Latest news with #JosephSmith
RNZ News
29-07-2025
- RNZ News
Mormon Church responds to allegations against American missionary accused of abusing Tongan boys
An 1835, first edition of the Mormon scripture, "Doctrine and Covenants", revelations from Mormon Church Founder Joseph Smith, is displayed at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Church History Library. Photo: AFP Content warning: This story discusses the sexual abuse of children. The Mormon Church claims it is unclear whether an American missionary - who allegedly sexually abused boys in Tonga - did so under their roof. William James Purdy was indicted by a federal grand jury in Utah on 16 July on charges related to the exploitation of 14 boys outside the United States. The United States Department of Justice said court documents revealed Purdy travelled to the Tongan capital, Nuku'alofa, in 2017 for a one-year mission with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The then 20-year-old allegedly preyed on multiple male victims during his year with the church before returning to the US. "Purdy returned to Tonga in late 2019 to teach at a school in Nuku'alofa, where, for years, he groomed and sexually abused numerous male students, some of whom lived with him," court documents showed. "Purdy allegedly provided gifts, including electronic decives and access to the internet, food, toys and money, in exchange for the performance of sexual acts." He is believed to have secretly recorded young boys in his bathroom at his various apartments in the capital. He was arrested by Tongan police in October 2022, after an eight-year-old school boy disclosed that Purdy sexually assaulted him during their tutoring sessions. However, he continued to offend after being released on bail from prison and in March 2023, with a trial looming, fled the country using a fake passport. Richard Hunter, the Mormon Church's spokesperson for the Pacific area, said the organisation was taking the allegations "very seriously". "It is unclear at this stage if he was involved in abuse as a missionary with us, my colleagues in Tonga were unaware of this until now," said Hunter, who is based in Auckland. However, he admitted that it was "absolutely possible" that offending did occur while he was working with children on his mission. "If our mission leaders in Tonga were aware of this, he would have been sent home immediately for breaking both the law and the commandments of God." "We feel very sad for those whose lives have been impacted so horrendously. I'm hoping there will be opportunities in Tonga for victims to receive love and support from our congregations. He said the church was co-operating with the police in Tonga and the US in all aspects of their pre-trial investigations. Homeland security investigations and diplomatic security service are investigating the case, with the help of Tongan police and the Tongan department of public prosecutions. The investigation has so far identified 14 victims throughout Tonga. "The defendant chose to travel abroad under the guise of good intentions and then sexually exploited and abused children who had been trusted to his care," said acting assistant attorney-general General Matthew Galeotti of the US justice department's criminal division. "When foreign authorities sought to hold him accountable, he fled back to the US. The US will not export child exploitation. The department is committed to securing justice for children exploited overseas when these heinous acts are committed by Americans." Galeotti said. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Philadelphia special agent in charge Edward Owens said Purdy's actions represented a "profound betrayal of trust and have caused immeasurable harm to the young lives he was supposed to protect and nurture." "Our global reach and partnerships are crucial in our relentless fight against child predators, ensuring that those who exploit and abuse children, no matter where they are, are brought to justice," Owens said. In Tonga In New Zealand
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The spiritual significance of Independence Day
Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teach that July 4, the day the Declaration of Independence was adopted in 1776, has spiritual as well as historical and political significance. From Joseph Smith to current church leadership, these religious authorities have affirmed the divine inspiration of America's founding documents. By outlining the heavenly origin of human rights, the Declaration of Independence broke with centuries of monarchy to establish a foundation for religious and civil freedoms that the existence of the church depends on. Here is a collection of statements from church leaders about the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution and the founding of the United States of America gathered from church historical documents and publications: President Joseph Smith March 1839: 'The Constitution of the United States is a glorious standard. It is founded in the wisdom of God. It is a heavenly banner.' July 1843: 'It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul. Civil and religious liberty were diffused into my soul by my grandfathers, while they dandled me on their knees.' October 1843: 'I am the greatest advocate of the Constitution of the United States there is on the earth. In my feelings I am always ready to die for the protection of the weak and oppressed in their just rights.' President Brigham Young July 1854: 'The signers of the Declaration of Independence and the framers of the Constitution were inspired from on high to do that work.' President Wilford Woodruff April 1898: 'Those men who laid the foundation of this American government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of heaven could find on the face of the earth. They were choice spirits, not wicked men. General Washington and all the men that labored for the purpose were inspired of the Lord.' President David O. McKay October 1939: 'Next to being one in worshiping God there is nothing in this world upon which this church should be more united than in upholding and defending the Constitution of the United States.' President J. Reuben Clark April 1957: 'I declare that the divine sanction thus repeatedly given by the Lord himself to the Constitution of the United States as it came from the hands of the framers with its coterminous Bill of Rights, makes of the principles of that document an integral part of my religious faith. It is a revelation from the Lord. I believe and reverence its God-inspired provisions.' President N. Eldon Tanner April 1976: 'No constitution on earth has endured longer than this one. ... It was and is a miracle. ... It is an inspired document written under the guidance of the Lord. ... We believe that the Constitution was brought about by God to ensure a nation where liberty could abound and where his gospel could flourish.' Elder L. Tom Perry June 1976: 'The Lord himself said that he raised up 'wise men' for the purpose of founding the United States' constitutional government, a form of government that has been modeled and patterned after all over the world because it provides the kind of freedom, agency, and opportunity our Father's children need in order for them to grow, mature and develop.' President Ezra Taft Benson October 1976: 'The Declaration of Independence to which these great men affixed their signatures is much more than a political document. It constitutes a spiritual manifesto — revelation, if you will — declaring not for this nation only, but for all nations, the source of man's rights." President Gordon B. Hinckley August 1999: 'Both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States were brought forth under the inspiration of God to establish and maintain the freedom of the people of this nation. I said it, and I believe it to be true. There is a miracle in its establishment that cannot be explained in any other way.' President Russell M. Nelson May 2004: 'Thomas Jefferson, the author of the American Declaration of Independence, wrote that men are entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The pursuit of happiness is not possible without the ability to pursue personal purpose in life and to seek knowledge of one's relationship to the divine.' President Dallin H. Oaks April 2021: 'Our belief in divine inspiration gives Latter-day Saints a unique responsibility to uphold and defend the United States Constitution and principles of constitutionalism wherever we live.' Elder Quentin L. Cook October 2021: 'In our doctrine we believe that in the host country for the Restoration, the United States, the U.S. Constitution and related documents, written by imperfect men, were inspired by God to bless all people.'
Washington Post
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
‘Joseph Smith' is a clear-eyed biography of the Mormon founder
Perhaps a true-to-life biography of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon Church, can never be written. Smith's claims to accessing the divine were too outlandish, his embrace of polygamy too priapic, his messianic political ambitions too obviously insane. (In addition to running for president in 1844, he formed a council to establish world governance after the Second Coming of Christ.) If he were a musician, Smith would be Jerry Lee Lewis, not Tennessee Ernie Ford. He was just too rock and roll.
