The
history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often colloquially referred to as the Mormon Church, a term the organization itself discourages) is typically divided into three broad time periods: (1) the early history during the lifetime of
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
which is in common with all
Latter Day Saint movementThe Latter Day Saint movement is a group of Restorationist religious denominations and adherents who follow at least some of the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith, Jr., publisher of the Book of Mormon in 1830...
churches, (2) a "pioneer era" under the leadership of
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
and his 19th Century successors, and (3) a modern era beginnning around the turn of the 20th century as the practice of
polygamyThe term polygamy is used in related ways in social anthropology, sociobiology, sociology, as well as in popular speech. Polygamy can be defined as any "form of marriage in which a person [has] more than one spouse."In social anthropology, polygamy is the practice of marriage to more than one...
was discontinued.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traces its origins in western
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
, founder of the
Latter Day Saint movementThe Latter Day Saint movement is a group of Restorationist religious denominations and adherents who follow at least some of the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith, Jr., publisher of the Book of Mormon in 1830...
was born and raised. Joseph Smith gained a small following in the late 1820s as he was dictating the
Book of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. as The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi...
, which he said was a translation of words found on a set of
golden platesAccording to the theology of Latter Day Saint movement churches, the golden plates are a book of bound and engraved metal plates that Joseph Smith, Jr. said was his source for the Book of Mormon...
that had been buried near his home in western
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
by an
indigenous AmericanThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
prophet. On April 6, 1830, in western
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Smith organized the religion's first legal church entity, the Church of Christ. The church rapidly gained a following, who viewed Smith as their
prophetIn religion, a prophet is a person who has been contacted by, or has encountered, the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other humans...
. The main body of the church moved first to
Kirtland, OhioKirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Geography:Kirtland is located at ....
in the early 1830s, then to
MissouriMissouri is a state in the Midwest region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th most populous state with a 2008 estimated population of 5,911,605. It comprises 114 counties and one independent city....
in 1838, where the 1838 Mormon War with other Missouri settlers ensued, culminating in adherents being expelled from the state under an Extermination Order signed by the governor of Missouri. After Missouri, Smith built the city of
Nauvoo, IllinoisNauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the current population is just 1,063 , and it is difficult to reach over secondary highways in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its religious...
, near which
Smith was assassinatedThe death of Joseph Smith, Jr. on June 27, 1844 marked a turning point for the Latter Day Saint movement, of which Smith was the founder and leader. When he was attacked and killed by a mob, Smith was serving as the mayor of Nauvoo, Illinois, and running for President of the United States...
. After Smith's death, a succession crisis ensued, and the majority voted to accept the
Quorum of the TwelveIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve was one of the governing bodies of the church hierarchy organized by the movement's founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and patterned after the twelve apostles of Christ In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the...
, led by
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
, as the church's leading body.
After continued difficulties and persecution in
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, Young left
NauvooNauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the current population is just 1,063 , and it is difficult to reach over secondary highways in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its religious...
in 1846 and led his followers, the Mormon pioneers, to the Great
Salt Lake ValleySalt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably West Valley City, Sandy, and West Jordan; its total population is 948,172 as of 2005....
. The group branched out in an effort to pioneer a large state to be called
DeseretThe State of Deseret was a provisional state of the United States, proposed in 1849 by Mormon settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never recognized by the United States government...
, eventually establishing colonies from Canada to present-day Mexico. Young incorporated The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a legal entity, and governed his followers as a
theocraticTheocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the state's supreme civil ruler, or in a higher sense, a form of government in which a state is governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. In Common Greek, “theocracy” means a...
leader serving in both political and religious positions. He also publicized the previously-secret practice of
plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
, a form of
polygamyThe term polygamy is used in related ways in social anthropology, sociobiology, sociology, as well as in popular speech. Polygamy can be defined as any "form of marriage in which a person [has] more than one spouse."In social anthropology, polygamy is the practice of marriage to more than one...
. By 1857, tensions had again escalated between Mormons and other Americans, largely as a result of church teachings on polygamy and theocracy. The Utah Mormon War ensued from 1857 to 1858, which resulted in the relatively peaceful invasion of Utah by the
United States ArmyThe United States Army is the branch of the United States Military responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military and is one of seven uniformed services...
, after which Young agreed to step down from power and be replaced by a non-Mormon territorial governor,
Alfred CummingAlfred Cumming is the name of:* Alfred Cumming , Governor of the U.S. Territory of Utah from 1858 to 1861* Alfred Cumming , Confederate General in American Civil War...
. Nevertheless, the LDS Church still wielded significant political power in the
Utah TerritoryThe Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
as part of a
shadow governmentA shadow government is a "government-in-waiting" that remains in waiting with the intention of taking control of a government in response to some event.-Politics:...
. At Young's death in 1877, he was followed by other powerful members, who continued the practice of polygamy despite opposition by the
United States CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election....
. After tensions with the U.S. government came to a head in 1890, the church
officially abandonedThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
the public practice of polygamy in the United States, and eventually stopped performing official polygamous marriages altogether after a
Second ManifestoThe "Second Manifesto" was a 1904 declaration made by Joseph F. Smith, the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in which Smith confirmed that the church was opposed to plural marriage and set down the principle that those entering into or solemnizing plural marriages would...
in 1904. Eventually, the church adopted a policy of
excommunicatingExcommunication is a religious censure used to deprive or suspend membership in a religious community. The word literally means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
its members found practicing polygamy and today seeks to actively distance itself from “fundamentalist” groups still practicing polygamy.
During the twentieth century, the church grew substantially and became an international organization. Distancing itself from polygamy, the church began engaging, first with mainstream American culture, and then with international cultures, particularly those of
Latin AmericaLatin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish, Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,501 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, by sending out thousands of
missionariesThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over fifty thousand full-time missionaries worldwide, as of June 2007...
across the globe. The church became a strong and public champion of
monogamyMonogamy is the state of having only one sexual partner at any one time. The word monogamy comes from the Greek word monos "μονός", which means one or alone, and the Greek word gamos "γάμος", which means marriage or union...
and the
nuclear familyA nuclear family is a family group consisting of only a father and mother and their children, who share living quarters. This can be contrasted with an extended family. Nuclear families can be of any size, as long as the family can support itself and there are only children and two parents...
, and at times played a prominent role in political matters. Among the official changes to the organization during the modern area include the
ordination of black menFrom 1849 to 1978, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had a policy against ordaining black men of African descent to the priesthood. Under the same policy, black men and women of African descent were prohibited from participating in the temple Endowment and sealings, ordinances that...
to the priesthood in 1978, reversing a policy originally instituted by
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
. The church has also periodically changed its temple ceremony, gradually omitting certain controversial elements. There are also periodic changes in the structure and organization of the church, mainly to accommodate the organization's growth and increasing international presence.
Early History (c. 1820s to c. 1846)
The early history of the LDS Church is shared with other denominations of the
Latter Day Saint movementThe Latter Day Saint movement is a group of Restorationist religious denominations and adherents who follow at least some of the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith, Jr., publisher of the Book of Mormon in 1830...
, who all regard
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
as the founder of their religious tradition. Smith gained a small following in the late 1820s as he was dictating the
Book of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. as The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi...
, which he said was a translation of words found on a set of
golden platesAccording to the theology of Latter Day Saint movement churches, the golden plates are a book of bound and engraved metal plates that Joseph Smith, Jr. said was his source for the Book of Mormon...
that had been buried near his home in western
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
by an
indigenous AmericanThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
prophet. Smith said he had been in contact with an angel Moroni, who showed him the plates' location and had been grooming him for a role as a religious leader.
On April 6, 1830, in western
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Smith organized the religion's first legal church entity, the Church of Christ. The church rapidly gained a following, who viewed Smith as their
prophetIn religion, a prophet is a person who has been contacted by, or has encountered, the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other humans...
. In late 1830, Smith envisioned a "city of Zion", a Utopian city in
Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
lands near
Independence, MissouriIndependence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city had a total population of 110,440 in 2008, and is the 224th largest city in the United States...
. In October 1830, he sent his
Assistant PresidentAssistant President of the Church was a position in the leadership hierarchy in the early days of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. The Assistant President was the second-highest authority in the church and was a member of the church's governing First Presidency...
,
Oliver CowderyOliver Hervy Pliny Cowdery was the primary participant with Joseph Smith, Jr. in the formative period of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1829 through 1836. He was one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's golden plates and with Smith was one of the first Latter Day Saint apostles...
, and others on a mission to the area. Passing through
Kirtland, OhioKirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, USA. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census. Kirtland is famous for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Geography:Kirtland is located at ....
, the missionaries converted a congregation of Disciples of Christ led by
Sidney RigdonSidney Rigdon was an important figure in the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Rigdon's influence over the early years of the movement is considered by many historians to have been nearly as strong as that of church founder Joseph Smith Jr.-Baptist background:Sidney Rigdon was born...
, and in 1831, Smith decided to temporarily move his followers to Kirtland until lands in the
MissouriMissouri is a state in the Midwest region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th most populous state with a 2008 estimated population of 5,911,605. It comprises 114 counties and one independent city....
area could be purchased. In the meantime, the church's headquarters remained in Kirtland from 1831 to 1838; and there the church built
its first templeThe Kirtland Temple is a National Historic Landmark in Kirtland, Ohio, USA, on the eastern edge of the Cleveland metropolitan area. Owned and operated by the Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , the house of worship was the first temple to be...
and continued to grow in membership from 680 to 17,881.
While the main church body was in Kirtland, many of Smith's followers had attempted to establish settlements in Missouri, but had met with resistance from other Missourians who believed Mormons were
abolitionistsAbolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and emancipate slaves in western Europe and the Americas. The slave system aroused little protest until the 18th century, when rationalist thinkers of the Enlightenment criticized it for violating the rights of man, and Quaker and other evangelical...
