Beliefs and practices of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) focuses its doctrine and teaching on Jesus Christ; that he was the Son of God, born of the virgin Mary, lived a perfect life, performed miracles, bled from every pore in the Garden of Gethsemane, died on the cross, rose on the third day, appeared again to his disciples, and now resides, authoritatively, on the right hand side of God. In brief, some beliefs are in common with Catholics

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

, Orthodox

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

and Protestant traditions. However, teachings of the LDS Church differ significantly in other ways and encompass a broad set of doctrines, so that the above mentioned denominations usually place the LDS Church outside the bounds of orthodox Christian teaching as summarized in the Nicene Creed

Nicene Creed

The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...

.

The church's core beliefs, circa 1842, are summarized in the Articles of Faith, and its four primary principles are faith

Faith

Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...

in Jesus Christ, repentance

Repentance

Repentance is a change of thought to correct a wrong and gain forgiveness from a person who is wronged. In religious contexts it usually refers to confession to God, ceasing sin against God, and resolving to live according to religious law...

, baptism by immersion for the remission of sin, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost

Baptism with the Holy Spirit

Baptism with the Holy Spirit in Christian theology is a term describing baptism in or with the Spirit of God...

Apostasy and restoration

In common with other Restorationist churches, the church believes in a Great Apostasy

Great Apostasy

The Great Apostasy is a term used by some religious groups to describe a general fallen state of traditional Christianity, especially the Papacy, because it allowed the traditional Roman mysteries and deities of solar monism such as Mithras and Sol Invictus and idol worship back into the church,...

. It teaches that after the death of Jesus and the Twelve Apostles, the priesthood authority was lost and some important doctrinal teachings, including the text of the Bible

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

, were changed from their original form, thus necessitating a Restoration prior to the Second Coming

Second Coming

In Christian doctrine, the Second Coming of Christ, the Second Advent, or the Parousia, is the anticipated return of Jesus Christ from Heaven, where he sits at the Right Hand of God, to Earth. This prophecy is found in the canonical gospels and in most Christian and Islamic eschatologies...

. That restoration, according to church doctrine, began during the life of Joseph Smith, Jr.

According to church theology

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

, the restoration began through a series of visions and revelations, including Smith's First Vision

First Vision

The First Vision refers to a vision that Joseph Smith, Jr. said he received as a youth in a wooded area in Manchester, New York, which his followers call the Sacred Grove. Smith described it as a personal theophany in which he received a forgiveness of sins...

in 1820, visits by various angel

Angel

Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...

ic messengers including Moroni

Moroni (prophet)

The Angel Moroni is an angel that Joseph Smith, Jr. said visited him on numerous occasions, beginning on September 21, 1823. According to Smith, the angel was the guardian of the golden plates, which Latter Day Saints believe were the source material for the Book of Mormon, buried in a hill near...

from whom he received "the everlasting gospel", John the Baptist

John the Baptist

John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...

, Moses

Moses

Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

, Elijah, and the apostles Peter

Saint Peter

Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...

, James and John

John the Apostle

John the Apostle, John the Apostle, John the Apostle, (Aramaic Yoħanna, (c. 6 - c. 100) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of James, another of the Twelve Apostles...

. Both Smith and Oliver Cowdery testified that these last messengers came to them while they were together and conferred upon them the priesthood authority with its various "keys", so that mankind again possessed the "fullness of the Gospel" with authority to administer in the ordinances thereof. The restoration also included the re-establishment of the Church of Christ on 6 April 1830. The LDS Church teaches that it is the successor of this Church of Christ and that the current President of the Church is Smith's modern successor.

Sacred texts

Genetics and the Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon, one of the four books of scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , is an account of three groups of people. Two of these groups supposedly originated from Israel...

and Archaeology and the Book of Mormon

Archaeology and the Book of Mormon

Since the publication of the Book of Mormon in 1830, both Mormon and non-Mormon archaeologists have studied its claims in reference to known archaeological evidence...

The church's canon

Biblical canon

A biblical canon, or canon of scripture, is a list of books considered to be authoritative as scripture by a particular religious community. The term itself was first coined by Christians, but the idea is found in Jewish sources. The internal wording of the text can also be specified, for example...

of sacred texts consists of the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon

Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...

, the Doctrine and Covenants

Doctrine and Covenants

The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...

and the Pearl of Great Price

Pearl of Great Price (Mormonism)

The Pearl of Great Price is part of the standard works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and some other Latter Day Saint denominations....

. These are more commonly referred to as the church's Standard Works

Standard Works

The Standard Works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon.* The Holy Bible * The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ...

. Though not canonical, many members of the church also accept the teachings and pronouncements of the church's general authorities

General authority

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...

—and in particular those of the President of the Church—as doctrine, and complementing the Standard Works.

The church accepts the Holy Bible as the word of God

God

God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

as far as it is translated correctly. Joseph Smith wrote, "I believe the Bible as it read when it came from the pen of the original writers" The LDS Church uses the Authorized King James Version (KJV) for its English-speaking members and other translations to accommodate alternative languages. Joseph Smith did work on his own translation

Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible

The Joseph Smith Translation , also called the Inspired Version , was a revision of the Bible by Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Smith considered this work to be "a branch of his calling" as a prophet. Smith was murdered before he ever deemed it complete, though most of...

, but it is only used in conjunction with the KJV. An extract of his translation can be found in the Pearl of Great Price, called Joseph Smith—Matthew

Joseph Smith—Matthew

Joseph Smith—Matthew is a book in the Pearl of Great Price, a scriptural text used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other Latter Day Saint denominations. Joseph Smith—Matthew consists of Joseph Smith, Jr.'s "retranslation" of portions of the Gospel of Matthew...

. For English-language speakers, the church encourages the use of the King James Version, and the church publishes an edition of the KJV

LDS edition of the Bible

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints publishes editions of the Bible in English and Spanish that it encourages its members to use. The text of the LDS Church's English-language Bible is the Authorized King James Version and the church's Spanish-language Bible is a revised Reina-Valera...

. The church regards parts of the Apocrypha

Apocrypha

The term apocrypha is used with various meanings, including "hidden", "esoteric", "spurious", "of questionable authenticity", ancient Chinese "revealed texts and objects" and "Christian texts that are not canonical"....

, the writings of some Protestant Reformers

Protestant Reformers

Protestant Reformers were those theologians, churchmen, and statesmen whose careers, works, and actions brought about the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century...

and non-Christian religious leaders, and the non-religious writings of some philosophers to be inspired, though not canonical.

The church's most distinctive scripture, the Book of Mormon

Book of Mormon

, was published by founder Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1830. It is believed to be "another testament of Jesus Christ" and bears that subtitle as of 1982. Smith stated that, under divine direction, he translated the Book of Mormon from metal plates

Golden Plates

According to Latter Day Saint belief, the golden plates are the source from which Joseph Smith, Jr. translated the Book of Mormon, a sacred text of the faith...

having "the appearance of gold" found buried near his home. Eight men signed a statement as witnesses that Smith possessed the plates and that they had seen them. , the full text of the Book of Mormon had been translated and published in 77 languages, and selections in an additional 28 for a total of 105 languages. The introduction printed with the book says that it is a history of the ancestors of the "American Indian

Indigenous peoples of the Americas

The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

" peoples.

The church's Doctrine and Covenants

Doctrine and Covenants

The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...

is a collection of modern revelations, declarations, and teachings, primarily written by Joseph Smith. The Pearl of Great Price consists of five separate books, including two portions of Joseph Smith's translation

Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible

of the Bible. These five books are Selections from the Book of Moses

Book of Moses

The Book of Moses is part of the scriptural canon of Mormonism dictated by founder Joseph Smith, Jr. It is an amalgamation of the "Vision of Moses," which Smith dictated in June 1830, the "Book of Enoch," dictated December 1830, and material deriving from Smith's revision of the Book of Genesis in...

(corresponding to a portion of the Old Testament), the Book of Abraham

Book of Abraham

The Book of Abraham is a 1835 work by Joseph Smith, Jr. that he said was based on Egyptian papyri purchased from a traveling mummy exhibition. According to Smith, the book was "a translation of some ancient records....purporting to be the writings of Abraham, while he was in Egypt, called the Book...

