Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the "LDS Church" or the "Mormon Church", is the largest and best known denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement (a form of Christian Restorationism).

Related Topics:
Latter Day Saint movement - Christian - Restorationism - Salt Lake City, Utah

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Latter-day Saints are widely known for:

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• Active proselytizing by full-time volunteer missionaries
• Belief in modern prophets, beginning with Joseph Smith, Jr., and continuing today with Gordon B. Hinckley
• Acceptance of the Bible, the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price as works of scripture
• A dietary code called the Word of Wisdom, currently requiring abstinence from alcohol, tobacco, coffee, tea, and illegal drugs; caffeinated soft drinks are left to individual discretion.
• Belief in God the Father, the Son (Christ), and the Holy Ghost existing as three separate individuals
• Belief in a form of theosis called exaltation or eternal progression
• Formerly practicing polygamy (plural marriage)
• Wearing ceremonial temple garments under their daily clothes
• Performing baptisms for the dead, and other ordinances by proxy, in temples and doing attendant genealogical research.

As the name of the church implies, Latter-day Saints regard Jesus Christ as the head of their church and count themselves as Christians, but do not consider themselves part of the Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant traditions. Rather, they believe the church to be the restoration of the original church established by Jesus Christ on Earth. Some outside observers classify the church as a Protestant denomination, while others do not consider it to be a Christian church at all (see Mormonism and Christianity). The church has no association with denominations known as Mormon fundamentalists, which teach the practice of polygyny.

Related Topics:
Orthodox - Catholic - Protestant - Mormonism and Christianity - Mormon fundamentalists - Polygyny

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Joseph Smith, Jr. and five associates established the church on April 6, 1830 in the company of some 56 men and women in Fayette, New York. After suffering under persecution in several states, including a government-ordered expulsion from Missouri and the assassination of Joseph Smith by a mob in Illinois, Brigham Young was called to succeed Joseph Smith and led the Mormon pioneers to settle a large area now encompassed by the state of Utah and parts of Arizona, California, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming.

Related Topics:
Joseph Smith, Jr. - April 6 - 1830 - Fayette, New York - Missouri - Assassination - Illinois - Brigham Young - Utah - Arizona - California - Nevada - Idaho - Wyoming

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The church reports a worldwide membership of 12,275,822 as of December 31, 2004, with 6.7 million residing outside the United States. The church membership report includes all those who have been baptized by the church (adults and youth), regardless of attendance or whether they even consider themselves to be members (people who ask to have their names removed from church records are not included in the tally). This report includes unbaptized children of record (between the ages of 0 and 8). The American Religious Identification Survey 2001 estimated an adult Mormon membership of approximately 2.8 million Americans.{{fn|1}} According to statistics released by the church, 47% of its members live in the United States and Canada, 36% in Latin America, and 17% in other parts of the world. (See Membership Distribution)

Related Topics:
December 31 - 2004 - Baptized

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Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: History ►