, or who distrusted their political ambitions. After Smith and other Mormons in Kirtland emigrated to Missouri in 1838, hostilities escalated into the 1838 Mormon War, culminating in adherents being expelled from the state under an Extermination Order signed by the governor of Missouri.
After Missouri, Smith built the city of
Nauvoo, IllinoisNauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the current population is just 1,063 , and it is difficult to reach over secondary highways in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its religious...
as the new church headquarters, and served as the city's mayor and leader of the militia. As church leader, Smith also instituted the then-secret practice of
plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
, and taught a form of
MillennialismThis article covers all forms of Christian and non-Christian Millennialism. You may be looking for the specific articles on Christian Premillennialism, Amillennialism or Postmillenialism....
which he called "
theodemocracyTheodemocracy is a political system theorized by Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement . As the name implies, theodemocracy was meant to be a fusion of traditional republican democratic rights under the United States Constitution combined with theocratic elements.He described...
", to be led by a
Council of FiftyThe Council of Fifty was a Latter Day Saint organization established by Joseph Smith, Jr...
which had secretly and symbolically anointed him as king of this Millennial theodemocracy. Partly in response to these trends, on June 7, 1844, an newspaper called the
Nauvoo ExpositorThe Nauvoo Expositor was a newspaper in Nauvoo, Illinois that published only one issue, which was dated June 7, 1844. Its publication set off a chain of events that led to the assassination of Latter Day Saint movement founder, Joseph Smith, Jr....
, edited by dissident Mormon William Law, issued a scathing criticism of polygamy and Nauvoo theocratic government, including a call for church reform based on earlier Mormon principles. Considering the paper to be libellous, Smith and the Nauvo city council voted to shut down the paper as a public nuisance. Relations between Mormons and residents of surrounding communities had been strained, and some of them instituted criminal charges against Smith for
treasonIn law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more serious acts of disloyalty to one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife...
. Smith surrendered to police in the nearby
Carthage, IllinoisCarthage is a city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,725 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hancock County. Carthage is most famous for being the site of the 1844 assassination of Joseph Smith.- History :...
, and while in state custody, he and his brother
Hyrum SmithHyrum Smith was the older brother of Joseph Smith, Jr. and a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. Hyrum was born in Tunbridge, Vermont, the second son of Joseph Smith, Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith. Hyrum received a limited education, and established himself as a farmer...
, who was second in line to the church presidency,
were killedThe death of Joseph Smith, Jr. on June 27, 1844 marked a turning point for the Latter Day Saint movement, of which Smith was the founder and leader. When he was attacked and killed by a mob, Smith was serving as the mayor of Nauvoo, Illinois, and running for President of the United States...
in a firefight while attempting to escape on June 27, 1844 by an angry mob.
After Smith's death, a succession crisis ensued. In this crisis a number of church leaders campaigned to lead the church. The majority of adherents voted on August 8, 1844 to accept the argument of
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
, senior apostle of the
Quorum of the TwelveIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve was one of the governing bodies of the church hierarchy organized by the movement's founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and patterned after the twelve apostles of Christ In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the...
, that there could be no true successor to Joseph Smith, but that the Twelve had all the required authority to lead the church, and were best suited to take on that role. Later, adherents bolstered their succession claims by referring to a March 1844 meeting in which Joseph committed the "keys of the kingdom" to a group of members within the
Council of FiftyThe Council of Fifty was a Latter Day Saint organization established by Joseph Smith, Jr...
that included the
Quorum of the TwelveIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve was one of the governing bodies of the church hierarchy organized by the movement's founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and patterned after the twelve apostles of Christ In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the...
. In addition, by the end of the 1800s, several of Young's followers had published reminiscences recalling that during Young's August 8 speech, he looked or sounded similar to Joseph Smith, to which they attributed the power of God.
Migration to Utah and Colonization of the West
Under the leadership of
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
, Church leaders planned to leave
Nauvoo, IllinoisNauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the current population is just 1,063 , and it is difficult to reach over secondary highways in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its religious...
in April 1846, but amid threats from the state militia, they were forced to cross the Mississippi River in the cold of February. They eventually left the boundaries of the United States to what is now
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
where they founded Salt Lake City.
The groups that left Illinois for Utah became known as the
Mormon PioneerThe Mormon pioneers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as Latter-day Saints, who migrated across the United States from the Midwest to the Salt Lake Valley in what is today the U.S. state of Utah...
s and forged a path to Salt Lake City known as the
Mormon TrailThe Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...
. The arrival of the original Mormon Pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847 is commemorated by the Utah State holiday Pioneer Day.
Groups of converts from the United States, Canada, Europe, and elsewhere were encouraged to gather to Utah in the decades following. Both the original Mormon migration and subsequent convert migrations resulted in much sacrifice and quite a number of deaths. Brigham Young organized a great colonization of the American West, with Mormon settlements extending from Canada to Mexico. Notable cities that sprang from early Mormon settlements include
San Bernardino, CaliforniaSan Bernardino is a large city located in the Inland Empire Metropolitan Area of Southern California. San Bernardino is also the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. San Bernardino's estimated population, as of 2006, is 205,010. As of 2006, it was the 18th largest city...
,
Las Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada, the seat of Clark County, and an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, fine dining, and entertainment. Las Vegas, which bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, is famous for the number of...
, and
Mesa, ArizonaMesa is a city in Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona and is a suburb of Phoenix, within the Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the third-largest city in Arizona, after Phoenix and Tucson....
.
Brigham Young's early theocratic leadership
See also,
Council of FiftyThe Council of Fifty was a Latter Day Saint organization established by Joseph Smith, Jr...
;
TheodemocracyTheodemocracy is a political system theorized by Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement . As the name implies, theodemocracy was meant to be a fusion of traditional republican democratic rights under the United States Constitution combined with theocratic elements.He described...
Following the death of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young stated that the Church should be led by the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (see Succession Crisis). Later, after the migration to Utah had begun, Brigham Young was sustained as a member of the
First PresidencyThe First Presidency is the presiding or governing authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is composed of the President of the Church and his counselors...
on December 25, 1847, (Wilford Woodruff Diary, Church Archives), and then as
President of the ChurchIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the President of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It is the office held by Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed successors, such as Brigham Young, Joseph Smith III,...
on October 8, 1848. (Roberts, Comprehensive History of the Church, 3:318).
One of the reasons the Saints had chosen the Great Basin as a settling place was that the area was at the time outside the territorial borders of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, which Young had blamed for failing to protect Mormons from political opposition from the states of
MissouriMissouri is a state in the Midwest region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th most populous state with a 2008 estimated population of 5,911,605. It comprises 114 counties and one independent city....
and
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
. However, in the 1848
Treaty of Guadalupe HidalgoThe Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico, that ended the Mexican-American War...
,
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
cededThe Mexican Cession of 1848 is a historical name in the United States for the region of the present day southwestern United States that Mexico ceded to the U.S. in 1848, excluding the areas east of the Rio Grande, which had been claimed by the Republic of Texas, though the Texas Annexation...
the area to the United States. As a result, Brigham Young sent emissaries to
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
with a proposal to create a vast
State of DeseretThe State of Deseret was a provisional state of the United States, proposed in 1849 by Mormon settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never recognized by the United States government...
, of which Young would naturally be the first governor. Instead, Congress created the much smaller
Utah TerritoryThe Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
in 1850, and Young was appointed governor in 1851. Because of his religious position, Young exercised much more practical control over the affairs of Mormon and non-Mormon settlers than a typical territorial governor of the time.
For most of the 19th century, the LDS Church maintained an ecclesiastical court system parallel to federal courts, and required Mormons to use the system exclusively for civil matters, or face church discipline.
The Mormon Reformation
In 1856-1858, the Church underwent what is commonly called the
Mormon ReformationIn 1856-1858, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints underwent what is commonly called the Mormon Reformation. During this period in the 1850s, President Brigham Young sent his counselor Jedediah M. Grant and other church leaders to preach to the people in Utah and surrounding Mormon...
. In 1855, a drought struck the flourishing territory. Very little rain fell, and even the dependable mountain streams ran very low. An infestation of grasshoppers and crickets destroyed whatever crops the Mormons had managed to salvage. During the winter of 1855-56, flour and other basic necessities were very scarce and very costly.
Heber C. KimballHeber Chase Kimball was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. He served as one of the original twelve apostles in the early Mormon church, and as first counselor to Brigham Young in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death.-Early...
wrote his son,
Dollars and cents do not count now, in these times, for they are the tightest that I have ever seen in the territory of Utah.
In September 1856, as the drought continued, the trials and difficulties of the previous year led to an explosion of intense soul searching.
Jedediah M. GrantJedediah Morgan Grant was a leader and an apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was member of the First Council of the Seventy from 1845 to 1854. He also served in the First Presidency under Church President Brigham Young from 1854 to 1856...
, a counselor in the First Presidency and a well-known conservative voice in the extended community, preached three days of fiery sermons to the people of
Kaysville, UtahKaysville is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 20,351 at the 2000 census.It is known for the Cherry Hill amusement park.-History:...
territory. He called for repentance and a general recommitment to moral living and religious teachings. 500 people presented themselves for "rebaptism" — a symbol of their determination to reform their lives. The zealous message spread from Kaysville to surrounding Mormon communities. Church leaders traveled around the territory, expressing their concern about signs of spiritual decay and calling for repentance. Members were asked to seal their rededication with rebaptism.
Several sermons
Willard RichardsWillard Richards was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served as Second Counselor in the First Presidency to church president Brigham Young in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death.Willard Richards was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to...
and
George A. SmithGeorge Albert Smith was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and as a member of the church's First Presidency.-Childhood:Smith was born in Potsdam, St...
had given earlier in the history of the church had touched on the concept of
blood atonementIn the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its fundamentalist offshoots, blood atonement is the concept that there are certain sins to which the atonement of Jesus does not apply, and that before a Mormon who has committed these sins can achieve the highest degree of salvation, he...
