Histories Of Local Church Units
Many histories of wards, stakes, and missions are available at the Family History Library and the Church History Library. These unit histories sometimes include biographical sketches of members, photographs, maps, lists of ward officers, and a history of the local community. For books and articles that give short histories of many local Church units see:
- Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of the Church cited fully in .
The Church History Library has manuscript histories, and historical reports for local Church units from the 1830s to 1983. Since 1983, the yearly histories have been known as annual reports. Wards and branches submit their reports to the stake or mission, which compiles them and submits the reports to the Church History Library. These records often include the names of the Church units officers and teachers. Histories of the Mormon Battalion, the Pioneers of 1847, , and other prominent groups are also available.
Why Is The Mormon Temple Central To The Faith What Happens In The Temple Why Can’t Non
The Mormon temple is considered an earthly point of contact with higher spheres of being. Mormons believe that God is present in the temple space. This makes it a sacred place set aside to learn things that allow individuals to progress toward becoming like God — the temple ordinances, especially celestial marriage, make “eternal progression toward Godhood” possible. The family unit is central to Mormonism, and the primary ritual function of the temple is to perform ceremonies that seal families together, thus allowing them to dwell together for eternity when they pass on to the celestial kingdom. The specific rituals supporting this function are — in which a husband, wife and children are officially bound together — and baptism for the dead — through which individuals who died without accepting the Latter-day Saints’ Gospel and no longer possess the physical body required for baptism are represented by living proxies, thereby granting them the opportunity to join their families in the celestial kingdom.
Informal And Abbreviated Names
Because of the belief in the Book of Mormon among Joseph Smith’s followers, in the 1830s people outside the church began to refer to its members as “Mormonites” or “Mormons” and the church as the “Mormon Church”. Smith and other church leaders considered these informal or abbreviated terms to be derogatory and inappropriate, as editorialized in 1834:
Others may call themselves by their own, or by other names, and have the privilege of wearing them without our changing them or attempting so to do but we do not accept the above title, nor shall we wear it as our name, though it may be lavished out upon us double to what it has heretofore been.
âSecond Elder Oliver Cowdery,
Today, it remains common for individuals and media outside of the church to refer to it as the “Mormon Church”. Church leaders have resisted these practices and have asked members not to refer to the church in these ways.
In 2001, the LDS Church Saints issued a style guide on its name, requesting that those writing about the church adhere to the following guidelines:
- In the first reference, the full name of the Church is preferred: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
- Please avoid the use of “Mormon Church”, “LDS Church” or the “Church of the Latter-day Saints.”
- When a shortened reference is needed, the terms “the Church” or “the Church of Jesus Christ” are encouraged.
- When referring to Church members, the term “Latter-day Saints” is preferred, though “Mormons” is acceptable.
Recommended Reading: Is Nespresso Coffee Mold Free
God The Father Jesus Christ And The Holy Ghost
In LDS Church teachings, God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are referred to as the “Godhead“. According to LDS scripture, the Godhead has the following attributes:
- They are three separate and distinct beings.
- They are collectively “one God”, meaning that they are united in spirit, mind, and purpose. According to LDS theology, Jesus is “one” with the Father in the same way as he asked his disciples to be “one” with him and each other.
- Jesus and the Father have physical “bodies of flesh and bone”, while the Holy Spirit does not, though the Holy Spirit has a “spirit body”.
- God the Father is understood to be the literal father of the spirits of humanity, as well as the literal father of both the spirit and physical body of Jesus.
The church’s view of the Godhead breaks with Nicene Creed tradition and believes it returns to the teachings taught by Jesus. It does not accept the creed’s definition of Trinity that the three are “consubstantial” nor the Athanasian Creed‘s statement that they are “incomprehensible”, arguing that the LDS view is self-evident in the Bible that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate personsâthree divine beings as illustrated in Jesus’ farewell prayer, his baptism at the hands of John, his transfiguration, and the .
God the Father
Jesus Christ
Holy Ghost
Duties And Expectations Of Church Members
For members of the church, the greatest commandment is to love God with all their heart and the second is to love others as they love themselves. All other commandments are considered appendages to these great commandments /Matthew#22:37-40″ rel=”nofollow”> Matt 22:37-40). Members are encouraged to pray several times a day, to perform good works, and to read scriptures daily.
Members are expected to donate their time, money, and talents to the church, and those who have participated in the endowment ceremony make an oath to donate all that they have, if required of them, to the Lord. To be in good standing and to enter the church’s temples, church members are asked to tithe their income to the church, which is officially interpreted as 10 percent of annual income. In addition, members are invited to donate monthly charitable “fast offerings” , which are used to help the poor and needy in the community members are also encouraged to make other humanitarian donations through the church.
Church members are permitted to think or believe freely on any issue, but are discouraged from publicly criticizing local leaders or general authorities repeated public criticism of the church or its leaders may subject a person to church discipline for apostasy. The church maintains a Strengthening Church Members Committee which monitors members’ publications and refers critical material to local authorities for possible disciplinary action.
