The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Beliefs== {{Main|Beliefs and practices of the LDS Church}} {{See also|Articles of Faith (Latter Day Saints)}} [[File:Christus statue temple square salt lake city.jpg|right|thumb|Latter-day Saints believe in the [[resurrection]] of Jesus, as depicted in this replica of [[Bertel Thorvaldsen]]'s ''[[Christus (statue)|Christus]]'' statue located in the North Visitors' Center on [[Temple Square]] in [[Salt Lake City]].]] ===Nature of God=== {{see also|God in Mormonism|Heavenly Mother (Mormonism)}} LDS Church theology includes the belief in a [[Godhead (Latter Day Saints)|Godhead]] composed of [[God the Father]], his son, Jesus Christ, and the [[Holy Ghost]] as three separate persons who share a unity of purpose or will; however, they are viewed as three distinct beings. This is in contrast with the predominant Christian view, which holds that God is a [[Trinity]] of three distinct persons in [[Homoousian|one essence]]. The Latter-day Saint conception of the Godhead is similar to what contemporary Christian theologians call ''[[social trinitarianism]].''<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Paulsen|first1=David L.|url=https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199778362.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199778362|title=The Oxford Handbook of Mormonism|last2=Boyd|first2=Hal R.|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2015|isbn=978-0-19-977836-2|editor-last=Givens|editor-first=Terryl L.|editor-link=Terryl Givens|location=New York|page=253 |chapter=The Nature of God in Mormon Thought|doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199778362.001.0001|quote=Therefore, the Mormon conception of the Godhead is more akin to what contemporary Christian theologians call Social Trinitarianism|editor-last2=Barlow|editor-first2=Philip L.|editor-link2=Philip Barlow|chapter-url=https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199778362.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199778362-e-18|url-access=subscription}}</ref> The church also believes that God the Father and his son, Jesus Christ, are separate beings with bodies of flesh and bone, while the Holy Ghost lacks such a physical body.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|last=Dahl|first=Paul E. |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |pages=552–553|contribution=Godhead|contribution-url=https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Godhead}}</ref> According to statements by church leaders, God sits at the head of the human family and is married to a [[Heavenly Mother (Mormonism)|Heavenly Mother]], who is the mother of human spirits.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wilcox |first1=Linda |title=Sisters in Spirit: Mormon Women in Historical and Cultural Perspective |chapter=The Mormon Concept of a Mother in Heaven |year=1992 |publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]] |location=Champaign, Illinois |isbn=0-252-06296-5 |pages=64–66 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T6bHN1Ka12cC&pg=PA64 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> However, church leaders have also categorically discouraged prayers to her and counseled against speculation regarding her.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fletcher Stack |first=Peggy |date=March 26, 2022 |title='I wish we knew more' – As LDS leaders warn against praying to Heavenly Mother, questions persist |author-link=Peggy Fletcher Stack |newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]] |url=https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2022/03/26/i-wish-we-knew-more-lds/ |url-status=live |access-date=June 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322195413/https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2022/03/26/i-wish-we-knew-more-lds/ |archive-date=March 22, 2023 |url-access=limited |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref> ===Jesus Christ=== Church members believe in Jesus Christ as the literal [[Son of God (Christianity)|Son of God]] and [[Messiah]], [[Crucifixion of Jesus|his crucifixion]] as a conclusion of a [[sin offering]], and his subsequent [[Resurrection of Jesus|resurrection]].<ref name=Explanation>{{Cite news |date=October 2, 2009 |title=God: An explantation of Mormon beliefs about God |work=[[BBC]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/mormon/beliefs/god_1.shtml#h3 |access-date=June 25, 2023}}</ref><ref name=MormonJesus/>{{rp|171–172}} However, Latter-day Saints reject the [[ecumenical creeds]] and the definition of the [[Trinity]].<ref name=CNN>{{Cite news |last=Willingham |first=A. J. |date=April 29, 2023 |title=What do Mormons believe? |work=[[CNN]] |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/29/us/mormon-beliefs-explained-cec/index.html |access-date=June 25, 2023}}</ref> Jesus is also seen as the elder brother of all who live in this world.<ref name=MormonJesus>{{Cite book |last=Turner |first=John G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GZK-CwAAQBAJ |title=The Mormon Jesus: A Biography |date=2016|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |isbn=978-0-674-73743-3}}</ref>{{rp|155}} The church teaches that Jesus performed a [[substitutionary atonement]]; in contrast with other Christian denominations, the church teaches this atonement began in the garden of [[Gethsemane]] and continued to his crucifixion (rather than the orthodox belief that the crucifixion alone was the physical atonement).