, suggesting that apostates could become so enveloped in sin that the voluntary shedding of their own blood might increase their chances of eternal salvation. On 21 September 1856, while calling for sincere repentance, Brigham Young took the idea further, and stated:
- "I know that there are transgressors, who, if they knew themselves and the only condition upon which they can obtain forgiveness, would beg of their brethren to shed their blood, that the smoke might ascend to God as an offering to appease the wrath that is kindled against them, and that the law might have its course." Journal of Discourses 4:43.
Although this belief was never widely accepted by church members, it became part of the public image of the church at the time and was pilloried in Eastern newspapers along with the practice of polygamy. The concept was frequently criticized by many Mormons and eventually repudiated as official church doctrine by the LDS Church in 1978. However, modern critics of the church and popular writers often attribute a formal doctrine of blood atonement to the Church, to the confusion of some modern members.
Throughout the winter special meetings were held and Mormons urged to adhere to the commandments of God and the practices and precepts of the church. Preaching placed emphasis on the practice of
plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
, adherence to the
Word of WisdomThe "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...
, attendance at church meetings, and personal prayer. On December 30, 1856, the entire all-Mormon territorial legislature was rebaptized for the remission of their sins, and confirmed under the hands of the Twelve Apostles. As time went on, however, the sermons became excessive and intolerant, and some verged on the hysterical.
Utah War and Mountain Meadows massacre
In 1857-1858, the church was involved in an armed, but bloodless conflict with the U.S. government, entitled the
Utah WarThe Utah War, also known as the Utah Expedition, Buchanan's Blunder, the Mormon War, or the Mormon Rebellion was an armed dispute between Latter-day Saint settlers in Utah Territory and the United States federal government. The confrontation lasted from May 1857 until July 1858...
. The settlers and the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government battled for
hegemonyHegemony is the preponderance of power, and the construction of consent from the powerless through cultural values.-In politics:...
over the culture and government of the territory. Tensions over the Utah War (and possibly other factors) resulted in settlers and (reportedly) Indians in southern Utah massacring a wagon train from Arkansas, known as
Mountain Meadows massacreThe Mountain Meadows massacre was a mass slaughter of the Fancher-Baker emigrant wagon train at Mountain Meadows, Utah Territory, by the local Mormon militia on September 11, 1857. It began as an attack, quickly turned into a siege, and eventually culminated in the execution of the unarmed...
. The result of the Utah War was the succeeding of the governorship of the Utah territory from Brigham Young to
Alfred CummingAlfred Cumming was appointed governor of the Utah territory in 1858 replacing Brigham Young following the Utah War. Born in Augusta, Georgia and mayor of the city.Cumming was also:...
, an outsider appointed by President
James BuchananJames Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States from 1857–1861 and the last to be born in the 18th century...
.
Brigham Young's later years
The church had attempted unsuccessfully to institute the
United OrderIn Mormonism, the United Order was one of several 19th century church programs established to manage and administer the Law of Consecration...
numerous times, most recently during the
Mormon ReformationIn 1856-1858, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints underwent what is commonly called the Mormon Reformation. During this period in the 1850s, President Brigham Young sent his counselor Jedediah M. Grant and other church leaders to preach to the people in Utah and surrounding Mormon...
. In 1874, Young once again attempted to establish a permanent Order, which he now called the
United Order of Enoch in at least 200 Mormon communities, beginning in
St. George, UtahSt. George is a city located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Utah, and the county seat of Washington County, Utah. It is the principal city of and is included in the St. George, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is 119 miles northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, and 303 miles ...
on February 9, 1874.
In Young's Order, producers would generally deed their property to the Order, and all members of the order would share the cooperative's net income, often divided into shares according to how much property was originally contributed. Sometimes, the members of the Order would receive wages for their work on the communal property. Like the United Order established by Joseph Smith, Young's Order was short-lived. By the time of Brigham Young's death in 1877, most of these United Orders had failed. By the end of the 19th century, the Orders were essentially extinct.
Brigham Young died in August 1877. After the death of Brigham Young, the First Presidency was not reorganized until 1880, when Young was succeeded by President
John TaylorJohn Taylor was the third president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1880 to 1887.Taylor was born in Milnthorpe, Westmorland , England, the son of James and Agnes Taylor...
, who in the interim had served as
President of the Quorum of the Twelve ApostlesPresident of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
.
Polygamy and the United States "Mormon question"
For several decades, polygamy was preached as
GodGod is a deity in theistic and deistic religions and other belief systems, representing either the sole deity in monotheism, or a principal deity in polytheism....
's law.
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
, the Prophet of the church at that time, had quite a few wives, as did many other church leaders. This early practice of
polygamyThe term polygamy is used in related ways in social anthropology, sociobiology, sociology, as well as in popular speech. Polygamy can be defined as any "form of marriage in which a person [has] more than one spouse."In social anthropology, polygamy is the practice of marriage to more than one...
caused conflict between church members and the wider American society. In 1854 the Republican party referred in its platform to polygamy and
slaverySlavery is a form of forced labor in which people are considered to be the property of others. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to receive compensation...
as the "twin relics of barbarism." In 1862, the U.S. Congress enacted the
Morrill Anti-Bigamy ActThe Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act was a federal enactment of the United States Congress that was signed into law on July 8, 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln...
, signed by
Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery...
, which made bigamy a felony in the territories punishable by $500 or five years in prison. The law also permitted the confiscation of church property without compensation. This law was not enforced however, by the Lincoln administration or by Mormon-controlled territorial probate courts. Moreover, as Mormon polygamist marriages were performed in secret, it was difficult to prove when a polygamist marriage had taken place. In the meantime, Congress was preoccupied with the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
.
In 1874, after the war, Congress passed the
Poland ActThe Poland Act of 1874 was an act of the United States Congress which sought to facilitate prosecutions under the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act by eliminating the control members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints exerted over the justice system of Utah Territory. Sponsored by Senator...
, which transferred jurisdiction over Morrill Act cases to federal prosecutors and courts, which were not controlled by Mormons. In addition, the Morrill Act was upheld in 1878 by the
United States Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
in the case of
Reynolds v. United StatesReynolds v. United States, , was a Supreme Court of the United States case that held that religious duty was not a suitable defense to a criminal indictment...
. After
Reynolds, Congress became even more aggressive against polygamy, and passed the
Edmunds ActThe Edmunds Act, also known as the Edmunds Anti-Polygamy Act of 1882, is a United States federal statute, signed into law on March 23, 1882, declaring polygamy a felony. The act is named for U.S. Senator George F. Edmunds of Vermont...
in 1882. The Edmunds Act prohibited not just bigamy, which remained a felony, but also bigamous cohabitation, which was prosecuted as a misdemeanor, and did not require proof an actual marriage ceremony had taken place. The Act also vacated the Utah territorial government, created an independent committee to oversee elections to prevent Mormon influence, and disenfranchised any former or present polygamist. Further, the law allowed the government to deny civil rights to polygamists without a trial.
In 1887, Congress passed the
Edmunds-Tucker ActThe Edmunds–Tucker Act of 1887 touched all the issues at dispute between the United States Congress and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, which allowed prosecutors to force plural wives to testify against their husbands, abolished the right of women to vote, disincorporated the church, and confiscated the church's property. By this time, many church leaders had gone into hiding to avoid prosecution, and half the Utah prison population was composed of polygamists.
Church leadership officially ended the practice in 1890, based on a revelation to
Wilford WoodruffWilford Woodruff, Sr. was the fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1889 until his death. Woodruff's large collection of diaries provide an important record of Latter Day Saint history.Woodruff was one of nine children born to Aphek Woodruff, a miller working in...
called the
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
.
The modern era (after c. 1890)
The church's modern era began soon after it renounced polygamy in 1890. Prior to the
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
, church leaders had been in hiding, many ecclesiastical matters had been neglected, and the church organization itself had been disincorporated. With the reduction in federal pressure afforded by the Manifesto, however, the church began to re-establish its institutions.
Post-Manifesto polygamy and the Second Manifesto
The
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
did not, itself, eliminate the practice of new
plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
s, as they continued to occur clandestinely, mostly with church approval and authority. In addition, most Mormon polygamists and every polygamous general authority continued to co-habit with their polygamous wives. Mormon leaders, including Woodruff, maintained that the Manifesto was a temporary expediency designed to enable
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
to obtain statehood, and that at some future date, the practice would soon resume. Nevertheless, the
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
provided the church breathing room to obtain
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
's statehood, which it received in 1896 after a campaign to convince the American public that Mormon leaders had abandoned polygamy and intended to stay out of politics..
Despite being admitted to the United States, Utah was initially unsuccessful in having its elected representatives and senators seated in the
United States CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election....
. In 1898,
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
elected
general authorityIn 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...
B.H. Roberts to the
United States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
as a Democrat. Roberts, however, was denied a seat there because he was practicing polygamy. In 1903, the Utah legislature selected
Reed SmootReed Owen Smoot was a native-born Utahn who served in the United States Senate. Smoot was also a prominent leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving as an apostle and as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1900 until his death in 1941...
, also an LDS general authority but also a monogamist, as its first senator. From 1904-07, the
United States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
conducted a series of Congressional hearings on whether Smoot should be seated. Eventually, the Senate granted Smoot a seat and allowed him to vote. However, the hearings raised controversy as to whether polygamy had actually been abandoned as claimed in the
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
, and whether the LDS Church continued to exercise influence on Utah politics. In response to these hearings, President of the Church
Joseph F. SmithJoseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
issued a
Second ManifestoThe "Second Manifesto" was a 1904 declaration made by Joseph F. Smith, the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in which Smith confirmed that the church was opposed to plural marriage and set down the principle that those entering into or solemnizing plural marriages would...
denying that any post-Manifesto marriages had the church's sanction, and announcing that those entering such marriages in the future would be
excommunicatedExcommunication is a religious censure used to deprive or suspend membership in a religious community. The word literally means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
.
