Is it a stretch of the imagination to draw parallels between Captain William Morgan (1774-1826), possibly the founder of the anti-Mason movement, and Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the founder of Mormonism? What similarity of beliefs do an anti-Mason and a Mormon share? How did the paths of the two cross? The answers will surprise you.

Captain William Morgan is popularly linked to the anti-Freemason movement. He tried to become a founding member of a new Masonic lodge in Batavia, New York in 1826. He claimed that he was a member of another lodge, which should have warranted his inclusion in the new Batavia establishment. However, his request to join the new lodge was refused. In retaliation, Morgan threatened to publish a book revealing the secrets of Freemasonry. Attempts were made to remove Morgan from citizenship. False charges were brought against him and he was arrested twice. The first time, a friend and fellow anti-Freemason, David C. Miller, bailed him out of jail. After the second arrest, Morgan was rescued by an unknown person (believed to be a Freemason) and “taken away” from Batavia. He was never seen again, for sure.

Joseph Smith is recognized as the founder of Mormonism. His followers believed that he was a prophet whose mission was to restore the original Christian church. Joseph Smith is said to have received “plates” from an angel, the resurrected prophet Moroni, on which a book was transcribed. This text would be known as the Book of Mormon. Joseph Smith is also said to have been visited by John the Baptist and the disciples of Jesus Christ in revelations. Some people did not believe the story of the delivery of the hidden plates to Joseph Smith and accused him of being an impostor. Ultimately, he was murdered for treason in the state of Illinois, although there was much controversy surrounding the details of his death.

At the time of William Morgan’s disappearance, he was married. After his disappearance and his alleged murder, his widow, Lucinda, married Joseph Smith and became one of his many wives, since the Mormon religion allowed polygamy (having more than one wife). at the same time). The issue of polygamy was one on which Freemasons and Mormons disagreed. Masonic lodges in Utah and Nevada prohibited Mormons from joining a Masonic lodge for many decades because of this disagreement.

Members of Freemasonry alleged that the Mormon church adopted many of the Masonic rituals and ceremonies as its own, copying their “rites of passage” so to speak. Some believe that this precipitated the death of Captain Morgan. Followers of Joseph Smith do not claim any affiliation with the Freemasons. They do, however, admit to “borrowing” some of the elements of the ceremony, but say that’s where the similarity ends. Mormon church leaders say the central concepts of their religion belong to authentic sources referenced in the Bible.

To present a strong affiliation between Morgan and the Mormon church, Morgan was one of the first to receive the “baptism for the dead” granted in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon church). Baptism for the dead is “proxy” baptism, after the fact, for someone who has passed away.

In 1842, Joseph Smith was said to have joined a Masonic lodge in Nauvoo, Illinois, achieved the rank of Master Mason on the second day, stayed there for six months, and then was dismissed from the lodge for alleged irregularities due to failure to follow rules. and official Masonic regulations. When the chapter was first founded, Smith, like Morgan, was initially denied admission.

Also like Freemasonry, members of the Mormon Church did not want their ceremonies and rituals published. To have published such material would have been an offense against the groups. In order to participate in Mormon temple ceremonies, you must have a letter of recommendation from local church leaders. Similarly, to become a Freemason, you must be invited by a current member.

Other similarities between the two men include:

• Both men were persecuted in 1826 in New York.
• Both men were trying to put out records that others didn’t want released (The Illustration of masonry by one of the fraternity and the Book of Mormon).
• Both men left New York state under duress. Joseph Smith decided that Missouri would be a more conducive environment for his new church, and he was forced to move from there to Illinois. While William Morgan was kidnapped and presumed killed, there were alleged sightings of Morgan in Boston, Massachusetts, and as far away as Smynia (present-day Turkey), but no hard evidence ever surfaced.
• Both men were said to have been killed as a result of persecution for their beliefs, but the details surrounding both “murders” remain sketchy and littered with differing accounts of what actually happened.
• Both Freemasons and Mormons refer to each other as “brothers” who are in a sort of fraternity.

Of course, one of the essential differences between the two men is that while Joseph Smith chose to emulate some of the rules and rituals of Masonry, William Morgan (who told others he was once a Mason) turned anti-Mason. In fact, Morgan’s disappearance was the catalyst for an anti-Freemason movement and an entirely new third political party, the Anti-Freemason Party.