An Introduction to the Mormons, also Known as Latter-day Saints

Joseph Smith founded the Mormons other wise know as Latter-day Saints in 1830 at Fayette, N.Y. Joseph Smith was born in 1805 and died in 1844. As a child he went through many hardships and poverty on a rough frontier. He had documented later in his life that he had seen visions when he was a child of the existence of secret records. In 1827 the records were revealed to him. A couple of authors came together and transcribed the records. In 1829 the book of Mormons was published. 

More revelations led him to find a new religion and then founded the church of Later-day Saints. His neighbors in Fayette, N.Y forced him to move the head quarters to Kirtland, Ohio. In Kirtland he embarked on extensive affairs with the help of Sidney Rigdon and others. They had to mover further west to Missouri due to The panic of 1837. There were problems in Missouri and they moved again to Illinois. In Illinois things were looking good and he published a newspaper called Expositor which he got criticized severely for. In the newspaper he put down non-Mormons this is the reason people attacked him. In 1844 he announced himself as candidate for the presidency of the United States. Him and his brother were arrested for treason and conspiracy.

In jail they were murdered by a mob on June 24, 1844. After his death the Later-day Saints under Brigham Young moved to Salt Lake City. After many hardships the pioneers were ready to harvest their spring crops. Frost killed some of the crops and a drought killed more of them. Then crickets came and began eating everything that was left. The pioneers did everything they could think of to fight the insects. Some people tried to scare the crickets away by making loud noises; others tried to shake them off the crops.

Some chased the crickets into piles of straw and lit them on fire and some chased the crickets into ditches filled with water to drown them. No matter what the pioneers did the crickets kept coming. They were everywhere. The pioneers were very worried. If the crickets ate all the crops the people would have nothing to eat and would die from starvation. For two weeks the people fought the crickets and prayed for the Heavenly Father to help them.

Susan Noble Grant, who was a young girl, described what had happened. We were fearfully alarmed, for all of a sudden, circling above our fields, appeared great flocks of screaming gulls. A new plague is descending upon us, was our first thought. Down the gray and white birds swooped in hundreds, then in thousands, uttering shrill cries as they pounced upon [the crickets]. Then a strange thing happened. As soon as they had gorged themselves, they sailed over to a nearby stream, took a few sips of water, disgorged [vomited] and returned to join their screaming companions. All our people stood in wonderment! Our prayers were answered (quoted in Grant, p. 446). They ate crickets until all the crickets were gone. They were grateful that their crops and their lives had been spared.

Their beliefs are based on The Articles of Faith, which are the following:

1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.
3. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
4. We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.
5. We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances there of.
6. We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.
7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.
8. We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.
9. We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.
11. We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.
12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of PaulWe believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.

The Mormons are Christians. They basically believe in the bible as Christians do but also have the Book of Mormon. Many Christian religions think they dont believe in the Bible but they do. There are over 5 million Mormons in the United States as of 1997.