Web photos show LDS missionaries damaging a Catholic shrine in the San Luis Valley

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Church to vote on vandalism charges
**Web photos show LDS missionaries damaging a Catholic shrine in the San Luis Valley.**By MATT HILDNER
THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN

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SAN LUIS - Officials of the Sangre de Cristo Catholic Church here may decide today whether to file charges against three Mormon missionaries in the 2006 vandalism of a local shrine.

Church members earlier this week found Internet photos that showed them vandalizing the Shrine of the Mexican Martyrs in 2006 and mocking the Roman Catholic faith.

A regional missionary official for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has acknowledged the men depicted in the photos were missionaries working in the San Luis Valley that year, and said the church would discipline the men. He would not, however, identify them.

Sangre de Cristo Catholic Church members discovered a Web photo Thursday that showed an LDS missionary holding the severed head of a statue at the shrine, which sits next to the Stations of the Cross on a mesa above town. Townspeople since found the head had been placed back on the statue.

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visit the Pueblo Chieftain for the full story: chieftain.com/metro/1205113198/1
 
A regional missionary official for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has acknowledged the men depicted in the photos were missionaries working in the San Luis Valley that year, and said the church would discipline the men. He would not, however, identify them.
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The official should be locked up immediately and charge with obstruction of justice.

I am just glad I live in an apartment complex that does not allow solicitation.
 
I say Fr. Pat should take these “elders” on a weekend retreat and teach them the authentic beliefs of the church and the history of the martyrs they mocked. Let the Holy Spirit do the rest…
 
To all my Catholic friends, those I know and those I don’t: I want to express my sincerest apologies for the actions of those who represent the church I am a member of. I am deeply saddened to think that there are those who profess to teach Christ, yet disgrace and dishonor not only Him, but shamefully dishonor the memory of those the shrine honors as well. I am grateful for all of the good that the Catholic church has done around the world, and am especially grateful for my Catholic friends who I admire and respect. Yes, take these young men and teach them stories behind the art, and maybe their hearts will be softened that they will understand the offense for which they are guilty; and yes, let them suffer the consequences of their crimes - both in the LDS Church and through the laws of the land.
 
KupunaKane said:
To all my Catholic friends, those I know and those I don’t: I want to express my sincerest apologies for the actions of those who represent the church I am a member of. I am deeply saddened to think that there are those who profess to teach Christ, yet disgrace and dishonor not only Him, but shamefully dishonor the memory of those the shrine honors as well. I am grateful for all of the good that the Catholic church has done around the world, and am especially grateful for my Catholic friends who I admire and respect. Yes, take these young men and teach them stories behind the art, and maybe their hearts will be softened that they will understand the offense for which they are guilty; and yes, let them suffer the consequences of their crimes - both in the LDS Church and through the laws of the land.
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Thank you for this note. I’m sure the faithful at Sangre De Cristo would appreciate it.

I never condem an entire group on the actions of a few.
 
Assuming that in fact the desecration happened pretty much as it appears it has done, it is likely that these returned missionaries will face severe penalties from the LDS Church itself. If they are convicted of criminal vandalism, the church discipline is likely to include disfellowshipping or excommunication. Even if there is no criminal conviction, the young men will likely have Church privileges suspended: they will not be allowed to hold LDS Church offices for some period of time, will be excluded from Sacrament (Holy Communion), and may be required to surrender their temple recommends. The penalties will remain in force for several months or up to a year, and the young men may even have to be re-baptised in order to be restored to full standing within the LDS Church.
 
There seem to be an awful lot of Mormons on this site. I wonder why?
The news floating around on the internet on this desecration is pretty scarce, but I think it’s safe to say the “LDS” is in damage-control mode.
Although “elders will be elders,” I think a case could be made for financial liability on the part of the Mormon hierarchy itself, who trained and sent them out as agents of their organization.
Catholics need to wake up and realize that these missionaries are targeting our brothers and sisters all over the world. They’ll claim they don’t believe that our Church is the Wh*re of Babylon, but that’s because they lump all their opponents (but especially the Church) under that name, because we oppose the “restored gospel” that only they possess. Let’s turn the other cheek and not respond in kind, but let’s also stand up for the Truth, like St Paul who stood up for his civil rights!
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peregrinus_WA said:
The official should be locked up immediately and charge with obstruction of justice.

