Mormon
From Free net encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Mormon (disambiguation).
Mormon is a colloquial term sometimes used to refer to members of the Latter Day Saint movement, a movement which began during the 1830s in the United States. The term is derived from the title of the movement's best known book of scripture, the Book of Mormon. The book names its compiler as "Mormon", and details, in addition to much else, his life around the 4th century.
The word is also an adjective referring to various cultural and religious aspects of Mormonism. The largest and best known Mormon denomination is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), who are also sometimes called Latter Day Saints or LDS. However, there is no widespread consensus on the members of which denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement should or should not be called "Mormon".
Contents |
Origin of the term "Mormon"
The term Mormon and its related terms were first used in modern times in the 1830s for those who believed that Joseph Smith, Jr. had been called as a prophet of God, and who accepted The Book of Mormon as scripture translated by Joseph Smith. The Book of Mormon is self-described as a compilation of smaller books, compiled, edited, and abridged by a prophet-historian named Mormon (hence the title of the book). Joseph Smith, Jr., in a letter to the editor of Times and Seasons, defines the term Mormon as meaning "more good". Image:Book of Mormon 1830 edition reprint.jpg The first usage (chronologically) of the word "Mormon" in The Book of Mormon is in reference to a "place which was called Mormon" that had "a fountain of pure water" where Alma taught the people who were "desirous to come into the fold of God" and baptized them in the waters of Mormon.[1]
After the initial publishing of the book, Mormon was used as a derogatory term to refer to those who believed in the Book of Mormon. The name soon lost most of its negative connotation, and is generally not considered offensive today. Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, the related terms Mormonite, Mormonist, Mormonish, Mormonic and Mormoness were used, but such terms are now very rare and may be considered somewhat offensive.
Who is a Mormon?
Some scholars feel the terms "Mormon" and "Mormonism" are useful to collectively describe all denominations within the Latter Day Saint movement, who originate from the religion founded by Joseph Smith, Jr.. However, some feel the terms "Mormon" and "Mormonism" should be used exclusively to refer to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the LDS Church), which is by far the largest Latter Day Saint denomination. Members of the Community of Christ (formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints), which separated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Nauvoo, Illinois, rarely use the term "Mormon" to describe themselves, and instead apply it to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Associated Press Stylebook likewise notes: "The term Mormon is not properly applied to the other ... churches that resulted from the split after [Joseph] Smith's death."
However, this usage is problematic because "Mormon" is employed by members of other schisms of the early Latter Day Saint movement that were prior to the succession crisis. "Mormon" is also used by some schisms that split from the LDS Church in the 20th Century. However, these groups often refer to themselves as "Mormon fundamentalists" and call members of the LDS church "mainstream Mormons". The more general guidelines of the AP Stylebook recommend that people should be called by those labels with which they self identify.
In addition to those members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who seek for that denomination to be the only denomination referred to as Mormon, other members of that church disapprove of the term "Mormon", and prefer instead to be called Latter-day Saints or "LDS". Many members of that denomination also use the term "LDS" when speaking to fellow church members and "Mormon" when speaking to others. The phrase Mormon Church also generally refers colloquially to this denomination, which maintains an official website presenting its basic beliefs and tenets at www.mormon.org and another website directed more at church members at www.lds.org.
Therefore, the only universally-accepted terminology in referring to Latter Day Saint denominations is to use the full name of the church, and to refer to individual Latter Day Saints as members or adherents of their particular denomination.
Claims for exclusivity by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with whom the term Mormon is most commonly identified, has changed its position on the term "Mormon" over time. For many years it was common for members to use quotes around the word "Mormon" — to indicate that this is something non-Mormons called Latter-day Saints. By the 1970s, the term had become so common, The Church began to use the term "Mormon" in advertising, including well-known television commercials which ended: "A message from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: The Mormons." More recently the organization has asked the media to use the church's complete name and follow any second reference with the name "The Church of Jesus Christ", to recognize Jesus Christ's name importance to the religion. Sometimes this style suggestion is incorrectly followed because of the ambiguity of the abbreviation and some still use the previous abbreviation, "LDS Church".
