... I just wanted to bring these videos to everyone's attention.
ReplyDeleteJust warning you... this stuff is heavy and there is a lot of cursing... which is totally understandable because he is in so much pain both literally and figuratively. So, if this bothers you, I would suggest that you not watch this. These are two video blogs posted by a young man (he is now 22) who left the FLDS about the problems he is facing in his life.
Part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7rlI7kcuDM&feature=relmfu
Part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTfLBjS2ZF8&feature=relmfu
I find his YouTube channel very interesting, in general:
http://www.youtube.com/user/SmitHolm?feature=watch
I feel so sorry for this boy. He is so hurt and traumatized.
DeleteThank you for posting these links. Your links led me to a 2008 youtube video with Christine defending the AUB. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpY2oTFFWks
DeleteI've only been reading this blog for a couple of weeks. I apologize if the Christine youtube video is widely known here.
Powerful Special. Much I knew, but still shocked to hear it out loud again.
ReplyDelete70 wives. Tell me a man not high up in the power/money ranks of the FLDS that can support even 10? Esp. with the church sucking their money.
The show really expounded why Jeffs was such a Narcissist. Hearing him make love to an underage girl, sickening.
just have to say...he wasn't making love to her - he was raping her. And yes, it was sickening.
Delete"FLDS - Believe they are chosen by god." Interesting
ReplyDeleteHere's what interested me.
Ulta Academy, made by FLDS. Waren Jeffs Taught there with no degree, I believe, appointed by his dad, Rulon Jeffs, Prophet.
The school is not about education, it’s about being idoctenated in FLDS.
Warren Jeffs played such minds games with those kids, knowing he'd be their prophet later!
He loved corporal punishment and was very harsh.
HE divided the student body in two grps Us and Them, told kids the Them were evil and sent there to test them! How awful.
Told them to spy and rat to him about their own family.
Army of good and loyal children, like Hitler.
He was creating his own little army!
How did these folks have a chance.
To the members of the FLDS and AUB., What the Prophet said, was God talking. That in itself, is a blasphemy, no man is God-like. The system is screwy because you are born into it, about like the Queen/King of England. Just like the Allreds in the AUB. Not chosen by the people.
ReplyDeleteDefiantly a close comparison is how they take money from their members that believe for their benefit. Wasn't it Christine's grandfather that stole last large amt. of money from a lady?
Warren Jeffs first "prophecies" are were about marriage, and underage girls. The show said he was a voyeur from a early age. He had been plotting perversion for years. The girls now are to be married when they hit puberty was horrifying; his news they didn't have to follow the laws astonishing. How many poor parents, broke from giving their moeny to this church, againized over this new revelation. The the shows says that Warren threatened the girls with the fact that she and her family would be destroyed unless she married such n such 60 year old man.
This is what Robyn famously talked about. (Paraphrased) We are not FLDS, we don't believe in underage marriage and abuse. I beg to differ on that. The Brown women are abused ad don't know it. The children neglected by their father. It has been proven many underage marriages happen in the AUB church.
I would love for someone that was from the AUB(ex) to write how much they are alike, not different. Maybe the prairie dresses.
I could say so much more, but will let others talk.
No it wasnt Christine's Grandfather. He was murdered in 1977
DeleteClose, It was Rulon Allred's brother, or Christine's uncle - Owen Allred who was appointed the head of the AUB after his brother's death.
DeleteOwen directed his underlings to misuse Virginia Hill's money. $1.54 million of it. Owen was ordered to give it back. In my opinion, he got off easy.
It WAS Christine's grandfather, step-grandfather though. Christine's grandmother was married to Floren LeBaron brother of Verlan and Ervil but then married Owen Allred.
DeleteThese people are so interrelated. Christine is first cousins, once removed, and then neice (by marriage) to Sophia Allred, who just published 50 years in Polygamy. I would love to look at this family tree and see all the connections.
DeleteI remember, in an episode of Big Love, Nicki's mother explaining how she was her own grandmother. I thought it was funny, but now wonder how true it must be.
