Apostles On Trial
By Drew Briney
Synopsis: This book goes into detail about the circumstances surrounding the 1911 membership trials of apostles John W. Taylor and Matthias F. Cowley, who were dropped from the Quorum of the Twelve in 1905 in the wake of the Reed Smoot Hearings pressure on the Church for its continuing practice of plural marriage after 1890. These defrocked apostles were ultimately disciplined by the Church in 1911 in its effort to further distance itself from plural marriage. The book has transcripts of the trials, commentary that provides context, and biographical vignettes of all of the apostles involved in the membership trials. Drew Briney is also the author of the notable Understanding Adam-God Teachings.
Strong Points: This book is highly interesting and a very insightful examination of the circumstances surrounding the membership trials of Elders Taylor and Cowley. Some of the most interesting facts within the book involve finding out how deeply fellow apostles were involved in plural marriage themselves, even post-manifesto, and surprisingly late into the new century, and finding out how it was a prevailing attitude among most apostles for a long time that the 1890 plural marriage Manifesto was essentially to be disregarded. (It seems to me that the Brethren wished that it would act as a means to placate the government and allow the people to continue to live the principle without being bothered. It didn’t work out that way, and now the Manifesto is in full force as written.) Learning the attitudes of the various apostles and Presidents of the Church on post-Manifesto polygamy was a very interesting discovery. This is a fascinating book, particularly for any who are interested in the lives of the apostles, and this turbulent episode in Church History.
Weak Points: Strange errors kept occurring like repeatedly referring to Wilford Woodruff as “Wilford W. Woodruff,” and B.H. Roberts as an apostle (he was a seventy only). Also, a photograph of Francis M. Lyman appeared for the biographical vignette of Matthias F. Cowley. The book also states that Rudger Clawson “was called to the First Presidency in 1921 and served in that capacity until he died in 1943.” (p. 225). This is an error of fact, as apostle Rudger Clawson was only in the First Presidency for a brief time during 1901 with Lorenzo Snow. Apostle Hyrum M. Smith is referred to erroneously as “Henry Smith” several times. On p. 230, it is stated that “Matthias Cowley was a speaker at [George Albert Smith’s 1951] funeral,” but this is an anachronism, since Matthias F. Cowley was dead by 1940. (He must have meant his son Matthew Cowley, a childhood friend of George Albert Smith and who was called into the apostleship by George Albert Smith and died in 1953.) Because of the multiplicity of errors that were apparent from the text, it seems that the book should have had a thorough re-editing prior to going to press.
Interesting: 4.5/5
Must Read: 3.9/5
Overall: 4/5
Pages: 269
Selected Quotes: “Sometime after his membership trial in 1911, Apostle Matthias F. Cowley claimed that he and Apostle John W. Taylor ‘were no more guilty than those who supposedly took action against us.’ His claim is worth of careful scrutiny – and the answer is surprising.
“While a few members of the Twelve who disciplined Apostles Taylor and Cowley were completely uninvolved in new plural marriages after the 1890 manifesto, one married a plural wife in the fall of 1904, another was recently engaged to a potential plural wife (in 1910), at least two others courted potential plural wives after 1890 (one proposed), another approved scores of new plural marriages, and another assisted Apostle Taylor in marrying about ninety couples, a ‘good many’ of which were new plural marriages (in 1897). However, two of those fellow ‘guilty’ apostles did not attend the trials of Apostles Taylor and Cowley and a third attended in relative silence. Amidst this confusion, Apostle Cowley’s trial ultimately led to a two day stalemate that required an unusual compromise.
“Outside pressures complicated the trials as well. The Salt Lake Tribute blasted Apostles Taylor and Cowdery for being ‘notorious’ for performing plural marriages for men ‘who expressed a desire … to defy the law’ and called for a constitutional amendment forever banning polygamy in the U.S.
“With facsimiles of the original trial correspondence (including betrayal letters), original by heavily annotated trial minutes, original scans of newspaper clippings, charts, biographical vignettes of the apostolic jurors, and a thoroughly engaging introduction, Apostles on Trial opens the door to understanding these trials like no publication before it.”
(Back cover).