LDS Mormons No More

drstevej

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President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Thursday afternoon regarding the name of the church:

"The Lord has impressed upon my mind the importance of the name He has revealed for His Church, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We have work before us to bring ourselves in harmony with his will. In recent weeks, various Church leaders and departments have initiated the necessary steps to do so. Additional information about this important matter will be made available in the coming months."

https://www.deseretnews.com/article...elines-dropping-term-mormon-in-most-uses.html

====

So, why wasn't this done years ago?
 
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Anto9us

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"please avoid using the abbreviation "LDS" or the nickname "Mormon" as substitutes for the name of the Church, as in "Mormon Church," "LDS Church," or "Church of the Latter-day Saints."

When referring to Church members, the terms "members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" or "Latter-day Saints" are preferred. We ask that the term "Mormons" not be used.

"Mormon" is correctly used in proper names such as the Book of Mormon or when used as an adjective in such historical expressions as "Mormon Trail."

"The term "Mormonism" is inaccurate and should not be used. When describing the combination of doctrine, culture and lifestyle unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the term "the restored gospel of Jesus Christ" is accurate and preferred."


I think that "members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" who post here at CF are in a little bind in that 'Mormon' under their avatars and thread tags such as LDS will no longer be kosher.

Mormon as an adjective like Mormon Tabernacle Choir seems like it will be left okay.
 
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dzheremi

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It's a good thing I don't have to abide by what the Mormon religion and its leaders would prefer.

Also, not for nothing, they've tried this before in their effort to present their religion as a sect of mainstream Christianity. It didn't really work, hence their renewed campaign to own "Mormonism" (in quotes because the point was the name itself) with their "I'm A Mormon" campaign (which has similarities with campaigns run to improve the PR standing of other maligned religions such as Scientology and Islam). I wonder if this is a roundabout admission that that campaign didn't work either, so they're going back to their "Don't call us Mormons" stance from the 1980s, as described in the first link and present in much of their advertising that emphasizes that "Christ" is in the proper name of their religious organization (because apparently people are idiots and must think that if it has the name "Christ" in it, it must be Christian? It's kinda hard to imagine Mormon leaders thinking otherwise, what with how much they insist upon this naming issue as though it matters at all given what Mormons actually believe, according to their own sources).
 
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SkyWriting

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President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Thursday afternoon regarding the name of the church:

"The Lord has impressed upon my mind the importance of the name He has revealed for His Church, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We have work before us to bring ourselves in harmony with his will. In recent weeks, various Church leaders and departments have initiated the necessary steps to do so. Additional information about this important matter will be made available in the coming months."

https://www.deseretnews.com/article...elines-dropping-term-mormon-in-most-uses.html

====

So, why wasn't this done years ago?

God is consistent, and man is usually behind the 8 ball.
 
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JIMINZ

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So will they in the future be known as.

The Church formerly known as The church of Latter Day Saints, The Mormons,
the same way that Prince was The Artist formerly known as Prince?

So confusing, :scratch: :doh:
 
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ArmenianJohn

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So, why wasn't this done years ago?
Because the Lord did not impress upon the minds of other presidents the importance of the name he has revealed for his one true church. DUH!
 
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Rescued One

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Oh, goody.

SMILEY DUH.jpg
 
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Rescued One

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Why did Joseph Smith start (restore?) a church that had no revealed name?

"18 My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be able to speak, than I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it had never entered into my heart that all were wrong)—and which I should join."
https://www.lds.org/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1?lang=eng



It was the sixth day of April in the year of our Lord 1830...

Early in April 1830 the young prophet received the revelation that has become section 20 of the book called the Doctrine and Covenants. It is often referred to as a “revelation on Church organization and government.” Of this, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “We obtained of him [Jesus Christ] the following, by the spirit of prophecy and revelation; which not only gave us much information, but also pointed out to us the precise day upon which, according to his will and commandment, we should proceed to organize his Church once more here upon the earth.”

The first verse of the revelation reads: “The rise of the Church of Christ in these last days, being one thousand eight hundred and thirty years since the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh, it being regularly organized and established agreeable to the laws of our country, by the will and commandments of God, in the fourth month, and on the sixth day of the month which is called April.” [D&C 20:1]
https://www.lds.org/ensign/1971/01/april-6-1830-the-day-the-church-was-organized?lang=eng

The LDS Church traces its founding to April 6, 1830, when Joseph Smith and five other men formally established the Church of Christ.[1][2] The church was known by this name from 1830 to 1834.[3][4]

In the 1830s, the fact that a number of U.S. churches, including some Congregational churches and Restoration Movement churches, also used the name "Church of Christ" caused a considerable degree of confusion.[4] In May 1834, the church adopted a resolution that the church would be known thereafter as "The Church of the Latter Day Saints".[4][5] At various times the church was also referred to as "The Church of Jesus Christ",[6] "The Church of God",[6] and "The Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints".[3][4]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints
 
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dzheremi

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That sounds terrible. Mormon is kinda catchy (though it's a bit too close to Moron for my personal taste). Cojcols sounds like some kind of weird medical name for an obscure organ or something. "I'm sorry, Mr. Smith. This inflammation in your Cojcols is not a good sign. It'll (they'll?) have to come out."

