Church Of Latter Day Saints.org

Main Resources For Information About The Church

ChurchofJesusChrist.org: The content on this site is intended primarily for Church members. The sites home page provides features on new content, as well as links to all other Church sites. From the home page, people can access scriptures, lesson materials, Church magazines, senior leadership talks, ideas to strengthen families, information on chapel locations and meeting times, local congregation websites, and much more. This site serves as an umbrella site for many other Church sites. To find materials in your language, go to language.churchofjesuschrist.org.

ComeUntoChrist.org: This is the Churchs outreach site, dedicated to helping the general public understand the basic beliefs and practices of the Church. Information is provided in a simple format, avoiding the use of words that may only be familiar to members of the Church. Features include summaries of basic beliefs, a link to find a nearby Church meetinghouse or congregation, and the ability to ask questions in a live chat with a Church member.

Jesus Christ: This multimedia website features articles, video clips, artwork, an interactive music page, and other sectionsall focused on the life, ministry, and divinity of Jesus Christ. The site is intended for anyone who wants to learn more about Jesus Christ. The document The Living Christ can be accessed directly at livingchrist.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

Why Is Family Life So Central To Latter

• about genealogy and the Mormon archives.

Mormons believe that the family is an eternal unit and central to God’s plan. In fact, eternal progression toward Godhood is limited to those who marry for time and eternity in a ceremony conducted by a properly ordained member of the LDS priesthood in a Mormon temple. Church President Hinckley has also stressed the importance of the family during mortal life, saying, “If you want to reform a nation, you begin with families, with parents who teach their children principles and values that are positive and affirmative and will lead them to worthwhile endeavors. That is the basic failure that has taken place in America. And we are making a tremendous effort to bring about greater solidarity in families. Parents have no greater responsibility in this world than the bringing up of their children in the right way, and they will have no greater satisfaction as the years pass than to see those children grow in integrity and honesty and make something of their lives, adding to society because they are a part of it.” To strengthen families, many Mormons observe “family home evening.” This is one night a week — generally Monday — that a family spends together praying, learning about scripture, sharing things from their lives, and playing games or engaging in other fun at-home activities.

Other Historical Documents Of Local Church Units

The Historical DepartmentArchive Search Room also has the following types of historical records:

Minute Books from 1837 to 1977. You will find minutes of priesthood quorums, Relief Societies, other auxiliary organizations, and general ward and stake minutes. The minutes may provide dates of blessings, baptisms, confirmations, and ordinations that you will not be able to find elsewhere.

Quarterly Reports of branches, wards, stakes, and missions. These reports provide the names of the leaders in the various organizations. Stake and mission reports are available to the present. The ward and branch reports are available between 1956 and 1983.

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Purported Pagan Origins Of The Trinity

Some nontrinitarians also say that a link between the doctrine of the Trinity and the Egyptian Christian theologians of suggests that Alexandrian theology, with its strong emphasis on the deity of Jesus, served to infuse Egypt’s pagan religious heritage into Christianity. They accuse the Church of adopting these Egyptian tenets after adapting them to Christian thinking by means of Greek philosophy.

They say the development of the idea of a co-equal triune godhead was based on pagan Greek and Platonic influence, including many basic concepts from philosophy incorporated into the biblical God. As an example, they mention that stated: “All things are three, and thrice is all: and let us use this number in the worship of the gods for, as say, everything and all things are bound by threes, for the end, the middle, and the beginning have this number in everything, and these compose the number of the Trinity.” However, Trinitarians have argued that the words attributed to Aristotle differ in a number of ways from what has been published as the philosopher’s original text in , which omits “let us use this number in the worship of the gods”, and are not supported by translations of the works of Aristotle by scholars such as Stuart Leggatt, , J. L. Stocks, and .

The early apologists, including , and , frequently discussed the parallels and contrasts between Christianity, Paganism and other , and answered charges of borrowing from paganism in their writings.

Ideology Partisanship And Economic Views

Mormons tend to be quite conservative in their political leanings and in their views on social and moral issues. Two-thirds call themselves conservatives, and three-quarters of Mormon registered voters are Republican or lean toward the Republican Party. These ideological and partisan leanings are reflected in their views of President Barack Obama, whose favorability rating among Mormon voters is half of what it is among voters in the public as a whole.

Mormons express highly positive views of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney . Romney is viewed favorably by 86% of all Mormon voters and 94% of Mormons who are Republican or lean Republican. But even among Mormon Democrats and Democratic-leaning registered voters, 62% rate Romney favorably. In fact, Romneys favorability rating is about as high among Mormon Democrats as it is among Republicans in the general population .

