The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is also commonly
referred to as the "LDS Church." They prefer the abbreviations "the
Church" or "the Church of Jesus Christ." However, the latter
abbreviations would be confusing to use in this web site because we deal with so
many faith groups who regarding only themselves as the
true Christian church.
Beliefs concerning the LDS church vary:
Members believe themselves to be a restoration of the original church of the
Apostles as it existed in the 1st
Century CE. They believe that early in the 2nd century,
after the death of the apostles, massive heresies developed within the Christian
movement that caused it to permanently deviate from Jesus' teachings. From these
heresies came the
Roman Catholic church,
Eastern Orthodox churches, thousands of Protestant
denominations, etc.
Many Gentiles (non-Mormons) consider the LDS church to be a unique
conservative denomination within Protestant Christianity, who have supplemented
traditional Christianity with beliefs concerning an ancient American Native
civilization, additional revelations from God, unique beliefs concerning the
nature of the Trinity, new concepts of the structure of Heaven, some Gnostic
beliefs, etc.
Some Christian Fundamentalist authors, particularly those from the
counter-cult movement, feel that differences between Mormonism and
traditional Christianity are so great that the LDS church should be considered
non-Christian, and a cult.
All agree that:
The LDS Church is one of the largest and most successful religious groups
ever founded in North America;
They do have many practices and beliefs that isolate them from traditional
Christianity.
As of 1999, they had about 11 million members world-wide, with a slight
majority living outside the U.S. They exceeded 12 million in early 2004. 1
Their end-of-year statistical report for 2005 shows:
A total membership of 12,560,869 members including 52,060 full time
missionaries.
2,701 stakes, 643 districts, 341 missions and 27,087 wards and branches.
122 temples are in operation, including temples dedicated during 2005 at San
Antonio, TX; Aba Nigeria; and Newport Beach, CA. 2,3
There are 5.7 million LDS members in the U.S., 3 million in South America, 1
million in Mexico, 448 thousand in Europe, 404 thousand in the South Pacific,
and 172 thousand in Canada. 4
Their facilities are spread across 150 countries. Their main power
concentration is in the state of Utah, where it is often estimated that about
70% of the adults identify themselves as Mormon. However, the
Graduate Center of the City University of New York conducted a massive
"American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS)
in the year 2000. It indicates that only 57% of Utah adults identify
themselves as Mormon. 17% in the state have no religion, 6% are Catholics, and
all other religious groups are each less than 3%. States with large Mormon
populations are:
6% of the adult population of Arizona,
14% in Idaho,
3% in Maryland,
3% in Montana,
3% in New Mexico,
9% in Nevada,
4% in Oregon,
57% in Utah, and
3% in Washington state.
They comprise 2% or fewer adults in other states. 5
Their total membership has at least doubled every 15 years since 1945. Some
of this gain is due to the large average size of their families. However, most
of the increase from 1 million in 1947 to 11 million in the year 1999 consisted
of new converts to the LDS church. The total growth rate in recent years reached
a high of 6% in 1980 and has been generally declining since. In 2003, it dropped
below 3% for the first time in recent years.
Mormons had traditionally separated themselves from other Christian groups
-- particularly since 1846, when Brigham Young led most of the church on a long
and difficult 1,300 mile (2100 km) trip to the Great Salt Lake in Utah. They had
emphasized the uniqueness of their faith. However in the mid 1980's a movement
intensified within the LDS Church to emphasize their points of similarity
between themselves and traditional conservative Protestantism. They have joined
with non-Mormon groups to actively fight drug abuse,
abortion access, equal rights for women, and
equal rights for gays and lesbians. In recent years, their extensive
television ads have emphasized their "pro-family" beliefs which are
indistinguishable from Fundamentalist and other Evangelical Christian groups.
There were some reports that in mid-2006, their policy had changed again, so
that they now emphasize the major differences in beliefs and practices between
the LDS and other Christian denominations. However, there is a general consensus
among the counter-cult movement that this difference is
not a change in official policy. It merely represents personal or regional
differences in evangelization techniques.
"... does not fit within the bounds of the historic, apostolic
tradition of Christian faith.... [They have] some radically differing doctrine
on such matters of belief as the nature and being of God; the nature, origin,
and purpose of Jesus Christ; and the nature and way of salvation."
This action follows similar resolutions previously passed by the Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.) and the Southern Baptist Convention.
2000-NOV: US News & World Report stated that Mormonism is the
fastest growing faith group in American history. If present trends continue,
there could be 265 million LDS members worldwide by the year 2080. 6
Mid-2001: The LDS church asked the media to call them by their full
name:
"the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints," or simply "The
Church of Jesus Christ.."
2001-SEP: According to Newsweek: "Utah’s governor, two senators and
three congressmen are Mormons. So are all the state’s Supreme Court justices and
80 percent of the state and federal judiciary, 90 percent of the state
legislators and at least 85 percent of the mayors, county commissioners and
local school officials."
7
2002: The Mormon Church was actively involved in the 2002 Olympics
which was held in Utah.
2006-AUG: Warren Jeffs, the leader of the Fundamentalist Church
of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints, (FLDS) was
arrested and later convicted of conspiracy to rape a child. The FLDS and the LDS
church both trace their ancestry back to the original Church of Christ
organized by Joseph Smith in the 1830s. The FLDS continued to accept Smith's
teachings of polygyny after the LDS church suspended the practice in 1890.
Although the two denominations reject each other's legitimacy, they are often
confused in the minds of the public. A surprising number of Americans believe
that the LDS still engages in polygyny.
2007: Mitt Romney, a Mormon, ran for the presidency of the U.S.
Unusual among the initial slate of candidates, he had never divorced. His
ethical standards appeared to be above reproach. However, many evangelical
Christians had difficulty supporting for him because of his religious
affiliation. Romney generated a great deal of attention for the LDS
church until he withdrew his candidacy.
2008-NOV: The Family Research Council (FRC) estimated that
the Mormon Church donated $22 million in support of California's Prop. 8. 8 It was narrowly passed (52% to 48%) and, at least
temporarily, suspended same-sex marriages in the state. The FRC credit this
money as ultimately tipping "... the scales in the amendment's favor." The
donation has generated an enormous amount of anger among many gays, lesbians,
bisexuals and civil libertarians. There is talk of a boycott of Utah's tourism
industry.
Barry Kosmin, et al,. "American Religious Identification Survey," Pages 39 to 41, by the Graduate Center of
the City University of New York, 2001, at:
http://www.gc.cuny.edu/ This is a PDF file.
K.L. Woodward, "A Mormon Moment: America's biggest homegrown religion
is looking more Christian. But it's still a different world," Newsweek,
2001-SEP-10, at:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/622787.asp