You May Like: What Is The Best Espresso Coffee Beans
What Is The Book Of Mormon
In addition to the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, the Book of Mormon, named after one of its ancient prophets, is another testament of Jesus Christ. It contains the writings of prophets, giving an account of Gods dealings with the peoples who lived anciently on the American continent. For Latter-day Saints it stands alongside the Old and New Testaments of the Bible as holy scripture.
Mormonism Came Out Of A Movement From Joseph Smith
Reports indicate that at 14 years old, Joseph Smith was confused about religion and went to the woods to pray. In 1823, Joseph Smith said the angel Moroni visited him. The angel told him about an ancient record that detailed Gods work with the former inhabitants of America. Smith said he found those records and translated them into what would become the Book of Mormon. In 1830, he organized the first Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and became its first president. He is believed by the church to be a prophet.
He is credited with establishing thriving cities in Ohio, Illinois, and Missouri, and also with growing the church from just six members to some 26,000. He also helped organize the building of church temples. However, he was persecuted by those who opposed him and was killed by a mob in 1844.
Recommended Reading: Is There Caffeine In Clif Bars
Doctrinal Reforms And Influences
In 1927, the Church implemented its “Good Neighbor policy“, whereby it removed any suggestion in church literature, sermons, and ordinances that its members should seek vengeance on US citizens or governments, particularly for the assassinations of its founder Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum. The Church also reformed temple ordinance around this time.
Beginning soon after the turn of the 20th century, four influential Latter-day Saint scholars began to systematize, modernize, and codify Mormon doctrine: B. H. Roberts, James E. Talmage, John A. Widtsoe, and Joseph Fielding Smith. In 1921, the church called chemistry professor John A. Widtsoe as an apostle. Widtsoe’s writings, particularly Rational theology and Joseph Smith as Scientist, reflected the optimistic faith in science and technology that was pervasive at the time in American life. According to Widtsoe, all Mormon theology could be reconciled within a rational, positivist framework.
Reaction to evolution
Soon after the 1909 statement, Joseph F. Smith professed in an editorial that “the church itself has no philosophy about the modus operandi employed by the Lord in His creation of the world.” Juvenile Instructor, 46 , 208-209 .
Some also cite an additional editorial that enumerates various possibilities for creation including the idea that Adam and Eve:
Reacting to pluralism
Episcopal Government In Other Denominations
The and the in may sometimes be called “episcopal”. In these latter cases, the form of government is not radically different from the form, except that their councils of bishops have hierarchical over the local ruling bodies to a greater extent than in most and other . As mentioned, the Lutheran Church in Sweden and Finland are exceptions, claiming apostolic succession in a pattern somewhat like the Anglican churches. Otherwise, forms of polity are not mandated in the Lutheran churches, as it is not regarded as having doctrinal significance. Lutheranism, for historical reasons, has tended to adopt theories of episcopal authority . In the United States, the Lutheran churches tend to adopt a form of government more comparable to . A small minority of exists.
Most churches of the tradition follow an episcopal system, at least in name. Congregational governance is strongly emphasized, and each congregation elects its pastor. Bishops enforce inter-congregational unity and may discipline pastors for breaking from traditional norms.
Read Also: How To Make Delicious Coffee
President Of The Church
With the death of Monson on January 2, 2018, Nelson became the anticipated to the church’s presidency. Nelson signed 1,150 calls as the presiding apostle. After being ordained and set apart as church president on January 14, 2018, Nelson was introduced to church members and the media two days later, along with Oaks as his First Counselor and as Second Counselor. Nelson chose not to retain , who had served as Monson’s Second Counselor, in the new . This marked the first time since 1985 that a new church president had not retained a previously-serving counselor.
On April 14, 2022, Nelson surpassed to become the oldest president in the history of the church. On August 8, 2022, Nelson became the church’s oldest apostle ever, surpassing .
Worldwide ministry
Since becoming church president, Nelson has visited members of the LDS Church in various areas of the world. Up through August 2019, he had visited sixteen countries, addressing thousands of members of the faith.
The first trip, called a global ministry tour by the church, occurred in April 2018, when Nelson along with his wife, and and his wife, met with Latter-day Saints in , , , , , and .
In June 2018, Nelson traveled to , where his second wife was born and raised, and gave three devotional addresses in three consecutive evenings.
On February 10, 2019, Nelson spoke to church members in Arizona at in Glendale. In addition to the large crowd in attendance, the devotional was broadcast across the state.