(Smith's translation of an Egyptian

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...

papyrus

Papyrus

Papyrus is a thick paper-like material produced from the pith of the papyrus plant, Cyperus papyrus, a wetland sedge that was once abundant in the Nile Delta of Egypt....

, which includes an account of the creation), Joseph Smith—Matthew (corresponding to a section of the New Testament), Joseph Smith—History (an excerpt from Smith's 1838 autobiographical writings), and the Articles of Faith

Articles of Faith

Articles of faith are sets of beliefs usually found in creeds, sometimes numbered, and often beginning with "We believe...", which attempt to more or less define the fundamental theology of a given religion, and especially in the Christian Church....

(an excerpt of one of Smith's 1842 letters describing church beliefs).

God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost

In LDS belief, God the Father

God the Father

God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...

, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...

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 "one God" collectively, 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

Nicene Creed

tradition and believes it returns to the teachings taught by Jesus. It does not accept the creed's definition of Trinity

Trinity

The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

that the three are "consubstantial

Consubstantiality

Consubstantial is an adjective used in Latin Christian christology, coined by Tertullian in Against Hermogenes 44, used to translate the Greek term homoousios...

" nor the Athanasian Creed

Athanasian Creed

The Athanasian Creed is a Christian statement of belief, focusing on Trinitarian doctrine and Christology. The Latin name of the creed, Quicumque vult, is taken from the opening words, "Whosoever wishes." The Athanasian Creed has been used by Christian churches since the sixth century...

's statement that they are "incomprehensible", arguing that the LDS view is self-evident in the Bible

Bible

that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate persons, three divine beings as illustrated in the Savior’s great Intercessory Prayer, his baptism at the hands of John, the experience on the Mount of Transfiguration, and the martyrdom of Stephen.

In addition to the Godhead, LDS theology recognizes at least the possibility of other divine entities; however, these other "gods" and "goddesses" are not considered to be objects of worship, and have no direct relevance to salvation. Official church materials refer to "Heavenly Parents", implying to some the existence of a Heavenly Mother. Belief in such a figure is common among members, and she has been mentioned in meetings by church officials and alluded to in two of the hymns of the church

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hymns

This article is about LDS church hymns in general, for the book, see Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Latter-day Saint hymns come from many sources, and there have been numerous hymn books printed by the Church since its organization in 1830...

. However, very little on the subject of a Heavenly Mother has been taught by the church.

God the Father

God the Father is understood to be the literal Father of the spirits of all mankind. He is also understood to be the father of Jesus' spirit body and his physical body. On the morning that Jesus was resurrected, Jesus said to Mary Magdalene, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God."

LDS Church President Lorenzo Snow

Lorenzo Snow

Lorenzo Snow was the fifth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1898 to his death. Snow was the last president of the LDS Church in the nineteenth century.-Family:...

expressed the nature of the Father in his couplet, "As man is, God once was—and as God is, man may become"—differing significantly from the traditional Christian idea of theosis

Theosis

In Christian theology, divinization, deification, making divine or theosis is the transforming effect of divine grace. This concept of salvation is historical and fundamental for Christian understanding that is prominent in the Eastern Orthodox Church and also in the Catholic Church, and is a...

. Exaltation is a belief among members of the LDS Church that mankind, as spirit children of their Father in heaven, can become like him.

His Son, Jesus Christ

See also: Religious perspectives on Jesus: Nontrinitarian views

The church follows what it understands to be the teachings of Jesus, both in the Bible and in other scriptures, such as the Book of Mormon. According to that book, Jesus Christ is considered "the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary." As the Creator, he is at times referred to as the father of heaven and earth. This is one sense in which he shares the title "Father" with God the Father. The church also teaches that Jesus is the LORD Jehovah

Jehovah

Jehovah is an anglicized representation of Hebrew , a vocalization of the Tetragrammaton , the proper name of the God of Israel in the Hebrew Bible....

of the Old Testament

Old Testament

The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...

, and the Holy One of Israel. Because he has the "Divine Investiture of Authority" from the Father, the church teaches that Jesus Christ often speaks in the scriptures as though he were God the Father, because in so doing he is representing the Father.

The church teaches that those who accept Christ and are baptized are symbolically born again and become the children of Christ. The church teaches that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. Christ's divinity enabled him to take upon himself the penalty for sin and to endure the consequential suffering in Gethsemane

Gethsemane

Gethsemane is a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem most famous as the place where, according to Biblical texts, Jesus and his disciples are said to have prayed the night before Jesus' crucifixion.- Etymology :...

and on the cross that paid for the sins of humanity since the Fall of Adam. Thus, having satisfied the demands of justice, Christ offers mercy to mankind in two general forms: unconditional (all will be resurrected), and conditional (those who believe in Christ, repent of sin, and are baptized, “the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God") This Atonement however is also believed to cover not only sin, but all pain, suffering, heart ache, or hardship experienced in this life. Latter-day Saints believe that Jesus' status as the son of a mortal woman (Mary) gave him the ability to suffer temptation (yet he did not succumb to it) and experience physical death; while his status as the Son of God gave him the power to lay down and take up his life again at will. The church also believes in the physical resurrection

Death and Resurrection of Jesus

The Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...

of Jesus' body. Because of its emphasis on Jesus' resurrection and his status as the living head of the church, the church does not use the symbol

Symbol

A symbol is something which represents an idea, a physical entity or a process but is distinct from it. The purpose of a symbol is to communicate meaning. For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for "STOP". On a map, a picture of a tent might represent a campsite. Numerals are symbols for...

of the Christian cross

Christian cross

The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...

except on the uniforms of military chaplains. Instead, the church tends to focus on the belief that Jesus overcame suffering and death

Death

Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....

and that he lives today.

The Holy Ghost

The Holy Ghost is regarded as "a being endowed with the attributes and powers of Deity and not a mere force or essence." He testifies of the Father and the Son. "By the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." The Holy Ghost can sanctify people enabling them "to put off the natural man and [become] a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord" Jesus promised to send another Comforter: "If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever."

Plan of salvation

The plan of salvation or gospel of Christ is a series of steps, a continuum, or means to come to God through the mediation of the Messiah. It comprises those teachings of Christ which enable a mortal man or woman to overcome the fall of Adam in his or her life, and ultimately return to the presence of God, to enjoy the life of the Great Eternal God, or, more succinctly, eternal life. The specific teachings include the fact that Adam fell, becoming subject to the temptations of the devil, bringing upon himself and his posterity both physical death and spiritual death, separating himself and them from God. As a remedy for Adam's predicament, consistent with His own nature and objective to produce Divine heirs, God gave Adam and his posterity the moral agency to (1) follow and serve Christ, or (2) follow and serve the devil . To overcome the lasting effects of the fall, Christ offered Himself an infinite sacrifice for the sins of all those willing to repent and enter into a covenant with Him, trusting in His righteousness or merits for salvation , while all the rest must depend on their own good works for salvation, or answer the ends of the law themselves, falling short of the glory of God . Furthermore, Christ brought about the universal resurrection of all men and women, as they were not responsible for the fall, leaving them to account only for their own deeds in the flesh .

Also, as the Agent of the Father and Judge of all, Christ is able to be both merciful and just . To obtain His mercy, or be saved from His wrath, or indignation, on the day of judgment, men and women must (1) have faith in Christ, (2) repent of their sins, (3) be baptized by one of His authorized agents in water in the likeness of His burial, to come forth born again of the Spirit, (4) receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, again by an authorized servant of God bearing His priesthood, and (5) endure in faith in Christ and repentance from sins to the end of their mortal lives. This is the only gospel ever taught by Jesus, and is imparted in the Bible, Doctrine and Covenants, and most plainly in the Book of Mormon, whose purpose is to "convince Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ," as stated on the Title Page. (See also ; .)

Multiple scriptural names for this limited and oft-repeated body of teachings are: gospel of Jesus Christ , doctrine of Christ , plan of salvation, plan of redemption , words of eternal life , gospel of repentance, gospel of baptism, gospel of salvation, good tidings ), our report , gospel of the kingdom , good tidings of great joy , gospel of the grace of God , gospel of peace , "good news," and other equivalent names. Once a man or woman has obeyed the first principles of the gospel, the milk of the kingdom, he or she must press forward, feasting on the words of Christ, going on unto perfection, or seeking the meat of the kingdom, much of which has to do with the temple and a comprehensive understanding of the life God leads .