Two other prominent Mormon political leaders are viewed less favorably than Romney. Half of Mormon voters express a favorable view of Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman Jr., while 24% express an unfavorable view and 26% have no opinion. Huntsman is viewed more favorably by registered voters in Utah, where 70% offer a favorable assessment and only 4% are unable to offer an opinion about him. Less than a quarter of Mormon voters have a favorable view of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat 51% of Mormon voters have an unfavorable opinion of Reid while 27% express no opinion about him.

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Why Is Mormonism Sometimes Described As A Secretive Religion

The most common and visible target for charges of suspicious secrecy in the Mormon religion are the temples. After dedication, these buildings are closed to the public and church members do not talk openly about the rituals that take place within. The church holds that the temple and its rituals are sacred and therefore private, not secret. They maintain that early Christianity featured similar special practices and bodies of knowledge that were kept quiet to preserve their sacred nature.

Church finances are also kept confidential, provoking criticism that there is no way for church members or outsiders to know where money from tithing and other revenue goes. And the church has also been questioned about the secrecy surrounding their defense of doctrine. Latter-day Saints can face excommunication if, after being warned, they continue to publicly discuss problematic or provocative elements of Mormon theology that the church chooses not to draw attention to. Because disciplinary councils that can lead to excommunication are always private, the process of gathering information and the closed meetings that consider the fate of a disciplined member add to the perception of Mormon secrecy.

Religious Authority And Ritual

Smith’s teachings were rooted in . He taught that the Church of Christ restored through him was a restoration of the early Christian faith, which had been lost in the . At first, Smith’s church had little sense of hierarchy his religious authority was derived from visions and revelations. Though Smith did not claim exclusive prophethood, an early revelation designated him as the only prophet allowed to issue commandments “as Moses”. This religious authority encompassed economic and political as well as spiritual matters. For instance, in the early 1830s, he temporarily instituted a form of , called the , that required Latter Day Saints to give to the church all their property, to be divided among the faithful. He also envisioned that the theocratic institutions he established would have a role in the worldwide political organization of the Millennium.

Smith taught that the High Priesthood’s endowment of heavenly power included the powers of , allowing High Priests to perform with effects that continue after death. For example, this power would enable proxy baptisms for the dead and . Elijah’s sealing powers also enabled the , or “fulness of the priesthood”, which, according to Smith, sealed married couples to their exaltation.

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Histories Of Local Church Units

Many histories of wards, stakes, and missions are available at the Family History Library and the Church History Library. These unit histories sometimes include biographical sketches of members, photographs, maps, lists of ward officers, and a history of the local community. For books and articles that give short histories of many local Church units see:

• Jenson, Andrew. Encyclopedic History of the Church cited fully in .

The Church History Library has manuscript histories, and historical reports for local Church units from the 1830s to 1983. Since 1983, the yearly histories have been known as annual reports. Wards and branches submit their reports to the stake or mission, which compiles them and submits the reports to the Church History Library. These records often include the names of the Church units officers and teachers. Histories of the Mormon Battalion, the Pioneers of 1847, , and other prominent groups are also available.

The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter

MormonismChurch of Christ Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarianChristian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The church is headquartered in the United States in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has established congregations and built temples worldwide. According to the church, it has over 16.8 million members and 54,539 full-time volunteer missionaries. The church is the fourth-largest Christian denomination in the United States, with over 6.7 million US members as of 2021. It is the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith during the early 19th-century period of religious revival known as the Second Great Awakening.

The church has been criticized throughout its history. Modern criticisms include disputed factual claims, treatment of minorities, and financial controversies. The church’s practice of polygamy was controversial until officially rescinded in 1890.

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The Lds Origins Of Welfare Reform

Latter-day Saints, today considered among the nations most conservative demographic groups, started out two centuries ago experimenting with an economic order that was borderline communist. Responding to the financial precarity of the early 1800s, some of the first church members to settle Utah built a town called Orderville, which banned private property while establishing communal living arrangements and sharing food.

When the Great Depression hit, these Utahns fell in love with New Deal programs like the Works Progress Administration, voting overwhelmingly for President Franklin Roosevelt four straight times.

Fearing government incursion into the LDS sphere of influence in Utah and government dependency among the faithful, church President Heber J. Grant announced in 1936 that the church would establish its own welfare plan, opposed in principle to the government dole though structurally similar.

