Mormonism Essay

The Mormon service I visited, had a few similarities but also a few distinct differences from the Catholic service that I am used to. Before this particular Sunday, I had never attended a Mormon service, nor had I spoken to anyone who believed in Mormonism or the “Latter Day Saints.” With that being said, I was welcomed much more openly than I had originally thought. Before entering, I was approached by two members of the church; two young women (sisters) between the ages of roughly 19 to 22. I arrived about an hour before service, that way I could ask a few people some questions, but the two girls beat me to the punch. They initially asked me if I had visited before and I responded saying that it was my first time, and I was attending as a student observer, with no intention of converting, but would love to learn about the faith. They nodded and proceeded to explain to me the reasons as to why they believed so strongly, and also a bit of background information on the faith. One of the girls, explained to me that there has been a lot of skepticism about Mormonism due in part to the fact that Joseph Smith Jr, was so young and how his explanation of “Moroni” (An angel no one had ever heard of), and his entire religion and the scripture used, “Book of Mormon,” could have just been a part of his imagination. The other girl told me how she was beginning to lose faith a couple years back, but she then regained it, after she experienced her own tests, and was able to get passed her

Despite the stereotype of Mormon women not having any rights living in a patriarchal lifestyle because of their polygamist beliefs, they ironically had more rights than most American women at the time. In the 1800’s, Mormon women and men were both given rights and they both dealt with child rearing (Kane 580). However, in typical American households, it was common for only women to handle child care in family life. Mormon women were involved in many different aspects of life including actions in politics, the economy and social gatherings (580). In an interview with Brigham Young, he said he loved, cherished and supported his wives. He even looked at some of them as mother figures (Greely). Women mattered in their husbands’ lives and were able to make a difference in the community.

For many Latter Day Saint (LDS) women, the overwhelming pressure to be ‘Molly Mormon' is unbearable. LDS women are likely to develop depression due to the demanding and stressful role of being a Mormon mother in the twenty-first century. The standard answer for LDS women's high depression rate is that they are

Worldwide, there are 14.1 million Mormons with 28, 660 congregations based in over 176 countries (“LDS Statistics and . . .). Despite this large amount of people, little is known about the LDS religion. As seen in recent events, people believe that Mormons are not Christians. However, Mormons are Christian based on their church’s name, scriptures, and teachings.

Growing up in Utah and not being Mormon intensifies how difficult making friends and going to school can be. There is a heavy idioculture, distinctive customs and values (p. 398), around Mormons that seeps into every aspect of life from young men & women to missionaries to green jello with

The Mormons understood that they needed to take a proactive approach in discovering new members, especially in the beginning of their movement. Mormons also had traveling missionaries to spread their message and recruit new members and followers. A final reason that the Mormon religion was able to flourish for years after its inception was its willingness to change their views on polygamy after being pressured by the American public (Scott). The Mormon Church eventually decided they would no longer endorse polygamy. Today, Mormonism is a growing world religion, while there are no Oneida Perfectionists left today and only a handful of practicing Shaker women remain in parts of New England. There are over twelve million practicing Mormons worldwide,

For my Book of Mormon 121 class, I wanted to choose a lesson that could possibly help me prepare for a mission. We only have one boy in our family and he is the very last of 7 children. My three older sisters didn’t go on a mission and I was confused when I had the sudden urge and desire to do so. I thought it was just curiosity, to fit in with the new norm of woman going on a mission, and therefore have not done anything serious to pursue those feelings. “But it came to pass that whosoever did not belong to the church of God began to persecute those that did belong to the church of God, and had taken upon them the name of Christ. (1:19). I will be applying the scripture block Alma 1:19-26 which describes how the people of the Church had to face many trials in order to test their faith.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has been the center of much attention throughout modern history, whether it be about the polygamists, the Book of Mormon, or Joseph Smith seeing God, or the restored priesthood. Though the church is known to have these forms of controversies, we see through history that no organization or group is free from mistakes and criticism. Throughout history in general, there has always been some sort of religious contention around the globe. A large point of contention then and even now is the factor of race in religion and the certain rules and restrictions implemented into the religion regarding race.

Growing up in an all LDS member family, the Book of Mormon has been apart of my life for as long as I can remember. Between personal study, reading it together as a family, sharing it with my friends, and pondering its message, there is always something that brings me back to reading it over and over again. I love the quote, “sooner or later every member of the Church must discover the scriptures for themselves.” And I truly believe that from discovering the scriptures, and more specifically the Book of Mormon, it has helped me to recognize why I keep coming back to the same book.

Would you like to worship self? Would you like to believe in a God that is almost exactly like humanity? Would you like to be your own savior one day? Then Mormonism is the religion for you! Through the study of Mormonism, I was able to see some stark contrasts

The typical Mormon lifestyle today consists of attending Sunday services of worship and Sunday School at a local ward made up of around 200-400 members. Belonging to the church community, Mormons grow closer together in order to help one another. Explaining why many Mormon families are generally larger in size, Mormons place a large emphasis on family life and believe both the family and society benefit from church communities. Praying together as a family, as well as many other at home practices are performed to create a family bond. Many Mormons educate themselves on genealogical research in order to save deceased non-Mormon relatives through baptism. In following the revelation given to Joseph Smith, Mormons follow a dietary restriction

For the first time, I was taught the basic beliefs and values of Mormonism. I was both shocked and intrigued to learn both the main differences and similarities of Mormonism and Christianity. I learned that the community of Latter-Day Saints are dedicated individuals who are strongly committed to both their faith and fellow members. From this experience, I learned to take assumptions and stereotypes about other communities with a grain of salt. Not all of the original assumptions I had about the Mormon community were correct and the ones that were had bigger meanings behind them than what I had originally thought. In the end, I believe I gained a new sense of openness and understanding of Mormonism by attending these

This essay will discuss Mormon fundamentalism and provide a brief history of the tenets and practices of the religion. The term Mormon fundamentalist refers to a religious group, sect, or individual who believes the teachings of the Mormon scriptures, and follows the teachings of early Mormon leaders. In Western New York in 1830, Joseph Smith Jr. organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or LDS Church. Other early leaders of the church include Brigham Young and John Taylor, who along with Joseph Smith Jr., are accepted by Mormon fundamentalists as prophets of God. There are an estimated 38,000 Mormon fundamentalists living in North American territories, though the estimate is only based on the number of people who openly distinguish themselves as such. The majority of reported Mormon fundamentalists are located in the western states of Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and Idaho.

The Mormon religion was founded in the nineteenth century by a man named Joseph Smith. In 1890, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints banned the practice of polygamous marriages. As with many religions, when a main practice is resolved it can cause some parishioners to be upset. Some Mormons were not fond of the idea of dissolving the practice and moved to separate parts of the country to continue the practice. The most well known polygamous branch was given the name the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This group settled near the Arizona-Utah border (Andersen, 741). The group is mainly based in Colorado City and Hildale, Colorado (Urban, 62). The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day

These are some of the controversies I have picked up on throughout my life when those who did not practice the religion brought up Mormons. I’ve had two insights into the Mormon religion; one being my trip to the Kansas City temple and another being family friend’s with one some might call a “hard core Mormon”. After many years of these assumptions I finally acted on my curiosity when I was granted the opportunity after a friend invited me to join them for their service. On impulse, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and take a look into this foreign religion.