<ref name=MormonJesus/>{{rp|178, 291}} The church also teaches that Christ appeared to other peoples after his death, including spirits of the dead in the spirit world,<ref name=Explanation/><ref name=MormonJesus/>{{rp|211}} and indigenous Americans.<ref name=CNN/><ref name=Explanation/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Harris |first=Dan |date=August 22, 2012 |title=What Do Mormons Believe? |work=[[ABC News]] |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/mormons-/story?id=17057679 |access-date=June 25, 2023}}</ref> The church also teaches that Jesus is the true founder and leader of the church itself.<ref>"Today members preach that the Lord has indeed restored His Church with living apostles and prophets, starting with the founding prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Joseph Smith." [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/latter-day-saints-101 Latter-day Saints 101: What Church Members Believe. Newsroom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. N.d. Accessed July 29, 2023.]</ref> The physical establishment of the church by Smith in 1830 is seen as simply the reestablishment of the same [[Early Christianity|primitive church]] that existed under Jesus and his Apostles.<ref name = "PMG" />{{rp|37}} Similarly, the church teaches that Jesus leads the church presently through its apostles and prophets,<ref>[https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2020/03/the-lord-leads-his-church-through-prophets-and-apostles?lang=eng The Lord Leads His Church through Prophets and Apostles.] [[Dallin H. Oaks]]. Ensign, March 2020.</ref> especially its current president.<ref name = "PMG" />{{rp|38}} ====Comparison with Nicene Christianity==== {{main|Mormonism and Nicene Christianity}} The LDS Church shares various teachings with other branches of Christianity. These include a belief in the Bible,<ref name = Mason2015>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Mormonism|last=Mason|first=Patrick Q.|encyclopedia=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion|series=[[Oxford Research Encyclopedias]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |date=2015|doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.013.75|isbn=978-0-19-934037-8}}</ref> the [[divinity of Jesus]], his [[Atonement in Christianity|atonement]] and [[resurrection of Jesus Christ|resurrection]], and a form of [[apostolic succession]].{{efn|However, the [[Catholic Church]] considers doctrinal differences between the two groups to be so great that it will not accept a prior LDS baptism as evidence of Christian initiation, as it will baptism by other Christian groups, such as the [[Eastern Orthodox]] and [[Protestant]] churches.<ref name=Accept>{{Cite news |last=Stammer |first=Larry B. |date=July 20, 2001 |title=Vatican Will Not Accept Mormon Baptisms |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jul-20-mn-24451-story.html |access-date=June 23, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/question-of-validity-of-baptism-conferred-in-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latterday-saints-10098 |title=The Question of the Validity of Baptism Conferred in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints|first=Luis|last=Ladaria |publisher=[[EWTN]]|access-date=June 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706222609/https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/question-of-validity-of-baptism-conferred-in-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latterday-saints-10098 |archive-date= July 6, 2022|url-status=live}}</ref> The LDS Church, in its turn, does not accept baptisms performed in any other churches, as it teaches that baptism is only valid when it is conducted through proper priesthood authority.<ref>{{Cite book |last=MacKay |first=Michael Hubbard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T9fTDwAAQBAJ |title=Prophetic Authority: Democratic Hierarchy and the Mormon Priesthood |date=2020|publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]] |isbn=978-0-252-05187-6 |pages=32–34}}</ref><ref name=High>{{cite book |last1=Prince |first1=Greg |author-link=Gregory Prince |title=Power from on High: The Development of Mormon Priesthood |date=August 15, 1995 |publisher=[[Signature Books]] |chapter=Ordinances: The Second Anointing |location=Salt Lake City |isbn=978-1-56085-071-7 |chapter-url=http://signaturebookslibrary.org/power-from-on-high-06/|via=[[Internet Archive]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817204045/http://signaturebookslibrary.org/power-from-on-high-06/|archive-date=August 17, 2022}}</ref>{{rp|41}}}} Nevertheless, the LDS Church differs from other churches within contemporary Christianity in other ways. Differences between the LDS Church and most of traditional Christianity include disagreement about the nature of God, belief in a theory of [[Plan of salvation (Latter Day Saints)|human salvation]] that includes three [[degrees of glory|heavens]], a doctrine of [[Exaltation (Latter Day Saints)|exaltation]] which includes the ability of humans to become gods and goddesses in the [[afterlife]],<ref name="EoM Godhood" /><ref name=Fundamentals/> a belief in [[continuous revelation|continuing]] [[revelation (Latter Day Saints)|revelation]] and an open scriptural canon, and unique ceremonies performed privately in temples, such as the endowment and sealing ceremonies. A number of major Christian denominations view the LDS Church as standing apart from [[creed]]al Christianity.