Although The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints objects to the use of the referent "Mormon Church", it stops short of rejecting the terms "Mormonism" and "Mormon" and occasionally claims these terms as exclusive references only to itself and its members. In a press release from 2001, the LDS Church stated that the word "Mormon" as an adjective in such expressions as "Mormon pioneers", "Mormons" as a noun in reference to church members, and "Mormonism" as a doctrine, culture, and lifestyle were all acceptable.
Claims for exclusivity of usage are primarily to avoid confusion between the LDS Church and "Mormon Fundamentalist" groups. The LDS Church argues "Mormon", "Mormon fundamentalist" and "Mormon dissident" in reference to organizations or groups outside of the LDS Church (especially those that practice plural marriage) is a misunderstanding of Mormon theology, in particular the principle of continuous revelation and Priesthood authority. Members of the LDS Church who are found guilty of practicing polygamy are excommunicated from the church.
Despite this perspective, the term "Mormon Fundamentalist" is widely used by Latter-day Saints in some areas (including members of the LDS church and the fundamentalists themselves) and by people outside the movement. However, this is strongly discouraged by the current president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gordon B. Hinckley.
Sometimes "Restorationist" or "Restoration Movement" are used as umbrella terms, for those derived from the Campbellites or Stone-Campbell churches, for example, the Church of Christ and the Disciples of Christ. Mormons, however, while sharing some general beliefs of the Campbellites are not a break off group of the Campbellites, but instead a group which believes that a restoration of the original church of Jesus Christ (known as the "primitive church" by historians) has taken place as God called Joseph Smith to be the first prophet of the restoration independent of any other church or movement. There are some general similarities to Campbellite teachings, and many of Mormonism's first adherents (including Sidney Rigdon) were previously Campbellites, but The Book of Mormon and the book of Doctrine and Covenants define the Mormons' doctrine in a unique way from any other restorationist movement body.
Utah Mormons and Missouri Mormons
Some scholars, such as Melton, in his Encyclopedia of American Religion, subdivide the Mormons into "Utah Mormons" and "Missouri Mormons," however, these terms are not of common usage, and even unheard of, among the majority of those who call themselves Mormons.
In this scheme, the Utah Mormon group includes all the organizations descending from those Mormons who followed Brigham Young to what is now Utah. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is by far the largest of these groups, and the only group to initially reside in Utah. When the United States outlawed plural marriage, The Church established a few "Mormon Colonies" like Colonia Juárez in Mexico, as plural marriage was still legal there. When the leaders of The Church proclaimed that God had revealed to them that the practice of plural marriage was to be discontinued (October 6, 1890), however, there were a number of families who left The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and continued to practice plural marriage outside the church in scattered and usually isolated communities. While these smaller groups have a membership in the thousands, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints now claims a world-wide membership of over 12 Million [2], but due to heavy media focus on these fractional bodies, misidentification of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with these polygamous groups is not uncommon. These groups include the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Kingston clan, the True & Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days and a few others. The majority of these groups are found in Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Colorado, British Columbia, Alberta, and Mexico. Both the terms "Utah Mormons" and "Missouri Mormons" are problematic because the majority of members of each of these branches no longer live in either of these states. While the majority of the population of the state of Utah are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, it has a large membership in many other states, most notably Arizona, California, Idaho and Nevada. The majority of the membership of the church today resides outside of the United States.
The Missouri Mormons are those Mormons who did not travel to Utah, and the organizations formed from them — the Community of Christ, Church of Christ (Temple Lot), Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, etc. Not all "Missouri Mormon" groups are based in Missouri, however. Notable exceptions include the Pennsylvania-based Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) which considers Sidney Rigdon Joseph Smith's rightful successor and the Wisconsin-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) which considers James J. Strang Smith's legitimate successor.
