Mormon Stories Podcast 1621: Suffering Abuse in the Shadow of Mormon Prophets - Christine Burton
Christine Carol Robinson Burton is the niece of the late Mormon prophet Gordon B. Hinckley, and the daughter of Oliver Preston Robinson and Christine Hinckley Robinson. Christine's father, Preston or "Pres" was a prominent professor of advertising a the University of Utah, general manager of the Deseret News Publishing Company and editor of the Deseret News, and a personal mentor to the late Mormon prophet Thomas S. Monson. Preston was mentioned seven different times in the LDS Church-approved biography of Thomas S. Monson.
In Christine's heartbreaking and inspiring story, she relates several tragic Mormon-related stories, including:
- Experiencing psychological, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her parents.
- Feeling deep confusion trying to reconcile her parents' abuse with her own self-worth, given that her parents/family were publicly lauded on multiple occasions by several Mormon prophets as being exemplary. This included her father being called as mission president in England, and both of her parents receiving their Second Anointing after the abuse.
- Her attempts to tell both Gordon B. Hinckley and Thomas S. Monson (as sitting prophets/apostles) about the abuse she experienced at the hands of her parents - wherein she was told by both that she needed to "put it behind her."
- The death by suicide of her gay son.
- Her loss of Mormon faith.
- Her commitment to helping others heal and grow after Mormonism.
We hope you find value in this heartbreaking and inspiring episode.
Show Notes:
- O. Preston Robinson's (her father's) Obituary
- In Sacred Loneliness
- Emily Dickenson Robin In Nest Poem
- The Trevor Project
—————
We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming!
Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50
—————
Contact Us!
*PO Box 171085
Salt Lake City, UT 84117