{{efn|Examples include the [[Presbyterian Church USA|US Presbyterian Church]],<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ankerberg |first1=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tNHK6NkTk8IC |title=Fast Facts on Mormonism |last2=Weldon |first2=John |year=2003 |publisher=[[Harvest House Publishers]] |isbn=978-0-7369-3579-1 |via=[[Google Books]]|page=90|quote=Mormonism is a new and emerging religious tradition distinct from the historic apostolic tradition of the Christian Church}}</ref> [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in America|US Evangelical Lutheran Church]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Do_Lutherans_rebaptize_former_Mormons_who_are_joining_the_congregation.pdf |publisher=[[Evangelical Lutheran Church in America]] |title=Do Lutherans re-baptize former Mormons who are joining the congregation? |access-date=June 23, 2023|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230620042936/https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Do_Lutherans_rebaptize_former_Mormons_who_are_joining_the_congregation.pdf |archive-date=June 20, 2023 |quote=[LDS doctrine on the Trinity is] substantially different from that of orthodox, creedal Christianity ....}}</ref> [[Catholic Church]],<ref name=Accept/><ref>{{Cite web |url= https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20010605_battesimo_mormoni_en.html |title=''"Response to a 'dubium' on the validity of baptism conferred by 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints', called 'Mormons{{'"}}''|publisher=[[Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith]]|date=June 5, 2001|first=Joseph|last=Ratzinger|access-date=August 15, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060814140809/http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20010605_battesimo_mormoni_en.html|archive-date=August 14, 2006|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Episcopal Church (United States)|US Episcopal Church]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.getreligion.org/?p=847|title=Latter-day politics|first=Douglas|last=LeBlanc|work=GetReligion|publisher=[[Terry Mattingly]]|date=June 13, 2005|access-date=November 22, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928222845/http://www.getreligion.org/?p=847|archive-date=September 28, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Eastern Orthodox Church]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/cultswithinwithout.aspx|title=Cults Within & Without|work=Orthodox America|first=Alexey|last=Young|date=March–April 1996|access-date=June 19, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100929151046/http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/cultswithinwithout.aspx|archive-date=September 29, 2010|url-status=live}}</ref>}}<ref name="kennedy2004"/> However, church members self-identify as Christians.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2012/01/12/mormons-in-america-executive-summary/ |title=Mormons in America: Certain in Their Beliefs, Uncertain of Their Place in Society |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230521004033/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2012/01/12/mormons-in-america-executive-summary/ |archive-date=May 21, 2023 |publisher=[[Pew Research Center]] |url-status=live |date=September 24, 2015 |quote=Mormons are nearly unanimous in describing Mormonism as a Christian religion, with 97% expressing this point of view.|page=10}}</ref> The faith itself views other modern Christian faiths as having departed from true Christianity by way of a [[Great Apostasy|general apostasy]] and maintains that it is a restoration of 1st-century Christianity and the only true and authorized Christian church. [[One true church#Latter Day Saint movement|Church leaders assert it is the only true church]] and that other churches do not have the authority to act in Jesus' name.{{efn|According to [[Joseph Smith]], Jesus told him that the other churches claiming to be Christian creeds "were an abomination in the Lords sight; that those professors [of religion] were all corrupt".<ref>{{Cite news |last=O'Hehir |first=Andrew |date=December 6, 2007 |title=This is not Romney's Kennedy moment |url=https://www.salon.com/2007/12/06/romney_ohehir/ |website=[[Salon.com]] }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Wright |first=Lawrence |date=January 22, 2002 |title=Mormonism's Troubled Legacy |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/01/21/lives-of-the-saints |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |issn=0028-792X |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409054004/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/01/21/lives-of-the-saints |archive-date=April 9, 2023| url-status=live |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref>}} ===Cosmology and plan of salvation=== {{main|Mormon cosmology|Plan of salvation in Mormonism}} [[File:Phil and Marlene.jpg|thumb|upright|left|A couple after their [[Celestial marriage|marriage]] in the [[Manti Utah Temple]]. The church teaches that marriages, or sealings, performed in their temples may continue after death.]] The church's cosmology and plan of salvation include the doctrines of a [[pre-existence]], an earthly mortal existence, [[Degrees of Glory|three degrees of heaven]] and exaltation. According to these doctrines, every human spirit is a spiritual child of a Heavenly Father and each has the potential to continue to learn, grow, and progress in the eternities, eventually achieving eternal life, which is to become one with God in the same way that Jesus Christ is one with the Father, thus allowing the children of God to become divine beings—that is, gods—themselves.