Church of Christ With the Elijah Message

Last updated
The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message
Church of Christ with the Elijah Message.jpg
Church of Christ "With the Elijah Message" meetinghouse in Independence, Missouri
Classification Latter Day Saint movement
OrientationLatter Day Saints
Polity Church conference
ModeratorNone; all members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles are equal
RegionUnited States
FounderWilliam Draves
Origin1943
Separated from Church of Christ (Fettingite)
Separations Church of Christ with the Elijah Message - The Assured Way of the Lord, Inc.  ; Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Inc. ; Church of Christ - "The Church with the Elijah Message" - Established anew in 1929, Inc.
Membersc. 12,500 worldwide as of 1987 [1] [2]

The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message is the name of three related church groups and a denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement, headquartered in Independence, Missouri. It split from the Church of Christ (informally referred to as the "Fettingites") in 1943 in a dispute over claimed revelations given to its founder William A. Draves. Draves, an elder in the Fettingite group, claimed to be receiving messages from an angelic being who identified himself as John the Baptist—the same person who had allegedly appeared to Fettingite founder Otto Fetting, a former apostle of the Temple Lot Church of Christ. While many Fettingites accepted these new missives, some did not, leading Draves to form his own church. His adherents claim it to be the sole legitimate continuation of Fetting's organization, as well as that of the Temple Lot church. As of 1987, the church had approximately 12,500 adherents spread between Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Americas. [3]

Contents

Origin of name

The church's name originates in the alleged visitations of John the Baptist to Otto Fetting and William Draves. In the Gospel of Matthew 11:14, Jesus Christ identifies John with the prophet Elijah in the Book of Malachi; hence the use of "Elijah Message". Malachi 4:5-6 says: "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And He shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the land with a curse". [4] Members believe that the purported visits of this "messenger" fulfill Malachi's prophecy, as well as others found in Revelation 14:6, Malachi 3:1, Deuteronomy 18:15-19, and Daniel 7:9-10. [5]

History

Otto Fetting

Otto Fetting in 1916 PastorOttoFetting1916 cropped.jpg
Otto Fetting in 1916

Otto Fetting was born on 20 November 1871 in Casco, St. Clair County, Michigan. Making his home in Port Huron, Michigan, he was baptised into the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on February 9, 1891, and ordained to its priesthood in 1899. In 1925, dismayed by the "Supreme Directional Control" controversy within the RLDS church, Fetting switched his allegiance to the Temple Lot Church of Christ (also informally known as "Hedrickites"). At the time, this did not require rebaptism or reordination, as each group accepted the priesthood and sacraments of the other. In the spring of 1926, he was among seven men ordained to be Apostles in the Church of Christ.

On February 4 of 1927, Otto Fetting claimed that he had been visited by John the Baptist, who had delivered a message [6] for him to relay to the Temple Lot organization. This missive directed the construction of the long-awaited Temple in Independence, Missouri, first foretold by Latter Day Saint founder Joseph Smith in 1831. The Temple Lot church had a long history of direction via revelation and angelic visits and thus was originally receptive to these alleged visits of the Biblical prophet, publishing Fetting's messages in their monthly periodical Zion's Advocate. They also began work on the temple with a groundbreaking ceremony held on 6 April 1929. According to Fetting, the Hedrickites were given seven years to complete the structure.

Fetting's messenger revealed various architectural details for the building and specifically directed surveyors to move their markers ten feet to the east of where they had originally been placed. The angel also revealed the location of two of Joseph Smith's original marker stones, which Smith had buried 98 years before to indicate the location for his planned temple. Another revelation indicated that the "Articles of Faith and Practice" of the Temple Lot church were correct, and should not be changed from their original form. On other occasions, the messenger indicated particular men to be ordained within the organization, including to its Quorum of Twelve Apostles.

Trouble on the Temple Lot

Although the Temple Lot organization had enthusiastically accepted the first eleven of Fetting's messages, this would not hold true for the twelfth. In verse four of this missive, John the Baptist states that all persons coming into the Church of Christ must be rebaptized, as "the Lord has rejected all creeds and factions of men". While this reflects the practice of the majority of Latter Day Saint denominations (including the Temple Lot church itself, today), it did not reflect the policy of the Temple Lot church at the time, which accepted members during this period from the Reorganized church, certain other Latter Day Saint organizations, and Joseph Smith's pre-1844 church on their original baptisms. This message equally declared Fetting to have been given the same "keys to the priesthood" that were given to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on May 15, 1829.