The plan of salvation

Plan of salvation

According to doctrine of the Latter Day Saint movement, the plan of salvation is a plan that God created to save, redeem, and exalt humankind...

, or "The Great Plan of Happiness," as taught by the church, describes humanity's place in the universe

Universe

The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...

and the purpose of life. The church teaches that there was a pre-mortal existence

Pre-existence

Pre-existence , beforelife, or pre-mortal existence refers to the belief that each individual human soul existed before conception, and at conception one of these pre-existent souls enters, or is placed by God, in the body...

, a place which existed prior to mortality in which all people and all life were created in spirit form. Central to this is the notion that humans existed as spirits before birth, were raised by Heavenly Parents and had essential human characteristics such as gender. This general idea is also stated as "We lived in the presence of God."

During the pre-earth life, Heavenly Father presented a plan to have a Savior make it possible for mankind to be saved. The purpose of an earth life was to give men the opportunity to demonstrate obedience to the commandments of God while outside of His presence. This is the central test of the evolution or eternal progression of man to godhood. Jesus Christ stepped forward as the chosen Savior. However, Lucifer, one of the spirits, proposed a rival plan whereby every soul would be saved, he would receive God's glory, and human agency

Agency (Mormonism)

Agency , in Latter-day Saint theology, is "the privilege of choice which was introduced by God the Eternal Father to all of his spirit children in the premortal state". Mortal life is viewed as a test of faith, where our choices are central to the Plan of Salvation...

would be eliminated. When God rejected that plan, the War in Heaven

War of Heaven

War in Heaven is a concept in Christian eschatology. The term occurs only once in the New Testament at . Though the term does not occur in the Hebrew Bible, parallels have been drawn from various passages regarding Fallen angels in the Book of Genesis, and the Book of Isaiah. Some also suggest...

ensued, resulting in Lucifer and one third part of the spirits being cast out and denied ever receiving physical bodies. Lucifer became the devil.

The earth, according to church teachings in the temples, was created by Jehovah

Jehovah

Jehovah is an anglicized representation of Hebrew , a vocalization of the Tetragrammaton , the proper name of the God of Israel in the Hebrew Bible....

, which the church identifies as the pre-mortal Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

, and Michael the archangel

Michael (archangel)

Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...

, who is identified as the pre-mortal Adam. The earth was "organized" from pre-existing matter

Matter

Matter is a general term for the substance of which all physical objects consist. Typically, matter includes atoms and other particles which have mass. A common way of defining matter is as anything that has mass and occupies volume...

, as were other planets with their inhabitants

Extraterrestrial life

Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...

. Michael's spirit was placed into his body which was created by God the Father and Jehovah, and became a living soul known as Adam.

The church teaches that at birth, a pre-existing spirit enters a mortal body. Upon death, the spirit goes to a "spirit world" to await the resurrection of the dead

Resurrection of the dead

Resurrection of the Dead is a belief found in a number of eschatologies, most commonly in Christian, Islamic, Jewish and Zoroastrian. In general, the phrase refers to a specific event in the future; multiple prophesies in the histories of these religions assert that the dead will be brought back to...

. There, a preliminary judgment, based solely on whether a person has had a baptism by the authority of the priesthood and received their confirmation, either in this life or after death by proxy, places the spirit in either a state of paradise (has completed all the saving ordinances) or spirit prison (those who have not had the saving ordinances). Those in "prison" will be visited by spirits from paradise and given the chance to learn of the teachings of Jesus Christ and to accept the accompanying saving ordinances. The church teaches that all persons, wicked or righteous, will be resurrected and receive an immortal

Immortality

Immortality is the ability to live forever. It is unknown whether human physical immortality is an achievable condition. Biological forms have inherent limitations which may or may not be able to be overcome through medical interventions or engineering...

, physical body. The nature of that body, however, will depend on the result of the Last Judgment

Last Judgment

The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, or The Day of the Lord in Christian theology, is the final and eternal judgment by God of every nation. The concept is found in all the Canonical gospels, particularly the Gospel of Matthew. It will purportedly take place after the...

, at which Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

will assign each soul to one of three degrees of glory

Degrees of glory

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' theology, there are three degrees of glory which are the ultimate, eternal dwelling place for nearly all who lived on earth after the Spirit world.Joseph Smith, Jr...

(heavenly kingdoms): the celestial kingdom in the presence of the Father and the Son for those who accept Jesus Christ and receive all LDS saving ordinances, either as a mortal or by proxy; the terrestrial kingdom, a place of glory in the presence of Christ for righteous persons who refuse to receive the saving ordinances and for those who do not keep the covenants they commit to; and the telestial kingdom for the wicked. A further destination, called outer darkness, is reserved for Satan

Satan

Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...

, his devils, and those mortals who commit the unpardonable sin

Eternal sin

Eternal sins or unforgivable sins or unpardonable sins, are a concept in Christian theology of sins which cannot or will not be forgiven, whereby salvation becomes impossible...

and thereby become the sons of perdition

Son of perdition (Mormonism)

Son of perdition is a phrase used in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and by Mormon fundamentalists to describe a person who will not take part in the glory of God in the afterlife...

. Those who are ultimately destined for the telestial kingdom will be those who suffer for their sin

Sin

In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...

s in hell; however, these persons remain in hell only the 1000 years during the millennial

Millennialism

Millennialism , or chiliasm in Greek, is a belief held by some Christian denominations that there will be a Golden Age or Paradise on Earth in which "Christ will reign" for 1000 years prior to the final judgment and future eternal state...

reign of Christ, after which they will exit hell and be resurrected with an immortal body into a state of peace. The church also teaches that all animals have souls and, having been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, will be resurrected, along with every human child who died before the age of accountability.

Those in the celestial kingdom will be allowed to continue to progress and become joint heirs with Jesus Christ; but only individuals that are in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom will eventually be enabled in eternity to become god

God

God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

s and goddess

Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....

es and participate in the eternal creative process of having spirit children.

Prayer

The church encourages all people to pray often "for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray." In LDS scripture Jesus tells his disciples, "Ye shall call upon the Father in my name." Prayer is viewed a means of communication between man and God. It is LDS belief that God hears the sincere prayers of all people because they are his children, he is no respecter of persons, and because he knows all things.

God is to be approached in reverence. Except for certain ordinances the specific words of a prayer do not have a prescribed form. Generally, prayer is addressed to God the Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, and thanks or petitions are expressed as prompted by the Holy Ghost.

The Priest has a scriptural duty "to exhort members to pray vocally and in secret." LDS Children are taught to remove distractions while praying by doing such things as closing their eyes, and folding their arms, Reverence for deity can also be expressed while praying through folding arms, bowing the head, or kneeling. But prayer may be accomplished while standing or sitting. According to LDS theology, the First Vision came in answer to a prayer of faith.

Revelation

The church teaches that revelation

Revelation (Latter Day Saints)

Latter Day Saints teach that the Latter Day Saint movement began with a Revelation from God . They also teach that revelation is the foundation of the church established by Jesus Christ and that it remains an essential element of His true church today...

from God continues today. Accordingly, revelation to direct the entire church comes to the president; revelation to direct a stake

Stake (Mormonism)

A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. A stake is approximately comparable to a diocese in the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations...

comes to the stake president; for a ward, to the bishop; and so forth. Latter-day Saints also believe that individuals can receive personal revelation and divine guidance in raising their families and managing their personal affairs. Because of their belief in modern revelation, Latter-day Saints give significant weight to the teachings of their church leaders. They revere the words their prophets and general authorities

General authority

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...

speak when "moved upon by the Holy Ghost" . as modern-day scripture, and members are encouraged to ponder and pray for revelation regarding the truthfulness of such statements.

Family and gender

Family

The LDS Church has been characterized by its members as a family

Family

In human context, a family is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children...

