Jacob Vidrine discusses LeBaron succession! You may have heard of Ervil, Joel, and Ross LeBaron. Who took charge after Alma Dayer LeBaron died? Check out our conversation….

When the name LeBaron is mentioned in discussions of Mormon fundamentalism, often the first person who comes to mind is the notorious Ervil LeBaron, a murderer who had a hit list and was a murderer and died in jail. However, the complex history of the LeBaron family and their unique claims to priesthood authority—separate from most other fundamentalist groups like the FLDS, AUB, and Woolley-ites—reveals a fascinating succession crisis rooted deep in Nauvoo-era doctrine.

We will discuss how the LeBarons obtained their distinct authority and how their patriarch’s death fractured the family into multiple competing groups across Utah and Mexico.

Peculiar Lineage: Tracing Authority to Benjamin F. Johnson

Unlike the majority of fundamentalists who trace their authority back to the 1886 revelation received by John Taylor (the Woolley line), the LeBaron authority stems from a different source. This lineage is traced to Benjamin F. Johnson, a close friend of Joseph Smith and a member of the secretive Council of 50.

The LeBaron authority claim relies on the concept of the “fullness of the priesthood” or the “highest order of the priesthood,” authority that Joseph Smith introduced in Nauvoo. This highest order involved making men “kings and priests” and conferring the sealing power. Johnson, who emphasized his role as the “last living original member of the Council of 50,” taught that Joseph Smith authorized him to teach these keys—plural marriage, endowments, garments, and the second anointing—to others when led by the Holy Spirit.

This unique priesthood was considered “above the church,” creating an authority that “no tribunal in the church could control.” Johnson, near his death (circa 1903-1905), charged his grandson, Alma Dayer “Dayer” LeBaron Sr., to carry on this special family birthright and the work of the kingdom.Hesitant Patriarch and the Failed Succession

Dayer LeBaron Sr., born in 1886, entered into plural marriage in the 1920s and moved his family to Mexico to escape prosecution, spending the rest of his life carving out a homestead there. Due to his secretive nature (leading to the nickname “The Silent Prophet”) and the mental decline of his intended firstborn successor, Benjamin. Dayer was hesitant to teach his younger children about his specific authority claims.

By 1950, Dayer’s health was failing rapidly; he was bedridden, suffering from paralysis, and could barely communicate. This severe decline set the stage for a succession crisis, as Dayer maintained that he could not appoint a successor “until the Holy Ghost tells me who to appoint.”

The resulting conflict split the family authority claims into three main groups:

  1. Benjamin (Ben): The oldest son, who had experienced mental episodes and claimed to be “the one mighty and strong,” attempted to coax a blessing from his dying father, causing distress among the family.
  2. Joel LeBaron: One of the younger sons living in Mexico, Joel was told that the birthright was his “if I don’t give it to one of the other boys.” This vague pronouncement was hardly a solid foundation for leadership.
  3. Ross Wesley LeBaron (Wesley): The second oldest son, who spent most of his life ministering in Utah, had already received a patriarchal blessing from his father in 1950, conferring keys of the patriarchal order of priesthood (the keys restored by Moses, Elias, and Elijah in Kirtland.) Ross was prevented from traveling to his father’s deathbed in Mexico because he was under bond in Utah related to polygamy.

Ross claimed he received a revelation urging him not to ask for the “birthright” title, but instead to ask for a “commission to carry on the patriarchal work.” This revelation emphasized a key tenet of his ministry: “the honor is in the work, not the title.”

The Split: Utah vs. Mexico LeBaron Succession

Dayer LeBaron ultimately died in 1951 without clearly naming a successor.