Mini socialist camps.
ReplyDeleteI've never lived in a socialist camp but I would think it would mean everyone treated equal and having the same amount of food/money/clothes. Which is NOT what we have seen in FLDS, even AUB groups. Carolyn Jessop wrote of having nothing but tomato sandwiches while her husband and another wife were off eating at nice restaurants every night.
DeleteThe "favorites" get lots of stuff and the others get nothing. That doesn't seem to fit the principle of "socialism."
I think if you have no idea of what socialism is you shouldn't throw that word around. I will proudly say I'm from a socialist country and I love it! I like my healthcare, a full years maternity leave and other social benefits. I wish it was even more socialist than it is. For example in certain European countries post secondary education is totally free, how nice would that be. And no I don't mind paying taxes for it. For me and many of my country folk we view our democratically elected government as working for the people. We don't see the government as standing in the way of our liberties, it's for the people by the people. And Warren Jeffs and his cult have absolutely Nothing whatsoever to do with socialism.
DeleteOh pleeezzzz, I am fully aware of what socialism is. I believe that when the government or any institution gives you those things, there is always a price to pay. Any government big enough to give you everything you need, as a wise man said, is big enough to take away everything you have. What's more, those very social programs are what are causing countries like Greece to be at the point of collapse.
DeleteThe U.S. govt doesn't give what I need and it still takes away everything(money) I have. LOL I would rather my taxes go to healthcare and education for my fellow countymen than to the defense industry.
DeleteIt wasn't the social programs that caused Greece to collapse, it was the economic collapse that was hit worldwide plus the fact that Greece's export base is all but diminished. The same thing that happened to them, could very easily happen to the U.S.. as it almost did. High consumer and govt borrowing on low interest rates, when the global economy collapsed, the chickens came home to roost.
Mister Sister, thanks for posting this show listing. I assumed that my DVR picked up all polygamy-related shows because I had "polygamy" as a keyword. I looked up this show and it wasn't scheduled to record. Turns out that I also need to add "polygamous" and "polygamist" as keywords.
ReplyDeleteI was interested and repulsed in the theory that, based on what was found in the FLDS temple, Jeffs had sex with underage girls while church members watched. I've read many books about the FLDS but this is the first time I recall such a theory. I don't see anything in Mormon history or scripture that encouraged "prophets" to do this.
Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWe have some posts on the subject, sadly a couple of posts where you can hear him, I'll just let you watch them, the poster listed them in the previous post right below this post.
There have been many underage marriages. Some say they don't, but it has been documented.
Is there a religious reason that Warren would have public sex with underage girls, and also had audio tapes made? It seems to me that if he impregnated these girls, that would be reasonable "proof" to his community that he consummated the relationships, if that was somehow important to him to demonstrate. Was he just incredibly narcissistic and thought that his followers would be fascinated by his sex life?
ReplyDeletePerhaps Warren thought that he could "slut-shame" these girls into staying with the FLDS. If these girls ever tried to leave the community and start anew, their new husbands or employers could be sent a copy of the tapes? Instead, it seems that the tapes were part of Jeffs' undoing.
Truly bizarre. Most polygamists, including the Browns, refuse to talk about their sex lives, at least to the media.
The community knew it and was involved in doing the same thing. However, they were in an enclosed camp, The Yearning for Zion Ranch. Someone listed all our old posts on it in the post below this one that might help.
DeleteAfter reading Carolyn Jessop's book, Escape, it looks like the men, especially the leaders, encourage humiliated the women. She told how, on her wedding day to Jessop's, he and his friends made very misogynistic comments about women...even comparing them to dogs. So, taking a young girl who may have tried to get out of the wedding, and taping it, may have been one way he could humiliate her. Imagaine a 12-15 year old girl who has been sheltered from all forms of media so that she would not have any reference for her own body, and then have a creep tape her at one her most humiliating experiences, and then he plays it back over and over so that she is reminded about her "shame". For Warren, it was probably more than humiliating them; more likely, it was him collecting trophies from his victims. I think he was also accused and maybe convicted of raping his young sons too. I think it was him.