Controversy over the meaning and application of Fetting's twelfth message became so great that Fetting himself was "silenced" in October 1929 by the Temple Lot organization. Choosing to withdraw rather than continue under such a restriction, Fetting led approximately half of the Church of Christ members (including some of its apostles) to found a "Church of Christ" of his own, which became known as the Church of Christ (Fettingite). Since the main Temple Lot organization retained possession of the Temple Lot and its meetinghouse, Fetting's organization met in members' homes for a considerable period prior to building their own worship facilities.

Fetting would claim to be visited a total of 30 times by the messenger prior to his death on 30 January 1933.

William A. Draves

William A. Draves W. A. Draves.jpg
William A. Draves

Four years after Fetting's death, a young Fettingite elder named William A. Draves from Nucla, Colorado claimed that the same messenger who had appeared to Fetting had begun to appear to him, as well. While the Fettingite organization was initially receptive to these new missives, it ultimately decided to reject them all, leading to a split in the Fettingite organization in 1943. Draves' adherents formed the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, which claims to be the sole legitimate continuance of Fetting's original organization. Draves himself announced a total of 90 messages prior to his death in 1994, which were combined with Fetting's into a book entitled The Word of the Lord Brought to Mankind by an Angel . Fetting's organization publishes its own compendium, simply entitled The Word of the Lord , which contains only Fetting's original 30 messages.

Prior to W.A. Draves's death in 1994 the final three messages he had recorded reflected leadership disputes within The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message. [7] These led to a division causing Apostles W.A. Draves, Leonard Draves and Mervyn Johnson to be blocked from church property by way of a restraining order. [8] After a short legal battle, a failure to reconcile, and the death of W.A. Draves, six of the twelve leading Apostles decided to reincorporate the Church under the name The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Inc. in August 1994. [9] This new organization would go on to become the Church of Christ With the Elijah Message, The Assured Way of the Lord, Inc. The remaining five Apostles, including those who filed the above restraining order, retained the corporate name "The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Established Anew 1929" and all properties including the headquarters building at 608 Lacy Rd. Independence, Missouri.

Doctrine and practices

Other than their acceptance of Fetting's 30 messages and the 90 offered by William Draves, the beliefs and practices of the Elijah Message organization are virtually identical to those of the Church of Christ (Temple Lot). In common with the Temple Lot church, the Elijah Message church rejects the office of President of the Church, being led instead by their Quorum of Twelve Apostles; all members of that quorum are considered equal.

Also, like their Temple Lot cousins, the church rejects the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price, as well as Joseph Smith's Inspired Version of the Bible, preferring to use only the King James Bible and the Record of the Nephites (their name for the Book of Mormon) as standards. They also await an as-yet-unrevealed work of scripture which the Messenger was alleged to have shown to Draves in 1946. Baptism for the Dead, eternal marriage, polygamy and the eternal progression doctrine are all rejected. Members of the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message still believe that a temple will be reared on the Temple Lot, but it will not be like any of the LDS or Community of Christ temples currently in use.

In verse 6 of his twelfth message, Otto Fetting quoted John the Baptist as saying that Joseph Smith had indeed been a true prophet, but that he "sinned before God" due to "pride, and the love and praise of men". "Much of his work has been destroyed", wrote Fetting, "but he will be saved as by fire, and will be numbered with the prophets of old". Accordingly, the Elijah Message church respects Joseph Smith as a prophet but does not necessarily accept all of his teachings. In verse 1 of his first message, Fetting's heavenly envoy commanded that the "Articles of Faith and Practice" of the Temple Lot organization (of which Fetting was then still an apostle) were to remain unchanged, "because the Lord inspired the men that wrote them". Hence, these remain the same in the Elijah Message organization, as well as within all Fettingite sects.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Standard works</span> Scriptural canon of the LDS Church

The Standard Works of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon. The four books of the standard works are:

In the Latter Day Saint movement, the President of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It was the office held by Joseph Smith, founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed successors, such as Brigham Young, Joseph Smith III, Sidney Rigdon, and James Strang. Several other titles have been associated with this office, including First Elder of the church, Presiding High Priest, President of the High Priesthood, Trustee-in-Trust for the church, Prophet, Seer, Revelator, and Translator. Joseph Smith was known by all of these titles in his lifetime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Temple Lot)</span> Latter Day Saint movement denomination

