Cain and Bigfoot


Why do some people say that Cain is Bigfoot?
A passage in Spencer W. Kimball's[BIO] book Miracle of Forgiveness records an account claiming Apostle David W. Patten[BIO] met a very large, hairy man who identified himself as Cain[BIO] during a mule ride.[1]
Although Kimball doesn't identify Cain as "Bigfoot,"[BIO] this idea has become part of Mormon folklore.[2]
Why did Spencer W. Kimball put that story in Miracle of Forgiveness?
It's unclear why Kimball included the story. It comes at the end of an account of Cain, where Kimball discusses the consequences of sin and how people can sin against the light they have been given.[3]
The David W. Patten account could be included because it is an interesting story about Cain, who was referenced in the preceding part of the book, but it's unclear.
Is this account reliable?
Not really. Kimball reprinted a secondhand account written 65 years after the event supposedly happened.[4] The earliest retelling of the Patten account is from an undated handwritten record from Horace Rawson.[BIO][5]
Isn’t this story super weird?
Yes.
Are there other accounts of Cain-Bigfoot sightings in Church history?
Yes, there are two other documented cases of Church members encountering a "Cain-like" figure. One is an account of E. Wesley Smith,[BIO] who purportedly encountered someone who may have been Cain.[6] The other is from Horace Rawson,[BIO] an early church member. He claimed to have met a "very strange" man in Nauvoo in 1847 that he could not identify but said he fit the description of Cain.[7]
How did the Mormon idea of Cain get associated with the existing myth of Bigfoot?
It's unclear. Some secondary sources suggest that the ideas were connected in the latter half of the twentieth century in the Mormon corridor region when members of the Church tied Bigfoot sightings to the David W. Patten account.[8]
Is Cain really wandering around the earth?
Probably not. Different traditions have him dying in various ways.[9]
Has the Church ever made an official statement about Bigfoot or cryptozoology?
The Church has no official statement on Bigfoot. Several Church leaders were reportedly open to the possibility of the Bear Lake Monster.[BIO][10] However, modern Church leaders have never discussed the subject.
Related Question
Does the Church teach that animals have spirits?
Read more in Teachings on Animal Spirits
- Ian
“It’s not rocket science. If “killed by no other” means Cain would have died in the Flood. Why does no one connect Esau with Bigfoot? One Indian tribe calls them Anisau... An Esau! Just sayin'.” - Marilyn S.
“There are scores of credible sightings of Bigfoot in various parts of the world. An account by a Royal Canadian mounty describes a governmental operation to kill a small community. He describes them as dangerous killers and man eaters. Without DNA tests, who can identify them?” - Marscaleb
“It has been a few years since I read that story, but I thought that the big hairy guy identified himself as one "who walks the Earth" to do something-or-other, but he never actually called himself Cain, that was merely implied.” - Rosa
“I have heard this story in my studying of Bigfoot and Sasquatch. I believe that its true, however bazaar it sounds. Personally I believe that these creatures are an offspring of the daughters of Cain and the fallen angels.” - Will
“This story ignited my fascination with Bigfoot lore. My ultimate take is that Cain invented water skiing and is hiding near Cypress Gardens...”