Stake (Mormonism)

A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregrations in sects of the Latter Day Saint movement. A stake is comparable to a diocese in the Roman Catholic Church. The name "stake" derives from the phrase "stake in the tent of Zion" and is a reference to the stakes that upheld the Biblical tabernacle housing the Ark of the Covenant. For this reason, a stake is sometimes referred to as a "stake of Zion".

History of Stakes

The first Latter Day Saint stake was organized at church headquarters in Kirtland, Ohio, on February 17, 1834, with Joseph Smith, Jr. as stake president. The second stake was organized in Clay County, Missouri later that year on July 3, with David Whitmer as stake president. The Missouri stake was relocated to Far West, Missouri in 1836 and the Kirtland Stake dissolved in 1838. A stake was organized at Adam-ondi-Ahman in 1838 and abandoned later that year due to the events of the Mormon War. In 1839, the church's central stake was established at Nauvoo, Illinois and William Marks became stake president.

Related Topics:
Latter Day Saint - Kirtland, Ohio - Joseph Smith, Jr. - Clay County, Missouri - David Whitmer - Far West, Missouri - Adam-ondi-Ahman - Mormon War - Nauvoo, Illinois - William Marks

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Additional stakes were established in the area around Nauvoo in 1840. Immediately after the assassination of Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1844, there was a schism in the Latter Day Saint movement. In 1846, all of the existing stakes, including the Nauvoo Stake, were discontinued as a result of the Latter Day Saint exodus to Utah.

Related Topics:
Schism in the Latter Day Saint movement - Latter Day Saint exodus

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