-centered religion. The church teaches that every being that lived upon the earth initially had a spirit body

Spirit Body

A spirit body is the organization of the spiritual element, made into the spiritual form of man, which according to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was made in the same likeness of God the Father...

and that all were born to Heavenly Parents in a pre-mortal existence

Pre-existence

. The church teaches that on earth, families may be "sealed"—meaning that they are eternally bound as husband

Husband

A husband is a male participant in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between cultures and has varied over time...

–wife

Wife

A wife is a female partner in a marriage. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.-Origin and etymology:...

, parents–child—and that these bonds will continue after death. Sealings can also include deceased ancestor

Ancestor

An ancestor is a parent or the parent of an ancestor ....

s, providing much of the church's rationale for its extensive family history

Family history

Family history is the systematic narrative and research of past events relating to a specific family, or specific families.- Introduction :...

activities. Members tend more often to be married, and have families with more children, than members of other Christian traditions.

Exaltation and marriage

In consequence of the atonement of Jesus Christ, a son or daughter of God the Father may overcome physical and spiritual death and return to live with God forever. Those individuals who receive this—which is described as the "greatest gift of God"—are said to enter into a state of "exaltation" after they are resurrected. Exaltation is also called "salvation" or "eternal life".

Exaltation is "the kind of life God lives". In other words, exalted beings will live in great glory, be perfect, and possess all knowledge and wisdom. Exalted beings will live forever with God the Father and Jesus Christ, will become gods and goddesses, will live with their righteous earthly family members, and will receive the fulness of joy enjoyed by God and Christ. One of the key qualifications for exaltation is being united in a celestial marriage

Celestial marriage

Celestial marriage is a doctrine of Mormonism, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and branches of Mormon fundamentalism.Within Mormonism, celestial marriage is an ordinance associated with a covenant that always...

to an opposite-sex partner. Such a union can be created during mortality, or it can be created after death by proxy marriages performed in temples

Temple (LDS Church)

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...

.

Humans who fall short of exaltation still receive an immortal physical body. Most will be awarded one of three kingdoms of glory, whether it be the celestial, terrestrial, or telestial kingdoms. Those who are exalted are said to inhabit the "highest degree" of the celestial kingdom. Satan, his spirit followers, and a select number of people who lived on the earth will receive no glory

Outer darkness

In Christianity, the outer darkness is a place referred to three times in the Gospel of Matthew into which a person may be "cast out", and where there is "weeping and gnashing of teeth"...

and will be called the sons of perdition

Sons of Perdition

Sons of Perdition may refer to*Sons of perdition , a phrase used to describe those in Mormon beliefs who follow Satan and receive no glory in the afterlife...

Gender

The church also teaches that each person's gender

Gender

Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...

is eternal and that each gender has roles and duties in the family that are ordained by God. The church teaches that "By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners." Some have characterized this view of the man-woman relationship as "equal but different". Nevertheless, LDS women in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

work outside the home in about the same percentage

Percentage

In mathematics, a percentage is a way of expressing a number as a fraction of 100 . It is often denoted using the percent sign, “%”, or the abbreviation “pct”. For example, 45% is equal to 45/100, or 0.45.Percentages are used to express how large/small one quantity is, relative to another quantity...

as other American women.

The church teaches that gender

Gender

is inherently linked to sex, but the church has no official policy on the status of intersex

Intersex

Intersex, in humans and other animals, is the presence of intermediate or atypical combinations of physical features that usually distinguish female from male...

persons. Transgender

Transgender

Transgender is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles....

persons are accepted in the church and may be baptized, but may not receive the priesthood or even enter the temple if they are considering or have undergone elective sex reassignment surgery

Sex reassignment surgery

Sex reassignment surgery is a term for the surgical procedures by which a person's physical appearance and function of their existing sexual characteristics are altered to resemble...

Law of chastity

The church teaches what it calls the law of chastity

Law of Chastity

The law of chastity is a moral code defined by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . According to the church, chastity means abstinence from sexual relations before marriage, and complete fidelity to one's husband or wife during marriage...

, a moral

Morality

Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...

code that its members must follow to be in good standing with the church. At its core, the law of chastity prohibits sexual relations between individuals who are not married

Fornication

Fornication typically refers to consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. For many people, the term carries a moral or religious association, but the significance of sexual acts to which the term is applied varies between religions, societies and cultures. The...

, adultery

Adultery

Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...

,, and sexual relations between gay

Gay

Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....

and lesbian

Lesbian

Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...

partners whether married or not. The law also prohibits other sexual behavior

Human sexual behavior

Human sexual activities or human sexual practices or human sexual behavior refers to the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts from time to time, and for a wide variety of reasons...

, such as bestiality and masturbation

Masturbation

Masturbation refers to sexual stimulation of a person's own genitals, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation can be performed manually, by use of objects or tools, or by some combination of these methods. Masturbation is a common form of autoeroticism...

, as well as mental behavior such as lust

Lust

Lust is an emotional force that is directly associated with the thinking or fantasizing about one's desire, usually in a sexual way.-Etymology:The word lust is phonetically similar to the ancient Roman lustrum, which literally meant "purification"...

, sexual fantasy

Sexual fantasy

A sexual fantasy, also called an erotic fantasy, is a fantasy or pattern of thoughts with the effect of creating or enhancing sexual feelings; in short, it is "almost any mental imagery that is sexually arousing or erotic to [an] individual"...

, and viewing of pornography

Pornography

Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...

. The church's teachings are ambiguous about the scope of allowable sexual behavior

Human sexual behavior

between legally married couples. Sex in marriage is seen as a means for expressing and building joy, unity, love, and oneness, as well as for the purposes or wanting to produce and to reproduce children.

The church encourages members to enter a celestial marriage

Celestial marriage

, performed as a church ordinance in an LDS temple. This is the only form of marriage recognized by the church as a sacrament and "the only due and proper way of joining husband and wife". For purposes of the law of chastity, however, the church presently recognizes civil unions that are considered "legal and lawful" by the government where the legal agreement takes place. In the church's view, exceptions to the acceptance of civil unions include same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....

, polygamous marriage

Polygamy

Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...

, common law marriage, and other types of non-ceremonial marriages in non-common law

Common law

Common law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive branch action...

countries. In countries where the celestial marriage ordinance is not recognized by the government, it must be preceded by a civil marriage.

The law of chastity has also been interpreted to include standards of modesty

Modesty

Standards of modesty are aspects of the culture of a country or people, at a given point in time, and is a measure against which an individual in society may be judged....

in dress and action. Sexual activity outside of marriage may result in church discipline

Disciplinary council

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a disciplinary council is an ecclesiastical trial during which a member of the church is tried for alleged violations of church standards. If a member of the LDS Church is found guilty of an offence by a disciplinary council, he or she may be...

, including a possible excommunication

Excommunication

Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...

, in which a member loses his or her church membership and privileges but may continue to attend meetings. In most instances, the church strongly discourages surgical sterilization as an elective form of birth control among married couples.

LGBT

LGBT

LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...

members of the church are expected to keep the law of chastity

Law of Chastity

. If they do, they can “go forward as do all other members of the church.” If they desire to enter into a heterosexual marriage, they should first learn to deal with their homosexual feelings; otherwise, they must remain celibate. Gay or lesbian sex, in any form, whether the participants are married or not, may be grounds for excommunication.

The church has supported a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and polygamous marriage in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

and has stated that it "favors measures that define marriage as the union of a man and a woman and that do not confer legal status on any other sexual relationship." The church's position is that government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

recognition of such rights will "undermine the divinely created institution

Institution

An institution is any structure or mechanism of social order and cooperation governing the behavior of a set of individuals within a given human community...

of the family". Support of an amendment to end same-sex marriage in California has caused then-California State Assembly

California State Assembly

The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...

man Mark Leno

Mark Leno

Mark Leno is an American politician, representing California's 3rd Senate district, which includes parts of San Francisco and Sonoma County, as well as the entirety of Marin County. He was elected in 2008 and is the first openly gay man to serve in the Senate...

to publicly question whether the church's tax-exempt status should be revoked.

The emphasis on the law of chastity leads to a lower rate of pre-marital sex among LDS youth than among their peers.