The Second Manifesto did not annul existing
plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
s within the church, and the church tolerated some degree of polygamy into at least the 1930s. However, eventually the church adopted a policy of
excommunicatingExcommunication is a religious censure used to deprive or suspend membership in a religious community. The word literally means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
its members found practicing polygamy and today seeks to actively distance itself from Mormon fundamentalist groups still practicing polygamy. In modern times, members of the mormon religion do not practice polygamy. If a person becomes widowed, they are not allowed to be sealed to another person. They can be married by law, but not sealed in the temple.
Mormons and the women's suffrage movement
In 1870, the
Utah TerritoryThe Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
had become one of the first polities to grant women the right to vote—a right which the U.S. Congress revoked in 1887 as part of the
Edmunds-Tucker ActThe Edmunds–Tucker Act of 1887 touched all the issues at dispute between the United States Congress and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
.
As a result, a number of LDS women became active and vocal proponents of women's rights. Of particular note was the LDS journalist and suffragist
Emmeline Blanch WellsEmmeline Blanche Woodward Harris Whitney Wells was an American journalist, editor, poet, women's rights advocate and diarist...
, editor of the
Woman's ExponentWoman's Exponent was a monthly newspaper for women which began publication in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory in 1872. Originally conceived by leaders in the Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the Exponent was a generally accepted voice for the women of the LDS Church...
, a Utah feminist newspaper. Wells, who was both a
feministThe term Feminism can be used to describe an academic discourse, or to describe a political, cultural or economic movement aimed at establishing more rights and legal protection for women...
and a polygamist, wrote vocally in favor of a woman's role in the political process and public discourse. National suffrage leaders, however, were somewhat perplexed by the seeming paradox between Utah's progressive stand on women's rights, and the church's stand on polygamy.
In 1890, after the church officially renounced polygamy, U.S. suffrage leaders began to embrace Utah's feminism more directly, and in 1891, Utah hosted the Rocky Mountain Suffrage Conference in Salt Lake City, attended by such national feminist leaders as
Susan B. AnthonySusan Brownell Anthony was a prominent American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to introduce women's suffrage into the United States. She traveled the United States and Europe, and gave 75 to 100 speeches every year on women's rights for 45...
and
Anna Howard ShawAnna Howard Shaw was a leader of the women's suffrage movement in the United States. She was also a physician and the first ordained female Methodist minister in the United States.-Biography:...
. The Utah Woman Suffrage Association, which had been formed in 1889 as a branch of the American Woman Suffrage Association (which in 1890 became the
National American Woman Suffrage AssociationThe National American Woman Suffrage Association was an American women's rights organization formed as a unification of the National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman Suffrage Association in May 1890...
), was then successful in demanding that the constitution of the nascent state of
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
should enfranchise women. In 1896,
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
became the third state in the U.S. to grant women the right to vote.
Mormons and the debate over temperance and prohibition
The LDS church was actively involved in support of the
temperance movementA temperance movement is a social movement against the use of Alcoholic beverages. Temperance movements may criticize excessive alcohol use, promote complete abstinence, or pressure the government to enact anti-alcohol legislation....
in the 19th century, and then the prohibition movement in the early 20th century.
Mormonism and the national debate over socialism and communism
Mormonism has had a mixed relationship with
socialismSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
in its various forms. In the earliest days of
MormonismMormonism comprises the religious, institutional, and cultural elements of the early Latter Day Saint movement and its modern denominations deriving from the leadership of Brigham Young...
,
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
had established a form of religious communalism, an idea made popular during the
Second Great AwakeningThe Second Great Awakening was a period of great religious revival that extended into the antebellum period of the United States, with widespread Christian evangelism and conversions. It was named for the Great Awakening, a similar period which had transpired about half a century beforehand...
, combined with a move toward
theocracyTheocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the state's supreme civil ruler, or in a higher sense, a form of government in which a state is governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. In Common Greek, “theocracy” means a...
. Mormons referred to this form of theocratic communalism as the
United OrderIn Mormonism, the United Order was one of several 19th century church programs established to manage and administer the Law of Consecration...
, or the
Law of ConsecrationIn 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 socialism...
. While short-lived during the life of Joseph Smith, the United Order was re-established for a time in several communities of
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
during the theocratic political leadership of
Brigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the western United States. He was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death and was the founder of Salt Lake City and the first governor of Utah Territory,...
.
In addition to religious socialism, many Mormons in
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
were receptive to the secular
socialistSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
movement that began in America during the 1890s. During the 1890s to the 1920s, the Utah Social Democratic Party, which became part of the
Socialist Party of AmericaThe Socialist Party of America was a democratic socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization in 1899.In the...
in 1901, elected about 100 socialists to state offices in
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
. An estimated 40% of Utah Socialists were Mormon.
While religious and secular socialism gained some acceptance among Mormons, the church was more circumspect about
MarxistMarxism is the political philosophy and economic worldview based upon a materialist interpretation of history, a Marxist analysis of capitalism, a theory of social change, and an atheist view of human liberation derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; three primary aspects of...
CommunismCommunism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human...
, because of its association with violent revolution. From the time of
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
, the church had taken a favorable view as to the
American RevolutionThe American Revolution is the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America at first rejected the governance of the Parliament of Great Britain, and later the British monarchy itself, to become the sovereign United States of...
and the necessity at times to violently overthrow the government. Thus, in 1917, after the
Russian RevolutionThe Russian Revolution is the collective term for the series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. In the first revolution of February 1917 the Czar was deposed and replaced by a Provisional government...
, LDS
apostleIn The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is one of the governing bodies in the church hierarchy...
David O. McKayDavid Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death...
initially told an audience in general conference that "It looks as if Russia will have a government 'by the people, of the people, and for the people." (April 7, 1917 Conference Report).
Eventually, however, the church began to view the revolutionary nature of
CommunismCommunism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human...
as a threat to the
United States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the federal government of the United States...
, which the church respected about as much as it respected American revolutionaries. In 1936, the
First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
issued a statement stating:
- [I]t would be necessary to destroy our government before communism could be set up in the United States.
- Since Communism, established, would destroy our American Constitutional government, to support communism is treasonable to our free institutions, and no patriotic American citizen may become either a communist or supporter of communism. . . .
- Communism being thus hostile to loyal American citizenship and incompatible with true church membership, of necessity no loyal American citizen and no faithful church member can be a Communist. (First Presidency, "Warning to Church Members," July 3, 1936, Improvement Era 39, no. 8 (August 1936): 488).
Developments in Church financing
In the 1890s soon after the
1890 ManifestoThe "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially ceased the practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Signed by church president Wilford Woodruff in September 1890, the Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in the...
, the LDS Church was in a dire financial condition. It was recovering from the U.S. crackdown on polygamy, and had difficulty reclaiming property that had been confiscated during polygamy raids. Meanwhile, there was a
national recession beginning in 1893The Panic of 1893 was a serious economic depression in the United States that began in 1893. This panic is sometimes considered a part of the Long Depression which began with the Panic of 1873, and like that of earlier crashes, was caused by railroad overbuilding and shaky railroad financing...
. By the late 1890s, the church was about $2 million in debt, and near bankruptcy. In response,
Lorenzo SnowLorenzo Snow was the fifth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1898 to his death...
, then President of the Church, conducted a campaign to raise the payment of tithing, of which less than 20% of LDS had been paying during the 1890s. After a visit to Saint George, Utah, which had a much higher-than-average percentage of full 10% tithe-payers, Snow felt that he had received a
revelationIn religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, or making something obvious and clearly understood through active or passive communication with supernatural entities . It is believed that revelation can originate directly from a deity, or through an agent, such as an angel...
. This prompted him to promise adherents in various Utah settlements that if they paid their tithing, they would experience an outpouring of blessings, prosperity, the preparation for Zion, and protection of the LDS Church from its enemies; however, failure to pay tithing would result in the people being "scattered." As a result of Snow's vigorous campaign, tithing payment increased dramatically from 18.4% in 1898 to an eventual peak of 59.3% in 1910. Eventually, payment of tithing would become a requirement for temple worship within the faith.
- Constructing administration buildings
- Zions Securities
Zions Securities Corporation is a subsidiary of the Deseret Management Corporation that manages property owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints mostly in Salt Lake City, Utah. They manage major Corporate, residential, and retail spaces...
Corporation (managing taxable church properties)
- Corporation of the President (managing non-taxable church properties)
- Changes in stipends for bishops and general authorities. (Bishops once received a 10% stipend from tithing funds, but are now purely volunteer. General authorities receive stipends, formerly received loans from church funds.)
Church Educational System
Church Educational SystemThe Church Educational System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non-Latter-day Saint elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students and adult learners...
:
- As free public schools became available, the church closed or relinquished church-run "stake academies" and junior colleges in 1920s (except Rick's College and Brigham Young Academy).
- Building of seminaries on church property adjacent to public high schools (beginning 1912).
- Establishment of a General Board of Education
- Institutes of religion (beginning 1926 at University of Idaho)
Church Welfare System
Church welfare systems:
- Relief Society's Social Services department (1920s—provided therapy, counseling, and adoption services)
- Church Security Program (1936)
- Welfare Program (1938)
- Welfare Services department (Social Services, employment and guidance programs, and health services)
- Military Relations Committee
Changes to meeting schedule
In earlier times, Latter-day Saint meetings took place on Sunday morning and evening, with several meetings during the weekday. This arrangement was acceptable for Utah Saints, who generally lived within walking distance of a church building. Elsewhere other than Utah, however, this meeting schedule was seen as a logistical challenge. In 1980, the Church introduced the "Consolidated Meeting Schedule", in which the majority of church meetings were held on Sunday during a three-hour block.
While promoting convenience and making church practice compatible with non-Utahns, this new schedule has been criticized for eroding fellowshipping opportunities among North American Latter-day Saint youth. This erosion, in turn, has been blamed for decreasing LDS participation of young women to below that of young men, and for a downward trend in the percentage of LDS males who accept the call to serve a full time mission.
