Dutch royals posthumously baptised by Mormons

National daily Trouw reports that several members of the Dutch royal family were baptised by the Mormon Church after their deaths.

The paper writes that Queen Beatrix's parents, Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard, and her late husband Prince Claus were baptised posthumously. Trouw’s report is based on secret data obtained from the Mormon Church’s global genealogical database.

Under the laws of the Mormon Church members can only have their ancestors baptised posthumously, but many Mormons ignore these rules and have others baptised as well. The baptism of Anne Frank by Mormons sparked fierce protests from the Jewish world.

Trouw writes that Prince Claus was baptised in 2004 – two years after his death – in the Brazilian city of Campinas. A spokesperson for the Mormon Church in the Netherlands says the baptism was performed by “over-zealous members.”

The paper does not say when or where Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard were baptised. Trouw says that King Willem I, King Willem III, Queen Emma and Queen Wilhelmina were also baptised by Mormons. The government information service has not reacted to the baptisms.

The Mormon Church has found itself in the spotlight recently because US presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is a Mormon.

(gsh/imm)