Addressing some of the limitations of the Utah/Missouri designations, historian Jan Shipps has now coined the terms Rocky Mountain Saints and Prairie Saints to rename the "Utah" and "Missouri" branches of the movement. These new terms have begun to gain a following among some historians today, but similar to the above mentioned titles, they are not of common usage among the majority of those who call themselves Mormons.
Distinctions from other religious groups
Despite some misconceptions over similar nicknames and stereotypes, Mormons are not the same religious group as Quakers (members of the Religious Society of Friends), Mennonites, or Amish, nor are they Jehovah's Witnesses. Mormons originated separately from these groups and are distinct in culture, practice, and theology. Mormonism originated in the United States; the Quaker and Mennonite faiths originally came from Europe.
One source of confusion in regions where Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, or Italian are the predominant languages comes from a mistranslation in the film Witness (starring Harrison Ford) into Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, Hungarian, and Italian. "Amish" was translated incorrectly to "Mormon". How this happened with different translators into different languages is not clear, but demonstrates a general misunderstanding about the identity of either the Amish or the Mormons, or both.
Mormons as public figures and in popular culture
- See also List of Latter-day Saints
Mormons depicted in movies and television are often presented as a stereo-type; blond-haired Caucasians, having large families, are very religious, with a focus on genealogy and fundamentalism. More recent productions with the intent of presenting a more accurate picture of their culture have demonstrated that their religion is inclusive, representing a vast spectrum of ethnic backgrounds. The emphasis on genealogy is not surprising given the immense importance genealogical research (www.familysearch.org) has in Mormon culture, including, in particular, as a point of outreach/contact with non-Mormons. They have been both objects of ridicule in comedic media (Tonight Show, South Park, and other TV shows and other films) usually making fun of the church's history and doctrines, including polygamy, or portrayed in a neutral manner (Larry King Live, Newsweek).
Mormons have been active in producing general and Mormon-targeted plays, books and cinema. Many films aimed at Mormon audiences have been produced in the last decade. (See "LDS fiction" and "LDS cinema".)
Mormon producers, actors, directors, etc. are present in the television and movie industries, more today than in the past. Producer Glen A. Larson placed elements of his faith in the television series Battlestar Galactica (1978), which mostly didn't survive into the 2003 reimagined series. The movie Napoleon Dynamite also had a largely Mormon crew.
Many Mormons are also well-known authors, particularly in the field of speculative fiction. These include Orson Scott Card and Tracy Hickman, among others.
In music, Mormon singers/songwriters Gladys Knight, and Donny Osmond are well known.
In the world of professional sports, notable Mormon athletes include Hall of Fame NFL quarterback Steve Young, former Vikings quarterback Sean Salisbury, and the Utah Jazz's Thurl Bailey.
Ken Jennings, the all-time winningest contestant on the television game show "Jeopardy!" is a Mormon.
Mormons are becoming increasingly prominent in politics within the United States. Some examples of well known LDS politicians include the Senate Minority Leader, Harry Reid, Massachusetts Governor and potential presidential candidate in 2008, Mitt Romney, and veteran Senator Orrin Hatch.
In business, some of the better-known names include, Kevin Rollins, CEO of Dell, Inc., J.W. Marriott, Jr., President and CEO of Marriott International, David Neeleman, CEO of JetBlue Airways, Mark Wattles, founder of Hollywood Video, and Stephen Covey, Chairman of FranklinCovey. Additionally, Kim B. Clark, the former Dean of the Harvard Business School accepted the position of President of Brigham Young University - Idaho June 5, 2005.
See also
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- Mormonism
- Latter-day Saint movement
- History of the Latter Day Saint movement
- List of Latter-day Saints (for other well-known Mormons)de:Mormonen
fa:مورمونها fr:Mormonisme he:מורמונים is:Mormónatrú ja:モルモン教 nl:Mormonen pl:Mormoni ru:Мормоны zh:摩門教