Ordinances and covenants

Latter-day Saint sacrament

Sacrament

A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...

s are called ordinances, of which there are two types: saving ordinances and non-saving ordinances. All ordinances, whether saving or non-saving, must be performed by a man ordained to the appropriate priesthood

Priesthood (LDS Church)

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the priesthood is the power and authority to act in the name of God for the salvation of humankind...

office, with the exception of certain parts of the temple Endowment

Endowment (Latter Day Saints)

In the theology of the Latter Day Saint movement, an endowment refers to a gift of "power from on high", typically associated with Latter Day Saint temples. The purpose and meaning of the endowment varied during the life of movement founder Joseph Smith, Jr...

and the initiatory or washings and anointings, in which men and women are separated, and women administer the ordinances for women, and men administer the ordinances for men. However, both men and women must be "set apart", or authorized and "blessed by the laying on of hands" by those who have proper authority before serving as temple ordinance workers.

Saving ordinances are those that are required for salvation

Salvation

Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...

or exaltation, and include baptism

Baptism

In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...

by immersion for the remission of sins, the laying on of hands

Laying on of hands

The laying on of hands is a religious ritual that accompanies certain religious practices, which are found throughout the world in varying forms....

for the gift of the Holy Ghost

Baptism with the Holy Spirit

Baptism with the Holy Spirit in Christian theology is a term describing baptism in or with the Spirit of God...

(confirmation of membership in the church of Jesus Christ), with the "sacrament" of the Lord's supper, taken each Sunday, to keep in remembrance of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and to renew the covenants made at baptism, ordination to an office of the priesthood

Priesthood (LDS Church)

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the priesthood is the power and authority to act in the name of God for the salvation of humankind...

(for males), the initiatory or washings and anointings

Washing and anointing

The washing and anointing is a temple ordinance of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that pertains to exaltation within the Celestial Kingdom. Combined, the two ordinances are known as the initiatory, which is performed for both the living and the dead.-History:Ritual anointings were...

, the Endowment

Endowment (Latter Day Saints)

, celestial marriage

Celestial marriage

, and family sealings. Each saving ordinance is associated with one or more covenant that the person receiving the ordinance makes with God, and one or more blessing that God promises to the recipient.

Three primary covenants are administered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints under the heading “new and everlasting covenant,” called “new” because they have been restored again and “everlasting” because they are eternal with God. Specifically, they are the gospel, or baptismal covenant; the priesthood covenant; and the marriage covenant. The latter two are administered in the temple. Each covenant, or “contract,” between God and Man has one or more pre-requisites, offers one or more rewards, and specifies punishment for breaking it.

The first, the gospel covenant, is entered into after the sincere communicant fulfills the pre-requisite of exercising faith in Christ, repents of his sins, is baptized by proper authority, receives the gift of the Holy Ghost, and promises to endure to the end of his mortal life continuing to exercise faith in Christ and repentance from his sins. He also agrees to stand as a witness for Christ at all times and in all places, and bear the burdens of his fellow servants . The scriptures are replete with references to all these gospel elements . The covenant maker receives the reward of the gift of the Holy Ghost, receives membership in the Church of Jesus Christ, receives forgiveness of sins, peace of conscience, a rebirth of the Spirit , grace, a hope in Christ, salvation or eternal life, and the joy of the saints. The punishment for breaking the covenant is perdition . The sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, or partaking of bread and wine instituted by Jesus, is in remembrance of this covenant, in remembrance of His blood, or atonement for sins, and His resurrection, or body. The “milk” of the kingdom of God has to do with learning of and keeping this gospel covenant. The “meat” is “going on unto perfection,” or entering into subsequent covenants, to obtain a fullness of the life God leads ; ; ).

Latter-Day Saints believe the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is a God of covenants. In return for Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob’s faith and obedience, God promised them (1) a numberless posterity, (2) a chosen land, and (3) the blessing of all nations through their posterity and the priesthood of their posterity, the “blessings of heaven.” God promised Jacob’s son, Joseph, additional blessings, a special land and a righteous branch to be separated from the rest of the house of Israel . Even later, promises and assurances were given through Moses and other prophets that, even though all Israel should be scattered and many persecuted, the earlier promises would not be forgotten, and a day of restoration and gathering would come in which all the tribes of Israel would be united in peace under the King of kings and Lord of lords. The Book of Mormon is a witness to the truth of these promises, and it is an assurance that more of them will not be left unfulfilled.

The church teaches there are three rewards or degrees of glory in the heavenly world , and that to obtain the highest degree of salvation

Salvation

(referred to as "exaltation" in the celestial kingdom), all people who have lived to the age of eight must participate in each of the saving ordinances. However, the church teaches that they may be performed for a person either during their lifetime or by proxy after the person has died. Therefore, church members participate in the saving ordinances on behalf of dead relatives and others whose names have been extracted from historical records. The performance of these proxy ordinances are one of the functions of the church's temples

Temple (LDS Church)

.

All the saving ordinances are currently open to all worthy church members of the appropriate age. Prior to 1978, black members were restricted from some of the priesthood ordinances, but this policy was changed in 1978. Celestial marriage is open to one man and one woman at a time, but a widower may enter a second celestial marriage.

Apart from sealings to parents, the church does not perform saving ordinances for those younger than age eight or for those who have died before the age of eight (when children reach the "age of accountability"), because young children are deemed "alive in Christ" and not responsible for sin. Likewise, the church teaches that the saving ordinances are not required for persons age eight or older who are "mentally incapable of knowing right and wrong". They are saved by the grace and mercy of Christ without baptism and will inherit the celestial kingdom of God.

Non-saving ordinances include the dedication of graves, the dedication of buildings, the prayer circle, the Hosanna shout

Hosanna Shout

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a hosanna shout is an organized ritual by a congregation of shouting hosanna. It was first performed as a ritual in the dedication of the Kirtland Temple, and was a part of the Kirtland Endowment ceremony...

, shaking the dust from the feet

Shaking the dust from the feet

Shaking the dust from the feet was a practice of pious Jews during New Testament times. When Jesus called his twelve disciples, he told them to perform the same act against the non-believing Jews....

, and various kinds of blessings

Priesthood blessing

A priesthood blessing in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a "prayer for healing, comfort or counsel given by a Melchizedek Priesthood holder, who lays his hands on the head of the person receiving the blessing." Priesthood blessings are considered to be non-saving ordinances by...

, including the patriarchal blessing

Patriarchal blessing

In the Latter Day Saint movement, a patriarchal blessing is a blessing or ordinance given by a patriarch to a church member. Patriarchal blessings are modeled after the blessing given by Jacob to each of his sons prior to his death...

Leadership and hierarchy

The leader of the church is termed President, and church members revere him as a prophet, seer, and revelator

Prophet, seer, and revelator

Prophet, seer, and revelator is an ecclesiastical title used in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that is currently applied to the members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles...

. The prophet holds the same divine calling as biblical prophets, and his responsibility is primarily over the church as a whole. His stewardship extends over the whole human family on earth as the Lord's mouthpiece. He is entitled to guide the church through revelation

Revelation (Latter Day Saints)

, acting as God's spokesman. The President of the Church serves as such until death. The current president is Thomas S. Monson

Thomas S. Monson

Thomas Spencer Monson is an American religious leader and author, and the 16th and current President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . As president, Monson is considered by adherents of the religion to be a "prophet, seer, and revelator" of God's will on earth...

.

The First Presidency

First Presidency (LDS Church)

The First Presidency is the presiding or governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is composed of the President of the Church and his counselors. The First Presidency currently consists of President Thomas S. Monson and his two counselors, Henry B...

, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the Presiding Bishopric

Presiding Bishop (LDS Church)

The Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a priesthood calling with church-wide authority. The Presiding Bishop is the highest leadership position within the church's Aaronic priesthood.-Presiding Bishopric:...

and the First and Second Quorums of the Seventy are all referred to as general authorities because they direct the work of the entire church throughout the world. The members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are accepted by the church as prophets, seers, and revelators.

Other church authorities are referred to as area authorities and local authorities and include all other Quorums of the Seventy

Quorums of the Seventy

Seventy is a priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood of several denominations within the Latter Day Saint movement, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

, mission presidents

Mission (LDS Church)

A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...