The Church of Christ, informally called Hedrickites and the Church of Christ (Temple Lot), is a denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement headquartered in Independence, Missouri, on what is known as the Temple Lot. The nickname for members of the church comes from the surname of Granville Hedrick, who was ordained as the church's leader in July 1863. Unlike the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and Community of Christ, the Temple Lot church rejects the office of prophet or president, being instead led by its Quorum of Twelve Apostles. The church also rejects the doctrines of baptism for the dead and celestial marriage promulgated by the Utah-based LDS Church, as well as the Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price. While once avidly engaged in dialogue with other Latter Day Saint factions, the church no longer has any official contact with any other organization. It is notable for its sole ownership of the Temple Lot, which it has held for nearly 150 years. As of 2013, membership is 7,310 members in 11 countries. Most of the members live in the United States, but there are parishes in Canada, Mexico, Honduras, Nigeria, Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, India, Ethiopia, and the Philippines.

Church of Christ may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)</span> Original name of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith in the 1820s

The Church of Christ was the original name of the Latter Day Saint church founded by Joseph Smith. Organized informally in 1829 in Upstate New York and then formally on April 6, 1830, it was the first organization to implement the principles found in Smith's newly published Book of Mormon, and thus its establishment represents the formal beginning of the Latter Day Saint movement. Later names for this organization included the Church of the Latter Day Saints, the Church of Jesus Christ, the Church of God, the Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Latter Day Saint movement</span> History of the LDS movement

The Latter Day Saint movement is a religious movement within Christianity that arose during the Second Great Awakening in the early 19th century and that led to the set of doctrines, practices, and cultures called Mormonism, and to the existence of numerous Latter Day Saint churches. Its history is characterized by intense controversy and persecution in reaction to some of the movement's doctrines and practices and their relationship to mainstream Christianity. The purpose of this article is to give an overview of the different groups, beliefs, and denominations that began with the influence of Joseph Smith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otto Fetting</span> American Latter Day Saints pastor (1871–1933)

Otto Fetting was an American realtor and editor from Port Huron, Michigan who served first as a pastor and evangelist in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and then later as an apostle in the Church of Christ, commonly referred to as the "Hedrickites". Fetting claimed to have been visited by John the Baptist thirty or more times between February 4, 1927 and his death on January 30, 1933. Fetting was reportedly given instruction concerning the doctrine and practices of Hedrickites and other factions of Christianity, together with directives to begin construction of a temple on the Temple Lot, including its exact dimensions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Israel A. Smith</span> Leader in the Latter Day Saint movement (1876–1958)

Israel Alexander Smith was the fourth son of Joseph Smith III and a grandson of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Israel A. Smith succeeded his brother, Frederick M. Smith, as Prophet-President of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on April 9, 1946.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temple (Latter Day Saints)</span> Places of worship in the Latter Day Saint movement

In the Latter Day Saint movement, a temple is a building dedicated to being a house of God and is reserved for special forms of worship. A temple differs from a church meetinghouse, which is used for weekly worship services. Temples have been a significant part of the Latter Day Saint movement since early in its inception. Today, temples are operated by several Latter Day Saint denominations. The most prolific builder of temples of the Latter Day Saint movement is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The LDS Church has 335 temples in various phases, which includes 188 dedicated temples, 53 under construction, and 94 others announced. Several others within the movement have built or attempted to build temples. The Community of Christ operates two temples in the United States, which are open to the public and are used for worship services, performances, and religious education. Other denominations with temples are the Apostolic United Brethren, the Church of Christ, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Articles of Faith (Latter Day Saints)</span> Concise creed of the LDS church

Within the Latter Day Saint movement, the "Articles of Faith" is a statement of beliefs composed by Joseph Smith as part of an 1842 letter sent to "Long" John Wentworth, editor of the Chicago Democrat, and first published in the Latter Day Saint newspaper Times and Seasons. It is a concise listing of thirteen fundamental doctrines of Mormonism. Most Latter Day Saint denominations view the articles as an authoritative statement of basic theology. Some denominations, such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have adopted the articles as scripture. For some sects, the Articles of Faith are known collectively as "An Epitome of Faith and Doctrine".

Granville Hedrick was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement after the 1844 succession crisis. In 1863, Hedrick became the founding leader of the Church of Christ, which is one of many churches that claim to be a continuation of the Church of Christ founded by Joseph Smith in 1830.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temple Lot</span> First Latter Day Saints temple location

The Temple Lot, located in Independence, Missouri, is the first site to be dedicated for the construction of a temple in the Latter Day Saint movement. The area was dedicated on August 3, 1831, by the movement's founder, Joseph Smith. It was purchased on December 19, 1831, by Edward Partridge to be the center of the New Jerusalem or "City of Zion" after Smith said he received a revelation stating that it would be the gathering spot of the Latter Day Saints during the last days.

