Names of the Church
This is an examination of Apostasy and the many break away groups. Source material was originally on the bordeglobal.com/foruminv/index.php?showforum=120 site.
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Many Mormon Churches It is not our purpose to look into any of these factions except the three largest, namely: 1. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS, Mormon, Utah Mormons, Salt Lake City Mormons, Brighamites - estimated membership, ca. 10 million, of whom more than half are inactive) 2. The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS, Saints' Church, Missouri Mormons, Independence Mormons, Josephites - estimated membership, ca. 250,000); and 3. Fundamentalist (Polygamous) Mormons, who, though forming nuclei around different leaders, all claim to be the "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" (estimated membership, ca. 60,000). We shall mostly be referring to these in our discussion, and occasionally some of the other more interesting factions that provide interesting snap-shots of different stages of Mormon crystalisation. Another little know fact amongst Mormons and non-Mormons is that the Mormon Church has evolved considerbly in doctrine, practice and name. This will explain in part why many of the factions have different sounding names. During the lifetime of the Church established by Joseph Smith (1830-1844), it changed names at least four times: 1. Church of Christ; 2. Church of the Latter-day Saints; 3. Church of Christ of Latter-day Saints; 4. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; and 5. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This should be remembered in later discussions where the correct name of Christ's true church is considered important in establishing a signpost of its claimed divine authority. The known Mormon denominations are listed below (many of them have identical names based on their claims to authority): Aaronic Order (Eskdale, Utah) Akihito (Toyko, Japan) Apostolic United Brethren (Bluffdale, Utah) Christ's Church (Albuquerque, New Mexico) Church of Christ (Oak Grove, Missouri) Church of Christ (Independence, Missouri) Church of Christ (Holden, Missouri) Church of Christ (Elijah Message) (Greenwood, Missouri) Church of Christ (Restored) (Morton, Mississippi) Church of Christ "Restored" (Independence, Missouri) Church of Christ, Restored (Oak Grove, Missouri) Church of Christ (Temple Lot) (Independence, Missouri) Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Established Anew in 1929 (Independence, Missouri) Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Inc. (Blue Springs, Missouri) Church of Christ - His Zion's Remnant (Independence, Missouri) Church of Israel (Schell City, Missouri) Church of Jesus Christ (Monongahela, Pennsylvania) Church of Jesus Christ (Independence, Missouri) Church of Jesus Christ (Omaha, Nebraska) Church of Jesus Christ (Calexico, California) Church of Jesus Christ in Solemn Assembly (Big Water, Utah) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Great Lakes Mormons - Strang) (Burlington, Wisconsin) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) (Burlington, Wisconsin) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Fundmentalists (Cauvin, Canada) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Order of Enoch (Golden, Colorado) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Salt Lake City, Utah) Church of Jesus Christ of Restoration Latter Day Saints (Lees Summit, Missouri) Church of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God (Independence, Missouri) Church of Jesus Christ, Zion's Branch (Independence, Missouri) Church of the Firstborn (Ontario, Canada) Church of the Firstborn of the Fullness of Times (Chihuahua, Mexico) Church of the Firstborn of the Fullness of Times (Baja California Norte, Mexico) Church of Christ, The Firstborn of the Fullness of Times (El Paso, Texas) Church of the New Covenant5 in Christ (Willamina, Oregon) Committee for Unity (Ozark, Missouri) Conference of Restoration Elders (Independence, Missouri) Davis County Co-op Society/Latter-day Church of Christ (Kingston's) (Bountiful, Utah) Dunlap, Wayne Group (Independence, Missouri) El Reino de Dios en su Plenitud (Ozumba, Mexico) Essene Community (Lamoni, Iowa) Evangelism Council (Independence, Missouri) Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Sandy, Utah) Israel's Gathering/Ephraim's Group (Buckner, Missouri) La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de la Plenitud de los Tiempos (Puebla, Mixico) Patriarchal Church of Jonathan, the House of the Lord (West Jordan, Utah) Peyote Way Church of God (Klondyke, Arizona) Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Conference of Restoration Elders) Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Independence, Missouri) Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Independence, Missouri) Restoration Church of Jesus Christ (Salt Lake City, Utah) Restoration Fellowship in Jesus Christ (San Diego, California) Restoration of the Covenant Ministries (Independence, Missouri) Restored Church of Jesus Christ (Independence, Missouri) Restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - Strangite/ Melchizedek Priesthood (Ontaria, Canada) School of the Prophets (Salem, Utah) Sons Aumen Israel (Canebeds, Arizona) True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days (Manti, Utah) True Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Los Angeles, California) Work, The (Colordado City, Arizona) World Church of Jesus Christ (Independence, Missouri) Zion's Order, Inc. (Mansfield, Missouri) |
Wow I had no idea that there were so many break away groups from the original church.
If you think about it, it kind of makes since. If you consider the early church before the apostasy all were of one mind. Then people decided that they knew better then the Apostles and Prophets so people decided to leave the church and teach their own doctrine. It would be no different nowadays, I knew that the number of the apostate groups were large but I had no idea there was so many.
LDS or Mormon? It depends
Church prefers full name but is accepting more Mormon uses. And most of those headlines have used neither the church's formal name nor the shorter "LDS Church." Rather, they display in big, bold letters the nickname/title "Mormon." Ref. Source 5