Washington Post
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Supreme Court to hear case on IQ tests and death penalty next term
The Supreme Court will hear a case next term centered on the role of multiple IQ scores in determining an Alabama murderer's eligibility for the death penalty, according to a list issued by the court late Friday. In Hamm v. Smith, the state of Alabama is arguing that Joseph Smith — who was sentenced to death for a murder in 1997 — should be executed because he has not proved that his IQ is 70 or below, as required by state law. However, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama vacated Smith's death sentence after ruling he is intellectually disabled because the score on one of his IQ tests could fall below 70 when accounting for margin of error. Smith had obtained five IQ scores that ranged from 72 to 78. The Supreme Court justices agreed to hear Hamm v. Smith to determine a limited question: 'Whether and how courts may consider the cumulative effect of multiple IQ scores in assessing an Atkins claim,' referring to the 2002 landmark decision Atkins v. Virginia, which ruled that executing those with intellectual disabilities violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. In November, the Supreme Court issued a per curiam decision to remand the case for further consideration. In it, the justices said that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit — which had affirmed the lower court's decision to vacate Smith's death sentence — had been unclear in why it had issued that decision. In February, the state of Alabama again asked the Supreme Court to intervene, saying the Eleventh Circuit 'watered down the most objective prong of the test, overrode Alabama's definition of intellectual disability, and shattered Atkins's promise to leave meaningful discretion to the States.' 'This case was not close: Smith scored 75, 74, 72, 78, and 74 on five full-scale IQ tests. There is no way to conclude from these five numbers that Smith's true IQ is likely to be 70 or below,' the state of Alabama argued, also adding that evaluating multiple IQ scores is 'complicated' and that the Supreme Court has not specified how to do it. 'Smith could take hundreds of IQ tests, score 75 on all of them, yet his IQ still 'could be' 70, according to the panel [the Eleventh Circuit], because every test could have erred by 5 points. The panel failed to appreciate that multiple tests together can provide a more accurate estimate than each test alone,' the state argued. The Supreme Court's next term is scheduled to begin in October. The list of new cases was not expected until Monday morning, but email notifications about the list were inadvertently sent Friday evening because of a technical glitch, so the court chose to release the list of cases earlier than scheduled. In a statement that accompanied the early release, court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe said the notifications were sent prematurely because of an 'apparent software malfunction.' Justin Jouvenal contributed to this report.
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Supreme Court to consider use of multiple IQ tests in case of Alabama death row inmate
WASHINGTON − More than two decades after the Supreme Court said inmates who are intellectually disabled can't be executed, the court will consider how to deal with multiple intelligence tests in evaluating close calls. The court on June 6 said it would take up the case of Alabama death row inmate Joseph Smith, who was convicted and sentenced to death for a brutal murder in 1997. Smith's IQ scores have ranged from 72 to 78. Because IQ tests have an error range, lower courts said Smith's IQ could be below 70, one of the factors for defining intellectual disability. But the state argues that when five test scores are all above 70, it's unlikely that Smith's IQ is 70 or below. The Justice Department similarly told the Supreme Court that some lower courts are confused about how to evaluate multiple IQ tests under Supreme Court rules for what counts as cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment. "That confusion prevents states from implementing lawful capital punishment," lawyers for the Justice Department wrote in a brief urging the court to get involved. Lawyers for Smith countered that the Supreme Court has previously said there's no precise math equation for determining an intellectual disability. Related: Alabama sets date to execute Gregory Hunt This isn't the first time the high court has considered a request from Alabama to take up Smith's case. After sitting on the case for more than a year, the court in November ordered the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to clarify why it backed the trial judge's determination that Smith is intellectually disabled and can't be executed. Related: Alabama executes James Osgood for 2010 rape and murder In a brief opinion, the court said it couldn't tell if the appeals court used a holistic approach to weighing the evidence about Smith's disability or relied primarily on his lowest-possible IQ score. The justices noted that the Supreme Court hadn't previously said how courts should evaluate multiple IQ scores. In response, the appeals court said it considered the entire record. In addition to IQ, other factors that define intellectual disability are 'significant or substantial deficits in adaptive behavior' and the onset of those qualities before age 18. 'Clinicians who attempt to diagnose whether an individual has significantly subaverage intellectual functioning do not limit themselves to IQ tests,' the appeals court wrote. Multiple IQ tests with similar results are not sufficient, the court said, because the test itself may be consistently flawed or improperly given. Smith was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1997 murder of Durk Van Dam, who received 35 blunt force injuries and wounds from a saw on his neck, shoulder and back. U.S. District Judge Callie V. S. Granade called the evaluation of Smith's mental functioning a 'close case' but wrote 'the evidence indicates that Smith's intelligence and adaptive functioning has been deficient throughout his life.' This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Supreme Court to consider use of IQ tests in Alabama death row case