Church of Christ at Halley's Bluff is a small denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement. It was formed in 1932 by former members of the Church of Christ, and in 1972 it lost most of its members to the leadership of Dan Gayman, who left the church and established the Church of Israel.

The Word of the Lord refers to one of two books which are part of the scriptural canon for some denominations in the Latter Day Saint movement. The first book, simply entitled The Word of the Lord, is used by members of the Church of Christ (Fettingite), the Church of Christ at Halley's Bluff and the Church of Christ (Restored). The second, called The Word of the Lord Brought to Mankind by an Angel, is accepted only by the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, and churches derived from it, such as the Church of Christ. Both of these texts contain revelations allegedly given to former Church of Christ Apostle Otto Fetting by an angelic being who claimed to be John the Baptist. The latter title also contains revelations purportedly given to William A. Draves by this same being, after Fetting's death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Fettingite)</span>

The Church of Christ, informally referred to as the Fettingites, is a denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement which split from the Church of Christ—informally known as "Hedrickites"— in late 1929. The faction was formally established on April 8, 1930, and an Associated Press report published in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times April 7, 1930, describes it as having been briefly named "The Church of Jesus Christ" and later, the "Church of Christ". It is informally referred to as the "Church of Christ (Fettingite)", after its founder, Otto Fetting, but this sect has never officially been named as such. Otto Fetting, an Apostle in the Church of Christ, was the alleged recipient of a series of messages delivered by John the Baptist concerning construction of a temple on the Temple Lot, along with other aspects of Hedrickite doctrine and practice. The rejection of his "Twelfth Message" by a majority vote of his fellow Apostles in October 1929 led to a split in the Temple Lot organization between those who rejected Fetting's messages and those who accepted them. The "Fettingites" subsequently established their own church organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Restored)</span>

The Church of Christ (Restored) is a denomination within the Latter Day Saint movement that split from the Church of Christ (Fettingite) in the late 1930s under the leadership of Elder A. C. DeWolf. This schism was provoked by a difference in opinion regarding a series of claimed "messages" received by William Draves, an elder in that church, following the death of founder Otto Fetting. Whereas the main Fettingite church initially chose to grant cautious acceptance to these missives, several Fettingite branches in Louisiana and Mississippi did not, and split from the main organization to form the Church of Christ (Restored). Even after the main Fettingite church chose to reject Draves and his messages in 1943 (leading Draves to leave and found his own sect, the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message), the DeWolf faction refused to reconcile with the main body, considering itself to be the sole legitimate continuation of the Fettingite church, and the only true church on earth today. Its membership is currently concentrated mostly in the American South, and stands at about 450 members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Christ (Assured Way)</span>

The Church of Christ with the Elijah Message - The Assured Way of the Lord, Inc., informally called The Assured Way, is a denomination of the Latter Day Saint movement based in Independence, Missouri. The Assured Way church is one of four groups that trace their origin to the church founded by William Draves in 1943, after his split with Otto Fetting, who had founded the Church of Christ. Although all four churches have similar names and nearly identical doctrines, they are not in communion and maintain separate legal organizations. The Assured Way church was legally incorporated by William Draves' son, Leonard Draves in 2004, six months after Leonard was removed from the ministry by other leaders of the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Inc. Leonard Draves had previously founded the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Inc., after breaking with the Church of Christ with the Elijah Message, Established Anew 1929.

References

  1. Melton, J. Gordon (1996). Encyclopedia of American Religions. Gale Research. p. 576. ISBN   9780810377141.
  2. Campbell, Craig S. (2004). Images of the New Jerusalem: Latter Day Saint faction interpretations of Independence, Missouri. Univ. of Tennessee Press. p. 255. ISBN   9781572333123.
  3. Adherents.com website
  4. Prophecyspeaks.com. Retrieved January 29, 2008. King James Version.
  5. "Great Awakening -- Tract".
  6. "Message 1 -- Church of Christ with the Elijah Message".
  7. The Journal of Latter Day Saint History, Volumes 8-13, S.L. Shields, 1995, p. 17.
  8. Missouri Case.net Case Number Search, Case Number 16CV94-08163 - THE CHURCH OF CHRIST V WILLIAM DRAVES ET AL
  9. Missouri Secretary of State Business Entity Search, Non-Profit Corporation, Domestic, Charter No. N00050582