Temples
Is Mormonism Christian
The Church of the Latter-day Saints is the fourth largest church in the United States of America and the fastest growing. The Saints, or Mormons as they are referred to by church outsiders, assert that they are Christian as they believe in the Jesus Christ of the Bible. However, many outsiders do not agree. The question of whether Mormonism is Christian is very relevant to American society at present as Mitt Romney, a Saint, became the Republican nominee for President and significantly challenged Barack Obamas presidency. The fact that twenty-two percent of recently polled Americans would oppose voting for a Mormon for President causes one to wonder why there is such opposition to Mormonism in its country of origin. In this paper, I will examine Mormon beliefs in comparison with those of Christianity to determine whether Mormonism can be considered Christian or whether it is in its own religious category.
For the purposes of this paper, the term Mormon will be used throughout to refer to members of the LDS Church. While this term is acceptable to LDS members, the terms Latter-day Saints or simply Saints are generally preferred within the church itself.
Kevin D. Williamson, An American Gospel: Mitt Romney, the Mormons, and those who hate them, National Review, April 2 : 27.
Gilleasbuig Macmillan, Understanding Christianity, , 111.
Jan Shipps, Is Mormonism Christian? Reflections on a Complicated Question, BYU Studies 33 , 439.
Smith, Mormon Scripture, 372.
You May Like: How Much Caffeine Is In White Chocolate Mocha
Are All Mormons Latter
Avoid using the abbreviation LDS or the nickname Mormon as substitutes for the churchs name, as in Mormon Church, LDS Church or Church of the Latter day Saints. Refer to members as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints or Latter day Saints, not Mormons.
Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the “LDS Church” or the “Mormon Church,” is the largest and most well-known denomination within the Latter Day Saint’s movement. Founded in the United States by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1830, the Latter-day Saints regard Christ as the head of their church and count themselves as Christians, but do not consider themselves part of the Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant traditions.
Also Check: Which Instant Coffee Has The Most Caffeine
Brigham Young’s Later Years
The church had attempted unsuccessfully to institute the United Order numerous times, most recently during the Mormon Reformation. In 1874, Young once again attempted to establish a permanent Order, which he now called the “United Order of Enoch” in at least 200 Mormon communities, beginning in St. George, Utah on February 9, 1874.In Young’s Order, producers would generally deed their property to the Order, and all members of the order would share the cooperative’s net income, often divided into shares according to how much property was originally contributed. Sometimes, the members of the Order would receive wages for their work on the communal property. Like the United Order established by Joseph Smith, Young’s Order was short-lived. By the time of Brigham Young’s death in 1877, most of these United Orders had failed. By the end of the 19th century, the Orders were essentially extinct.
Brigham Young died in August 1877. After the death of Brigham Young, the First Presidency was not reorganized until 1880, when Young was succeeded by President John Taylor, who in the interim had served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Growth And Demographic History
The records of the LDS Church show membership growth every decade since its beginning in the 1830s, although that has slowed significantly. Following initial growth rates that averaged 10% to 25% per year in the 1830s through 1850s, it grew at about 4% per year through the last four decades of the 19th century. After a steady slowing of growth in the first four decades of the 20th century to a rate of about 2% per year in the 1930s , growth boomed to an average of 6% per year for the decade around 1960, staying around 4% to 5% through 1990. After 1990, average annual growth again slowed steadily to a rate around 2.2% for the ten years ending 2015, approximately double the average world population growth rate of 1.1% for the same period. The growth rate has not been greater than 3% per year in the 21st century and has decelerated steadily since 2012. The rate has not been above 2% since 2013. In May 2019, however, Phil Zuckerman, Ph.D., of Psychology Today expressed skepticism of how the LDS Church reports growth in membership, noting that while church membership was reported to be rising, separate analysis conducted by journalist showed that reports of Mormon retention, religious participation, teachings and belief have been declining since 2007. By 2019, Mormons represented 51% of the population in their longtime stronghold of Utah, in contrast with 75% in 2000.
Also Check: What Is Low Acid Coffee
Are Mormons And Latter
- Copied to Clipboard
From time to time Mormons are asked to clarify what the correct name of their church is, and how to appropriately refer to a member of their religion.
‘Mormon Helping Hands’ Participate in’ Project Twin Streams’
The correct name of the church to which Mormons belong is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
While most members of the Church do not mind being called “Mormons,” a more formal way to refer to a person who belongs to the faith is “a Latter-day Saint,” or “a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
The nickname “Mormon” came about because of one of the Church’s sacred texts, “The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.”
Book of Mormon
Latter-day Saints look to The Bible, The Book of Mormon, The Doctine and Covenants and The Pearl of Great Price as scripture.
On some occasions media professionals and others refer to “The Mormon Church,” or “The Church of Latter-day Saints,” or “The LDS Church.”
While these names are not offensive to members of the Church, it is appreciated when the full and correct name of the Church is used. This is because Latter-day Saints are devoted followers of Jesus Christ and having His name included in the name of the Church is important to them.
Read more about media style for journalists reporting on the Church or any of its members.
Watch a video of Latter-day Saint leader, Elder M. Russell Ballard, talking about the significance of the name of the Church.