The lack of clear leadership led to an immediate schism:

  • Ross LeBaron in Utah: Ross stood on the independent authority he had been commissioned to carry on and began proclaiming himself as the successor, claiming he had received the voice of the spirit telling him the patriarchal work was now on his shoulders. He established his group simply as The Church of the Firstborn.
  • The Mexico LeBarons: Joel, Ervil, and Alma Jr. (the Mexico sons) initially failed to accept their father’s priesthood authority fully. They reached out to the broader fundamentalist community, inviting Margarito Bautista to come organize them. They sustained Bautista and accepted the leadership of Rulon Allred (the proto-AUB group) for several years, from 1951 up to 1955.
  • Joel’s Church: In 1955, Joel split off from the AUB/Woolley influence to found The Church of the Firstborn in the Fullness of Times in Mexico, which grew to a significant size, peaking at several thousand members.
  • The Violent End: Joel’s success was tragically cut short when Ervil LeBaron, who was Joel’s second-in-command, had a schism with Joel, leading to Ervil being excommunicated. Ervil went on to found the Church of the Lamb of God and committed the terrible acts of violence and murder that brought the LeBaron name infamy. Ervil was responsible for not only his brother Joel’s death, but Rulon Allred as well.

The history of the LeBarons illustrates how complex foundational priesthood claims, combined with vague successions and sibling rivalries, led to divergent paths—one emphasizing ministry (Ross) and others ending in notoriety and violence (Ervil.)

Will there be polygamy in heaven? We’re diving into Ross LeBaron story with Jacob Vidrine of the Church of the Firstborn. I’ll also ask Jacob if polygamy a requirement for the Celestial Kingdom. Will it be monogamy or polygamy in heaven? His answer surprised me! We discuss Law of Adoption & the Manifesto ending polygamy in the LDS Church as well.

Nauvoo Foundation: Priesthood Above Church

To understand the LeBaron claim, one must look back to Nauvoo Mormonism, where Joseph Smith introduced the concept of higher orders of priesthood. This “highest order of the Melchizedek Priesthood” was often referred to as the “fullness of the priesthood” and involved making men and women “kings and priests” in temple ordinances.

Associated with this was the Council of 50, which Joseph Smith established just months before his death as the “literal government” or “political kingdom of God on the earth.” Historical evidence suggests that the Council of 50 was intended to be a presiding priesthood body that held authority no church tribunal could control.

Benjamin F. Johnson was one of the men added to the Council of 50 on March 26, 1844, just before Joseph Smith’s death. Johnson was a close friend of Joseph Smith and was taught directly about plural marriage, endowments, garments, and the Second Anointing. Johnson later asserted that he was authorized by Joseph Smith “to teach this to others when I’m was led to do so.”

After the Council of 50 ceased meeting (it became defunct after 1885/1911 when Joseph F. Smith denied the request to reconvene it), Johnson emphasized that he was the last living original member of the Council of 50.

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Transmission of the Birthright

The LeBaron authority claim rests on Johnson passing this special, secret Nauvoo authority—which included the Fullness of the Priesthood and involvement in the Kingdom of God structure—to his grandson, Alma Dayer LeBaron (Dayer.)

This transfer of keys was unusual because it bypassed Dayer’s own father, Benjamin Franklin LeBaron. The LeBaron family justified this by drawing analogies to the Old Testament, such as Jacob appointing Ephraim the birthright over his older brother Manasseh.

The lineage runs: Joseph Smith à  Benjamin F. Johnson à Alma Dayer LeBaron.

The family tradition holds that in the mid-1890s, when Dayer was about 10 years old, Johnson gave him a patriarchal blessing appointing him to hold the “birthright of Joseph Smith.” This “birthright” concept relates to special blessings given in the Nauvoo Temple, granting “special authority to authorize the temple… work for the dead” within a family context. Before Johnson died (around 1905), he reportedly charged Dayer to “carry on the kingdom” and conferred upon him all the priesthood that Johnson had received from Joseph Smith.

Dayer spent the remainder of his life establishing his family and practicing plural marriage in Mexico, having been excommunicated from the LDS Church. Because he was secretive about his authority claim, Dayer was sometimes called the “silent prophet” or “quiet heir of the kingdom.”