, stake presidents

Stake (Mormonism)

, bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

s, and other priesthood quorum

Quorum (Mormonism)

In the Latter Day Saint movement, a quorum is a group of people ordained or endowed with priesthood authority, and organized to act together as a body. The idea of a quorum was established by Joseph Smith, Jr...

presidents.

The church has no salaried ministry; however, general authorities who demonstrate need receive stipends from the church, using income from church-owned investments. All local and area authorities are unpaid

Laity

In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...

and continue in their normal occupations while serving in leadership positions.

Although the church had a paid local clergy in the 1800s, local and regional priesthood leaders currently serve as volunteers. Non-clerical church employees, general authorities

General authority

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...

(who serve life or five-year terms), and mission president

Mission president

Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...

s are paid a stipend from church funds and provided other benefits. A general missionary fund covers the basic living expenses of single Mormon missionaries

Missionary (LDS Church)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...

. Missionaries and their families are asked to contribute to this fund, and in the United States the missionary's congregation of origin is ultimately responsible to satisfy the monthly obligation to the general fund. Members volunteer general custodial work for local church facilities.

Service hierarchy

The church has a hierarchical structure, with clearly defined stewardships or realms of responsibility for the various offices. Those who hold such offices do not elect to do so but are "called" by someone of a higher authority in the church; all are laity

Laity

and are not paid for their service.

The status of women in church leadership has remained largely unchanged since the early 1900s. Although they are not ordained to the priesthood, preaching and instruction by women is an integral part of weekly Latter-day Saint worship. Certain leadership positions are filled only by women, and in some of the church's auxiliary organizations women may preside over men, such as in the Primary, in welfare programs, on activities committees, and at a Family History Library

Family History Library

The Family History Library is a genealogical research facility in downtown Salt Lake City. The library is open to the public free of charge and is operated by FamilySearch, the genealogical arm of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-History:The origins of the Family History...

. Since the 1840s, women have officiated in certain

Washing and anointing

ordinances that take place inside temples

Temple (LDS Church)

Priesthood

The priesthood is offered to all male members ages 12 and older who follow the church's code of ethics, morality and behavior. Men receive the priesthood by ordination

Ordination

In general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...

, which consists of other priesthood holders laying their hands

Laying on of hands

The laying on of hands is a religious ritual that accompanies certain religious practices, which are found throughout the world in varying forms....

on their head. Ordination to the priesthood is a prerequisite to preside in the church.

The priesthood is structured in a hierarchical manner, emphasizing obedience. Members are encouraged to avoid public criticism of priesthood leaders; repeated public criticism by an individual may eventually result in excommunication

Excommunication

Aaronic Priesthood

There is one priesthood with two levels; within each are different offices. The first level is the Aaronic Priesthood given to young men ages 12–17. The first office in this priesthood level is called a Deacon; males aged 12 and 13 are ordained to this office. Their primary duty is to pass the sacrament to members on Sundays and collect fast offering

Fast offering

Fast offering is the term used in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to denote money or usable commodities donated to that church, which are then available to provide financial help to those in need...

s.

Teacher is the second office and is given to males ages 14 and 15. The primary duties of Teachers are to prepare the sacrament, participate in home teaching

Home teaching

Home teaching is a responsibility of priesthood holders in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Home teaching is a church program designed to allow families to be taught in their own homes, in addition to weekly church services...

, and assist members with their temporal needs if requested.

Priest is the third office in the Aaronic Priesthood; this office given the males ages 16 and 17. The primary duties of a priest is to bless the sacrament and participate in home teaching

Home teaching

. Priests also have the authority to baptize individuals who choose to become members of the church. A Priest can also confer the Aaronic priesthood or ordain others to the office of Deacon, Teacher, or Priest.

Bishop is the highest office of the Aaronic Priesthood. A Bishop must also be a High Priest in the Melchizedek Priesthood. A bishop's responsibility is to preside over a local group of Aaronic priesthood members and to act as the presiding high priest over a church congregation.

Melchizedek Priesthood

The second level of the priesthood is the Melchizedek Priesthood. All Melchizedek Priesthood holders are 18 or older but the offices do not have set ages for progression.

The first office is Elder. An Elder may confer the gift of the Holy Ghost; give blessings by the laying on of hands

Laying on of hands

The laying on of hands is a religious ritual that accompanies certain religious practices, which are found throughout the world in varying forms....

; ordain other Elders; and perform any duty given to priests of the Aaronic priesthood.

The next office is High Priest. A High Priest is responsible for the spiritual welfare of their congregation of saints; may serve in a bishopric, stake presidency, high council, or temple presidency and may serve as a mission president. Further, he may ordain other High Priests and Elders; and can perform all the duties of both Elder and Aaronic priesthood holders. All members that are high priests hold, or have held, a leadership position in the church. Bishops, stake presidents, members of a stake high council, mission president

Mission president

Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...

s, temple president

Temple President

Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....

s, and members of the First Presidency must be ordained high priests.

The next office is Patriarch. A Patriarch's main responsibility is to provide patriarchal blessing

Patriarchal blessing

s for members of a stake or district

District (LDS Church)

A district of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative unit composed of a number of congregations called branches. A district is a subdivision of a mission of the church and in many ways is analogous to a stake of the church. The leader of a district is the...

(a geographic region of multiple congregations) and to declare an individual's lineage.

The next office is Seventy. Those who hold this office are especial witnesses of Christ who assist the Apostles in the administration of the church worldwide and in the church's areas

Area (LDS Church)

An area is an administrative unit of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which typically is composed of multiple stakes and missions...

. Each seventy is usually given a specific responsibility for a particular region.

The highest office of the Melchizedek priesthood is Apostle. This office is reserved for members of the Quorum of the Twelves Apostles and members of the First Presidency

First Presidency (LDS Church)

. The main role of an Apostle is to act as a special witness of Jesus Christ to the world at large and to oversee the spiritual and temporal administration of the church. The President of the Church is generally the person in the church who has been an ordained Apostle for the longest period of time.

Auxiliary organizations

Under the leadership of the priesthood hierarchy are five auxiliary organizations that fill various roles in the church: Relief Society

Relief Society

The Relief Society is a philanthropic and educational women's organization and an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It was founded in 1842 in Nauvoo, Illinois, USA and has approximately 6 million members in over 170 countries and territories...

, Young Men Organization, Young Women Organization, Primary, and Sunday School

Sunday School (LDS Church)

Sunday School is an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . All members of the church and any interested nonmembers, age 12 and older, are encouraged to participate in Sunday School.-Purpose:...

.

The Relief Society

Relief Society

is the church's women's organization. Founded in 1842 in Nauvoo

Nauvoo, Illinois

Nauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the population was just 1,063 at the 2000 census, and despite being difficult to reach due to its location in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, and with the motto "Charity Never Faileth", the organization today includes more than 5.5 million women in over 170 countries. Every Latter-day Saint woman age 18 or older is a member of the Relief Society.

The Young Men

Young Men (organization)

The Young Men is a youth organization and an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

and Young Women

Young Women (organization)

The Young Women is a youth organization and an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

organizations are composed of adolescents aged 12 to 18. Members often have an additional meeting during the week (referred to as Mutual), which can involve an activity, game, service project, or instruction. The young men and women may meet separately or take part in a combined activities. In the United States and Canada, the young men participate in Scouting

Scouting

Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....

, including efforts to earn the Boy Scouts religious award for church members, "On my Honor." Young men throughout the church also work toward earning the church's "Duty to God" award. Young women participate in a comparable program called Personal Progress

Personal Progress

Personal Progress is a goal-setting and achievement program within the Young Women Organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

. Both the young men and the young women are encouraged to live by the standards outlined in the church's "For the Strength of Youth

For the Strength of Youth

For the Strength of Youth is a piece of writing distributed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that "summarizes standards from scripture and from the writings and teachings of Church leaders." "For the Strength of Youth" is available on the internet, in a printed pamphlet, and on a...

" booklet.

The Primary is an organization for children up to age 12, founded in 1878. It provides classes, music, and activities for children during the second and third hours of the Sunday meeting schedule.

