Mormonisn- a brief history Pt.1

Introduction

You may ask why bother looking at a cult like the Mormons in the first place?

There are some obvious answers. Firstly such cults as Mormonism promote falsehood and error that enslave millions and will ultimately fail them, leaving them to face a lost eternity. I am reminded of the Lord’s words regarding the work of the Pharisees “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte and when he is won you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. Matt 23.15.

I believe it is also important to study such a subject because it can serve us as a solemn warning. Many of these cults were founded by individuals who came from orthodox backgrounds. Why did they ditch truth for error? Is there ever a risk that we could do the same? What are the signs of such a drift? There are even today groups of evangelicals that have centred themselves around a powerful and dominating personality or have put an unhealthy and unbiblical emphasis on a particular practice or custom. An American colleague of mine once described American fundamentalists as “orthodoxy with a cult mentality”. So I don’t want us to sit on the sidelines pointing fingers at the Mormons and shaking our heads thinking ‘Oh how ridiculous that any one would believe such things’ We need to remind ourselves that but for the grace of God we might well have been sucked up into a false religion or a cult.

Mormonism a formidable force

For something we know so little about we need to wake up and realise that in Mormonism we face a formidable and powerful organization.

There are 9 million Mormons worldwide

Over 300 congregations in the UK, 180,00 members with a strong presence in the north of England

50,000 missionaries 75% of whom are male

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (That is the name by which they wish to be known by and later we shall see why) has assets in excess of $30 billion its annual gross income is in the region of $6 billion, that is more money than the State of Utah generates in a year.

They are a powerful presence in the corporate world. They own Americas largest producer of nuts, a huge media corporation ‘Bonneville International, also the worlds largest beef ranch and citrus plantation ‘Deseret Cattle and Citrus Ranch’ outside Orlando, Florida; sitting on 312,000 acres and worth $850 million.

Mormonism places a strong emphasis on education and unlike other cults that target the gullible Mormonism is interested in capturing the educated and extending its influence through such individuals.

The LDS has experienced rapid growth in third world countries and in poorer parts of Europe fueled in part by their offering to converts of scholarships to study in the United States. One particular unlikely country that has seen a very large Mormon presence is Mongolia where the ‘education bait’ has proven very successful for them.

Joseph Smith and his history next