I am just glad I live in an apartment complex that does not allow solicitation.
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Bit hasty, aren’t you? An awful lot of seculr folks would say the same thing about a catholic priest who knew the names of people who had committed crimes but won’t say who they are. (Ever hear of the seal of the confessional?). No way should the elders be criminally responsible.

BUT, the LDS missionaries were official representatives of the LDS church. The LDS Church ought to be responsible for financial restitution.
 
manualman said:
Bit hasty, aren’t you? An awful lot of seculr folks would say the same thing about a catholic priest who knew the names of people who had committed crimes but won’t say who they are. (Ever hear of the seal of the confessional?). No way should the elders be criminally responsible.

BUT, the LDS missionaries were official representatives of the LDS church. The LDS Church ought to be responsible for financial restitution.
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Nope. The person made a public statement saying that they know who the ones in the pictures are and will not release the names of the criminals. There is no comparison between the Seal of Confession and this criminal obstruction.
 
I don’t think he was asked to identify them by law enforcement authorities since no criminal complaint had been filed. I know of no obligation for anyone to reveal identities simply to provide the press with a headline.

It would probably be best not to call them criminals at least until charges are filed against them. I don’t think there is a crime until a complaint is filed.
 
Mark my words, once you set legal precedent that a religious leader can be prosecuted for failing to disclose what he knows about a crime, priests will be jailed for NOT violating the confessional.

Careful what you wish for.
 
Missionaries Probed in Shrine Vandalism
By DAN ELLIOTT – 1 hour ago
SAN LUIS, Colo. (AP) — Photos posted on the Internet show three Mormon missionaries mocking a Catholic shrine and holding the broken head of a statue of a saint there, a church official said.
Costilla County Sheriff Gilbert Martinez said deputies on Monday were beginning to investigate whether the men vandalized the Shrine of the Mexican Martyrs at the Chapel of All Saints, which stands on a butte overlooking San Luis.
The photos show young men holding the broken head of a statue, preaching from the Book of Mormon at an altar and pretending to sacrifice one another.
The vandalism apparently occurred in 2006, though damage to the statue went unnoticed until last week, when a parish member saw the photos on the picture-sharing Internet site Photobucket. They have since been taken down.
“The community is sad; it feels they’ve been victimized,” Sangre de Cristo Parish Council spokesman Alonzo Payne said Monday. The parish has nine churches and about 450 families across Costilla County.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued a statement Monday saying its missionaries “were evidently responsible” for the incident and offered “profound regret and sincere apologies” to Catholics and to the San Luis church.
Bruce Olsen, a spokesman for the church in its Salt Lake City headquarters, said church officials have given authorities the names of the missionaries believed to have been involved. The names have not been made public.
One was still serving in Colorado when the allegations surfaced; he has been disciplined and his mission has been ended, Bruce said. Others allegedly involved had already been sent home and will face church discipline, Bruce said.
The damaged statue seen in one of the photos depicts Manuel Morales, who was the 28-year-old president of Mexico’s National League for the Defense of Religious Liberty when he was executed in 1926 for refusing to recognize laws he considered anti-religion. He was among more than two dozen Mexican saints canonized in 2000.
The broken head had gone unnoticed because it had been placed back on the statue. The parish council, based near the New Mexico line in San Luis, voted Sunday to ask for the investigation.
The sheriff said charges could include desecration of a venerated object, criminal trespass, defacing property and bias-motivated crime.
Payne would not rule out a lawsuit seeking the cost of replacing or repairing the statue. The Rev. Patrick Valdez, the parish pastor, referred questions to Payne.
Photobucket released a statement saying that it had no record of the shrine photos but that its rules forbid content that is illegal, obscene or threatening.
 