DeleteAs the show pointed out, Warren was a voyeur from a very young age. People were careful to draw their blinds because they caught him being a peeping tom. There is no religious reason for Warren's behavior. Although such practices occur in groups proclaiming to be religious, said groups are in fact cults. There are certain things which defy what we call natural law. Those who defy natural law do so knowing that it is wrong, but receive the reward of power over other people. They are delighted that they have convinced others to do their will.
DeleteWarren would have been happy to be a porn star but he knew he was not attractive, and he would have been engaging with a willing partner. The thrill of power would have been missing, so the satisfaction would have been diminished.
I've read before that he's a voyeur, but the behavior above seems like one of a sadistic exhibitionist. A total predator.
DeleteAm I correct that he's serving a sentence in Texas for only two felony counts of child sexual abuse? Why only two? It sounds like there is documentation of many others.
Thanks to the moderators of this board for all the general Mormon polygyny information. Discussion boards like Television Without Pity won't allow such discussions, even though such background information can help one's viewing of Sister Wives.
In Flora Jessop's book Church of LIes, she tells of Jeffs being a teenager and was molesting the little boys and girls that early in his sick and demented life. There was no one to tell or to do anything about it and he knew it. So, he's a monster created by his environment and will never be normal now no matter what. He has continued to molest and rape little boys along w/little girls and teens his whole adult life - before and during his so-called Prophet title.
DeleteI caught just the last 15 mins of this. But watched all of the next show which was also incredibly interesting. It was the story of 3 people each involved in a different cult. The first girl was in a mormon-based cult but it wasn't FLDS/AUB. It was a small offshoot. She was taught how to sexually pleasure the head of the cult..the "prophet." She was 14.
ReplyDeleteThe second was a guy in the cult ran by "Yahweh Ben Yahweh"
and the third was a girl that grew up in the Tony and Susan Alamo cult.
--
I've gotta start watching biography more often!
If anyone is interested, there is an excellent book out there called Stolen Innocence by Lisa Pulitzer and Elissa Wall. Elissa chronicles her experience as an underage bride and her attempts to persuade Warren Jeffs from postponing the marriage. She actually testified in court against him. Great book, read it in a day.
ReplyDeleteHope it's OK to post this link which I also emailed to SW blog keepers. Interview with former AUB sister wife.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c2#/video/living/2012/07/01/intv-decker-polygamy.cnn
I actually read her book a few weeks ago, it very good.
DeleteHere's a post on why women stay in polygamy.
Deletehttp://sisterwivesblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/dr-drew-why-do-women-stay-in-polygamist.html
Thanks for the link, anonymous July 2 2012 12:03 pm Kristyn Decker also has a short post at
ReplyDeletehttp://blog.fiftyyearsinpolygamy.com/?m=201206
In this she gives a picture of how those who don't resort to welfare manage to live, in a section from her book - "The Top Ten Dumpster Diving Delicacies – Chapter 21 – Poverty and Dumpster Diving." Ah fond memories of picking over boxes of rotting food to find something useable! To those who deplore welfare use, but defend the right to live polygamously, just remember that 99.9% of polygamy is the kind that is a religious duty, coupled with the commandment to have as many "wives" and children as is humanly possible, and that without some kind of "assistance" many children will go hungry. This is a harsh reality. If we want to defend polygamy in the US then we need to knuckle down and accept that increased government assistance in also almost inevitable.
I don't think the taxpayer is obligated to support destructive behavior in perpetuity. Some assistance is one thing; providing them with money that goes right into the collection plate is another. If parents make no progress on supporting their children and providing them with food after a set amount of time, children should be surrendered. The parents make it quite clear they don't want the responsibility of the children. The state should intervene not by providing more money, but by removing the kids from the environment.
DeleteExtremely Interesting show. I also caught one on Biography that started by another crazy becuase he figured out how the Mormon FLDS works in Kirkland. I believe his name was Jeff Lungren? Someoneting close.
