The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 

Featured image:  Elder Jackson Thacker on Gravesend High Street

Traditional Christian Churches – Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox – still command the largest allegiance amongst Christians worldwide, but they don’t command exclusive supremacy of those who follow Jesus. There are many religious cults that fill a void in the lives of those from lapsed Christian backgrounds who would otherwise have considered themselves secular. One of these new groups that have gained prominence over the past two hundred years is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, founded by the American Joseph Smith (1805-44).

Smith was very religious from an early age, and by the time he was fourteen, he was visiting various churches in search of answers to the mysteries of God. He went to great lengths in the process but got very confused by the differing information he was given. One day, in a moment of anguish, he went into a forest, fell to his knees and prayed aloud to God, asking for help to decide which Christian church to join. While waiting for an answer, he noticed a great pillar of light resting above his head. When he looked up, he saw God, who pointed to Jesus standing next to him and said, ‘This is my beloved son.’ Jesus spoke next and told him not to join any church because everything he needed to know would be soon revealed, which would lead him towards the fullness of the gospels.

When Smith was seventeen, he was visited by an angel named Moroni, the son of an ancient Prophet named Mormon. Moroni’s father was among a group of people who had migrated from the Holy Land to North America at the time of the Old Testament Prophets. Mormon wrote down the ancient prophets’ teachings onto metallic plates, and after his death, his son, Moroni, buried the plates to protect them. Moroni told Smith that the plates were buried close to his farm in western New York and directed him exactly to the location. After Smith located them, the angel continued to appear to him regularly and helped Smith translate the plates which were written in Ancient Egyptian (similar to Hebrew) resulting in the eventual publication of The Book of Mormon.

Members of the church, known colloquially as ‘Mormons’, believe that Smith was a prophet like Jesus. They are at a loss to explain why God waited 1,800 years to reveal the contents of the Book of Mormon but state that His plans are not always meant to be understood. Although they believe in the bible, they readily point out that details have been changed, which has resulted in the loss of some keys to the kingdom.

They believe that The Book of Mormon is what Jesus was referring to when he told the young Smith to wait for the restoration that would lead him to the total fullness of the gospels. After Smith had transcribed the golden plates into The Book of Mormon, the angel Moroni returned and took back possession of the plates, leaving no trace of them ever having existed on earth. The Book of Mormon, published in 1830, consists of 531 pages and went on to be published in over 100 languages.  The book covers 1,000 years, consisting of 600 years before the birth of Jesus and 400 afterwards. After the book was published, Smith founded the church and started to preach the contents of the book. This attracted a lot of negative attention and to this day the story behind Smith, the angel Moroni and The Book of Mormon remains a deeply contested issue between its believers and critics. Smith was killed in 1844 by a mob in Carthage, Illinois, while in jail awaiting trial on charges of inciting a riot for ordering the destruction of the newspaper, Nauvoo Expositor, which had been critical of him and The Book of Mormon.

In Utah, in the years after Smith’s death, the church prepared for the second coming of Jesus. They believed that Jesus would appear in the United States because they interpreted America to be Zion, the site of divine rule, and the rest of the world was denied as ‘evil Babylon’.  They were sure Jesus would return and rule for a thousand years with his saints, but Jesus never showed up. The church didn’t disband though, and instead, new energy was put into expanding the church in Europe and South America along with promoting The Book of Mormon. These days, the story of Jesus returning is never mentioned. When asked about Jesus they say he will come again and is likely to return in the Mount of Olives in the Holy Land.

Although 30% of missionaries are females, those seen canvasing on high streets for new church members are usually attractive young men in their early twenties who do voluntary work for the church before they marry. They come to the UK and Ireland on two-year work/religious visas and live in missionary houses. Missionaries undertake a three-week training course in Preston which enables them to develop recruitment skills. They don’t receive a salary but are provided with food and travel money. Family contact only takes place once a week on Mondays and social media is forbidden with the exception of Facebook, which allows the missionaries to keep in touch with family members. They are expected to devote all of their spare time to the church in the quest to recruit new members and promote The Book of Mormon. Theycontinuously seek to recruit new members on the streets and are encouraged to track people by telephone in order to invite them to Sunday services.  They have a good success rate of attracting new members, which is evident in UK statistics because there are over 185,000 church members in more than 330 congregations across the UK with a further 4,000 in the Irish Republic. The worldwide membership of the church is estimated to be 17.2 million.

Alcohol, tobacco, tea, coffee and illegal drugs are strictly forbidden. A study carried out in 1997 among 10,000 members found that church members who followed this code had a life expectancy of 8-11 years longer than the general white population of the United States. Only men are allowed to become ministers in the church, but on a broader level, the church is very diverse. People of all races have always been welcomed and baptized into the church since its beginning. Smith ardently opposed slavery in his day and called for it to be abolished, and during this time some black males were ordained to the priesthood. Sex before marriage, masturbation and homosexuality are strictly forbidden under their laws of chastity. Members wear undergarments that have been blessed by a senior minister and in the case of men, these are boxer trunks that come halfway down the leg. They believe these undergarments will protect them from lustful thoughts and temptation. Only church members who live a morally acceptable life are allowed to enter the temple in Salt Lake City, which took 40 years to build. It is revered in the community because Joseph Smith was involved in raising funds for its construction. The temple is seen as the penultimate place for members to visit in their lifetime.

Terry

Terry (64) joined the church three years ago and says being a member of the church means he can now spend his life focusing on the saviour. His family were Church of England but he himself never practised and only ever attended church for weddings and funerals. He had little knowledge of the bible. Terry said that he felt he became a member of one big family when he joined. Terry loves the fact that the community has a humanitarian programme, which consists of giving monetary donations to good causes, including food to homeless people as well as helping with environmental cleaning. He said that missionaries are always on hand to offer spiritual support and kindness. He got baptised into the church and afterwards noticed an enormous change in his life, which he has managed to retain ever since. He now prays every day and has found peace. He constantly reads The Book of Mormon alongside the bible. He feels very drawn in as there is so much to learn and understand, adding that if he can’t find the answer in the bible, he will find it in The Book of Mormon.Terry believes that reading The Book of Mormon and the bible helps him to gain a better understanding of Jesus and the coming of the Promised Messiah.