The LDS Sunday School

Sunday School (LDS Church)

organization provides classes for adolescents and adults during the second hour of the Sunday meeting schedule. It provides a variety of classes, including introductory classes for new members and nonmembers, and gospel doctrine classes for more experienced members. Adolescents are grouped into classes by age.

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 . In addition, they have a high degree of participation in religious activities outside of worship services. Members are expected or encouraged to pray

Prayer in LDS theology and practice

Prayer is one of the central teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as "Mormons," as taught throughout the holy scriptures and by LDS leaders and teachers in General Conferences of the LDS Church, in gospel doctrine and youth classes, in sacrament meetings, and in...

frequently (several times a day), perform good works, and read scriptures daily.

Members are expected to donate their time

Time

Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....

, money

Money

Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...

, and talents to the church, and those who have participated in the Endowment ceremony

Endowment (Latter Day Saints)

make an oath

Oath

An oath is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow...

to donate all that they have

Law of Consecration

In the Latter Day Saint movement , the term law of consecration was first used in 1831 by Joseph Smith, it was a doctrine of covenanted Christian communalism....

, if required of them, to the Lord. To be in good standing and to enter the church's temples

Temple (LDS Church)

, church members are asked to tithe

Tithe

A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...

their income to the church, which is usually interpreted as 10% of income

Income

Income is the consumption and savings opportunity gained by an entity within a specified time frame, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. However, for households and individuals, "income is the sum of all the wages, salaries, profits, interests payments, rents and other forms of earnings...

. In addition, members are asked to donate monthly charitable "fast offering

Fast offering

s" (at least the equivalent cost of two meals), which are used to help the needy, regardless of whether or not they are church members, and are encouraged to make other humanitarian donations when necessary.

Members who have been endowed are expected to wear a temple garment

Temple garment

A Temple garment is a type of underwear worn by members of some denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, after they have taken part in the Endowment ceremony. Garments are worn both day and night and are required for any previously endowed adult to enter a church temple...

under their clothing at all times. Members are told that they should not partially or completely remove the garment to participate in activities that can "reasonably be done with the garment worn properly beneath the clothing". When necessary, the garment may be temporarily removed, but members are told that after the activity "they should put it back on as soon as possible." Swimming is given as an example of an activity that would justify removal of the garment.

In addition to attending the weekly three-hour church services, members are usually given "callings" or assignments in the church, and often attend various other meetings or activities throughout the week relating to that calling. Members in good standing are assigned to visit the homes of other members monthly as "home teachers

Home teaching

" (men) or "visiting teachers" (women). Members are also expected to engage in missionary work, family history

Family history

Family history is the systematic narrative and research of past events relating to a specific family, or specific families.- Introduction :...

research, to conduct a Family Home Evening

Family Home Evening

Family Home Evening or Family Night, in the context of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, refers to one evening per week, usually Monday, that families are encouraged to spend together in study, prayer and other wholesome activities...

weekly with their family, and to attend the temple

Temple (LDS Church)

regularly. Church members are encouraged to live self-sufficiently and avoid unnecessary debt

Debt

A debt is an obligation owed by one party to a second party, the creditor; usually this refers to assets granted by the creditor to the debtor, but the term can also be used metaphorically to cover moral obligations and other interactions not based on economic value.A debt is created when a...

. All male members are expected to serve a two-year mission

Mormon missionary

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...

at the age of 19, though there are high standards of worthiness and physical and mental health that prohibit many men from serving. Women may optionally serve a mission if they are over the age of 21 and not married, as may older married couples. Women serve a mission for a period of only eighteen months compared to two years for men.

Good standing in the church requires that members follow the "Word of Wisdom

Word of Wisdom

The "Word of Wisdom" is the common name of a section of the Doctrine and Covenants, a book considered by many churches within the Latter Day Saint movement to consist of revelations from God...

" (a health

Health

Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...

code given by Joseph Smith which the church interprets as requiring abstinence from alcoholic beverages, tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

, black tea

Black tea

Black tea is a variety of tea that is more oxidized than the oolong, green, and white varieties.All four varieties are made from leaves of the shrub Camellia sinensis. Black tea is generally stronger in flavor and contains more caffeine than the less oxidized teas. Two principal varieties of the...

, and recreational drugs). Members must also obey the law of chastity

Law of Chastity

(the church's code for modesty

Modesty

Standards of modesty are aspects of the culture of a country or people, at a given point in time, and is a measure against which an individual in society may be judged....

and allowable forms of sexuality

Human sexuality

Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...

), and are strongly counseled against choosing an elective abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

, except in the cases of a pregnancy

Pregnancy

Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...

resulting from rape

Rape

Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...

or incest

Incest

Incest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...

, a pregnancy that seriously jeopardizes the life or health of the mother, or a pregnancy where a physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

determines that the fetus

Fetus

A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...

has severe defects that will not allow the baby to survive beyond birth

Childbirth

Childbirth is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the birth of one or more newborn infants from a woman's uterus...

. In general, members must obey the law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

of the country

Country

A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...

in which they live and visit, although there have been notable exceptions. The church discourages gambling

Gambling

Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...

in all forms, including lotteries

Lottery

A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...

.

Church members who commit what are considered serious violations of the standards of the church (defined as, without limitation, "attempted murder, rape, sexual abuse, spouse abuse, intentional serious physical injury of others, adultery, fornication, homosexual relations, deliberate abandonment of family responsibilities, robbery, burglary, theft, embezzlement, sale of illegal drugs, fraud, perjury, and false swearing") may be subject to church disciplinary action

Disciplinary council

, including disfellowshipment or even excommunication

Excommunication

. Such individuals are encouraged to continue attending church services, but are not permitted to hold church responsibilities or offer public prayer at any church meeting (although personal prayer is encouraged); excommunicated members are also prohibited from paying tithing or fast offerings. Other members are frequently unaware of the status of such individuals. Everyone is welcome to attend the public meetings of the church, whether or not they adhere to the church's lifestyle code.

In contrast to overt actions which are prohibited, church members are generally 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

Disciplinary council

for apostasy

Apostasy

Apostasy , 'a defection or revolt', from ἀπό, apo, 'away, apart', στάσις, stasis, 'stand, 'standing') is the formal disaffiliation from or abandonment or renunciation of a religion by a person. One who commits apostasy is known as an apostate. These terms have a pejorative implication in everyday...

. The church maintains a Strengthening Church Members Committee

Strengthening Church Members Committee

The Strengthening Church Members Committee is a committee of general authorities of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who monitor the publications of church members for possible criticism of local and general leaders of the church...

which monitors members' publications and refers critical material to local authorities for possible disciplinary action.

Finances

Church funds are used to construct and maintain buildings and other facilities; provide for the administrative needs of local church units; provide social welfare and relief; and to support missionary, educational, and other church-sponsored programs. The church has also invested in business and real estate ventures such as Bonneville International

Bonneville International

Bonneville International Corporation is a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation...

, Deseret Book Company, and cattle ranches in Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

, and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

The church receives most of its money from tithe

Tithe

s (ten percent of a member's income) and fast offering
Fast offering
Fast offering is the term used in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to denote money or usable commodities donated to that church, which are then available to provide financial help to those in need...

s (money given to the church to assist individuals in need). About ten percent of its funding also comes from income on investments and real estate holdings.

The church has not released church-wide financial statements since 1959, but in 1997 Time Magazine called it one of the world's wealthiest churches per capita. Its for-profit, non-profit, and educational subsidiary entities are audited by an independent accounting firm: , Deloitte & Touche.

Organized worship and participation

The church provides several kinds of services and gatherings for participation by members and non-members, including weekly services on Sunday, periodic conferences such as the semi-annual general conference, and ritual services at the church's temples

Temple (LDS Church)

(for members only). All persons, regardless of their beliefs or standing in or out of the church, are welcome to attend normal church services and conferences. Women usually attend worship services wearing skirts or dresses, while men typically wear suits or dress shirts (normally white) and ties. Children are also typically in their "Sunday best."

The church holds its normal worship services

Worship services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

In Mormonism, worship services include weekly services, held on Sundays , in neighborhood based religious units...

on Sunday during a three-hour block composed of three meetings: sacrament meeting

Sacrament meeting

Sacrament meeting is the weekly worship service held on Sunday in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .Sacrament meetings are held in individual wards or branches in the chapel of the meetinghouse. The bishop or branch president of the ward or branch presides, unless a higher authority...