ReplyDeleteBasically, he caught on to the moeny scheme and started a church by control. Killed a family and got caught.
Funny, Biography has the FLDS under CULT>
yes I saw that one about Lundgren or something like that. I was surprised it was in OHIO and not Utah/Wyoming/Arizona/otherheavyLDSstates
DeleteOhio is where the first Joseph Smith Temple was built, near Cleveland.
Deletety anony. i did not know that. for some reason my guess would have been Nauvoo (speling??), IL.
DeleteI don't get the Biography Channel, but I know full well not only he, but his elders are not from God. Warren was just the ultimate narcissistic pervert that waited his whole life for daddy to go and only REALLY was free with power 4 years! Of course he's still in control....in a jail.
ReplyDeleteThink about it, 4 years.
GREAT SHOW. I learned so much.
ReplyDeleteIt's one thing to read it, and another to her his breathy, nasty voice talking religion to a 15 yr old while raping her. Sick Sick Sick. that family is not chosen!
I didn't get to see it, maybe someone can put up some pinpoints of the shows main points not talked about yet?
ReplyDeleteI love Biography, and now they have this new "cults" out, might do us all good to watch.
ReplyDeleteExcellent show - It condensed the enormous amount of material out on Warren Jeffs.
ReplyDeleteI suggest for anyone to catch the show in reruns.
The AUB might be a break off from the FLDS, and I agree, less abusive than them, but STILL HAVE THE SAME BELIEFS, that's what we need to know.
ReplyDeleteCan we open the commentary to all cult related shows we have watched?
ReplyDeleteYes, if there is a correlation between the show and polygamy or similar inner workings, structure.
ReplyDeleteI have a question. Will this REALLY do anything to change the way this area is?
ReplyDeleteNope.....kinda sad that we have our own Taliban here in the states and nothing has really been done about it all these years. And yes, it does have something to do with the the ties that FLDS and LDS have, Arizona and Utah have govt officials who are members of the LDS church. If they really wanted to do something about the fraud and abuse going on, they would have a long time ago. The LDS church could have put immense pressure on the two state govts not to mention the federal govt to end the abuse. The FLDS scammed the taxpayers by getting money from the govt for a school, a medical center, plus an airport among other community projects. At least Texas is still keeping an eye on the going ons of the FLDS in that state.
DeleteAs for the Browns stating that they're nothing like the FLDS, why doesn't the AUB offer refuge for any of the escapees or Lost Boys from the FLDS community? Could it be because there are family ties between the two groups?
If the LDS Mormons in Utah had put ONE-TENTH as much effort into stopping abusive polygamous marriages in their own state that they put into stopping gay marriage in California, Warren Jeffs would have been stopped long before he had the chance to abuse so many underage girls.
DeleteAmen to that.
DeleteThis is off topic, but has anyone seen the documentary "Banking On Heaven"? I have Blockbuster but they don't offer it. I think it can be watched through Netflix but wanted to know if it's worth paying for.
ReplyDeletehere's one i just watched (for free online) that's really good and it's called DAMNED TO HEAVEN.
Deletehttp://www.cultureunplugged.com/documentary/watch-online/filmedia/play/4688/Damned-to-Heaven
@Kelly I checked Netflix. It's not on DVD yet, apparently. But here are the 4 reviews written on Netflix, by people who have already seen it--hope it helps:
ReplyDelete1) [4 stars]
Despite production flaws, Banking on Heaven is worthwhile watching. It's remarkable how this crew of student film makers presents extensive footage of cult memebers in their environment, something I've not seen done to this extent by other film makers. It shows the real-life faces of some of the people mentioned in Carolyn Jessop's "Escape" and makes Colorado City real. Other than the view of nearby mountains, this is a bleak world. The film completes the picture of a way of life without human rights that we as Americans should not allow to continue.
2)[5 stars]
Everyone needs to see this film. So many people have no idea this is going on and maybe if there is more awareness, that will cause enough outrage to put an end to the abuse.
3) [1 star]
Poorly edited but the best we have so far on film. Carolyn Jessop's book ESCAPE is extremely well-written and intriguing. I'd say read that instead of renting this.
