Brother Joseph F. Smith felt that
the light and knowledge which Albert Carrington possessed was such that he had
committed the unpardonable sin, and was guilty of the shedding of innocent
blood. For a man to enter into plural marriage, and all the ordinances of the
Gospel, in the House of God, and then willfully & viciously be guilty for
years of the most heinous crimes, if he does not come as near to the shedding
of innocent blood as a man possible can, then Brother Smith would like to know
what he would have to do to be considered guilty of the shedding of innocent
blood. For years he had daily associated with the Prophet of God. He had listened
to his teachings, and he should have been an exemplar of truth and
righteousness before the people. Carrington’s is an exceptional case. If he had
not been an Apostle, and received so much light and knowledge, then it would be
different. Brother Smith could not see why we should dignify this case because
the man had once been an Apostle. He had abused his Apostleship, and lost, not
only that, but his standing in the Church; and he felt that if any action was
taken in the Albert Carrington case, that it should be taken by the Bishop of
his ward, the same as action would be taken with any other individual, and that
we should not dignify it by making any decision in the case. Brother felt that
there was no comparison between him and a young man, filled with youthful
passion, who had fallen in an unguarded moment, and then had sincerely and
honestly repented. He felt that in such cases mercy should be extended. (Heber
J. Grant, Journal, August 12, 1887, in The Diaries of Heber J. Grant,
1880-1845 Abridged, comp. D. Michael Quinn [Digital Edition; Salt Lake
City, 2015])
