Lorenzo Snow and companions' miraculous shout in prison
Published October 13, 2026 at 4:29 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
While incarcerated in prison for 'conscience sake,' Lorenzo Snow gathered thirty to forty other Latter-day Saint prisoners. He proposed they offer the 'shout to God' (a specific religious shout). When they performed it, the foundation of the prison seemed to shake.
The event took place in 1886 at the Utah Territorial Penitentiary. According to Rudger Clawson, who provided a firsthand recollection of the incident, the occurrence happened in the daytime while the prisoners had exclusive possession of 'bunkhouse number 3.' Lorenzo Snow addressed the thirty-five to forty brethren present, stating, 'I propose, if it shall meet with the unanimous approval of all the brethren present, that we give the sacred shout. I realize that this is an extraordinary thing to do in a prison house. It has never been before, but inasmuch as we are incarcerated here for conscience sake, I’m sure we would be fully justified.'
In Their Own Words
“Upon one occasion in the daytime, when the brethren had exclusive possession of the bunk room, President Lorenzo Snow made a startling and interesting announcement. He spoke to this effect: “I propose, if it shall meet with the unanimous approval of all the brethren present, that we give the sacred shout. I realize that this is an extraordinary thing to do in a prison house. It has never been before, but inasmuch as we are incarcerated here for conscience sake, I’m sure we would be fully justified.” The motion was carried by a unanimous vote. President Snow then said: “We will give the shout three times, and each time we will say, ‘Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to God and the Lamb, Amen, Amen, and Amen.’” The brethren stood up, and with uplifted hands, gave the sacred shout. It was a great and mighty shout. The foundation of the prison seemed to shake, and the shout ascended to heaven. It was a testimony to the Lord that we were His servants, and that we were willing to suffer for His sake.”
— Rudger Clawson, as recorded in the funeral address for Lorenzo Snow, October 1901
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 7 November 1901 (Vol. 63, No. 45). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1901-11-07_63_45 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Additional sources (periodical research): Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Andrew H. Hedges, eds., Within These Prison Walls: Lorenzo Snow’s Record Book, 1886–1897 (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010). https://rsc.byu.edu/within-these-prison-walls/introduction Steven H. Heath, 'The Sacred Shout,' Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 19, no. 3 (Fall 1986): 114–128. https://www.dialoguejournal.com/articles/the-sacred-shout/ Full first-person account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 63, No. 45 (7 November 1901) https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1901-11-07_63_45
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