I’m not sure that there are a lot of LDS members on this site. If so, the sense I get is that of deep sorrow for how representatives of the Church have conducted themselves; and for the complete disregard for the beliefs of another. As for the sense of exclusion that is attributed to Mormonism, this is not unique. Christians in general condemn non-Christians and believe that they will not be saved unless they, in some fashion or another accept Christ as their personal Savior. In a similar vein, when my sister, a good Mormon girl chose to marry my brother-in-law, a good Catholic boy, he was asked not to return to church. I think that policy and doctrine aside, a horrible deed was done, and apologies are owed. It has nothing to do with damage control. It has to do with showing respect. Even if you don’t accept Mormonism and others do not accept Catholicism, the reality is that both were egregiously persecuted, and good people lost their lives defending what they believed. The shrine that was desecrated honors just those people and those responsible need to answer for their behaviors, and all I can do is say that I’m sorry for their conduct. I am hoping that the world is as kind to those of other faiths when their representative behave in ways that dishonor their values and beliefs.
 
I agree with what someone said in the replies to an article covering this sad development on the Deseret News website, owned by the LDS Church: there are foolish people in every church.

I am a Latter-Day Saint, and have Catholic friends. I am aware of some LDS people that have said hurtful things about the Catholic church, but I know the vast majority of Latter-Day Saints are respectful of all religions, especially ones as devout as Catholicism.

I think these missionaries were just being foolish boys, allowing the strain of full-time missionary service far away from their home communities to cause them to forget the sacred calling they have, and the example of the Savior they are expected to follow. It is a reminder for all of us that foolish actions, even if not intended to harm anyone, can have enormous consequences.

My heart goes out to the Catholic people of this parish and hope that their faith in God’s Son will heal the hurt caused by these foolish youths.
 
While my experiences with the LDS indicate a general lack of respect for other religions by the LDS as a whole, the LDS do not, as a rule, engage in vandalism.

They are generally law-abiding, simple folk, with a serious misinterpretation of scripture, but a whole lot of willingness to do good works.

I’ve a few friends who are ex-mormons, and several mormons I’ve worked with… and this type of behavior is far from what any of them consider appropriate: both the vandalism and the willingness to cover it up.

I do hope the parish presses charges, and the responsible kids get the hate crimes endorsement on their charges.
 
To KupunaKane and DcHoughton,

We appreciate your values. Now we would ask you to come home to the real one true church founded by Jesus Christ ~ the Catholic Church.

To paraphrase a common Mormon testimony ~ “I know the Catholic Church is true, I know that Jesus Christ founded the Church, I know that Benedict XVI, the current Pope, is the current head of the Church and he derives his authority from St. Peter.”

Jesus promised us that the Catholic Church would survive. It has. It’s the real church founded by Jesus Christ, no “restoration” required. Come home. Join the church founded by Jesus Christ instead of the one founded by Joseph Smith.
 
peregrinus_WA said:
The official should be locked up immediately and charge with obstruction of justice.

I am just glad I live in an apartment complex that does not allow solicitation.
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Seems the official plays the same game the Catholic Church does 😉
 
Wow, Mormons acually have the balls to mock others? With your ridiculous, made-up religion? lolol…WTF is wrong with you idiots? I don’t know which religion is dumber, you pathetic retards with your Joseph Smith or Muslims with their 50 virgins and allah. It’s amazing how many complete ***holes there are in this world. South Park hit the nail on the head with their episode about you morons. God, you people are idiots.
 
Jodeci23 said:
Wow, Mormons acually have the …
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I for one, applaud this post while it still stands as I expect it to be deleted soon.

Anyway, a bunch of annoying heretics. If they would have tried this back in the old country, we’d have their skins covering the walls of our town.
 
mschrank said:
I for one, applaud this post while it still stands as I expect it to be deleted soon.

Anyway, a bunch of annoying heretics. If they would have tried this back in the old country, we’d have their skins covering the walls of our town.
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what is your old country?
 
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