See Quinn,
Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power.
Changes to missionary service
In 1982, the
First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
announced that the length of service of male full-time missionaries would be reduced to 18 months. In 1984, a little more than 2 years later, it was announced that the length of service would be returned to its original length of 24 months (
http://www.dialoguejournal.com/excerpts/36-3a.asp).
The change was publicized as a way to increase the ability for missionaries to serve. At the time, missionaries paid for all their expenses in their country of service. Recession during the Carter presidency pushed inflation higher and the exchange rate lower. This sudden increase in costs together with already high costs of living in Europe and other industrialized nations resulted in a steady decline in the number of missionaries able to pay for two full years of service. The shortening of the required service time from 24 to 18 months cut off this decline in numbers, leveling out in the period following the reinstatement. For those in foreign missions, this was barely enough time to learn a more difficult language and difficulty with language was reported.
Nevertheless, the shortened period of time also had an impact on numbers of conversions: they declined by 7% annually during the same period. Some also saw the shortening as a weakening of faithfulness among those who were eventually called as missionaries, less length meaning less commitment required in terms of faith. However, it has also been seen as a recognition by the leadership of changes within the
LDSThe Latter Day Saint movement is a group of Restorationist religious denominations and adherents who follow at least some of the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith, Jr., publisher of the Book of Mormon in 1830...
cultural climate.
Record economic growth starting in the mid-1980s mostly erased the problem of finances preventing service. As a secondary measure, starting in 1990, paying for a mission became easier on those called to work in industrialized nations. Missionaries began paying into a church-wide general missionary fund instead of paying on their own. This amount paid (about $425 per month currently) is used by the church to pay for the costs of all missionaries, wherever they go. This enabled those going to Bolivia, whose average cost of living is about $100 per month, to help pay for those going to Japan, whose cost tops out at around $900 per month.
Changes to church hierarchy structure
Priesthood Correlation ProgramIn The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Priesthood Correlation Program is a program designed to provide a systematic approach to maintain consistency in its ordinances, doctrines, organizations, meetings, materials, and other programs and activities...
:
- During the 1960s, the Church aggressively pursued its earlier Correlation Program that had begun in 1908, which streamlined and centralized the structure of the Church. The program also increased Church control over viewpoints taught in local church meetings.
- Priesthood editorial oversight of formerly priesthood-auxiliary-specific YMMIA, YLMIA, Relief Society
The Relief Society is a philanthropic and educational women's organization and an official auxiliary organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, PrimaryThe Primary is a children's organization and an official auxiliary within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, and Sunday SchoolSunday School is an official auxiliary organization 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:...
magazines.
- Adoption of the Scouting
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over four million youth members in its age-related divisions...
program (1911)
- Priesthood Committee on Outlines established for publishing lesson materials for each priesthood quorum
- Melchizedek Priesthood
The Melchizedek priesthood is the greater of the two orders of priesthood recognized in Mormonism. The others are the Aaronic priesthood and the rarely-recognized Patriarchal priesthood...
handbook (1928)
- Priesthood-Auxiliary movement (1928-1937): re-emphasized the church hierarchy around Priesthood, and re-emphasized other church organizations as "priesthood auxiliaries" with reduced autonomy.
Other:
- Elimination of Presiding Patriarch office
- Emeritus status of general authorities who are too old or ill
- Reorganizing the quorums of seventy
- Dismantling ward and stake prayer circles (1978)
LDS multiculturalism
As the church began to collide and meld with cultures outside of Utah and the United States, the church began to jettison some of the parochialisms and prejudices that had become part of Latter-day Saint culture, but were not essential to
MormonismMormonism comprises the religious, institutional, and cultural elements of the early Latter Day Saint movement and its modern denominations deriving from the leadership of Brigham Young...
. In 1971, LDS General Authority and scholar
Bruce R. McConkieBruce Redd McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death...
drew parallels between the LDS Church and the New Testament church, who had difficulty embracing the Gentiles within
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
, and encouraged members not to be so indoctrinated with social customs that they fail to engage other cultures in
MormonismMormonism comprises the religious, institutional, and cultural elements of the early Latter Day Saint movement and its modern denominations deriving from the leadership of Brigham Young...
. Other peoples, he stated, "have a different background than we have, which is of no moment to the Lord . . . . It is no different to have different social customs than it is to have different languages. . . . And the Lord knows all languages". In 1987,
Boyd K. PackerBoyd Kenneth Packer is the current president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Prior to his current position, Packer served as Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve...
, another Latter-day Saint
ApostleIn the Latter Day Saint movement, an Apostle is a "special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others." In many Latter Day Saint churches, an Apostle is a priesthood office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles...
, stated, "We can't move [into various countries] with a 1947 Utah Church! Could it be that we are not prepared to take the gospel because we are not prepared to take (and they are not prepared to receive) all of the things we have wrapped up with it as extra baggage?"
The church and blacks
During and after the
American Civil Rights MovementThe African-American Civil Rights Movement refers to the reform movements in the United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring Suffrage in Southern states. This article covers the phase of the movement between 1954 and 1968, particularly in the South...
, the church faced a critical point in its history, where its previous attitudes toward other cultures and people of color, which had once been shared by much of the white American mainstream, began to appear racist and neocolonial. The church came under intense fire for its stances on blacks and native Americans issues.
The cause of some of the church's most damaging publicity had to do with the church's policy of discrimination toward blacks. Blacks were always officially welcome in the church, and
Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
established an early precedent of ordained black males to the
PriesthoodIn the Latter Day Saint movement, priesthood is considered to be the power and authority of God, including the authority to act as a leader in the church and to perform ordinances, and the power to perform miracles. A body of priesthood holders is referred to as a quorum.Priesthood denotes elements...
. Smith was also anti-slavery, going so far as to run on an anti-slavery platform as candidate for the presidency of the United States. At times, however, Smith had shown sympathy toward a belief common in his day that blacks were the cursed descendants of Cain. In 1849, church doctrine taught that though blacks could be baptized, they and others could not be ordained to the Priesthood or enter
LDS templesIn The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also called the LDS or Mormon Church, 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...
. Journal histories and public teachings of the time reflect that Young and others stated that God would some day reverse this policy of discrimination. It is also important to note that while blacks as a whole were specifically withheld from priesthood blessings (although there were some exceptions to this policy in both the 1800s and 1900s), other races and genealogical lineages were also prohibited from holding the priesthood.
By the late 1960s, the Church had expanded into
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
, the
CaribbeanThe Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands , and the surrounding coasts...
, and the nations of
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
, and was suffering criticism for its policy of racial discrimination. In the case of Africa and the Caribbean, the church had not yet begun large scale missionary efforts in most areas. There were large groups in both Ghana and Nigeria who desired to join the church and many faithful members of African descent in Brazil. On June 9, 1978, under the administration of
Spencer W. KimballSpencer Woolley Kimball was the twelfth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1973 until his death.-Ancestry:...
, the church leadership finally received this divine sanction to change the long-standing policy.
Today, there are many black members of the church, and many predominantly black congregations. In the Salt Lake City area black members have organized branches of an official church auxiliary called the
Genesis GroupThe Genesis Group is a social organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for African-American members and their families. It was first organized in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1971 to provide members an organization where they could affiliate with fellow African-American members. ...
s.
The church and Native Americans
During the post-
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
period, the church also began to focus on expansion into a number of
Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
cultures, as well as Oceanic cultures, which many Mormons considered to be the same ethnicity. These peoples were called "Lamanites", because they were all believed to descend from the
LamaniteAccording to the Book of Mormon, a Lamanite is a descendent of one of four groups of settlers of the ancient Americas. The other three groups are the Jaredites, Mulekites, and Nephites...
group in the
Book of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. as The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi...
. In 1947, the church began the
Indian Placement ProgramThe Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1947 to 1996, in which Native American The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
, where Native American students (upon request by their parents) were voluntarily placed in white Latter-day Saint foster homes during the school year, where they would attend public schools and become assimilated into Mormon culture.
In 1955, the church began ordaining black
MelanesiaMelanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
ns to the Priesthood.
LamaniteThe Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1947 to 1996, in which Native American The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
The church's policy toward
Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
also came under fire during the 1970s. In particular, the church was criticized for its
Indian Placement ProgramThe Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1947 to 1996, in which Native American The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
, where Native American students were voluntarily placed in white Latter-day Saint foster homes during the school year. This program was criticized as
neocolonialNeocolonialism is a term used by post-colonial critics of developed countries' involvement in the developing world. Writings within the theoretical framework of neocolonialism argue that existing or past international economic arrangements created by former colonial powers were or are used to...
. In 1977, the U.S. government commissioned a study to investigate accusations that the church was using its influence to push children into joining the program. However, the commission rejected these accusations and found that the program was beneficial in many cases, and provided well-balanced American education for thousands, allowing the children to return to their cultures and customs. One issue was that the time away from family caused the assimilation of Native American students into American culture, rather than allowing the children to learn within, and preserve, their own culture. By the late 1980s, the program had been in decline, and in 1996, it was discontinued.
In 1981, the church published a new LDS edition of the
Standard WorksThe Standard Works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consists of several books that constitute its open scriptural canon, and include the following:* The Holy Bible...
that changed a passage in
The Book of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. as The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi...
that Lamanites (considered by many Latter-day Saints to be Native Americans) will "become white and delightsome" after accepting the gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead of continuing the original reference to skin color, the new edition replaced the word "white" with the word "pure", emphasizing inward spirituality.
Doctrinal reforms and influences
Good Neighbor policy (LDS Church)The "Good Neighbor" policy is a collective term used to describe a variety of reforms adopted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1927...
and temple ordinance reforms.
Beginning soon after the turn of the Twentieth Century, four influential Latter-day Saint scholars began to systematize, modernize, and codify Mormon doctrine: B.H. Roberts,
James E. TalmageJames Edward Talmage born in Hungerford, Berkshire, England, was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1911 until his death in 1933....
