September Six

In September and October 1993, six prominent Mormon intellectuals and feminists were expelled from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (The LDS Church, also known as the "Mormons"). The Salt Lake Tribune dubbed these individuals the "September Six", a nicely alliterate name which was popularly referred to in the media.

Church Measures Against the September Six

Except for Lynne Kanavel Whitesides, all of the September Six were excommunicated. Whitesides was only disfellowshipped. According to LDS Church policy, this meant she could return to full fellowship without re-baptism. Excommunicated members may be rebaptized and enjoy full fellowship after repentance is demonstrated. However, as of 2004, four of the September Six are not members of the LDS church -- the exceptions are Avraham Gileadi, who was rebaptized, and Whitesides, who is still a disfellowshipped member.

The September Six

The following details the alleged reasons for church disciplinary action (the Church does not make details of disciplinary councils public) and in many cases, the current relationship to Mormonism.

• Lynne Kanavel Whitesides - feminist noted for speaking on the "Mother in Heaven." Whitesides was the first of the September six to experience church discipline. She was disfellowshipped September 14.

Whitesides has not returned to activity in the church again as of 2004. Reports state that she has pursued a personal spiritual growth by searching for a more feminine conception of God.

• Avraham Gileadi - Old Testament scholar. He authored a book about Isaiah and the last days. Details of why he was excommunicated on September 15 are not available.

Gileadi, not considered a liberal like the others, has been re-baptized, and is an active member of the church. He has since written Isaiah Decoded, a book sold by LDS-owned Deseret Book.

• Paul Toscano - Salt Lake City attorney who authored a controversial book, Strangers in Paradox (1990), which questioned Church leadership. He was excommunicated September 19.

Toscano has stated that he lost his faith and said he feels remorse only for being so angry at the LDS Church. His wife Margaret Toscano was also excommunicated in November 2000.

• Maxine Hanks - feminist writer who edited the book Women and Authority: Re-emerging Mormon Feminism (1992). She was excommunicated September 19.

Hanks still speaks on Mormon issues, however, in a ten-year retrospective article published in 1992). She was excommunicated September 23.

Anderson still attends church though a non-member. She supported her son who went on a two-year LDS mission. Though officially not a member of the church, she still writes on Mormon issues, and published a book in 2001 on Lucy Mack Smith, the mother of LDS Church-founder Joseph Smith.

• D. Michael Quinn - Mormon revisionist historian. Among other things, he documented LDS Church-sanctioned polygamy from 1890 until 1910, after the 1890 Manifesto when they officially abandoned the doctrine. He was excommunicated September 26.

Quinn affirmed his testimony of church doctrine during and after his excommunication. He refused to attend the proceeding because, as he explained in a letter to his stake President Paul Hanks, "I vowed I would never again participate in a process which was designed to punish me for being the messenger of unwanted historical evidence and to intimidate me from further work in Mormon history." Though he still believes Mormon Doctrines, Quinn will likely never return to the church partially because he is now openly promotes and practices homosexuality. Quinn's views and work of Mormon history are controversial and his research theories and findings have been denounced by both Mormon and non-Mormon historians.

Causes

Several of the September Six including Quinn and Anderson claim that a handful of General Authorities, notably Boyd K. Packer, orchestrated the excommunications. Anecdotes from individuals who attended excommunication council hearings suggest that stake presidents received directives from above to discipline influential liberal individuals and so-called Mormon intellectuals as a local decision. To some, the apparently synchronized buildup of warnings and councils over the summer of 1993 suggest that General Authorities conceived of and oversaw the disciplinary measures.

For example, the excommunicated feminists challenged assumptions of a male-only priesthood in the Church. Because only priesthood holders may preside, this means only males can serve in general leadership positions, something feminists criticize, particularly feminists outside the LDS Church. Feminists also rankled the all-male patriarchy by suggesting that women pray to their "Mother in Heaven" A Heavenly mother theoretically exists in Mormon theology and has little official recognition outside of the 1845 hymn O My Father by Eliza R. Snow.

Quinn and Gileadi likewise seemed to challenge official church positions. At the least they published research without regard for official history or millennial doctrines respectively.

Toscano, on the other hand, directly attacked church leadership.

Reaction

Very little sympathy was found for the September Six within the mainstream Mormon community. The event is not well remembered by most faithful and the church itself does not comment on it.

However, the event was very important to "liberal," that is, more heterodox, Mormons. Members were advised by the Church in 1990 to refrain from attending unorthodox symposia that seem to stray too far from orthodoxy.

To Mormon feminists, the event echoed the 1979 excommunication of feminist Sonia Johnson. It seemed to deliver a message about how the conservative Church views feminist critics within the Church.