<ref name=VeryShort>{{cite book |last=Bushman |first=Richard | author-link=Richard Bushman |year=2008 |series=[[Very Short Introductions]]|title=Mormonism: A Very Short Introduction |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-531030-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6m059lR04IoC}}</ref>{{rp|74}} This view on the doctrine of [[Divinization (Christian)|theosis]] is also referred to as becoming a "joint-heir with Christ".<ref name="EoM Godhood">{{cite encyclopedia |editor-last1=Ludlow |editor-first1=Daniel H. |editor-link=Daniel H. Ludlow |last1=Carter |first1=K. Codell | encyclopedia=[[Encyclopedia of Mormonism]] |date=1992 |publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers]] |contribution=Godhood | location=New York |isbn=978-0-02-904040-9 |pages=553, 555 |contribution-url=https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/EoM/id/3734|quote=They [resurrected and perfected mortals] will dwell again with God the Father, and live and act like him in endless worlds of happiness ... above all they will have the power of procreating endless lives. ... Those who become like him will likewise contribute to this eternal process by adding further spirit offspring to the eternal family. |via=[[BYU]]}}</ref> The process by which this is accomplished is called exaltation, a doctrine which includes the reunification of the mortal family after the [[resurrection]] and the ability to have spirit children in the afterlife and inherit a portion of God's kingdom.<ref name="EoM Godhood"/><ref name=Continuation/> To obtain this state of godhood, the church teaches that one must have faith in Jesus Christ, [[repentance|repent]] of his or her sins, strive to keep the commandments faithfully, and participate in ordinances. According to LDS Church theology, men and women may be sealed to one another so that their marital bond continues into the eternities.{{efn|A man may be sealed to more than one wife if his previous wives are either dead or legally divorced from him; a living woman, however, may only be sealed to one husband.<ref name=Spurring>{{Cite news |last=Fletcher Stack |first=Peggy |date=November 24, 2019 |title=Polygamy lives on in LDS temples, spurring agony, angst and a key question: Who will be married to whom in heaven? |newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]] |url=https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2019/11/24/polygamy-lives-lds/ |access-date=June 25, 2023 |author-link=Peggy Fletcher Stack |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230321042757/https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2019/11/24/polygamy-lives-lds/ |archive-date=March 21, 2023 |url-status=live |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref> Thus, there is a common view within the LDS Church that though prohibited by the LDS Church in mortality, polygamy or "[[plural marriage]]" will exist in the afterlife.<ref name=Spurring/><ref name=Civil >{{Cite book |last=Burge |first=Charles Ormsby |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YfEDAAAAMAAJ |title=The Adventures of a Civil Engineer: Fifty Years on Five Continents |date=1909 |publisher=[[Alston Rivers]] |via=[[Google Books]] |pages=235–236}}</ref> "In the case of a man marrying a wife in the everlasting covenant who dies while he continues in the flesh and marries another by the same divine law, each wife will come forth in her order and enter with him into his glory."<ref name=Civil /> [[Joseph Fielding Smith]], then an [[Apostle (Latter Day Saints)|apostle]], stated in 1939 "my wives will be mine in eternity" in reference to his two deceased and one living partners.><ref>{{cite book|title=Aaronic Priesthood: Manual 3|chapter=Celestial Marriage – A Preparation for Eternity|page=138 |publisher=LDS Church |date=1995 |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/34822_eng.pdf?lang=eng}}</ref>}} Children may also be sealed to their biological or adoptive parents to form permanent familial bonds, thus allowing all immediate and extended family relations to endure past death.{{efn|Children born to biological parents who have been sealed to each other are considered "born in the covenant" and need not be sealed to their parents.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last= Cottrell |first= Ralph L. |contribution= Born in the Covenant |contribution-url= http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/5557 |page= 218 |editor-last= Ludlow |editor-first= Daniel H |editor-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |year= 1992 |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date= January 20, 2016 |archive-date= March 14, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160314031732/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/5557 |url-status= live }}</ref>}}<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last= Hyer |first= Paul V. |author-link= Paul Hyer |contribution= Sealing: Temple Sealings |contribution-url= http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/4177 |pages= 1289–1290 |editor-last= Ludlow |editor-first= Daniel H |editor-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |year= 1992 |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date= January 20, 2016 |archive-date= April 18, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160418185507/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/4177 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last= Thomas |first= Ryan L. |contribution= Adoption of Children |contribution-url= http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/5451 |pages= 20–21 |editor-last= Ludlow |editor-first= Daniel H |editor-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |year= 1992 |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date= January 20, 2016 |archive-date= April 18, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160418130020/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/5451 |url-status= live }}</ref> The most significant LDS ordinances may be performed via proxy in behalf of those who have died, such as [[baptism for the dead]]. The church teaches that all will have the opportunity to hear and accept or reject the gospel of Jesus Christ, either in this life or the next.