,
John A. WidtsoeJohn Andreas Widtsoe was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1921 until his death. Widtsoe was also a noted author, scientist, and academician.-Early life:Widtsoe was born on the island of Frøya in Sør-Trøndelag, Norway...
, and
Joseph Fielding SmithJoseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church...
.
In 1921, the church called chemistry professor John A. Widtsoe as an apostle. Widtsoe's writings, particularly
Rational theology and
Joseph Smith as Scientist, reflected the optimistic faith in science and technology that was pervasive at the time in American life. According to Widtsoe, all Mormon theology could be reconciled within a rational, positivist framework.
Reaction to evolution
The issue of evolution has been a point of controversy for some members of the church. The first official statement on the issue of evolution was in 1909, which marked the centennial of
Charles DarwinCharles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolved over time from common ancestors, through the process he called natural selection...
's birth and the 50th anniversary of his masterwork,
On the Origin of Species. On that year, the
First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
led by
Joseph F. SmithJoseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
as President, issued a statement reinforcing the predominant religious view of
creationismCreationism refers to the religious belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in some form by a supernatural being or beings, commonly a single deity...
, and calling human evolution one of the "theories of men", but falling short of declaring evolution untrue or evil. "It is held by some", they said, "that Adam was not the first man upon the earth, and that the original human was a development from lower orders of the animal creation. These, however, are the theories of men." Notably, the church did not opine on the evolution of animals other than humans, nor did it endorse a particular theory of creationism.
Soon after the 1909 statement,
Joseph F. SmithJoseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
professed in an editorial that "the church itself has no philosophy about the
modus operandi employed by the Lord in His creation of the world."
Juvenile InstructorThe Juvenile Instructor was an official periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1901 and 1930. It was first published in 1866 as a private publication...
, 46 (4), 208-209 (April 1911)).
Some also cite an additional editorial that enumerates various possibilities for creation including the idea that Adam and Eve: (1) "evolved in natural processes to present perfection", (2) were "transplanted [to earth] from another sphere" (
see, e.g., Adam-God theoryIn Mormonism, the Adam–God theory was a doctrine taught by Brigham Young and other early leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints involving the status of Adam as a god prior to his appearance in the Garden of Eden...
), or (3) were "born here . . . as other mortals have been." (
Improvement EraThe Improvement Era was an official magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1897 and 1970....
13, 570 (April 1910)). Proponents of evolution attribute this 1910 editorial to Joseph F. Smith and have sometimes identified it under the title "First Presidency Instructions to the Priesthood: "Origin of Man."
http://www.koffordbooks.com/evenson/Appendix%20TOC.pdf However, others have cast doubt on Joseph F. Smith's authorship of the editorial, which was published without attribution and seems to have contradicted contemporary views published elsewhere by Joseph F. Smith himself.
http://ndbf.blogspot.com/2006/05/mormonism-and-evolution-authoritative.html They also contend that there is little evidence that the editorial represents "First Presidency Instructions" as the title under which it is often cited indicates.
In 1925, as a result of publicity from the
"Scopes Monkey Trial"The Scopes Trial was an American legal case that tested the Butler Act, which made it unlawful, in any state-funded educational establishment in Tennessee, "to teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and...
concerning the right to teach evolution in
TennesseeTennessee is a state located in the Southeastern United States. According to the 2008 census, it has a population of 6,214,888, an increase of nearly 9.5% since 2000. Tennessee is the 14th fastest growing state in the US and is ranked 17th by population. It is ranked 36th by total land area. In...
public schools, the
First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
reiterated its 1909 stance, stating that "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, basing its belief on divine revelation, ancient and modern, declares man to be the direct and lineal offspring of Deity. . . . Man is the child of God, formed in the divine image and endowed with divine attributes."
In the early 1930s there was an intense debate between liberal theologian and
general authorityIn 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...
B. H. Roberts and some members of the Council of the Twelve Apostles over attempts by B. H. Roberts to reconcile the fossil record with the scriptures by introducing a doctrine of pre-Adamic creation, and backing up this speculative doctrine using geology, biology, anthropology, and archeology (The Truth, The Way, The Life, pp.238-240; 289-296). More conservative members of the Twelve Apostles, including Joseph Fielding Smith, rejected his speculation because it contradicted the idea that there was no death until after the fall of Adam. Scriptural references in the Book of Mormon such as 2 Nephi 2:22, Alma 12:23, and Doctrine and Covenants sec. 77:5-7 have been cited as teaching the doctrine that there was no death on the Earth before the Fall of Adam and Eve, and that the Earth's temporal existence consists of a total of seven thousand years (c.4,000 B.C.-c.2,000 A.D.). Some maintain that those scriptural references pertain to a spiritual death, although others disagree. It is clear, however, that the LDS church does not conform to the same young-Earth creationist creed as many other faiths. The church has made it quite clear that the six days of creation are not necessarily six 24-hour periods. Brigham Young definitely addressed the issue (Discourses of Brigham Young, sel. John A. Widtsoe [1971], 100), and even the very anti-evolution Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught that a day, in the Creation accounts, “is a specified time period; it is an age, an eon, a division of eternity; it is the time between two identifiable events. And each day, of whatever length, has the duration needed for its purposes. . . .
“There is no revealed recitation specifying that each of the ‘six days’ involved in the Creation was of the same duration” (“Christ and the Creation,” Ensign, June 1982, 11).
Elder James E. Talmage published a book through the LDS church that explicitly stated that organisms lived and died on this earth before the earth was fit for human habitation (
http://eyring.hplx.net/Eyring/faq/evolution/Talmage1931.html).
However, the official Church Educational System Student Manual teaches that there was no death before the Fall.
The debate between different LDS leaders in 1931 prompted the
First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
, then led by
Heber J. GrantHeber Jeddy Grant was the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle on October 16, 1882, on the same day as George Teasdale...
as President, to conclude:
- Upon the fundamental doctrines of the church we are all agreed. Our mission is to bear the message of the restored gospel to the world. Leave geology, biology, archaeology, and anthropology, no one of which has to do with the salvation of the souls of mankind, to scientific research, while we magnify our calling in the realm of the church. . .
- Upon one thing we should all be able to agree, namely, that Presidents Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, and Anthon H. Lund were right when they said: "Adam is the primal parent of our race" [First Presidency Minutes, Apr. 7, 1931].
The debate over pre-Adamites has been interpreted by LDS proponents of evolution as a debate about organic evolution. This view, based on the belief that a dichotomy of thought on the subject of evolution existed between B. H. Roberts and Joseph Fielding Smith, has become common among pro-evolution members of the church. As a result, the ensuing 1931 statement has been interpreted by some as official permission for members to believe in organic evolution.
http://ndbf.net/eom.htm However, there is no evidence that the debate included the topic of evolution, and historically there was no strong disagreement between Joseph Fielding Smith and B. H. Roberts concerning evolution; they both rejected it, although to different degrees. B. H. Roberts wrote that the "hypothesis" of organic evolution was "destructive of the grand, central truth of all revelation," (The Gospel and Man's Relationship to Deity, 7th edition, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1928, pp. 265-267).
Later,
Joseph Fielding SmithJoseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church...
published his book
Man: His Origin and Destiny, which denounced evolution without qualification. Similar statements of denunciation were made by
Bruce R. McConkieBruce Redd McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death...
, who as late as 1980 denounced evolution as one of "the seven deadly heresies" (BYU
FiresideA fireside is a supplementary, evening meeting in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are usually held for a subset of members of a congregation or congregations in an area. A fireside is most commonly held on Sunday evenings, but may be held on any day of the week...
, June 1, 1980), and stated: "There are those who say that revealed religion and organic evolution can be harmonized. This is both false and devilish." Evolution was also denounced by the conservative
Ezra Taft BensonEzra Taft Benson was the thirteenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 until his death and was United States Secretary of Agriculture for both terms of the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower.-Biography:Born on a farm in Whitney, Idaho, Benson was the oldest of...
, who as an Apostle called on members to use the Book of Mormon to combat evolution and several times denounced evolution as a "falsehood" on a par with
socialismSocialism refers to various theories of economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on...
,
rationalismIn epistemology and in its modern sense, rationalism is "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification" . In more technical terms it is a method or a theory "in which the criterion of the truth is not sensory but intellectual and deductive"...
, and
humanismHumanism is a perspective common to a wide range of ethical stances that attaches importance to human dignity, concerns, and capabilities, particularly rationality. Although the word has many senses, its meaning comes into focus when contrasted to the supernatural or to appeals to authority...
. (Ezra Taft Benson, Conference Report, April 5, 1975).
A dichotomy of opinion exists among some church members today. Largely influenced by Smith, McConkie, and Benson, evolution is rejected by a large number of conservative church members.
http://www.weaverresearch.org/evolution.htm A minority accept evolution, supported in part by the debate between B. H. Roberts and Joseph Fielding Smith, in part by a large amount of scientific evidence, and in part by Joseph F. Smith's words that "the church itself has no philosophy about the
modus operandi employed by the Lord in His creation of the world." Meanwhile,
Brigham Young UniversityBrigham Young University , located in Provo, Utah, United States, is a private, coeducational research university owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, the largest private university owned and operated by the church, not only teaches evolution to its biology majors, but has also done significant research in evolution.
http://bioagnews.byu.edu/newsrelease.aspx?ID=119. BYU-I, another church-run school, also teaches it; the following link is an article on how evolution and faith are reconciled at BYU-I.
http://www.byui.edu/Perspective/v4n2pdf/v4n2_firestone.pdf
References:
- .