Also, if you put Cojcols into Google, the third result is an ex-Mormon atheist's blog (the first two are hashtags on instagram and twitter). That's not a good sign. Why not just stick with Mormon? People know what that is, even if they don't have much good to say about the group.
 
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Ironhold

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President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Thursday afternoon regarding the name of the church:

"The Lord has impressed upon my mind the importance of the name He has revealed for His Church, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We have work before us to bring ourselves in harmony with his will. In recent weeks, various Church leaders and departments have initiated the necessary steps to do so. Additional information about this important matter will be made available in the coming months."

https://www.deseretnews.com/article...elines-dropping-term-mormon-in-most-uses.html

====

So, why wasn't this done years ago?


IMHO?

Within the past generation or so we've had a surge in media outlets afflicted with people who had no business in a news room.

One effect of this is that the Associated Press' official style guide notice that reporters need to specify which denomination is being referred to ASAP is constantly being ignored. A few years back we *literally* had a rather stand-out piece by the infamously incompetent AP News reporter Brady McCombs wherein the term "Mormon" was used top-to-bottom; not once did McCombs specify which group, main body or off-shoot (it was an off-shoot), was actually being discussed. That's how badly reporters from even reputable outlets have been botching things.

Given this, I can see why the church leadership is finally having to come out and take a major stance like this.



Yes, McCombs playing in the majors while I'm in the minors does make me want to scream...
 
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drstevej

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This Brady McCombs?

Use church's full name, president says
By Brady McCombs
arkansasonline.com — SALT LAKE CITY -- The faith has the famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir, recently made a documentary about its members called Meet the Mormons, and uses "Mormon" in its official website addresses. But on Thursday, Mormon church President Russell Nelson said he wants people to stop using "Mormon," or "LDS" as substitutes for the full name of the religion: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
 
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Ironhold

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This Brady McCombs?

https://apnews.com/27dfd26230124d6ba2f15162d593f005/role-blacks-mormon-faith-topic-conference

This is one of the more infamous pieces, straight from the AP News website.

We see "Mormon" and "Utah-based", but at no point does McCombs use the church's full name. The closest we get is "LDS Church" near the end of the piece. An average person could be forgiven for having to guess just which body (main body or an offshoot) was being referred to here.

There's another one from the same period talking about an offshoot group that was (IIRC) opening up its own vineyard and winery; you had to read through most of the full-length piece (which was abridged for space by some newspapers) just to see which group was being discussed since, once again, only the term "Mormon" was used throughout the bulk of the work.
 
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Ironhold

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Mormon works for me. Why should the AP take orders from the Mormon President?

Imagine if the AP let through an article talking about a celebrity's charitable efforts without once naming the celebrity in question. They talk about how the celebrity was from humble origins, use the pronoun "he", and mention the number of Oscars the person won. At no point is the celebrity's name used.

Would you be able to tell which celebrity the article was about without actually having to hit up IMDB or another resource?

That's basically what McCombs and other reporters are doing when they use "Mormon" exclusively or almost exclusively instead of clearly specifying whether they're talking about the main body or any of the various off-shoot groups. It's bad form, and does the readers a disservice by not making things clear.
 
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President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Thursday afternoon regarding the name of the church:

"The Lord has impressed upon my mind the importance of the name He has revealed for His Church, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We have work before us to bring ourselves in harmony with his will. In recent weeks, various Church leaders and departments have initiated the necessary steps to do so. Additional information about this important matter will be made available in the coming months."

https://www.deseretnews.com/article...elines-dropping-term-mormon-in-most-uses.html

====

So, why wasn't this done years ago?

I can understand the decision to do this because Nelson is right that "Mormon' and sometimes "LDS" carries a negative connotation for many. I wish him luck though I doubt he will be successful in this generation of stamping out the term 'Mormon" or "LDS" to identify his denomination. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is long, tedious, and time consuming to say or type out in text, etc. I suspect most will continue using the convenient abbreviated terms.

It's sort of like The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) that has the similar problem without all the issues of being 'different'. Who wants to say all that or type it out in text? So its advocates just identify themselves as "Christians" or more commonly "Disciples" or "Disciples of Christ" or "DOC" which can be confusing to those not familiar with that denomination.

We can envy a bit the Presbyterians, Methodists, Episcopalians, Nazarines, etc. who don't have that problem. :)
 
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