SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Mormon church leaders have apologized to the family of Holocaust survivor and Jewish rights advocate Simon Wiesenthal after his parents were posthumously baptized in a Mormon temple ritual last month.
Salt Lake City researcher Helen Radkey found documentation of the baptism while conducting regular checks of a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints genealogical database last week.
Mormons believe posthumous baptism by proxy rites allow deceased persons to receive the Gospel in the afterlife.
The baptism of Holocaust victims was supposed to be barred by a 1995 agreement between the church and Jews, although some submissions continue by church members.
Church officials say the person who entered the names into the database has been disciplined.
In a statement, the California-based Wiesenthal Center expressed outrage and called the rite insensitive.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
How about barring ANY religion being posthumous baptism?!!! I don’t want this either and I know plenty who don’t as well!
Mormons have no right to do any of this. Don’t ever contact them for the history of your family! That is where they get names to do this among other ways.
It is down right disgusting. If people wanted to be mormon, they would do it in life, not in death. Quit messing with our rights.
So you wish a lot of things on people when they are alive; when they are dead
it doesn’t mean anything.
People get ‘insulted’ by the strangest stuff and this borders on the ridiculous.
Religion = Bigotry……..go figure
If you don’t believe in it, what is the issue? Not any different than any other voo-doo ceremony. It isn’t real. Personally, I am amused by all the people upset by it.
If the Mormon church isn’t true, then why would what they do bother someone?
It’s like if an idiot called me an idiot. What’s the point of being offended if I know I’m not an idiot?
It’s a propaganda move. The more people the Mormons “baptize” the more “members” they say they have. When they tout big numbers people who can’t think for themselves think “oh, if there are that many members, there must be something great about that religion.” And the beat goes on. It’s a cult.
Mormon church I believe was established in 1830 ? Jehovah’s Witness 1879 ? Catholicism 1045 ? Orthodox Church 33 AD all other religions spun off the Orthodox church. Just saying.