- Trent D. Stephens, D. Jeffrey Meldrum, & Forrest B. Peterson, Evolution and Mormonism: A Quest for Understanding (Signature Books, 2001). http://www.signaturebooks.com/evolution.htm
Reacting to pluralism
The role of women:
- Allowing women to speak in Sacrament Meetings
- Opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment
- E.T.Benson's views on whether women should work outside the home
- The Family: A Proclamation to the World
"The Family: A Proclamation to the World" is a statement issued by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1995, which defined the church's official position on family, gender roles, and human sexuality. It was first announced by church president Gordon B...
- Women and the Priesthood
The Church, sexual orientation, and gender identity:
Doctrinal position on homosexuality:
- Statements about homosexuality by Church leaders
- New views on the separation between gay "identity" and gay "conduct"
Connections with the ex-gay movement:
- Unofficial and informal connections to the ex-gay
Ex-gay is a term and concept used to describe persons who were once as gay, lesbian or bisexual, but who no longer assert that identity. The ex-gay movement consists of people, support groups and organisations that support people in reducing their ego-dystonic sexual orientation, refrain from...
movement: Evergreen International, Inc.Evergreen International, Inc. is a 501 non-profit organization located in Salt Lake City, Utah, whose stated mission is to assist "people who want to diminish same-sex attractions and overcome homosexual behavior." It adheres to Christian and particularly Mormon teaching...
- Hinckley: "Marriage should not be viewed as a therapeutic step to solve problems such as homosexual inclinations or practices, which first should clearly be overcome with a firm and fixed determination never to slip to such practices again."
The church's political involvement in LGBT issues:
In 1992, the First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
was involved in efforts to defeat a proposal which would include "sexual orientation" as a protected category in Utah's hate crime law.
Beginning in the mid-1990s, the Church began to focus its attention on the issue of same-sex marriageSame-sex marriage is a term used to describe a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Other terms used to describe this type of recognition include gay marriage or gender-neutral marriage.Same-sex marriage is a civil rights,...
s. In 1993, the Supreme Court of the State of HawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states, and is the only state made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August...
held that discrimination against same-sex couples in the granting of marriage licences violated the Hawaiian constitution. In response, the Church's First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
issued a statement on February 13, 1994 declaring its opposition to same-sex marriage to protect the sanctity of traditional roles of marriage. The statement and urged its members to not discriminate against gays and lesbians, but not condone same gender rights.
Supported by the efforts of the LDS Church and several other religious organizations, the Hawaiian legislature enacted a bill in 1994 outlawing same-sex marriages. Officially, the Church continues to oppose efforts in Hawaii to grant gay and lesbian families the right to legal equality, including adoption, child custody, and joint property rights.
As other states, including VermontThe State of Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd by land area, , and 45th by total area. It has a population of 621,270, making it the second least-populated state...
and MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. Most of its population of...
, began extending legal protections to same-sex couples, the Church continued to take an active role in preventing any legal equality for families other than the heterosexual married couples. In 2004, the Church officially endorsed an amendment to the United States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the federal government of the United States...
banning marriage except between a man and a woman. The Church also officially announced its opposition to political measures that "confer legal status on any other sexual relationship" than a "man and a woman lawfully wedded as husband and wife." ("First Presidency Statement on Same-Gender Marriage", October 19, 2004). Although the statement was directed specifically to gay marriage, the statement could also be read to encompass political opposition by the Church to recognizing civil unionA civil union is a legally recognized union similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples with rights, benefits, and responsibilities similar to opposite-sex...
s, common-law marriageCommon-law marriage, sometimes called de facto marriage, informal marriage or marriage by habit and repute, is a form of interpersonal status which is legally recognized in some jurisdictions as a marriage even though no legally recognized marriage ceremony is performed or civil marriage contract...
s, plural marriagePolygamy was a defining characteristic of early Mormonism, and continues to be the defining characteristic of Mormon fundamentalism. The practice of polygamy was instituted in the 1830s by founder Joseph Smith, Jr., and was a contributing factor leading to his 1844 assassination...
s, or other family arrangements.
LGBT Mormon support groups:
Some Church members have formed a number of unofficial support organizations, including Evergreen International, Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian MormonsAffirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons is an international organization for gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and intersex people who identify as members or ex-members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, North Star, Disciples2, Wildflowers, Family FellowshipFamily Fellowship is a predominantly Latter-day Saint support group for families who have Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and/or Transgender members....
, GLYA (Gay LDS Young Adults), LDS ReconciliationLDS Reconciliation is a group of Gay Mormons who either are or have previously been members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or who wish to associate and study the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by the Churches scriptures and manuals. The term Gay in this context refers to...
, GamofitesGamofites is an organization of Latter-day Saint gay fathers, but is not a religious organization. Because Mormonism contains many "ites" —Nephites, Lamanites, Jaredites, etc.— the group shortened Gay Mormon Fathers to Ga-mo-fites...
and the Guardrail foundation.
Challenges to fundamental church doctrine
In 1967, a set of papyrus manuscripts were discovered in the Metropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art, known colloquially as The Met, is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile in New York City, USA. It has a permanent collection containing more than two million works of art, divided into nineteen curatorial...
that appear to be the manuscripts from which Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
claimed to have translated the Book of AbrahamThe Book of Abraham is a purported translation in 1835 by Joseph Smith, Jr. of a set of 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...
in 1835. These manuscripts were presumed lost in the Chicago fire of 1871. Analyzed by Egyptologists, the manuscripts were identified by some as The Book of the Deadthumb|400px|This detail scene, from the Papyrus of Hunefer , shows Hunefer's heart being weighed on the scale of [[Maat]] against the feather of truth, by the jackal-headed [[Anubis]]. The Ibis-headed [[Thoth]], scribe of the gods, records the result. If his heart is lighter than the feather,...
, an ancient Egyptian funery text. Moreover, the scholars' translations of certain portions of the scrolls disagreed with Smith's translation. This discovery forced many Mormon apologists to moderate the earlier prevailing view that Smith's translations were literal one-to-one translations. As a result of this discovery, some Mormon apologists consider The Book of the Dead to be a starting-point that Smith used to reconstruct the original writings of Abraham through inspiration.
In the early 1980s, the apparent discovery of an early Mormon manuscript, which came to be known as the "Salamander LetterThe Salamander Letter was a document created by Mark Hofmann in the early 1980s.The letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that surfaced in the early 1980s...
", received much publicity. This letter, reportedly discovered by a scholar named Mark HofmannMark William Hofmann is an American counterfeiter, forger and convicted murderer. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, Hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the Latter Day Saint movement...
, alleged that the Book of MormonThe Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr. as The Book of Mormon: An Account Written by the Hand of Mormon upon Plates Taken from the Plates of Nephi...
was given to Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
by a being that changed itself into a salamanderSalamander is a common name of approximately 500 species of amphibians. They are typically characterized by their slender bodies, short noses, and long tails. All known fossils and extinct species fall under the order Caudata, while sometimes the extant species are grouped together as the Urodela...
, not by an angelAngels are spiritual beings found in many religious traditions. They are broadly viewed as messengers of God, sent to do God's tasks. Traditions vary as to the precise nature and role of these messages and tasks...
as the official Church history recounted. The document was purchased by private collector Steven Christensen, but was still significantly publicized and even printed in the Church's official magazine, The Ensign. Some Mormon apologists including ApostleIn the Latter Day Saint movement, an Apostle is a "special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others." In many Latter Day Saint churches, an Apostle is a priesthood office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles...
Dallin H. OaksDallin Harris Oaks is an American attorney, jurist and religious leader. Since 1984, he has been a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
suggested that the letter used the idea of a salamander as a metaphor for an angel. The document, however, was revealed as a forgery in 1985, and Hofmann was arrested for two murders related to his forgeries.
Not all of Hofmann's findings have been deemed fraudulent. A document called the 'Anthon transcript' that allegedly contains reformed EgyptianAccording to the Book of Mormon, that scripture of the Latter Day Saint movement was originally written in reformed Egyptian characters on plates of "ore" by prophets living in the Western Hemisphere between 600 BC and AD 421. Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder of the movement, published the Book of...
characters from the Book of Mormon plates is still in dispute, although the characters have been highly circulated both by the Church and other individuals. Due to Hofmann's methods, the authenticity of many of the documents he sold to the Church and the Smithsonian will likely never be sorted out.
Mormon dissidents and scholars
In 1989, George P. LeeGeorge Patrick Lee was the first Native American to become a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was a member of the church's First Quorum of Seventy between 1975 and 1989, when he was excommunicated from the church...
, a NavajoThe Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American homeland covering about 26,000 square miles , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
member of the First Quorum of the SeventySeventy 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...
who had participated in the Indian Placement ProgramThe Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1947 to 1996, in which Native American The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
in his youth, was excommunicated. The church action occurred not long after he had submitted to the Church a 23-page letter critical of the program and the affect it had on Native American culture. In October 1994, Lee confessed to, and was convicted of, sexually molesting a 13-year-old girl in 1989. It is not known if church leaders had knowledge of this crime during the excommunication process.
In the late 1980s, the administration of Ezra Taft BensonEzra Taft Benson was the thirteenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 until his death and was United States Secretary of Agriculture for both terms of the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower.-Biography:Born on a farm in Whitney, Idaho, Benson was the oldest of...
formed what it called the Strengthening Church Members CommitteeIn The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Strengthening Church Members Committee is a committee of general authorities who monitor the publications of church members for possible criticism of local and general leaders of the church...
, to keep files on potential church dissidents and collect their published material for possible later use in church disciplinary proceedings. The existence of this committee was first publicized by an anti-MormonAnti-Mormonism is discrimination, hostility or prejudice directed at members of the Latter Day Saint movement, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
ministry in 1991, when it was referred to in a memo dated July 19, 1990 leaked from the office of the church's Presiding Bishopric.
At the 1992 Sunstone SymposiumSunstone Magazine is a publication by the Sunstone Education Foundation, Inc., a 501 nonprofit corporation, that discusses Mormonism through scholarship, art, short fiction, and poetry. The foundation began the publication in 1974 and considers it a vehicle for free and frank exchange in the Church...
