They primarily belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or LDS, which is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has more than 16 million members worldwide. Another Mormon denomination, the Community of Christ, is centered in Independence, Missouri, and has about 250,000 members.
Diagram showing over 70 branches of Mormonism with their relative origins and approximate years of division.
There is no such thing as a "fundamentalist" Mormon. Mormon is a common name for a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Church discontinued polygamy more than a century ago. No members of the Church today can enter into polygamy without being excommunicated.
“There are three fairly large Mormon churches: The LDS based in Salt Lake City, the Fundamentalist Church of (Jesus Christ of) Latter-day Saints, which is the group associated with polygamy, and the Community of Christ.
Mormonism includes significant doctrines of eternal marriage, eternal progression, baptism for the dead, polygamy or plural marriage, sexual purity, health (specified in the Word of Wisdom), fasting, and Sabbath observance.
Today Church members honor and respect the sacrifices made by those who practiced polygamy in the early days of the Church. However, the practice is outlawed in the Church, and no person can practice plural marriage and remain a member.
It proclaimed that anyone taking additional wives would be excommunicated from the Church. Existing plural marriages and families were not automatically dissolved, but remained into the 1950s. Today, the practice of polygamy is strictly prohibited in the Church. No one can practice it and remain a member.
Not anyone can actually marry in the temple, but only men and women who are faithful members of the Church. Marrying a non-member is allowed, however, the marriage ceremony cannot be done in the temple.
Similarities. Mormonism and Islam each believe in a life after death: belief in the Last Judgment and an Afterlife is one of the Six Articles of Belief of Islam; it also forms an essential element of the Mormon belief system.
In the terminology of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the word "gentile" can be used to refer to people who are not members of the LDS Church, since members regard themselves as regathered Israelites.
Cultural practices which are centrally based on church doctrine include adhering to the church's law of health, paying tithing, living the law of chastity, participation in lay leadership of the church, refraining from work on Sundays when possible, family home evenings, and ministering to other church members.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), also called Mormonism, church that traces its origins to a religion founded by Joseph Smith in the United States in 1830.
With respect to scripture, Mormons differ from traditional Christian groups in that they accept extra books in their canon. In addition to the King James Version of the Bible, they add the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.
According to this vision, all people will be resurrected and, at the Final Judgment, will be assigned to one of three degrees of glory, called the celestial, terrestrial, and telestial kingdoms.
For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Christmas season is a special time to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. Every year, Latter-day Saints gather with family and friends and recall the tender scene of “the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12).
Elder as Title: The title "Elder" can be used for any holder of the Melchizedek Priesthood. As a title it is typically used to refer to male Mormon missionaries (e.g., Elder Smith or Elder Jones) or to General Authorities (such as Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf or Elder Walter F.
Religious beliefs and practices
Jehovah's Witnesses identify as Christians, but their beliefs are different from other Christians in some ways. For instance, they teach that Jesus is the son of God but is not part of a Trinity.
The Book of Mormon establishes clearly that “Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself to all nations” (Book of Mormon title page; 2 Nephi 26:12). At the heart of the doctrine restored through Joseph Smith is the doctrine of the Christ.
Roughly one-quarter of converts to Mormonism (23%) cite issues of personal spirituality as reasons for their conversion, including 17% who say they felt called by God or “gained a testimony.” About one-in-five converts to Mormonism (21%) cite either the influence of Mormons they interacted with before they converted or ...
In keeping with the Mormon belief that heaven is full of millions of spirits awaiting an earthly body, birth control and abortion are also forbidden. Since the female body is regarded as the tabernacle of the spirit and the residence of God's spirit children, a high priority is given to prenatal care.
Mormons, more properly referred to as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are counseled by Church leaders not to tattoo their bodies–as their body is considered a temple and a gift from God. (see 1 Corinthians 6:19–20).
Mormon marriages are different from most marriages because they are considered eternal. If a husband and wife are sealed together in the temple, they can be together on into the celestial kingdom. However, the church does have a process for annulment and sees divorce as an unfortunately necessary evil.
Church leaders have stated that outside of marriage "passionate kisses", defined as "more intense and last[ing] longer than a brief kiss", and "prolonged kisses that involve the tongue and excite the passions" are "off limits".
Work sister wife, or husband: (noun) a person who is simultaneously a confidante, coworker, and proxy; a trusted friend who acts as a professional stand-in during meetings and presentations; an in-person voice to your virtual opinions; a decision-making delegate upon your behalf.
In 1998, the LDS Church changed the policy and now also allows women to be sealed to more than one man. A woman, however, may not be sealed to more than one man at a time while she is alive. She may only be sealed to subsequent partners after she has died.