<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 8, 2009 |title=Baptism for the Dead |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/mormon/ritesrituals/baptismdead.shtml |publisher=[[BBC]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Jackson |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pIMACOruWRoC&pg=PA189 |title=The Mormon Faith of Mitt Romney: What Latter-Day Saints Teach and Practice |year=2012 |publisher=Kudu Publishing |isbn=978-0-9849294-1-2 |pages=189–190}}</ref> Within church cosmology, the fall of [[Adam and Eve in Mormonism|Adam and Eve]] is seen positively. The church teaches that it was essential to allow humankind to experience separation from God, to exercise full [[Agency (sociology)|agency]] in making decisions for their own happiness.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Givens |first=Terryl L. |author-link=Terryl Givens |chapter-url=http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199794928.001.0001/acprof-9780199794928 |chapter=Wrestling the Angel |title=The Foundations of Mormon Thought: Cosmos, God, Humanity |year=2014|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-979492-8 |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199794928.003.0018 |page=176}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Morgan |first=Jacob |date=April 1, 2006 |title=The Divine-Infusion Theory: Rethinking the Atonement |url=https://www.dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V39N01_65.pdf |journal=[[Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought|Dialogue]] |volume=39 |issue=1 |page=76 |doi=10.2307/45227309 |jstor=45227309 |s2cid=254388672 |issn=0012-2157}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |contribution-url= https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/EoM/id/5455 |contribution= Agency |first= C. Terry |last= Warner |pages= 26–27 |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date= September 23, 2014 |archive-date= November 15, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141115202830/http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/EoM/id/4208 |url-status= live |via=[[BYU]]}}</ref> ===Restorationism=== {{main|Restoration (Latter Day Saints)}} [[File:Joseph Smith first vision stained glass.jpg|upright|thumb|Adherents believe that [[Joseph Smith]] was called to be a modern-day prophet through a [[First Vision|visitation]] from [[God the Father]] and [[Jesus|Jesus Christ]].|right]] The LDS Church teaches that, subsequent to the death of Jesus and his original apostles, his church, along with the authority to act in Jesus Christ's name and the church's attendant spiritual gifts, were [[Great Apostasy#Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|lost]], due to a combination of external persecutions and internal heresies.<ref name=PMG>{{cite book|title=Preach My Gospel: A Guide to Missionary Service|publisher= [[LDS Church]]|url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/36617_eng.pdf|access-date=May 14, 2021|archive-date=March 10, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310070216/https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/36617_eng.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|33}} The restoration—as represented by the church began by Joseph Smith—refers to a return of the authentic priesthood power, [[Gifts of the Spirit in Mormonism|spiritual gifts]], ordinances, living [[Prophet, seer, and revelator|prophets]] and revelation of the [[Early Christianity|primitive]] Church of Christ.<ref>{{Cite web |title=American Prophet, The Church: Beliefs and Doctrines |url=https://www.pbs.org/americanprophet/core-beliefs.html |access-date=June 30, 2023 |website=[[PBS]]}}</ref><ref name="Early Christ Quest">{{cite news|last1=Shipps|first1=Jan|editor1-last=Hughes|editor1-first=Richard T.|date=1988|title=The Reality of the Restoration and the Restoration Ideal in the Mormon Tradition|work=The American Quest for the Primitive Church|publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]] |location= Champaign, Illinois|isbn= 978-0-252-06029-8|url= https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/catalog/76agz7nq9780252060298.html |pages=181–195|access-date=April 16, 2021|archive-date=April 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416192825/https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/catalog/76agz7nq9780252060298.html|url-status=live}}</ref> This restoration is associated with a number of events which are understood to have been necessary to re-establish the early Christian church found in the [[New Testament]], and to prepare the earth for the [[Second Coming (LDS Church)|Second Coming]] of Jesus.