, which features the church's weekly sacrament (Eucharist

Eucharist

The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...

) ritual and sermons by various selected members; Sunday School

Sunday School (LDS Church)

, featuring a lesson on various scriptural topics; and finally, each participant is assigned a meeting based on their age and sex, which could include a meeting of priesthood holders for males aged 12 and up separated into age-specific quorums, Relief Society

Relief Society

for adult women, and a meeting of the Young Women Organization for adolescent females. During the second and third hours, children participate in activities of the Primary. Periodically, members participate in local, regional, and general church-wide conferences in lieu of Sunday services. The general conference is broadcast semi-annually (April and October) from Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...

. The 2008 general conference was broadcast live through the Internet April 5 and 6 on lds.org and was of particular significance in that a new president of the church was presented for a sustaining vote, in what is called a Solemn assembly.

The church also provides ritual services at its temples

Temple (LDS Church)

, which are open only to members of the appropriate age who meet standards of orthodoxy

Orthodoxy

The word orthodox, from Greek orthos + doxa , is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion...

and worthiness. Members are encouraged to attend the temples regularly, where they usually participate in the Endowment

Endowment (Latter Day Saints)

, sealing, washing and anointing

Washing and anointing

, and other ordinances, most often by proxy for the dead.

Missionary program

Young men between the ages of 19 and 25 who meet standards of worthiness and preparation are encouraged to serve a two-year, full-time proselytizing mission. Women who desire to serve a mission must be at least 21 and generally serve 18-month missions. Retired married couples are encouraged to serve missions as well, and their length of service varies from three to 36 months.

there are 340 missions and approximately 52,500 full time proselytizing missionaries serving throughout the world. In addition, about 8,500 missionaries are on special assignment missions, serving as health care specialists, doctors, craftsmen, artisans, construction supervisors, agricultural experts and educators for developing countries and educators, family history researchers and leadership trainers.

In June 2007, the church marked the induction of its one millionth missionary since 1830.

Educational System

Latter-day Saints believe in the value of education. Joseph Smith taught that "the glory of God is intelligence." Accordingly, the church maintains Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...

, Brigham Young University–Idaho

Brigham Young University–Idaho

Brigham Young University–Idaho is a private university located in Rexburg, Idaho. Founded in 1888, the university is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and transitioned from a junior college to a four-year institution in 2001, known for the greater part of its...

(formerly Ricks College), Brigham Young University Hawaii

Brigham Young University Hawaii

Brigham Young University–Hawaii is a private university located in Laie, Hawaii. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....

, and LDS Business College

LDS Business College

LDS Business College is a two-year college in Salt Lake City, Utah, focused on training students in business and industry. The college is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and operates under the Church Educational System and is associated with the Brigham Young University...

. The church also has religious education

Religious education

In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion and its varied aspects —its beliefs, doctrines, rituals, customs, rites, and personal roles...

programs. Seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...

is a program for secondary school students held daily in conjunction with the school year. The Institute of Religion

Institute of Religion

Institutes of Religion provide religious educational classes for young single adult and university students who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

and the LDS Student Association

LDS Student Association

LDS Student Association is an organization affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which offers Latter-day Saint university and college students and others social, religious, and recreational activities.The LDSSA was established in 1960, and today a chapter of the LDSSA...

programs serve young adults between the ages of 18 and 30 and those enrolled in post-secondary education institutions with church-owned buildings near university and college campuses designated for the purpose of religious education and cultural socialization.

In addition, the church sponsors a low-interest educational loan program known as the Perpetual Education Fund

Perpetual Education Fund

The Perpetual Education Fund is a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, first announced by President Gordon B. Hinckley on March 31, 2001...

. This fund is designed to benefit young men and women from less developed parts of the world who have served a mission

Mormon missionary

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...

, returned to their home, and need further education to become productive citizens in their respective countries. As they finish their education and enter the work force, they then are able to pay back the funds provided so that other individuals can attend both vocational technical schools and university.

Welfare Program

Members of the church donate fast offering

Fast offering

s on Fast Sunday

Fast Sunday

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Fast Sunday is a Sunday set aside for fasting.- Overview :...

and at other times for the purpose of helping those who are poor or financially struggling. The bishop will meet with a family, or the head(s) of a family to determine whether and how much help they need from the church. The church strongly encourages its members to be self-reliant, so these meetings will usually include a plan on how to get the family back on its own feet. This welfare program is not only available to members of the church, but to any needy members of the community. In fact, the church has a very broad humanitarian effort, which helps not only those who are going through financial struggles, but also victims of natural disasters or other devastating events. All of these services are paid for by charitable donations and are run by volunteer workers. $104.9 million of aid was given in 2007. there are 8,500 welfare service missionaries serving in the church.

Publications

The church also publishes several official periodicals, including the Ensign (for English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

-speaking adults), the Liahona
Liahona (magazine)
Liahona is the official international magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is named after the word Liahona from the Book of Mormon. The Liahona is published in 51 different languages from one to twelve times per year depending on the language...

(non-English languages), the New Era
New Era (magazine)
New Era is an official magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. First published in January 1971 along with the Ensign and the Friend, the New Era's intended audience has always been the youth of the Church...

(for youth), and the Friend
The Friend (Mormon magazine)
The Friend is the monthly English language children's magazine published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is aimed at those of Primary age , approximately ages 3 through 12...

(for children).

Some older, discontinued English-language publications produced or affiliated with the church included Evening and Morning Star
Evening and Morning Star
The Evening and the Morning Star was an early Latter Day Saint periodical published monthly in Independence, Missouri, from June 1832 to July 1833, and then in Kirtland, Ohio, from December 1833 to September 1834...

(1833–1834), Messenger and Advocate
Messenger and Advocate
Latter Day Saints' Messenger and Advocate was an early Latter Day Saint periodical published monthly in Kirtland, Ohio from October 1834 to September 1837...

(1834–1837), Elders' Journal
Elders' Journal
The Elders' Journal of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was an early Latter Day Saint periodical edited by Don Carlos Smith. Two issues Vol. 1 No. 1 and Vol. 1. No. 2 were published in Kirtland, Ohio in 1837. The remaining two issues Vol 1. No. 3 and Vol 1. No...

(1837), Times and Seasons
Times and Seasons
Times and Seasons was a 19th-century Latter Day Saint periodical published monthly or twice-monthly at Nauvoo, Illinois, from November 1839 to February 15, 1846...

(1839–1846), Millennial Star
Millennial Star
The Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star was the longest continuously published periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, being printed from 1840 until 1970....

(1840–1970), The Seer
The Seer (periodical)
The Seer was an official periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which first appeared in 1853 and was published throughout 1854.-History of publication:...

(1853–1854), Journal of Discourses
Journal of Discourses
The Journal of Discourses is a 26-volume collection of public sermons by early leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . The first editions of the Journal were published in England by George D. Watt, the stenographer of Brigham Young...

(1854–1886), The Juvenile Instructor (1866–1930), Woman's Exponent
Woman's Exponent
Woman's Exponent was a newspaper published from 1872 until 1914 in Salt Lake City. Its purposes were to uplift and strengthen women of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and to educate those not of the Mormon faith about the women of Mormonism...

(1872–1914), The Contributor (1879–1896), Young Woman's Journal
Young Woman's Journal
Young Woman's Journal was an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1897 and 1929. It was an official periodical of the Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association, then the LDS Church's organization for adolescent females.Young Woman's Journal was founded...

(1889–1929), Improvement Era
Improvement Era
The Improvement Era was an official magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1897 and 1970....

(1897–1970), The Children's Friend (1902–1970), Relief Society Magazine
Relief Society Magazine
Relief Society Magazine was the official publication of the Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1915 to 1970. It succeeded the earlier Woman's Exponent, which was begun in 1872. The magazine was an important publishing outlet for Utah women, and was run by women...

(1915–1970), and The Instructor
The Instructor
The Instructor was an official periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1930 and 1970, during which It was the official organ of the LDS Church's Sunday School auxiliary....

(1930–1970).

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