The church constructed Welfare Square, complete with a 178-foot-tall grain silo and a dairy processing plant, cannery and bakery. It would be funded largely by fast offerings that Latter-day Saints donate one Sunday a month by forgoing food for the day and paying the church what they wouldve spent on those meals.

The churchs welfare system caught the attention of the new conservative movement of the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Here was a way out of an economic downturn born of classic Western ideals of personal and neighborly responsibility.

What Are Some Of The Rituals Of The Faith What Are The Restrictions And Prohibitions

• Read the comments of historians, scholars and Mormons on .

The rituals of the Mormon faith include ceremonies performed in the temple — endowment, baptism of the dead, celestial marriage and family sealings — plus several ceremonies that take place in Mormon chapels. The naming and blessing of infants — performed by a priesthood holder, often the baby’s father — takes place in the chapel. Baptisms are held in the chapels when Mormon children turn 8 years old or when an adult converts to the faith. Family and friends generally attend both of these rituals. The Latter-day Saints also have a practice of annointing and blessing the sick if an ill individual so desires.

Like other Christians, Mormons celebrate Christmas and Easter as their two most important religious holidays. The Latter-day Saints also observe Pioneer Day on July 24, marking the date the first Mormon pioneers arrived in Utah’s Salt Lake Valley in 1847. It is around the time of this holiday that the church presents its elaborate history pageant at the Hill Cumorah in Palmyra, N.Y., where Joseph Smith found the golden plates.

Mormons are advised not to get tattoos and to limit body piercings to a single pair of plain earrings for women. They also follow a general dress code that teaches that modest dress not only shows respect for one’s own body and for God, but also has a positive effect on spirituality and behavior.

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Mormonism From A Christian Perspective

Who Are We?

We challenge you to question Mormonism. We are a source of information related to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and to a lesser extent, other groups that claim Joseph Smith, Jr. as a true prophet. As Evangelical Christians, we also desire to convert Mormons and the state of Utah in particular to the real Jesus Christ. MormonInfo.org is a ministry of Courageous Christians United and hosts Meet the Ex-Mormons Fellowship of Salt Lake City. All CCU web sites are operated by Rob Sivulka, president of CCU.

Tithing And Other Donations

Church members are expected to donate one-tenth of their income to support the operations of the church, including construction of temples, meetinghouses, and other buildings, and other church uses. Members are also encouraged to abstain from food and drink on the first Sunday of each month for at least two consecutive meals. They donate at least the cost of the two skipped meals as a fast offering, which the church uses to assist the poor and needy and expand its humanitarian efforts.

All able LDS young men are expected to serve a two-year, full-time proselytizing mission. Missionaries do not choose where they serve or the language in which they will proselytize, and are expected to fund their missions themselves or with the aid of their families. Prospective male missionaries must be at least 18 years old and no older than 25, not yet married, have completed secondary school, and meet certain criteria for physical fitness and spiritual worthiness. Missionary service is not compulsory, nor is it required for young men to retain their church membership.

Unmarried women 19 years and older may also serve as missionaries, generally for a term of 18 months. However, the LDS Church emphasizes that women are not under the same expectation to serve as male members are, and may serve solely as a personal decision. There is no maximum age for missionary service for women.

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Venerable Church Leader Jack Wesley Semones Passes Away At 96

Jack Wesley Semones, age 96, passed away in his home on Friday, November 4, 2022. Jack was born on June 17, 1926, near Pine Creek in Wheelersburg, Ohio. He was the eleventh of twelve children born to James Oscar Semones and Nellie Mae Willis. Jack loved and respected his parents and treasured his relationships with his four brothers and seven sisters.

On June 15, 2019, the Town North Family YMCA was renamed the Semones Family YMCA in honor of Jack Semones. This video was made at that time to honor and thank Jack Wesley Semones for the life he lived.

Jack enlisted in the Navy at the age of seventeen on May 15, 1944, and attained the rank of Storekeeper Second Class while serving in New Caledonia on the South Pacific front of World War II. Jack received an honorable discharge from the United States Navy on June 3, 1946, and returned to Portsmouth, Ohio. Soon after, he met Betty Louise Anderson. They married on December 29, 1948, and shared over forty blessed years together. Jack and Betty raised three daughters, Tanya, Cheryl, and Suzanne. Betty died in 1989 of cancer. Two years later, he married Kennye Sue McGuire Gaultney. Kennyes son, Grant, and her daughter, Kara, became like his own. For the next 31 years, Jack and Kennye loved and cared for each other, dearly. Theirs has been a life of abundance through the love and experiences shared together with their family and friends.