4) [1 star]
This movie has so much information about this group of people, yet one could hardly watch it. I waited a long time to see it and was let down by it.
Anonymous & linnet Thank you so much. I've seen the Damned To Heaven one and was sickened. For some reason I thought I could watch the other one on Netflix now. Apparently my reading comprehension is down due to 12 hour shifts + full moon + holiday. It's not a good time to be a nurse ;) I will watch it when it becomes available. I think they explain the process of "bleeding the beast" a little more thoroughly.
DeleteHappy 4th everyone!
Im currently reading Under the Banner of Heaven - has anyone else read this? Creepy....
ReplyDeleteNo, what is it about? I need to read a good book on polygamy.
DeleteGREAT BOOK. Really insightful. At least, I thought so. I learned so much.
DeleteExcellent description and analysis of the insanity that accompanies these men. Another scary case is the Mark Hoffman Golden Salamander murders, a case that mainstream LDS authorities attempted desperately to hush up. While the Hoffman case isn't directly connected to polygamy, it does show how far the LDS church will go to protect itself.
Deleteit's interesting to note that one of the Lafferty brothers that Krakauer interviewed in prison actually shared a cell w/Mark Hofmann (correct spelling.) But Hofmann does not do interviews.
Deletefyi - Ron Howard has been shooting the movie Under the Banner of Heaven that's supposed to be released later this year according to news reports.
I would encourage everyone to read the book now before the movie comes out. It's really good. I lived in Salt Lake City when it all occurred. ;'(
Warning! Offensive to just about everyone.(It IS South Park, afterall.)
ReplyDelete*season 7, episode 12*
http://www.southparkstudios.com/full-episodes/s07e12-all-about-mormons?p=2
Around 1900 USA Gov. offer state-hood to Utah if polygamy stops. Threatens Fed troops unless LDS ends the practice of polygamy.
TODAY 2012
LDS, FLDS, AUB, etc., *ALL* accept Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon.
BUT LDS stopped PRACTICING (keyword) plural marriage.
Some (fundamentalist) Members broke from the LDS. These fundamentalist Mormans PRACTICE plural marriage (polygamy).
***
Soo ... who are the Mormons?
**ALL** followers call themselves "Mormon" because they accept the Book of Mormon.
Both sides accuse the other of not being *REAL* Mormons.
Also, each branch (LDS, FLDS, AUB, etc.,) has adopted new practices since the split around 1900, further separating the Mormon "denominations".
I have got to catch this on re-runs. I didn't know they were doing a series on Cults - esp. our MR. Warren. Thank you for keeping us informed.
ReplyDeleteI pray for those poor little girls, young women, that were subject to that and still are. Talk about scarring for life. He sickens me to no end. I saw the tv program, and have seen many, but it still sends shivers up my spine to hear those tapes of him raping those girls. My problem is, what is wrong with these parents? Sooner or later you'd have to look at your child and say, this is wrong. AND RUN. I suspect the group as a whole a generations of depressed, suppressed folks. We should pray for them all to GOD, at least that's who I am praying to. Bless all of those that are in this mess.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the AUB and any other religion based polygamy is just as bad. Don't kid yourself. High levels of abuse, welfare fraud, illegal activity.
ReplyDeleteHow is it that any God would want you to do that, esp. the prophets?
Not mine. Anyway, what other religion in America uses the word Prophet?
Exactly, I agree
DeleteThat Documentary sent shivers through me. Then i listened to the tape of a rape on here. I wasn't into the religion aspect of the show, but i am now. thanks!
ReplyDeleteI have a question about Warren - isnt he a victim too in a sense? I mean his father was the Prophet and so Warren had to have these beliefs hammered into him from birth. Add to that the fact that he was to follow in his fathers shoes as Prophet - then is it safe to assume that he was "brainwashed" from birth much like radical religious people who are willing to die for the cause. I just think he seems like a person who is timid and not like the evil monster they say. So is he a victim too ?
ReplyDelete