LeBaron Split: Ross’s Unique Theology

Following Dayer’s death in the early 1950s without naming a clear successor, a succession crisis ensued, leading to major schisms among his sons: Ben (who was mentally unwell), Ross Wesley LeBaron (second oldest), and Joel LeBaron (a younger son.)

Ross, who operated primarily in Utah, built his claim on a commission received from Dayer in 1950 to carry on the “patriarchal work.” Ross emphasized a cosmology that directly reflected the Nauvoo concepts:

  1. Patriarchal Priesthood as Highest Authority: Ross taught that the Church of the Firstborn was a higher church above the Church of Jesus Christ. This was the priesthood restored by Moses, Elias, and Elijah in the Kirtland Temple.
  2. Dissemination of Authority: Unlike the Woolley line, which concentrated power in a central “Council of Friends,” Ross’s theology focused on giving this highest authority (patriarchal keys) to many worthy men for their own family spheres, acting as a check and balance against the concentration of power.
  3. Emphasis on Work over Title: Ross received a revelation that affirmed, “the honor is in the work, not the title,” which distinguished his ministry from other fundamentalists focused solely on claiming specific offices.

The distinct nature of this lineage—tracing independent temple and kingdom authority through a Council of 50 member rather than through the apostolic line—is why LeBaronism remains a peculiar and historically fascinating branch of Mormon fundamentalism.

Status of Monogamists in Celestial Kingdom

Historically, leaders whose teachings form the basis of fundamentalist theology (such as Brigham Young and Lyman Wight) taught that monogamous people can go to the celestial kingdom.

  • Faithfulness, Not Numbers: The primary factor for achieving the celestial kingdom is how faithful you are to the gospel, not simply the number of wives one possesses.
  • A “Gallon Measure”: When questioned about whether a man could be exalted without plural wives, Brigham Young reportedly responded using an analogy: “you can’t put a gallon and a pint measure, but both can be made filled full.” He concluded that “If a man is faithful with one wife, he may grow to be a gallon measure.”
  • Requirement of Acceptance: The view held by those attempting to harmonize these teachings is that a faithful monogamist must accept plural marriage in their faith as being a true principle in order to qualify for the celestial kingdom.

Polygamy in Heaven: Attaining the Highest Glory and Godhood

While a monogamist can achieve the celestial kingdom, the practice of plural marriage is tied to the highest level of exaltation and becoming a God.

  • Greater Glory: Polygamists are understood to attain a greater glory in the celestial kingdom.
  • The Law of Godhood: The perspective is that if “we do not live the same law that our heavenly father lives then we cannot go where he is,” suggesting that plural marriage is part of the law of Godhood. Therefore, in order to be a god, you will have to eventually practice polygamy.
  • Priesthood Authority: The doctrine of John Taylor maintained that a man living a “lower law cannot preside over a man living a higher law.” The fulfillment of the “celestial law” (including plural marriage) is seen as a “stepping stone to exaltation” and to the “responsibility of godhood.”
  • Degrees of Glory (Specific Cosmologies): Within some fundamentalist cosmologies (like that articulated by Ross LeBaron, derived partially from Lorin Woolley), the degrees of the celestial kingdom are associated with plural marriage. One specific cosmology suggested that attaining the highest degree of the celestial kingdom might require seven or more wives, the middle degree five, and the bottom degree three. However, Ross LeBaron viewed these as “celestial patterns that aren’t necessarily attained on earth.”

In summary, fundamentalist theology generally holds that acceptance of plural marriage as a true principle is essential for celestial glory, and its eventual practice is considered necessary for the greatest glory and achieving Godhood. Ross LeBaron’s particular theology, however, often took plural marriage for granted and focused more heavily on the patriarchal priesthood and keys necessary for the “higher church” (the Church of the Firstborn.)

Next week, we’ll discuss the Ervil LeBaron murders. What questions do you have?