<ref>{{cite book|last=Russell |first=Thomas A. |date=2010 |title=Comparative Christianity: A Student's Guide to a Religion and Its Diverse Traditions |location=Irvine, California |publisher= [[Universal Publishers (United States)|Universal Publishers]]| quote=Mormon Restorationism is the largest indigenous religious movement found in North America. Among its member churches are the approximately 100 or so groups that trace their roots |chapter=Joseph Smith, Jr. and Mormon Restorationism| page=151 |isbn=978-1-59942-877-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FmMarHDbglgC |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> In particular, Latter-day Saints believe that angels appeared to Joseph Smith and a limited number of his associates, and bestowed various priesthood authorities on them. ===Leadership=== {{see also|Prophet#Latter Day Saint movement|President of the Church|Prophet, seer, and revelator|List of proclamations of the First Presidency}} The church is led by a [[President of the Church (LDS Church)|president]], who is considered a "prophet, seer, and revelator." Within the church, he is referred to as "the Prophet" or the "President of the Church." He is considered the only person who is authorized to receive revelation from God on behalf of the whole world or entire church. As such, the church teaches that he is essentially infallible when speaking on behalf of God—although the exact circumstances when his pronouncements should be considered authoritative are debated within the church.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=51489143&itype=CMSID|title=Infallible? Mormons told to 'follow the prophet'|newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]|access-date=June 4, 2021|archive-date=June 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210604063323/https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=51489143&itype=CMSID|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://religiondispatches.org/the-mormon-version-of-infallibility/|title=The Mormon Version of Infallibility|first=Holly|last=Welker|date=March 24, 2014|magazine=[[Religion Dispatches]]|access-date=June 4, 2021|archive-date=June 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210604063332/https://religiondispatches.org/the-mormon-version-of-infallibility/|url-status=live}}</ref> In any case, modern declarations with broad doctrinal implications are often issued by joint statement of the [[First Presidency (LDS Church)|First Presidency]]; they may be joined by the [[Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church)|Quorum of the Twelve Apostles]] as well.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/lineuponlineessa0000unse/page/n8/mode/1up |title=Line Upon Line: Essays on Mormon Doctrine |date=1989 |publisher=[[Signature Books]] |isbn=978-0-941214-69-8 |editor-last=Bergera |editor-first=Gary James |pages=vii–ix |url-access=registration |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia | contribution-url=https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Proclamations_of_the_First_Presidency_and_the_Quorum_of_the_Twelve_Apostles | contribution= Proclamations of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles |last=Matthews |first=Robert J. |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date=June 4, 2021 |archive-date=June 4, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210604061553/https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Proclamations_of_the_First_Presidency_and_the_Quorum_of_the_Twelve_Apostles |url-status=live }}</ref> Church members believe Joseph Smith was the first modern-day prophet.<ref name=Lyon2013>{{cite journal|last1=Lyon|first1=Stephanie J.|title=Psychotherapy and the Mormon Faith|journal=[[Journal of Religion & Health]] |volume=52|issue=2|year=2013|pages=622–630|issn=0022-4197|doi=10.1007/s10943-013-9677-2|pmid=23337975|s2cid=29536957 |publisher=[[Springer Science+Business Media]] |location=Berlin|url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-013-9677-2|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Normally, the Prophet and two other ordained apostles he chooses as counselors form the First Presidency, the presiding body of the church; twelve other apostles form the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 10, 2009 |title=Mormon: Leadership |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/mormon/organisation/org.shtml |access-date=June 26, 2023 |website=[[BBC]]}}</ref> When a president dies, his successor is chosen from the remaining apostles, and is invariably the longest-tenured of the group.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/us/for-mormons-succession-monson.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|title=For Mormons, Succession Drama is Against their Religion|date=January 3, 2018|access-date=June 4, 2021|archive-date=June 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210604070833/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/us/for-mormons-succession-monson.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Apostles are chosen by the church president after the death of an existing apostle.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sltrib.com/religion/local/2017/10/01/how-a-new-mormon-apostle-is-chosen/|title=How a new Mormon apostle is chosen|newspaper=The Salt Lake Tribune|date=October 1, 2017|access-date=December 27, 2023}}</ref> Following the death of church president [[Thomas S. Monson]] on January 2, 2018,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/obituaries/thomas-monson-dies.html|title=Thomas Monson, President of the Mormon Church, Dies at 90|first=Robert D.