, dissident Mormon scholar Lavina Fielding AndersonLavina Fielding Anderson is a Latter Day Saint scholar, writer, editor, and feminist. Anderson holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Washington...
accused the Committee of being "an internal espionage system," which prompted BYUBrigham Young University , located in Provo, Utah, United States, is a private, coeducational research university owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
professor and moderate Mormon scholar Eugene EnglandGeorge Eugene England, Jr. , usually credited as Eugene England, was a Mormon writer, teacher, and scholar. He founded Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, the oldest independent journal in Mormon Studies, with G. Wesley Johnson in 1966 and cofounded the Association for Mormon Letters in 1976...
to "accuse that committee of undermining the Church," a charge for which he later publicly apologized (Letter to the Editor, SunstoneSunstone Magazine is a publication by the Sunstone Education Foundation, Inc., a 501 nonprofit corporation, that discusses Mormonism through scholarship, art, short fiction, and poetry. The foundation began the publication in 1974 and considers it a vehicle for free and frank exchange in the Church...
, March 1993). The publicity concerning the statements of Anderson and England, however, prompted the church to officially acknowledge the existence of the Committee. ("Mormon Church keeps files on its dissenters," St. Petersburg Times, Aug. 15, 1992, at 6e.) The Church explained that the Committee "provides local church leadership with information designed to help them counsel with members who, however well-meaning, may hinder the progress of the church through public criticism." ("Secret Files," New York Times, Aug. 22, 1992).
The First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
also issued a statement on August 22, 1992, explaining its position that the Committee had precedent and was justified based on a reference to D&CThe Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...
(LDS) Sec. 123, written while Joseph Smith, Jr.Joseph Smith, Jr. was the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, also known as Mormonism, and an important religious and political figure during the 1830s and 1840s...
was imprisoned in Liberty, MissouriLiberty is a city in Clay County, Missouri and is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. At the 2000 census the city population was 26,232. It is the county seat of Clay County.Liberty is also home to William Jewell College.- History :...
, suggesting that a committee be formed to record and document acts of persecution against the church by the people of MissouriMissouri is a state in the Midwest region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th most populous state with a 2008 estimated population of 5,911,605. It comprises 114 counties and one independent city....
.
Other topics:
- BYU academic freedom
- Statements against Sunstone
- Excommunication of scholars, including the September Six
The September Six were six Mormons who were excommunicated or disfellowshipped by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in September 1993 for speaking against Church doctrine and leadership. The alliterative term "September Six" was coined by the The Salt Lake Tribune and the term was...
Dealing with Mormon polygamist sects:
The Church ended the practice of polygamy officially in 1890 by instating Official Declaration-1 to the Saints. It states that:
- "We are not teaching polygamy or plural marriage, nor permitting any person to enter into its practice."
Changing doctrinal focus
The church and pornography:
The church has always been against the creation, distribution and viewing of pornography. Gordon B. Hinckley had been known to say that pornography is as addictive as the worst drugs.He often talked of what a shame it is to use such great resources (such as the internet) for such material.
Latter-day Saint public relations
By the 1960s and 1970s, as a consequence of its massive, international growth in the post-World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
era, the church was no longer primarily a Utah-based church, but a world-wide organization. The church, mirroring the world around it, felt the disunifying strains of alien cultures and diverse points of view that had brought an end to the idealistic modern age. At the same time, the postmodernPostmodernity is generally used to describe the economic and/or cultural state or condition of society which is said to exist after modernity...
world was increasingly skeptical of traditional religion and authority, and driven by mass-media and public image. These influences awoke within the church a new self-consciousness. The church could no longer rest quietly upon its fundamentals and history. It felt a need to sell its image to an increasingly jaded public, to jettison some of its Utah-based parochialism, to control and manage Mormon scholarship that might present an unfavorable image of the church, and to alter its organization to cope with its size and cultural diversity, while preserving centralized control of Latter-day Saint doctrine, practice, and culture.
Thus, the church underwent a number of important changes in organization, practices, and meeting schedule. In addition, the church became more media-savvy, and more self-conscious and protective of its public image. The church also became more involved in public discourse, using its new-found political and cultural influence and the media to affect its image, public morality, and Mormon scholarship, and to promote its missionary efforts. At the same time, the church struggled with how to deal with increasingly pluralistic voices within the church and within Mormonism. In general, this period has seen both an increase in cultural and racial diversity and extra-faith ecumenismЁcumenism or Œcumenism now mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater religious unity or cooperation....
, and a decrease in intra-faith pluralismReligious pluralism is a loosely defined expression concerning acceptance of different religions, and is used in a number of related ways:...
.
Until the church's rapid growth after World War II, it had been seen in the eyes of the general public as a backward, non- or vaguely-ChristianChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
polygamist cult in Utah — an image that interfered with proselyting efforts. As the church's size began to merit new visibility in the world, the church seized upon the opportunity to re-define its public image, and to establish itself in the public mind as a mainstream Christian faith. At the same time, the church became publicly involved in numerous ecumenical and welfare projects that continue to serve as the foundation of its ecumenism today.
As part of the church's efforts to re-position its image as that of a mainstream religion, the church began to moderate its earlier anti-CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
rhetoric. In Elder Bruce R. McConkieBruce Redd McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death...
's 1958 edition of Mormon DoctrineMormon Doctrine is an encyclopedic work written in 1958 by Bruce R. McConkie, a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was intended primarily for a Latter-day Saint audience and is often used as a reference book by church members because of its comprehensive nature...
, he had stated his unofficial opinion that the Catholic Church was part of "the church of the devil" and "the great and abominable church" because it was among organizations that misled people away from following God's laws. In his 1966 edition of the same book, the specific reference to the Catholic Church was removed.
See generally: Armand L. Mauss, The Angel and the Beehive: The Mormon Struggle with Assimilation (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994); Gordon Sheperd & Gary Sheperd, "Mormonism in Secular Society: Changing Patterns in Official Ecclesiastical Rhetoric," Review of Religious Research 26 (Sept. 1984): 28-42.
The first routinized system for teaching church principles to potential proselytes had been created in 1953 and named "A Systematic Program for Teaching the Gospel". In 1961, this system was enhanced, expanded, and renamed "A Uniform System for Teaching Investigators". This new system, in the form of a hypothetical dialogue with a fictional character named "Mr. Brown", included intricate details for what to say in almost every situation. These routinized missionary discussions would be further refined in 1973 and 1986, and then de-emphasized in 2003.
In 1973, the church recast its missionary discussions, making them more family-friendly and focused on building on common Christian ideals. The new discussions, named "A Uniform System for Teaching Families", de-emphasized the Great ApostasyThe Great Apostasy is a term used by some religious groups to allege a general fallen state of traditional Christianity, or especially of Catholicism, magisterial Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy, that it is not representative of the faith founded by Jesus and promulgated through his twelve...
, which previously held a prominent position just after the story of the First VisionThe First Vision is a religious belief held by various denominations that comprise the Latter Day Saint movement that God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to the fourteen-year-old Joseph Smith, Jr...
. When the discussions were revised in the early 1980s, the new discussions dealt with the apostasy less conspicuously, and in later discussions, rather than in the first discussion. The discussions also became more family-friendly, including a flip chart with pictures, in part to encourage the participation of children.
In 1982, the church renamed its edition of The Book of Mormon to The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, in order to emphasize that the book is about JesusJesus of Nazareth —also known as Jesus Christ or occasionally Jesus the Christ—is the central figure of Christianity. Within most Christian denominations...
.
In 1995, the church announced a new logo design that emphasized the words "JESUS CHRIST" in large capital letters, and de-emphasized the words "The Church of" and "of Latter-day Saints". According to Bruce L. Olsen, director of public affairs for the church, "The logo re-emphasizes the official name of the church and the central position of the Savior in its theology. It stresses our allegiance to the Lord, Jesus Christ."
On January 1, 2000, the First PresidencyIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
and the Quorum of the Twelve ApostlesIn The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is one of the governing bodies in the church hierarchy...
released a proclamation entitled "The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints". This document commemorated the birth of Jesus and set forth the church's official view regarding Christ.
In 2001, the church sent out a press release encouraging reporters to use the full name of the church at the beginning of news articles, with following references to the "Church of Jesus Christ". The release discouraged the use of the term "Mormon Church".
Cooperation with other churches:
- The church has opened its broadcasting facilities (Bonneville International) to other Christian groups, and has participated in the VISN Religious Interfaith Cable Television Network.
- The church has participated in numerous joint humanitarian efforts with other churches.
- Agreement not to baptize Holocaust victims by proxy
The church and the Information Age: This would include topics like how the church seeks to battle pornography, its use of the internet, its battle to control its public image, broadcasting the Nauvoo temple dedication, appearances on Larry King Live, etc.
The church in the media:
- Hinckley's appearances on Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN. The show debuted in 1985, and is CNN's most watched program, with over one million viewers nightly.The show broadcasts from CNN's Los Angeles studios...
- Communication with foreign countries to allow entry of missionaries
- Broadcasting the Nauvoo temple dedication
See also
- Controversies regarding Mormonism
- History of the Church
History of the Church is a semi-official history of the early Latter Day Saint movement during the lifetime of founder Joseph...
(book)
- Latter Day Saint Historians
Latter Day Saint Historians are a diverse group of historians writing about Mormonism. They range from faith-promoting historians to anti-mormon historians, but also include scholars who make an honest effort at objectivity...
- Mormonism and history
- Church History Museum
- Temperance organizations
- Restorationism
In Christianity the term restorationism, sometimes called Christian primitivism, refers to the belief that a purer form of Christianity should be restored using the early church as a model...
- Restoration movement
The Restoration Movement is a Christian movement that began on the American frontier during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century...
- The Joseph Smith Papers
The Joseph Smith Papers is a project researching, collecting, and publishing all original historical documents pertaining to Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder and first prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and in general, the Latter Day Saint movement.-History of the...
External links