|last=McFadden|newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=January 3, 2018|access-date=June 4, 2021|archive-date=June 14, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190614202751/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/obituaries/thomas-monson-dies.html|url-status=live}}</ref> senior apostle Russell M. Nelson was announced as president on January 16.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/01/16/578311260/mormon-church-names-russell-m-nelson-as-new-leader|work=[[NPR]]|title=Mormon Church Names Russell M. Nelson As New Leader|date=January 16, 2018|access-date=June 4, 2021|archive-date=June 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210604070249/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/01/16/578311260/mormon-church-names-russell-m-nelson-as-new-leader|url-status=live}}</ref> ===Home and family=== {{See also|Marriage in the LDS Church|Gender minorities and the LDS Church}} The church and its members consider marriage and [[family]] highly important, with emphasis placed on large, nuclear families.<ref name =Encyclopedia.com/> In 1995, the church's First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve issued "[[The Family: A Proclamation to the World]]", which asserts the importance of a heterosexual, nuclear family. Its intended audience was not only for its own members but to "responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere". The proclamation defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman and stated that the family unit is "central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children." The document further says that "[[gender]] is an essential characteristic of individual [[Premortal life (Latter Day Saints)|premortal]], mortal, and eternal identity and purpose," that the father and mother have [[Complementarianism|differing roles]] as "equal partners" in raising children, that "children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony", and that successful marriages and happy families, are most likely established when founded upon the teachings of Jesus Christ. <ref>{{Cite book |last1=Petrey |first1=Taylor G.|author1-link=Taylor G. Petrey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e6XgDwAAQBAJ |title=The Routledge Handbook of Mormonism and Gender |last2=Hoyt |first2=Amy |date=April 30, 2020 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-351-18158-7 |pages=11, 61, 435}}</ref><ref name="Gay Rights"/>{{rp|52–54}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fletcher Stack |first=Peggy |author-link=Peggy Fletcher Stack |date=October 14, 2015 |title=After 20 years, Mormonism's family proclamation is quoted, praised, parsed and politicked |newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]] |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/mormon/2015/10/14/after-20-years-mormonisms-family-proclamation-is-quoted-praised-parsed-and-politicked/ |access-date=June 26, 2023}}</ref> The proclamation also promotes specific roles essential to maintaining the strength of the family unit—the traditional roles of a husband and father as the family's breadwinner and those of a wife and mother as a nurturing caregiver. Nonetheless, it acknowledges that "circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation" and that spouses are "obligated to help one another as equal partners" in fulfilling those roles. It's also charges both parents with the duties of childrearing. It concludes by inviting it's audience to "promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society".<ref name =Encyclopedia.com>{{cite web|publisher=[[Encyclopedia.com]]|title=Mormons|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/christianity/protestant-denominations/mormons|access-date=June 22, 2023 |date=June 8, 2018|archive-date=March 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307052950/https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/christianity/protestant-denominations/mormons|url-status=live}}</ref> Senior church leaders have continued to emphasize conservative teachings on marriage and gender to the present time.<ref>[https://www.axios.com/local/salt-lake-city/2023/10/02/mormon-general-conference-gender-marriage-eternity Mormon leaders double down on gender and marriage. Axios Salt Lake City. October 2, 2023. Accessed October 5, 2023.]</ref> LDS Church members are encouraged to set aside one evening each week, typically Monday, to spend together in "[[Family Home Evening]]" (FHE), which typically consists of gathering as a family to study the faith's gospel principles, and other family activities. Daily family prayer is also encouraged.<ref name =Encyclopedia.com/> ===Sources of doctrine=== {{See also|LDS scriptures}} [[File:Latter-day Saint Scripture Quadruple Combination.jpg|upright=.6|thumb|The written canon of the LDS Church is referred to as its ''standard works''|left]] The theology of the LDS Church consists of a combination of biblical doctrines with modern revelations and other commentary by LDS leaders, particularly Joseph Smith. The most authoritative sources of theology are the faith's canon of four religious texts, called the "[[standard works]]". Included in the standard works are the [[Bible]], the Book of Mormon, the D&C and the [[Pearl of Great Price (Mormonism)|Pearl of Great Price]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Mormonism |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |contribution-url=https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Standard_Works|contribution=Standard Works|last=Williams |first=Clyde J.|access-date=June 18, 2021|archive-date=June 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624203822/https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Standard_Works|url-status=live}}</ref> The Book of Mormon is a foundational sacred book for the church; the terms "Mormon" and "Mormonism" come from the book itself. The LDS Church teaches that the [[Angel Moroni]] told Smith about golden plates containing the record, guided him to find them buried in the [[Hill Cumorah]], and provided him the means of translating them from [[Reformed Egyptian]]. It claims to give a history of the inhabitants from a [[Nephites|now-extinct society]] living on the American continent and their distinct [[Judeo-Christian]] teachings. The Book of Mormon is very important to modern Latter-day Saints, who consider it the world's most perfect text.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/legal-and-political-magazines/book-mormon|encyclopedia=Contemporary American Religion|isbn=9780028658803 |publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale]]|via=[[Encyclopedia.com]] |access-date=April 25, 2021|first=Jana |last=Riess |author-link=Jana Riess|title=Book of Mormon|archive-date=April 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426014056/https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/legal-and-political-magazines/book-mormon|url-status=live}}</ref> The Bible, also part of the church's canon, is believed to be the word of God—subject to an acknowledgment that its translation may be incorrect, or that authoritative sections may have been lost over the centuries. Most often, the church uses the [[Authorized King James Version]].<ref name = Mason2015/> Two extended portions of the [[Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible]] have been canonized and are thus considered authoritative.{{efn|[[Joseph Smith–Matthew]] and the [[Book of Moses]], containing translations and revelatory expansions of Matthew 24 and Genesis 1–7, respectively, are contained in the [[Pearl of Great Price (Latter Day Saints)|Pearl of Great Price]].}} Additionally, over 600<ref>{{cite book|author1-link=Scott H. Faulring|author1-first=Scott H.|author1-last=Faulring|author2-link=Kent P. Jackson |author2-first=Kent P.|author2-last=Jackson| author3-link=Robert J. Matthews|author3-first=Robert J.| author3-last=Matthews| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u2RCAQAAIAAJ|title=Joseph Smith's New Translation of the Bible: Original Manuscripts |location=Provo, Utah|publisher =[[Religious Studies Center]] at [[BYU]] |date=2004 |page=39|isbn=978-1-59038-328-5 }}</ref> of the more doctrinally significant verses from the translation are included as excerpts in the current [[LDS edition of the Bible|LDS Church edition]] of the Bible.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wayment |first=Thomas A. |date=2020 |title=Joseph Smith, Adam Clarke, and the Making of a Bible Revision |journal=[[Journal of Mormon History]] |volume=46 |issue=3 |pages=1–22 |doi=10.5406/jmormhist.46.3.0001 |issn=0094-7342 |jstor=10.5406/jmormhist.46.3.0001 |s2cid=219813091 }}</ref> Other revelations from Smith are found in the D&C, and in the Pearl of Great Price.<ref name =Encyclopedia.com/> Another source of authoritative doctrine is the pronouncements of the current Apostles and members of the First Presidency. The church teaches that the First Presidency and the Quorum of Twelve Apostles are prophets<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Brent |date=March 18, 2022 |title=The Word — The foundation of apostles and prophets |url=https://www.farmvilleherald.com/2022/03/the-word-the-foundation-of-apostles-and-prophets/ |access-date=June 26, 2023 |newspaper=[[The Farmville Herald]] |location=Farmville, Virginia}}</ref> and that they are therefore authorized teachers of God's word.<ref>{{cite book|author-link=John A. Widtsoe|last=Widtsoe|first=John A.|date=1960|title=Evidences and Reconciliations|location=Salt Lake City|publisher=[[Bookcraft]]|pages=256–58|url=https://archive.org/details/evidencesreconci03widt |url-access=registration|via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref> In addition to doctrine given by the church as a whole, individual members of the church believe that they can also receive [[Revelation (Latter Day Saints)#Personal revelation|personal revelation]] from God in conducting their lives,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |contribution-url= https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/EoM/id/4134 |contribution= Revelation |first= Chauncey C. |last= Riddle |pages= 1226–1227 |editor1-last= Ludlow |editor1-first= Daniel H |editor1-link= Daniel H. Ludlow |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |location= New York |publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers]] |year= 1992 |isbn= 0-02-879602-0 |oclc= 24502140 |title-link= Encyclopedia of Mormonism |access-date= June 23, 2023 }}</ref> and in revealing truth to them, especially about spiritual matters. Generally, this is said to occur through thoughts and feelings from the [[Holy Ghost]], in response to [[prayer]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mould |first=Tom |date=2009 |title=Narratives of Personal Revelation Among Latter-day Saints |volume=68 |pages=435–439 |journal=[[Western Folklore]] |issue=4 |jstor=25735256 |issn=0043-373X}}</ref> Similarly, the church teaches its members may receive individual guidance and counsel from God through blessings from priesthood holders. In particular, [[patriarchal blessing]]s are considered special blessings that are received only once in the recipient's life, which are recorded, transcribed, and archived.<ref name=Idiots/>{{rp|239}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page